Just Me and You and Fido

It is for a good reason that I chose Fido as my cell phone plan. Actually, at the time I got it, there were very few cell phone services available in Canada, and this was touted as the best of the few. The many American services were unavailable in Canada at the time, for fear of them out-bidding the Canadian ones (so much for fair trade/free trade). Now that the market is inundated with them, Fido services are better, and cheaper. I had thought to change plans to something even more cheaper and better, but I'm glad I stayed loyal to my Fido.

The above photo is from Fido's online ad. These true Canadian canines are enjoying a toboggan ride, as only (Canadian) dogs can, all happily crammed on one long piece of wood.

On a serious note, cell phones have also brought out the worst in people. Every day, I hear one-sided, often very personal, conversations around me. And people hike up their voices when on cell phones. I think it is an ego thing: "Look at me! I'm having a conversation!" I also think that people get lost in their cocoon of them and the person on the other side, and the rest of the world doesn't exist. It is, of course, the continuing crassness of our world, and the gradual loss of civility. "No-one else matters but me!" say these modern narcissists. Sometimes I slow down to listen into these (boring) conversations. Some catch on and actually lower their voices. Others are just relentlessly oblivious.

Stella!

Is this really a Stella? Maybe it's
to prepare her for stardom.

I've posted about a neighbor's French bulldog here. I wrote that despite my attempts at being a friendly neighbor, all I get from Howie is "a dour look."

Well, the New York Post agrees with me on the social skills (or rebuffs) of Frenchies.

"She had a dour expression" says the TV show Modern Family's executive producer, on Stella, a French bulldog interviewing for a spot on the show. I don't know if that is acting, I think Stella really means to have her dour expression, but it's getting her an acting gig.

On a side note, I really like dogs. I think they're funny, fun and often very sweet. But, Torontonians take dog loving to an extreme. They give them human-like importance, and often have large dogs living with them in their apartments, which they leave behind for most of the day. It must be excruciatingly boring for dogs (I think cats can handle being left behind much better). So much for dog love.

Howie, the French bulldog in my apartment, seems to react to this by "soiling" the apartment. His master comes home with loud admonishments, but then starts a long period of "good boy" trying to appease poor Howie. That's small compensation for being abandoned (it must seem like that to a dog) for a better part of the day, but dogs have big hearts. Humans are lucky.

Big Ben

This is how the American Kennel Club describes a Newfoundland:

Sweetness of temperament is the hallmark of the Newfoundland; this is the most important single characteristic of the breed

His origins, according to the AKC are Canadian, being given the honorable name of the Atlantic province, Newfoundland:

[N]early all agree that he originated in Newfoundland and his ancestors were brought there by fisherman from the European continent. In Newfoundland he was used as a working dog to pull nets for the fishermen and to haul wood from the forest. He also did heavy labor, such as powering the blacksmith's bellows.

Here is the AKC describing this working dog:

A large dog and a true workhorse, the Newfoundland is a master at long-distance swimming and has true lifesaving instincts in the water. He is large and strong, possessing a heavy coat to protect him from icy waters. Equally at home in the water and on land, today’s Newfoundland competes in conformation, obedience, agility, tracking, draft and water tests, and carting.

The Newfoundland in my neighborhood is friendly and certainly sweet. The way he lunges around may look threatening but its part of his greeting. His owner calls him Ben, but I greet him with Big Ben, after the landmark in London (although I'm not sure how much a Canadian Newfie would like a nickname after a British landmark). Here's Wikipedia's explanation for Big Ben's nickname origin:

The origin of the nickname Big Ben is the subject of some debate. The nickname was applied first to the Great Bell; it may have been named after Sir Benjamin Hall, who oversaw the installation of the Great Bell, or after boxing's English Heavyweight Champion Benjamin Caunt. Now Big Ben is often used, by extension, to refer to the clock, the tower and the bell collectively, although the nickname is not universally accepted as referring to the clock and tower. Some authors of works about the tower, clock and bell sidestep the issue by using the words Big Ben first in the title, then going on to clarify that the subject of the book is the clock and tower as well as the bell.

