Small Talk: The Welcome Mat

[Netfoot]

I am a bad daddy.

Today, after about an hour of constantly fighting off savage biting attacks, I lost it. I picked Mo up in both hands like a pawpaw and sank my teeth into his back. Hard! He didn't make a sound, not even a squeak. And he didn't move at all. Not a wriggle. I put him down and he scooted into the hutch, where he lay quietly for the remainder of the afternoon, just watching me. I continued reading, but those bright pinpoints never wavered once. I know that biting a young child is a good way to stop the child from biting. I just don't suppose it works on puppers. I figured our relationship was back to square one, trust-wise.

Later, he came along as I sat at my desk and asked to be lifted up. Recently, he's been demanding I pick him up, then he clambers onto my desk, and tries to eat everything. I have to rescue stuff I don't want him messing with and give him things it's ok for him to eat (old toothbrush, broken watch band, etc). After a while, I turned away for some reason... and he picked that very moment to fall off the desk. He bounced off my knees on the way down, and hit the floor with a real wallop! He got to his feet, gave me a look of real dismay, and walked off.

But since then he has been very loving and not at all bitey. He gave me lots of kisses on the mouth after dinner (i.o.w. checked my moustache for crumbs of crackers & cheese), and after demanding to be lifted onto the desk again, fell right asleep an inch from the edge (forcing me to corral the mite within the circle of my arms). 

So, maybe things will work out. Tomorrow is another day. And speaking of tomorrow, I have to go and sweet-talk Avril at the NIS building. Because the pension that was to come today? Didn't.

Edited November 23, 2021 by Netfoot

[Lovecat]

13 hours ago, Netfoot said:

I am a bad daddy.

Today, after about an hour of constantly fighting off savage biting attacks, I lost it. I picked Mo up in both hands like a pawpaw and sank my teeth into his back. Hard! He didn't make a sound, not even a squeak. And he didn't move at all. Not a wriggle. I put him down and he scooted into the hutch, where he lay quietly for the remainder of the afternoon, just watching me. I continued reading, but those bright pinpoints never wavered once. I know that biting a young child is a good way to stop the child from biting. I just don't suppose it works on puppers. I figured our relationship was back to square one, trust-wise.

Later, he came along as I sat at my desk and asked to be lifted up. Recently, he's been demanding I pick him up, then he clambers onto my desk, and tries to eat everything. I have to rescue stuff I don't want him messing with and give him things it's ok for him to eat (old toothbrush, broken watch band, etc). After a while, I turned away for some reason... and he picked that very moment to fall off the desk. He bounced off my knees on the way down, and hit the floor with a real wallop! He got to his feet, gave me a look of real dismay, and walked off.

That's how my mom cured my brother from biting...though that was the late 60's and I think child-rearing techniques have changed somewhat!  Who knows, maybe he took your chomp as a strong rebuke from the alpha dog, and it might do some good.

Gentle reminder, though, that the dog can't distinguish an old toothbrush from a new one, or a broken watch band from a perfectly good one.  By giving him those things, you are actually reinforcing the idea that it's OK to chew on Dad's stuff, not to mention the danger of him swallowing something he shouldn't!  Distract with purpose-based doggie chew things only.  Be consistent, be patient.  He will learn.

[Netfoot]

58 minutes ago, Lovecat said:

Gentle reminder, though, that the dog can't distinguish an old toothbrush from a new one, or a broken watch band from a perfectly good one.

Good point.

[Netfoot]

The pension was supposed to be deposited in the bank on Monday. It would have been only 4½ months late. Unfortunately, it never showed. So, leaving Mo in his crate, I paid my 7th visit to NIS to try to sort the matter out, by seeing the lady I dealt with last week. But "she in out today!" So, I dealt with yet another guy. He checked. The NIS account is all correct, the bank account number is right, the there are no holds, blocks or queries on the pension account, and it should have been paid on Monday. But it wasn't. Why? <shrug!>

It will be flagged for processing today, and will be paid next Monday. Maybe. So don't come back and complain until next Friday!

So, I stopped on the way home to get a couple yards of chain to restrain a little person from entering the realm of propellers. And I saw a Cadbury's chocolate bar described as DarkMilk. What could that be like?

I bought one and took it for my official chocolate tasting surrogate. She was annoyed with me for not bringing Mo to see her! But she sent him her love. (And the chocolate was apparently quite good.)

Upon getting home and releasing the incarcerated boy, I sent her a photo:

Mo. Eating a lizard.

[Netfoot]

King of the castle!

The king decides to take a nap...

 

 

Edited November 25, 2021 by Netfoot

[Netfoot]

This little monster 

has been sent to Coventry.

Oh yes, he knows how to snuggle most winningly, and frequently takes up his tea-cosy position on the top of the  pillow, to keep my pate warm.

But his favourite passtime is to pee on the floor, as often as humanly puppily possible. 

I walked up the passage and discovered a puddla pee. With my bare feet. I showed it to him, smacked his botty and put him out. He was back in the house before I was. I was cleaning up the puddle, when he produced another puddle right next to the one I hadn't finished cleaning up yet! I smacked his botty again, and put him out a second time. He was back inside in no time, to watch me cleaning up the double-sized puddle.

