Saturday, March 31, 2007

Not bald yet...

Well, I still have all my hair despite having just finished shedding season! Mama and papa had to vacuum the house every day for the past few weeks because I was shedding so much hair. Sometimes the hardwood floor looked like it was actually carpeted in white. Papa was worried that I would be bald and toothless but my adult teeth are growing in now ( so I can bite papa again) and I have more hair than ever!!!

Papa bought an espresso machine a few days ago so mama and papa have been drinking espresso every day and not even offering any to me :-( Mama ordered a lot of decaf online and it arrived today so she is making espresso now. Papa likes Ristretto which is really strong!!! He sleeps like a brick so he can drink espresso late at night and still get to sleep without a problem.


The cherry blossom trees are blooming now! It is incredibly beautiful in Nakameguro!!! Mama and papa took me for a walk yesterday and today to Yutenji shrine where the the sakura trees are amazing! I love to eat the cherry blossoms but papa doesn't like when I do that. Tomorrow will be even more fun because mama's family is coming here. We are going to go for a walk along Meguro river which is lined with sakura and then papa is going to barbecue for us...well, I guess he'll barbecue for them but I hope he remembers that he promised to cook some chicken and steak for me too... :-P

Next week papa is going to Singapore on business for 4 days and then he's going to Shanghai the week after for 3 days. Mama and I will have fun anyhow. Papa is no fun sometimes because he doesn't let me chew furniture or anything. He's such a drag...

Sunday, March 25, 2007

Returning and Departing

This week, papa accepted a job to return to the place he worked at 2 and a half years ago. It is the same company he works in now but a different business unit. He seems very happy to go back but I hope he isn't too busy to play with me! He said that it can be very stressful at times working there but it is the perfect next step for his career. I will keep an eye on him and make sure he maintains a work/life balance.

We watched The Departed tonight. Papa really liked the movie and rated it an "A" on Yahoo! Movies, but mama said that the original Hong Kong movie upon which it is based, Infernal Affairs, was better. Papa hasn't seen Infernal Affairs yet but is going to watch it later this week. The ending of The Departed was unexpected and that's why papa enjoyed it. I don't like rats so I was happy with the ending. The beginning of the movie was a little slow for my liking but it quickly picked up and got interesting. Jack Nicholson is always fun to watch and I even liked Leonardo DiCaprio who I usually don't care too much for. The movie featured a strong cast and was well acted and directed.

Well, tomorrow is puppy school so it's time for me to go to bed now...oyasumi nasai!!!

Sunday, March 18, 2007

Kimi and Ben

Well, I'm almost finished puppy school...finally! I've been going for 2 months and it has been quite a lot of fun, but starting in April, I will join the next level called Beginner 1. I think they will try to teach me more difficult things as well as how to be a "good puppy". I'm already a good puppy but I like to have my fun so mama and papa call me yancha. Can't I be a good puppy and yancha at the same time?

The Formula 1 season started today with the Australia Grand Prix. As expected, Kimi Raikkonen took the race pretty easily. Mama and papa are fans of Raikkonen, as well as Takuma Sato. I think Raikkonen looks funny in Ferrari red. He was much cooler in the McLaren colours. This year promises to be interesting with several teams in contention and the Super Aguri team moving up in the start grid. The Honda team is sporting new colours this year that are pretty interesting...maybe they should rename themselves the Super Ugly team. I'm not sure that the environmental message is consistent with all the pollution that F1 cars, and cars in general, produce every single day. Mama and papa were talking about going to see the Japan F1 race at the Fuji Speedway this year, but the tickets that papa wants are about 70,000 yen per person. They are much more expensive than when they went to see the Montreal F1 Grand Prix last year.

As promised, mama and papa let me watch Night at the Museum with them tonight. They thought it was pretty funny and I even watched most of it. The movie was much better than what the critics said. Of course, we all know critics are wannabes who don't have the talent to do anything so the only way they can try to make themselves feel useful is by reviewing the work of others. The problem with critics is that their small minds can't grasp the larger picture and see the value from the eyes of the general public so they are destined to be stuck in their own small world with no windows. Anyhow, we thought the movie was entertaining, Ben Stiller was funny as always and it was definitely a good way to spend an hour and 40 minutes. Almost as much fun as chewing mama's slippers and papa's fingers!!!

