Betty Joseph

Tag: dogs

  • The dog, the birds and the spider in the corner

    The dog, the birds and the spider in the corner

    I find myself in a fascinating new season this year. One that has seen me pack a big blue suitcase and move across the ocean. I surprised myself because I always thought I related to Bilbo Baggins and his reluctance to join a Dwarf mission! But here I am. 5000 miles away from home!

    A part of my heart will always be at home with my beloved Coco, yet a new friend has made this transition a little less heavy. An adorable dog named Hershey.

    This sweet little dog – I really mean it when I say little – barked at me for 30 minutes when we met for the first time. After exhausting himself, he realized it was easier to befriend me rather than bark at me. Now, he scolds me for leaving the house, insists I share my food, sleeps on my lap while I work, and has peed on me thrice (out of sheer excitement).

    Besides Hershey I met a few other creatures since moving. The other day, I went out to investigate an unusual rustling sound and met the blue-tongued lizard that lives in the garden. Of course, I did not wait around long enough to see its tongue. I admit I am not that brave. It had legs, the right colours and stripes – that was more than I needed to know. A quick Google search solved the rest of the mystery.

    Speaking of wild animals, I saw a fox leaping by the side of the road during a late-night drive. That was exciting since I had only seen them in zoos before (and on my Firefox browser).

    A reckless kangaroo took me by surprise one night when it jumped out of the bushes and landed in front of the car! Phew. We did not hit the animal thanks to quick reflexes (on my sister’s part) and a high-pitched scream (apparently mine) that alerted my sister to its presence.

    I should mention the rather sizeable group of Corellas that I get to see from my window everyday. These birds own the sidewalk, trees, and power lines. And the screeching noise they make is unbelievable! But I am getting used to it now; their chattering is like white noise.

    The spiders are one species I hope to never meet during my stay here. I know I cannot avoid them forever, so I always have a broom and a can of insect repellent within arm’s reach. Although, considering my track record with spiders, there is a good chance I might spray my eyes or hit myself on the head with the broom when the moment comes.

    Ah, the stories I could tell about spider encounters from my childhood! Stick around. I am working on capturing some of these stories in my upcoming book.

  • With love, To the dog who is slowing down my work

    With love, To the dog who is slowing down my work

    Last December, I had an epiphany. I finally understood why I was spending less time on my second book. And it was all thanks to a certain four-legged creature. I mulled over various reasons and finally concluded that my productivity was going haywire around tea time. The reason – Coco adores tea time.

    Coco using puppy dog eyes
    Coco using puppy dog eyes

    This is Coco, my two-year-old playful and energetic dog, who insists on shadowing me throughout the day. While I love having her around, it can get pretty overwhelming when she insists I accompany her for meal times, especially when I am on a tight deadline.

    Let me give you some context on why Coco loves tea time. My family has a tall snack box that emerges during tea. It did not take long for Coco to associate the box with tea and treats. The clever dog that she is, she also understood that if she put on an I-havent-eaten-in-forever expression, none of us could resist her. And if the snack was crunchy, she learnt that doing all her tricks in quick succession worked wonders.

    Soon, she started reminding me if I was late in brewing tea. On the rare occasion when I lost all track of time, she would lead me or my mom straight to the pantry and the shelf where the snack box stood. Slowly, I started relying on her internal clock to know when it was time for tea. Being clingy, she also learnt another trick to get me to leave my desk. She would put on dramatic sighs and whine until I agree to leave the room. There is, however, an exception to this behaviour, and that is when mom is making something delicious and the aroma reaches her nose. She is a dog, after all, with a weakness for good food!

    The challenge is that I cannot return to work after gulping down my tea and sharing my snacks with her. She nudges me with her wet nose to tell me it is time to play. I have only myself to blame for that. When Coco was a puppy, I innocently began playing with her outdoors during my tea break. I did not realize how quickly she would adapt to a routine.

    So, after a long game of fetch and staring at the cows and goats on the street with her, I struggle to resume work with the same enthusiasm as before. My energy is spent. Some days, the exercise helps me think better. But mostly, I end up wracking my brains trying to figure out how to spell ‘the’ or ‘definitely’.

    In all probability, the dedication page for my next book – whenever I complete it – will look something like this:

    To my darling Coco and her tea breaks, without which this book would have been finished a long, long while ago.

    Inspired by whoever wrote this dedication page. A true gem!