MUTT BOY

I am a mutt.

The Most fiercely loved, the Most deeply valued,  the Most warmly cuddled,  the Most handsome,  bravest, smartest and the most sensitive Mutt pup in the whole big world!

Mummy says our family picture is incomplete without me.

I love being me and I am in no mood to change my 'mutt' status anytime soon.

Well, make that 'ever'...

Signing off,
Shadow

HAPPY BARKDAY, MUMMY

Thank you so much, Dear Friends for all your suggestions. You finally helped us decide on an idea that worked out well. We want to tell you all about it but, right now, we have a very important affair to attend to.

This is just a quick little post to say ‘Thank You’ to you all and also ‘HAPPY Barkday’ to Mummy once again before her day ends.

 

About that affair.

Well, we are watching the Oscars - the re-telecast. Not our fault that we missed the live telecast. It is the sun and the earth and the latter rotating on its axis over 24 hours that made it impossible for us here in India to get up at the hour it was on live.

Anyway, we got to go now. Can't afford to miss THIS telecast too.

Wags,

Buddy, Ginger and Shadow

Pee ess: Mummy says HEAPS of Thanks for all your wishes. And she says you really completed her day.

A Special HARVEST FESTIVAL

 

Today we celebrated a special Festival commemorating the winter solstice and the end of the Harvest season.
 
Yes, we know we are not farmers and we do not own any agricultural land but this doesn’t deter us from celebrating this special Harvest Festival which is associated with a great deal of feasting and festivities.
 
Know by different names in different parts of India, this festival is like an Annual ‘Thanksgiving’ Day.
Prayers and Thanks are offered for the full granaries, people exchange sweets and prepare special dishes to mark the occasion.
Children go from door to door, singing folk songs and are gifted sweets, savouries and sometimes money.
 
These collections are called ‘Lohri’ and hence, in the North Indian states of Delhi, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir, Punjab and Haryana, the festival is called ‘LOHRI’ or ‘LODI’.
Like most Indian festivals, there are many legends associated with this Harvest fest too. (You might want to read about them HERE)
 
In India’s North-East it is called ‘MAGH-BIHU or BHOGALI-BIHU’.
‘Magh’ is the Assamese month starting from mid-January while ‘Bhogali’ is the word derived from ‘Bhog’ meaning ‘A feast’!
 
The name is associated with the abundant feasting that is a part of this festival.
Traditionally, people stay up overnight, dancing and singing around a bonfire, feasting on special barbecued food.
 
In Western and parts of Southern India, it is called ‘Makar Sankranti’ while in the Tamil Nadu, it is called ‘Pongal’.

One special feature of this festival in the Western Indian State of Gujarat is the beautiful ‘KITE FESTIVAL’. It is almost a week long event and attracts people from all over the world.
The skies are dotted with exquisite creations which are truly lovely.
 

Some lovely kites are being sold all throughout this month, here in our city too.

 

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We decided to have our own bonfire and barbecue last night on the terrace.
This will be our last ‘January Fest’ here before we move to Delhi and we decided to have fun on the terrace one last time.

Our plan was a rustic, traditional ‘Barbecue Night’, without the electric grill or the rotisserie, which meant Mummy and Daddy had to go to the woods to collect fire-wood and hunt down a bird or two.

 

 

Or so we thought till we saw these pictures!

Ha! Not only did our chicken come out of a super-market shelf, Daddy bought our wood at this shop he found!

 

 

 

Our make-shift grilling board, though, was more in line with our ‘rustic’ plans!

 
 

We were a little doubtful initially, about the fire. The crackling noises disturbed us a bit.
And believe it or not, our Puppy brother turned out to be the bravest of us all!!

 

 

He was the first to go upstairs to investigate the goings-on!! And then, he settled down with Mummy beside the fire.

 

I, Ginger, chose the Safest place- Daddy cushion!

 

 
Now, there isn’t such a thing invented or discovered yet that can keep Buddy away from yummy food.
And of course, the crackling fire was no exception!

 

 

 

Everything went into the fire....

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 ...and Thankfully came out!

 

We had a lovely time last night, and collected warm memories of our time in this home.

 
 
Today morning, we all went to the rocks for our walk.
 
Now, we do believe that whatever happens actually happens for a good reason, however small or inconsequential.
I, Buddy, was complaining the other day about Mummy not finding the time to help me with my ‘Special Morning Walk’ post.
Good that that happened. Because, after our walk today morning, I have some nice photographs for you.
We will definitely post them in our next post.

 

Have a good weekend, Everybuddy

Wags,

Ginger, Buddy and Shadow

WE MISS YOU, Daddy

We don’t like it. we don’t like it at all.
There are still 3 Million Days for Daddy to come back home.

Someone came by today on a bike that sounds exactly like Daddy’s. Shadow rushed out to the verandah, ears pricked up, looking all excited that Daddy was back.
He even had Buddy convinced it was Daddy.

But I knew. 
I didn’t bother to go check.I just knew it wasn’t him.

However much I tried to convince the two of them that it wasn’t Daddy, they refused to believe me. They waited there, out on the verandah for a long time.

 

 

Finally, Mummy could make them understand that Daddy won’t be back for quite sometime and it was only just some stray human passing by.

We miss you, Daddy.

 

There’s NO ONE to throw my ball for me to fetch.

No one to pull Buddy’s toy

and no one to pick Shadow up.

Here are our pictures to tell you how terribly ALL of us here miss you.

 

Sad Bud-Boy

Sad Shadow

 

Sad Ginger

and Sad Mummy!!!!

So you get the idea!

Please come back soon.

Shadow even promises he won’t chew on your shoe-laces if you do…

Deserted…Again!

