Reality has sunk in and the quietness of home is now louder than ever. It’s not so obvious in the morning when we get ready for work because if M2 was still here, she would still be asleep. It’s the evenings.
The grunt, snort and stubbornness of official pet number one is more prominent, the water spouting within the aquarium is more pronounced and the lack of another person to have a conversation with is so glaring.
Sigh… both of us have to get used to this.
Sunday was a significant day with the date being 11.11. While there was this HUGE Singles Day online sales with record numbers being achieved globally, it was a significant day for us for a different reason. Our beloved Official Pet number one turned 11, hence 11.11.11.
What a journey it has been for us with Rooney, our English Bulldog, official pet, senior citizen of the house and shortest member of the family.
He may have the grumpiest face, the loudest and most insistent bark on the street, the most stubborn streak surpassing even me, I can go on but we love him all the same!
Happy Birthday and stay healthy, my silly grumpy boy.
Official pet number one, Rooney, is one silly dog. Every time when I am set up at the garden terrace to do my carving, he would be my little vacuum cleaner. I know it’s bad for him but sometimes he gets to the wood shavings much faster than me!
Two weeks ago, over the three-day weekend when I was working on two pieces of Meranti simultaneously, the mess was everywhere on the floor and he just took the liberty to crawl under my workbench and helped himself. One silly dog indeed.
Hmm…. tit bits! I like….
Gosh… they taste soooooo good! Ohm nom nom…
Over the weekend, I had a really good opportunity to work on the two-piece Meranti block. After sending M2 to school for her activity early in the morning, I came home and set up the carving station. Initially I thought of warming up by carving a Citizen but changed my mind and dived into the Meranti at 8.00am, early by my standards.
Two hours later, I nicked my finger for the third time but it did not deter me. I had my warm green tea in the Thermos, the weather was lovely and although official pet number one was snoring away by my side, the focus was not disturbed by his loud snore.
Another two hours went by and I nicked my finger again! Dang… either the Meranti is too hard or I am not doing it right. I have not nicked myself so many times in one carving. Then again, it’s been a while since I started on a new shape/character, what more on a Meranti.
Eight hours later, the Gnome’s home was done. I was pleased with my efforts but suffered the consequences soon after, not just with the four cuts on my index finger.
The third and fourth cut. Ouch
The right tennis elbow flared up and the left hand was sore at the thumb and wrist. The left index finger throbbed from the fourth cut and the strangest thing, the fingers of my right hand tingled at the tips, a sensation I’ve never experienced before. It became more pronounced when I typed on the phone. And this sensation lasted six hours passed the carving.
Have I pushed myself too far this time? Then I looked at my end result, the Gnome’s home, and all that pain was forgotten.
Three weekends ago, we had a pesky intruder coming into the dry kitchen whilst official pet number one was away at the garden terrace. Normally when Rooney stays in the wet kitchen area, guarding the entrance to the dry kitchen, the squirrel would not venture close.
Hubby bought a bunch of bananas and it smelled so fragrant, the pesky intruder must have caught a whiff of it and daringly came in to help himself to the banana! The audacity of him.
And not once or twice it came but thrice and each time, I had to chase it out. Twice out the window and once out the door to the wet kitchen. I guess we can’t leave the door or windows open and unguarded especially when there’s fruits on the kitchen counter.
Rooney, official pet number one also known as Senior Citizen, has become one quirky fella. Signs of old age or asserting his number one status by doing things his way? Lately, he has taken to venturing through the house as a short cut to head to the garden. He would do this several trips in a day especially when we are home.
And most times, he would pause midway and just sploot on the marble floor, forgetting his original intention of the passage. This creates a mess in the living room because of his excessive shedding and drooling but he doesn’t understand; he would just chill if the desire to make it further does not appeal.
Typically the sploot is associated with Corgis, and our English Bulldog is no different; he just loves to sploot too. Maybe this position is comfortable for him as he has short legs too. I suspect he loves the coolness of the marble floor when he lays flat on his belly and his short hind legs stretches out behind him.
We have stopped getting upset about the mess because he is getting older, and being a Senior Citizen, we close an eye or two to the situation.
2017 is coming to an end with two days left to go. This is my last entry for the year and my, my, what a year it has been for me!
There has been many significant changes to our lives in 2017, the biggest one being the relocation of our design studio. We moved closer to home and it’s a mere 5km away only. What a difference for us especially when it comes to time management and traffic jam-free driving which is really nice.
It may be smaller in size but it’s a lot more cosy and I certainly feel happier. Work-wise we have been fortunate to be kept busy. Let’s hope this momentum carries onward to the new year.
On the personal side, I have been plagued with injuries causing me to lose interest in playing golf. While it’s unfortunate I lost my passion for the game I enjoy, it spawned a new passion, carving. Gigglesville was born with a whole new township of owl Citizens and Superheroes. They have been lovingly hand-crafted with each day of me staying home to recover from the tennis elbow.
Hubby also picked up a new interest in air plants. The house is now full of these everywhere and it’s nice to look at them. M1 had a good year at university, and did her second internship which we feel the experience was invaluable. She has matured so much. M2 turned Sweet 16 and doing well in school too.
We had several crayfishes that lasted and didn’t. These creatures are not easy to care for! Some fishes died too due to old age. Senior citizen of the house, Rooney, also official pet number one, turned ten and for the first time showed signs of his seniority. And demanding more attention than ever.
The list can go on for what happened throughout the year! As I reflect back, there’s more good and memorable ones than anything else and I carry these in my heart forever. With 2017 almost done––sometimes too fast with the days going by, sometimes super slow––I look forward to the new year and eagerly await what lies ahead with a positive outlook.
I want to thank all my readers, people from all over the world, friends and family who have followed me to read my stories and thoughts. It’s a nice feeling and I hope you’d continue to read and enjoy the musings.
A toast to 2017, thank you for memories and another toast to 2018, let it be an exciting year with lots to write, grouse and muse about!
We have a new neighbor on our street and they have two Labradors. Several days ago, M2 overheard the owners, walking the dogs, calling out one of the dogs by its name, “Fishball” and she thought it was rather cute.
She then suggested that we should change official pet number one’s name from “Rooney” to “Beefball”, similar to the neighbor’s because it’s rather cute. After all, “Rooney” is such a boring name and we’re not even football fans!
Fast forward to a typical night at home…
After the usual after-dinner routine – coming out to the garden to play and having his snacks, it was time for Rooney to go back. So I called him by his actual name and he didn’t budge even with a snack bribe.
So I tried another tactic…
I called him “Beefball” and he moved! Walked right towards me. We sure have one silly pet who does not know his own name sometimes or most times!
Sammy the squirrel has been frequenting the wall and scrounging from the two trays left there. One morning, we put some leftover corn on the bigger tray, hoping it (or Lefty) would eat the corn instead but no. Sammy chose to eat bird seeds from the smaller tray. Why?
Sometimes even official pet number one, Rooney, would want some bird seeds besides his doggy treats. There must be something about the taste or flavor. Maybe I should try some to see what the appeal is.
Hmm… Food for thought.
See the yellow on the big tray? It’s corn
You know winter of sorts is here when it rains daily and the air becomes chilly. Even for official pet number one, it’s cold. He would go into his little abode to sleep on the rug to keep warm instead of on the cold tiled floor.
He doesn’t usually do this, sleeping in the pad. His abode is usually his protest platform – going inside only whenever he feels like barking at us in protest over something. I think he feels that with the barriers protecting him, he can have his voice, err… bark heard. Very opinionated fella.
But with the weather changing, raining just about every day and night resulting in cold nights ahead, the pad now has another use.
Angieneering 
Remarks