Homer, the Golden Retriever

Happy Halloween 2009

2009-10-31T22:35:00.006+01:00

I thought today was just like any other day.

Here I am, sniffing around as usual and minding my own business.

Unfortunately, in the human world, this was not just an ordinary day. Suddenly, my mind was racing back to last year and the year before. Yes, today is Halloween and this can only mean one thing... Missus will be dressing me up again...

... Ta da! Meet Count Dogula, the Canine Vampire!

Unfortunately, rather than looking scary, Missus just thought that I looked rather ‘dashing’ in this cape. She felt that my costume needed a little more ‘Oomph’. ..

... so she added a pair of horns and an ‘evil’ wig.

At first, Missus thought I looked more cute than scary.

So, I put on my sinister stare. (I’m sorry if I scared you.)

Suddenly, I looked into the mirror and saw how scary I looked. I mean...I couldn’t see myself because I’m a vampire, right?

Anyway, Missus had prepared a special meal for me for Halloween.

Human eye balls. Yummy, my favourites.

Here I am with my favourite dish.

I can’t wait to get stuck in.

I am Count Dogula (Evil laughter: MUAH HA HA ha ha ha ha...)

Happy Halloween to everyone!

My 'Bestest' Friend in Holland

2009-10-27T23:07:00.001+01:00

Recently, as I was doing some housekeeping on my photograph files, I came across some pictures which I had totally forgotten about (oops!). They relate to a visit by my ‘bestest’ friend Shanni while I was still living in Rotterdam. I had meant to blog about the photos at that time, but, you know how absent-minded I can be?!? Anyway, better late than never…

Shanni had come to help us pack for our move to Italy. “Where the heck is she?”

Shanni’s idea of packing was to play hide and seek. Tsk!

Anyway, I prefer Shanni’s idea of having fun rather than doing chores any day! Here we are lazing around while Missus did all the packing by herself.

Pretty soon, Shanni and I were goofing around in the garden. Here she is trying to make monkey faces… on me!

Now we’re making our best ‘miserable’ faces. I think she won. (Heh! Heh!)

A sloppy kiss for Shanni.

Me and my ‘bestest’ friend.

Here’s Missus and Shanni, before they said their fond farewells. We’re both missing her a lot.

When Homer Met Paco (and Milo and Maya)

2009-10-20T03:08:00.017+02:00

As you know, I’ve been blogging for several years now and I’ve made many ‘blogging buddies’ during that time. Unfortunately, all of them (I mean you!) have remained ‘virtual’ friends, confined to the pages of the Internet.

Recently, however, a momentous event occurred. Missus and Dad packed me into a car and we all drove off into the Italian countryside. I had no idea what was in store for me, but what a great surprise I got when we arrived at our destination!

Guess who was there to meet us?

Ta-da! It was none other than Milo and Paco. These are two of my most favourite characters from the blogging world…

... and, of course Maya...

... not to mention their humans, Simona and Marco.

Simona, Paco and Milo were waiting to greet me when I arrived...

... but it was Maya who introduced herself first.

To begin with, we were a bit cautious about getting to know each other. You know how us boys are?

But pretty soon, we were all good pals.

Let me introduce you to my new family of friends:

This is Paco. Missus made the mistake of saying that he looked a bit ‘fat’. Simona insisted that he’s just big boned!

Here’s Milo. Simona really loves him...

... see what I mean?

Even Dad was smitten by Milo!

And this is Maya. She’s always in a crazy pose!

For instance, you’ll often see her chewing sticks, stones or anything she can get her paws on.

Maya took a particular liking to me...

She was always following me.

And trying to get me to play with her.

Here’s Simona with Missus. Aren’t they booti-ful?

And finally, here’s Marco.

Missus thinks he looks like Gary Oldman.

Marco, Simona, Paco, Milo and Maya live in a booti-ful villa with an idyllic setting.

Wow! Look at this amazing view from their home.

Anyway, enough of these formalities. Here’s some photos of us all frolicking around.

“Right, which way should we go?”

Maya and me headed straight for Marco...

... and then Maya headed for Simona...

... and then Maya headed for Dad.

Milo just wanted to be petted by his humans...

... whereas Paco just made funny faces at us.

The four boys altogether...

...and here we are all (minus Missus who’s taking the photo) milling around in the booti-ful setting.

