Friday Night

It is Friday night, and we go to bed rather early. We do know the alarm on the alarm clock is turned off, but it is still rather nice to go to bed early, even when we know we can sleep until late tomorrow morning. Friday nights and Saturday mornings must be the best parts of the week. I wish we had those more often. 

Garbage

Once every fortnight, the dust cart collects our garbage from down the road. When Daniel works from home, like he did today, he usually goes out to get the emptied dust bins as soon as he can. He does not like the sight of them down by the road. I do not care, but if it satisfies him, I do not object to it either. Everyone gets to have his or her special ideas. 

Biathlon World Championship

The IBU World Championship in biathlon started today with the mixed relay competition.

For a while, it looked like the Swedes would end in a position far from the medals. This changed and Sweden managed to win the bronze. France won the gold and Norway won the silver. 

Morran was disappointed that Germany did not finish better than fifth, after Switzerland in fourth. Her breed is from Germany, so she usually roots for German teams. Germany led for a long time, which made the disappointment worse. 

We hope for better results for both the Swedes and the Germans in the competitions to come. 

Snow Started to Fall

We got some more snow tonight, while we were out for the night. It was not much, but if it continues to fall throughout the night, we will have a lot by the morning. I hope not. We have had enough snow as it is this winter. 

Swedish climate should be more like Mexican. It would fit us Chihuahuas better. 

Melt

Dinner was a bit simple today. It was bread with melted cheese. Even the simple dishes can be really tasty. Cheese is always tasty, melted cheese even more so. I wish we could get cheese more often. 

It was cold outside today, a few tenths of degrees below the freezing point. Thus, no melted snow. Then it felt even better to eat melted cheese. 

All of These Designated Days

There are many days around the calendar year that are assigned to different things or causes. Late last night, Paula discovered that yesterday was the annual Carrot Cake Day. We did not know until she told us, so nobody had made sure we had any carrot cake to eat. 

Paula and Daniel went to make some grocery shopping this afternoon. One of the things they brought home was a carrot cake. Thus, we celebrated Carrot Cake Day one day too late. It is a s the old saying goes: better late than never.

We blame the late celebration on the great amount of annual days. If there were fewer days, it would be easier to remember them.

We will have to see if we remember Carrot Cake Day on the right day next year. 

Pre-Qualification

The first round to decide which songs will participate in the Swedish qualification round to he Eurovision Song Contest 2024 was aired on TV today. There were no excellent songs. At least, the worst Song got the worst result and the best of the mediocre line up won. We agree that there are too many pre-qualification rounds. The final qualification round should be enough. Then you would be spared the really bad songs, we believe. 

It remains to be seen if any excellent songs will take part in the other pre-qualification rounds. 

Noisy Cats

It is said that cats move in silence. While this is often true with our cat friends Malin and Totte, they can also be noisy. This afternoon, Malin jumped around making noise in the bedroom. It is nice to hear cats are not always more silent than us dogs. 

Claws

Yesterday night, Paula told us she would cut our claws today. This never happened.

We do have rather long claws, but not so long that they need to be cut. Not yet. The claw cutting may wait. 

Upcoming Dog Show

The list of judges to the Askersund dog show this summer is published. This is the show that our regional kennel club is arranging, and where Daniel and Paula are helping out. They are looking forward to the show. We all hope it will be a success again this year, just as it usually is. We believe it will be. 

Chocolate

Paula and Daniel had some chocolate for dessert, when they ate dinner tonight. We asked to taste some, but they refused. They said chocolate is poisonous for dogs. We have heard this before, but are not sure. Could it be, that the humans just want all of their chocolate for themselves?

If we had the chance to eat chocolate, would we dare to try? I am not sure about that. I probably would, butI might hesitate.

Paula and Daniel finished the chocolate. The good thing about this is that we donor need to wonder whether we should try or not. 

Late Last Night

Daniel came home late last night, almost at midnight. This caused us to stay awake until he arrived home. Thus, I forgot to write in my blog, because I usually do this when we have all gone to bed. Life turns out in unexpected ways some nights. 

Brush Up for Ring Stewards

Daniel was away at a brush up for ring stewards this afternoon. He has been an authorised ring steward for many years, but the rules say you have to go to a brush up once in a while to get to know new rules et cetera. We are proud of Daniel for being a ring steward, thisis an important job at dog shows. He told us the brush up was really good and that there were nice people there. Daniel had a good day. 

