Bacon

Paula gave us bacon today. Bacon is great.

Do I need to say more?

We got bacon!

Bacon is great!

Iranians Ban Dog Walking

The humans who rule in Iran’s capitol Teheran cannot be very wise. They have decided to ban people from walking their dogs in public spaces in Teheran. Officially, this is because dogs were ”creating fear and anxiety” among other humans. The ban includes driving with a dog in the car.

There have been many actions taken against dogs and their humans in Iran. The Islamic leaders claim dogs are ”unclean” and the holding of dogs is just due to bad western influence sice the time of the ousted monarchy.

Well, if dogs and their humans were treated with respect in the days of the monarchy, this is just another proof that monarchyis good and Islamism is bad. Which sane human can actually dislike dogs? All dogs like humans.

Sometimes, You Wonder About a Purpose

Hello, Karstuhl here!

Sometimes, I write my blog entries on Daniel’s Ipad. It has a touch screen with the letters, and if you touch a certain square, you get special signs. One of these signs is kr. I wonder who came up with the idea that, instead of just typing a k followed by an r, you could chose special signs and type kr. The result is the same and there are an equal amount of touches on the touch screen. If you want to erase the special sign kr, you also have to touch backspace twice, so itis not one sign, but the two signs k and r.

Computer programmers are funny sometimes. This is one of those times. I refuse to believe any other reason for the special sign kr, than that it was funny to have it there.

Constant Snowfall

Snow has been falling all day. Daniel shoveled snow both in the morning and in the evening. He said he would probably have to hovel more snow tomorrow. It is easier to walk where the snow is taken away. On the other paw, it is more fun running around where the snow is deep.

I hope this snow will stay on the ground for quite a while. It is more fun that way.

Places in Bed

There can be differences of opinions among us dogs at night, when we go to bed. Some places are better than others, some of us believe. There are occasions when two of us want to lay on the same place, and there is an argument. It would be better if they would always let me decide. I am a great arbiter. The nights would be less troublesome then.

Jápanese Victory in Australia

The Japanese tennis player Naomi Osaka won the ladies’ tournament at the Australian Grand Slam tournament. This is one of the four greatest tennis tournaments in the world. Naomi Osaka also won the US Open this autumn and is now ranked as number one in the world. It is great that a Japanese player can do this.

News

Hello, Gerstuhl here!

Something very exciting has happened. I would like to tell you about it. Paula has said, however, we should wait for at least a couple of days.

I can barely contain this sectret, but I must, so I will.

Cold Winter

It was probably the coldest day of this winter so far. We had temperatures of -13 C this morning. Of course, this is no problem for a Shiba. We come from Japan, where winters can be colder than this. Our coats are warm enough. It feels good, nevertheless, to stay indoors in the warm house.

Henry’s Fair

On the 19 January, Henrik has name day in Sweden. Thisis the same name as the English Henry. In the week following Henry, there is a fair in our hometown which dates back perhaps as much as 800 years. There are a lot of sales people in the centre of the town. At the same time, there is an annual conference for the mining industry.

Paula and Daniel often take a tour among the sales people. This year, however, it seems like they do not want to. There are so many other things to do, of course, like hanging around with us dogs. I can understand that they do not make a tour among the sales people a big priority. You can buy almost everything in ordinary stores.

Snow

We have a lot of snow now. Over the last couple of days, more than a decimetre of snow has filled the ground. This is fun. I become like a pup again, when I get the chance to jump and run around in the snow. I love it. This is the best part of winter. I wish this snow will last for a long time.

No Sight of the Eclipse

It was overcast this morning. Snow was falling. We got no sight of the eclipse. I am very disappointed.

Lunar Eclipse!

If you get up really early tomorrow morning, and if you have a clear view of the Moon in the sky, you will see a Lunar eclipse. It is around 5:40 in the morning, they said on the radio.

The beautiful celestial show of a Lunar eclipse is what I got my name from.

The Moon will look red, when sunlight that has passed Earth's atmosphere will reflect back from its surface and reach us. With a full eclipse, the Moon turns black. It is a rare sight, one that I can recommend.

My friends can, of course, see a Lunar Eclips whenever they see me, because that is me.

At Mia’s Place

This evening, we visited Mia again. Polly was there too, this time. Mia’s children were not, however. I guess they were having fun somewhere else. We had fun, where we were. Polly and I also got some nice treats. Treats always make the day better. Mia has a nice house, I like it there.

Administration

Sweden has a Prime Minister again. I am not sure why it has taken so long since the election last September. Daniel is very much into politics, he can often explain these things to me. Now, he does not understand, either. If he does not understand, I am not that displeased with not understanding, either.

Candy

Hello, Karstuhl here!

We got candy from Paula today. A lot of candy. Candy is great.

The downside was, Paula said we would not get so much ordinary food, because we had had so much candy. I knew there was a catch.

Constipated Washing Machine

Our washing machine has had constipation. Daniel has now, however, been able to get rid of the dirt in the drain hose. There was a little plastic piece of junk, barely bigger than the inside of the drain hose, that had been stuck in it. Dirt had accumulated around this little piece of plastic. The dirt is also removed and the washing machine is not constipated any more. We can now, once again, wash our blankets, stuffed toys, sheets, and the clothes of the humans without any trouble. I am glad it worked out.

Orange Juice

Hello, Orange here!