Saturday, March 17, 2007

Ouch!

Mama and papa took me to FJ's Cafe/Dining Bar and Live Spot today for lunch!!! It was so much fun and the staff were so nice. They gave me cookies and water while mama and papa had lunch. Mama said that the quiche was really good and papa enjoyed the meatloaf and the broccoli soup. Papa said he would take me there for drinks one night to listen to live music!!!

After that, we went to have my nails cut and ears cleaned at Daktari. Mama and papa always clean my ears but they wanted to have the groomer check anyways. The groomer said my ears were already really clean so they didn't have to clean them again. I was happy because I hate people sticking stuff in my ears. I think the guy who cut my nails cut them too short. On the way home, one of my toe nails began to bleed. The nice people at Cucciolo where we were shopping cleaned my feet for me and then stopped my nail from bleeding. Mama and Papa seemed a little worried but it wasn't as bad as it looked. I don't think I want that guy to touch me again though. I'm glad I went pee-pee on his table. The lady who usually does my nails is much better and nicer.

This evening, we all watched The Holiday. There were some funny moments but overall, it made me sleepy so i jumped into my bed and pulled up my futon. The end of the movie left me wondering, but not caring too much, what would happen next since they really didn't resolve anything. Papa rated the movie B- on Yahoo! Movies but I think he was being generous. Tomorrow he said we can watch The Departed and Night at the Museum!!! What ever happened to the classics like Lassie and Benji?

Wednesday, March 14, 2007

What's up with this weather?

Papa just took me for a walk but it was so cold!!! Last week was much warmer. But the week before that was cold too. Papa says it's because of something called global warming. He made me watch a movie called "An Inconvenient Truth" with him. At first I didn't think it was interesting but, as i watched, it became clear that you humans are ruining the planet for the rest of us. Papa said it was one of the scariest movies he has ever seen because there is so much truth behind the rhetoric. I think everyone should watch this movie and rethink the way they live.

Today, papa made a special White Day dinner for mama. He fired up the barbecue for the first time in 2007 and grilled matsuzaka steak and shrimps with potatoes, as well as sauteed mushrooms, asparagus and bean sprouts. For appetizers, they had sushi (which I made...you can see me in my sushi-ya-san outfit in this picture). Mama seemed very happy with the dinner and the Belgian chocolates that papa and I bought for her (even though she didn't eat them yet).

Sunday, March 11, 2007

Of Mice and Ducks

Mama and papa went to Disney Sea today (without me...again...) with their friends. They had a great time but were a little disappointed that they couldn't go on the new Tower of Terror ride (the tall building in the picture on the left).

It was cold and rainy in the morning but it cleared up by noon so they were able to enjoy the day. Mama came home with more clothes than she left with. Papa said that as the day went by, mama transformed into a Disney fashion model. In the afternoon, she bought a Donald Duck hat to keep her ears warm, then later she bought Minnie Mouse gloves for her hands and finally, in the evening, she bought a Tower of Terror scarf. Mama must really love Disney!!!

Mama and papa said that their favorite ride was Journey to the Center of the Earth. They also liked StormRider but due to a technical difficulty, the ride was only about 10 minutes instead of the normal 14 minutes.

They saw a show called Mystic Rythms that mama slept through it. Papa thinks that all the people who tried to be in Dralion but weren't good enough ended up in Mystic Rythms.

Anyhow, mama and papa and their friends had a really fun day. Their friends have been to Disney Sea a number of times so they were like professionals. They knew exactly where to go and what to do, which is lucky because mama and papa had no idea what they were doing. I just wish they would take me with them sometimes... :-(

Saturday, March 10, 2007

Busy and Toothless

Mama and papa have been quite busy lately. On Thursday, they met friends at their favorite restaurant in Musashi-Koyama called Shin (papa used to live in Musashi-Koyama) because some of their friends are going back to the US next week. They were out quite late but when they got home, papa took me for a walk. Actually, I made him run for 30 minutes! We ran to Yutenji temple and when we got home, I wasn't tired yet so I made papa run to Yutenji temple again :-) He was so tired when we got home but I was really happy and ready to keep playing! Papa needs more exercise!!!