Totte Was in the Way

We have a low stool that is primarily used by Viola and Pepe to get up in the bed. Today, however, Viola could not use it. Totte had chosen to lazy downon the stool to rest, and there was not enough room for Viola to pass him. Viola was a little annoyed, but we all respect our cats and let them be, when they do not want to move. For my part, I am not like Viola, who often go down, then up, then down, then up. I stay where I am.

In a little while, Totte had made up other plans and went away. Thus, it all turned out well in the end. 

Cross Country Skiing

We watched a cross country skiing mixed relay competition on TV today. It went very well for the Swedish teams. They finished first and second, in fierce international competition. It was exciting to watch, and a great result.

Winter is nice, when you can stay in the warm rooms indoors and watch ski competitions on TV. 

Odd Felines

Daniel went to a meeting with people fromhis Odd Fellow lodge this evening. When Daniel got out, so did Totte and Malin. When Daniel came back home, so did Totte and Malin. 

Totte told me that he and Malin had also been to a meeting with their lodge. He said it is a lodge of Odd Felines. While this is a nice twist on the Odd Fellow name, I am not sure Totte tells the truth. I believe he is just a joke. A nice joke, but, nevertheless, a joke. When I said so to Totte, he just smiled. We will have to see if Totte keeps up with this joke. 

Sigh

Sigh! 

It was a boring day today. Nothing of importance happened. It is difficult to come up with anything to write about, on days like this. 

If you have ideal for me to write about in the blog, please let me know. I will consider every idea. 

Snow Sliding Down

We have thaw, and snow has been sliding down from the roof today. Sometimes, it has slid down with a rumble. 

While we like spring, it feels like it is too early. We are still in January. On the other paw, it may be more cold weather to come. We will have to see. It has been a winter with very changing weather so far, it may continue to change. 

Sport Awards

There was a gala on TV tonight, where people gave awards to sportsman and sportswomen for efforts during 2023. There were no dogs who got awards, despite all the dog competitions of different kinds that goes on each year. Sports can be fun to watch, the gala was not. Paula and Daniel thought it was more interesting than I did, but this is up to them. 

Ice Cream

One would think we would be tired of coldness now, in the middle of a winter which is colder than usual. Nevertheless, Daniel served ice cream for dessert to the Sunday dinner tonight. All of us dogs got a little serving of ice cream. This is something cold that I never get too tired of. Ice cream is good, even when you are tired of ice. 

Cold Show

Daniel was a ring steward at a dog show today. It was indoors, but he told us it was really cold there. Every human went around with their coats on.

We are happy we did not come along. We do not have very high temperatures at home, but it is still indoor temperatures, neither Daniel nor Paula feel the need to wear coats indoors. 

Appart form the temperature, it seems like the dog show went well. This is good. 

Litter Box

Cats have some odd habits. One of them is to do their "business" indoors. They do it in a certain litter box with scented sand, but it is still indoors.

The litter box was emptied, cleaned, and got new sand today. This was, apparently, just as Totte wanted to use the litter boz. He had to wait. It turned out well in the end for him. All's well that ends well. 

Mostly at Home

Paula and Daniel went away together in the early morning. We got the impression that they would be gone for a large part of the day, but they came back home before noon. This was good.

We all spent the afternoon together at home. Times like this are great. 

King Frederik X Cake

Denmark’s new King, Frederik X, has been honoured with a new type of cake at an old patisserie in Copenhagen. 

The cake has a lot of chocolate in it. Humans say dogs must not eat chocolate, that it contains a poisonous ingredient that dog bodies cannot digest (but human bodies can). Thus, we will probably not eat any Frederik X cakes. Nevertheless, I like the idea of getting a cake made and named for me. I wish this would happen to me some time. 

Chips

Paula had a late night snack with chips tonight. She gave some of the chips to us dogs.

Chips is my favourite form of potato. It was a good finish of the day. 

Even More Snow

When we got out this morning, there was a lot more snow. It was about a decimetre. This is a lot for us Chihuahuas. 

It was a lot of snow for Daniel as well. He spent an hour and three quarters of the next hour shoveling snow. We do not envy him this task. 