After that, I felt I needed a shower, so I nipped into the bathroom and gave myself a good sluice-down with hot water. When I was done, I exited the bathroom, and as I stepped out into the passage... Puddle #3!

He is locked in his crate, with no bedtime snuggles. And to drive home my annoyance even more, I ate a 1 oz. packet of peanuts right in front of him, ignoring the piteous cries of starvation that emanated from the crate.

Of course, everything will be back to normal tomorrow.

Funny thing: I fell asleep reading my book this afternoon, and dreamt of my Budweiser. Mo is a fine little fellow and I adore him, but I still miss my little Buddy.

Edited November 28, 2021 by Netfoot

[Netfoot]

So proud! I watched as my boy, for the first time, jumped and clambered his way into the bed all on his own!

Then, I turned away for about 30 seconds, and by the time I turned back, he'd ripped a huge hole in the mattress. 😟

[Netfoot]

So, around 11PM with my back twinging to hurry me along, I decided to go to bed. Into the bedroom, and... Screech to a halt. There is a giant hole in the mattress I'd forgotten about. Out with the roll of duct tape, and 30 minutes later the hole is crudely patched. Flip the mattress upside down, put on a fresh sheet, and the sudden urge: take a shower.

(Pause my typing to take a photo...)

Mo came into the bathroom and even put two feet up on the wall, but decided not to join me under the downpour. And so to bed.

Nice afternoon at the club today. Six crashes. Four resulting in no damage, one set of gear ripped off (easily fixed by replacing the break-away bolts) and one model lost in the sun (always a prelude to disaster) and recovered out of a ploughed ground with the fuselage broken in half. But a simple, clean break that should be easily repaired.

Thruought all this activity Mo complained bitterly about his chain, which I hated to see on him, but he must be kept safe from propellers. A prop-strike on his wee body could be fatal and would certainly be very serious at best. I bought the lightest chain I could find and on him it looked like it could anchor an ocean liner. Please, baby! Grow up and learn to be a good boy so we don't have to worry about you.

No, I don't really want him to grow up. I want him to stay a sweet puppy forever! (He's no longer tea-cozying my head, he's gone into his crate.) Stay my baby, Mo! But learn to behave. For your own good and for your daddy's sanity.

Tuesday is Independence Day. We are having a little 'picnic' at the club. We would prefer to have a BBQ but latest Athletes Foot regulations explicitly allow picnics while not mentioning BBQs. So at our picnic we will be cooking food over hot coals.

As promised, my pension is going to come through tomorrow. Right?

 

 

[Netfoot]

Mo keeps stealing his food-bowl and hiding it. I'm constantly having to go and find it. Since he always hides it the same place, it shouldn't be hard. But he hides it under the bed, in the furthest back corner. So, I have to fish it out with a long pole, or actually move the bed!

But I think I have devised a scheme to thwart his dastardly plans...

[Netfoot]

So, did I imagine I wrote a post about cleaning my pocket-knife? Or did someone get twiggered by it and run to mommy to get it taken down?

We had a picnic/BBQ at the club today. A larger than usual bunch showed up, and there were four kids who weng gaa-gaa over Mo, and he was thrilled to have them to play with as well! Unfortunately, one of them gave him a large piece of chicken to eat, complete with a bone. Naturally, he tried to swallow it whole. He started to choke and I ran to rescue him, but he managed to hack it up onto the ground. But before I could snatch it up, he grabbed it again, and successfully swallowed it on the second attempt. Now I have to keep a careful eye on him to make sure his little system processes it OK. He's going to the vet Friday anyway, so...

The meal was simple but tasty. BBQ chicken, a fancy rice, and coleslaw. 65 pieces of chicken went on the barbie and none came home again.

[Netfoot]

Everyone enjoyed their meal. It was a little unusual, because they couldn't find the usual sized for containers so they had to settle for smaller, hamburger-sized containers. So the containers were small, but the food supply was large.

There was even a slice of rainbow cake for desert. I was glad it wasn't chocolate, because it meant a little friend could come and help me eat it.

[Netfoot]

I had actually brought a plate from home, but decided not to fetch it out of the car, so as to avoid envious looks from everyone else. So, I ate out of the same small container as the rest.

I did bring out my full-sized fork from home, and that did indeed result in envious looks from those who were weilding a spork. And I'm not going to mention what utensil I used to cut the chicken lest some poor, delicate loser get twiggered again.

During the food-part of the afternoon is the only time a little man paid me any attention for the whole day. The rest of the time he had kiddies to play with. And I suspect he ate most of their cake as well as their chicken. He's laying at my feet right now, looking as if the last thing in this world he could possibly handle, is his dinner.

I told everyone this was Independence Day, but apparently it's "Republic Day" instead. Because last night while I slept, the country became a republic. 

Woot! i say. I wonder what difference that's going to make?

[dbklmt]

24 minutes ago, Netfoot said:

I told everyone this was Independence Day, but apparently it's "Republic Day" instead. Because last night while I slept, the country became a republic. 

Woot! i say. I wonder what difference that's going to make?

Happy Republic Day! At least you have a female President, of which we've never had one in 245 years. 😢 

[Netfoot]

Just now, dbklmt said:

At least you have a female President....

