One Happy Dog

“Much has been written about the loyalty of dogs, but what I love about them isn't their devotion to me so much as their devotion to being alive.” — Steven Bauer

This quote found me when I have been procrastinating about blogging (again) and straightaway I'm acting on my laziness as the story has been at the back of my mind for quite a long time.

For those of you who know me, you know I love dogs. I love them, sometimes, more than I love human beings (that includes myself). Up to this day, I still miss, think and talk about Kiky as if she is still waiting for me to come home in my hometown. Well, in a way, she is waiting for me to come "home". Can't wait to meet her.

While I'm still in this earthly sphere, I get to know 2 more dogs closely - Kaya (the dark brown one) and Guyu (the beige one). They are my friend's poodles. I swear I hate poodles. They are, to me, so ugly beyond reason, especially with their super curly hair. OMG! To this date, if I can afford to, I wouldn't choose a poodle. Not in a million years. I will still get a minpin :)

But behind those curly hairs, they are still lovely beings. So lovable that simply looking at them can bring me so much joy and simplicity. No human can do so as they are just too complicated and full of expectations. (Including moi.)

My focus today is about Guyu, the small and really frail poodle who has the fear of height. (Even though it's just as high as a cushion, she will not jump down.) Her fear is really ridiculous to the point of laughter. But, I don't think she cares. She is too busy being happy.

Guyu is definitely the happiest dog I've ever seen. She wakes up happily to embrace a new day = a new breakfast served. Then she will happily run around the house. When people start to wake up, she will happily follow them around with the occasional ankle biting game or hi-five-ing people's butt while happily jumping around. Then she will be happily supervising people doing their daily chores, walk around each room of the house and as the day goes by she will be happily going to sleep and ends the day by having another happy dream of chasing the toy or something.

She is a happy dog. She is so happy that one time I witnessed her wagging her tail when she was simply drinking water. Seriously? One is happy by drinking water when one is not even at the dessert or at the point of dying from thirst? What was in her mind when she was thinking water? As if she saw water for the very first time and decided "Hmm this tastes good and this makes me happy".

Her constant state of happiness is really contagious. It is so overwhelming and I can't help but to smile back at her every time she is just being her silly self. Guess, she doesn't know that. She doesn't know what she has brought to people around her, who have witnessed her heightened state of being. She is too busy being alive.

And I feel alive every time I am with her. Thank you, Guyu for being who you are. There are still so many lessons I need to learn from you. *Woof*

10 Promises to My Dog

10 Promises to My Dog is a Japanese movie (based on book written by Hare Kawaguchi) I've never heard of until Phenny told me about it. (Thank you, Phenny :-))

The plot, as taken from www.eiga.wikia.com is about a 12-year-old girl named Akari gets a puppy and names it Socks. She loves Socks and spends practically every moment with him. However, as she gets older she's able to spend less and less time with him, due to a busy life and having to move away. She leaves socks with a childhood friend but eventually she's reminded of the promises she made to him as a child.

Simple and straightforward story and I believe most will know what the ending will be. I have been warned to prepare tissue for the show and .... yep, let me warn any of you who are going to watch this show, please bring tissue and get it ready on your hand. I must admit I tried really hard not to burst into tears (I TRIED SOOOO HARD) and I failed miserably! It's one of the show that I was on that thin line to cry like a baby. Lucky I didn't do that if not I must been kicked out from the cinema. Don't be ashamed of the crying, you can trust me, you'll not be the only one. You will soon hear and observe the following:

• people unzipping their bags for tissue
• the sound of a packet of tissue crunching somewhere
• people's hands tend to be doing the movement of wiping tears away
• and occasionally you may hear someone who really cried it out loud in silence (erm, go figure)

Why it was such a emotional roller coaster to me it's because there are so many points in the movie that I can personally can relate to:

• the main character's dad is a doctor (my parents are doctors)
  
• she's the only child (ME TOO!!!!)
  
• she got her dog when she was 12 (I was 11 ... almost around the same lar)
  
• at one point of her life she needed to be away from her dog and couldn't do anything about it (Yes, it happened to me when I was 17)
  

As you know I love my Kiky dearly. She is above all else. And the fact that this show has so much in common with my own lives just made me cringed inside but I'm glad I went through that and it's another chance to relive the memory and say thank you Kiky for all the beautiful time you've given me.