On the positive side, all of the snow fell during the night. There was no need to shovel more snow later in the day. 

New King

Denmark has a new king, Frederik X, after the abdication today of Reigning Queen Margrethe II. 

We wish all the humans and dogs in Denmark, the Faroe Islands, and Greenland, good luck with your new Head of State. 

End of Christmas

On the twentieth day Canute,

Christmas is danced out,

If I may try to translate what we say about this day in Sweden. It is the name day of Knut, a name known in English as Canute, for Canute the Great, who ruled Denmark, England, and Norway. He has also given the name to this day. We count it as the last day of Christmas in Sweden. This is originally because Canute was celebrated on the Thirteenth Day of Christmas, which is the day seen as the last day of Christmas in most countries. However, when the festivity day for Canute was moved forward one week, centuriea ago, so was the end of Christmas. 

We have had a nice day at home with everyone in our family. This has been good. 

Still Snow

We have had a few hours in the middle of the last days, where there has been thaw. Snow has rumbled down from roofs and trees. There is still a lot of snow on the ground, but the layer of snow has shrunk. It is still time for winter, so I hope the snow will stay. It makes the environment brighter, now that it is still short days and long nights. We wiĺl have to see.

Porridge

Paula had porridge for dinner. There is no meat in porridge, but she thought it was good, nevertheless. 

Daniel cooked the porridge. He told us this was the very first time he had cooked porridge. Paula was surprised to hear this. Perhaps Daniel had beginner’s luck, when Paula liked his porridge. 

I am glad there was dog food for us dogs, and not porridge. 

A Little Greatness

Minced meat is great. We got to taste a little in the kitchen tonight. Even a little minced meat is great. It is a little greatness.

Rumour has it, there are humans who do not eat meat. I do not know if I believe this. Meat is great, tasty and healthy. Why would you forsake this? 

Milder Temperatures

After many days when the temperature was down around -20° C, we now have a much milder winter. We just had a few degrees below the freezing point today. It is almost comfortable to be outdoors now, at least compared to howit has been. I like this kind of winter mich more than the colder winter we have had. This is how the winter can continue for many weeks, if I can make a wish. It will probably be both colder and warmer, though, before spring will come. A not very cold winter is nice. 

Afternoon Nap

It is always nice to take an afternoon nap. This is what I did this afternoon, when I was suddenly brought back to consciousness by Daniel. He called for me numerous times. The other dogs had already gone out in the yard, I had to run to catch up with them. This was an afternoon nap that was much better than the ordinary naps, and ordinary naps are really good. I have to see if my sleep tonight will be as good. 

Meatballs

There was meatballs for lunch today. All of us dogs got to taste the meatballs. This made the Sunday lunch a great lunch. 

Meatballs are great food. I wish we would get meatballs more often. 

The Three Wise Men

On the thirteenth day of Christmas, we celebrate that wise men came from the east and hailed the newborn Jesus as a King.

Tradition holds that there were three men, who were called Casper, Melchior, and Balthazar. However, these names are not mentioned in the Bible. Not even the number of visiting wise men are mentioned, the text just says that there were three gifts: gold, frankincense, and myrrh. 

I rather agree with Snoopy, in Charles M. Schulz’ comic strip Peanuts, who questioned why one of the expensive gifts was not a puppy. 

Swedish Silver

We watched the final game in the IIHF Junior World Championship in ice hockey. The tournament was in Gothenburg, so the Swedes had home turf, when they faced the USA. However, the USA have played great throughout the tournament and was the better team in most of the final. Sweden lost, the players had to settle for silver. This is not bad, but gold would have been better. Kudos to the Americans, who were better. 

Bicycle Ride

Daniel rode his bicycle to the office today. The roads are icy, so I think this was a little daring, but he made it. He is an experienced bike rider, he generally rides his bike throughout the year. This makes him able to ride on the icy roads. I would not, but then again, I would never ride a bicycle at all, anyway. It was nice to be able to stay at home. 

Cold Outside

It is many degrees Celsius below the freezing point. With our coats, all of us dogs can handle it. I feel a little sorry for Viola, however, with her short coat. She claims that she manages, but I feel sorry for her, nevertheless. We all hope it will be a little milder weather soon. 