We all had a truly wonderful day and can’t wait for our next get-together .

Sight Seeing in Milan

2009-10-15T00:00:00.000+02:00

Buon giorno! I know it has taken me a while to blog again but it is taking some time for us to get settled in Milan. Here are a few photos of my first sight-seeing tour in the city.

Here I am, guide book in paw, ready for the off. I wonder if there will be anything interesting to see...

...Ta-da! Look at this photo. It’s booti-ful! (So is the magnificent Duomo behind us – heh heh).

Me and Dad outside of the Duomo.

Another booti-ful photo of me and Missus in Piazza del Duomo.

The building behind me is called the Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II ...

...isn’t it grand?

At the other end of the ‘Galleria’ is a statue of Leonardo da Vinci. He’s my second favourite historical figure after a certain Greek poet.

Here we are, standing in front of the world famous opera house – Teatro Alla Scala (La Scala).

I had a great time exploring a small part of Milan and seeing the sights. More importantly, I was touched by how friendly all the humans were to me. Take a look at all the friends I made...

“Oi! I’m trying to sniff something”.

“Is there any food in that shopping bag?”

“I think I’m going to like it here...

...Even the booti-ful humans like me!”

OK folks, that’s my first impressions of Milano. I’ll keep you posted on my developments.

PS: To Dad, I want to wish you a 'Happy Birthday' and I 'woof' you soooooo much!!! Lots of slobbers and waggy tails, Homer.

My Actual Road Trip - Rotterdam to Milan

2009-09-30T23:42:00.001+02:00

Well folks, I’ve now reached sunny Milano. I’ll let you know more on my initial impressions later.

For now, I wanted to share some of the photos taken during my journey from Rotterdam to Milan.

Missus told me that we would be setting off early on Saturday morning. Here I am, all packed and ready to go. Unfortunately, the humans weren’t as organised as me and it took forever for us to set off. (You can see that I don’t look too happy. Hmmmph!).

Anyway, we eventually got moving...

... but as soon as we reached Belgium, the traffic became gridlocked. Here’s me and Dad waiting on the motorway for everyone to start moving again.

Once we got on our way, we made quick progress through Holland, Belgium, Luxembourg and into France.

Next stop, Strasbourg, France. This was to be our mid-way stopover point.

Ta-da! We finally reached our hotel on Saturday night.

Luckily, Dad had arranged a lovely big hotel room for the night. Here I am, making myself at home.

I soon realised that I was ‘bushed’ from all of the travelling. Time for bed. “Je suis fatigué”.

After a good night’s sleep, I had time for a little morning sunbathing on the balcony.

Then, after breakfast, my humans took me for a long walk in one of Strasbourg’s booti-ful parks.

“Ooh la la... cést magnifique”!

I spotted these kids, getting ready to take the boats out. “Ahoy there! Do you need a paw? After all, I’m an experienced sailor”.

After my walk, it was time to set-off on the final leg of the journey from Strasbourg down to Milan. Au revoir!

As usual, Missus was prepared to take plenty of photos along the way.

Once we reached Switzerland, we decided to stop off for lunch. This place was near to Interlaken in the Swiss Alps...

...I must say, the backdrop was spectacular.

Look at this river, doesn’t it look inviting? Unfortunately, we didn’t have time to go for a swim. Tsk!

Pretty soon, we were on our way again. We eventually made it to our ‘temporary’ new home in Milano late on Sunday afternoon.

Watch this space for an update on my next adventures in Milano. Ciao!

Goodbye Netherlands and Hello Italy

2009-09-24T18:00:00.000+02:00

So, it’s happening, I am leaving my beloved Holland for pastures new. I must say, that I am looking forward to my new life in Milan. On the other hand, I can’t help reminiscing about my time in the Netherlands.

I have been so happy here and the humans have been so friendly to me. I have also had the opportunity to experience so many things which were new to me. For example, I have played in the snow; saw booti-ful flowers; frolicked on the beach; took my first train ride and had a million other pleasurable adventures.

On my daily walks I have met many amazing characters. Who could forget Floor, or my good friend Wally, or even my encounter with the Star Wars characters.

I have made such wonderful doggy and human friends here. Most memorable of all have been Henk, Nelie and Amy , who have taken such wonderful care of me when my humans haven’t been around. I ‘woof’ you.