In the show, the main emphasis was put on the 10 promises that were made to the dog - initialized by the late mother of the main character. As she was reading out the 10 promises, I was silently checking whether I was doing all the things mentioned. The promises (speaking from the dog's point of view) are:

1. Give me time to understand what you want of me
2. Place your trust in me. It's crucial to my well-being.
3. Be aware that however you treat me, I'll never forget it.
4. Before you scold me for being lazy, ask yourself if something might be bothering me.
5. Talk to me sometimes. Even if I don't understand your words, I do understand your voice when it's speaking to me.
6. Remember before you hit me, I have teeth that could hurt you, but that I choose not to bite you.
7. Take care of me when I get old.
8. You have your work, your entertainment, and your friends. I have only you.
   
9. My life is likely to last 10-15 years. Any separation from you will be painful for me.
10. Go with me on difficult journeys. Everything is easier for me when you are there. Remember I love you ...

So, how do I fare?

#1:
I wonder if I've given her time to understand what she really wants, may be sometimes I don't. I know she always wanted food but I really played that hard on her. :p

#2:
I do trust her except when the time I stepped on her pee. Hmm ... I don't trust her in that area.

#3:
She remembers the way I treat her ...? No wonder she prefers my dad than me because I always made it hard on her to get food. Aiyah!!!!!

#4:
I never scold her for being lazy. Hmm ... She's never lazy except when she was really old. :( She can hardly climb up and down the stairs. That, I understand. So, I didn't scold her for being lazy. :-)

#5:
Talk to her sometimes??? I talked to her all the time! Literally. When I studied, I'd ask her to help me revised. I even asked her to study what I studied. Sometimes she got it right. Sometimes she got it wrong. They were multiple choice questions, you see. I even talked to her on the phone especially when I'm so far away from her since 1998-2005. :( :( :(

#6:
Hitting her ... I definitely did. Yep, when she's pooing and peeing everywhere. But well, after a while I'll play with her again. How can you not forgive when you see those droopy eyes?????

#7:
I didn't pass this one for sure. I didn't really take care of her when she got old. I have both of my parents to thank in this area. I failed as I was too far away to take care of her. Sorry, Kiky. I wish I could. :(

#8:
Yes. I have my other areas of my life to count on and she only had me but then again, she had my family. Again, I have to thank my parents for the best work they've done in taking care of Kiky.

#9:
Separation is painful for both parties. I seriously dreaded every time I parted with her. When I knew she was really aging, every moment I held in mind that she might just leave me. Hence every single second is cherished dearly. The last time I saw her I took 100 over photos of her. My parents called me nuts. I call myself a genius though I wish I would have taken better pictures though. But I didn't regret what I've done. I wish I had videotaped her even though her brown hair had turned white which made her looked like a mini inverted Siberian Husky. :p

#10:
Go with her in difficult journey. This ... is one of the thing I regretted the most. My gut was telling me to go back 1 week earlier, should I have done so, I would have been there for her when she moved on. But I went back 1 week later when she's already resting well in her grave. No use. I'm sorry for not being there when you said bye bye. What more can I ask? You chose Sunday to be your parting day and yet I was not there :(

To remember her once again, I decide to put the passages I used to write on my friendster when she died on 17th April 2005 in this blog.

Hope you don't mind the nostalgic path I'm taking today. Thanks for reading. ;-)

When Death Simply Can't Wait

Kiky

(17 August 1991 - 17 April 2005)

An 8-year-old boy and 11-year-old gal saw a pair of miniature pinscher at the backyard. Fighting for food, running away from water and hiding from the fierce maid. Knowing that they were brothers and sisters, the boy and gal decided to name them Kiky and Koko after more than 10 minutes of name-picking discussion.

Kiky, the younger one, a female 1 year old minpin when I discovered her. My uncle decided to give it to my family, since her brother, Koko, seemed to always bully her as she was smaller in size. That's when my journey with my first ever dog began and I will never regret nor forget a single moment I've spent with her. She has been marvellous.

Kiky travelled by car for 3 days and 3 nights from Jakarta to Pematangsiantar, the place where she eventually called her home. She has been a great quiet passenger, even though she has to sleep at such a strange place, she knows she's in for a great journey. It's such a relief when she found out we have stopped by at some eating place or a hotel where she could get more comfort than the crummy car. But well, the journey paid off and she arrived at my house happily.

My family has never had any dog before. Well, we seriously have no idea how we are supposed to bring up a dog, but guess, it shouldn't be much different from treating a human ... so since then Kiky has been part of our family. We spoke Mandarin to her and even gave her Chinese herbal soup, and she simply loves it. She slept on the bed with me every night but sometimes she prefered my parents bed as it's so much bigger -_-!

Time after time, there are so many things to be discovered from this little soul. She could sing ... well, when I was howling like a wolf for fun, she actually copied me and howled along ... and since then the whole town know there's a singing dog exists. People actually flock at my parents' clinic to look at her performance. Haha ... :-)

She knows how to kiss when you ask her too ... and she definitely know who's the best person to get food from. And that's definitely not me :) It's my dad who has transformed her from a skinny underweight minpin to a small little piglet!!! -_-! Overweight by 3x the standard weight she's supposed to be. Aih ...