Earth Quake and Planes that Collide

The new year has started badly in Japan. There was a big Earth quake there. Then a small aircraft with people due to help the victims of the quake collided with a big passenger aircraft, as the latter landed on a Tokyo airport. While everyone on the passenger plane was evacuated and survived, five of the six humans on the small aircraft died. It is still not known what caused the collision, but we look forward to hearing the explanation.

I hope the deceased humans did not have dogs who will now miss them.

Hailey or Polly would surely have written about this, had either of them still written this blog. It was, thus, self evident for me that I would write about it. As a custodian of their blog legacy, this is the least I can do. 

A New Year

This morning, we woke up to a new year.

I guess I slept through the celebrations at midnight for yet another New Year’s Night. As far as I have been told, there were crackers and fireworks that could be heard to us, but they did not wake me up. I really do not care much. Dogs do not need to keep track of time, the way humans do. What’s another year? 

If I get to make any wishes for the new year, it is for more peace, tranquility, and candy. 

The Queen of Denmark Abdicates

Queen Margrethe II of our neighbour country Denmark will step down as monarch in January. She told the people of Denmark about this in her New Year’s Speech today. She has been monarch since 1972, when she replaced her father upon his death.

It is sad that a Queen abdicates, no matter why. She will be replaced with her oldest son, who will become King. Humans do not have the order of dogs, where the highest ranking female always rules. 

I wish the Queen and all the dogs and humans of Denmark well, with this change. 

Despicable Crime

An old woman in Malmo in the south of Sweden has been released from custody by the police, but is still a suspect of crime. She was caught putting pieces of dough on the ground, with shards of glass in the dough. Pieces of dough with glass in them have been a hazard for dogs in Malmo since 2020. It is possible that the criminal behind all of these events have now been caught. We hope the police can tie the woman to many of these events, and that this will never occur again once she is in prison. It is such a despicable crime, to try to hurt dogs in this way. 

Thaw

Crackers were not the only thing bothering our sleep last night. It was thaw, and snow tumbled down from our roof with loud noises.

It is still a lot of snow on the ground. The forecast says it will be freezing temperatures again soon. We will surely have a white New Year’s Celebration. This is good. 

Crackers

Once again, it has started, many days before New Year’s Night. Crackers have been heard many times around us today. 

Some wildlife are afraid of crackers. Some dogs too – though, luckily, none of us. 

It is so unnecessary to fire crackers day in and day out around the change of years. It is based on old superstition, that crackers would scare away demons and other evil doers. It is also an expensive, short joy, for those who like it. 

If people would just keep to the tradition, and fire crackers at midnight on New Year’s Night, I could understand it. The current trend is just stupid and should stop. 

Fire

It is cold outside, which makes it colder inside. We do have an insulated house, but it does not prevent all heat from escaping.

This morning, Daniel lit a fire in the stove in the living room. Needless to say, this quickly became the warmest room in the house. We all gathered there to enjoy the warmth. Some of the warmth spread into the adjacent rooms, which is good, but the living room was the most comfortable room throughout the day. 

Dogs are lucky to have humans, who control fire on our behalf. 

Second Day of Christmas

It is the second day of Christmas, and there are still Christmas treats to get. 

After dinner, we got to pre-rinse the dishes, like always. It is a chore all of us dogs take seriously. However, everyone of us left the strong mustard that was left on Daniel’s plate. Strong spices are not for us. Apart from the mustard, the Christmas food that we have got has been terrific. Meatballs are great the year round, but especially at Christmas, somehow. Life is nice. 

Shiba Meme Monument

There is now a life size statue, a monument, of a Shiba in Japan who became famous for her picture in the first dog memes on the Internet. 

I am sure that if Hailey or Polly would still have written this blog, they would have told you about it. Probably in a better way than I can. Do follow the link, if you want to know more. It is an interesting text to read. 

Merry Christmas!

We were busy celebrating Christmas on Christmas Eve, so here is a little late Merry Christmas to all the readers of this blog! (I am sorry I missed to post on Christmas Eve.)

Christmas Candy

Daniel made some Christmas candy tonight. It is a tradition that he makes this candy, marsipanfjux. 

You need:

Almond paste,

Raisins, 

Chocolate.

