What's With This Mr Fox No.12 Thing Anyway?

SUMMARY: A little actual explanation.

Updated at various times after the original post--scroll down to the end for the breaking news.

Two or three or four years ago, posts between Sidney Thompson and various friends started popping up in my Facebook feed. They were witty, clever, entertaining, educated... sometimes made me laugh out loud. As I learned more, I discovered that Sidney is a Kromfohrländer, an uncommon dog breed that makes for cute and energetic photos, who lives in Cornwall, England, and performs uncommon activities (for a dog. Actually for a person, too).

Sidney in a contemplative moment.

And Sidney rules the world. I mean, not just like an ordinary pet would: He is fabulously wealthy (owns estates, islands, and possibly entire countries), fabulously talented (I believe that he once won both Wimbledon and the Tour de France on the same weekend), fabulously successful (he has run for  Prime Minister on several occasions), deeply generous (he allows his Assistants to sleep in the cubby under the stairwell despite their frequent pathetic activities).

And about the Assistants--poor, abused, ignorant slaves that they are--they post for him on FB (he's likely too busy to bother) and he dispenses wisdom through them.  It's always clear when he's being quoted:

Sidney says it's his 7th birthday today and let's face it, with all the doomsters, purveyors of misery and general negative thinking out there, he's sure his friends will join him in celebrating a true global community and positive force for good. For those that can't handle colour in their lives, here he is in black and white (as a pup) he says.

or such snapshots of his life:

Sidney says autumn is officially here and the grand fireplace has been brought back into use. It’s a rainy night so he’s sent his assistants outside to chop wood, he says.

Somewhere along the line, Sidney and Mr Fox (who eventually became No.1) met up and formed a partnership. Mr Fox No.1 traveled a bit and posted photos of himself doing fun things.  Fans of Sidney started clamoring for Mr Fox to visit *them*, too, so they could take Mr Fox to fun places and do fun things. Lo, it was discovered that Mr Fox was just one in a litter of some as-yet undefined huge number of Mr Foxes-- first about 7, then maybe 10, then about 16 by 2017 as reported in Vogue...

...then by Sept 2018 even more...

Sept 2018: Sidney says as well as being his birthday today, not that he's making big deal of it or anything, it is also the birthday of all of the Mr Foxes. It was a rather large brood (as well as being a big lass their mother was a real vixen). Below is a list of all the Mr Foxes. Sidney would be grateful if they could be pampered for the rest of the day, he says:

• Mr Fox no.1:   Top Fox. @ Sidney HQ.
• Mr Fox no.2:   Breaking Bad fox @ Sidney HQ
• Mr Fox no.3:   Roxy Foxy, in Sidney's limousine @ Sidney HQ
• Mr Fox no.4:   Mr Typically Tropical (f.k.a. Ultrafox). Worldwide traveller. Currently having a rest @ Sidney HQ
• Mr Fox no.5:   a.k.a Twiggy. Living the dream with Auntie Chris (HAG, AA) and Auntie Cynthia in Salt Lake City, USA
• Mr Fox no.6:   a.k.a. Trevr. Living with Auntie Gail (SHAG, AA) in Colorado, USA.
• Mr Fox no.7 & Mr Fox no.9:   the original Australian foxes. Currently resting @ Sidney HQ
• Mr Fox no.8:   Arctic Fox. Living with Auntie Virva (SHAG) and Bruce the Moose in Oulu, Finland.
• Mr Fox no.10:   a.k.a Mr fox no.10 from no.10. Living with Auntie Catherine (SHAG SAG SNOG) at Cotterill Towers, Stafford.
• Mr Fox no.11:   a.k.a. Brendan Foxter. London Marathon runner. Living with Uncle Andy (MUG) in Cheshire, also his running partner and personal trainer.
• Mr Fox no.12:   California Fox. Living a hippy lifestyle with Auntie Ellen (AA, HAG) in San Jose.
• Mr Fox no.13:   Lady Vixen a.k.a. Dark Fox. f.k.a. Lucky Fox. Shacked up with Sidney's nemesis Sparkle the Cat, NTAL and Auntie Judith (HAG) at Beamer's Castle in Porthleven, Cornwall.
• Mr Fox no.14:   Mr Chelan Fox. Living with Auntie Gailanne (HAG, AA) next to Lake Chelan, Washington State, USA.
• Mr Fox no.15:   Living with Cousins Elsa and Will and Auntie Karin (AA) in Peoria, Illinois.
• Mr Fox no.16:   OzFox resting in Perth, Western Australia with Uncle Rob (MUG) & Auntie Ellie having completed a 20,000km circumnavigation of Australia on a motorbike and then crossed it again just to visit IKEA in Brisbane.
• Mr Fox no.17:   Baltic Fox or Konsta's Fox. With Cousin Konsta and Milla in Savonlinna, Finland.
• Mr Fox no.18:   The new Ultrafox. Living with Auntie Sylvia and Uncle Wolfgang near Vienna / Wien.
• Mr Fox no.19:   Hendricks Pinkman or 'HP Fox', a.k.a Neville's Fox. Living with little bro' Neville, Auntie Carol (SNOG) and Uncle Paul (MUG) in Reading, UK.
• Mr Fox no.20:   Living with Auntie Susann in Hannover.
• Mr Fox no.21:   Tamar Fox, living with Auntie Sally in the Tamar Valley.
• Mrs Fox no.22:   Brigit Bordeaux. Living with Auntie Ozzy & Cousin Mes in Frankfurt.
• Mr Fox no.23:   Wire Terrier Fox (WTF). Living with cousin Bertie Pickle, Auntie Tracey (SNOG) and Uncle Neil in the Hundred Acre Wood, Narnia.
• Mr Fox no.24:   Retro Fox, Living with Uncle Paul Jones (MUG) in Essex.
• Mr Fox no.25:   Africa Fox, living with Auntie Fiona Cameron (SHAG SNOG) in London.
• Mr Fox no.26:   a.k.a. Huron Valley Fox, living with Auntie Mary Dixon (AA) in Michigan, USA.
• Mr Fox no.27:   Living with Auntie Brydie (SHAG SAG) in Staffordshire
• Mr Fox no.28:   Wees Fox, living with Auntie Jan (AA) at Wees Farm, New Jersey.
• Mr Fox no.29:   living with Auntie-in-Chief Oma Carla, Staffordshire
• Mr Fox no.30:   Blaze's Fox, with Uncle Paul in north Essex.

