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To fix this, just uninstall the Hewlett-Packard software using the provided HP Uninstaller.app. HP support provided a solution, but it is not necessary - actually, not possible to - install just the scanner software first. Just reinstall the whole package and this problem will go away.

Not sure what spooked Mango last night but he dashed back and forth among several spots in the living room for close to 5 minutes. Smelly and i were both completely amazed and were laughing our asses off.

Mango napping in the backyard.

Mango napping in the messenger-style sling bag.

Yesterday, i voiced my concern to the trainer Diane as nothing was coming out of the tail end of Mango. She returned my call this morning and told me that it may take a few more days for him to get used to his environment. At the breeder’s place, Mango had tons of space to roam around. I have a very tiny yard so it may take longer for Mango to digest his food.

I took today off from work because i worked about two weekends ago for a scheduled downtime event. I spent most of the day trying to get Mango used to the leash in the backyard without much success. For some reason, he just does not like being put on leash in the backyard. He has no problem when i took him for a small walk in the parking lot. I spent most of the day trying to train Mango to sit. Out of about sixty tries, using bits and pieces of chicken jerky as treat, Mango only managed to sit down twice when i tried it without offering him any treat.

This afternoon, i took Mango for a walk to the nearby Petco to get him a dog tag. Mango did really well while on leash until we arrived at the spot directly across from the Velvet Foam. He refused to move forward so i dropped him in the dog carrier bag that Smelly bought yesterday from Railey’s leash & treat in Fremont. On our way back, i let Mango out of the bag and put him back on leash. We were able to walk back without Mango pulling and tugging at the leash.

When we got home, after Mango drank some water, i took him to the backyard on leash. But again, he was pulling and tugging at the leash, screaming and whining like a pig being slaughtered. I took him back inside since it was dinner time for him, i fed him the usual. He ate about half of his dinner and after a sip of water, i decided to take him outside again. This time round, Mango did not throw up as much resistance as before. He led me to the patch of garlic chives and peed there. I managed to repeat “go pee” several times. I thought he was done after that. He tried to dive into the corner behind the pot of different types of mint but i held on to the leash. He made two failed attempts before heading over to the usual peeing spot.

It was then i heard what sounded like a wet fart. And there it was, two of the happiest turd that i have ever seen came crawling out of his butt!

Today’s success stories:
- Mango pooed for the first time since i picked him up on Saturday morning.
- Mango signaled to us that he wanted to pee and when we took him to the backyard, he peed immediately. Twice.
- I was able to take him for a relatively longer walk on leash without him giving me too much trouble.
- Mango finally conquered his fear of the area past the living room. I fed him dinner in the kitchen and i didn’t even have to carry him there. I think the two walks we did today helped.
- Mango did not finish his dinner the first time time but after pooping, he went back for seconds.
- He showed no fear and played with his new tunnel toy that we bought from Ikea.

Mango emerged from one end of the tunnel toy.

Mango with his new tunnel toy from Ikea.

Mango resting after playing with his new tunnel toy.

Things to work on:
- To make Mango sit on command.
- To get him used to being crated for about two hours each time.

With Mango’s first success in pooping, there will also be another first for me. Now i have to go clean up what he left behind, picking up poo for the first time in my life.

Yesterday was Mango’s first day at home. He ate very little. Leslie, the breeder, told us that it is very common for puppy not to eat the normal portion on its first few days in a new environment. He didn’t drink all that much water either.

During our training session with Diane, she gave us a daily schedule:
0600: Walk (take Mango out to the same potty spot)
0630: Feed, water and walk
0900: Water and walk
1200: Feed, water and walk
1430: Water and walk
1730: Feed, water and walk
1900: Water and walk
Before bedtime: Walk

The idea is to get Mango used to eliminating after feeding or drinking. Every time Mango pees or poos, i am supposed to say “go pee” or “go poo” to help him associate the words with potty. However, in real life, implementing it is a lot more difficult.