And so it’s time to say:

Tot ziens Nederlands

Ciao Italia!

My Journey from Rotterdam to Milan

2009-09-22T15:21:00.003+02:00

As I told you all in my last blog, my humans and I are moving from Rotterdam in the Netherlands to Milan in Italy. In the past, I have always flown 'Business Class' during my relocations. (If you don't believe me, check it out here and here). However, for this journey, my humans have decided that we will drive to our destination.

Here's some maps showing our planned journey.

View Larger Map

The distance from Rotterdam to Milan is over 1,000 km. To break up the journey, we are going to spend a night in Strasbourg, France.

View Larger Map

Here's the route from Rotterdam to Strasbourg. (It's not quite as far as South Korea to China or from China to the Netherlands.

View Larger Map

After spending the night in Strasbourg, we will complete the last leg of our journey down to Milan.

I'll let you know our adventures after we arrive...

Going Places

2009-09-21T00:00:00.002+02:00

I was recently sniffing around the house when I came across something rather disturbing.

All of my toys were appearing in boxes. I certainly didn’t put them there!

Some of these are my favourite friends...

...I hope they are not too cramped in there.

“What’s going on Missus?”

Wait a minute. This suddenly looks very familiar. My mind is flashing back to here and here.

This can only mean one thing. We are on the move again.

"Where are we going Missus?"

After much cajoling, I finally got Missus to reveal where we are moving to. Unfortunately, we are going to leave Holland (Sob...!). But, we are going to start a new adventure in...

Drum roll please...

Milan, Italy. Yippee...! I will get to see Paco, Milo and Mya. (Not to mention some of the other dogs of Italy).

Italy will be the sixth different country in which I have lived. (Following Australia , Singapore, South Korea, China and the Netherlands).

I’ll keep you informed of my movements as they develop...

Tot ziens/Ciao!

Me, Lobke and Amy

2009-09-19T00:03:00.005+02:00

A couple of weeks ago, my humans and I went up to Aalsmeer to visit Henk, Nelie and Amy. I was very happy to hear that another Golden female would be staying with Amy for the weekend. I was even more happy when I discovered that the lady in question was Lobke. Those of you with very good memories will recall that I met Lobke almost a year ago.

Here’s Amy, with Lobke on the right. I wonder whether Lobke remembers me?

Amy and Lobke goofing around.

Here’s the three of us together with yours truly in the middle. Check out our smiley faces!

Henk and Nelie had a special treat in store for my humans. They took us to Boerderij Meerzicht, a very traditional Dutch restaurant which serves Pannenkoeken (Dutch Pancakes).

Here we are queuing to go inside. Man, we could really smell those lovely pancakes!

Ta-da! Four different kinds of pannenkoeken. As the Dutch would say “lekker!”(Delicious!)

After the humans were well fed, they took us all for a very nice walk in the Dutch countryside.

We got to run, explore and even swim in the nearby lake. Don’t we look dirty?

Once we were all cleaned-up, we posed for one last picture. Boy, we'd had so much fun!

Homer the Sailor Dog

2009-09-18T01:22:00.002+02:00

Recently, as a special treat, Henk and Nelie took us all out for a boat trip on the lake at Aalsmeer. Here’s some photos from our adventure.

Henk was our captain for the journey. Here he is getting the boat prepared. Can you see the little bucket on board? I was a bit worried when Henk told us that it was for bailing out water if we spring a leak!

Here we all are ready to get started. (Missus was the photographer for the day).

And we’re off! I was so looking forward to my maiden voyage. This was my first time in a boat.

There were lots of booti-ful boats in the marina...

...it was very charming.

I soon found my ‘sea legs’.

What’s that in the water?

Is it the Loch Ness Monster?

Suddenly, something interesting caught my eye. Look! It’s maidens on shore! “Ahoy there!”

Check out these gorgeous girls! They are actually Amy's sisters!

Doesn't she look like Amy?

We said our farewells and continued with the boat trip.

This is me doing my ‘Titanic’ pose.

Eventually, our great voyage came to an end and we had to get back onto dry land. It had been a really fantastic journey and I can’t wait to get back out on the ocean waves.