2019 birthday update: 

Sidney says Auntie Virva just reminded him of this comprehensive list of his Mr Foxes. He's aware that a year ago his assistants should have sent Mr Fox no.31 to Auntie Georgette and there are a couple more homes that deserve a Mr Fox as well. Please bear in mind that his assistants are of a very limited ability and barking at them doesn't have any effect. Believe him he's tried, he says.

April 2020 updates to list: See end of this post.

The original plan, when only a few Fox brethren had been discovered, was that each fox would stay with someone a while and then that someone would mail it on to the next person on the list.  Well, somehow, some Mr Foxes started being assigned permanent positions.  Right now, it's not entirely clear to me which of our Mr Foxes really should be moving along to new assignments.

Sidney also has the most astounding team of creatures who surround him; Mysterious Sue who speaks only in morse code, knows all and sees all and, I believe, can see the future, for example. (If one sees photos of them all, they look like your regular stuffed toys, but wow what an unusual collection with the creative names that always give me a smile.)

And, it also turns out, Sidney bestows titles on some of his followers.  I started commenting on Sidney's posts and then posting posts to Sidney's page after he accepted my friend request, and it continued giving me fun. Suddenly, during one of the annual award ceremonies, I was promoted to... OMG I don't remember (Sidney is quite sad about my memory)... special reporting correspondent or such.  Pretty exciting for me!  But I was not yet an Auntie.  Auntiehood and Unclehood are bestowed only on those who go above and beyond some level of something that only Sidney and possibly Mysterious Sue understand.

And a year or so after that, to my surprise, I earned the basic Auntie title (AA), and then another year later, Auntie HAG ( where the HAG stands for something and again I've lost the post where it's all explained).

And also somewhere in there, Sidney sent Mr Fox No.12 to keep an eye on me!

Mr Fox No.12 ("Cal") at Morro Rock in Morro Bay.
Apparently not pleased with the scenery or the photographer.

So-- Mr. Fox No.12 came and we've done many many things together and I've barely posted a few of his photos anywhere--here or Facebook or my photo page. But, for reference, here are the Taj MuttHall posts that, so far, mention Mr. Fox, describe his arrival, or include photos of him (you might want to start with the oldest first).

And here are some photos that I don't believe have been posted anywhere yet...

Cal relaxing in the nifty old travel trailer that he rented one weekend via AirBNB.
The experience was delightful and full of flamingos, he says.

Cal found a taste of Europe here in California.  He's not sure how authentically Danish it is,
but there were windmills and pastries, so he was happy.