Do we?  I know we had a female Prime Minister, and a damned good one! And I know that we now have a President instead of a Governor General. But did the PM become the Prez? Or do we have a female PM and a Prez?

(Checking...)

Oh, I see. The former GG, Dame Sandra Mason, is now the President, so you are correct, a female President is in place. But I notice that this arrangement leaves everything exactly the same, other than in name only.

Apparently, the Prince of Wales will represent the Queen at a ceremonial handover in Bridgetown’s National Heroes Square, tonight at midnight. Which explains who it was that near blew me off the highway on the road back from the club (the same road that leads from the aeroport to town) travelling at high speed in a black limo with four police outriders... Charlie, without a doubt. Perhaps with Camilla. Still holding her nose.

My pension that was to be paid yesterday (but wasn't) will be paid tomorrow. Right?

 

 

[Netfoot]

Well, a heavy rain-storm has just blown through. Should make things a little damp in National Heroes Square in a couple of hours, tho...

Weigh-day and PT/INR tomorrow. Bet I've gained 5 lbs. Hoping the INR is within the band, but on the high side. 

[Netfoot]

Molasses caught on camera at the picnic/BBQ:

Making new friends (actually trying to grab a sip of the guy's beer!)

Difficult to see, but: There is a girl standing in a red shirt at the corner of the clubhouse. Just under the bench to her left:

There is one more similar to this which shows him under the bench, but he is just a spec, even if you zoom in, so I won't bother to post it.

@dbklmt, I just realized: Not only do we have a female president, but our first ever president is a female! There are probably 50-60 countries that have had female political leaders to date. I think the problem in the USA is that so far, you have yet to come up with a female politician who would make a good president. Least, as far as I can see, while admitting that I am no scholar of US politicians or their abilities.

[Netfoot]

On 11/29/2021 at 10:33 AM, Netfoot said:

Mo keeps stealing his food-bowl and hiding it. [...] But I think I have devised a scheme to thwart his dastardly plans...

Solved. 

Actually, solved long ago, when I had issues with Buddy using his front paws to dig all the water out of his bowl and onto the floor, a habit that persisted for his whole life long.

This wooden contraption hasn't been used for years, but Mo seems to find it satisfactory...

Apologies for the wind noises and the tinny soundtrack. No idea where that came from. I was listening to Homeless Hero by War, not this jingle-jangle crap. 

Oh. Gained three pounds. And couldn't get the PT/INR due to the collection phials being outdated or something. Maybe tomorrow, maybe Friday.

No sign of the pension yet. Later today. Right?

[Netfoot]

Well, I'll be dipped... uhhh... Holy cow! They actually paid my pension!!

And they even paid me more than they said they would! Something like eleven hundred bucks more!

This means they probably miscalculated, and won't catch the error until 2027. At which time I will receive a demand for repayment (within seven days) of the entire excess, including interest on the amount!

Either that, or they are using Govermentmathics, derived from Bistromathics, but instead of being the most powerful computational force known to parascience, it instead combines the qualities of being the most obtuse and unreliable.

But! They finally paid, after what? Eighteen weeks? Which means I can afford to pay Dr. Sean tomorrow. And wee Mo's doctor (whose name I keep forgetting) on Friday.

And I can stop practicing that string of oaths I was planning on using when I visited the NIS folks on Friday after bringing Mo home from the sawbones. 

Speaking of Mo, he is fast asleep in his crate, after ripping the back cover and last pages off my book and eating them, in the space of 0.8 seconds this afternoon. Tomorrow he will probably be producing papier-mâché poo. I just hope he hasn't removed the climatic finish to the novel, and don't want to look in case he hasn't and I spoil the ending for myself while checking.

Anyway, it's fairly late, so I'll douse the lights now, and join my baby in the land of nod.

[Netfoot]

Sometimes in life, you find yourself feeling happy and sad at the same time.

[Netfoot]

The more things change...

...the more they stay the same.

[Netfoot]

Just had a bad scare! 

Mo came over and asked to be picked up for a cuddle (as he usually does, 100 times each day). But as I tried to lift him, he shrieked in pain and fled. I went after him, and as I touched him to stroke his coat, he shrieked again and ran away once more.

Right. Back to the vet, I think. Did someone throw a stone at him, over the wall? If so, where was the stone?

Not easy to get a puppy into the car when he i) won't come to you, and ii) you can't pick him up anyhow. It took a trail of honey-roasted cashews (delicious) to persuade him to climb in for himself. And when we got there, I couldn't lift him up to take him inside, so I had to use a leash (one originally bought for Dotty, and heavy enough to restrain Cerberus himself) and lead him inside.

Once inside Mo was very pleased to talk with a couple other doggies, including Cooper, his brother, who he met last vaccination-day.

When the vet came out to see him, he was as quick to yowl at the slightest pressure to his right ribcage. Broken ribs? WHO?!??

Turns out it was nothing so dramatic. He had a reaction to one of the shots he got this morning, and there was a slight swelling that was very painful. Phew!

So he's had a shot of painkiller, a shot of some other stuff (Cortisone?) and is now resting comfortably in his crate, almost but not quite snoozing. He should be back to normal by tomorrow afternoon.

