Bumba!

Many times I think what it is about Boomer that melts my heart and makes me go ‘Awwww…’.

Yes, agreed I was his foster Momma for a while, but I had promised myself to not get emotionally attached to him. I told myself before I even saw him that he would be a guest, and I will make everything in my might to make his stay with me comfortable. Husband agreed to get Boomer only if I promised to not cry when Boom left and to not think of my own dog, and how I lost her. His stay in my house was supposed to help his parents and also to give me an idea on how having a dog would be. Nothing more, nothing less.

Finally after a couple of email exchanges and one trial session of staying with each other for a while later, Don left Boomer with me for that month. I was very excited, and being a non-dog-person, Husband was very jittery. He just wanted that month to pass, and was waiting for me to get out of the whole we-should-have-a-dog mood.

The first evening, after I returned from work, I took Boomer down for his evening walk, and tied him in the balcony and went on to do my regular chores in the kitchen. I heard a slow whimpering which turned on to be a loud bark in a short while, and I ran to see if he was alright. The minute he saw he , he got calm and started wagging his tail. Thinking he was hungry, I told him that his dinner was getting ready and gave him water in his bowl, which he immediately splashed all around and looked into my face. Having lost touch with how dogs behave, I considered it to be either insolence or that he started missing his Dad. I spoke to him for a while and went back to the kitchen only to find him start screaming in a minute. This loop continued for a while, and I started panicking. All kinds of questions like - What if this dog doesn’t stop barking? What if he starts missing his Dad? How am I even going to have him with me for 20 days if he can’t stay put with me for just a single day? Did I do a mistake by agreeing to have him around? Is there anyway I can get out of this jhamela? May be I can call the other person who agreed to have Boomer?

Exasperated by all his barking, I decided to let him loose around the house. The minute I did that, he went to each and every corner of the house and sniffed it. It was a new place and he was beginning to assimilate that. The 8 month old baby knew that bedrooms and kitchen were off-limits and he was not supposed to get in there. After a thorough inspection of the living area, he lied down in the middle of the dining area with a thump, and stay put there. I was relieved to see that he was finally not barking and that he was fine, but was jittery about leaving him unleashed as I was instructed by Don to not do so, because of Boomer’s chewing habits. (I figured out later that Don was being over-cautious, and though Boomer used to chew on stuff back then, he would not do it when people are around)

After finishing what I had to do in the kitchen, I came back and sat on the bean bag and started talking to him. I asked him what his problem was and why he was barking? He immediately got up from where he was, came up to me, sniffed my face, wagged his tail a bit and lied down on the floor with his head on my feet. Nothing after that. And I was speechless for a long time. I just kept on staring at him, watching my heart react to him every second, and I knew it!

If I have to say the moment I fell in love with Boomer, this had to be it. My heart started melting that instant, and it just kept on going. I felt immensely at peace with myself and as if I was re-uniting with a long lost family member. I realized that with each passing day, I was getting attached to him more and more, and the start was that moment.

When Husband returned from office half-expecting a mad-panicking lady and a confused dog, he was pleasantly surprised to a completely-at-peace-mother-son-duo, mother sitting on the bean bag reading a book, and Boom by her side, sleeping peacefully.

Over the past one month, there was a lot of transformation in me, Sharanya and us as a couple, and all thanks to Boomer! He taught us responsibility, love, what our freedom meant to us, and above all, reinstated the belief in me that a dog is a kid no matter what. He taught Sharanya that he really loved animals after all, but was too scared to realize those feelings because the thought of losing a pet was unimaginable for him. He taught me that I might love dogs, but having a dog makes me more responsible than having a kid ever will. He is the first thing to make me feel that there could be a mother inside me, and that I too can have motherly feelings!

In short, he became too important for us, to even think of him leaving us and going back to his parents.