Here's my question: Which of my friends originally befriended Sidney, and how, and when? Because currently many, many of my friends are also his friends.  Maybe I should ask Mysterious Sue.

Update several hours after the preceding post:

Sidney says this is very comprehensive assessment, sufficiently fawning without stretching to sycophancy. He says AA stands for American Auntie and HAG is Holy Auntie Group. Auntie Ellen thoroughly deserves her Auntie status, he says. 

And Gailanne M., a friend from agility for quite a few years who now cohabits with Mr Chelan Fox in Washington state, lays claim in a thoroughly credible way to being Auntie Ellen AA HAG's introduction to Sidney's Little World of Happiness and Tennis Balls^TM

Updates to the list April 5, 2020:

• Mr Fox no.5:   a.k.a Twiggy. Living the dream with Auntie Chris (SHAG) and Auntie Cynthia in Salt Lake City, USA.
• Mr Fox no.4:   Mr FujiFox, (f.k.a Mr Typically Tropical, f.k.a. Ultrafox). Worldwide traveller. Currently having a rest @ Sidney HQ.
• Mr Fox no.6:   a.k.a. Trevr. Living with Auntie Gail (CoW, SHAG, BAA, AA) in Colorado, USA.
• Mr Fox no.8:   Arctic Fox. Living with Auntie Virva (CoW, SHAG) and Bruce the Moose in Oulu, Finland.
• Mr Fox no.10:   a.k.a Mr fox no.10 from no.10. Living with Auntie Catherine (CoW SHAG SAG SNOG) at Cotterill Towers, Stafford.
• Mr Fox no.11:   a.k.a. Brendan Foxter. London Marathon runner. Living with Uncle Andy (SMUG) in Cheshire, also his running partner and personal trainer.
  
• Mr Fox no.12:   California "Cal" Fox. Living a hippy lifestyle with Auntie Ellen (AA, HAG) in Silicon Valley, CA.
  
• Mr Fox no.13:   Lady Vixen a.k.a. Dark Fox. f.k.a. Lucky Fox. Shacked up with Sidney's nemesis Sparkle the Cat, NTAL aka Auntie Judith (HAG) at Beamer's Castle in Porthleven, Cornwall.
• Mr Fox no.16:   OzFox resting in Perth, Western Australia with Uncle Rob (SMUG) & Auntie Ellie having completed a 20,000km circumnavigation of Australia on a motorbike and then crossed it again just to visit IKEA in Brisbane.
• Mr Fox no.19:   Hendricks Pinkman or 'HP Fox', a.k.a Neville's Fox. Living with little bro' Neville, Auntie Carol (SNOG) and Uncle Paul (SMUG) in Reading, UK.
• Mr Fox no.23:   Private Fox. Wire Terrier Fox (WTF). Living with cousin Bertie Pickle, Auntie Tracey (SNOG) and Uncle Neil in the Hundred Acre Wood, Narnia.
• Mr Fox no.24:   Retro Fox, Living with Uncle Paul Jones (SMUG) in Essex.
• Mr Fox no.25:   Africa Fox, living with Auntie Fiona Cameron (CoW SHAG SNOG) in London.
• Mr Fox no.27:   Living with Auntie Brydie (CoW SHAG SAG) in Staffordshire
• Mrs Fox no.31:   Foxy Loxy. with the Wicklands and Hamish in Perth, Australia
• Mr Fox no.32:   Longlevens Fox. With Auntie Gwen in Gloucester
• Mr Fox no.33:   Kupe Fox, with Sally Newhook in Hastings, New Zealand
• Mr Fox no.34:   Mr Wolf (Shaun's Fox), with Georgette in Surrey
• Mr Fox no.35:   Fox Redwood, with Auntie Crystal in Chisholm, Minnesota, USA
• Mr Fox no.36(?):  name TBD, with Auntie Molly Marie and housemate Rocket in [location TBD]

Other Mr Foxes not originating from Sidney HQ:

• McFox, with Carol Neill in sunny Carnoustie, Scotland
• Fellover Fox with Janet on Bodmin Moor.
• Basil, with Auntie Carol (SNOG) in Silkmore Crescent, Staffordshire

OTHERS WITHOUT FOXES:

• ? any?

