Rain!

Rain was falling on the evening walk. This was the first time we have had a real rainfall for weeks, and it had to begin just when we were out on a walk. We shook and shook ourselves, but were still soaking wet when we got indoors. In English, you sometimes say it is raining cats and dogs. I guess it was like that tonight. Fortunately, this is a figure of speech. If real cats and dogs would have rained upon me, I would have been outraged.

Hail

While we have a hot summer, there is winter on the southern half of the Earth. There was a hail storm in Buenos Aires, Argentina. I prefer taking my walks in the hot summer Sun we have had today.

Disturbing News from Washington

Mum is upset, I understand her. There has been a shooting in Seattle in her home state of Washington. One woman died and five others were wounded as a man shot several rounds at the Jewish Federation of Greater Seattle. The alleged shooter is supposed to have said, "I'm a Muslim American, I'm angry at Israel".

Sure, I know most people in Israel are Jewish, and Israel is currently at war with some Muslim terrorist organizations in its neighbouring countries, but I cannot understand why anybody would want to shoot any jew - in this case not even one living in Israel - just because Israel is at war. If an American would be angry at Sweden, would he shoot people whose ancestors emigrated to the USA from Sweden in the 19th century? If an American would be angry at Japan, would he shoot Shibas born and raised in America?! It is insane, but then, the shooter might not have been sane.

There is more about the shooting in The Seattle Times.

Superman and His Dog

There is a new movie premiering this week, Superman Returns. I am so young, I have never seen any of the previous Superman movies, so I am not very interested in watching a movie where he returns. Whether he returns or not, I would rather see a well made movie about Superman's dog Krypto.

Slander? Doping?

Rumour has it, the American winner of Le Tour de France, Floyd Landis, is caught being yet another bicyclist taking performance-enhancing drugs. The test positive for drugs is said to have been taken during Le Tour. Mum (who is American, in case you have not read much of my blog before) says she does not believe this, she says American athletes never have to take drugs to be the best. Landis has disappeared, he did not show up for competitions in the Netherlands yesterday and Denmark today. Is the rumour just slander? I am not so sure. Too bad if it is true, for bicycling, Landis, and America.

Environmental Hazard

A Swedish court of law has ruled that golf is an environmental hazard. Flying golf balls can cause injuries and fear. This sounds like a rather funny ruling, but I believe the court was right. We live nearby a golf court. I wonder whether they will change any of their routines around the players.

For those who can read Swedish, you can read more at Norstedts juridik.

Too Hot Weather

Daniel claims you must not complain about the heat in Sweden, since this country lie so far north that it has long and cold winters. I do not care what he says. It feels too hot both indoors and outdoors, therefore I write that it does in my blog. Sometimes we can hear thunder in the distance, but there is to little rain falling on our neighbourhood. Too bad there is nothing we can do about the weather.

The Price We Pay

It was a hot day today. Paula said she did not feel comfortable even after taking a shower. She did not feel like going to work tonight. I do not blame her, I would rather have her here at home with us. Nevertheless, it is when Paula and Daniel are off to work they earn the money with which they buy food and candy for us dogs. The price we have to pay to eat good stuff is not having our beloved humans with us at all times. It is sad, but a fact of life. Daniel will start working at another place this August, where dogs are allowed. I might have the opportunity to come along to his work some day. The best thing, however, would be to have both Daniel and Paula at home all the time, earning money for dog food and candy anyway. I only wish I knew how! Smart as I may be, I cannot answer any question.

My Victorious Brother

I went with Paula to a dog show in Västerås today. I would not be shown myself, but my brother Jiro would, so we were supporters of him. He ended up as second best male dog and got a cert (certificate). A cert is the first step towards becoming a Champion. We are so happy for Jiro. Imagine that, he got a cert before he was even one year old.

My only regret now is that I was not shown in this dog show. When the judge liked my brother so much, perhaps I could have won a cert too. Well, this makes me more eager to make good results in future dog shows. If you visit the dog show in Askersund on the 12th of August, look for me in the shiba ring!

Mum is also glad that an American won Le Tour de France even in the absence of seven times winner Lance Armstrong. This year's winner is Floyd Landis.

A New Tent

We were not at any dog show today, but we did put up a dog show tent. Paula and Daniel has bought a new tent for dog shows and put it up as a test today. It went well. This tent is bigger than the older one, therefore more fitting for prominent Shiba show dogs like Mum and me.

