New Food

Paula and Daniel went grocery shopping today. One of the things they purchased was a new bag of dog food. This is important.

All of us dogs like meat, fish, sausages et cetera more than dog food. We like our dog food, but many other things are tastier. It is also nice not to eat the same thing every day. Still, the dog food is our staple food, the thing we have the most. This is why it is important more dog food was purchased. I like this. 

Prince William and Pups

Prince William of Wales, who is next in line to the British (and many more) throne, has celebrated his birthday with the pups that his Cocker Spaniel bitch has just recently had. 

Prince William’s grand mother, Queen Elizabeth II, was known as a breeder of Welsh Corgis. It is nice to know that the future King is also a dog breeder. 

Midsummer

It is the middle of summer. There can be no more daylight than now. We celebrate this as Midsummer in Sweden and neighbouring countries. 

Paula and Daniel had a bygger serving of pickled herring than they ate. Morran gladly ate this. Pepe and I did not like it, but Morran did. I am glad for her. 

A Little Rain

When we got out for the night, a few raindrops fell from the sky. We were afraid that it would start to rain, so we hurried inside. It did not start to rain, though.

It can be quite comfortable to be inside, hearing the rain falling outside. Since no rain started to fall, we could not hear this sound. It is comfortable in our house, nevertheless, but Ihad hoped to hear the rain. 

It is Midsummer Eve tomorrow. Rain seem to be common on Midsummer Eve. We have to see if this will be the case this year. It can be comfortable to celebrate Midsummer Eve indoors while the rain is falling outdoors. 

City Council

Daniel is a member of the city council. They have the monthly meeting today and tomorrow. It is usually just one day, but this month, it is two days so they will have the time to discuss the budget for 2026 as well as a lot of other items.

The meeting inspires Daniel to write in his blog. I find the meetings too boring to listen to, so I normally write about other, more interesting things. This blog post is an exception. I will find something else to write about tomorrow. Stay tuned! 

Political Murder in Mexico

A mayor of a municipality in Mexico has been shot dead. The murderers stormed a village hall where the mayor had a meeting. Two police officers were also injuried. 

This is not the first political murder in the area this year. 

Every murder is a tragedy. A political murder, however, is not just an attack on the person herself, but an attack on the whole community and the democratic system through which she has been elected. In this sense, a political murder is worse than many other murders. 

We feel for the family of the killed mayor, the whole municipality, and her dogs, if she had any. 

Preview of Midsummer Eve

For dinner tonight, Paula made a preview of the dinner for Midsummer Eve. There were pickled herring, salmon, eggs, cheese, and sauce. Daniel said he quite liked it.

Midsummer Eve is this Friday. It is oneof the great annual celebrations in Sweden, when we celebrate the Summer Solstice. Good food is a main part of the celebration. This is the part that allofoner us dogs love the most. Good food is marvelous. 

I look forward to Midsummer Eve. 

Fourth Time

Daniel mowed the lawn today. It was the fourth time this season, and the first time in June.

The mowing was needed, he had not mowed it in two and a half weeks. Now it is easier for us dogs to run around on the lawn again. Chihuahuas are small, we cannot den this, and we like a well kept lawn. 

The Seven Samurais

If Hailey or Polly would have still been in charge of the blog that Hailey started, it would probably be more blog entries about Japan and Japanese culture. It was, when they took care of the blog. As Shibas, they were more interested in the land of their ancestors than I will ever be. There are instances when I return to Japan in the blog, just because of Hailey and Polly. Today is one of those instances.

Tonight on Swedish television, SVT2 at 22.15, you can watch The Seven Samurais. This is a classic Japanese movie. I do not know much about it and I have never seen it myself, but it is so well known that I thought I would have to mention it in this blog. After all, iris a Shiba blog that I am just a care taker of. 

If you are interested in classic movies and have access to SVT2, do watch that movie tonight. Hailey and Polly would have wanted you to. 

Came Home

Daniel has been away from home for a few days, in the line of duty. He came home today. We all gathered around him and felt togetherness. It was the best thing that happened today. 

Life is always best when we are all together at home. 

The Sun Is Shining

The Sun is shining and it is warm weather. I like summer days like this.

Of course, Pepe and I agree that it could be even warmer. We would not mind some even warmer days. Swedish summers are all right, but we are decendants of dogs from Mexico. We could stand days as warm as they can be there. Do not ever come to us and complain that the weather in Sweden may be too hot. I have never experienced this in Sweden, and I think I never will. 

Let there be more days like this, this summer! 

Borders for Pets

New rules make it easier to travel with pets between Great Britain and Northern Ireland. While both places are parts of the United Kingdom, Northern Ireland has other rules for crossing the land border it shares with the Republic of Ireland.

This is not the only instance where the travel with pets follow different rules than travels without pets. The reason for special rules is normally to ensure the health of pets. It is still difficult for us, who are pets, that there are special rules for us. It is for travels between Sweden and Norway, as well. I wish pet health would be so good everywhere, that borders would be open for us. 

Qualifiers

World Cup qualifiers are on for net year’s football World Cup.

Of course, Mexico is already qualified, since it is one of the host countries. Pepe and I can spend the time hoping a little for Sweden and follow the results without being nervous. This feels good. 

Sweden just played a friendly game tonight, versus Algeria. Qualifying results were more interesting. 

Attempted Political Murder in Colombia

A Colombian Senator has been shot and is in serious condition at an intensiv care unit of a hospital in Bogotà. The Senator, Miguel Uribe Turbay, had hopes to become a candidate for the presidency. In Colombia, people get negative memories of a time not long ago with many more political murders and political violence.

We are glad Paula and her sister were able to move away from Colombia, where they were born, and settle in Sweden. 

Ring Stewards in Askersund

Daniel is responsible for contracting ring stewards to the Askersund Dog Show. He was done doing this a while ago, but there is always the risk that something will have to change. 

Late last night, Daniel read a message from one of the ring stewards with whom he had a contract. She wrote that she will not be able to make it. However, she had recruited another ring steward who could take her place at the dog show. This is the best kind of message that you will not be able to work, Daniel said. He contacted the new ring steward just to make sure he can send her a contract. 

Ring stewards are important for dog shows. It seems like this change of ring stewards will turn out well. I am glad it will. 

Not Much

Not much happened today. We just had a day off, everyone of us.

It is nice to have a day off once in a while. There are so many things you must do most days, that you can skip on a day off. This is what we did today. 

Meatball Celebration

We celebrated Sweden’s national holiday today with meatballs. It hardly get better, tastier, ormroten Swedish than that.

Sweden is known around the world for Swedish meatballs. This is what we had. It was great.

Long live Sweden! 

National Eve

Daniel pointed out that iris the Swedish national holiday tomorrow, and that this means that it is National Eve today.

Swedes normally celebrate holidays on the eve before the day. This is true for Easter Eve, Walpurgis Eve, Midsummer Eve, Christmas Eve, and New Year’s Eve. Thus, Daniel says, we should celebrate National Eve this eve.

We did celebrate, with sushi. Not very Swedish, but very tasty. It was good. 

Running Around Again

Daniel came home rather late tonight. As soon as he came home, he let us dogs out in the yard.

While both Pepe and I ran to get out, Pepe also ran around, once he was outside. Morran and I took it easy.

