It's a fact that Kevin and I love dogs. They are great companions that keep you company during quiet days, greet you with unconditional love when coming home from a long day at work, and scaring you half to death while trying to choke down a large piece of gross food found on the ground. Only a dog's nose with it's keen sense of smell will lead it to some deadly morsel of food that would normally be taboo. That's right. Gracie and I were taking a nice walk down the street when her nose led her astray to a huge chicken bone with dagger-like spikes sticking out all over it. She tried to inhale the whole thing while I quickly reached into her mouth prying it from her jaws. I know, not smart. Let's stick my hand into the mouth of a dog acting on it's hunting instincts protecting her food from an incoming threat trying to steal it. (That would be me) But, it was a quick war that ended successfully and no one got hurt. When we returned to the apartment, I noticed a huge, fuzzy, orange caterpillar stuck on my pant leg. Good times... good times.
Kevin and I think that Gracie found the chicken bone that was apparently the remains of what was left for a hungry ghost. What??!!! A celebration called the Hungry Ghost Festival just ended last month. There is a Chinese belief that during the 7th lunar month, the gates of hell are opened and souls of the dead are freed to come out and roam the earth to receive food and drink. People following this tradition leave food and other items by trees for ghosts of deceased ancestors. Food that is usually placed at the base of a tree are mandarin oranges, baggies of homemade treats, bowls of rice and even suckling pig. We have seen red incense sticks on the roadside and large metal cans with burning remnants of joss paper. Joss paper, also known as "ghost money" or "spirit money", is traditionally made from course bamboo or rice paper. The more modern form of spirit money is "hell bank notes" and papier-mache crafts. All the paper is made into burnt offerings. That is what we observed burning in rusty cans throughout the city. Before we knew what was going on, we were trying to figure out what was up with the awful burning smell and grey smoke pouring out of these cans. Now we know.
I recently went out to lunch with a new friend, Rachael, from Scotland. She lives in our building, and I met her while she was walking her dog, Ted. He is a terrier mix who is the same size and age as Gracie, which is 12. Ted wags his tale when he sees Gracie coming. It's so cute. I think Gracie has a new boyfriend. We decided to take the dogs with us for a walk at the Botanical Gardens and then have lunch. That was fun and interesting. We called for a cab to pick us up at the apartment building. In order for a dog to be allowed in a cab, it must be confined in a carrier. No problem, I thought. She's been in a small shoulder carrier before. She squirmed all over the place resisting going inside. I got her inside the carrier and put her on the seat in the cab. She worked her head through the top opening which looked funny. The driver kept looking back smiling at the sight of just her head. Of course Ted was perfect going into his carrier. Oh well.
We walked through the gardens and sat in a shady courtyard waiting for the restaurant to open. Some people approached us and asked if they could take a picture of our dogs with us in the picture. Right after they left, an Indian woman also approached us after she got excited seeing Gracie. She wanted a picture with all of us in it. We were starting to feel like celebrities. At least no one asked for our dog's pawtograph. That's when we would have to start charging a fee. :-) Then another woman came over and wanted to pet the dogs. She was visiting from Australia. She was missing her dog back home and said our dogs were the first ones she has seen since she arrived in Singapore. There are plenty of dogs here, especially Jack Russell Terriers. There are also dog parks, dog walking services and pet stores.
We had lunch at the Botanical Gardens outdoor cafe with the dogs sitting at our feet. We sat next to a delightful couple visiting from England. They were also enamoured with the dogs, especially Gracie. The man was telling me about his new puppy, a Bedlington Terrier who is 6 months old. These are unusual looking dogs with the way their heads are groomed for show. They look kind of like sheep.
We planned to take the taxi back to the apartments. There were some people outside the entrance waiting for taxis. We stood over there completely oblivious that we accidentally jumped queue (cut in line). A cab drove up, Rachael asked if we could bring our dogs, and it was time to put them back into their carriers. Ted hopped right into his, but Gracie wiggled and fidgeted again. Thankfully the other people were too amused watching me trying to get my squirming dog into her carrier to be really bothered by the fact that we were line cutters. I felt like I was in sixth grade again cutting in line with a friend in the cafeteria. I don't know why I was in such a hurry to eat burned macaroni and mushy corn anyway. I managed to make my way toward the cab with Gracie's butt hanging out the back because I couldn't get the back panel of the carrier zipped closed all the way, and her head was sticking out the top again. One guy even closed the taxi door for me. How nice of him to help the pathetic, queue jumping dog lady. Great memories!
Before signing off...two more cute pictures of Gracie waiting for Kevin to come home from work.
(Gracie waiting for Papa)
(Gracie tired of waiting for Papa)
