Evening post, still bachelor style
Because I am supreme ruler and dictator for life of this blog, I can do as I please. To that end, I've created the Rocking Fun Zone Index (RFZI), a measurement designed to capture my mood at the time of writing. I'll keep the weather updates rolling as well, as they give me a good place to start my daily index. Traffic is really useless, so I may abandon that, but I may not, as supreme ruler.
Weather: Clouds did roll in during the afternoon, but have since disappeared and now we have nothing but blue.
RFZI: 10
Traffic: Much better now that my brother-in-law is off the roads.
I've got another index to add: Dog and Cat Hostility Index (DCHI). I actually think this is a really important indicator to add to my daily entries as watching the dog and cat wrestle is some of the best entertainment.
Just to bring newcomers up to speed, and I'll only write this once, let me give you an overview of the dog and cat. The cat we got first - she showed up at the door to our back courtyard one evening, meowing, and she's never stopped since. I'd actually seen her the day before - a little ball of disheveled fur, meowing in a ditch, and so I felt pity on her. My wife said that if I gave her any food on that first time, she'd never leave. Prophetic!
The dog joined the household by way of the domestic assistant. She wanted company and protection, so she brought home a puppy one day from her sister's house. She asked if she could keep it, and we agreed. Unfortunately for our assistant, the dog is almost full-grown and nearly reaches about a third of the way up my calf, so I don't know how much help he'll be for protection. He's got a good bark, though, and unlike the cat, he doesn't whine all the time. He's actually got a fun personality, albeit a little too much at times, but he's a definite plus for the household.
Anyway, when the dog first arrived, the cat was kicking his butt all over the house. She'd pounce on him, push him around. She was much bigger than him and as a cat, her moves were obviously much more naturally impressive. Simply put, she owned him. Her mistake may have been in setting the wrong tone with an only partially developed puppy. Now, the dog is about three times her weight, and loves to mix it up with her.
There is rarely any rough play. If ever, it comes from the cat who has simply had enough of the dog's shenanigans. (I often feel bad for her getting railroaded around the house, outside the house, etc., but the wife is a partisan dog-supporter.) But boy do they horse around. Knocking stuff off tables, jarring cords loose from their sockets, running into the curtains and the doors behind them. It's largely fun, but can be a bit much at times. I actually finding myself feeling sympathetic for my mom and all the times she told me, my brother, friends, and cousins, to go outside if we wanted to wrestle - too much activity.
Therefore, DCHI: Low
This is because the dog is outside right now serving punishment for jumping on the couch and biting me to get a little game going. No deal. You know another funny thing, I actually wonder sometimes if I'm raising them correctly. Not the cat. You really have little say in a cat's upbringing. But the dog, I feel a little bad for, like the domestic assistant and I might be sending mixed signals. She wants to keep him chained up in the front, to prevent him from leaving droppings all over the carport and terrace, and from chewing up whatever happens to be out there. I tend to think a little freedom is better, but am not willing to participate in the droppings clean-up. No worries.
Brother-and-law and I did have another round of driving lessons today. He's definitely improving, but I hope we can make it through to driving self-sufficiency without any accidents (there've been a few close ones). Today, we practiced backing up and shifting into second gear. No damage to speak of, as of yet, but we do engender a lot of inquisitive looks from pedestrians, with me the foreigner as the teacher of an apparent local.
Weather: Clouds did roll in during the afternoon, but have since disappeared and now we have nothing but blue.
RFZI: 10
Traffic: Much better now that my brother-in-law is off the roads.
I've got another index to add: Dog and Cat Hostility Index (DCHI). I actually think this is a really important indicator to add to my daily entries as watching the dog and cat wrestle is some of the best entertainment.
Just to bring newcomers up to speed, and I'll only write this once, let me give you an overview of the dog and cat. The cat we got first - she showed up at the door to our back courtyard one evening, meowing, and she's never stopped since. I'd actually seen her the day before - a little ball of disheveled fur, meowing in a ditch, and so I felt pity on her. My wife said that if I gave her any food on that first time, she'd never leave. Prophetic!
The dog joined the household by way of the domestic assistant. She wanted company and protection, so she brought home a puppy one day from her sister's house. She asked if she could keep it, and we agreed. Unfortunately for our assistant, the dog is almost full-grown and nearly reaches about a third of the way up my calf, so I don't know how much help he'll be for protection. He's got a good bark, though, and unlike the cat, he doesn't whine all the time. He's actually got a fun personality, albeit a little too much at times, but he's a definite plus for the household.
Anyway, when the dog first arrived, the cat was kicking his butt all over the house. She'd pounce on him, push him around. She was much bigger than him and as a cat, her moves were obviously much more naturally impressive. Simply put, she owned him. Her mistake may have been in setting the wrong tone with an only partially developed puppy. Now, the dog is about three times her weight, and loves to mix it up with her.
There is rarely any rough play. If ever, it comes from the cat who has simply had enough of the dog's shenanigans. (I often feel bad for her getting railroaded around the house, outside the house, etc., but the wife is a partisan dog-supporter.) But boy do they horse around. Knocking stuff off tables, jarring cords loose from their sockets, running into the curtains and the doors behind them. It's largely fun, but can be a bit much at times. I actually finding myself feeling sympathetic for my mom and all the times she told me, my brother, friends, and cousins, to go outside if we wanted to wrestle - too much activity.
Therefore, DCHI: Low
This is because the dog is outside right now serving punishment for jumping on the couch and biting me to get a little game going. No deal. You know another funny thing, I actually wonder sometimes if I'm raising them correctly. Not the cat. You really have little say in a cat's upbringing. But the dog, I feel a little bad for, like the domestic assistant and I might be sending mixed signals. She wants to keep him chained up in the front, to prevent him from leaving droppings all over the carport and terrace, and from chewing up whatever happens to be out there. I tend to think a little freedom is better, but am not willing to participate in the droppings clean-up. No worries.
Brother-and-law and I did have another round of driving lessons today. He's definitely improving, but I hope we can make it through to driving self-sufficiency without any accidents (there've been a few close ones). Today, we practiced backing up and shifting into second gear. No damage to speak of, as of yet, but we do engender a lot of inquisitive looks from pedestrians, with me the foreigner as the teacher of an apparent local.
posted by AARFZ at 5:20 AM
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