Sunday, July 17, 2011

The Personification of Animate and Inanimate Objects

Yesterday, at an estate sale, I bought a noddy-dog. I haven't seen a noddy-dog in years and years and years (not since I was a kid). Yesterday the opportunity presented itself and I took it. I bought an honest-to-God, genuine, made in Japan, noddy-dog.
I think part of the reason I bought it was because it was a noddy-hound dog with a (very) remote similarity to Ray. Gregg kept silent as I showed it to him. He tried valiantly not to roll his eyes as I placed it gently on the dashboard of my car and proudly drove us home. Noddy, appropriately enough, nodded all the way.
I had a vague idea that I would relocate Noddy to the house once we got home, but he seemed perfectly happy on the dash so I left him there.
Noddy
Later in the day when I drove out, Noddy smiled and nodded as we went hither and yon. When I accelerated, his neck would stretch waaaay up, kind of like Ray's does whenever I mention Izzy's name. When I stopped, his neck would go down and retract kind of like Ray when he is standing at the front door. I realized that he also had a kind of worried look on his face, the same one Ray gets whenever we leave the house and I tell him every time, "Ray stay. Take care of the cats and keep an eye on the house. OK?"
His resemblance to Ray seemed to grow as the day progressed. Whenever I would turn a corner, Noddy would look at me with his glassy stare and tilt his head just so - just like Ray does when I talk to him.
Then I noticed that Rabbit (who has been sitting on the corner of my dash for a couple of years) was giving Noddy a LOOK. It had a bit of disdain in it. A kind of evil rabbity-ness (rabbity evil-ness?).

Rabbit
I felt kind of bad for Noddy knowing that he couldn't move his neck far enough to even know that Rabbit was there sneering at him. Noddy could just nod agreeably and stare blindly ahead.
Then I realized that that was another Ray trait, a blithe disregard for his blindness; a soldiering on without bothering about what others might think.
Noddy and Ray are kindred spirits. Happy in their obliviousness and existing only to do what they do best. In Noddy's case, it's nod and ride around town on the dash of a car. In Ray's case, it's flop on his back and lure people into giving him belly rubs.
Ray doing what he does best



7 comments:

  1. I can guarantee a Ray blog update never fails to enhance my day in some way.....thank you for being there Ray (and Jean, lol) I am so glad that a) I found you and b) you continue to write this blog
    (hope Gregg is still doing well)
    This morning I especially needed a boost and now I will be able to chuckle all day about Noddy and Rabbit, in fact I want a Noddy too !!!

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  2. I'm never sure which blogs are going to make people laugh. I'll write something and expect a bunch of comments and get deafening silence or I'll write something and expect nothing and there will be comments galore. It's a mystery to me.
    Glad you enjoyed Ray the Blind Dog this morning and that it gave you a chuckle. It always makes my day to see comments on my postings. Keeps me going knowing that people are out there reading. So thanks, Niki.

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  3. Thank you Niki for putting into words the way I also feel about Ray's blog. If anyone finds a place where I also can get a Noddy dog let me know (in the NVa area). Hugs Ray. Brenda

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  4. That's so funny! When we first got Josey, I bought a nodder(on eBay probably) that looked a little like her. Jordan and I then took acrylic paints and painted it to look JUST like her, spots in the right places and everything! Steve had it on his dashboard forever. Wish I knew what had happened to that thing - probably around somewhere...

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  5. If you find it, take a picture! I want to see!

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  6. Will do, but highly unlikely - last time I remember seeing it was about 3 moves ago...

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