My Amy

2009-09-16T18:10:00.002+02:00

Those of you who follow my blog will know that I have developed a soft spot for Amy. I’m not the most romantic dog in the world, but I hope she won’t mind my making this little gesture. I hope she enjoys it…

The UnDutchables II

2009-09-14T01:13:00.003+02:00

As you know, I seldom feature humans in my blog. However, there is one special couple for whom I will definitely make an exception. I’d like to introduce you to Nelie and Henk. These are the wonderful people who have looked after me whenever my humans have taken a holiday during the past year.

Nelie and Henk (along with Amy, Lobke and yours truly).

Nelie is Amy’s mum. She’s a real dog lover.

And this is Henk. Missus calls him ‘the Dogfather’.

We’ve all become close friends over the past year. Here’s Henk, Dad and Nelie lounging around. As usual, I am trying to get closer to Amy.

Henk, Dad and Amy.

I love it when I go to visit Henk and Nelie. Not only do I get to spend time with Amy, but Henk always takes me for fantastic walks in the Dutch countryside…

…although we sometimes walk in opposite directions.

Here’s a video, directed by Nelie, of Henk, Amy and me on one of our regular walks.

I want to dedicate this blog to Henk and Nelie. Thanks for taking such good care of me and for showing me so much love. Woof!

The UnDutchables

2009-09-08T00:25:00.005+02:00

A few weeks ago, Missus went to a dog show in Rotterdam. Unfortunately, as usual, I didn’t get to tag along. Anyway, Missus took loads of photos while she was there. Here’s a selection of my favourites:

The show was called the: ‘Stichting Hondententoonstelling Rotterdam’ (Foundation Dog Show Rotterdam)

The Golden Retrievers in the show ring. (None of them are as handsome as me of course!)

An English Setter

A Briad. Where’s his face?

A Gordon Setter

A judge inspects an English Cocker Spaniel.

Check out this poodle with its frou-frou clad legs.

“Me! Me! PICK ME!”

A dainty looking Chinese Crested.

And, here are some of the winners –

Best Couples. The Bracco Italiano came in first followed by the Stabyhoun.

The Pekingneses in this photo are father and daughter.

Best In Show. First place went to a Petit Basset Griffon. Second was an Irish Setter. And an Airdale Terrier at third place. Don’t they look amazing?

The audience was filled with ardent doggy fans...

Here’s a youngster getting his first taste of a dog show...

...whilst these guys had seen it all before.

The judges were all esteemed experts.

And look at all of the prizes on offer. “The winner takes it all.”

It was a truly memorable dog show. Of course, it wasn’t all glamorous poses. Here’s a selection of candid shots taken behind the scenes...

“I’ll get my forty winks before it’s my turn.”

Some of the Goldens gathered to catch up on the gossip and exchange beauty tips…

…and this one had food on his mind. “Give me! Give me!”

“What are you looking at?”

“I’m so bored...when is it going to be my turn?”

A Cavalier Kings Charles Spaniel – “Look at me! I’m booti-ful!”

A Malinoi giving its owner a loving hug.

This little golden puppy had a big dream: “One day I’m going to be a star!”

This gorgeous Airdale is all trimmed and ready to go!

The gorgeous Border Collies.

Missus finished the photo session with a couple of special shots...

First, she managed to catch a snap of Professor Dumbledor from the Harry Potter movies.

Then, (with Dumbledor’s help) she managed to assemble all of the dogs in the show for a group picture.

Alright folks, that’s all for today. I’ll be back blogging soon . Watch this space.

Homer and the Giant Bone

2009-08-13T23:33:00.002+02:00

My humans know that I’m a big fan of bones. Big bones, small bones, marrow bones, knuckle bones, nylabones...all sorts of bones. Yum! They even say that I’m a ‘lazybones’ (whatever that means?)

Recently, Missus got me another gigantic bone. It was even bigger than the one I had a couple of weeks ago. This one was a real beauty.

It might not look so big in this picture but, to give you a sense of scale, check out the photo below...

...look at how it dwarfs my tennis ball!

Here I am with my prized possession.

I wonder which is the best end to start from?

Let’s try this bit...

Maybe it’s better from this angle?

I think I’ll now try it standing up.

Man, I tried to chew it from every angle possible. If you don’t believe me take a look...

Anyway, it’s going to take me weeks to get through this. Here’s my ‘keep away from my bone’ expression.

See you soon. Chomp! Chomp! Slurp! Slurp!