From the people who thought how the month will pass and how soon we will give him back to his parents, to the people who cried their life out when he left and looked for ways to keep him with us forever, Boomer gave us lot of moments to look back on and laugh, cry and cherish about which we speak even now, months after he stopped staying with us.

All of them apart, whenever I see him hold his leash and lead his way during the walk, my heart trips and makes one happy purring sound. I realize why I love him so much, and my heart just tells me to take him home. That one look on his face when he holds the leash will speak thousands, and he is his cutest-best at that moment. And yes.. that is what makes my world go around Boomer for that moment! That precisely is the moment when I feel he is not tugging the leash but the strings to my heart! And I know I am still in love! And this has been repeating consistently with the accuracy of a Six Sigma process. He holding his leash and pulling the person behind it, and walking off wagging his cute butt and tail, and I standing behind him and wishing he was mine! Every single time!

[The above photo was clicked after the whole pulling-the-leash antic. I have tried a 100 times to capture the exact moment when he starts pulling the leash and the person behind it, but have been unsuccessful. So till the time such a photo is taken, I have to be content with ones like this! :-( ]

(And as I write this and imagine him with his leash, my eyes turn misty, and my heart swells with pride and love for the baby which isn’t mine and yet is mine!)

[Title: Oh well.. this is just one of the hundred names his Mom and I use to call him. And he responds to each one of them. Its like he knows whom we talk about and what too!]

Momma’s Birthday!

It was such a sleepy boring Sunday, and me, Pappa and Momma were getting bored at home. They made me eat the same boring dal-chawal and we all went to sleep. Just then I heard some familiar noises and got excited that we were having visitors. But no one turned up for a long time!

After sometime, the doorbell rang, and I went running to peep and see who it could be. I saw Rachita Aunty looking at me from the window and Preethi Momma standing behind her! Momma opened the door and I was sooo happy to see them. Thank God, it wont be a boring night!

But man.. it was not all that! We had more people coming over. Preethi Momma, Sharanya Uncle, Santosh Uncle, Rachita Aunty, Geetu Aunty, Poohar Uncle came in.. and then people kept on coming. I was soo happy and excited that I picked up my bone and ran round and round in circles. Then they all took out this nice smelling thing, which I later understood to be Momma’s cake and Momma cut it. She let me lick her hands and face and the cake was yummmmm…

Happy Birthday Momma!

Last weekend…

Momma and Pappa took me to Preethi Momma’s house last weekend. It was fun for a while, but I got bored after sometime. Look what a nice photo Sharanya uncle took… Don’t I look nice?

that girl who was god knows who

day: papa office day

mood: very very bad

usually, preethi momma, rachita aunty, shweta, geetu aunty - all of them bhhoooo into our house in cars and all of them love me. so i thought (these days i do a lot of thinking) all women who bhhooo about in cars love me. ah well, i never saw mammam bhhooo but she's mammam. she loves me anyways.......but if she's my mammam why does she not have a tail and how can she stand on two feet all day? may be she trained herself. may be i too will have my tail amputated and have to stand like her. they train me on crazy things all the time. phew! 

that girl, yes...i saw her bhhoooo inside, but didn't do nothing...then she rolled down the glass and i had this gut feeling - she has to me one of my friends. i ran for her and jumped all over the car. mammam na goes off like a siren i tell you. i had barely confirmed that i had to run into the lift. but i heard her voice. arrey it's preethi momma. i ran again. yay yay i jumped all over her. in my excitement i actually forgot to use my nose - as mammam told me later. she yelled and ran with me after her. why is preethi momma acting nutty - i was thinking. then mammam gave me one of those looks and shrieked. baap re, out of fear that her eyes will pop out and her lung will blast, and before that i will get a good one on my little ass (it's actually very cute) i gave up all my triumphs and came after her. 

mammam gave me a good one after all. she looked sad. that girl told her things, but in my excitement i did not notice. i never do that these days, you know na mammam? but she felt so familiar.. maybe she has a female lab. may be she had just met preethi momma or rachita aunty or shweta... 