So, the only question is: am I now a helicopter parent?

(BTW: he is now 13 lbs.)

Holy...! He just farted. The paint on the wall is peeling off! The vinyl tiles on the floor are bubbling up! My eyes are burning.... 🐾

 

 

Edited December 3, 2021 by Netfoot

[Netfoot]

After sleeping away the afternoon and early evening, Mo woke, ate his dinner, and promptly went nuts. He's like a rock drummer who sniffed too much sulphate!

He had bitten my feet, hands and tummy, and has to inflicted a couple nasty tears on my left arm. He sinks those fangs in, and rrrips them out again. One if of the lacerations is ½” long, and another is only ¼" but bled copiously. Then he went for the 'nads and I was forced to take severe action, grabbing him by the scruff, and depositing him in his crate. He was out of there as quick as a ball from a cannon, leapt onto my side (as I lay on the bed) and dagged a bite into my armpit.

Now, I've been gentle with him, giving the painful episode he had this afternoon. But his spirited attack on a Ken Follet novel I am about to start reading has lead me to believe he's recovered from what ever it was. Or the drugz are working very well indeed!

(Novel: Fall of Giants, 941 pages, no idea what it's about, really.)

Mo is back in his crate, planning his next move. I'll probably wake up in the night to find him sitting on my face, or chewing my kneecaps, or something.

The kid has tired me out again. I think Mr. Follet will have to wait until tomorrow.

ETA: Eeeek! Just discovered that the novel is one of a trilogy of over 3,000 pages! Don't think I will get started on that just yet. Esp. since I don't have parts 2 and 3, and I don't like to start a trilogy if I can't be sure I can finish it.  So, no. Not right now.

 

 

 

 

Edited December 4, 2021 by Netfoot

[Netfoot]

I notice that of the last 26 posts, 23 of them are mine. Maybe I should just shut up completely?

My little piranha-on-speed is chewing me to ribbons again. This after demanding he be elevated to my desk-top, where he dozed away (using my arm as a pillow) until it was time for bed.

Mo is very snuggly.

Bud used to curl up against my back, either between my shoulder blades or more lumbar. And also against my hip or legs. But he didn't like to snuggle against my front. (I think it was the rise & fall of my chest he didn't like.)

Dotty would sleep with his butt in my armpit and his head in my hand. Or vice versa. Or cuddle up against my legs or back. While not huge on cuddle-hugs, on a cool 'fore-day morning, he would creep into my arms as I slept and I would wake to find him snoring very softly, with his head on my shoulder and both my arms around him. Dotty would allow you to put a sheet over him if it was chilly, but would not allow his feet to be covered. As soon s you covered even one footy, he was oudda there!

Now, Mo likes to cuddle. He tea-cozies my head a lot, sometimes laying across my neck or face, curling up on top of me (front or side, depending how I am laying), against my legs or between my legs, or essentially anywhere, using any convenient body-part as a pillow. I think it's sweet! But I dunno how it's going to work out when he's a 60 lb. monster of a doggie, like it seems he wants to grow up to be!

Tomorrow is the day for the Book-tent. I don't really need anything from the pharmacy or supermarket, but I will probably take Mo to see Buddy's ladies. And in time they will become Mo's ladies.

Maybe the deli will have some buttery cassava, in which I will treat myself to a hot meal. And of course, Christmas is coming, so in a week or so, they will put jug-jug on the menu...

 

[dbklmt]

1 hour ago, Netfoot said:

I notice that of the last 26 posts, 23 of them are mine. Maybe I should just shut up completely?

No, don't shut up.  When I come into Prime Timer the first topic that I want to see and read is Small Talk in the AR forum to see if there is a new post by Netfoot.  I look forward to reading about you and little Mo and your life in Barbados with your friends such as Dr. K. and the guys at the club.  Keep posting photos 😍.  

[sharkerbaby]

Add another vote to keep writing.  Right now the only reason I come to the AR forum is to read your posts.  I loose myself in your musings and would be very sorry to not be able to keep up with your and your doggie companion's comings and goings.  If you absolutely must, I hope you would at least create a blog somewhere and let us all know where we could find your daily commentary.

[Netfoot]

41 minutes ago, sharkerbaby said:

I hope you would at least create a blog somewhere...

I tried a blog once. Back in '17 when a mate and I went to the UK for a motoring tour. Rather than send e-mails to all the friends and family. I did a blog, with at least one entry per day, describing our adventures.

I don't think I did a very good job of it, and I didn't enjoy doing it that much. (The blogging, not the trip; we had a fantastic time!) Because I kept thinking what a rotten job I was doing, and what a load of old rubbish it was. So I have never been inclined to try it again. I've just checked and the blog is still there. I even spotted a couple typos and fixed them, for some reason. (And I cried when I saw the two final entries, because I'm a soft-hearted sap.)

And I recently discovered that Google Timelines for the dates of that trip show my path across Britain (with some glitches), and brought back many good memories as I traced my travels with a finger, on the computer monitor.