ABOUT ALL THOSE DELIGHTFUL ACRONYMS:

May 31, 2018: Sidney says: (Updated 4/5/20 by Auntie Ellen from assorted FB posts)

• SHAG is ‘Super Holy Auntie Group’ the creme de la creme of Aunties, of which there are only five. These witches of Eastwick are Auntie Gail, Auntie Virva, Auntie Brydie, Auntie Fiona (who has many additional titles) and not least Auntie Catherine, he says. 
• Below that is the Holy Auntie Group (HAGs) 
• and below that simply Auntie, of which there are maybe thirty or so dotted around the world, 
• and a dozen or do Uncles 
• and four MUGs (Mighty Uncle Group). 
• (AA is Aunties in America)
• (SMUG is Super MUG)
• (BAA ?)
• (CoW?)
• (SNOG: Sidney’s Nurses Official Group)

He hopes this clarifies things, he says.

Guess Who's Here From Across The Pond!

SUMMARY: Welcome, Mr Fox No.12

Human Mom has a package! A royal package!

From On Corn Walum, as the ancients say-- What could it be -- or WHO?!

Everyone sniffs.  Border Collie is ready to herd anything that might emerge.

Everyone sniffs. Chip iz sayz: "Oh! Oh! Iz cud bes Mistur Fox?!"

Me Zorro like fox.
Human Mom is not sure what he means by that.

It is He!
Mr Fox No.12 says that he has never before had such a rough and tightly-packed crossing...

...and would some Assistant-type please bring a comb?

Ahhhhh! Feels so much better! Perhaps a little wine for relaxation?

Mr Fox notes that he noticed a note of note in his vehicle of transport, but asks that perhaps the Human Mom would please read it quietly to herself, as he was offered no in-flight movie or magazine and thus was forced to read it several hundred times to himself as his only source of entertainment.

Mr Fox No.12 contemplates whether, after such an arduous journey, he is ready at this time to get to know Mr. Zorro better.

He is glad to see that other household members show the appropriate respect due his rank.

However, for the nonce, Mr Fox No.12 believes that he shall take a bit of a rest with his newest friend, who also shows appropriate respect, and he shall give everyone an update when he has recovered from his travel ordeal. And suggests that the Human Mom thank Sidney for allowing him this opportunity to mingle with the Colonists to better understand them and report back to Sidney HQ.

Thanks, Sidney!

- Human Mom

Out-of-town Visitor is Coming...

SUMMARY: Preparing for Mr Fox No.12

Taj MuttHall is delighted, thrilled, excited, honored, and all-a-tizzy to announce that Mr Fox No.12 is on his way HERE to stay with the Taj MuttHallites for some period of time to experience all that California has to offer... or at least some of all.  Can hardly wait! Thanks, Sidney, for letting him travel here. Human Mom has been revving up the Chipster and the Zorroster for fun times to come. And letting Mr. Chip know that, if he keeps refusing to get into the car, he's going to miss out on having Some Fun Now.

(Magazine cover posted by Sidney's (nominally human) assistants on his FB page, since he had other more pressing engagements at the time, I dare say.)

Toys With Names

SUMMARY: Around here, you're not just "toy". You are, perhaps, "Mr. Toy".

(Ported from my recent Facebook post.)

I name the toys that my dogs and I play with the most. I use the names constantly while playing. My hope is that, just from that, they'll be able to fetch various toys by name. Turns out that, except for the winners of the Miss Popularity contest, it takes more work than that. But, for fun, anyway, here is the current set of Toys With Names.

Clockwise from top left and spiraling inward: Flying Minkey, Flying Fox, The Incredible Hulk, CAP-tain America, Spidey, Puffin, Squeaky Snake, Rope, Ropebone, Monkeyface, Ballflower, Liddle Toy, Liddle Ball, Bear, Binkie, Bikini Chicken (aka Playchicken), Flatball, Lattice, Bee (sometimes Buzz... no wonder they're confused), Rabbit (sans ears so closely resembles Bear the last year or so), Ladybug.

"Monkeyface iz MY's!" -Chip ^^^

[Since I lined up the family for the photo, I noticed that SOMEhow Purple Hippo made an escape sometime between when i lined them all up for photos and when I actually took the photo. And Jolly[Ball] is out in the yard. Oh, drat, I didn't think about MilkerToy or Riot Tug! Or Frisbee! Or, jeez, Cthulhu-Face! Hmmm--and Mr. Duck is completely MIA. Wonder where he's gone to that he didn't show up in a sweep of the house?]