Cut the almond paste in pieces, put raisins in, form it to pieces of candy in the way you like, melt the chocolate, and dip the pieces of candy in the chocolate. 

Of course, dogs should not eat chocolate. We got some pork instead. We like pork better, anyway. 

Cleaning

Christmas Eve is on Sunday. Daniel is off from work today. We have all engaged in cleaning the house for Christmas. We hope it will turn out great on Christmas. 

Pepe Came Home

Pepe has been away for a week. He came back home today. He refuses to give us much details about how it has been.

When Pepe said, however, that we may get to know in about two months, we think we understood. He has probably been to see another bitch, who has been in heat. We will have to see what comes out of this.

Viola hopes we will not hear anything in two months. It might be so, time will tell. 

Holidays

When Daniel came home from work today, it was the end of his last work day this year. He has vacation the rest of this week, and the work days next week. This is great, it means that he will be at home with us much more. It will be a good Christmas. 

Twice Is the Charm

Daniel worked from home today. He gave us food at noon, when he had lunch himself.

Paula was at home in the evening, when Daniel went grocery shopping. She gave us food then. We did not tell her Daniel had already given us a lot of food earlier in the day. Otherwise, we would just have had a few treats. 

Twice is the charm, especially when it comes to food. 

Pre-Christmas Traditions of Finland

In Finland, they have a lot of festivities before Christmas. Strangely enough, this article about it says nothing about the great dog show that usually takes place in Helsinki in December. Paula and Daniel have been there some years and enjoyed it. Perhaps we will go there some year in the future too. We will have to see. 

Third Sunday of Advent

It is the third Sunday of Advent, the time of the year when we look forward to the coming of Christ. We celebrate Christmas Eve next Sunday, which is also the fourth and final Sunday of Advent. It may seem strange that the fourth Sunday of Advent is on the day when we celebrate Christmas. It is not, however. I have learned today that the real first day of Christmas is Christmas Day, but that Swedes have celebrated on the Eve of Christmas night for a very long time. Traditions are nice, even though you do not understand the origin of all of them. 

Thaw

It is thaw. The forecast says it will be many degrees above the freezing point this weekend. This is crazy, with the many, cold winter days we have had. 

We still have hope for a white Christmas.

Pepe Went Away

Pepe went away. We do not know for how long, but he will be in the vicinity of Köping, where we all were for a week this summer. It was nice people there and a nice place, so I am sure Pepe will have a good time.

Before Pepe left, he said he knew why he would go. He did not want to tell us, though. I wonder if he will tell us when he comes back. We will see. 

St. Lucia

Our breed, the Chihuahua, comes from a Catholic country. There, they often celebrate saints. There is just one true celebration of a saint in the Protestant country where we live, Sweden. It is this day, the 13 December, when we celebrate St. Lucia. She was a saint from Sicily in the south of Europe. The origin of the celebrations is in the 18th century, when Lucia night was the winter solstice night, thus the longest night of the year. When Sweden changed from the Julian calendar to the current Gregorian calendar, the winter solstice moved, but the Lucia celebrations continued to grow. We have had a St. Lucia celebration here at home. It was fun. 

Late

It is strange how late you can turn out to be. My blog entry for yesterday was not published until today. I do not know why this is. The blog service may be to blame, but Viola and Pepe claimed I was the one who was too late. I refuse to aknowledge any such fault. Life is good anyway. 

Daniel

 Daniel has his name day today. 

Our cat Malin had her yesterday. 

I am usually called Piffy, but I also go under the name Paulina. This means I have a name day. You have to figure out which day this is yourself. 

Dog Show

Daniel came home this evening after a weekend in Stockholm. He worked at the largest annual dog show in Sweden, which is always held in Stockholm in December. He had fun, he said, but was happy to be home. We were equally happy to have him home. Dog shows are important, but it is always better to have your humans at home. Now, the whole family is at home again, and everything is fine. 

Strange

It is sometimes strange how IT equipment work. I believed I opened up a news site in another window than this blog, but it turned out it was in the same window, so the blog seemed to disappear. Viola claimed I must have done something wrong. She may be right, that it was my own fault. It posed no danger, it was just a little annoying. I opened up the blog again and got inspiration for this blog entry. Life is quite all right. 