Once you have made it out and been able to do what you want to do, Morran and I see no point in running around again. Pepe enjoyed it, though. To each, what he or she likes. Running around again may be fun sometimes, but Pepe likes it more than me or Morran do. 

Open Door Policy

Daniel worked from home today. In the afternoon, it was warmer outside than inside the house, so Daniel left the door open. We could walk out and in as much as we wanted. Morran enjoyed sitting outside in the sun. 

The negative thing with this open door policy, was that some buzzing flying insects found their way inside. Daniel was really annoyed with this. When these insects had finally made their way out again, Daniel closed the door to prevent more insects to come in. This was a disappointment, especially for Morran. All of these insects who bugs us in the summer, are the only real downside with the season. 

We enjoyed the open door policy while it lasted. 

Open Window

It is warm enough outside now, that we can have an open window in the bedroom for a long time and it does not get colder. One of the windows was open for a long time. A little while after Daniel had closed it, Paula asked if it was still open. You could not sense any immediate change. It was nice to get a little fresh air in, though.

Now we just have to wait for the summer days when it is definitely warmer outdoors than indoors. There are never many such days in a Swedish summer, but we cherish the ones there are. 

A Few Meatballs

While we always have a decent amount of dog food, there is not always more food given. Today, Daniel gave us a few meatballs, though. 

Even though we did not get more than a few meatballs, it was always something. You should not complain that you get just a few meatballs, when you do have a lot of other food and the alternative could be no meatballs.

Life is good with a few meatballs. 

Complaints

When Daniel vacuumed today, Paula complained over the noise. This is a weird complaint. The vacuuming is done to keep the floors clean. It is better for paws and feet with a clean floor. I am not fond of the noise of the vacuum cleaner either, but I do not complain over it. 

A Day Off

It was a national holiday yesterday, in memory of Christ’s ascention into Heaven. Thus, many people take this Friday off, since it is one day between the holiday and the free weekend. This year, both Paula and Daniel took the day off. They generally just took it easy. So did all of us dogs. They also had a few arguments, but none of us dogs had. Besides the arguments, it was a nice day. 

Third Time

This afternoon, Daniel mowed the lawn for the third time this season. 

Daniel and I have made a deal that I will write in the blog about every time he mows the lawn this year. This is so we can remember how many times he does it. We have often lost count other years, because we have not thought of keeping a record of the count. This season, we do.

We are glad the lawn is mowed. For small dogs like us, it is easier to move around on a well kept lawn. It also diminishes the risk of ticks, which is good. 

Funeral

Paula and Daniel went to a funeral in Stockholm today. It takes a while to go there and back, but they wanted to go. It was the funeral of Daniel’s mother. We all wish her a safe after-life. 

Blankets

Paula’s blanket fell on the floor, so she took Daniel’s blanket. Then Daniel came to the bed, saw that he did not have any blanket, and took a new blanket for his bed. I guess he did not realise Paula had taken the blanket from his bed, because he did no effort to take it back. Morran suggested he just did not want to pick a fight over blankets, and maybe this is true. He never told us, he just brought a new blanket. It was nice to have the new blanket to rest upon. 

Slugs

When it rains, the slugs appear. The killer slugs, that is, also called Spanish slugs, because they are probably originally from the Iberian peninsula. There are too many of this invasive species here, so Daniel does what he can to take them away. He says there are fewer this year than last, but after the rain this evening, he picked out a whole lot of them. Paula dislike the slugs even more, so she lets Daniel take care of them. All of us dogs also let Daniel do it, even though we agree that the yard is better of without these slugs. If only they were tasty and edible, there would be some use for them. 

Volcano

Our World is a fascinating place. There are volcanoes here and there, though fortunately far from where we live. We may complain about rain or cold weather, but it would not be fun to have a volcano erupt in our backyard. 

A volcano recently erupted in Hawaii. It is fascinating to watch the pictures from it. 

The Occasional Rain

We got a little rain on and off today.

Occasional rain like this can be disturbing. You go out into the sunshine, and it suddenly starts to rain, then it stops, and starts again. It is better to have a day when you know rain is falling. 

Rain is good for nature. We also need rain to fill up our well. It is still annoying to have rain falling on you when you are outside. Rain is better when you are under the roof of the house. 

Bronze

Sweden did not qualify for the final of the ice hockey World Championship. In the bronze game, however, Sweden won. For the second year in a row, Sweden won bronze. It is not as much as gold or silver, but it is not bad. 

Out in the Semi

Team America won the World Championship semi final versus Sweden today. We were all disappointed. America may be a neighbour of Mexico, where my breed is from, but this does not mean I support America more than necessary. I certainly prefer Sweden, where I live, before America. 

Life is still nice. Ice hockey is exciting, but just a little entertainment. 

Intermission

There have been several days now, since I last posted a blog entry. Hailey and Polly would have been disappointed with me. Still, it is not quite my blog, I am just a custodian before another heir of Hailey and Polly can take over. 

There last few days, I just felt like I needed an intermission from the duty to make daily blog entries. I did ask Morran, Pepe, and even Orange, if they wanted to be guest writers, but they did not volunteer. 

Well, now I am up for the daily blogging again, so stay tuned. More will come. 

Rules

Next week, Paula and Daniel will work as ring stewards at a dog show. This is important. 

They have spent a large part of this evening reading and discussing the rules on the dog breeds of the ring where they will serve. The rules are not very complicated, but it is important to be sure about them before the show. 

We hope everything will go well at the show. 

United Again

Daniel has been away on a trip to Stockholm for a few days. He came back home in the middle of the day today. We are all united again. 

Now we can calm down. There is less reason to thoroughly protect the house, when Daniel is home and can help us do this. 

Life is at its best, when everyone is at home. 

Injuried Eye

Paula has hurt one of her eyes. She even had to go to the hospital to let them flush something out from the eye.

Morran and Orange say they understand Paula. They both have injuries in one eye since way back. 

The Eurovision Song Contest is tonight, but you do not have to see to listen to the songs. 

Visit from Orange

Our Shiba friend Orange arrived today. She will stay with us for a while.

Orange is a nice and friendly Shiba. We like to have her here. She has not done much here today, but more will happen, we are sure. 

Mourning

We had to comfort Paula tonight. Once in a while, she gets distraught by the passing of a dog. Tonight, she mourned the loss of our bygone friend Viola. 

All of us miss Viola. We can mourn together. This makes the mourning easier to bear. 

It is a tribute to the memory of Viola, when we mourn her. We all appreciate this. My hope is that we have a happier day tomorrow, though. 

Going In and Going Out

Our Cats are odd in some ways. They may be outdoors all night, then come back indoors in the morning. Just a little later, they may want to go outside again. 

I have never understood the urge to stay outside like this. It is always cozier and more restful indoors, I believe. Then again, cats are of a different species. We may not be meant to understand everything about each other. Life is good anyway. 

Worried

When we were outside for the evening, a scent reached us. It was a scent that made us worry. We feared there was a big predator nearby. 

This is the downside of living near nature. It is nice with all the trees and small birds, but we could do without visits from big predators. 

Peruvian Pope

The new Pope of the Roman Catholic Church, Leo XIV, has lived and worked for many years in Peru. He is a Peruvian citizen as well as an American citizen. In Peru, they consider him one of them. In a way, Leo XIV is, thus, a Peruvian Pope, as well as an American Pope. 

