Lucky and Flo, 2 black Labrador Retrievers (Midnight and Jeff Boy!), are trained pirated disc sniffers. Their noses are sensitive to polycarbonate, one of the main ingredients in the manufacture of the discs.

Their recent major bust was a RM10million pirated disc discovery in Johor Bahru. I'm sure most of these DVDs are probably being circulated among the authorities, but that's another story.

Anyway.

As everyone knows, the local pirated disc industry is run by syndicate gangsters. And now, syndicate bosses have offered an "undisclosed amount" to have Lucky and Flo eliminated.

Apparently, Lucky and Flo aren't the only dogs to have attracted a bounty. In 2004, a drug cartel in Colombia placed a US$10,000 price on the head of a golden Labrador Retriever named Agata, one of Colombia’s best drug-sniffing dogs.

Lucky and Flo are now being shuttled from safe house to safe house, in efforts to protect them. They are only here in Malaysia for a month-long working trip, and will be going home to Belfast after.

Poor doggies.

I guess I should be thankful the only things my dog knows how to do are to poop and pee. Both of which she's not very good at, either.

Sigh.

Ok, I plagiarized a headline. So shoot me.

Or shoot this baby polar bear. With a lethal injection, no less. That's what animal rights activists are currently campaigning for.

His name is Knut, and he is currently being nursed at the Berlin Zoo after being abandoned by his mother. After his bottle-feeding, he is apparently getting lots of cuddles.

Animal activists are arguing that being a predator, it is highly inappropriate for a polar bear to be snuggled and cuddled, then turned out into the wild when he is an adult to fend for himself. The most humane thing to do would be to put it to sleep. And to keep Knut in the zoo all his life? That is a "gross violation of animal protection laws."

The Berlin Zoo's chief vet, on the other hand, argues that by keeping Knut at the Berlin Zoo, the baby might just grow up to be a stud bear to increase the population of polar bears, who are under threat of extinction.

In situations like these, I feel animal activists do get a little extreme.

I choose "Life".

Isn't that the whole point of animal rights?

Hmm...

Today marks Bessy's 1-month anniversary at her new home, with me.

Here are some key highlights of our first month together:

Week One
Bessy has diarrhea everyday. Every. Single. Day.
She ends her first week with severe vomiting, and an emergency trip to the vet's.
She also scores a "hospital" stay at the vet's.

Week Two

I drive (like mad) through lunchtime traffic from Kelana Jaya to the vet's at Brickfields, to visit Bessy.
Despite a lampshade collar, Bessy still manages to bite off the IV tube attached to her front leg. The vet isn't amused.

Week Three
Cautious days!
I anxiously examine the condition and texture of Bessy's poop, everyday.
She gradually descends to new levels of stinkiness - no baths for her as she is still sick.

Week Four
Happy days!
Bessy turns 3-months old.
She gets a bath.
She gets her 2nd vaccination.
Everyone is happy.

For more doggie tales and pictures, head over to Sweetnicks who is doing the roundup of this week's Weekend Dog Blogging!

Nut and I heard from Geek about Starbuck's 2nd Annual Coffee Break Day, on March 15th (that's today). This day means a free Tall (12-ounce) cup of coffee to anyone who drops by Starbucks Coffee between 10am - 12pm.

Being the kiasu people we are, we schemed to be at the nearest Starbucks outlet (at the Giant Hypermarket in Kelana Jaya) at 9.45am today. That gave us enough time to walk around Giant, so we don't look too hard up for a free cuppa joe.

At 10am, Nut and I went up the Starbucks counter. And then, paiseh-ness kicked in.

Me: "How ah? We just ask for the free coffee ah?"
Nut: "Erm... ya loh. I was thinking the same thing. A bit not nice hor."
Me: "Maybe we buy the cheapest cake they have?"
Nut: "Ya ya... ok, I will have the citrus poppy seed muffin."
Me: "Shit... that's the cheapest and nicest looking thing there. Ok, I'll have the same."

In conclusion, Nut and I have agreed that we are the kind of people who will never get rich.

Not kiasu enough. Not thick-skinned enough. Not mean enough.

How like that?

Ok, maybe I am being sour grapes. But I have never, and will never, see the point of sitting for 21 subjects for SPM (that's apparently the maximum number of subjects you can sit for).

So it really tickled me to read this article in the Star about how this 53-year old man and his 13-year old son claimed to have sat for the SPM exam together, AND scored 24 A1s.

Me thinks other people are getting fed up of reading about SPM results, and kiasu students scoring 16 A1s too.

Heh.

Claims of father and son getting 24 1As in SPM false, says official (oh, the horror!)

IPOH: It was a first of a different kind for Perak when education officers were alerted to a report of a father and son who claimed to have obtained 24 1As for their SPM examination.

The 53-year-old man, seeking publicity in the Tamil Nesan daily, claimed to have sat for the exams at a well-known school here with his 13-year-old son and both achieved 100% marks in all the 24 subjects.

State Education director Datuk Mohammed Zakaria Mohd Noor said his officers had investigated the matter after S.B. Bala, the Tamil Nesan Ipoh bureau chief, asked the department to verify the results.

"This is the first time we have come across such a case of falsifying result slips. It is also possibly the first such case in the country," he told reporters on Wednesday after announcing the performance of Perak students in the 2006 SPM examinations.

"We believe the man was trying to gain publicity and glamour," he added.

"Maybe this case reflects the negative aspect of students focusing only on academic performance," he said, adding that the proposal for SPM candidates to take only 12 subjects was timely.

Zakaria said the department's initial investigation showed that the result slips were fake.

