Beagle Dreaming

I wonder what Kess is dreaming about...Is she chasing and barking at the squirrels? Who knows... Sweet dreams Kess!

Kess' Mama

Fence - 0; Kess -1

A few weeks back, my humans went away for a short break at Cameron Highlands. This beagle also had my own getaway at Puppy Cottage. Now, if you recall, last month, I wrote a post about being "Fenced Down" at home. Well, my humans are not the only ones who use the dog fences to keep doggies in or down. Puppy Cottage also uses the dog fences to cordon off an area at the front of the shop for their canine guests to roam freely. This was a picture taken last year during my stay there:


Did you notice the fence at the front, to keep us canines safe within the roaming area? This is the picture of me at Puppy Cottage this recent trip.


Notice the difference? This beagle is actually being walked down the corridor. Why? Well, a certain wily beagle (no names named), have figured out how to jump/climb over the fence. That's right...1 point to the beagle! Anyway, as a result, R from Puppy Cottage had to put me in one of the back rooms with another Goldie...I must say though I did miss the excitement about being in the front of the shop as there is lots of entertainment with people walking by the shop and customers coming in to buy stuff. So, maybe the fence won this round after all...

And what were my humans doing at Cameron Highlands while this beagle was busy outwitting the fence? Apart from their usual stuffing their faces, they also went on a hiking tour to see the giant Rafflesia flower. They endured a bone-jarring jeep ride into the jungle, followed by a hike through some fairly steep muddy terrain - all to see this giant flower. Once, it has bloomed, the flower only lasts for 7 days. This Rafflesia was already 4 days old and had started to wilt.


The domed centre of the Rafflesia is made up a spongy material. The Rafflesia, which is also called a corpse flower because it emits a foul smell of dead animal, attracts flies and flesh eating beetles. The pollen which is in the centre, then gets stuck to these insects, which will then carry on the pollenation of this flower. Surprisingly though, this species of Rafflesia which was in Cameron Highlands did not have any noticeable smell to my humans. However, there were flies around the flower, so it must emit some kind of odour.


No one really knows for sure, but it is estimated that the Rafflesia takes 10 months to grow from this ball of cabbage to a full grown flower, which can be up to 1 metre wide.


After 7 days or so, the Rafflesia turns black and wilts, a shadow of its former glory. Sadly, due to the delicate nature of this flower, and the the length of time it takes to grow, the Rafflesia is becoming extremely rare. In Cameron Highlands, the loss of its natural habitat and use of pesticides due to increased farming has resulted in much smaller numbers of the Rafflesia. Who knows if this unique flower will be around in the next few years...

See the lions dance

It's that time of the year again...In about 2 weeks time, Chinese all over the world welcome the Lunar New Year. One of the traditions that accompany this celebration is the lion dance - a traditional dance where two performers mimic's a lion's movements in an elaborate lion costume. One performer would hold up the head and be the front "paws" of the lion, while the other would be the hind "paws" of the lion. The performers would dance and perform acrobatic acts on poles, whilst the musicians play Chinese drums and cymbals.



The story behind the lion dance dates back to ancient China. Apparently, a monk dreamt that sorrows and evils would plague the land. The monk prayed and asked the gods how he could prevent these evils from occurring. The gods told him that a lion would protect them and fight back the evils. Since the Chinese people had never seen a lion before, but had heard stories that the lion was the king of all the other animals, the monk combined all the lucky or magical animals he could think of and made a lion. (Source: Wikepedia)

Anyway, my human was at a local shopping mall (without her favourite beagle, as dogs aren't allowed in malls), when she stumbled on the lion dance performance.

This first 1 minute+ video shows the lion dancing on poles, after a short suspenseful pause at the start... These performers' have amazing dexterity and agility!


The second short video shows two playful lions playing "football".


Enjoy!

Kess & Her Mama

From the desk of Kess' Mama:



"My goal in life is to be as good of a person my dog already thinks I am."
~Author Unknown

Dog's bollocks

Over the past couple of months, I've come across some really strange dog phrases/idioms whilst doing research for the "Dog Series" but the phrase "dog's bollocks" wins hands down. First off, let's break this phrase into its parts. "Dog's" is straightforward - it means something that belongs to a dog. Now, "bollocks" is a coarse British slang for testicles and is typically associated with a negative connotation. For example, bollocks is an exclamation of contempt "Nonsense" or "Rubbish". "Bollocking" is a slang meaning "to reprimand someone" whilst "to drop a bollock" means "to make a mistake".

After that little introduction, I'm sure that few can guess the meaning of "dog's bollocks". Contrary to the negative connotation associated with the word "bollocks", the phrase "dog's bollock's" actually means "Excellent - the absolute apex". As with most strange phrases, the origin of this phrase is hazy, not unlike the weather we've been having in Kuala Lumpur, thanks to our thoughtful neighbours across the Straits who practice open burning to clear land. But I digress. While dogs do enjoy licking their genitals as part of their grooming ritual, there's no evidence that this phrase is linked to that.


Instead, it appears that this phrase may merely be a nonsensical term for excellent, joining other similar animal phrase such as "cat's whiskers", "bee's knees", etc which were coined post World War 1.

So, how would you use this term? Here's a fine example:
"When it comes to love and loyalty, we dogs are the dog's bollocks."

If you want to read an example of love and loyalty, my friend Uncle Bok Jae posted the story of Lucky the Golden Retriever. An amazing story! Uncle Bok Jae tagged Mama to share a tale about me. Coincidentally, Mama FINALLY watched "Marley and Me" and was inspired to share her tale about "My Beagle and me" on her blog. I hope you enjoy reading both stories.