Peru is a Latin American country. Pepe and I, who are of a breed from another Latin American Catholic country, Mexico, like this. Peru is a country we feel some kinship with. This is nice. 

Second Mowing of the Lawn

Daniel mowed the lawn today. This was the second time he mowed it this season. We agreed last time that we would keep track of how many times he mowes the lawn this season, by writing about it in this blog.

It is amazing how the grass grows this time of the year. We guess it is time to do it again in a couple of weeks. 

Daniel told us there had been a few drops of rain when he was mowing the lawn. He kept mowing, however, and the rain stopped. This was good, if there is a lot of rain, the grass cannot be mowed properly. 

Desecration of Graves

We had reason to think of the disrespectful practice of desecration of graves. 

When humans or their pets pass away, humans bury the remains. This is a way to preserve the earthly remains and show respect for it.

If someone else desecrates the grave, for instance by unearthing the remains, this is very disrespectful. We do not wish this will happen to anybody. 

IIHF World Championship

The IIHF World Championship in ice hockey has started.

Sweden won its game versus Austria today, though it was not such a great victory as one could have expected. Austria led for a while, before Sweden came back and won, 4–2. Sweden is supposed to be a much better team than Austria, when it comes to ice hockey. Daniel says, however, that Sweden often plays one or two games in the start of the World Championship that are not good, but that it turns better further on. We hope so.

Morran roots for Germany. Pepe and I root for Sweden, since Mexico is not good enough to play in the top tournament. Germany and Sweden plays in different groups, we will see if the two meet.

Work, Work, Work

Both Paula and Daniel were away at their respective works today. They were away for a bit longer than usual. This also meant that we dogs had to work as watch dogs when they were away. Thus, this was a day of work, work, work.

Work makes you feel important. It gives your life a purpose. This is why I rather like when we have to work. Life is good with work.

Habemus Papam

A new Pope of the Roman Catholic Church has been elected. For the first time in history, a Popeis elected who comes from America, the northern neighbour of Mexico. He took the name Leo XIV. 

Pepe and I would rather have seen a Mexican Pope. Mexico must be more important for the Catholic Church than America, we believe. Morran claims a new German Pope, after the second to last Benedict XVI, would have been better. She is too nationalistic, Pepe and I say. 

Would Have Turned 95

Daniel’s mother would have turned 95 years old today, if it were not for the fact that she passed away the day before yesterday. 

We are sorry for Daniel. He says himself, life goes on, but we support him in this. You never get over grief, but it gets easier with time and support. 

Leaving the Light On

Paula was the last one to go to bed tonight. However, she happened to leave the light on in the living room. Daniel asked her to go and turn the light off, but she did not want to. Theyhad a discussion, then Daniel went and turned the light off. He was not happy about it. 

Had I just been tall enough, I could have turned the light off. 

Passing

Early this morning, Daniel got a telephone call. He got to know his mother had passed away.

She was almost ninetyfive years old and had been in bad health for a while. The Passing was not surprising, but we had thought it would not be as soon as today.

This day, we have supporten Daniel in his grief. 

A Sudden Departure

In the middle of a quiet and nice Sunday, Daniel got a message. His sister in Stockholm had an emergency. Suddenly, Daniel departured for Stockholm. 

This all happened so quickly, that none of the rest of us really understood what happened. Paula tried to call Daniel, but got no answer. 

Daniel came back home in the late afternoon. His mission was accomplished. We were happy to see him back so soon. Life was good again, and we could at least have a nice and quiet Sunday evening. 

Another Birthday

Paula and Daniel went away to celebrate another family birthday this afternoon. Paula’s sister celebrated her birthday. 

Pepe, Morran, and I have visited Paula’s sister at different occasions. We stayed at home today, we prefered this, but we let Paula and Daniel bring our best wishes for the birthday. We also got to know afterwards, that it had been a good celebration. This was the main thing. 

A Bird at the Window

When we prepared dinner in the kitchen, a bird came by outside the window. It was a small, grey bird. I could not say what kind of bird it was, but it did not seem wise. This bird flew onto the kitchen windows several times, as if it wanted to fly in through the glass. It did not realise the glass was too hard for this.

We wondered what this bird wanted. We also wondered why it seemed to be so stupid and stubborn. I guess we will never know. 

After a while, the bird flew away again. This was good for us as well, the noise it made when flying against the window disturbed us a little. 

We wished the bird good luck. 

Concert

Paula and Daniel went to the Concert Hall today and listened to a concert. It was an event just for humans. We do not believe I would have enjoyed it, however. It was better to stay at home and watch the house. We enjoyed the silence at home. 

A Journey on His Own

In the evening, we realised Pepe was not indoors, when everybody else was. Daniel looked out the door, and Pepe stood on the outside of the fence, waiting to get in. It turned out Pepe had taken a tour himself around the lot where we live. It was a jouney on his own. 

I wanted to know more about where Pepe had been. He would not tell me, though. He just said it was a journey he did on his own.

Perhaps I should make a journey on my own. I might, someday. I don’t really see the point, even though Pepe was pleased with his journey. 

Fire

We had a fire in the stove tonight as well. 

It is rather warm spring weather outdoors today, but we have turned the central heating off. Then it is nice to light a fire and get a little higher indoor temperature at night. A fire is also cozy. 

Dogs are fortunate, who have humans to control fire for us. 

Unpublished Post

When I opened the blog to write the daily blog entry today, I realised the blog entry for yesterday had not been published. I pushed ”Publish”, and it was now published. These things happens once in a while. I am never sure whether it is because of a fault of me, or a fault of the blog service. I do not want to blame the blog service, though, because I have it for free. I guess I just have to blame myself. I have to get better at making sure every blog post is posted, before I shut down for the night. This is what I will do tonight, at least. Stay tuned for my next blog post! 

First Lawn Mowing

Daniel mowed the lawn today. This was the first time this season, and earlier than usual. Spring has been early.

It might be that Daniel will have to mow the lawn more times than ordinary this season. We are not sure how many times he usually mows it, however. Daniel says he usually does not count. We have agreed to count it this season in the blog, though. This is the reason for the headline of this blog post.

We will see by autumn how many times the lawn was mowed. 

Burial

A lot of World leaders gathered in the Vatican to attend to the funeral of Pope Francis. Even the King of Sweden and high officials of other countries of mainly other faiths than the Roman Catholic was there. This shows how important the Roman Catholic Church is. After all, it is the biggest single faith based organisation in the World.

I guess many Chihuahuas count as Roman Catholics, as their humans mainly in Mexico are. 

The Cats Outdoor

Our cats are often outdoors for a long time. Malin was out all night. When she came back in this morning, her brother Totte went out. 

While I like being outside now and then, I cannot see the charm in staying outside a whole night. I like staying in the comfortable bed all night too much. However, to each her own. If Malin likes to stay out, I think it is nice that she can. She does sleep in the warmth of the house when she gets inside, though. 

Below the Freezing Point

It was cold outside this morning. The thermometer showed that it was below the freezing point, almost -1°.

It is the end of April, but I guess we have to accept this cold weather where we live. 

It is sunny and much warmer in the afternoon. This is good. 

