Pip's Tale (Posthumous) - Part 3

It was strange when I went out on a lead for the first time. I admit I did not like it much. I just wanted to run around but I kept being pulled back hard over and over again. Now I was outside on the roads. I had become used to our car but now there were hundreds of these strange machines, tearing by me . I did not like the smell and I did not like the noise but Boss would sit quietly on a bench with Bonnie and myself next to him, just simply sitting watching, and I soon came to know that they would not harm me as long as I never ran into the road.

As I grew bigger and bigger I did develop a bad habit. I did not mean to. It was just my natural exuberance and my eagerness to get to the fields or woods. I would pull very hard on my lead. After a while Mrs. Boss said that she could not cope with that anymore and even Boss said he felt that his shoulder was being wrenched out. So, one bright morning into the car I went and I was taken to a new place. There were quite a few other animals there accompanied by their humans We stood in a line waiting and then a very nice lady came along and spoke to each of us and patted us and a few minutes later we were were taken into a small field. This lady would tell the humans what to do and they all tried to obey or rather try to get their dogs to obey.  I already knew how to sit and lie down when I was told but now I had to learn new things. I was put on a spot and told to “stay” whilst Boss walked away. I could only run to him when he told me to. I did my very best. Lots of the other dogs were naughty and ran all over the place and I watched whilst embarrassed owners chased them and tried to make them do it over and over again. I was taught to walk “to heel” and be obedient even when off the lead. All of us animals were given little treats when we did things the humans liked and my favourites were pieces of dried liver and cheese. Every so often we would return to this place and it got more and more exciting. I made friends with lots of the other dogs and eventually we were given something else to do, something that I loved. We could run through tunnels, jump over bars, run up and down ramps and through hoops. This was my very favourite thing. Boss even made me something on a smaller scale in our garden at home and I wouldspend hours with either Boss or Mrs. Boss doing the things I had learned at that other place. I did not pull on my lead anymore, I no longer felt the need to. I remembered all my lessons well, sat at the kerbside, never ran off and behaved like the gentleman I knew my mother had wanted me to be.

It lasted quite a time but as the warm weather faded and the days became shorter and much colder, I made my last visit there. I had, apparently, learned all I ever needed to know. That last morning, all the humans were dressed up in fancy hats decorated with some shiny stuff I heard them call “tinsel”. We went through all we had learned. All of us dogs had to do it individually and then in a little competition with all the animals involved. At the end, the lady came over to me and stroked and hugged me. She handed a piece of paper to Boss and pinned something on my collar. Boss seemed very pleased.

When we returned home, Boss told Mrs. Boss and she hugged me and gave me a special treat to eat. I did not know why they were so happy. After all, I had just done something I enjoyed very much and could not see why they were making such a fuss. However, I heard Mrs. Boss telling everyone that I had come “first in my class“, whatever that meant and she put the red thing that had been pinned to my collar on the wall. I was just pleased that they were happy. We never returned to that place and now and again I wondered about the friends I had met there and hoped they were happy.

Directly after all this had happened, there was great excitement in the house for the second time in my life. I had seen it once before but I was only little and did not take a lot of notice. Boss went and got lots and lots of boxes and Mrs. Boss dived into each one bringing out strange glittery things, bright and shiny, which she then proceeded to place all around the room, indeed, all around the house. A big tall thing was put in place. It looked the same shape as a tree but it did not smell like a tree. I could not make it out. Things were hung all over this tree looking thing and at night it glowed! I liked it, it made me feel very cosy and secure. We would have visitors to the house including the young couple I had met on my first journey home. I had come to know them as Becky and Dean and they were very close indeed to Boss and Mrs. Boss. I got to know the sound of their car and Mrs. Boss would say “Becky’s here” andIwould run excitedly to the door in greeting. They were always so pleased to see me and I loved them almost as much as I loved Boss and Mrs. Boss. Then, one evening, lots of strange packages were placed  around the tree that was not a tree and I was told “not to touch”. Bonnie had seen it all many times before and whispered to me that I was in for a lovely treat early the next day.

The next morning arrived and our home was filled with an air of excitement. Boss and Mrs. Boss would hand some of those packages to each other and they both seemed happy and hugged.  Then Boss delved into the pile of remaining packages and brought out a few of  them. I was given one, Bonnie another and the cats had their own. I was excited and sniffed at mine and pawed at it. They helped me open it. Inside were two new toys and lots and lots of good things to eat. I would run up and down the hallway with a toy in my mouth making it squeak until I was tired out. Bonnie and I always wore tinsel around our collars on that day. I detected wonderful smells coming from the kitchen. Then Mrs. Boss would take something out of a square thing and I could feel the heat coming from  it and hear a sizzling noise. We animals had to wait patiently until this sizzling thing, called “a chicken” cooled down and then Boss would pull it to pieces and we each got a big bowl of this delicious meat. We were all so full and so happy and us dogs wanted to be part of everything but the cats all went to sleep for hours.