A Lot of Snow

Daniel had to go out this morning to use the shovel on a lot of snow. Even though all of this snow may soon disappear in a thaw, it is a good thing to get it out of our way. Otherwise, some may be left to freeze again and become ice. 

It is fun to jump around in the deep snow. This is an advantage of being a small dog, snow is more often deep and fun. 

Snow

It is not as cold outside anymore. More snow has fallen. It is still temperatures below the freezing point, but the forecast says it might be thaw tomorrow and in the weekend. We hope not. We are dreaming of a white Christmas. Even if the current snow would disappear, new snow may fall. Time will tell. 

Independence Day

We celebrate Finland’s independence day today. On the 6 December 1917, Finland became independent from Russia. Any independence from Russia is well worth celebrations. Finland is a good neighbour of Sweden, her independence from Russia is even more worthy of celebrations than most would be. In an ideal world, Finland would never have become part of Russia in 1809, but would have continued to be part of Sweden. It is still way better with an independent Finland than a Finland as part of Russia. 

Happy independence day, Finland! 

Neutral Competitors?

There has been calls for athletes from Russia and Belarus to be able to compete in the next Olympic Games in 2024. This would be under a neutral flag and just for individual athletes. We have discussed it here at home and we are against it. If boycotts should have effect, they should be without exceptions. We hope the IOC refuses. If great athletes want to compete, let them move to democratic countries, become citizen there, and compete for them. 

Really Cold

It is really cold outside. Even the cats prefer to stay mostly indoors. We are lucky to have a warm house to live in and an even warmer bed to sleep in. 

The weather forecast says it may be much warmer, perhaps even thaw, in a few days. We would like warmer weather, but not that warm. It would be nice if this snow would stay over Christmas. A white Christmas would be nice. 

Advent

The advent chandeliers are up and shining. We have this tradition in Sweden to have chandeliers with seven arms of lights, electric, in the windows from the first Sunday in advent to the last day of Christmas. They look like the seven arm Jewish menorahs, and are probably inspired by those. They are normally angled, with the central electric candle above the others, however. When these lights go up, we know that the count down to Christmas has started. We are looking forward to it with great anticipation. Advent is nice. 

Christmas Lunch

Paula and Daniel were at an early Christmas lunch today. This lunch was hostel by the regional kennel club, where they are both members of the board. While this is a good and important organisation, I still think having a Christmas lunch even before the first Sunday in advent tomorrow is a bit too early.

We got food when Paula and Daniel came back home. It was far from a Christmas lunch, but as you can understand from what I just wrote, I think this was just as well. 

One Twelfth Left

December starts today and one twelfth of the year is left. This year has gone by quickly. It seems to me time flies faster when I write this daily blog. 

It is soon Christmas with a lot of great food. This will be good. 

Winter

We have had snow and temperatures below the freezing point for a couple of days. It seems like winter is already here.

Normally, winter does not arrive until late in December. Not all Christmases are white. Morran claims this snow will likely melt and disappear long before Christmas. I hope it doesn’t, but you never know about the weather. We just have to wait and see. 

The snow makes the landscape brighter. This is good. 

Pasta with Cheese

Daniel made some pasta for dinner. When everything was eaten or put in lunch boxes for later days, there was some pasta with cheese left. He put this down to us dogs. Paula had given us ordinary dog food earlier in the day, but I have to say I enjoyed the pasta with cheese more. It was something else. 

Genetics

Paula and Daniel went away this evening to listen to a lecture on genetics. This is important, especially for dog breeders. 

Snow fell and the roads were slippery. They made it to the lecture and home again without incident. This is good. 

The lecture was very interesting. Paula and Daniel told us about it when they got home. We believe it was a good thing they attended it. More people should know about genetics. 

A Little Snow, a Lot of Cold

We had a little snow on the ground this morning. It is not much to talk about, less than a centimetre. It is cold, however. This evening, we had -9° C. It is also a clear night, so it will probably become even colder during the night. We are lucky to have a warm house to live in. Both of our cats are indoors tonight, which is good, then we do notabelt to worry about how they can stand the cold. Life is cozy. 

Volcano Eruption

Earth is a fantastic place. There are mountains connected to the hot centre of the planet, where lava erupts into the sky. It would be interesting to see this, but I would not want to live near an active volcano. Then it is nice that you can watch film clips of it from the comfort of your home. It is a fascinating time we live in. 