Tired

We had a troublesome night last night. I am not sure what went wrong, but we all woke up several times late at night. Paula and Daniel were not as friendly to each other as ordinary, but given the late hour, I can understand that they were upset.

We hope for a better night this night. Odds speak in favour of it, because last night was a night way out of the ordinary. 

Good night!

Getting Better

Our cat friend Malin has been feeling down lately. She is getting better and better, though. For a coupe of days, she did not want to go out, which is a strange thing for her. She does go out now. With the current rainy weather, she wants to come inside again rather quickly. This is just as she has always been, and it is understandable. We all wish for warmer and better weather. 

Passing of the Pope

Pope Francis I, spiritual leader of the Roman Catholic Church and Prince of the Vatican, has passed away today. 

The Roman Catholic Church is the dominant church in Mexico, where my breed Chihuahua is from. I feel close to this church, thanks to this. 

What I always liked about Pope Francis, was that he took his Pope name from St. Francis, patron saint of animals, thus, of dogs. 

The Roman Catholic Church will now hold a conclave, where the cardinals will meet to elect a new Pope. It will be interesting to see the result of the conclave. 

Eighty

Paula’s father turned 80 years old today. Paula and Daniel went over to Paula’s parents to celebrate. They brought presents that were from us dogs and the cats as well. 

When Paula and Daniel came back home, they were satisfied with the celebrations. I was satisfied with staying at home, in this rainy weather. It was warm and cozy at home. 

Rain

We have not had rain for a long time, but it came today. 

While the nature around us needs rain, it is a little sad that it has to come on a great weekend like Easter weekend. I always want rain to fall at night, when most of us are indoors anyway – our cats sometimes excepted. 

Apart from the rain, it has been a good Easter Eve. The holiday is good. 

Good Friday

It is Good Friday. To us, it was really good in the kitchen, when Paula made burgers for lunch. We got a lot of minced meat. This was a very good lunch.

Appart from this, we have taken it easy today, all of us.

Greetings for Easter

It is Easter this weekend.

Many people wish each other Happy Easter before the weekend. Then there are some who say you should not make a Happy Easter greeting until Sunday, Easter Day, when we celebrate the resurection of Christ.

I cannot understand why you should not be able to wish each other Happy Easter before this fact. It is a greeting with a wish for a Happy Easter, not necessarily something which comes too early. 

Nevertheless, I wish you Happy Easter now! 

Tired Cat

The cats have a habit of wandering about in the neighbourhood. They always come back home, but sometimes, it takes a while.

We had not seen Malin the cat since yesterday, when she showed up this evening. She was very tired. We soon found her sound asleep in Daniel’s bed. 

The cats never tell us dogs about their adventures when they wander around. It has happened that they have discussed a few things among the two of them, but never with us. We are all friends, but there are differences between us.

We wonder what made Malin more tired than usual tonight, but we believe we will never know. We love her as much as always, anyway. 

Late Night Ham

Rather late at night, Paula made some grilled sandwiches. There were ham in them. Paula also gave some ham to us dogs. 

Late night ham is about the best late night snack there is. There might be minced meat or meatballs that goes up against it, but tonight, we got ham. It was great. 

Tiburtius

It is the name day of Tiburtius today. Not many people are called Tiburtius, but the day has a significance. In older times in the south of Sweden, this was considered the first day of the summer season. At the time, the year was just divided into summer and winter, not spring and autumn. 

We can hope that summer is here soon. 

Leif & Billy

Paula and Daniel watches a Swedish TV show that is called Leif & Billy. It is a comedy show about two brothers from a little village in the north of Sweden, who are out of work, but try to make it anyway. 

This show is of very little interest to me. There are no dogs in it. They do not even use dogs, when they hunt. This is a disappointment. I am glad Paula and Daniel like it, though.

Storage

Daniel and some other Fellow from the Örebro län Kennel Club emptied a storage room that the club has had. When he came home, Daniel told us how,any things they had just thown away in a rented container. 

I might have been there, but I actually doubt I would have helped much. There were so many heavy things to throw away, and as a Chihuahua, I am too small for such work. I am glad Daniel helped, though. 

We hope there is not much more to do. 

More Aid to Ukraine

The UK and Germany pledges more support to Ukraine, in the Ukrainian defence war against Moscow’s war of aggression. There are money and there are military supplies. 

We stand with Ukraine, the fighter for freedom. Dogs in Ukraine have not had it easy during the war, but we hope some aid come to their rescue as well. If you defend a country and its culture, you defend the dogs of the country as well. 

Indoor Temperatures

Researchers suggest you should not have too warm indoors. About 18° is enough. This seems to support Daniel’s idea on ideal indoor temperature. However, there seem to be evidence pointing in different directions. I have always believed we may very well have a höghet indoor temperature. I hope we will this summer. We will see what happens. 

More Food

This evening, Daniel was at a board meeting with the Örebro län Kennel Club. While this is important, he actually did something more important on the way home from there. He stopped by a store and purchased more dog food. I doubt that anything can be more important than this.

He also bought cat food, which is fairly important as well.

Now we have food for a long time ahead of us. This is comforting to know. 

Everwhere

There are times when I wonder about life, the Universe, and everything. Why are we here? What is the point of life?

Then I say to myself: why do I have to ask? The important thing is that I have a life that I enjoy. 

Thus, my life is all that I need. My life is Everwhere. 

Does this make sense? I hope so. It is how I live and love my life. 

Borrowing the Tablet

Paula wants to borrow Daniel’s tablet once in a while, to surf the web or watch TV. I also want to borrow it, mainly to write in the blog. Daniel wants to use it himself, too. It is in high demand. 

The Cats Stay Out

Both our cats Malin and Totte have been indoors for short stretches of time today. When we went out for the night, the cats came along, then they stayed out. They stayed outside last night too.

It is warmer outside during the nights now. The cats staying outside is a sure sign that spring is here. 

We do not mind that the cats are outside. They are our friends, but not quite as close friends to us dogs, as we are to each other, nor quite as close to our humans. We know they like it outdoors, they chose it, we get more space in the bed. It is a win-win situation. Spring is good in many ways. 

Eating Plastic

There are some larvae who eat plastic. They producent enzymes that breaks down plastic. 

This Discovery could be used to make solutions to a LO-tidningen the plastic waste that humans leave behind. It is a good thing, I think. 

It is nice that I do not need to eat plastic. I leave this to the larvae. 

The Car Is All Right

Daniel took the car to the mandatory survey today. Everything was all right with the car. This is good, it means the car is as safe as it needs to be.

We will need the car in the upcoming dog show season. Then it is great to knowit is a safe car. 

Tyres

A sad thing about the Swedish climate is that you have to have winter tyres in the winter, and ordinary tyres in the summer. Paula and Daniel changed tyres on the car today. We now have tyres for the summer season. I wish we could just have the same tyres the whole year around. 

No Coins

No, I did not find any old coins in the ground yesterday. I certainly did not want to exchange valuable coins for treats. This was just an April’s Fool’s joke. 

Today is just an ordinary day in April. Yesterday was fun with the jokes. It is enough with one such day per year, though, I believe. Life is good anyway. 

Old Coins

I was digging in the yard and made a nice discovery. There were some old coins buried in the ground. Daniel believes the coins are from the early 20th century, probably from around the time our house was built. 

Now I wonder about the worth of these coins. Perhaps we can sell them and buy some treats for the proceeds. 