PS: Kelsey just had a big surgery to remove cancerous cells from his bum and he needs our support. Please pop over and send him some doggy love.

Lazybones

2009-07-17T16:15:00.000+02:00

Occasionaly, Missus treats me with a booti-ful juicy knuckle bone.

Look at this beauty. Drool...

Look at the big smile on my face!

Man, this is nice.

Grmpph...slobber...chomp...slobber...lick..lick...

See you next time. I’m busy...

Football Frolics

2009-07-10T00:32:00.004+02:00

Recently, my humans went away for the weekend (yet again!). Fortunately, this meant that I got to stay with some old friends of mine, Amy and Katie.

Here’s my dear girlfriend Amy. Doesn’t she look as booti-ful as ever? (By the way, don’t I look booti-ful too?).

Here’s Amy in yet another pose with Yours Truly.

We’ve had our photo taken together so often now that I think Amy was getting a little bored with it all.

It was obvious that I needed to find a way to keep Amy entertained. Being out of ideas, we asked Dad if he had any advice on how to add a new ‘spark’ to our relationship?

Dad suggested that playing sports together was a good option. So, we decided to have a game of football...

Here I am lining up one of my trademark free kicks. ‘Bending it like Beckham’, I shot for goal...

...unfortunately, Amy made a great diving save. What a goalkeeper!

“Are you going to let go of the ball anytime soon?”

Suddenly, there was a new player on the pitch. Katie decided to join in the fun.

Pretty soon, our football game resembled more like a wrestling match.

I wasn’t complaining though. I had a great sporting weekend with Amy and Katie.

Before I go, I want to say a heartfelt thank you to all those who wished me a Happy Birthday. Woof!

I'm FOUR!

2009-06-30T22:48:00.012+02:00

Today is my Birthday . Hooray! I am officially four years old! “Happy Birthday to me, Happy Birthday to me…"

What a great day I had. Check it out…

Here I am, all kitted out and ready for the festivities. I am the ‘Birthday King’! I wonder what my humans have planned for me...

Aroooo...roooo...roooo! We’re having a barbecue!

Dad is the chef. I wonder what he’s cooking?

My favourites. Sausages and chicken.

What's this?

Wow! It’s a beer for dogs! Just like Dad’s.

Dad was over the moon. He thought he had a new drinking pal!

Urgh! I’m not drinking that stuff!

Anyway, the barbecue was coming along fine.

Eventually, I got my first helping...

...it was finished within seconds.

Luckily, Dad had more food on the go.

I was soon on to my fifth helping. By this time, I had lost my Birthday hat...

...but I certainly hadn’t lost my apetite.

Unfortunately, the barbecue couldn’t last forever and Missus said that we had to go back inside.

However, there were more surprises in store for me...

...ta da! My very own Birthday cake. Missus had baked it in a heart shape, covered it with yogurt and added bacon sprinkles. Drool...

...that wasn’t all. Look at the wonderfully wrapped presents my humans had got for me.

Here I am with my prezzies, cake and beer.

Didn’t I do well?

Finally, the best part of the day. A piece of birthday cake for me.

OK folks, time to eat... Bye!

The Barbecue

2009-06-26T23:55:00.001+02:00

I’m really loving the long summer days here in Rotterdam.

Only yesterday, I was sitting in the garden, enjoying nature and day-dreaming about my favourite subject...

Suddenly, my dreams came true. The sweet smell of a barbecue came wafting through the air. Although my humans had the cheek to cook some food for themselves, there was still plenty of space for my favourite: barbecued chicken.

Grandma volunteered to be the chef for the evening.

I couldn’t wait to get stuck in...

...finally, the first course of many. What a wonderful evening!

Grandma is Back!

2009-06-22T23:30:00.000+02:00

Remember when I was staying in China and my grandma from England came over to visit me? Well, recently she came over to the Netherlands to see me, Missus and Dad. We had some great times together...

This is me with my Grandma.

Here we are during one of our many walks together.

Grandma thought it would be a good idea for us to go and feed the birds...

...here she is. Just like Dad (remember his pal, Wally?), she was very popular with the geese.

Soon grandma was explaining to me everything I needed to know about geese.

Pretty soon, she’d forgotten about me altogether just to be with those pesky birds. Hmmph!

Anyway, Grandma didn’t just spend all of her time with me. While she was visiting, she went on a few excursions with my humans...