Staying at Home

Paula and Daniel were supposed to go to a dog show today. This would have been Paula’s first time of practice before finishing her job to become a ring steward. Late yesterday, however, she got a message that it was cancelled.

While it was too bad Paula’s practice was cancelled, it was nice that she and Daniel stayed at home. Life is better when everyone is at home. We had a good Sunday. 

This and That

We have done a little bit of this, and a little bit of that, today.

Daniel went away to visit a friend on his birthday. Then he did some shopping on the way home. 

When Daniel got home, he had, apparently, not bought everything that Paula wanted him to buy. They went away again, to a different store this time. 

There was lunch when Paula and Daniel came back home. Then we cleaned the house. 

Later in the afternoon, we took it easy and watched a little telly. 

It was a day of this and that, and it was nice. 

Ham

Paula and Daniel had dinner with ham tonight. Paula did not eat all of this. I wanted to have some, but she just kept it. This is strange, whenever I keep a piece of food and defends it from others, Paula tells me to eat it or let it go. 

Ham is good, but Paula wastes it, when she just keeps it. I would make better use of it, because I would eat it. Life is good, but would be better with ham in my tummy. 

Under the Covers

On cold days in November, iris nice to spend time under the covers of the bed. We have spent most of the day like this, actually. Paula was at home and let us stay in bed. It was a lazy day, but a good day. We quite enjoyed it. 

Rain

The weather forecast said it might be snow, but the temperature went up. We had rain all evening instead. November is a month of autumn, but after quite a few days with freezing temperatures, we did not count on rain. It would be more fun to get snow now. You cannot get all you wish for, though. We can wish for a white Christmas instead. 

Brush Up

We listened to an on line brush up seminar for ring stewards tonight. Daniel had got the link, because he is a ring steward. The subject was interesting, but I got tired of it all after a while. Perhaps I would have had a better understanding, if I had been to many dog shows. I have not, even though all of the humans Ihave had around me have. There may be dog shows forus next season. 

Maya Writing

We watched an interesting documentary today about the Maya writing and what we can learn from it. This was in Mexico, where Chihuahuas come from. They did not tell us anything about the dogs there, but it was interesting anyway. 

To and Fro

It is Sunday, but Paula and Daniel have been busy. They have been away on three different occasions, doing errands. 

We watch the house while Paula and Daniel are away, so we are busy too. It is satisfying to have a job like this. I believe the house would be much less safe without us. 

In the evening, Paula and Daniel was back home. Then our cat friends Malin and Totte went out for the night. It is rare that everyone is at home at once. 

Friday

It is Friday night, and Daniel is at his lodge in Odd Fellows. They usually meet on Friday nights.

I think we have more fun at home with Paula. 

Influenza

Paula has the flu, or the influenza, as is the ful name of this virus infection. 

We feel sorry for Paula and lazy close to her to help her get better soon. The body heat from our bodies help. The flu in humans does not affect dogs, so we are safe and can still help. It feels good to be able to help. 

Fudge

Daniel bought some candy today. Each and everyone of us dogs got a piece of fudge. It took me some time to eat the fudge, but I liked it. Morran did not, however. She said she’d rather have some of the rosat beef that Paula and Daniel had for dinner. Well, you cannot get everything you want. I much rather have fudge than nothing, which was what Morran ended up with. 

Snow that Melted

We had a little snow on the ground this morning. During the day, the temperature rose and the snow melted. It is still cold, though, and freezing temperatures in the evening.

Our cat friend Totte decided to stay outside tonight. While I can understand when the cats stay outside on summer nights, I do not understand it on cold nights like tonight. I hope Totte is still happy with his decision. 

Colder Again

It has been temperatures just above the freezing point today. This evening when we were outside for the last time, it was actually a little colder than the freezing point. We have to see how cold it becomes tomorrow. Perhaps winter is coming now. 

Father’s Day

It is Father’s Day in Sweden. None of us dogs who live here now, live with our respective fathers. Paula told us we can see Daniel as a father figure. We do, of course, to a certain degree. 

Fathers are good. Without them, we would not be here. They also help in other ways. We hope all fathers out there have a great Father’s Day.