Sunshine, Spring

It is really spring now, by the end of March.

The sun was shining. It was so comfortable in the sun outdoors, that our cat Totte stayed outside when Paula asked him if he wanted to come inside. Cats are notorious for deciding for themselves. In this instance, I understood Totte's decision. 

Continuation

Paula and Daniel was at a meeting with the Örebro län Kennel Club. Daniel was re-elected as a member of the board. We are proud of him for this important position. 

Weird Weekend

This was weird. I forgot to write blog entries for both Saturday and Sunday.

The weekend was weird in more than this way. We turned the clocks in the night between Saturday and Sunday. Now we have "Daylight Saving Time". I have never understood why you would have to do this. It is just weird. 

Dogs in India

More and more dogs in India lives a good life. You can read about it in this interesting article. 

We guess that earlier, many people in the West had a view of India as a mostly poor country with poor dogs. Things change for the better, fortunately. 

Sausages and Dog Food

Paula served us some sausages today. Then she served us dog food. 

Did she really think we would want ordinary dog food, after we got sausages? 

Dog food is good, but it does not measure up to most sausages. 

Music

There are times when Paula or Daniel plays music. They do it more often in the evening, when all the chores of the day are done.

Music is not a thing that I care much about. It is still rather interesting how humans can care so much about music. Since I am interested in humans, I take some interest in music as well. Still, I just listen to the music they listen to. Music makes my humans happy, thus, it makes me happy. I guess this is enough. 

Kastanjemanden

We have watched a Danish TV series over the last few days. It was called Kastanjemanden and was about a murder investigation.

Paula and Daniel thought Kastanjemanden was very good. I thought there were too few dogs in it. I enjoy it much more, when dogs play prominent roles on TV. I guess I can recommend it anyway, based upon what Paula and Daniel thought about it. If you are into dark police stories, you can watch it. 

Minced Meat

Thisis not the first time I write about minced meat. It will not be the last time, either. Minced meat is just so good, it deserves many blog entries.

We got minced meat this evening, when Paula cooked tacos for her and Daniel. It was not long before the plate was empty. 

Later, we got cooked and taco seasoned minced meat. This was not at all as good. Why do you have to season something which tastes so good in itself? 

Cooking

We helped Paula to cook this Sunday. Dogs are good at many things that needs to be done in the kitchen. The pre dish washing cycle is our responsibility, and we are very good at it. 

It feels good to help in the kitchen. 

Earth Hour?

There was something called Earth hour this evening. This is a hour when you are supposed to do more to preserve Earth and the environment. I do not understand this. I think it is better if you preserve the Earth and the environment continuously. We dogs do. 

Spring Equinox

It was the spring equinox yesterday. We are closer to summer. I hope spring wiĺl come soon. 

Breeders’ Meeting

Paula, Daniel, and I went to a breeders’ meeting with the Örebro län’s Kennel Club. 

Paula and Daniel enjoyed he discussions more than I did. I did enjoy the ham that I got, however. As long as I get treats like ham, I can endure any boring meeting. 

Working From Home

Daniel came home this afternoon and worked from home. It is always nice when he does this. Life is better when everyone in the family is at home.

We wish both Paula and Daniel could work more from home than they do. 

Gulf Name

There has been some debate about the name of the Gulf of Mexico lately. An American fellow wants to rename it.

Pepe and I believe that if the Gulf of Mexico would change names, the new name should be the Gulf of Chihuahua. 

Malin in the Barn

When Daniel fetched wood for the fire place yesterday, Malin the cat went intighet barn where we store wood. She did not come out. Much later, she just sat outside the door to the house, waiting to get in. We do not know how Malin and her cat brother Totte get in and out of the barn, but they have their ways. 

It is a good thing the house is so well built and isolated, that there are no ways for the cats to sneak in and out. It is not that I would deny them the right, but such a way would also let out heat. I would not want to let out heat that way. 

Minced Chicken Meat

Paula cooked lasagne on chicken meat today. Some of the minced chicken meat went to us dogs. We all liked it. Later on, we also got some lasagne, which we also enjoyed.

There are rumours that lasagne can be vegetarian. We do not believe in these rumours. Why would you make a great dish so much worse by removing the main ingredient? 

Race

The Formula 1 season of 2025 started today. The race was so early, Swedish time, that we did not get up to see it.

We are disappointed that there is no longer any Mexican driver in Formula 1. Morran may root for the single German driver, but says there should be more Germans. There is noone from Sweden, either.

Formula 1 is highly competitive and we just have tohope there will be more drivers from our countries in the future. 

Party

Paula and Daniel went away this evening. They went to a birthday party for a friend.

It was nice that we dogs got to stay at home. We do not know this friend and there wouldnot have been any other dogs at the party, anyway. We had fun at home, instead.

While it is best when everyone is at home, there are advantages with the situations when we have the house for ourselves. Life is a party.

Cold Morning

It was really cold this morning. We had -9° C outdoors. It was not very warm indoors either, at least not until Daniel had started a fire in the fireplace. 

In the afternoon, it was beautiful weather with sunshine. We just hope the clear sky will not mean it will once again be a cold night. 

As Daniel says, we have to expect winter days in March in Sweden. We do not have to like them, though. It felt good to get back to sleep this morning. 

Too Early Morning

Daniel usually gets up early in the morning to go to work. This is a perfect time for us dogs to go outside for a while, after which we can go back to sleep. 

This morning, Daniel got up much earlier than usual. He was going on a business trip, so he had to leave earlier than usual. This was too early for us, so we stayed in bed. 

Tomorrow morning, we hope the normal schedule is back. 

In the Club House

Paula, Daniel, and I visited the club house for the Örebro läns kennelklubb. It was a board meeting for the club. Daniel is a member of the board, while Paula and I were welcome as guests.

The new club house (since December) is smaller than the old one, but has been newly renovated and is warm and nice. I enjoyed it enough to be able to fall asleep for a while. It was a good meeting to be a guest at. 

Hiding Cat

Paula and Daniel thought that both our cats Totte and Malin were outdoors this afternoon. Then they let Totte in, when it was time for us dogs to go out for the night. Malin was nowhere to be seen in the garden. 

A little later, Malin came out from under the bed. Neither Paula nor Daniel could figure out how Malin had sneaked inside. Of course, Malin told Totte and us dogs, but we won’t tell Paula or Daniel. 

Malin is a cool cat. 

Snow Again

Winter is back. Snow is falling and stay on the ground, it is so cold the snow does not melt. 

We were hoping for spring. There was spring last week. However, in Sweden, we have to count on Winter throughout March. Winter can even stay in April. We still hope for spring very soon. 

The Memory Can be Strange

The memory can be strange sometimes. I was sure I wrote a blog entry yesterday evening, but today, I could not find it. I could not recall what I would have written about, either. It must just be some kind of false memory, probably based upon that I use to write blog entries every night. 

I hope this blog entry stay in the blog, so that I can read it tomorrow and remember that I wrote it. 

Swedish Contest

The Swedish qualification competition for the Eurovision Song Contest finished today. The winner was Bara bada bastu, sung in Swedish by ethnic Swedes from Finland. 

