Sky Fans – Conversations with Doodlebug and Sweetie

I am Doodlebug, King of the Olde English Bulldogges.

Sweetie: Complaint!

Me: What else is new?

Doodlebug: It’s hot, Lady Human.

Me: Yes, I noticed that.

Sweetie: The sky fans aren’t pulling their weight.

Me: The ceiling fans are turned on full blast.

Sweetie: Not good enough!

Doodlebug: We need more sky fans. There! And there! And there! And…

Me: Sorry. There’s no more room for more ceiling fans. We’ll just have to make do.

Sweetie: Make do? Is that another human failure thing?

Copyright 2024 H.J. Hill. All Rights Reserved.

Why Shouldn’t Bulldogs Have Good Manners? – Conversations with the Pack

I am Doodlebug, King of the Olde English Bulldogges.

Me: Why are you banging your metal bowls around?

Sweetie: Because they are empty.

Me: That’s because you already ate your supper.

Doodlebug: They do make a nice sound when they knock together.

Me: Not at midnight, they don’t. Y’all need better manners.

Doodlebug: Since when?

Sweetie: Yeah, we’re bulldogs. We don’t need no silly manners.

MoonCat: That right there says all you need to know about bulldogs.

Copyright 2024 H.J. Hill. All Rights Reserved.

Break the Monotony – Conversations with Sweetie

Sweetie: Roll, roll, roll your boat, gently down the cardboard…

Me: Sweetie, that’s not exactly how the old song goes.

Sweetie: It’s not your old human song, ma’am. It’s my new bulldog song. Nothing like a vigorous roll on the cardboard box accompanied by a loud song.

Me: Well, it is fun to watch.

Sweetie: Humans should try it. It’s a lot less boring than watching the Picture Box.

Copyright 2024 H.J. Hill. All Rights Reserved.

Commenting in Your Sleep – Conversations with the Pack

I am Doodlebug, King of the Olde English Bulldogges.

Me: How well I know! What’s the problem, boy?

Doodlebug: Problem? What problem? There’s no problem.

Sweetie: She means why are you barking in your sleep?

Doodlebug: I was doing no such thing!

MoonCat: Yes. You were. Admit the truth, bulldog! You all are blabbermouths even when you sleep.

Doodlebug: Well, if I was talking in my sleep, and that’s a big IF, it’s because I had something to say. So…what did I say?

Sweetie: I dunno.

MoonCat: Who cares?

Me: I needed an interpreter.

Doodlebug: It could have been the most important thing ever said and you humans have all these phones and recording dealywhoppers and nobody captured my special comments…

Sweetie: Whoa there, big boy! Let’s not get carried away! Not every burp that you let loose smells like roses.

Copyright 2024 H.J. Hill. All Rights Reserved.

Step Aside! – Conversations with the Pack

I am Doodlebug, King of the Olde English Bulldogges.

Sweetie: And I am Sweetie and no one enters here unless I say so. And I don’t.

Me: Why are you body blocking me?

Sweetie: Because I can.

Me: Excuse me!

Sweetie: Nope.

Me: I need to pass, please.

Sweetie: I don’t think so.

MonnCat: I am so glad that I can just jump over bulldogs.

Me: I need to get over there.

Sweetie: Or what?

Me: Or there won’t be any food in your bowl.

Sweetie: Oh, well, that’s different. I didn’t know you were doing something useful at last. Proceed.

Copyright 2024 H.J. Hill. All Rights Reserved.

Herd Dog – Conversations with the Pack

I am Doodlebug, King of the Olde English Bulldogges.

Sweetie: Everybody, get over there now. That’s an order!

Me: Hold on! I’m working on something here.

Sweetie: Too bad. Too sad. Everybody goes over there right now.

Me: Are you trying to herd us? We aren’t cows and you aren’t a working dog.

Doodlebug: You got that right, Lady Human. More like a sleeping dog.

MoonCat: I believe I will just take myself out of this cattle herd right now and go back to the ranch. Nobody herds cats.

Sweetie: Hey! Yeehah! Look at me! I’m a cowboy. This is a roundup! They don’t call me “bull” dog for nothin’.

Me, Doodlebug and MoonCat: Oh, great!