Despite of the fame and pamper she's received, she has never been arrogant for once! She is still the humble and strong little Kiky we have seen when she fought with her brother. She never back out. She stood still and fought on and that's how she fought with her death. For one month she refused to eat and her bleeding won't stop too but she persisted. Until this morning, she woke my dad up by making some noise, guess she knew her time's almost up. My dad fed her some milk, wiped her face ... and she fainted. The end ....

She chose a Sunday early morning to say goodbye because she knows Sunday is the only day my parents don't need to work and able to bring her to the burial straightaway without leaving the clinic. Even at the point of her death, she's still such a understanding soul.

Thank you, Kiky for what you've given to my family and me personally. I'm really sorry for not being able to spend more time with you as I've to study and work overseas. But all these while you've always been in my thought and heart. I love you more than anyone and anything you can ever imagine. Guess we won't be able to find anyone like you in this life. No way. It's almost impossible to replace you. I can't wait to see you again, Kiky. To see your cheeky smile and nottie pee-ing all over places activities. I even miss the time when I did step on your pee pee as you found a new place to do that -_- ... and I never notice. But well, you've been great and it's time for you to rest well and stop suffering from any illness. I'll visit your small little "tomb" soon, Kiky.

You are always alive in my heart. Love you.

Special Appearances At Qian Hu

How did you spend your Labour's Day?

Well, I was still labouring in the morning by teaching tuition but in the afternoon, I went to a place I've never been before. It's called - QIAN HU! It's a fish farm and I was on the quest to hunt for my next toilet buddy with The Mushroom and The Cooking Pot. Yes ... another Beng and Lian's family member.

The place was awesome ... wanna see whom I met? Let's see hmmm ... there were some celebrities there, you know? I'll show you one of them first ....


So this is ... Jolie-look-a-like fish .. don't you think her lips are so kissable? :p ... WEKS! Unfortunately, it's injected by human :( ... not as natural as AJ's lips. HUAH.


Next, we have a Siamese Turtle. Yes! It has two heads. I'm not sure to call it turtle or turtles. -.-


Oh ya .... the white mini lobster ... isn't it cute?? I wonder whether he's albino or not. Hmm ....


Then finally, the new addition to my family ... to the left is my roommate's Flappy and to the right is no other than the reputable family member of the Beng. I call him ... Yin Yang Beng. Why??? Because he's balanced ... black and white. :p He ain't pretty but heck ... he has dat Beng look! I like. HAHA.


After choosing Yin Yang Beng, I brought him touring around the farm and here's one good shot when he was looking at the parrot fish.

After the touring and the shopping, we finally went to hunt for Flappy & Yin Yang Beng's food. After we have made our choice (not sure it's good or not as Flappy is not eating but Beng being Beng is pretty happy about it :p), we made payment to it. And then ... we met another "celebrity" animal!! Can you believe it? But this time, only Miss Cooking Pot has the honour to have that priceless encounter. (Honestly, I wouldn't mind to lose this honour :p) ...
What happened was, I was walking around with Miss Cooking Pot as Miss Mushroom was busy at the cashier's counter. Suddenly, one lady approached Miss Cooking Pot and said she had something on her back ... without knowing what it was, Miss Cooking Pot used all her energy to grab me and keep shouting "HELP ME HELP ME HELP ME" .... and the lady who knew what it was said "I don't want" ... Her answer apparently didn't have much calming effect on our poor Miss Cooking Pot. I wanted to help but I couldn't, I was grabbed so tight as if I'm a balloon that was going to fly away. -.-

Luckily there's one hero (which I believed is the husband of that lady) who told us that it's Mr. Se-piderman was on her body and he courageously captured it with tissue and squashed it. (Too bad I don't have any pic on this. Need to ask Miss Cooking Pot to draw it out - OI PANCI, DRAW LER). So, there you go ... the all BLACK MR. Se-piderman paid Miss Cooking Pot a visit at the fish farm. I've no idea how it gets there but ... may be because Spiderman 3 is showing and they are heavily promoting the black suit, so Mr. Black Se-piderman also wanted to do some promotion to Miss Cooking Pot. Too bad, that he ended up .... squashed -.- So much for Peter Parker's adventure.

Anyway, enough of those celebrities madness, time to showcase Flappy & Yin Yang Beng. :-)


This is the elegant Miss Flappy (actually it's a he .... but he looks too elegant so shall call him Miss)


And finally, my new toilet buddy - Yin Yang Beng! ;-) Glad to have you in our house. Yippee!