We have nothing against being represented in the Eurovision Song Contest by people from Finland. As Daniel says, there are just historical coincidences that they live in an area which is not part of Sweden anymore. The problem is that the song is not serious. It is a funny song, but more for a vau-de-ville or something, than a serious contender to win the Eurovision Song Contest. We are disappointed.

Morran hopes that Germany will win. 

Spring for Now

We have had warm temperatures outside, for the season, and sunlight. Spring is here, for now. 

The weather forecast says there will be temperatures below the freezing point for several days next week. The winds will come from the north. 

A forecast is just a forecast, things may change. We hope they will change for warmer weather. However, we do not put our hope too high. When the weather forecast does not predict the weather accurately, the truth often turn out to be worse than the forecast. We just have to wait and see, and prepare to stay warm indoors. 

A Cracker?

We took it easy at home in the early evening, when suddenly, we heard an explosion outside. 

It sounded like one of those crackers you hear at New Year. We decided that it probably was. There is no reason to think it was a more sinister explosion, like a gun or a far away bomb. Thunder normally as a more rolling sound and is quite uncommon this time of the year.

We wondered why anyone would use a cracker tonight. In the end, however, it does not matter much. We went back to our rest. 

Smoke Bomb in Parliament

A Member of Parliament in Serbia used smoke bombs in the parliamentary chamber during a meeting yesterday. 

A parliament is a place for peaceful debates and decision making. It is not a place for violence. We hope the member who did this will be prosecuted for it. 

There can be heated debates in our city council, where Daniel is a member. It is, however, far from smoke bombs. This is good. 

Owl

There is an owl living close to us. We have heard it howl. Owls are birds of prey. I can understand them, they eat meat, so do we dogs. The downside is that owls are actually big enough to take a Chihuahua. Daniel or Paula keep us company, when we go outside at nighttime, because of the owl. We wish the owl would move away from here. 

A Little Cheese

Paula and Daniel came home late from a meeting. They had some cheese as late night snack. We also got a little cheese. We all wish we would have been given more. Our cheese was eaten too quickly. 

Cheese is tasty. Good cheese is almost as good as meat. It was a great late night snack. 

Swedish Victories

Sweden had a great day in cross country skiing. A Swedish man won Vasaloppet, the classic Swedish 90 km ski race. This was the first Swedish victory in many years. Norwegians have won many years in a row, but not this year. A Swedish woman won the ladies’ class in Vasaloppet. 

Meanwhile, in the Cross Country World Championship, which takes place in Norway, a Swedish woman won the race of today. 

It was a good day to root for Sweden. 

Coming Home Early

Paula just worked half a day today, then she came home. Daniel also arrived home in the early afternoon. It became a good day, when everyone was at home from early on. We like this. 

Daniel has a cold. Part of the reason he came home early, was to rest, to get rid of the cold. We dogs were glad to help him rest, by keeping him company. We all took it easy. 

All of this made for a good start of the weekend, except for Daniel’s cold. It looks like the weekend will be good. 

Japan Beat the USA

In women’s football, Japan beat the United States. It was the final game of the She Believes Cup, which the USA had won five times in a row. 

Our Shiba friends would have been pleased. This is why I write about it. It was also a somewhat surprising result. The USA is normally the better team in women’s football. 

New Router

We have a new router and a new wi-fi network. Paula installed everything today. It is supposed to be at least as good as the old one, and much cheaper. So far, it works fine. We believe it fulfills the promises given.

Wi-fi is a good thing. It helps me with the blog, and it helps all of us with a lot of other things on line. It is almost as good as good food, when you feel like it. 

On and On

Daniel was at the city council today. Once he got home, he told us a bit about it. He said the final debate just went on and on, with the same arguments, for about an hour. While it is important that every city councillor may say what she or he wants to say, some debates feel like they get too long. Other debates feel more concentrated and clear. We can understand that Daniel likes the latter kind of debates a little better than the former. He still says there are good things about every debate, but that it would be strange if you would not be able to rank them. This is understandable. We do not envy Daniel, but this is just us. 

A Lot of Cheese

When Daniel came home, he brought a sandwich for Paula. As usual, Paula had asked for a lot of cheese. We got to taste a little of the cheese. Once we did, we fully understood why Paula wanted to have so much of this particular cheese. All cheese is good, but this was better than most. We would like to have more of it, but I guess we will have to wait for it. We will get other great food, anyway.

Rain

Spring seems to be on its way. We just wish the weather could be better. We had to go out in cold rain this afternoon. With just a few degrees above the freezing point, it is muddy outside and the rain felt colder than snow would. You can just shake the snowflakes off, but the raindrops stay and keep making you colder.

It was better the other times we went outside, no rain. We don’t want to complain, either. The upcoming spring and summer can be nice. 

Throwing Things Away

Last Sunday, Paula and Daniel helped to move things out of the old Kennel Club house. They continued today. Once they came back home, they told us that almost all of it is done now. There are just a little more things to do in the week to come. We are proud that Paula and Daniel have contributed so much. Meanwhile, we were at home, watching the house. It has been a productive day. 

Ham

We got some ham, when Paula got home from her work. This was a good way to start the Friday night. 

Friday nights are good, because they are the start of the weekends. Paula and Daniel are often at home much more during the weekends than other days. As dogs, we love this. We love ham a little more, perhaps, but it is always good when everyone in the family is at home. 

Payment for the Care of Dogs

The Appelate Administrative Court of Gothenburg (Kammarrätten i Göteborg) has ruled in a case on the payment of dogs that were taken care of by the authorities. It was a judgment on the 18 February 2025 in case no 4521-24. The dogs had been seized by the authorities, because their human did not take proper care of them. The human then did not want to pay for the care that the authorities gave the dogs. The Court decided that the human had to pay for the care of his dogs. It was a high amount of money, but this was to a large extent due to the human herself, who had taken a lot of time to complain about the caretaking, instead of rectifying her ways to get the dogs back. 

We agree with the court, it is the human who should pay for the care that others give her dogs. We only hope it all turns out for the best for the dogs, the judgment does not say anuåything about this. 

Skagenröra

While I do not know what Skagenröra is called in English, I know this Swedish specialty is very tasty.

We had some Skagenröra that we had to finish today, before it would go bad. It made for a great late night snack. I love late night snacks, especially when they are so tasty as Skagenröra. 

Daniel had some Skagenröra as well. I told him he did not need to, but could give it to us dogs. He didn’t, he wanted it for himself. I cannot blame him. 

Medicine

Morran has a new medicine, to deal with an illness she has. She does not like her medicine pills.

When Paula tries to trick Morran to take the medicine by folding it into ham, this gives Pepe and me an opportunity to eat ham as well. Thus, we like that Morran gets medicine.

Morran says we are not sympathetic enough, but we like the ham. She just has to deal with this. We love Morran anyway. We know she knows this. 

Zoom Meeting

We had a Zoom meeting about upcoming dog shows tonight. It was actually Daniel’s meeting, but all of us dogs could hear what was said. It was quite interesting.

More evening meetings should be like this, instead of meetings when Daniel is not at home. 

Moving Out

Paula and Daniel were away today to contribute to the efforts to move out of the old club house of Örebro län’s Kennel Club. 

All of us dogs stayed at home. We had the important duty as watch dogs. 

I have been in the old club house, but not in the new one, so far. The new club house is in the same area, newly renovated, but smaller than the old one, I have been told. It will be interesting to see it. 