Since Mango ate very little yesterday, he had no solid waste. Other than peeing right after arriving home yesterday, he did not pee for the remaining of the day.

For the first night, to help Mango deal with being separated from him mom and his siblings, i put his crate next to my bed before i went to sleep. Mango woke me up at 0200 so i took him outside. He wandered around and finally peed about 15 - 30 minutes later.

To follow Diane’s schedule, i woke up at 0600 and took Mango to the backyard. He did not pee. After hanging in the backyard for about 30 minutes, i took Mango back inside to feed him. For some reason, he seems to fear going into the area past the dining table and my kitchen is past the dining area. For feeding him, i mixed less than 1/3 cup of Chicken Meal & Brown Rice Medley by Nature’s Variety with a little bit of boiling water and about a spoonful of Evanger’s canned rabbit meat. After eating probably no more than 5 or 6 pellets of kibble, Mango took off and refused to eat again. I then took him to the backyard to the spot where he peed early in the morning but nothing.

When Smelly was ready to take over, i went back to bed. At around noon, it was time to feed Mango again. But he refused to eat the leftover from the morning. I took him to the backyard anyway but again, he did not eliminate. After hanging out in the backyard for about an hour, Smelly and i decided to take Mango out with us for lunch. We thought that the best place to take him would be a supposedly dog-friendly eatery like the Baguette Box in Fremont. We had been to the Baguette Box in Fremont several times and one thing you will not miss when you are there is the number of dog-related posters and pictures. In fact, there is a note asking for pictures of dogs. Unfortunately, when we arrived there, after inquiring with one of the Baguette Box staffs, Smelly was told that we could not bring Mango into the store. While Smelly was ordering and waiting for our lunch, i took Mango to the canal.

Mango in messenger-style carrier bag in front of the rocket in Fremont.

As Mango was still throwing some serious resistance in being led by the leash, i had to carry him. Mango was a people magnet, especially women. I cannot remember how many times i was stopped by complete strangers wooing and wowing over him. Had i known that it is so easy to get girls to talk to me, i would have had a puppy many many years ago! Later, we had lunch in a shady area near the canal.

After lunch, we stopped by at a pet store in Fremont and bought a messenger-type bag for carrying Mango. The main advantage in carrying Mango in a bag is that i do not have to carry him using my hand. Another advantage (or disadvantage depending on how you see it) is that since only Mango’s head is popping out of the bag, his visible profile is smaller and he is therefore attracting less attention. When we arrived home, we let Mango out to the backyard. Apparently Mango jumped onto one of the plants in the backyard and peed. But he did it too quickly for Smelly and i to utter “go pee”.

Mango drank a lot of water in the afternoon but no matter what we did, he just won’t pee. We started to get kind of worried because that a dog’s bladder can burst if he holds it for too long. And the fact that he was not eating doubled our worries.

After picking up dinner from a nearby Thai restaurant with Mango in the carrier bag, i made dinner for him. Instead of feeding Mango in the kitchen, i fed him in the area between the living room and the dining area. Smelly and i were ecstatic to finally see him eat. He almost finished the bowl of food! Immediately after dinner, i took Mango out with on leash to the backyard to eliminate. This time round, he did not disappoint me. He finally peed! I managed to repeat “go pee” several times while he was at it. And it was a pretty big pool of warm yellow liquid goodness. Prior to that moment, i didn’t even care if Mango urinated in the house - knock on wood, he has not done this yet - as long as he relieved himself.

Now, i am the one who is relieved.

Prior to upgrading to 2.0, since i stopped traveling months ago, there was no longer a need for me to use T-Mobile’s WiFi Hotspots, i changed my data plan from the $19.99 Total Internet Plan to the $5.99 T-Mobile Web plan. When i did that, i realized Yahoo! push email stopped working. After upgrading to iPhone firmware 2.0, Yahoo! push email is still not working. In addition, i cannot get Apple’s MobileMe to work correctly as well. Changes that i make in my iPhone are synchronized correctly but changes made elsewhere are not updated to my iPhone.