"There are no such candidates for last year's SPM. The format of the result slips is more or less the same as the original ones, except the font is different and certain subjects are wrongly spelt," he said.

He added that it was impossible for a 13-year-old and a 53-year-old to be sitting for the SPM.

"There are 108 subjects for SPM students to choose from. The maximum number of subjects that a candidate can take for the exam is 21," he added.

Zakaria said his officers would have to conduct further investigation into the case and he would be informing the ministry about the matter.

"It is a serious offence to falsify your academic results," he warned.

Zakaria also thanked the media for taking the correct step of verifying the matter before publishing the case.

He also urged students to be careful when applying for university entrance online because they could be penalised if they keyed in the wrong results.

Nisha Khirudin has to be one of the best producers I've ever worked with. Not that I've worked with many, but this girl shows maturity and experience beyond her years.

She also loves eating crabs, but that's another story.

Her most recent feather on her cap is being part of the team that won the Best Film in the recent BMW Shorties - a competition held by BMW Malaysia for the best short film.


Directed by her boyfriend, Abdullah Zahir, their short film K-Hole can be viewed at the BMW Shorties website.

As for the caption labelling Nisha as the film director's wife? She claims to have been very drunk that night, and made incoherent replies to the reporters' questions.

Ok, as long as I really do get invited to your real wedding, Nish! Congrats babe!

Inspired by MowPea, here is a MeMe titled Me Doggie for this week's Weekend Dog Blogging, hosted by Cate of Sweetnicks!



Date of Birth:
18 December 2006

Breed:
Black and tan Rottweiler

Favourite food:
Anything that can be swallowed, including grass, pebbles, and flowers.

Favourite Activity :
Eating grass, pebbles, and flowers, and playing fetch.

Favourite Toys:
Twirly rope toy and my old jacket.

Favourite annoying yet cute habit:
Thinking she is safely hidden under the car, but she never goes far in enough - so her legs are sticking well out for the whole world to see, and for me to drag her out with.

Sleeps in:
Her crate.

Barks when:
The neighbour's dog barks, she has just pooped.

Likes being:
Tickled on her tummy.

Tickle-Me-Bessy

When meeting people, likes to:
Do a little nervous peeing, then run up to you and lick your nose.

Often seen:
Sleeping on her back, with legs up in the air.

Knows how to:
Sit, shake, down and come when called.

Fancies having as a boyfriend:
She hasn't met any other dogs, so no potential boyfriends. Yet.

Has travelled to:
Brickfields Veterinary Clinic

Scared of:
Loud noises like car alarms, still gets a little scared of men.

And now, Bessy would like to tag:

1. Mandy
2. Sunshine
3. Winston

For more adorable doggie pics, head over to Sweetnicks who is doing the round up for this Weekend Dog Blogging #76!

Income tax. Borang BE. J Form. Calculations. Book receipts. Medical bill receipts.

Funnily enough, I'm actually looking forward to filing my taxes this year.

Last year, I was "freelancing" for 7 months. Hence, I wasn't getting an official income.

I get to shortchange the government this year.

I will be filling up my Borang BE with much glee.

Heh.

Since Bessy went through the trauma of getting terribly sick and enduring days of jabs and IV Drips, I have decided to give her her 5 minutes.


"Woof woof wruff wruff woof woof"
Translation: The bald patch on my front right leg is where the vet shaved off my fur to put in the IV tube.

This is Bessy, my Rottweiler puppy. She is 10-weeks old. I brought her home when she was 8-weeks, and within a week, she was admitted to the vet's for being very, very sick. Detailed report of her sickness can be read here.

Brought her home from the vet's a couple of days ago, and am glad to report that she is doing A-OK!

She has recently learnt to "Shake Paws", but for some reason she shakes with her left paw. My dad taught her. I think he wasn't too fussy about which paw she brought up to shake paws with him.

For more doggie pictures, head over to Sweetnicks, who is doing the round up of all doggie pictures. (If doggies aren't your thing, head over for drool-worthy food pics.)

Nut, Geek, MowPea, Jess and all doggie owners! Take part too! For fun lah ;p

I brought Bessy home today. Vet said she is doing Very Well and Eating Like A Horse. She is very alert and active - a far cry from her weak state pre-treatment. Her blood test results show a marked improvement from her first test, although still below minimum levels.

Her poop isn't milkshake anymore. It's nice and formed, although on the black side because of the internal bleeding in her intestines, caused by the parasite.

I will have to take her back for continual blood tests. But it's such a relieve to have her home.

Fed her rice with special canned meat, and she gobbled it all up greedily. Yay.

She pooped nice, formed poop after her meal. Yay.

Took her out to play, and she ran around my garden like a greyhound. Yay.

Played "Fetch" with her and she ended up ripping a hole in my pants. Not-So-Yay.

Thanks Nut! For going with me to bring her home, and risking your hand being bitten by her.

Thanks Clare! For recommending me Dr Lim and Dr Prem and the Brickfields Vet. I can't think of any other people I will take Bessy to, anymore.

Thanks Jess! For giving ideas on how to get back on Mr Don't-Give-A-Shit Siva.

Thanks Geek! For always asking about her and giving me moral support. Bessy is waiting for you to visit her here so she can shake your hand and thank you too. (Mental note: Must teach Bessy to shake hands.)

Thanks Puiyan! For thinking about her, even though you are so many miles away. Bessy will shake paws with you next time you come back. Hopefully, she will know how to by then.

Thanks Lucy! For your thoughts. Bessy is thinking about you, too. Yes, even when she is peeing.

Bessy is so lucky and blessed to have so many people thinking about her, asking about her and praying for her.

Thank you everyone. You have no idea how much your support meant to me.

:)