Thing is, with a blog, I sort of feel that you are obliged to say something, whether you have something to say or not. On the trip, I didn't lack for things to say, because we were doing stuff each day, and I only had to report where we'd gone and what we'd seen and done. Here, I find myself discoursing on such interesting subjects as dog collars or watching the grass grow. But if I don't have anything even that interesting to talk about, there is no sense of having to post something.

Anyway, the morning is moving on, and I'll soon have to put Mo in the car and take him to visit the Book-tent ladies. I hope Mo has a few bucks that he can donate. And I need a couple books to read, so with any luck I will find something there. Come to think of it, I have two boxes of books in the van to donate. Last month they asked me to hang on to them, because they had more than they could handle at the time. Maybe they will be able to take them today.

And I'm hearing unusual crunching noises from outside, so I'd better go and see exactly what Molasses is destroying...

Edited December 7, 2021 by Netfoot

[sharkerbaby]

I understand the change in free flow of thought if it begins to fee obligatory.  So with that in mind, I hope you continue to post here.

[Pfiga]

I agree -- please keep posting here.  Reading The Adventures of Netfoot and Mo has become a favorite pastime.

[Netfoot]

They did have baked cassava in a butter sauce. And they had jug-jug too! So, I bought myself an enormous lunch, with three-bean salad, soused cucumber, green salad, coleslaw, and steamed broccoli. Plus chicken, pork, peas and rice, as well as the cassava and jug. It was so big a meal, I had to put half of it aside for dinner. 😁

I bought five books at the Book-tent, including book #3 of that Ken Follet trilogy mentioned before. Still got to get #2 before any of it gets readable. The ladies went ga-ga over Mo, as do most people who aren't a target of his fangy little face!

Retired to bed for a postprandial snooze and was aroused from my torpor by the arrival of a rocket powered bundle of wet fur and sharp ivories, which levitated into the room at a low altitude, rose to a remarkable height in one sweeping parabola, and landed - with all toe-hooks fully extended - directly on my bloated tummy. I suppose it could have been worse; at least the Gentleman's Vegetables were spared. But before retaliation could be planned, primary weapons systems were brought to bare on my arms, chest and nose. As I lay there, as breathless as a defeated battleship, the enemy strolled off into his crate, curled up without so much as a by-your-leave, and was asleep before I was able to regain the power of speech!

I somehow don't believe Winston Churchill would have stood still for that sort of enemy action. I think I will swap Mo for a cat. 

Now, a very light sprinkle of rain is blowing in the bedroom window. It is cooling, especially combined with the lovely breeze. In fact, I am in two minds to let it sprinkle as I drift off, or rouse myself enough to reach up and close the window!

The sleeping bundle of blackness is actually watching my every move with two very bright eyes. Uh-oh. Here he comes... No, he just wants to snuggle.

PT/INR results are back. 1.90 which is just a shade low. Dr. K. Suggests taking a little more rat-poison than usual, one day per week to see if that helps. 

Mo is on prednisolone. And I know how nasty that stuff can be, because I was taking it for something like three years. But he is only on it for five days, and than seven more days, every-other. I'm sure I mentioned that (according to Dr. Sean last Thursday) I am now officially in remission from the MG? 

Mo just walked out of his crate, gave me a kiss on the nose, walked back into the crate, and went to sleep, this time with eyes actually closed. Maybe I won't swap him for a cat just yet...

Edited December 7, 2021 by Netfoot

[Netfoot]

...to be rudely awoken by another bundle of rocket-powered, wet, black fur, which landed (this time) on the back of my knees. Whereupon it clawed itself along my legs and back, and sank it's teeth into my ears!

I think it's telling me nap-time is over. It's now time to survey the house, looking to identify what damage it has managed to inflict upon the place while I slept.

Uh-oh! Here it comes again...

 

[Browncoat]

Add my vote to the "keep posting" barrel!  

[luv2lurk]

@Netfoot Add me to the list of YES please keep posting!

And I would be remiss if I did not comment on your new avatar pic . . . it is wonderful and I can just imagine a Santa hat on top of your head, although I understand that would be quickly shredded by Mo.

Coincidently my 20 year old cat was just prescribed prednisolone. This was in response to vestibular condition (head at right angle ie resting on shoulder) causing lack of balance due to either ear or brain infection. The cat was able to eat and drink through all this (no idea how she did it) and there were only a few mis-steps in the litter box. Anyway the vet cleaned the cat's ears and then after bloodwork prescribed antibiotics and the steroid which she will be on 2 times a day for 4 days then once a day for 3 days. We are on day 4 and she is much recovered - but has a huge appetite! So be warned.

My cat is a tortie so has colouring similar to Princess the pup - I am wondering if she has found her forever home.

Also, I don't think you updated us on if Heidi met Mo.

 

[Netfoot]

1 hour ago, luv2lurk said:

I would be remiss if I did not comment on your new avatar pic...

Yes, it's a nice photo. There is another with him perched on top of my head, but it is not really croppable to a square shape as best suits the avatar photo. Took me over a month to figure out how to change it back, but finally figured it out.

I'm sorry to hear about your cat. Prednisolone is nasty stuff, and I am very pleased Mo is on such a small dose (2½mg) and for such a such a short period of time. Thanks for reminding me about possible increase in his appetite. He already eats like a horse and loudly announces when it is mealtime, and whether an additional helping is required.