Two of my cat friends - Tinker (black/white) & Jasper (tabby)

Then Boss and Mrs. Boss would sit down with Becky and Dean to eat their own food. There was lots of laughter and the humans put silly things on their heads and giggled. The only bit of this day (which I came to know as Christmas) that I did not like was when they took some things out of a box, passed them around and then “pulled” them. They made a loud crack and I hated it. I would put my tail down and run away. They would pat me and tell me not to be afraid but I just did not like them. They reminded me of days when it appeared  as dark as evening and it rained hard and the sky would make flashes and loud bangs. I hated that. The worst time of the year came well  before this happy glittery time. Loud bangs filled the air, bright lights everywhere,  but it was not like when  it was raining. This went on for hours, sometimes every evening for days. Endless bangs and flashes. It made me shake and shiver. I could never understand why humans liked  to make things bang and I never got used to it.

To be continued............

Pip's Tale (Posthumous) - Part 2

I awoke in the middle of the night and I was scared. I did not recognize where I was. Where was my mother? Where were my brothers and sisters? I was alone. I started to cry. Suddenly a bright light went on and Mrs. Boss appeared. She hugged me, put something warm into my box for me to cuddle up to and went away. This happened two or three times, my crying and her coming but she did not get angry or upset. Eventually I settled down to sleep.

The next day dawned and outside onto the green stuff I went again. I loved it. I was feeling braver and went off exploring, sticking my nose into everything. Strange coloured objects that Mrs. Boss grew and tended. There was water out there with strange creatures swimming in it but they did not come out to and do anything. They could not run around and I wondered why. There were all sorts of nooks and crannies to be explored and then Boss and Mrs. Boss came out and played with me.

A few minutes later, Boss disappeared inside and came out with another dog. I had seen this dog briefly the previous day but not for long. I think the humans felt I had experienced enough in one go. They left us alone together and she, for it was a bitch, ran up to me and examined me all over. She wagged her tail in joyous greeting. She told me that her name was Bonnie and that she had lived here happily for many years. She had been very sad because, not long before, she had lost her life-long companion and had been very lonely ever since. She was a cross-bred Border Collie, mainly white but with lots of black on her face and patches and spots of back on her body. She told me her friend had been Brandy, a brown Lhasa Apso. She was getting on in years and definitely feeling her age, but within minutes I had her running around chasing me and we heard Boss and Mrs. Boss laughing. We were great friends from that first moment. She adopted me and taught me everything a dog should know. I made her feel young again and she soon regained lots of her energy and lust for life. She was like a second mother to me and we cuddled up together when we got tired of playing.

My friend Bonnie with her friend Brandy

Then it was out in the car again. I did not knowwhether I was coming or going. We went into this strange building. I did not like the smell very much and we had to sit waiting with other people and their animals, but the humans all smiled at me. Then into another room and a man with a white coat on. I was put on a kind of table and this man looked into my eyes and my ears and down my throat and listened to my chest, felt all my joints and then ruffled my fur and said I was an excellent dog. I did not like it much when he stuck something sharp into me and presented Mr. Boss with a little card to prove that he had done it, but then back we went outside and into the car and home where Bonnie was waiting.

Bonnie was not alone. She had a couple of strange creatures with her. Much smaller than either she or I. They made strange mewing sounds. When I bounded in they were very surprised and very wary. They surveyed me with suspicious eyes and kept their distance at first. But, one by one, they eventually came up to me and began to rub their heads against mine in acceptance and friendship. There were five of them in all, Peanut, Flicky, Muffin, Jasper and Tinker. They were all ages, all sizes and all different colours. They did not join in our games. They were much too haughty for that. They had their own games which were not much fun for us dogs who liked to tear round and around the garden,as it was called, until we were exhausted. So there were the seven of us, we all ate at the same time and all had our separate feeding bowls. I used to hear Mrs. Boss laugh and say it was like a zoo whatever a zoo was. I came to know these other creatures as cats and they became mine. I decided I was going to be their guardian and see they came to no harm. I recognized each one and herded them up at mealtimes. However, if any other cat came onto our piece of ground, our personal turf, I knew it for a stranger and soon chased it off although I would never harm them.