in the evening i heard mammam telling pappa: maybe she was his beloved from his last birth. he sure was a human and got promoted to doghood.

woof, woof, i could not agree more.. :)   

When I stayed in a different house! – Part 2

This is what I would do to indicate to Momma, Pappa or to Preethi Momma that I am bored and that I would want to play or go for a walk. And they always find it cute. I even heard Preethi Momma tell Sharanya Uncle that when she sees me pull my leash, its like I am tugging the strings to her heart. Apparently I am so cute, and she loves me so much that she feels like hugging me every time I do that! Now, when does she not feel like that, tell me? 

Well, after Pappa left me with Preethi Momma and Sharanya Uncle, we all got back to living life together. I had to get used to a new set of rules in Preethi Momma’s house, and I had to behave like a good kid there.

She is a little crazy when it comes to being clean. Though I can find a 100 things in her house which are not really all that clean, I had to abide by her weird and specific rules of sleeping, staying and lying around. After all, in spite of all her craziness, she was very sweet to me and loved me to death. I could just see that.

After a few days of my staying with Preethi Momma and Sharanya Uncle, he had to leave somewhere. When he was gone, myself and Preethi Momma had a blast. We would lie down and do nothing all day long. We would play for a long time, and take long walks. She would call me all kinds of names, which I never understood at first, but began to love and started to respond to later on. What all my Mommas would call me will take a whole new post altogether!

We became so close to each other, myself and Preethi Momma that she would understand with one look on my face that I had to do susu or potty or drink water or play with her. She never screamed at me when I spoilt all her doormats or chappals.. they used to be such good play things, that I could not resist playing with them. Especially, after I lost my Boombie ball, I had nothing else to play with and so Preethi Momma did not mind me using her things. We used to lie down on the big bed in her living room, and she would read all day long. I would go and give her an occasional kiss and lie down there, trying to get onto the bed myself. But Preethi Momma was more smarter than me, she never made me sleep on that, but always made sure that I could sleep on her lap. I used to hate the sound that came off that big thing in her living room, I think it is the TV, and so always used to sleep in the dining room.

I was a kid when I went to her house at first, but I began to grow up in her house. I never had a taste of food before, and Momma and Pappa would feed me Pedigree all the time, and I would eat without complaining. They used to give me Lays occasionally, but thats about it. But at Preethi Momma’s place, I began to develop a taste. I hated Pedigree and milk, and was waiting for some chicken. Strangely Preethi Momma never got me chicken, and I had to eat that boring Pedigree. Sometimes she would give me Lays to go with it, but I would not love the taste. One day, I resented her feeding me that boring food and did not eat anything at all. Preethi Momma’s friend also came by, and she also tried feeding me, but I did not eat. I liked that aunty, but I was bored with my food. So I politely told her to mind her own business, by licking her face all over(I had began to miss licking also, since Preethi Momma would not let me lick her face, howmuchever I tried!) but not eating off her hands. Thats when I saw that Preethi Momma was about to cry. Then I saw her pick her phone and call Pappa. Pappa told her what to do to make me eat food, and she always gave me nice dal to eat after that. She would garnish it with an occasional Pedigree crumb or a Lays chips but always made sure that I got a nice spicy smell off the food. She also noticed that I loved the round thing that she made and got from the kitchen, and so she used to give that to me. All in all, my food was taken care of.

Now, the only other thing we were left to worry about was, how do I keep myself busy? I am such a good kiddo, but I have a lot of energy. If I was not tired, I could not sleep, and I used to chew on everything. I had eaten off some good stuff that Preethi Momma bought, and always loved Sharanya Uncle’s chappal. I know, he used to protect it by putting a heavy thing on it, and all, but that always challenged me more. I would sneak to it without him seeing me and then pull his chappal and run away with it. He used to always smile or laugh when he would see my face, because I was obviously looking at him and inviting him to play with me. By then, we had become friends – myself and Sharanya Uncle though he never used to touch me. We used to talk to each other from a distance, but I still missed sniffing him and touching him. Everytime I wanted to do that, I would go and hug Preethi Momma.