I don't know whether the girl Princess has found a home or not. OAAS where she was being cared for does most of its announcements on FecesBook, and as I would rather give myself a lobotomy with a plastic spork than join up, I only get news that is forwarded to me. But I will try to find out what news I can.

As for Heidi, I think she is still overseas. She went to arrange a wedding, then returned but was only back one or two days when a couple she is close to had to go to Florida for vital medical treatment and she went with them to lend moral support/hold hands, etc. Up to a week ago she was still there. And when she returns, she will no doubt be soon in need of going back again to do her Christmas shopping.

I'd like to see her. And as I've promised to take her youngest daughter Lily to lunch, I am thinking we might make it three of us. Champers would be my preferred restaurant, but these days Champers might be a bit on the steep side for me. So we'll see what happens.

As for her and Mo, whether she knows about him is possible but doubtful. They certainly haven't met. I think if she knew she would not have been able to resist blistering my arse with some choice words. But I don't really care what she thinks about it. I haven't told her, but I'm not hiding the fact that Mo lives here now. My WhatsApp avatar was also changed to the new photo, so if she takes the time to look, she will see for her self.

Also, she said she was going to buy me a pair of trousers (jeans?) So if she ever drops by with them, she will hardly fail to notice a little fuzzy-faced boy looking at her through the gate and telling her in no uncertain terms and a very loud voice that this is his domain, and not to forget it!

To return to shopping for the holidays, all the news is about supply chain problems and shortage of goods, etc, etc. I wonder if others are finding it as bad as they are saying? I have noticed that the Quality Street chocolates I usually buy for Dr. Kristi and family were very difficult to find this year, and I had to settle for a much smaller box than usual. She and her husband have eight children, after all. So I've supplemented it with a Terry's Chocolate Orange (a British Christmas tradition that she probably is not familiar with) and even that had to be ordered from London. And her proper gift this year is nothing like as nice as previous years because I just couldn't find anything suitable. So this year she will get a coffee mug and an apology. She doesn't even drink coffee! But I think she will like the legend on it, and she can use it to keep pencils in or summat.

Wow, I do woffle on...

[Netfoot]

As far as I can tell, Princess has not yet found a home.

I wish I could give them all a home. The sob-stories like Princess, the senior dogs who need a comfortable home to relax their old bones in and a lap to rest their head upon and a gentle hand to stroke their fur, or the fat, cuddly pups waddling around in perfect health, exploring a strange and wonderful world and looking for someone to love them...

But alas, I only have room in my van, in my house, in my bed, for one at a time. And when that one is a little ball of fire like Mo...

[Netfoot]

I heard from Lily that her mother Heidi is home, but I've not heard from Heidi directly. 

Mo was slightly ill this afternoon. He was quite subdued and un-Mo-like. I think he just ate too much breakfast and lunch, and eventually sicked-up a little. After this, he quickly returned to turbo-blender mode. Later, as I sat on The Throne, he initiated a spirited attack which took me 10 minutes to beat off with a stick, and left me bleeding from several spots. It also destroyed the mood, preventing me from, uh, performing as planned. He is now in his crate, and going off to sleep, although I occasionally see a pair of bright eyes watching me from his corner. He's obviously planning something.

Earlier as I lay on my side, he jumped on top of me and made himself comfortable. A pillow added to his stability and I blew kisses at him for a while until he lost interest and went off to bed.

[Netfoot]

So, in the bedroom is a huge, untidy pile of  good-junk. At the bottom are some large storage boxes, containing books, old clothes, etc. Above them, come a random assortment of laundry bags, books, model aeroplane parts, old towels, a printer and some other computer parts, a 2-cylinder 110cc gasoline engine, and so forth. Junk yes, but junk that is too good to throw out. 

I place my Crocs on top of this pile each evening, so they will be quickly to hand if I need them during the night, but not subject to destruction-by-puppy in the mean time. Also, paper towels, squirt bottles of disinfectant, and any cleaning supplies needed for the most poosie/peesie puppy the world has ever seen and anything else I want to keep safe from little Molasses ScissorHands (aka Mo FangFace).

So there am I this afternoon, taking a nap, when a black Cuisinart of a puppy falls out of the sky and lands on my back, with all cutters and blades operating! WTF did he come from?!??

Oh boy! Here we go!

[raven]

On 12/3/2021 at 7:49 AM, Netfoot said:

Sometimes in life, you find yourself feeling happy and sad at the same time.

I love this picture (and the one Buddy).  Look at his ridge!  Hi Mo!

[Netfoot]

What do you suppose this is?

If you guessed my latest electricity bill, you guessed right. Pushed under my door by the landlord, and "processed" by Mo.

[Netfoot]

30 minutes ago, raven said:

I love this picture (and the one Buddy).  Look at his ridge!  Hi Mo!

Last night, he was standing on the bedside table, with his head and entire front end, including both front legs, out the window. Unlike Buddy, he could get entirely out through the bars, but it's a 6' drop to the concrete out there, so I hope he doesn't actually try that...

Yes, the ridge is really gorgeous. His fur generally is that shiny black that shines like silver in the right light. But the ridge is really something to make every 70's punk-rocker jealous!