This was all so different. Every experience was new, exciting and interesting. I thought of my mother and my siblings. I longed to tell them of the adventures I was having but then I remembered how I had been told that we would have to be parted one day, that we had our own lives to lead and that I must be brave and strong and make her proud of me and because I was having so much fun, I did not dwell on those memories for long.

I soon learned that there were times of the day for exercise, times of the day for playing, times to eat and times to be quiet. The being quiet times were mostly in the evenings when Mrs. Boss (Mr. Boss was out at work) sat in front of a box and watched moving pictures. There was talking and music and regular things seemed to appear on it, I learned to recognise the tunes. One day another box came into the house. That also had pictures appear on it but it was different because Mrs. Boss sat much closer to it and her fingers would tap away at something. I heard the word "keyboard" mentioned but it did not mean much to me.

My enjoyment came from other things. I soon learned that the world was a big big place. There were fields to run and chase in, woods that had so many trees it made my mind reel. I was taken to run on something called “the beach” and the stuff under my feet was completely different, firm but wet - and there was water. I enjoyed walking in it but I did not like the sound of it much and I refused to go into it properly. There were other homes we visited as well and I was always made welcome. I learned the different weather. Sometimes I would go out and get soaking wet, others time something blew against me with such a force that it raised all my fur and sent my ears flapping. Sometimes it was misty and hard to see. The most amazing thing of all was one morning when I flew out into the garden to suddenly find I was standing in white stuff that came halfway up my legs! It was cold white stuff as well and more of it was falling out of the sky. It was a mystery to me. Mrs. Boss came out with me, gathered some of this white stuff into her hands and formed a ball shape which she threw at me to catch. I did, of course, and it melted in my mouth and became water. What a strange but magical  place this world was.

To be continued...........

Pip's Tale (Posthumous)

I came into the world one hot July day but I remembered little about it. I only knew that I was surrounded by warmth and licks from my mother whose name was Heather and my siblings.  Sometimes I got occasional glimpses of my father whose name was Jack but not often.  I saw the light of day for the first time in something they call a kennel. It was a place where animals like me stayed whilst their humans were away. The people who owned this kennel also bred dogs - Border Collies and Bichon Frise.

We had “maids” to look after us and keep our living quarters clean. It was a noisy place with constant barking. The Bichons were opposite my family and they yapped all the time but my mother told us to ignore them and always behave like ladies and gentlemen which we did. Now and again, different people would walk in and stand looking at puppies. Quite often they would disappear with a puppy and we would never see it again. We did not know where they went or why.

Everyday was pretty much the same but, regular as clockwork, a day would come around which was a bit different because the kennel closed much earlier on that day. I did not like this day much because we were left to our own devices for many hours. Well, it just happened to be that particular day and I knew it was time for the maids to shut up and leave us because we had just had our lunch. I and my siblings were on solid food by then. So, I was very surprised when a lady and gentleman walked in. I was curious. They did not even spot us, they went straight to the Bichons. Strange things these dogs were, bundles of white curly hair and they seemed to be on springs, leaping up and down all the time. Well, this couple stood there looking at them and the man shook his head. He was obviously not impressed. The lady continued to talk with the kennel owner but the man wandered over and suddenly saw us. He called the lady across. She came and looked at us and shook her head. I heard her say something about “big feet” and “big dogs”. I gathered later that the man had told the lady that she could only have a small dog and she pointed out to him what he had told her. A conversation ensued but in the end they walked away and all was quiet.

I was even more surprised when less than ten minutes later they came back again. The kennel owner was not best pleased. He was anxious to close. Well, they walked back to my family. I had seen all this type of thing before, so instead of pushing to the front as my brothers and sisters did, I decided to be very laid-back and casual. I sat at the back of the stall with my head cocked on one side taking an interest in what would happen next. I was very surprised when the man pointed at me! In came the kennel maid and picked me up and took me outside our pen so that they could get a better look at me. She put me into the arms of the man and I knew immediately that I liked him. He had big strong arms, kindly eyes and was very gentle. He stroked me and smiled at me and I could not resist reaching up and licking his face. His face broke into a big beam. Then he handed me to the lady and I liked her as well. She had a soft voice and hands even more gentle than the man and she gave me lots of hugs. My siblings were all whining because they wanted to be cuddled as well but I was the lucky one.

The next thing I knew I was being carried outside, away from my family. I never even had the chance to say goodbye to them. We went into another room and the man and lady whom I came to know as Boss and Mrs. Boss sat at a desk and signed some papers. Then they walked around picking out things, dog food, something called a collar and a lead and some fluffy things called toys. All the time I was waiting to be put back in the stall, this was making me a little nervous. I did not know what was going on.