Preethi Momma clicked this photo of mine, when I was getting ready for another nice round of chappal-game.

Woof… I am tired of talking now. I will go and lie down for a while. Let me see if Momma is in a mood to let me sleep on her lap. I will then come back and tell you how I got to be friends with Sharanya Uncle, and how much we used to play and enjoy in Preethi Momma’s house.

When I stayed in a different house! – Part 1

Preethi Momma clicked this photo of mine (Oh, she would roam around with the camera on her neck to click my every move, but let's talk about that some other thime!) when I was relaxing in her balcony, taking in the fresh and cool breeze. She thought I was waiting for Sharanya Uncle, my then-foster-daddy and even named this pic that way. Little did she know that this is one my favorites places in her house, and I was just relaxing there. Sharanya Uncle had just left with huge bags after hugging Preethi Momma and telling me a Bye. I was a little miffed that he did not tell me where he was going, and just left leaving Preethi Momma with tears in her eyes. I tried to console her a bit by licking her face, but Preethi Momma being herself did not let me lick and show my love. This also miffed me a bit, but only after staying with her for a while I understood that she has a totally different way to show love towards me, and I adapted to it.

Okay, a little bit about Preethi Momma and why I had to stay with her then, in spite of me having a great set of parents -

When my Momma and Pappa had to get married, they were not sure where to leave me. Yeah, they had me much before they got married(I sometimes laugh and also feel bad that Pappa calls me a bastard, but then, that's true! *knowing smile*) and we were a very happy family - me, Momma and Pappa. Yes, I was growing up, and Momma was taking care of me because I was still a kid and Pappa was teaching me all good habits(No wonder, I am such a good boy now. I know how to behave in every place, and I can take care of myself! *proud look*), but Momma had to leave after a while to her parent's place. She wanted to spend sometime with them before she can come and stay with me and Pappa forever! Pappa handled me all along. He managed to teach me good habits, and take me for my regular walks and still play with me. I did miss Momma but me and Pappa did fine by ourselves.

After some blissful days of guy bonding, Pappa also had to leave to Assam, and he wanted someone nice to take care of me. He could not just leave me with some random person and least of all in a kennel. After all, he loved me. So he spent a great deal of time in figuring out just the right person to take care of me. And all this while, I was unaware of the fact that Pappa also would be leaving me for a while. I was being a kiddo, and I was having all the fun being by myself in the house, with Pappa's friends visiting, and partying with me.

One fine day, Pappa took me for a walk, and got onto the main road. I was clueless as to where we were going, but I was excited because it was an outing. We got into an auto, and I was in a very playful mood. We then entered this very strange place, and I had never been there before. We met a strange lady near a shop, who apparently was waiting for us, and we walked together - me, Pappa and this strange lady with specs. There was a man following us, from a distance on a very big bike. We all went into this strange lady's house. Pappa tied me in the balcony and sat down on the table near by. All of them started talking. I could gather that it was about me staying there, and I began to become restless. After all, I was just a 8 month old baby, and Pappa was already talking about leaving me there. I could not imagine what I would do without Pappa also, with Momma having gone. So I started telling him that I would not stay with the strange lady. Pappa knew what I was saying, but he covered up by telling her that I was probably hungry, and she immediately went and gave me milk. Now, who doesnt want some extra milk. So I had that milk and started telling Pappa that we should better get going. This strange lady looked like she had plans to keep me there, she was being nice to me, doing baby-talk to me and all. And I did not like the strange man in the corner of the room. He kept on looking at me as if I would pounce on him, and the strange lady had to convince him again and again that I am harmless. Hello... How can I harm anyone? Couldn't he see that I was a cute kid who was bothered that his Pappa was leaving him? Okay, he did mention to that strange lady that I was extremely handsome and Pappa gave a proud smile also, but I wasnt calmed down. I did not want Pappa to leave me with her. But he eventually did it. The strange lady diverted me into doing something and Pappa slipped off. I went around the house with her holding my leash sniffing for Pappa, but there was no trace of him.