Copyright 2024 H.J. Hill. All Rights Reserved.

Common Courtesy – Conversations with the Pack

I am Doodlebug, King of the Olde English Bulldogges. Hey, watch out! How are the humans going to know I am the King if you interrupt me.

Sweetie: How indeed? Move aside! Coming through!

Me: Ow, that’s my foot.

Sweetie: Your foot should be more careful where it puts itself.

MoonCat: I’m just going to put myself in a nice out of the way corner until this is over.

Me: We need to start exercising a little common courtesy around here.

Sweetie: Okay. How little?

Doodlebug: And how common?

Copyright 2024 H.J. Hill. All Rights Reserved.

Persnickety – Conversations with Doodlebug and Sweetie

I am Doodlebug, King of the Olde English Bulldogges.

Sweetie: Hmmph.

Me: Okay, I know that hmmph. What’s wrong?

Sweetie: My water has a funny smell.

Me: Only if it’s a smell you put in it just now. I washed your bowl and refilled it not half an hour ago.

Sweetie: Smell it.

Me: Sorry, I don’t smell a thing.

Doodlebug: She means use your bulldog nose.

Me: I don’t have a bulldog nose.

Sweetie: Can you order one? From that place that sends all the great cardboard boxes?

Copyright 2024 H.J. Hill. All Rights Reserved.

Not Again! – Conversations with Doodlebug & Sweetie

I am Doodlebug, King of the Olde English Bulldogges. Okay, not again! LADY HUMAN!

Sweetie: What have you done now, Lady Human?

Me: Not a thing. I’m enjoying the power outages just like the rest of you.

Sweetie: Where is my fan air?

Me: Same place as my lamp light.

Doodlebug: You can use the Great Creator’s Big Light. It’s on. For right now.

Me: And you can breathe and enjoy His fresh air. It’s on, too.

Sweetie: Bulldogs have certain minimum requirements that are not being met.

Me: Why don’t we all just settle down and relax?

Doodlebug: Relax? We are full-blown bulldogs! How little you know us!

Copyright 2024 H.J. Hill. All Rights Reserved.

Wailing Skies – Conversations with the Pack

May 28, 2024, 6:05 a.m.

I am Doodlebug, King of the Olde English Bulldogges.

Sweetie: The sky is wailing, Lady Human. Please tell it to shut up.

Me: That’s the Tornado Warning.

Sweetie: So this is another human mess.

Me: Well, the siren is human, but no, we did not invent tornadoes.

Doodlebug: Don’t they know some of us are trying to sleep?

MoonCat: They don’t care about such things. Interruptions are their forte.

Me: Nobody is supposed to sleep just now. That siren says they have detected a hook cloud in the county. That means nearby.

Sweetie: Does this mean an early breakfast?

Me: It can. Is that why you came to get me?

Sweetie: No, I came to get you because I love you. And I wanted to visit with you. And to see if I could get an early breakfast.

BOOM!

Sweetie: Oh, Lady Humaaannn. The patio door’s open.

Me: Oh, great! The wind blew it open! The latch can’t hold it. I’ll have to.

Doodlebug: If the door’s open, we can all go outside to pee.

Me: Nobody is going outside to do anything. We are hunkering down. Except for me. I’m holding the door closed. Yay.

MoonCat: Consider me hunkered down. Y’all sleep tight.

Doodlebug: How long will this go on?

Me: Until the storm passes.

Sweetie: Who turned off the lights? How am I supposed to see my breakfast…when it eventually gets here?

Me: Power’s off. And now we’ve lost the phone and the internet, too.

Doodlebug: Point me in the right direction. I’ll go sniff ’em out.

Me: Sorry, Doodle. It don’t work that way.

Sweetie: The door is pushing you, Lady Human! Bulldog it! You’re plenty big enough!

Me: At least the steel gate is holding. That’s working.

Sweetie: Nothing else around here seems to be. Okay, time for early breakfast!

Me: Sorry, girl. You’ll have to wait until I can let go of the door.

Sweetie: See, Doodle! Keeping the wind and rain out of the house is more important to humans than breakfast. They have their priorities all wrong.

Copyright 2024 H.J. Hill. All Rights Reserved.