Suddenly I was outside in bright light and the air was filled with different smells, aromas I had never experienced before. I was carried in the lady’s arms to something I came to know as “the car”. It was strange in there, smaller than my stall and I was very scared when the man turned a key and a loud noise and vibrations shook me and we started to move Yes, move and without any legs! The world started flying past and I could make no sense of it. Yet, somehow it was strangely exciting and the lady stroked me all the time and told me I was beautiful.

She was very kind even when I did something naughty. All the excitement of what was going on, the movement of the car and the fact that I had had my lunch upset my stomach and I could not stop myself. I was sick all over her. She did not get cross. They stopped the car by the side of something called “the road” and she cleaned us both up. After that we continued in the car. I was tired and feel asleep. When I woke, two more people had appeared. I did not know who they were, but they were a young couple and very close to the lady and the man. Apparently, we had called at their home so I could be shown to them. They came out to the car and petted and fussed me for a while and then we drove on again.

Eventually the car came to a stop. I was carried up to a door and inside . No concrete floors here but soft stuff under my paws. Now there were all sorts of other new smells. After a few minutes of looking around they took me through another door and for the first time I really saw the outside. Green stuff under my feet, the warmth of the sun on my back, air smelling fresh and sweet, a sky so wide and blue. This was nice, I liked this. I did a little wee and they told me that I was a “good boy”. Then I was taken back inside, given some more food and some milk. They made me a nice comfy bed and I fell asleep. It had been such a strange and exciting day. I wondered whether it had all been a dream and when I awoke I would be back in the kennel with my mother and seven brothers and sisters. Little did I know that the next day would be even more exciting and I was to meet some new companions.

To be continued....

We Thank You

Mike and I would like to thank you for your lovely messages and support on the loss of our beautiful Pip.  It has meant a lot to both of us.

It is hit us both much harder than we could ever have imagined especially at a time when I am battling to get my blood sugars back to acceptable levels and the shock and upset have not helped in this one bit.

At the moment, I do not feel like writing in my journal as you can understand.  I know as the days pass it will get better and I hope to be back with fairly regular entries soon and commenting on all your journals.

However, Mike and I both needed to thank you and we do, from the bottom of our hearts.

GOODBYE PIP

In loving memory of our "Pip".  30th July 1995 - 5th January 2006.

I named him Pip because I had great expectations of him. He lived up to all of them and surpassed them. A gentle giant that had not one ounce of badness in him. A loyal and loving companion, gentle and trustworthy. A friend to all other humans and animals. Beautiful both outside and inside. His life only lasted for ten and a half years but Mike and I would rather have had those ten and a half years with him than without him.

He took his last walk this morning with Mike and it was apparent that the time had come. Mike had to take him for that last short ride and we knew he would never be returning to our home. Mike held him as he fell asleep forever and says that Pip looked into his eyes until the last as if to say "thank you."

No, Pip, we thank you. We thank you for the love and the laughter. We thank you for your intelligence and your loyalty. We thank you for being part of our lives. Rest in peace our beloved friend and companion, our big fluffy bunny, our prince. You truly were a prince among dogs, the finest there could ever have been. It was a privilege and an honour to know you.

Our hearts are broken , our eyes are swollen from crying, Jesse is looking for you and the house seems so empty without your magnificent presence. Time will pass, tears will dry, but we will never ever forget you. Sleep in peace dearest Pip, sleep in peace.

Laundry Thoughts

I was putting the washing in the machine earlier and it suddenly struck me, not for the first time, how easy we have it today.  In goes the washing and off we go to do other things, maybe housework, use our computers or whatever else we decide.

So different to washing day when I was young. Washing day really was a whole day and always on a Monday. It always started before 8 a.m. All the beds would be stripped, all the dirty clothes collected then my Mother would put the heavy metal washing copper on the gas stove to heat it up.  Those were the days when you could boil clothes and it was expected that you would. When the water was warm enough in her opinion, in would go the blue bag that was supposed to add extra whiteness.  The sheets would go in first and  be pushed under the water with heavy wooden tongs and occasionally moved around.  When it was considered they were clean and germ-free enough they had to be lifted out amid great clouds of steam into another metal container she had standing by on the floor.  They were left to cool down somewhat whilst the shirts and blouses and underwear went into the copper.