Meeting Orange

Last autumn, the Shiba Orange was here for a week. She was born and raised here, by our humans, and also had her own litters of pups here.

Paula and Daniel went to Orange and her current family tonight. When they came back home, it was obvious they had had a great time. I can understand this, Orange is a very nice and friendly dog. It was good that Paula and Daniel had a good time. So did we, back home. 

Back Home

Daniel was away with his job for two days, but came back home tonight. He had had a good time, except that he missed us dogs, the cats, and Paula, he said. 

We understand him, we all missed him at home, as well. As usual, it feels good that everyone is at home now. 

Blood

This morning, our friend Morran bled. There was blood on the floor. After a while outside, she hardly bled at all. The body is fantastic, that it can heal itself. I just wonder why there was blood. Morran did not know, it came just as she woke up in the morning. I wish her good health. 

Winter

We are getting tired of the winter. We know there is a lot of days still to go in February, so winter will certainly continue for a while. We may still be tired of it. There are times when Pepe and I wish we would live in the warm lands of Mexico, where our breed is from. We like Sweden, just not the long and cold winters, but we have to endure. Summer will come. 

A Monkey Cut the Power

A monkey got in to an electric power plant in Sri Lanka and managed to cut the power to the whole country.

People say thd Swedish power grid is bad. It must be very good compared to that of Sri Lanka, though. 

Hamburger

There are different opinions on the origin of the food dish hamburger. Some say it originated in a small American town by the name Hamburg, which has its name from the big German city Hamburg. Nobody knows for sure, though.

It may be however it pleases with the historic origin. Hamburgers are good food, regardless of this. We got hamburgers for dinner today. It was great. It was a nice end to the weekend. 

Song Contest Qualifyer

It was the second Swedish round of the qualifying contest for the Eurovision Song Contest. We did not watch it last Saturday and not this Saturday. Life is quite good anyway.

Clear Sky

It was mild weather yesterday, but cold outside this morning. Apparently, this has a connection with the clear sky we had during the nighht. If this is the case, I hope it will be overcast tonight.

No Sports Gala

The Örebro Sports Gala 2025 would have been held today. It has been postponed. People agreed it was no time to party on a gala so soon after the Tuesday mass murder.

We understand this decision. It was the best decision under these circumstances. We still hope the gala can be held later in the year, even though we were not invited. We do not deny others to celebrate. 

Spring Will Come

Spring will come. We had very mild temperatures today. It was up to 7⁰ C in the afternoon. We look forward to summer.

Mass Murder

There has been a mass murder in our home town.

Words are not enough to explain our feelings today. 

No New Telephone Yet

Paula has ordered a new telephone. Her current one does not work properly. She has tried everything, but finally had to buy a new one.

The telephone was supposed to arrive today. It did not. She will have to wait for a day or two more.

In cases like this, I am glad I am a dog. Nobody expects me to have a telephone. They have to reach me by other means.

Candlemas

Did you believe Christmas was over? Forty days after Christmas Eve, Candlemas is ceelbrated for the Mother of Christ, Virgin Mary. This is today.

The Swedish word for this day is a little old fashioned. It is Kyndelsmässodagen, where kyndel is originally the same word as candle. Mässa is, of course, the Swedish word for the mas written with one s in English. Dag is the Swedish word for day.

We do not celebrate Candlemas in any significant way. It is, however, Sunday this Candlemas, so we can all take it easy. This is good.

No Spring In Sight

This morning, Daniel said it will soon be spring. He explained that it is February, which is often considered the last winter month.

We had temperatures below the freezing point and frost today. I do not feel as optimistic as Daniel did. Winter has a lot more to give. There is no spring in sight yet. 

Mild Winter

We have had temperatures above the freezing point formost of this week. January is supposed to be the middle of winter, but it has felet more like early spring, in early March or so. 

It is not that we like winter. As dogs with a heritage from Mexico, both Pepe and I could do without winter. We still live in Sweden, a country in the northern reaches of civilisation. It is supposed to be winter and snow here.

Perhaps more snow will arrive in February. Time will tell. Nobody can predict weather for a whole month. 

Meeting

Daniel was at a meeting until late tonight. It is boring when he is. We don’t want to stop him from going to any meetings, but we also don’t need to pretend that we like it. Life would be better is everyone could stay at home more. 

Spectator Died

At an indoor athletics event in Colorado, America, a spectator was killed by a hammer that was thrown through certified barriers and hit him. The spectator was a 57 year old man, hit by the hammer while trying to shield his family members. 

This is a terrible accident. We hope the reason why the hammer could pass the barrier can be found out, so the fault can be sorted out. We also hope that if the man had a dog, this dog will come with losing him. 

In Memoriam

The 27 of January is the international day for commemorating the victims of the Holocaust, the Nazi genocide during the Second World War. This day in 1945, Auschwitz was liberated and the extent of the genocide started to get known to humanity. We think of all the people who were murdered. It is a horrible thing, but must not be forgotten. May the victims rest in peace. 

Vacuuming

Vacuum is a facinating thing, because it is litteraly nothing. A vacuum cleaner does not use vacuum, but as if there was a vacuum inside it, the machine sucks dust from the floor. We used our vacuum cleaner this afternoon. Paula was disturbed by it, so she became angry. It disturbed her afternoon nap. We did not care, we finished vacuuming anyway. It is cleaner now, which feels good for the paws. 

Gulf of Mexico

The new American President Donald J. Trump has issued an executive order to rename the Gulf of Mexico to Gulf of America. 

This is ridiculous. America has some shores to this gulf, but so does Mexico. It is called Gulf of Mexico all around the world. As is explained in this video, the only thing the American President can be sure to achieve, is that American government authorities uses his preferred name for the gulf. Everybody else will surely keep calling it Gulf of Mexico. I sure will. 

The Gulf of Mexico is mostly international water and a fair bit of Mexican territorial water. If the American President does not like the Mexico part of the name, he should still let it be. There are things to rename inside the borders instead. New Mexico can be renamed New America. 

Cat Food and Dog Food

There are times when Paula and Daniel joke that we dogs like cat food better than dog food, and that our cats like dog food better than cat food. This morning, Daniel gave Pepe and me one plate of cat food and one plate of dog food. We showed him – we both chose the dog food. Cat food is not as tasty and probably not as healthy as dog food. Dog food is good.

Working from Home

Both Paula and Daniel worked from home this morning.

All of us dogs always work from home. Our watch duty is at home. This is an easier task whenour humans are at home. There are, of course, also other advantages with having them at home, such as the closeness to those we love.

It was a great morning.

Temporary Disagreements

This morning, Paula and Daniel had a disagreement. It is not fun to listen to them, when they do. What we do know is that they will always make up again.

If you love somebody, the occasional disagreement is no big deal. You can deal with it.

Boring Afternoon

Both Paula and Daniel came home early today. This was not as fun as it sounds. Daniel just sat at his computer, working from home. Paula just slept. We don’t know why Paula was so tired that she slept all afternoon, but it was boring. 

I wish tomorrow will be a better day. It probably will be. 

Better Legs

Morran, our dear Affenpinscher friend, did not feel well yesterday. She almost dragged her hind legs with her, or so it looked like.

This was much better today. She could walk freely today, the way she usually does. Her legs were better.