This evening, Paula let me drink some orange juice. I love the taste, the colour, and the name of it.

Oranges are nice fruits, and healthy. They are named from their colour, just like I was named from the orange like red coat that I had as a small pup. The colour is named from the livery colour of the Royal House of Orange.

I would like to drink orange juice more often.

Lost Voice

I feel sosorry for Paula. She has a sore throat and has almost lost her voice. She can just whisper what she want to say.

I would not want to lose my voice. Sometimes, it is necessary to bark or growl. One of my duties is to be a watch dog, this means I have tosound the alarm sometimes. I use my voice to do this. Without my voice, it would be hard to fulfill my duty.

End of Christmas

It is the end of Christmas today, by Swedish tradition.

Paula, Daniel, and I visited Paula’s sister Mia and her children. We danced, took down the Christmas tree, ate the ginger bread house, and had fun. It was a good day. I like the children, it is fun to be with them.

Arguments

My granddaughter Gerstuhl (a.k.a. Li’l Gertrud) can be quite annoying. We get into arguments onceina while, because she is stubborn. I cannot really blame her. I am stubborn myself. They even say it is a thing with Shibas, we are generally more stubborn than the average dog. Then again, who wants to be average? The thing about Gerstuhl is that she is stubborn, even when both I and her mother Karstuhl tells her of. She should have a little more respect for her seniors. I guess she will, once she gets pups of her own. Then she will experience stubborn young ones.

Compromise

The two politicalparties at the ideological centre in the Swedish parliament have usually seen as part of the centre-right, together with two parties who are more conservative. The two centre parties have, however, today made a compromise with the social democrats and the environmentalists. These four parties will try to rule the country until the next general election in 2022. Those who live to see it will  know what happens. I doubt these centre parties will gain from it. They will not see many ideas become reality, and will lose voters. It might be better in the future, after next election.

Dog Food Made out of Insects?

Some dog food manufacturers have started to make dog food from insects, instead of mainly using the left overs from the meat industry. It is said this is more climate and environmentaly friendly. It also contains a lotof proteins and other nutrients. However, as is stated in this article, what will happen to the left overs of the meat industry, if dogs do not eat it?

Our main dog foodis made out of fish. We like it. It fits our Japanese heritage, we think. I would gladly eat meat and left overs from the meat industry, but not so eagerly insects.

I say that humans who eat insects may give their dogs insects. If not, give your dogs meat and fish!

Feeling Bad

Paula was feeling bad today. She went to the hospital and had some tests taken. She said that if there would have been an immediate danger, they would have told her so. She did not hear from them. Thus, we drew the conclusion that there is no immediate danger. This is good, though Paulais still feeling bad.

Momoko

Hello, Gerstuhl here!

Most of us dogs are Shibas. Still, the little Poodle Momoko normally lay claim on Daniel, when we go to bed. She makes sure she is petted by him, and only she. I am a little jealous of Momoko for this. There is nothing I can do about it, however. Momoko is older and higher in rank than I am. On occasions, I have taken Momoko’s place. This is good, but rare. I just have tobe satisfied with what I can get.

Important Mission

Daniel and I performed a very important mission this evening. Paula’s father Nils-Olov gave us five kilogrammes of minced moose meat, provided that we would come and get it right away. We did.

We walked quickly there, and quickly home. I was eager to complete the mission.

I hoped we, or at least I, would get some minced meat whwn we returned home. Daniel just pit it in the freezer and the fridge, however. I guess it is something to look forward to, getting to taste it.

Thank you, Nils-Olov!

Japanese Tennis Title

The Japanese tennis player Kei Nishikori won the ATP tennis tournament in Brisbane. It was his first tournament victory since 2016 and he now hopes to have the same momentum in the Australian Grand Prix in Melbourne.

All of us Shibas root for Nishikori, of course, since he is from the home country of our breed. It would really be nice if he won the Grand Slam tournament as well. He is ranked number nine in the world, so he does have the capacity. We will follow the upcoming tournament to see what happens.

Chinese Landing on the Moon

I am generally not very fond of China. It is a dictatorship where they are mean to dogs and even eat dogs, and they are in conflict over different territories with many neighbours, including Japan. Still, even the Chinese can make good things. The Chinese space agency has now landed a probe on the far side of the Moon and will explore it. This is nice. The more we get to know about the Moon, the more we know how we can use it in the future expansion of dogs and humans to other celestial bodies of the Solar system, and beyond. Exploration is exciting and good. I like this.

Short Week

This work week has been shorter than usual, thanks to New Year’s Eve and Day. After just three days, we have a weekend again. We have decided to sleep until late tomorrow morning, something which I generally approve of, and support this time as well. Life is cool.

Went to the New Place

This evening, Daniel and I went over to Paula’s sister Mia’s new place. Itis within walking distance from us, whichis great. Paula was already there, when we arrived.

As I had expected, it was nteresting to explore this little house. It was a nice place.

The humans had dinner and I also got a snack. This, of course, added to the positive feelings.

I believe I want to go back to this place again soon.

New Place to Go

Paula has a sleepover at her sister’s new place. It is not far away from here. This will be a new place to go, once in a while, in the future. I am looking forward to visiting it. It is always interesting to get to smell new places.

New Year

We have a new year. As always, it feels like a fresh start.

We have also moved some furniture in the living room and bedroom, to make better use of the space there. This turned out well. Change can be a good thing.