Goose

Today is a day when you would traditionally celebrate St. Martin of Tours by eating geese. We doot have any geese to eat at home, though. It would be interesting to taste goose meat. I like chicken, goose may be similar, I believe. Our dog food is good as iris, but it is always interesting to try new kinds of food. I think I would like goose. 

Born 100 Years Ago

On this day one hundred years ago, the Akita called Hachiko was born in Japan. He became famous for waiting for his human outside a train station. His human always came back from work by train, but once died while he was at work. Hachiko kept waiting for him outside of the train station every afternoon for the rest of his life. He outlived his human for many years. 

There is now a bronze statue of Hachiko on the spot where he used to sit and wait. Movies have been made about Hachiko, making his fame even bigger.

While we feel sorry for Hachiko, who never got to see his human again, and could not have understood what had happened, we are also in awe of his devotion. This is true devotion to your human. Fortunately, most dogs never have to show such a deep devotion. If we had to, we hope we would, however. 

Kristallnacht

Eightyfive years ago, thugs in Germany following the policy of the German National Socialistic dictatorship of the time, destroyed a lot of Jewish property. The night has been named Kristallnacht. This is for the huge amounts of shattered glass from windows, which made the streets look like they were covered in crystals. It is hard for us dogs to fathom how evil humans can get. They can be even more evil in groups. 

In the present time, hatred against Jews is expressed more than usual. Now it is not Germans who express such hatred, but Islamists. Islamists have hated Jews for hundreds of years. I do not know why, but they have. They also believe dogs are filthy and bad. I wish they would change their views. I believe this would make the World a better place. May the commemoration of Kristallnacht help us to reach this goal. 

Biki

One of the Shibas bred by Paula and Daniel has passed away. His call name was Biki and he lived in Bergen in Norway. His mother was called April. 

I never knew Biki. He was born and raised here many years ago. I still feel for Paula and Daniel, they feel the loss of a dog bred by them. 

Rest in peace, Biki. 

Tilting the Head

Some human scientists have published a theory on why dogs tilt our heads. They claim it may be connected with concentration on a task at paw. This is interesting. 

We know ourselves why we tilt our heads, of course. I still do not want to ruin the further human scientific studies on the matter by telling you too much. It will be nice to see what further human research may come up with. Human science is interesting, though they do ot know quite as much about us dogs as they would like to think they do. 

Late Pastry

Paula and Daniel took some time today to go grocery shopping. When they returned home, Daniel had Gustavus Adolphus pastry. As I wrote yesterday, he could not get hold of any on the Gustavus Adolphus day. It is better late than never, however.

We got dog food rather late in the evening today. Again, it is better late than never. When you eat late, you do not feel hungry when it is time to sleep, so this is an advantage. 

No Pastry

Daniel was late business the Gustavus Adolphus pastry today. It is the 6 November and we would celebrate the Swedish national hero, King Gustavus II Adolphus. We had to dog without the special pastry, though. This does not matter much for us dogs, we rather eat meat or treats, but Daniel was disappointed. We hope it will be better next year. 

Candles for the Graves

It is a Swedish tradition to put candles on the graves of lost relatives this weekend. This is mostly done on the Saturday, but Paula was to tired yesterday. She and Daniel went to do this today instead. 

This is a fine tradition. We did not light candles for the late dogs, but our thoughts were with all of them, nevertheless. The memories of them are still with us. 

All Saints’

This weekend is when we celebrate All Saints’ Day. This is tomorrow, and All Saints’ Eve today. This day is actually on the 1 November, but it is celebrated on the following weekend in Sweden. 

We will commemorate all of the dogs who have lived here before us. Not just the ones we knew, but also those who passed away before we arrived. There have been many dogs here. It is sad that they are no longer with us, but we believe they are somewhere. Paula and Daniel have all of them in their memories. 

Thaw

The snow is gone again. We have had temperatures above the freezing point and quite a bit of rain. While I thought the snow would disappear quickly, this was even quicker than I had imagined. I guess we will have autumn for a while longer, before winter is here. 

A Little Snow

There is a little snow on the ground. Winter is coming. We have heard that this snow will melt, but the first snowof the season often does. There will probably soon be a permanent layer of snow. The Shibas always wanted a lot of snow. As Chihuahuas, Viola, Pepe, and I think a thin layer is enough. It is deep enough for us. We will see what happens.