I then understood that he probably went for a short while, and began to make myself comfortable in her house. After all, they did not leave me with another option, right? All the while, the strange man was in the bedroom.

Now, Pappa and Momma had taught me some really practical habits-

- I was not to enter anyone's bedrooms.

- I was not to pee or poop anywhere inside the house or in the building premises

- I was not to enter anyone's kitchen. If I loved what was being cooked there, I can stay by the door and make a cute puppy face.

Since these have been ingrained in my head, I did not enter the bedroom, but stood by the door and looked at him. He started speaking and told that strange lady that he was very comfortable if I stood by the door and looked at him, and also that he finds me all the more handsome this way. I had mixed emotions at this time. At the back of my head, I was looking for Pappa, I was trying to figure out if I would love this strange lady, and I did not like being called Handsome. I was a kid and kids dont look handsome. They look cute, that's all. Then, the strange lady got onto her knees in front me and started talking to me. She said - Boomerang, I am Preethi. And I am your foster momma! Do you like me?

And she smiled. Now, I might be a bit pissed at Pappa for leaving me there, and a bit defiant to consider any other lady as my Momma, but when I saw her smile, I realized that she really loved me already. I decided to give her a chance, though I knew she would never become my real Momma. After all, she decided to try. I had also resolved that I would give the strange man, some time to get used to me. I would not bother him with my kiddish antics, and I would stick to this lady who insisted on being called Momma. So I resolved to call her Preethi Momma.

She then introduced me to the strange man, and told that he was Sharanya, my foster pappa. Now, this man looked no way like my Pappa. My Pappa was soo friendly with everybody like me, and loved everyone of my species. This man looked so wary of my species and was also talking to me from the other side of the door. So I decided to call him Sharanya Uncle.

After the initial set of introductions, we all got on to the task of knowing each other. Since I had resigned to the fact that if this lady was nice to me, she might be really get to be my foster Momma, I decided to be good to her. Momma also had called and spoken to Preethi Momma and gave her a set of instructions. She and Pappa had apparently liked Preethi Momma and Sharanya Uncle and so decided to keep me with them when they would honeymoon!

Over the next two days, Preethi Momma played with me, took me for walks and attended to my every whim! I got to tear a couple of papers in her house and play with a couple of doormats too.. and I had begun to enjoy it all.

After a couple more days with Pappa where Pappa gave me a thorough bath, and told me repeatedly to behave myself in Preethi Momma's house, I finally came to stay with her, with all my belongings - my tie-leash, my walk-leash, my bowl, my favorite chewies of all flavors and a big bag of Pedigree(I wanted to yell and tell Pappa that I do not like Pedigree, but he wouldn't listen.) He told Preethi Momma about my eating and peeing habits and left after Preethi Momma distracted me again. When I finally realized that he had really gone, and would come back only after another 20 days, I decided to calm down, and enjoy my stay at Preethi Momma's house.