Oh ya ... we also tried to make them "fight" through the glass and had a video on it ... apologize that you need to watch it by tilting your head to the side ... this is because our super amateur camerawoman was on drug. She mistakenly ate the fish food we got from the fish farm. So .... I apologize for any neck pain caused.

Ying Yang Beng vs Flappy - S01E01


The first one was captured with my camera which I thought couldn't be uploaded to Youtube -.- Hell I was wrong ... anyway here's the transcript:

(At first it was silence everyone is trying hard to hold their breath but then it failed and hell broke loose)
Miss Cooking Pot: Start already ah ... Ha ha ha ha
Me: Gagal (means failed in Bahasa Indonesia). Use my handphone lar. Your one can't put in youtube one.
Miss Mushroom: Ah really ah? Eh, Say lar...

So embarassing -.- apparently it can be put in youtube! OMG.

Ying Yang Beng vs Flappy - S01E02

So we switched by using my handphone and everyone was still holding their breath and tried to only whisper to communicate but ....... -.-

Miss Cooking Pot: (Pointing at Yin Yang Beng) He's eating ... Wakakaka ... Bo Chap (Ignorant)
Me: You all wanna fight fight lar. I wanna eat.
Miss Cooking Pot: Ya lor. Haha.
Miss Mushroom: Eh don't laugh ler. I'm shaking, man, if I laugh.
Me: My Ah Beng..... I have no face anymore.
Miss Mushroom: Aiyoh, Flappy so pretty.
Me: Eat some more. Eat some more!!! Fight lah you .... Haiya ... World Peace
Miss Mushroom: Gong gong (stupid), man!
Me: Cape (tired) already lar ..
Miss Cooking Pot: Ya lar I think cape already
Me: Don't fight already lar. Peace out. Peace out, dude. Where is the love ....
Miss Cooking Pot: You said Peace out, dude. Then Flappy said Piss on you.
All: HAHAHAHHA!!
Me: I think this video gone case already
(The video was paused for a few seconds as they didn't seem to be fighting and then when they did, we recorded again)
Miss Mushroom: Where?
Me: There? They are fighting. They are camera shy.
Me: Forget it lah ... done already lar ...
Miss Mushroom: No no .. it's going on. It's still going on. So I stop ah?
Me: You paused just now ah?
Miss Mushroom: I don't know. Anyway should I keep going on?
Miss Cooking Pot: Be right back. Be right back.
Miss Mushroom: Should I keep going on?
Me: Up to you lar

The end ....

OMG -.- the way we all talk ... I guess anybody who normally speak proper English will be so puzzled and may need to be hospitalized. I love my Singlish and guess now everyone knows why I name my fish Beng & Lian. :p Like owner like pet. :p

My First Video on YouTube

WOW.
:o
So this really works! :o
Sorry sorry ... I'm a bit "suah-koo" a.k.a mountain tortoise here ...

This video was taken in May 2005 ... hhmmm .. how come it was May 2005? Strange ... I thought it should be long long before that. HAHA. But anyway, that's all I remember.

I was in some industrial area having lunch and I met this 3-legged dog. I called him "Jolly Good Fella".

He knew his boundary so well that he kept walking around below the pavement beggingfor food. Never once he stepped up and walk on the pavement where people are eating. He's patiently walking back and fro waiting for some kind souls (like me) to give him food. So I did ... That's me who threw some food for him. He's sucha sweetie that I made him a special friend in my heart from the moment I saw him.

Hope he's doing well right now. With such an attitude, I believe he'll survive anything despite the fact that he only has 3 legs. :-)

And I shall say it cheesily ... he had me at "hello". WAKAKA. :-)

Goodbye, Red Lian ....

Sigh ...
My 2nd toilet buddy passed away last night. :( :( :(

Some gruesome details, her head was wounded (must be because she kept knocking on the glass vase thinking it's her enemy), her gills were clotted with blood and she was so pale.

Facing death is one of the most awful experience every time. Be it a fish or a dog ... I can't imagine if it happens to a human that I know. Haiz. -.-

Though she (I assume it's a "she" since I called her Red Lian) was only with me for 3 months and 20 days, there have been so many interesting phenomenons like ....

• She's choosy with her food
• She loved to do yoga (but apparently she's not meditating. based on google, she must have lost her equilibrium so she's upside down) :(

• Sometimes, she'll stick almost half of her body out in the air. Quite scary phenomenon. -.-

But whatever it is that she's doing. Still love her and miss her lots. :( .... Time spent with her although short, but will remember her for life.

In the search for the 3rd toilet buddy .... wonder what colour will he/she be this time.





Bye bye ... Lian. Hope you'll meet "Blue Beng" there.