Change the Sheets – Conversations with the Pack

I am Doodlebug, King of the Olde English Bulldogges. Lady Human! Service, please!

Me: Already?

Doodlebug: Sniff. Sniff. Sniff. My bed blankets need changing.

Me: I just gave you clean blankets last night.

Doodlebug: Yes, but these smell yucky now.

Sweetie: Yeah, they smell like him.

MoonCat: Need I say more?

Copyright 2024 H.J. Hill. All Rights Reserved.

Litter Box Privileges – Conversations with MoonCat

Me: MoonCat? What are you doing all the way back here?

MoonCat: Exploring the wonderful bulldog-free mysteries of this palace.

Me: Well, It’s not exactly a palace…

MoonCat: It has rooms, floors, halls, doors, and this lovely litter box cubicle. Of course, it’s a palace. And no bulldogs.

Me: Well, every once in a while they wander in here.

MoonCat: Don’t spoil it for me, Lady Human.

Me: And this is my bathroom, not a litter box cubicle.

MoonCat: You could have fooled me.

Copyright 2024 H.J. Hill. All Rights Reserved.

Goofy Hats – Conversations with Doodlebug and Sweetie

I am Doodlebug, King of the Olde English Bulldogges. What are you laughing at, Lady Human? And Sweetie, how come you’re laughing, too? I’m serious. I’m not funny.

Me: Your head. A flower drifted down from a tree and it’s sitting on your head like a tiny hat.

Sweetie: You look goofy.

Doodlebug: Get it off! I can’t look goofy! I’m the king!

Me: It’s just a flower.

Doodlebug: No one will take me seriously.

Sweetie: Too late. No one ever has.

Me: It’s alright. It just blew away.

Doodlebug: Good. No tree should put a hat on me anyway. Now I’m normal.

Sweetie: I wouldn’t say that.

Copyright 2024 H.J. Hill. All Rights Reserved.

To Improve Promptness – Conversations with Doodlebug and Sweetie

I am Doodlebug, King of the Olde English Bulldogges. Service! Service here now!

Me: Hold your horses!

Doodlebug: We have no horses to hold.

Sweetie: But if we did, you’d better believe we could hold them.

Me: I’m mean, what’s the hurry?

Doodlebug: Me. I’m the hurry.

Me: It’s not like you’re going to give me a tip.

Sweetie: Tip?

Me: Yeah, a reward “to improve promptness”.

Doodlebug: Here’s a tip. Promptly let me outside or you will promptly be cleaning up the floor.

Me: Fair enough.

Copyright 2024 H.J. Hill. All Rights Reserved.

Be Reasonable – Conversations with Sweetie

Me: Sweetie, stop!

Sweetie: Stop what?

Me: Think for a second. What are you doing right now?

Sweetie: Talking to you.

Me: Before that.

Sweetie: Minding my own business.

Me: You were chewing on the corner of the plastic box.

Sweetie: Oh, that. That’s just a hobby of mine.

Me: Stop it. Why would you even do that?

Sweetie: Because…fun.

Me: It’s not food. It can’t taste very good. And it could harm you if you swallow any of it. Be reasonable.

Sweetie: Oh, you mean like humans?

Me: We don’t chew on plastic.

Sweetie: No, you just chew on everything else.

Copyright 2024 H. J. Hill. All Rights Reserved.

Buckets and Mops and Brooms! Oh, My! – Conversations with the Pack

I am Doodlebug, King of the Olde English Bulldogges.

Sweetie: We are under attack! Man your stations! I mean, Dog your stations!

Me: I have never understood this. This is a bucket. This is a mop. This is a broom. What is the problem?

Doodlebug: We are outnumbered!

Sweetie: Yeah, we can’t count on the cat.

MoonCat: Why should I interfere when those things clean up bulldog dirt?

Doodlebug: And I’m not sure which side Lady Human is on.

Sweetie: Look out! That broom thing has swept up some spilled food! Don’t worry! I’ll save you!

Me: Save food by eating it? Okay, I guess.

Sweetie: Y’all can keep that other crumbly stuff.

Doodlebug: Yeah, we’ll arrange to track more in later.

Copyright 2024 H.J. Hill. All Rights Reserved.