In my next post, I will tell you guys what all I did in Preethi Momma’s house! And how much we both had together! Of course, and how I bonded with Sharanya Uncle eventually, and even thought momentarily that I could call him Sharanya Pappa.

my first crush = GinGin

1. GinGin who, GinGin how? 

geetu aunty's daughter. mammam (m.) told me she's 21 (1 dog year=7 man years). she looks like a choco bar, tellya. has the biggest titties i ever saw. papa says there is nothing wrong in looking at them. just that i should not talk about it. and you should see the way her butt sways when she walks. 

m. says i got the cutest butt. i say, not me - she! 

m. spotted her at a friend's album in kutkut and thought wow she so ferocious, boomboom such a pomerian (that's mammam's word for sissy). but her friend said, she's as pomerian and would wag her tail even at a thief. geeeeeee...m. thinks i'll do too. she na knows nothing. okay, about that another time. so they got talking at kutkut and then over the phone. and m. showed me, preethi mumma, rachita aunty, everybody her pics. we all liked her :)

i'v never sniffed a girl in my life.  and m. would say gingin jaam (we'll go to gingin), gingin jaam all the time. i could not wait. 

   

2. BOOM MEETS GINGIN: 3 may 2009, sunday

m. got me all shampooed and tip-top'ed. i was very excited. i jumped about the whole house. gingin finally came in a red car with her m. and p. 

that fella at rachita aunty's place told me what he does with females, but i wasn't sure i'd want to do it. never tried. i thought wow we'd play. but when i sniffed her, tell you, i went bonkers. swear on dog, i never smelled something so so so so so great. i never felt that way. never. i do not exactly remember what happened after that but m. says i changed. my eyes got teary. i was drooling with my tongue thrust 1km out of my mouth and i would not stop sniffing her peepee. it sounds kind of embarrassing now. but that is what i did.

ice cubes, chew sticks, bikis, food, nothing could distract. and gingin began to snarl at me. 

"you're only 7 mad dog, i'm 21" 

"my father was 7 when i was born"

"but i'm not in-the-heat, if you know what that means silly"

"heat? but i'm in-the-heat"

"chod na, lets play"

"let me do it first. then we can play all day"

"who are you trying to fool huh? you men are such dogs"

"whatever. did you do it before?"

"of course. but all dogs act as funny when they see me. such losers, all of them, and you too mister"

"at least tell me how to do it. i never did it before you know"

"i'm not here to teach you that. do you understand you 7 year old? now willya let me catch some air. and my coat....dog, you've spoilt it with your jumping. i'll get your ma pa send you to a boarding school"

"okay, do that. do that. but for now will you please let me"

i was a strong man so i pinned her down inspite of her protests, but since nobody would tell me where the hell was the entry gate (first timer's confusion), i tried on her face, her sides, her back, everywhere. i must have looked like a fool. m., p., geetu aunty, poohar uncle everybody was laughing. 

"give up fool" (gingin said)

"no, i wouldn't. no, i wouldn't"

at least mapa could have helped me but they only held me and so tight that my tongue went blue, eyes red and i was breathing so heavy that they all feared i'll have a heart attack. then they locked me up in the bedroom. m. came and sat with me. she was almost in tears. what was there to cry - i did not understand. i thought may be that was because she was angry at gingin for not letting me do what i wanted to do.  

but no. 

"you so mad for that wench, you'll not obey us, forget us and run after her, eh?" 

"boys of my age do it all the time mammam" 

"shut up. is this what your pappa and me taught you all these years - to hump on girls not even interested in you?"

"mammam she wants, but she's scared of her pappa" (i lied)

(but could i fool her?)

"dogshit, she's not. even if she is, it's coz' she might get pregnant and her parents would not like that. do you understand? we'll talk to our breeder and get you a different girl, okay. now behave"

"but mammam i like gingin...........phuleeeeez"

geetu aunty also joined us and they started off. i was going nutties and these women were talking about books, movies, microwave. my dog!

m. finally let me out. gingin was all over the house. her smell. but i could find her nowhere. 

i did not talk to m. or p. that entire evening. i drank and drank like i've to go without water for weeks. i was too tired and slept off early. 

next morning all i wanted was food, nap, play, food, nap, play. 

"that's the best thing about our boomboom", m. said

:)

(these were taken the second time i met her. pretty much the same story again. i almost fell sick the next day. m. promised never take me to her again till i'm grown up and have had enough girls. but i like her you know. see see....)