Try This at Home

We almost play this anyway.


Eska and I participated in the Maryland SPCA fundraising March for the Animals this past Sunday (yesterday) and there got acquainted with what I think is a brilliant spin on an age-old crowd-pleaser: musical chairs ... for dogs!


Step 1: play music
Step 2: stop music
Step 3: get your dog to sit

Last dog to sit gets OUSTED! Ha!


I am going to play this with Eska every day. And then I am going to practice other commands like "down all the way" or "give a kesh" or "ZITTA!" What are the chances any of this will take?

ANTM - dog edition + owner

Because, Michel, you asked for them:

Nap-time

Peek-a-boo

Jamais deux sans trois

Today, Eska and I added a third game to our usual repertoire to complete the set. We call it "Howareyougonnageddit?" -- the logical third part to a trio begun with "Gooandgeddit" and followed up with "Immunnageddit."

This is what it looks like (pictured): I leave you to imagine the basic premise and execution.

She is not so good at this game, but she is learning.

March for the Animals

Because I feel the need to post this EVERYWHERE (for maximum exposure) and because the Montreal SPCA may or may not be reading, subsequent to Michel's passive-aggressive e-mail about the status of his (problem) dog:

http://www.marchfortheanimals.kintera.org/eska

Please lend (us) your support today! The walk is April 18, 2010, and we hope you can join us in spirit if not in person or in bills.

Old Relia ....

After much thought and careful consideration of my options, I have decided to throw away Eska's "blanket" - the part mattress-cover, part bedsheet, part giant fluffy mess that sits at the base of her crate. It has been through urination and peanut butter stains, and shit bombs and the rest, but I don't think it can withstand another bout of vomit (like this morning's). I tried washing it in my tub (since it releases fuzz into the washing machine, making my neighbours quite happy with me), and I was even pretty successful at it, but you know what? I just don't care anymore. I am going to buy her a new one - maybe something that won't remind her of bodily fluids and that won't, then, inspire her to go ahead and emit them. Maybe that will help.

Polyglot

I have many skills. It's true, I do. Among them: language acquisition .... or should I say (more often than not), language invention.

I am fluent in English, French, Italian, and Trevor, and have elementary reading knowledge of Latin. (German REALLY doesn't count). I am most accomplished, however, in Eskese.

I have been building a steady Eskese vocabulary over the past five months. I started small with things like, "coo" (for cookie), "yanta" (for "do you want a"), and "qui-see" (syntactically inverted italian for "we're going this way").

But Eskese isn't all about vocabulary. In fact, a much larger portion of the things I tell Eska are particular not in the words I select, but in the way in which they are put together, enunciated, or delivered.

To wit:

me: Deshanta mai, sheese da bess won?
Eska: (looks up)
me: Yissa my yissa. Sheese da bess won.

(Is my girl the best one? Yes. She's the best one.)

Or:

me: Skarina, my love. Kava kesh?
Eska: (no reaction)
me: COME ON! Not even a kesh, I can hava. Kava kava, my girl? Kava a lel lel won?
Eska: (steadfast)
me: Fine. Have it your way. But dass not even varry varry. In fact, iss varry varry.

(Eska, my love, can I have a kiss? COME ON! I can't even have a kiss? Can I have one, can I have one, my girl? Can I have a little, little one [kiss]? Fine. Have it your way. But that's not very [nice of you]. In fact, it's very [mean of you]).

Getting the hang of it?

The Look

Eska has been particularly sweet with me, almost consistently, since (the dreaded) Wednesday evening and the disaster it left in its wake. Yesterday, we had a scintillating game of immunnageddit (i goddit) and she was more enthused than I have ever seen her. Right now, she is lounging on my bed, staring at me fondly and longingly as I type from my "dining room" table.

Are we in love, Skarina, my girl?
I thought so.