Am I Dumb?

No... not stupid dumb, which I'm sure many of you would think that was what I meant. I'm a smart dog ok? Although my M is sniggering at the thought that I would be smart. I subscribe to Mr Kiasu's philosophy, which is to "Act Blur, Think Smart".

Going back to the word dumb, what I meant was 'soundless', as in, I'm a very quiet dog. What made me suddenly think of this? Well, this morning, as my M was brushing me downstairs, we bumped into our neighbour, who commented that she has never heard me bark. My M told her that I'm a very quiet dog, and she asked if I'm a mute.

Which brings me to this story. In the following months after my M adopted me, she suddenly received a call from her dad at work. Mind you, it was such an important question that her dad could not wait til she comes home. He needs to find out immediately!

The first question he asked when she picked up the phone was "An zua li buay ji jia eh gao ting lai". For the benefit of those non- teochew speakers, it meant "Why did you bring a mute dog back?".

For a moment, my own beloved M became speechless too. I hope her dad didn't think that speechlessness was contagious. Anyway she assured him that I can bark, my voice box is still intact, it's just that I seldom bark. Until now, her dad has never heard me bark. Her mum only heard me bark once, and it was a singular bark.

Barking continuously is so tiring, I'd rather conserve my energy. And by not barking, the humans cannot teach me the 'speak' command. Just ask Tommy and Scuba now. They will have to 'speak' whenever the humans command them, so that they can get their favourite food or toy.

Me? I just act blur when they ask me to speak. Sooner or later, they will get sick of trying to teach me the command and give me the food anyway. See? Mr Kiasu's philisophy works. I don't have to bark like Tommy and Scuba but I still get what I want.

Now that's what I call smart.