We ate tomatoes tonight. One might think tomatoes are nothing for carnivores like us Shibas, but remember that there have been more than one movie made about killer tomatoes.

Sleeping in the Day

While Daniel is away from home during the day to work, Paula is working in the night. We sleep in Daniel's company during the night. Then, when Paula is at home, she needs to sleep during the day and we make her company in the world of dreams as well. This is very nice. Sleeping is one of my favourite pass times.

"Unfaithful Dogs"?

There is some kind of armed conflict going on in a part of the world called the Middle East. (This part of the world is not to be confused with Middle Earth of the English author J.R.R. Tolkien's books.) In this context, I have been told that some humans in this part of the world use to insult other humans by calling them "unfaithful dogs". I have trouble believing this. I mean, any human who knows dogs knows that there is noone who is more faithful than a dog. Such an insult would thus be very weird, since it has got nothing to do with reality. Oh well, the world is a strange place, so maybe the story is true after all.

Older

I am getting older. We all are, I know. It is just that sometimes you discover signs that make this eternal fact more obvious. I had my ten months birthday last Saturday, but I completely forgot about it. We were not at home and I spent the day at the dog show, but this is only part of the reason I forgot about it. The older you get, the less you think about birthdays. The fact that I forgot is thus a sign of me getting older.

It is soon autumn. I will celebrate my first annual birthday in less than two months this autumn. This is something to celebrate.

Back to Work

Daniel has started to work again. This is sad for us who has gotten used to seeing him more during his weeks of vacation. The good news is, he will not work in another town for more than three weeks more, then he will go back to his earlier job at the County Administrative Court of Örebro County here in our home town. We will see more of him at home, because he will not have to travel so far back and forth to work. It is good for him too, he will see more of me...

CK

Back from three days of dog shows. I got first prize in quality and won the Junior class every day. One of the days, I also got CK, this means champion quality. It is rare that such a young dog as I am gets CK. I got HP one day, too. We are happy for the results, they reflect that I will probably become a champion when I am older.

Three Days of Dog Shows

We are leaving home this afternoon for three days of dog shows, Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. The dog shows are located in a place called Högbo bruk in Gästrikland north of where we live. Paula and Daniel spend this day planning and arranging the luggage. I am preparing myself for another appearance in the show rings. This is something I am getting quite good at.

My Picture in a Magazine

If you have the magazine Hundsport from the Swedish Kennel Club, number 7-8 of 2006, you can see me and Paula on a picture on page 93, second lowest to the left. This is the offical report from the dog show in Hässleholm where I became Best in Show Puppy. It is nice to be recognized in this way.

Progress

I am making progress as a show dog. This weekend, we were at a dog show in Halland, a province on the west coast of Sweden. I got a first prize on Saturday and a first prize plus an honourary prize on Sunday, when I won the junior class. It is not very common for a dog of my age to get a honourary prize. Results keep getting better.

Today is a day of rest after the dog show. I like that. We celebrate Paula on the Andrea name's day today. Andrea is Paula's second name.

The World Cup is over, the final was played yesterday. Italy won, France got silver, and Germany bronze. Daniel liked the result of the final game, a European team now has almost as many gold medals as the best South American team, Italy has four versus Brazil's five. There are now as many European World Cup titles as there are South American (Italy 4, Germany 3, England 1, France 1 v. Brazil 5, Argentina 2, Uruguay 2). Now we can concentrate on other things on TV.

Summer Heat

It is so hot outside, none of us want to be outside longer than necessary. It is warm indoors as well, but not as warm as outdoors. Cold weather was sometimes an obstacle in the winter, now I understand that warm weather can be as well. Nevertheless, being a Shiba means staying cool in any situation, so we manage.

Known from TV

The veterinary TV show I have blogged about before was on tonight as well. One of the veterinarians on this show works on Gothland, his name is Håkan Onsjö. I met him on the dog show on Gothland this weekend, when he examined me at the entrance to the show. It is fun to see a face you recognize.

Dog Show in Visby

I have been away this weekend on a trip to the largest island of the Baltic Sea, Gothland. This is an island in the centre of the sea and a part of Sweden. There is a beautiful old city with city walls there called Visby, where Paula and I went to a dog show. This was my first appearance in the official, adult classes. I won first prize in quality, but did not win any cert or honourary prize (HP). Nevertheless, Paula and I were satisfied with the result, which is good for such a young bitch as I am.

From now on, I will take a short summer break from my blog. Stay tuned, I may start blogging again before you know it!