[Netfoot]

Collected my Terry's Chocolate Oranges. One box squashed quite a bit ☹️ and the other only slightly damaged. The latter still able to be used as a gift but how annoying is it that I can't eat the first one myself! The Terry's Chocolate Orange is a tradition I am 100% in favour of!

On my way back home, I stopped to collect another deli lunch with jug-jug (and fried plantain). Today's batch of jug was even better than the first. But I am going to have to cut back on the big meals because... Well, just because!

Mo is in a destructive mood. I've rescued this shoe twice already and now I have to rescue it again. Moments after this photo I did rescue it for the third time, and he ran off and returned with the other one! And now, he has run off, collected an empty paper bag which came with puppy-chow in it, brought it into bed, and torn it into shreds.

I shudder to think what he'd get up to if I were to go to sleep!

Video of a puppy destroying a Croc-adile...

ETA: Should that be Croc-odile?

Edited December 11, 2021 by Netfoot

[Netfoot]

Super-snuggle roused me from my nap by biting my nosie.

Bought a weird book by James Patterson, author of the Alex Cross novels (which have spawned at least two movies). To my surprise, it turned out to be shockingly bad Sci-fi about children with wings sprouting out of their backs.

Edited December 11, 2021 by Netfoot

[Netfoot]

...No surprise then, that it wasn't long before that nap came up on me. And later, I was awaken by a puppy who did not approve of my napping.

Ten photos taken, eight of which were motion-blurs, and a couple nice ones...

Seen here with ears akimbo because he's laying on his back, this little creature was 16 weeks old yesterday. And if you saw my bedroom floor you would assume he's been working on that mess the whole time, and not just two days 

(Two posts because the forum's mobile interface sucks rocks.)

[Netfoot]

Bedroom floor:

I know my housekeeping sucks, but this is ridiculous!

[Netfoot]

The James Patterson novel appears to be something for teen audiences. Particularly stupid teens who are likely to be influenced by weak, un-nuanced "global warming" proselytizing of the most simple-minded sort.

And who might think it possible to have a 15' pair of wings on your back, and be able to routinely conceal them under a denim jacket with 100% success. And that you could successfully operate such wings without having a thorax the size of a Buffalypso to contain the necessary musculature. (Does the phrase "pigeon chested" spring to mind?)

I'm shocked to think that a such a stinker of a novel could fall from the pen of a writer like Patterson who, whether you appreciate his work or not, has shown himself capable of writing a best-seller or two.

[Netfoot]

It's two in the morning. If I have to be up, I see no reason you should be allowed to sleep!

Mo just roused me by jumping off the bed. Before I could get to him, he had puddled. Twice. I put him out and started the cleanup.

By time I'd finished, he hadn't come back yet. Picturing him trying to eat a crapaud, I put on my shoes, grabbed a torch and the crapaud-bucket and rushed out into the dark. True enough, Molasses had cornered a crapaud and I had to run the length of the garden with the bucket in one hand and the torch in the other, while my pyjama pants headed south in the general direction of my knees.

Crapaud caught in the bucket and ejected, pants rescued, and Mo neither foaming at the mouth nor stoned as a Woodstock hippie. Result! Not bad considering I'd grabbed the wrong glasses and was therefore a candidate to apply for the position of fourth mouse.

Back in bed, baby only bit me twice before retiring to his crate. Just for that I'm going to hide one of his squeaky toys!

[Netfoot]

Friday, Mo was 16 weeks old!

Does that make you feel ancient? No? I know something that should: Friday was also the 20th anniversary of the release of The Fellowship of the Ring! Twenty years. And to mark the occasion, I'm re-watching the trilogy!

[Netfoot]

Took Mo to the club today. He behaved so badly I swear I was on the brink of leaving the little bastard up there to fend for himself until next week.

He bit the bejeysus out of everyone. He jumped on Raf's model so hard I was sure he'd busted the servo gears. He kept knocking over a visitor's beer. He got sticky mud all over his head and face, and bit me every time I tried to clean him up. The biting got so bad (including ripping the scab off an older wound) that I had a paper towel sodden with blood. He ran around like he was on speed, and when it was as time to go he refused to get in the car and would not allow himself to be caught for at least 15 minutes. 

On the way home in the car, he was obviously aware he wasn't in my good-books because he sat in the back like an angel until we got back to the house. 

Whereupon, he dashed out the gate before I could get it closed. And for another 15 minutes, led me a merry chase around the neighborhood. At first I was worried he would stray out into the busy main road. By the end, I was hoping he would!

Dr. Kristi messaged to ask if I'd bring him to see her some day this week. (Tuesday is weigh-day, so no problem.) I'd give him to her, except I don't want to lose my doctor, which I would do, 10 minutes after she realized what a horrible little monster I'd foisted off on her.

He then sat around all evening, like butter wouldn't melt in his mouth, and as we went off to bed I asked myself "What is he chewing?" My pill-box full of stuff Daddy needs to take, and Baby shouldn't. How in hell he got hold of it, I just have no idea.

No snuggling tonight. When I leave his crate open, he comes out to snuggle, but can pee three times before morning! So, it's an end to probation, and back to hard time for Mo.