The last time I saw (Big) Ben, he was happily walking along in the rain while his human owner was comfortably under an umbrella. "He must like it in the rain," I commented to the owner, who was not at all bothered about her big dog getting all wet. "Bye, big Newfie dog" I said in response to his wagging tail.

Bo Ain't No Sheepadoodle

Left: Bo in front of the White House
Right: Look-alike Sheepadoodle dog

I've made yet another canine friend (although it may still be too early for that, so we'll leave him as a "sidewalk sharer" for now).

I asked the owner if his dog was the same as Bo, the Obama pet dog. He looked very much like him to me. No, said the dog owner, he's a sheepdog mix. Oh, sheepdog, that's nice too, I said politely.

So I looked up on the internet "sheepdog mix" and I get a Sheepadoodle, which is a different dog from Bo, who is a Portuguese Water Dog (Bo's no mutt, apparently), although they do look very similar. "Sheepadoodle" has a better sound than the cumbersome "Portuguese Water Dog" and is more fun and playful too. But, maybe Michelle didn't want any mutt in her White House. I get the feeling that she has a bigger say in what dog is allowed in, and what dog stays out.

Poodle Elegance

I'm not sure how this black Standard Poodle sees himself, but he is the epitome of elegance, as he walks (or gets walked) around the neighborhood. I don't know what his name is, but Algernon might fit.

Pink Flamingos

Pink Flamingos

Four-Legged Furry Friend (To Be)?

Francesca

I've written about the various dogs and cats which inhabit my neighborhood (and wider vicinity), but there is one mysterious resident in my building which I finally got to meet today.

His master comes in and out of his apartment with a booming "GOOD BOY!!" clearly meant for a dog. I thought the good boy was a puppy in training, and learning the ropes of the leash, going to the dog park, standing quietly in an elevator, and not barking at strangers. At times, the owner shouts "HOWWIE!!" in desperation, when I assume Howie is up to some mischief.

It turns out that "Good Boy" is indeed more of a puppy than a grown-up, being all of nine months old. He is a French bulldog. I met him in the elevator. "So this is Howie," I said. Howie gave me a dour look. He wasn't into friendly neighbors. I almost said he looks like Martha Stewart's Frenchie Francesca, but I didn't think Howie and his owner would find that interesting information (although Francesca happens to be a girl). Plus, Howie was going out of his confined apartment for a brief freedom and play in the park, and nothing would distract him.

"Bye, Howie!" I said, not discouraged. After all, Bodhi the friendly English bulldog always gives me an exuberant welcome accompanied with a frenzy of tail-wagging. I doubt "Good Boy" will ever be that extroverted; I think it's a French thing. But maybe he just needs time.

Mathilda's Absence Is Our Loss

The Algonquin cat (or more precisely, the Algonquin cat tradition) is no more. Mathilda the Third, has been banned from the Algonquin Hotel, and no other cat will be allowed to roam the hallways and lobby (and kitchen) of that famous hotel.

The reason given is "hygiene." But the New York Post writes that it is more to do with the fear of repercussions by Nanny Bloomberg:

Prodded by Nanny Bloomberg, the DOH [Department of Health] has been socking restaurants with steep fines for minor violations — and slapping dreaded “C” ratings on places where no one was known to get sick.

Some places are taking no chances, eliminating popular features before the DOH can strike them down. The party-pooping agency recently nudged Sardi’s to eliminate cheese snacks at its bar.

Now, thanks to a DOH “reminder,” poor Matilda is on a leash behind The Algonquin’s check-in desk, or out of sight on a higher floor.

The city’s favorite feline, a blue-eyed ragdoll, took up residence last winter. She’s the 10th Algonquin cat since Rusty, a k a Hamlet I, moved into the hotel, legendary home of the “Round Table” literary salon, in 1932.

