Songs of friendship and nostalgia air on the radio non-stop and it is yet another session for recollection of events of the years past and passing.
Today is also the birthday of one very nice girl whom I used to fancy in secondary school which (fortunately for her), did not develop into anything more toxic. Happy birthday, Xueying!
It was also on this date that I was faced with the sad truth about someone whom I had always regarded as a good friend who (unfortunately for me) turned out to be an ingrate who would just as soon sacrifice anyone around him, which included falsifying facts and spreading untruths, to appease a cow.
And now that we're done with NYEs past... 2008 hasn't exactly been a wonderful year, what with all the calamities, natural (Sichuan earthquake) or otherwise (economic crisis, melamine incident, etc).
Things have been very slow and quiet on the bread-winning front. Companies are very cautious about spending. A legal tussle may be looming but thankfully a major pest was eradicated with little time to spare. Still, it's better late than never.
The highlight of the year has to be the adoption of our son, a canine furkid whom we have lovingly named JacJac (see my previous postings!). He is growing into a handsome, strong boy of 10 months and counting.
I'd be sure to raise my champagne to better things in the new year.
At one time in my life, I thought I had a handle on the meaning of the word "service" ---"The act of doing things for other people."
Then I learned these terms:
Civil Service Postal Service Public Service Customer Service Service Centres
Facilities Management Services
And I became confused about the word "service." This is not what I thought "service" meant.
Then, the other day, I overheard two breeders talking and one said he had hired a dog to "service" a few of his bitches. BAM! It all came into perspective.
Now I understand what all those "service" agencies are doing to us.
The missus has found something worthy of her time and attention on local TV, a 20-episode drama series titled "By My Side" that is endorsed by the Health Promotion Board which runs public service advisory during almost every commercial break that preaches fidelity.
All is good that TCS is not showing some atrocious period dramas with people in outlandish drag costumes but what got me thinking and blogging on this are the lessons that I have "learnt" from this series:
1. Never tell anyone if you are HIV-positive and/or have Aids;
2. And more importantly, homosexuality, specifically being gay, is a greater evil than Aids and infidelity combined.
Here we have a government agency endorsed TV drama series on prime-time television advocating fidelity, safe sex and education of HIV and Aids (that it cannot be transmitted through food or superficial physical contact) while homosexuality warrants the weight and power of Section 377A's retention to keep in check.
I shall not repeat what has been said pertaining to homosexuality.
You get very good and interesting reads on YawningBread and Mr Wang on this and other issues.
Here is a recent video taken in Sentosa Tanjong Beach showing JacJac swimming out to sea to fetch his new Water Loopies aqua toy.
I have searched high and low in Singapore for a quality aqua toy for dogs but most were unsatisfactory. The main problem if you are a dog in the water is that your vision will be limited by the fact that your head (and thus eyes) is going to be very low in the water.
It is not good if a toy simply floats on the surface. It makes very little difference as you would hardly be able to see it if it was thrown a long distance. As such, we could throw a floating object/toy no more than 5 metres away for good play-fetch.
In addition to the above, the surface floating toy will cause dogs to ingest a large amount of sea-water in the process. If you do not already know, drinking too much sea-water will cause dogs to have the runs. Think of the potential mess and many people would swear not to let their dogs swim in the sea again.
I'm happy to say all the above problems have been tackled with this Water Loopies aqua toy for dogs (I doubt you will be able to train a cat to fetch anything, much less swim and fetch). No doubt JacJac still drink some sea-water but it's greatly reduced as he is able to hold up his head and hold onto his toy at the same time. The throw distance is also much farther (as far as I can throw it). Almost half the toy "stands up" from the water and is easily visible.
Remember, an exercised and tired dog has a happy owner!
We sent JacJac for his first session of daycare this morning. We have been talking about this for some days and had joked that even JacJac has to attend 豆豆班。
All was well and introduction done properly. JacJac was there for approximately 7 hours before I finally picked him up around 1730hrs.
I spoke to the handler and learnt that JacJac had been taking refuge under one of their tables most of the time except for when he wanted a drink or when he was brought out for his walk. This is exactly what we have observed --- that JacJac prefers interaction with humans more than dogs. Some authors on canine behaviour describes this symptom as the dog thinking itself to be human, or at least close to humans and above other dogs.
Hmm... we can only hope that he successfully overcome this with time in case he develops some unsavoury character traits, e.g. aggression or stress around other dogs which may in turn cause some sudden and unexpected behaviour that may give way to grief like his "monster leash" episode.
We have been scouring Singapore for a reliable and responsible dog-sitter for JacJac for those times when the both of us would be travelling and out of town. He was terribly unhappy the last time we boarded him with the breeder for our recent Bangkok trip. Not that the breeder was irresponsible but they basically caged him up for the whole day which is bad for any dog, more so a high energy breed like JacJac.