Morran, of course, did not accept the proposition that she felt less than well yesterday. She does not accept that anyone would feel sorry for her. She says she always feels fine. This is one of the things I like about Morran, she will not accept pity. I did tell her I hope she will continue to feel as well as always. This, she thanked me for. 

No Dogs or Cats

The United States of America has got a new Head of State, President Donald John Trump. 

Donald Trump has no dogs. Neither does he have cats. We think this is a shame. Humans feel better with dogs, or at least cats, as companions. The US President is often called the most powerful human in the world. The responsibilities that come with this job should be an easier burden, if he had dogs, or at least cats. 

Well, it is up to Donald Trump and his family to decide for themselves whether to have dogs or not. We still believe they would feel better if they did. 

Nap

Sunday is the day of rest, but perhaps not as much as it turned out to be this afternoon. Paula and Daniel sat on the bed, talking a little and reading the news. Then they both fell asleep. 

Dogs are used to taking a nap or two in the middle of the day. Humans are not. While both Paula and Daniel admitted they had enjoyed their nap, you could hear they were a little surprised and even annoyed that this had happened. We dogs do not think they should be annoyed. There is nothing wrong with a nap on your day off. 

Another Saturday

Saturdays are probably my favourite days of the week. We get up as early as usual to go out for a while, but then we all go back to bed. Even Daniel go back to bed, who usually gets up early to go to the office. On weekdays, Paula stays in bed for a little while longer than Daniel but then she also gets up. On Saturdays, we can all go back to rest and sleep for a long time. We also know next day is Sunday, when the same thing may happen. Life is great these Saturday mornings. 

Floods in Brazil

Heavy rain has caused floods in the south of Brazil. Towns have been flooded, but people help. In this short movie sequence, you can see that dogs are carried across the water. This is nice, in all the tragedy. 

We hope that the floods will soon be over, and that dogs and humans get the help they need. 

Going Shopping

As som as Daniel came home tonight, he and Paula went grocery shopping. 

When they came back home, they brought grilled chicken. Paula served some of the chicken to us dogs.

Totte the cat has always loved chicken. I totally understand him. Chicken gives such a tasty meat. We loved the chicken meat we got today. 

Board Meeting

We had a dull evening today. Both Paula and Daniel were at home, but did not spend any time with us dogs. Paula did not feel well and was just resting. Daniel went on line top participate in a board meeting. This was a board meeting with the regional kennel club, where he is a member of the board. This is important, so he may be excused. Paula could not help that she did not feel well, so she is also excused. It was still a dull evening for us dogs. We are lucky most evenings are more eventful. 

Thaw

It has been a warm day for January. It was about +5° and the snow was thawing. Water was dripping from the roofs and trees. 

While we do like spring and summer, it is too early to get spring now. There is enough time for winter for a couple of months more. We hope winter will stay for a while. 

Sausages

We got sausages in our food today. Sausages are good food.

You can go on and on about the advantages of modern human invention. Sausages are made on old knowledge. It is still one of the greatest human inventions. It takes care of pieces of the animal you do not eat as they are, season it and package it, which makes for very tasty dishes. It is also environmentally friendly, because through sausages, more of the animals come to use.

We wish we could have sausage more often. 

Brush Up

Paula and Daniel, who are both authorised to work as ring stewards, went away today to a Brush Up course for ring stewards. This is a kind of course they have to take every other year to keep their authorisation.

The best thing about this was that they got some left over food back home, and gave us dogs cheese. Cheese is always great food. 

Away for the Evening

Daniel went away in the afternoon. He did not come home until it was almost midnight. Apparently, he was away celebrating something in Arboga, a neighbour town. 

Paula was at home with us. We had a nice evening. We are even sure our evening was nicer than Daniel's.

We dogs do not have to go away for parties. Our life at home is fun enough.

A Controlled Fire

We had a controlled fire at home this morning. Daniel lit a fire in the stove in our livingroom. A controlled fire like this makes life very cozy.

Malin the cat lied down in front of the stove, enjoying the warmth, for a long time. I can understand why she did this. I was a little too restless to do this myself, though. 

We would want controlled fires more often.

Fire to the North West

A huge fire is raging in Los Angeles in the south of California. This is just a little to the north west of Chihuahua, the land where my dog breed comes from. 

We hope dogs are saved, just as humans are. I don’t know how many Chihuahuas live in Los Angeles, but it is not far from Chihuahua and it is a popular dog breed around the world. We feel for all dogs affected by the fire. 

Overslept

It is hard to go back to work after several days of spare time. While Daniel went away to the office this morning, Morran, Pepe, and I overslept. 

It feels nice to sleep for a long time in the morning. Once you wake up, and realise you have overslept and not fulfilled your duties, you get disappointed with yourself. How can we watch the house, if we are all asleep? 

A good thing is that nothing happened. Our guard dog duty must have a fearful reputation among the bad people of society, they never dare to come here. In a way, thus, we fulfilled our duty as guard dogs anyway, through our reputation. This is good. 

A Lot of Snow

We got a lot of snow this morning. When we got out in the early morning, there was a decimetre of new snow on the ground. 

Daniel and Totte spent a few hours shoveling the snow away from the drive way. Totte gave up before they were finished, so Daniel had to do the rest himself. It was nice that I did not have to help. 

The snow started to thaw in the afternoon. It was still so much, that the work put in by Daniel and Totte was not in vain. 

Three Wise Men

This is the Thirteenth Day of Christmas, Epiphany. This is when we celebrate that some wise men came to the newborn Jesus, considered Him a King, and gave him three gifts.

Tradition has it, there were three wise men, each with one gift. Tradition also says these were called Casper, Melchior, and Baltazar. Their names and the number of men are not mentioned in the Bible, however. We guess traditional knowledge like this is fun to know, but may be untrue. Nevertheless, the basis of the story of the Wise Men is written down in the Bible.

Every reason to celebrate is a good reason. Happy Epiphany! 

A Cat In the Way

This evening, Malin the cat occupied Daniel. She was Petter by him for a long time. None of us dogs could get in their way. Morran was rather annoyed, she thought Malin got in her way.

The cats usually leve it to us dogs to have this kind of close relationship to our humans. I think we should let them be, however, in the few instances when they want to be close. We are all friends. 

Pepe Did Not Want Ham

Daniel gave us some ham at lunch time today. Morran and I loved it and ate our ham quickly. Pepe did not want any, however. 

While Morran and I were happy to share the ham that Pepe did not want, I could not help but wonder why he did not want any. He is usually as fond of good food as any other dog. I asked him, but he just said he did not feel like it at the time. This was a strange answer, but I guess we have to accept it. Nobody wants to force Pepe to eat tasty food. 

We will have to see what Pepe does, the next time we are offered treats. 

Real Winter

We had some cold days in early December. Then there were many days with temperatures high above the freezing point, for being December. On the New Year Night, snow fell and we got temperatures well below the freezing point. It was like the new year came with winter. It is still winter. I like spring better, but I guess spring is far away. We just have to live through another cold winter. 

A New Year

It is a new year, and we can start anew in some ways. New year resolutions are often made to make improvements in the way we live our lives. Morran, Pepe, and I discussed this. None of us could come up with any good new year resolution, however. We all think we already live good and harmonious lives. What is there to improve? We all wish you, as reader of this blog, a happy New Year, though.