Mathilda, and her followers, will now only be a memory in the long history of the Algonquin Hotel, like the famous Algonquin Round Table.

Culture, tradition, erudition, and even proud felines are being replaced by the bland, the boring and the lifeless.

White Cat For Good Luck

White cat similar to the protagonist in this post

I've never seen a white cat before in my neighborhood, but one was walking around looking for attention yesterday. It wasn't completely white, but had a tiny streak of tan on its back.

"Hello Cat!" got its attention, but like all cats, it was keeping its cool. I gave it a couple of strokes, which it accepted with a meow, then it was off (as I was).

Talking to Dogs

Noah look-alike

I cannot hold it against the dog for being so high up in our social evolutionary scale. His Canadian master has deemed him supreme. Still, Canadian dogs are friendly and playful, and wag their tails (if they have them) at the drop of a hat, until they almost drop off. They have been taught to be polite.

I've already befriended six in my neighborhood: a golden-colored, pretty bull terrier called Paris who responds with high velocity wagging when I says "Hi Paris!"; Paris's friend, an elderly beagle called Maggie; a Newfie giant who gallops to me for a greeting; Noah (some name to live up to!), a rambunctious tan Irish terrier who finds a bare spot on my hand to lick (how does he find it, in these days when all skin is bundled up for the cold fall?), then stands quietly beside me for a pat; Bodhi the bull dog with no tail, who gyrates his derriere to say "HELLO!"; and a black Irish terrier (called Shadow) who, like his tan cousin, affectionately stands close by to get patted on his sturdy back, then walks behind me as though he understand what his name requires him to do.

The owners are all a little alarmed at this, and some actually pull their dogs subtly away. "Who is this person who magically attracts our beloved pet?" I think dogs respond to a friendly voice. And their limited vocabulary includes "Hello" and "Hi" to which, especially these being polite (and Canadian), they respond.

Squirrels also stop short, and stare, for a few brief seconds at the human who interrupts their busy nut-collecting activity with some human talk.

What do you do with a face like Bodhi?

----------------------------------------------------------- Holy Bodhi!

These aren't Bodhi, but they're like the dog I pass by almost daily who likes to sit on a cold granite bench by my supermarket, and whom I've now befriended.

The first time I saw him there I asked the owner what his name was.

"Brody."

"Hi, Brody!"

"No, no. Not Brody. B-o-d-h-i. It's a kind of a Buddha."

" Oh, OK. Hi, Bodhi!"

Then I went home and looked up "Bodhi."

"He looks like a Bodhi" I told his owner the next time I saw them.

Here's Wikipedia on Bodhi (more at the link for those who wish for more enlightenment):

Those who obtained the enlightenment by following teachings of the Samma-Sambuddha are obtained enlightenment through Savaka-Bhodhi. This is the easiest way to get enlightenment. They have to do concentrated meditation (Bhavana) to develop Samadhi(Samatha meditation). Then with developed mind they have to think about Three marks of existence (Samsara) which is Anicca, Dukkha and Anatta.( Vipassanā meditation). Doing this with big effort they will understand Four Noble Truths clearly. So they will attain Nirvana(get enlightenment).

"Hi Bodhi," I now say whenever I pass by him. And Bodhi gives me a veritable greeting, getting up from his slouch, shaking whatever tail he doesn't have, and putting on a wide dog-grin on his sad face (his owner's description - "he always looks sad."). Then I stroke his giant head, which he offers with a gentle drop, say goodbye and walk on. Once he even offered me his paw, and not having the smarts of a dog, his owner had to tell me that I was being asked for a handshake. I obliged, charmed at this unexpected request.

The other day, he looked especially alert with a twinkle in his eyes, and I asked his owner if he had been cooped in all day, and was happy to be out. I think he was just pleased to see me, his visitor by his concrete throne, who strokes his head and says, "Hi Bodhi!"