And to make everything better, those idiots at the club cut down the grass barrier that has served to successfully protect against run-away models since 1954. They have replaced it with a lovely fence.

Beautiful picture of an AcroWot landing:

So much better than before!

And a friend sent to ask if I'd got a new puppy. I sent him a link to Mo's album, but rather than click the link he has asked again and again, all evening long! (This is a guy who will WhatsApp to say he vitally needs a certain piece of information, and then not read your reply for three days.)

[Netfoot]

He woke me at 3 AM to go for a pee, and again at 6.

He has been removing clods of earth/mud from the mud-flaps of the van. And bringing them into the bedroom. Sometimes into the bed. 

I was cooking Corned-beef & Cabbage (and onion, and carrots, and mushrooms, and sweet peppers and jalapenos and tomatoes) for lunch. As I chopped the veggies Mo demanded a share of each. I didn't give him onions (although I believe the onion scare comes from an Alton Brown episode and has been blown all out of proportion) and I didn't give him jalapenos because that would be cruel. But he ate everything else, including raw cabbage, carrots, sweet peppers...

For his lunch I gave him a small tin of Corned-beef. The nasty type that comes from Argentina in a tin, not the type you guys use in the USA. Mo stuck his nose in the bowl and began vacuuming away, but there was a little left on the tin, so I scooped it out with my finger. I stretched my finger out to put the morsel into his bowl, but without slowing his inhalation of lunch even a fraction, he uttered a very serious, very threatening snarl as my hand approached. He did this several times.

Mo is without doubt the most food-happy dog I've ever known. He will eat anything, he is always hungry, and what ever you feed him gets devoured at a record pace. It seems he won't take kindly to anyone interfering with his vittles!

He will be giving a command performance for Dr. K. tomorrow. She must have a scale that would be suitable for weighing babies. Think it could weigh a puppy? Not that I want her to put my pup in a baby-scale at an actual people-clinic.

Unfortunately, he smells a little figgy. Well, he's a puppy and from time to time they will pong! (However, I have to say his butt is spotlessly clean, thank goodness.) I'm not really in favour...

(OMG! He's farted again. It burns! It burns!)

...of bathing dogs. Of course, it's occasionally necessary, but doggies are pretty good at keeping themselves clean and even if they roll on a dead crapaud, they can clean themselves up and eliminate the reek pretty quick. I remember bathing Dotty when he found a used diaper and brought it home. I don't remember ever bathing Buddy, although I may have done so at some stage. But the most I recall is washing the mud off his feet under the rain barrel before putting him into the car.

If I must bathe Mo occasionally, I have to find something gentle and unscented. Don't want him smelling of frangipani! What about baby shampoo? Bound to be gentle enough for delicate puppy-skin. Surely people don't perfume babies? Got to say, though: he will probably fight like a daemon, and scratch and bite like the little hellion he is!

After Dr. K. we will go to PriceSmart for onions and tomatoes and hopefully, a larger box of Quality Street. I shudder to think of myself surrounded by holiday-shopping crazies! Then our usual supermarket for some pharmacy items, and (hopefully) se some jug-jug!

Edited December 13, 2021 by Netfoot

[Netfoot]

No, no, puppy!

No clods in bed, please!

[Netfoot]

3AM. Gotta have a pee! (Thanks, Lasix.) I step into the bathroom. Hussle! Hussle! Too late. In the minute it's taken me, Mo has peed three times, done a massive poo, and is looking at me with a smile on his face. As I mop up litres and clean up <gag!> I vow that next time I will take him directly to the garden and we can both do our business on the lawn.

7AM. Surfacing gently from my slumber, when something with fang and claw pounces vigorously on my left buttock! With a wave of my hand, I chase it off. Moments later, it pounces again, only more vigorously than before. I swat at it with a pillow and it's gone. Zzzz... yeow!! I snatch up a wooden batten and give chase, but it vanishes into the shadows under the bed. I contemplate 40 more winks, but I don't think it's safe to do so.

9AM. All quiet at Dr. Kristi until her godson hits the scene. "What a cute little angel - ouch! Ouch!!" Yes, he bit Dr. K. and then scratched her with his talons. A young lady came in and sat. "Can I pat him?" "Yes, but he has sharp claws and he bites," I said. "Ouch! I'm bleeding now," says the young lady a short time later. "But it was worth it..."

10AM. Back home to go in his crate because Dad has lots of shopping to do. A 15 minute chase around the neighborhood  is required before he can be incarcerated.

1PM. Back home, and puppy removed from crate and carried directly outside. He makes a bee-line straight back into the house and does a pee right in the passage.

3PM. Daddy kicks off his shoes.  One is immediately stolen. Dad gives chase and it takes 5 minutes to extract the shoe from the puppy's mouth without damaging it. Or him. His immediate response is to rush back and steal the other shoe...

I had intended to read for a while and maybe take a nap. But I'm so tired I think I will forego the book entirely. He's vanished for the moment, and I'm wracking my brain to think of what mischief he might be up to.

List of things that should be acquired ASAP:

1). Lasso. Or bolo.
2). Box of bandaids.
3). Several rolls of paper towels 
4). LART

Edited December 14, 2021 by Netfoot