The Rose

I have been thinking about Leeloo a lot lately but whenever she comes to mind it is often with a different nickname assigned depending on my or her mood. For the record the light wheaton Ridgeback bitch who resides in my house is variously known as follows:
Leeloo
Loodoo
Loo-lah
Low-lees
Boo
Boo boo
Boobie
Booooo-beeees
Doo doo
Doo-dah
Bubby
Bubba
Bubbalicious
Chubbalicious
Chubbs
Chubby
Doo-doo
Doo-dee
Doo-dee pants
Doodle-icious
Doodie-pie
Doh-dee
Doo-dah poopypie
Toes
Toe toes
Toad
Toady-pie

And there you have it. I think that's all of them although I might have missed one or two. And yes, I use them often enough to actually remember that these are the ones I use - I didn't make any up just to have a list. It also means I talk to the dogs way too much using stupid words and need to get out more.

Esme is also known as Tiny. Raimi is also known as Boy. They don't have upwards of twenty nonsense word names a la The Teletubbies. Why Leeloo has so many is a mystery but they are all commonly said in a sing-song voice which she appears to love. She responds to all of them but I gather it's more the tone than the actual word. She knows I'm talking to/about her, does her silly, happy twist and the dorky tail wag which smacks her in the face and presents her bottom to me for scratching. How I love that gal.

All that said, the urge to murder Leeloo has slowly subsided of late due to the fact I have successfully thwarted her ability to access any kind of garbage in the house. This has resulted in a much more peaceful co-existence. She is becoming a bit more clingy and is utterly convinced I am starving her to death. She does have some stores set by (hence the Chubbalicious name), surely in preparation for the possibility of a litter of puppies, so I am not too worried about her fading away into nothing despite her assurances she will DIE if I don't feed her more.

A rose by any other name is still a darling Leeloo.