We also have a sleeping arrangement, alternate to the one you all happened to like so much. Especially for those times when Mummy and Daddy take up our couch and stay up late watching a movie.

Don’t get us wrong. We do like a good movie. But not at some weird, unearthly hour. A pup’s sleep-time always comes first.

Anyway, on such nights we bunk here. See, we make sure we leave enough space for Mummy and Daddy to curl up.
 

 

 
What do you mean there isn’t enough leg-space!!
It is winter, isn’t it? You are supposed to curl up nose-tip to tail-tip…errr…toe-tip!
And of course, we don't mind lending our beds to Mummy & Daddy, if they want them! They are almost new!

 
Tonight, however, space isn’t an issue.

Well, Daddy is gone AGAIN!
Yes, he has deserted us to go on another trip.
This time, it is to a place near Bangalore, further down south of where we live.
We don’t like it. Not one bit.
 

 

( Don’t go, Daddy, Please?)

(May be I can fit in there and come along too?)

( I will fit in. Please take me along?)

Mummy says he has been invited to be the External Examiner for the Final MBBS (Bachelor of Medicine & Bachelor of Surgery) Examination in a medical College there. He will be busy the entire day and can’t take us Pups along.
And that it is an honour and will add an extra feather on Daddy’s cap.
 
WHAT!
Daddy has deserted us to go collect feathers?

Why, we could have done it for him. Collect feathers, that is.
We are Retrievers, if you remember. Besides, we even have Shadow trained to retrieve things and he does it with pawfect finesse.
(Note to self by Ginger: We must get Mummy to video-graph his training sessions with Buddy)
 
Anyway, Daddy is gone and he will be gone for a WEEK!

Sigh!

 

Mississippi One… Mississippi Two… Mississippi Three…

Ginger, Buddy and Shadow

Our Wish

For last year's words belong to last year's language and next year's words await another voice. And to make an end is to make a beginning.
- T. S. Eliot

When there are challenges, we wish u success
When there is strife, we wish you peace,
When there is sadness, we wish you joy.
 
We wish you the comfort of old friends, the joy of finding new friends, the contentment of love, the exhilaration of new adventures, the satisfaction of achievements, the calm and harmony of a content life.
 

Today we are thankful for Our Family - the little joys we shared everyday in the past year, the strength we found in our togetherness to face the sad times that came by, the security we feel everyday in belonging and being together.

We are thankful for Our Friends - both in pawson and in The Blogworld. You are the ones who never fail to put a smile on our faces and remind us how lucky we are to have you in our lives.
 

We are thinking today of our dear Pei Friend HERO.

 

 

 

The Familial Sharpei fever has weakened Hero’s body, but he is the same spirited, loving and adorable Pei we all know.
We pray for him and are making a New Year wish for him to get well soon.

 

 

May the New Year bring for all of you, in abundance, health, laughter, fun and happiness.

 

 

 

Love and wags,

Ginger, Buddy and Shadow

My First ‘Life Lessons’

 

‘U’ is for ‘US’

US – I, Shadow, my big brother Buddy, my big sister Ginger, Mummy and Daddy

 

I don’t exactly remember when I first met Mummy. I must have been just about 31/2 to 4 months old then.

When I followed her home and found Ginger and Buddy at her gate, I knew I had found a place where I’d like to stay furever.
 

 

Though I couldn’t stop wagging at Ginger & Buddy and them at me, I was, at first, rather intimidated by them.
They seemed so big and had such big barks!
Little did I know that day that they would, one day, be family to me.
 
Today, I have realised that wishes do come true. You just have to wish hard from the depth of your doggy heart.
It has been a month now since that fateful dark night, brightly lit by gay Diwali lamps, when I came to live here with my furever family.
 
Yes, a month already!
And what a month!

It has been a journey of discovery & learning for all of us.
From the lost, little pup that I was when I came home, I have come a long way.

In fact, Mummy says I am a ‘Miracle Pup’!

But, to be honest, it hasn’t really been very hard for me. After all, I have had two of the BEST teachers in the world, my big sister and my big brother.
Not a day goes by when I do not learn something new from them.

I guess I am one lucky pup to have such loving and gentle teachers.
 
These are some of the ‘Life Lessons’ I have learnt in the last month.

1. A good walk is the bare essential necessity of life. Enjoy it to the fullest.

 

2. Always be connected to Mother Nature and never forget your roots.

 

3. The best view from the car is through the rear window.

 

4. It is important to ALWAYS keep the perimeter clear.

5. Tug-of-war and Bitey-face are the best games ever.

6. Unlike what I thought in my early days, the bed is much more comfortable than the cold floor.

7. Mummy keeps heaps of yummables in the big, cold box.

8. If you want a treat, you’ve got to sit down and await your turn.

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9. If you can get the look right, you will definitely get an extra table treat.

10. The couch belongs to Ginger & Buddy. But I do get my moments on it.

 

11. The bean-bag belongs to me. But Daddy is the comfiest sitting bag!

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12. A good, cozy sleep is every pup’s birth right.

 

AND the MOST IMPAWTANT lesson of all:

I have some of the most pawsome friends in the world, my blog friends, who already love me, even though I am only just beginning to know them.

 

Thank you, big sis and big bro, for sharing your friends, your blog, your toys and your life with me.

I love you-Furever!

 

Wags,

Shadow

 

Pee ess:

Hi, Gingin & Budboy here.

This post, Shadow’s first, was meant to be posted on 7 Dec- his one month Gotcha Day.

But the last few days passed by in a whirlwind of activities, with hardly a breather.

We are terribly sorry we haven’t been visiting anyone at all. But life should be back to normal in a few more days and we hope to catch up with everyone soon. Promise.

Thanks to the Unparalleled ABC Team for inspiring Shadow to write about US!

Have a great day, everyone!