Today was puppy class. I love playing with the other puppies, and one of the teachers has really delicious chicken jerky that I just can't get enough
of. I made mama and papa stop at the pet shop on the way home to buy me the same jerky. They also bought me a new bed because I used my old one as a toilet. When we got home, I was so tired from playing.

This evening, mama and papa went to see Dralion by Cirque du Soleil. Papa really loved it and was so happy that mama bought the tickets. He keeps talking about the hoop diving, single hand balancing and trampoline acts. He says that he highly recommends that people go see Dralion.

For dinner, mama and papa went to Savoy with their 2 friends who are going back to Seattle next week and their other 2 friends that papa says live way out in the countryside near Tokyo (I think we need a passport to visit them). Mama and papa love Savoy. They think it is one of the best pizza places in Tokyo. I don't know what pizza is but papa loves it. He says that if he could only eat one thing for the rest of his life, it would be pizza. Personally, I'll stick with the chicken jerky...


Before I go to bed, I have one last update. I lost 3 of my baby teeth in the last few days! I lost 2 canines and a tooth from the back of my mouth that mama and papa found. I think they are going to keep them all for me. I wonder if I will get presents from the Tooth Fairy!!! Papa is pretty happy since it doesn't hurt so much when I bite him now. But not to worry, my adult teeth will grow in soon enough :-)

Wednesday, March 7, 2007

Being Bad!

Yesterday was pretty cold in Tokyo. Papa went out with some co-workers after work and then mama took me to meet him at the train station when he came home. It was really cold out so it was lucky I had my fleece on!

Today, mama and papa came home later than normal. They went out for dinner to celebrate something and didn't even invite me so I
decided to re-arrange my cage. I thought my bed would look better on top of my toilet so that's where I moved it. Of course, that meant that I had to go to go number 1 and number 2 on the floor of my house. Boy, did it ever smell bad, especially after I played with it and threw it all over my cage, the wall and the floor outside my cage. Mama and papa weren't too happy when they saw what I did. My yellow bed became brown by the time I was finished playing so it is in the garbage now. That will teach them for not inviting me for dinner!!!

Mama and papa said they went to a really good restaurant tonight called AWkitchen. They said it is one of the best restaurants in Nakameguro. They started with fresh veggies that came with a fondue-like cheese sauce for dipping. That was followed by striped mackerel carpaccio (shima-aji). For the main course, they had the house special, Arrabiata, which featured fresh fruit tomatoes and hand rolled pasta, followed by grilled shamo (a type of free range chicken). The staff go to the farm and actually hand pick the chickens! I really hope they take me there next time because the restaurant allows dogs!

I think I need another bath because I still smell bad so mama and papa won't touch me or play with me... :-(

Monday, March 5, 2007

Rainy days and Mondays

Today was such a terrible day that we couldn't go for a walk. It was like a typhoon tonight so we decided to stay home and watch a drama called Tokyo Tower.

Papa tried to teach me a new trick called "beg" but I thought he was saying "bang" so I played dead. He was getting frustrated but then finally realized why I wouldn't beg. He's not so smart sometimes.

I've been shedding my hair recently and it's all over the place. It looks like a white carpet on the floor because I lose so much hair. I hope I don't go bald while I'm so young... Mama and papa are always covered in my hair too. I think they are beginning to smell like me!!! Yay!!!

Sunday, March 4, 2007

My first blog

Today was a fun day so I decided to start a blog to share my fun with everyone! I'm an almost-5-month-old Jack Russell Terrier but my parents call me a Jack Russell Terror.

I received a parcel today from my Papillon friend Gin-chan in Osaka. It was full of toys for me! I was so confused about which toy to play with because I love them all! I wouldn't even let mama and papa touch any of them.












I just got back from a walk with papa. The weather is so nice today and tomorrow will be even warmer. I pretend that I hate going for a walk but once I get outside, I love it!!! I like to make papa run so he doesn't get too fat.

Mama went to her friend's wedding today and she looked so beautiful that I didn't recognize her so I barked at her. I like to bark now, especially at the vacuum cleaner and the hair dryer.