When the sheets had cooled off enough, into the sink they went to be rinsed in masses and masses of cold water. Through the mangle to get all the water out of them. I remember turning the handle of that mangle on hundreds of occasions, it was a job I hated.  Then, of course, they had to be starched - another laborious process.  It would be early afternoon often before they were hanging outside to dry.  In the winter all the washing would be draped around the kitchen and scullery and even the bathroom. Much of it would be placed on a large wooden clothes horse that stood in front of the kitchen range and I would be fascinated by the steam rising from the damp clothes.  You could never see out of the windows in winter and it must have made the whole house damp.

Quite often Mother decided that the collars and cuffs would need extra attention before the shirts went into the copper, so out came the washboard.  The collars and cuffs would be liberally coated with Sunlight soap and then rubbed vigorously up anddown the washboard.  The same applied to my white socks.  Oh, how I recall the many times I had sore knuckles from doing that.

In the winter the house would be full of steam and the fresh laundry smell that you just cannot describe.  It is a smell I remember so well and a smell that I miss.  You just do not get it with modern washing machines. It is a smell that still reminds me of childhood.

No fabric conditioners in those days.  My mother always got a great sense of satisfaction from seeing a line full of bright white washing on the line.  She would often spend the evening of the same day ironing it all with a flat iron that had to be constantly reheated on the kitchen range.

We took it for granted of course, but how exhausting it must have been although it certainly kept people fit and they had no need for work-outs in those days.

There was nothing like the feeling of sliding between cool starched sheets that my mother always put away after laundering into drawers that had lavendar bags in them.  I still remember those cool, crisp sheets and the smell of lavendar.

It is so easy for us today.  I use a fitted bottom sheet that never needs ironing and sleep under a duvet.  So laundering is kept to a minimum as I do not have much bedding to wash and I certainly never starch anything.

That also got me thinking of other things like washing up.  No fancy liquids in those days, just washing soda crystals.  Yes, they got the china and pots and pans clean but oh, the sore red hands they caused.  No shampoo either, my hair was washed in the same soap that we used for everything else although my mother always rinsed it in a mixture of clear water and lemon juice. I have always had strong thick hair so it cannot have done me any harm.

Well, I could sit here and write memories all daybut my washing is just about to finish so I had better go and get it out, no tongs thank goodness . However, I often wonder whether I would be much fitter if life had not changed and we still used the old-fashioned methods.

The Mysterious Hole In The Ceiling

So, what is the hole in our ceiling? It is the hatch in our hallway that leads to the loft, a place I never go because I cannot climb the ladder.  A strange place that takes your possessions.

Why is it mysterious?  Well, it is something of a black hole, a strange other universe. It eats things!

We have lived in several homes and never had any strange goings on with any loft as we call them. We have always put things there and there they have stayed. This loft is different. This loft has strange powers. This loft spirits your belongings away.

Over the twelve years we have lived here we have put many things up there, safe and sound. Only one problem, when you want them again and go to get them, they are nowhere to be found.  They have vanished.  We have our own "triangle" here.

Two years ago, at Christmas time, him indoors put away two ornaments, pretty ones of ladies in Victorian clothes. He wrapped them up carefully in newspaper and placed them in a box clearly marked ornaments. After Christmas they were not in the box, he searched everywhere. Nothing. This Christmas when getting the decorations down, there they were in a box of tinsel, unwrapped, just lying there although they had not been there the previous year! Where had they been during those two years, what had they been up to?

This year, we have again lost two ornaments, crystal ones. I was very particular that they were placed near the loft hatch so we could get them down again straight after Christmas. They live on my television and are important to me.

Today, Mike is taking down all the Christmas decorations, so I asked him to get me the crystals.  They have disappeared. He remembers wrapping them and putting them up there, now they have vanished. Will they turn up this year, next year, sometime, never?

Do we have someone invisible living in our loft who is setting up their own home and picking the things that appeals to them most?

Over the years we have lost books , papers, photographs, wind -chimes, a variety of ornaments, rugs, curtains,  photographic equipment.  All manner of things.

So, we have a black hole in our house. Things enter there never to be seen again or to turn up years later somewhere else. Some are never found.  Where do they go? It is a mystery to us. Even the family joke and warn us not to put things up there or they will be lost without trace.  I am, at present, reading a horror book by Graham Masterton about “something” that lives in an attic. As I was reading I thought yes, that sounds like us, something must be living in our attic as well! Maybe this “it” has our keys which have never been found. At least we have new keys now and hopefully will be able to keep them in our clutches.

So, dear readers, if you have something you are sick of, something you want to be rid of, something you no longer need, send it to us. We can be absolutely certain to lose it for you, as long as we put it up there!