This is Grandma wearing traditional Dutch clogs. (I think they’re too big for her!).

And here she is on a boat cruise down the river Maas in Rotterdam.

Here she is in Delft...

...and finally, this is Missus, Grandma and Dad in Bruges, Belgium.

The Fantastic Five

2009-06-10T23:31:00.000+02:00

A couple of weeks ago, Missus’ friend Shanni came to visit us in Rotterdam...

This is Shanni with me at our place.

When Missus told me that Shanni lives with her two dogs, I just had to meet them. So, I immediately started to plan my journey to Shanni’s place.

Shanni lives in a place called Boxtel, near to Den Bosch in the southern Netherlands. Here’s a map showing my one hour journey from Rotterdam to Boxtel.

And here I am, waiting for the train.

I was travelling first class of course. Tsk! (Somebody told me that there’s more leg room in first class. As I have more legs than humans, I thought that this was the place for me!)

We finally reached Boxtel where I met Shanni’s boys...

Let me introduce you to Kingsley, the Border Collie. Kingsley spent a long period in a Singapore dog shelter before being rescued by Shanni. Despite his troubled past, he is a very good looking boy who has turned out to be a bit of a celebrity. If you don’t believe me, check out the links here and here.

This is Kingsley’s brother, Robin. He’s a ten year old Irish Terrier. He may be getting on in years but he still has endless energy and he plays around like a puppy.

Missus with Kingsley and Robin.

After my brief introductions to Kingsley and Robin, we all decided to meet up with some of their regular friends...

This is Boelie, a four year old female Labrador...

...and here’s Mokka.

She’s a one and half years old Labrador.Our meeting place was the ‘Magic Forest’. Rumour has it that humans mysteriously disappear from this place.

Sure enough, within minutes there wasn’t a human in sight. So, the ‘Fantastic Five’ made a pact and vowed to seek them out...

Kingsley, being so smart, was the obvious leader for our mission.

I was the intrepid adverturer in the group. Don’t I look swashbuckling? (And dirty!)

Off we set on our adventure with ‘Smarty Pants’ Kingsley leading the way and swashbuckling ‘Me’ taking up the rear.

After a while, we lost the humans’ trail.

“Where the heck did they go?”

Pretty soon we’d lost the plot altogether. Instead we just decided to have a sniffing ‘free for all’.

Anyway, we eventually tracked down the humans (or did they track us down?) and it was time to leave the ‘Magic Forest’.

Boelie has problems with her hind legs, so she gets to travel in style.

Doesn’t she look pleased with herself?

As for me, although I didn’t have my own personal carriage, at least I did get to travel back home first class. When Missus wasn’t looking, I even managed to sneak onto a seat for a while.

It was a great day out and I can’t wait for my next adventure with the ‘Fantastic Five’.

Keukenhof

2009-05-16T23:41:00.012+02:00

Last weekend my humans took me to Keukenhof. This is a very special place in Holland where flowers of every kind are grown. Some say it is the most booti-ful place in the world.

While we were there, Dad took lots of photos of me and Missus. There’s not much action but I think they are very pretty...

Here I am, ready to go and explore all of the flowers. (Actually, I was more interested in exploring the food that this family were eating.)

And we’re off!

We were having a great walk, then Missus decided that we should stop for a few poses.

Me and Missus. You can tell that she really loves me.

Here we are in the shade.

Here we’re ‘pretty in pink’.

Man, there were photo opportunities everywhere.

I soon realised that Missus was in every photo and stealing my limelight. Very subtly, I managed to get her out of the picture...

Ta-da! Just me and the flowers.

The flowers sure were booti-ful...but not as booti-ful as me.

Anyway, that’s enough of me posing. I don’t normally feature anything but me in my blog. However, the flowers at Keukenhof were so booti-ful that I’ll make an exception in this case.

Enjoy the pictures below!

Homer at the Beach

2009-05-08T20:36:00.002+02:00

Remember in my last blog that I showed you some pictures of me and my new friends at Hoek van Holland beach. Well, the next day I went back there and had a great time with just me and my humans. Take a look at my adventures.

Here I am on the beach. My humans have set me two important missions.

First, I have to go and locate the ‘Ball of Tennis’...

Here I go! Mission Impossible I.

