Sunday, December 18, 2005

I want what she's got

There I am lying in bed wondering about the derivative of the word 'whippersnapper'. Now most people have better things to do with their time, in bed, on a Sunday morning, than think of such things. Such is my life now! Anyway, according to the Oxford English dictionary the word is probably 17th century and comes from 'whip snapper' - expressing noise and unimportance. So there you go.

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It's interesting to note the change in Max's behaviour since Min arrived. The first obvious difference is that he now bolts his food just in case Minnie gets anywhere near. He has always grazed rather than scoffed but he now wants to finish his food quickly because she sits in the wings waiting to dive into his bowl. Another change is how he handles treats. We buy leather 'bones' for them to chew and out of deference to his size, we give Max a large bone and Minnie a small one. Because Min gets something different, Max shows no interest in his large bone and is only happy when he gets a small one like Min. I suppose that's interesting if you're a dog watcher, but boring if not!


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Despite my poor behaviour over the last few weeks, I'm surprised when I weigh myself this morning to find that I've lost another half kilo. I'm scheduled to see Dr K, the nutritionist, tomorrow and had been thinking about cancelling the appointment on the basis that if I weigh more now, and I will certainly weigh more after Christmas, then one bollocking is better than two. I'll see what I weigh in the morning and then make a decision.


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Guests start descending on us, on Tuesday, and they will all have arrived by Thursday, so it's more tidying up, tarting up the house and chopping wood. Jan makes two pasta dishes for dinner, one, a strange shaped pasta that we bought when we last visited Rapallo, with a pesto sauce, and the other, at my request, is a simple olive oil and chilli flavoured one. It's Sunday night and there's nothing on television so Jan decides to make a panforte, a delicious Italian delicacy made with honey, nuts and candied fruit. We're not talking low cal here!

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