There isn't really much available in terms of quality boarding services for dogs in Singapore.
Most of the ones we saw also basically cage their "customers" up for the whole day with short periods of solitary playtime in poorly maintained enclosures devoid of any shade accompanied by staff who are more interested in chatting or SMS on their mobile phones. Howis this unlike self-masturbation without the climax? The dogs will simply look at the handler expecting some form of interaction and eventually invariably sit or lie down to wait out their allocated yard-time.
We got to know K9 Kulture from a dog-lover friend of ours and decided to check it out. All appears fine and we have registered the little guy for 6 sessions, possibly more depending on his progress. Currently, JacJac appears to prefer interaction with humans rather than his fellow canines so we can only hope that he learns to socialise and behave well around other dogs.
JacJac was sent to his vet for an operation this morning to have him sterilised.
The decision was made long before his first day home with us. In fact, it was made many many months ago, at the first instance of intention to have a canine companion at home which was say, approximately 2.5 years ago.
Here are some commonly raised pros and cons with regard to spaying. Here's another informative link on why it's a good idea to neuter dogs. In fact a simple search on Google will turn up many relevant and enlightening links.
We'd like to take this chance to thank all our (and JacJac's) family and friends for their concern with regard to the sterilisation. We believe it is for the best and have done our utmost to mitigate the risks present in all surgeries by choosing one of the most reputable and quality veterinary medical care available in Singapore.
We're sure that JacJac will still be as happy to play with you as soon as he's properly healed!
Little fella is back from the vet tired and vexed.
The vet has given him the all clear as backed by results of blood tests.
He ate only a little even though he was offered his favourite kibbles mixed with milk and bread crumbs. All he wants is our attention and to be close to us, so only one of us may move away at any time or he will wake and attempt to follow, bringing him pain. Just like a little baby.
Update at 1523hrs of the next day:
JacJac must be feeling much better today after coughing up what appears to be phlegm last night. Speaking of which, it was difficult for me to sleep with him moving around and bumping into his playpen with his "radar".
He is back to his usual self, ringing his bell to wake us up at 8am. We were worried that he'd have trouble moving around the home but apparently he is able to jump up and down his usual spots, e.g. sofa and bed. He is even asking to be brought outside for walks!
I estimate condition at approximately 70 to 75%. Weight is 5.6kg, same as what he weighed before the operation.
Update at 2107hrs, T-Plus 2 Days:
If I didn't know any better, I'd say that JacJac looks and behaves like 100% of his normal active self. There's little evidence of his operation bar the sutures on his genitals and his buster collar, a.k.a. e-collar.
He seems not to mind his e-collar one bit. In fact, he seems to like his e-collar and regards it as his new toy/armour! Perhaps it has to do with the celebratory way we introduced and orientated him to it (as his new hat). The buster collar is only removed for his meals. He'd walk towards the collar and sniff and stand still while we put it back on.
He's managing the collar very well and even learning to use it to his advantage in play-fighting. Here's an embedded video of him playing fetch, buster collar and all.
Update on 8th September 2008; T-Plus 10 Days:
JacJac had his sutures removed by Dr Lucy SHUM today. The wound has closed up and healed nicely. He behaved like an angel at the vet's standing only occasional to stretch and sniff around while we discussed his well-being.
The reason why I had to board JacJac was so that I could travel to Bangkok on my annual pilgrimage to pay respects to my
"god-father", quite literally. If anything else, this was worth all the hassle.
What follows would be samplings of my vices.
I am hoping that I won't be needing glasses at eighty years old --- by drinking out of bottles! Hah!
Digital SLR photography --- a relatively new vice to me for the potential hole it could burn in my pocket with all the different models of cameras available, lens and glitzy accessories one could attach to the body to pimp it up. I'm making do with my
entry-level Canon EOS 400D and kit lens. Hoping to eventually add more versatility with an external flash and some new lens that preferably do not cost an arm and a leg. Heh.
A shot of the hotel's pool.
Some pebbles in the water for that hard-vs-soft juxtaposition.
Nocturnal landscape from my hotel room.
Fancy bumping into friends overseas! Group love!
A self-portrait in front of my friends' accommodation.
I had to board JacJac with his breeder for 3 days and nights (21~24 August 2008) for my sort-of last minute praying trip to Bangkok even though the trip was a quick 2 days 1 night affair (22~23 August 2008), mainly due to the awkward timing of the flights.
The poor fellow must not have slept knowing how JacJac abhors noise. The breeder said that he refused to eat or drink for the first two days and he lost like 200 grams in the short time we were apart.
The little guy looked very excitedly but tired when we arrived to pick him up and he started sulking as soon as we got home. He's been sleeping for long periods ever since, even failing to wake up at his usual 8am.
Sighz... looks like we'd have to find an alternate solution for JacJac's care to factor in our future plans.
Posts