After fighting off three sharks and two crocodiles (honestly), I finally emerged with the ‘Ball of Tennis’.

Here I am emerging from the waves like James Bond.

Mission Impossible I “accomplished”!

Next, my humans assigned me to retrieve the ‘Super Spade Handle’.

Whoopee! No problem for Homer Bond (or am I still Homer Skywalker? I get so confused.)

Where the heck did it go?

Got it!

Now to return it to the mighty humans.

Better dry-off first!

OK, what’s next?

Unfortunately, instead of Mission Impossible III, Missus insisted that I posed for some nice photos.

My windswept look.

I thought that this was the perfect backdrop for my sphinx pose...

...and then to ‘Walk like an Egyptian’.

Finally, Missus had me posing in her summer hat. Tsk!

After my photoshoot, we went off and had some more fun.

This is Dad bending down to pick up my toys.

‘Oh my dog, Dad. Did you have to do that right in my face?’

[Note from Dad: No treats for Homer!]

For more of my adventures playing ‘fetch’ in the sea, check out the video below.

See ya!

The Beach Boys

2009-05-06T22:44:00.007+02:00

Last weekend I had a great time. As a treat, my humans took me to the ‘Hoek van Holland’ beach for two days running. While I was there, I bumped into plenty of other dogs enjoying the surf. Here’s some pictures of us all having fun...

First I ran into this Labrador. I think his name was Bobby. That’s me on the right limbering up for the games ahead.

Bobby sure was a good swimmer...but I was hot on his tail.

I was determined to get the stick from him...

...eventually I managed to get it!

My prize trophy. Nyeh! Nyeh! Nyeh! Nyeh! Nyeh!

Pretty soon, some kids joined in our doggy games.

Then this chocolate Labrador also showed up.

He wanted to join in our retrieving games.

The three of us enjoyed some intense water sports. That’s me surfing in the middle.

All of us ‘kids’ playing together...

...the young humans even joined in with our zoomies.

Next, I ran into these little fellas...

...and this ‘giant’ Rhodesian Ridgeback.

We calmly looked out to sea...

...and then started bouncing around like crazy.

What a day! Next time I’ll show you some photos of me playing fetch with my humans.

Amy

2009-05-02T22:00:00.000+02:00

Every now and then, my humans go on holiday and leave me here in Holland. For some dogs this might be stressful. Not for me. I get the chance to go and stay at Amy’s place for a couple of days.

I always looking forward to seeing Amy and she never fails to entertain me. She’s so fun and cool to hang out with and I enjoy every moment I spend with her.

Anyway, here are some nice photos of Amy. Isn’t she booti-ful? I think she is…

What a looker!

Amy the adventurer.

Sitting pretty.

Amy in profile.

Her 'coy' look.

Pretty please...

"How can you resist me?"

For sure Amy, we can't resist you. I can't wait to see you again...

Queen's Day

2009-04-30T20:00:00.000+02:00

Today was a very important day in Holland. It was ‘Queen’s Day’ or Koninginnedag. This is a very special day for the Dutch people and they treat it as a big party. It is really a celebration of their love for Queen Beatrix.

I was so happy when my humans agreed to take me into Rotterdam centre to enjoy the festivities. The first big adventure of the day was that I got to take my first ever train journey...

Here I am with Dad, waiting for the train. I hope he’s got my ticket.

Shhh...I think it’s coming.

Is this a train?

...and we’re on. Ooohh I’m so excited!

Here I am in Rotterdam city centre. As you can see, there’re lots of people out enjoying themselves. Apparently, the tradition is that you should wear something orange...

Ta-da! So as not to look out of place, I decided to dress for the occasion.

We then decided to take a walk around. It appeared that I wasn’t the only dog in town...

This was the first doggy I ran into.

She was a real grouch. She never stopped barking.

I didn’t get too close to this Rottie. He was busy looking after the stall.

Look at the size of this guy. He started singing as I walked by.

Then I met this young lady. She was dressed for the occasion with a pretty orange bow tie...

...not as well dressed as me though.

Here I am with Dad. It was a long day and time to head home...

...so. Here I am back on the train again.

I had a great day and it was wonderful to see everybody enjoying themselves and dressed up in vivid orange.

For me though, I prefer a multi-coloured look.

Anyway, this is me with my own booti-ful ‘Queen’, Missus.

Tot ziens (see ya!)