Human Mom Responds to Your Questions About Toys With Names

Q: Omg...so many toys so little time. If my dogs see this, I am in serious trouble.  -Lloyda
A:  This is not #allTheThings. Just the #thingsWithNames. -Human Mom
Q: Even more reason dogs are not allowed access to Facebook!  -Lloyda

Q:  Turbo approves of the collection.  -Diane B.
A:  Thank goodness! -Human Mom

Q:  We do that too. Katie only brings us the correct named toy if it's obviously available and alone. -Dawn K.
A: We have a lot of that going on, too. Zorro can always bring Flatball no matter how many distractions, and usually Squeakysnake if Flatball isn't around. -Human Mom

Q:  Gem dismembers most toys. Yours look great. - Kathy C.
A:  We have deep dark secrets--FlyingMinkey is missing a leg. CAP-tain America and Spidey and Monkeyface have holes in the back through which they are regularly restuffed. Puffin barely has any part of his head without a hole in it, and when there's no longer enough head to hold in the restuffing, he'll go, too. And I picked up and tossed 5 other toys whose time had come while evaluating who needed to be in this photo. -Human Mom
Q:  Gem's favorite toys are Turbo Blackman's ABC toys. She likes to steal the toys of others... -Kathy C.

Q: How do you remember the names? -Debbie
A:  Most of them are pretty obvious. Flatball. Flying Minkey. The Incredible Hulk. Puffin. Monkeyface. Like that. :-)  -Human Mom
A2: And I repeat the names over and over, intending for the dogs to learn them, but probably mostly me that learns them.  -Human Mom
A3: AND of course I didn't name them all at once; they acquired names when they first came into play. Plus, just, practice; I've been naming toys for many years, so it's habit.  -Human Mom
A4: If you have names for anything for your dog to get-- "Get your Leashie!" "Get your Dish!"--you've already started naming your toys. ;-)  -Human Mom
A5: P.S. "Dish" is "Dish" because, it turns out, "Bowl" sounds a lot like "Ball", so there was some confusion in the early days.  -Human Mom

Sidney T. Shares His Wisdom with Human Mom

Human Mom has very recently met Sidney T. on Facebook. Sidney has a charming and ever-expanding family of his own (including the assorted Mr Fox no.1; also 2, 3, 4, and so on to 9, who travel the world and send photos back). Sidney interprets for them all. Sidney's humans transcribe for Sidney. Human Mom had too much fun reading about said family and seeing their family portrait, which inspired this post. Sidney responded.

Sidney Thompson: Sidney says his photo also has absentees due to hangovers (Skype Bunny and Mr Hippomoomin if he recalls). It's so difficult to gather them all in the same place at one time. He says your eclectic collection is truly remarkable, and he likes the way that no matter how battered, they still stick around. He is fascinated by Mr Monkey Face, Bikini Chicken and Lattice. He has about thirty tennis balls, all of them called Mr Ball (no.1 to no.30), he says.

Human Mom: Thanks, Sidney. Human Mom attempts to winnow the truly battered ones, but some are crowd favorites and so stick around for a long time. Monkeyface has a hole in his head through which his brains are regularly removed, but it's easy enough to put them back so they can be removed again. Puffin, same thing. Bikini Chicken, however, went on to a better place after examination for this photo.
P.S. There are actually Flatball Thing 1, Flatball Thing 2, and Flatball Thing 3. Because Zorro loves them the best. And I dunno 4 or 5 Ladybugs. Sidney is a very lucky dog to have so many Mr Ball! Bet he has a good time with every one of them.

Sidney Thompson: Sidney says Bikini Chicken should be retrieved from her resting place if at all possible. The Mr Balls live at home or in various gardens of his customers. Sidney seems to find them easily when he visits every couple of weeks, he says.

Human Mom: Sadly, Bikini Chicken in all her rubberness was accidentally left in front of a sunny window for the better part of a year. Probably wasn't the dogs' doing. Human Mom is admitting nothing. So with every touch, bikini chicken was literally disintegrating. Barely could get her lined up for this photo. She crumbled away as I took her into The Other Room. :-( Like Mr. Alien, at one time her twins were readily available, but now it's just photos of them on the Interwebs.

Sidney Thompson: https://www.amazon.com/Charming-79888L.../dp/B000OWI254
Charming Large Henrietta Chicken
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Human Mom: She's not the version of Henrietta in the Playboy Chicken outfit, but she might want to come home with us anyway. Thanks, Sidney.

Sidney Thompson: Sidney says no it's not the same one but still a Bikini Chicken to keep the lineage going, he says.

Human Mom: Who am I to question Sidney's wisdom?

Sidney Thompson: Sidney says he is very fond of his Mr Foxes, which is why there are nine of them, although two have emigrated so it's time to spawn some replacements, he says.