Update:
After switching back to the $19.99 T-Mobile Total Internet Add-On, Yahoo! push email and MobileMe over-the-air sync are both working.

We arrived slightly before 1000 at Leslie’s beautiful home, earlier than usual because we had a noon appointment with a well-known dog trainer Diane Rich. On arrival, we were greeted by Leslie’s Japanese Akita Kai and her Leonberger Hef.

Kai - the Akita from Japan.

The Leoberger and the Akita.

We played with Mango and her two other remaining litter mate.

Mango and i in the fenced playpen.

After signing the contract and listening to some advices given by Leslie, she gave us some toys and some treats for Mango, including a stuffed toy with KD’s (Mango’s mom) scent.

Mango, as expected, threw up in his crate while on our way back home in his first journey in a car. The first thing we did on arrival at home with Diane, was to take Mango to the backyard. After some hesitation, Mango peed near edge of the paved rock and Rosemary bushes. He then found a hiding spot behind the stone Lion statue.

Mango found a shady spot under the patio umbrella.

Mango spent most of the late afternoon napping.

Mango taking a nap.

Mango resting under the late afternoon sun next to Smelly.

Mango resting under the late afternoon sun next to Smelly.

Mango resting on his paws.

If it’s not sold out yet in your local movie theaters, watch it!

This morning, i read an announcement made at E3 that some time this fall, it will be possible to watch some Netflix movies on demand on Xbox 360, without the need for Windows Vista! Yes!!! Adios Vista!

This is the first time that i have gone crabbing. The concept of shrimping and crabbing is very similar when using pots. The idea is to attract crabs with some bait into a trap that they cannot get out of. Crabbing offers some additional advantages over shrimping. The most important one for me is i do not need a boat. Because it is possible to harvest crab off a dock or pier, less bulky trap like the ring net can be employed. On Saturday, we had two crab pots and a ring net.

Preparing the bait cage for the crab pot with some razor clams. (Picture courtesy of Smelly)

We filled the bait cages with some leftover cans of salmon-flavored cat food from my shrimping trip last year. We also tried using the leftover razor clams as well. Both types of baits worked quite well but i think a solid bait like the razor clam is probably better because it does not disintegrate into little pieces from being thrown around numerous times.

Tossing the ring net. (Picture courtesy of Smelly)

With crab pots, once they are dropped in the water, they can probably remain there for a very long time since any crab that get into the pot will not be able to get out. With the ring net, it has to be checked every 15 - 20 minutes. Our first keeper was a male Red Rock crab caught using the ring net.

Holding down the big Red Rock crab. (Picture courtesy of Smelly)

Ian showing us how to identify the sex of the Red Rock crab. (Picture courtesy of Smelly)

Ian - the crab meister - in action. (Picture courtesy of Smelly).

Ian hauled up two Red Rock crabs. (Picture courtesy of Smelly)

We caught several other Red Rock crabs but they were legally too small to keep. Washington state law requires a minimum size of 5″ for Red Rock crabs (male or female). For Dungeness crabs, they must be at least 6.25″ wide and only male crabs can be kept. The male crab can be identified by the narrower abdomen at its underside.

Mike measuring the size of the catch with a crab ruler. (Picture courtesy of Smelly).

Crab to me: You want a piece of me?

Smelly and i had to leave earlier because we had an appointment with Leslie Engen of San Jo Shibas. This was to be our final visit for our Shiba puppy prior to picking him up the following weekend. Yes, the puppy has been selected out of the four. More on that in another post.

After dealing with the blood vessel-bursting traffic from the East side back to Seattle, due mainly to the shutdown of SR520, Smelly and i walked about two blocks for the annual West Seattle street fair to have some food. The food selections appeared to be lesser than the previous year. I had a pork bratwurst from Ziegler’s Bratwurst.

Janet standing in front of Ziegler’s Bratwurst at the annual West Seattle street fair.

Munching down a pork bratwurst with Sauerkraut and onions. (Picture courtesy of Smelly)