Regular updates from Stoli (the world's only "Scubadog").

Archive for April, 2012

Daily Woof and Weather April 27

Jeez, is low season done already?  Just when it was getting slow we got real busy again.  I was out hustling customers on the beach and whoa, everyone is booking again.  Today I booked a photography course, open waters, and fun divers.  Oh yeah, a couple of humans booked also in the office.

I guess that means I will have to cancel my vacation to Africa I was planning.  I was going to go on safari.  I thought I would give lion hunting a try, but I guess that can wait.

Well, today Axel, Joe and Claudio were all on the boat and everyone had a blast.  We also had a whale shark at Sail Rock again.

Tomorrow, everyone is busy again with rescue doggie course starting, scuba reviews and fun divers.

As far as the weather goes it looks good for the next few days and then maybe some rain coming in mid-week.  It has been so dog-gone hot here the last few weeks I would love to see some rain to cool us off.

I’ll leave you with some pictures of the days diving and there is some video on our facebook page of a huge trigger fish attacking Joe.  Just go to our website at http://www.discoverydivers.com, and click the facebook link at the bottom of the home page.

Bark at ya later,

Stoli

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Daily Woof and Weather April 25

Hey everyone,

Sorry that is has been a couple of days since my last post, but I have been busy looking at new equipment for the shop.  as you all know we replace most of our equipment every year to keep everything modern and updated and safe.  I am ready to put in an order for all new fins and a bunch of new BCDs.

Also, I hear Joe talking all the time about France, so I decided that I want to go there and visit.  Everytime I look at that Eiffel tower my mouth waters.  It looks like the biggest fire hydrant I have ever seen.  When I go to France I am going to drink water like crazy the whole way over and then hold in my pee for two days.  I want to be ready when I get to that huge fire hydrant to let loose!!  Also I hear they let dogs into all the restaurants there.  Awesome, i may never come home.

I’ve even started trying on some hats to wear over there to fit in with the local dogs.

The diving here has been great as usual this time of year and there are tons of fish around.  We’ve been able to relax a little with low season here, but are looking pretty busy for this weekend coming up.  It’s nice that the crew have been getting some days off to take a rest after going about 6-7 weeks before with almost no days off.  I know I needed the rest.

The weather has been hotter than hell here and very little rain.  We do have a little wind coming

in a couple of days which I am sure will help with the hot weather.

I’ll leave with a picture from yesterday at sail rock of my friend the puffer fish and some of my modeling pictures of my French clothes.

Bark at ya later,

Stoli


Daily Woof and Weather April 22

So today I competed in the Samui triathlon.  I kicked ass in the 4 KM swim, easily beating everybody, and then they let me use my 4 pedal bike because of my 4 paw handicap of course and I was able to keep pace with everyone else.  I went into the final part of the triathlon, the 30 KM run in the lead.  this was so easy as no one could keep up with me.  I was cruising into the final 2 KM and no one was even close to me…….  and then I smelled the chicken.  I don’t know why they didn’t remove all the venders from the road, but the chicken smell was just too much for me to handle, so I thought I’d have enough time for a quick steal of a breast and a leg or so.  Especially because the vender was not watching.  I stopped and fueled up for my final 2 km of running and finished stong in first place.  What no one told me was that I am not allowed to leave the course.  What a crock of s#*t.  So I was disqualified.  I was already for my face to be on the cover of Sports Illustrated and for my interview on ESPN 8 (the Ocho), that was covering the race for worldwide television.  All for nothing.  Now I am tired and have no trophy.

At least the guys at the shop had a great day.  We got to see another whale shark today in Koh Tao, and turtles also.  I could have been there instead of wasting my time kicking ass in a race and then getting disqualified.

Congratulations to Itay today on completing his open water course.

As far as the weather goes, today was really hot.  I would have been sweating my balls off if my cruel dad didn’t cut them off already a few years ago, but I was sweating anyway.  Sunny and hot and looks like the same for the next few days.

I’ll leave you guys with some pictures of my swimming in the triathlon and you can see Eric and Stella who were working as rescue divers for the swimming portion of the event.  Also some pictures of today’s dives.

Bark at ya later,

Stoli


Daily Woof and Weather April 21

Ok, so it’s been 3 days of scrubbing my teeth and using doggy mouthwash.  I am hoping for another chance to go on the boat without getting kicked off for “doggy breath”.  Have you smelled the breath of some of those dive instructors, is mine really any worse?  Especially the Brits.  We’ll give it a shot tomorrow as my dad and Stella are going to work as rescue divers for the Samui marathon and I am going to be there as a participant of course.  I am sure I’ll have no problem with the swimming and running parts, but i still need to practice a little on my cycling.  I hope they allow my bike with the 4 pedals.

The rest of the gang at work has still been busy, Axel was at Sail Rock today and Claudio at Koh Tao.  Eric was working with Stella on her divemaster training.

I want to wish my buddy Axel a happy birthday today and he has the day off tomorrow so he can go out an celebrate tonight.  I already set it up for free drinks for him at the Boneyard.  I of course can’t gon out with the triathlon tomorrow. Also we got Joe and Claudio out to Koh Tao tomorrow.

The weather is looking great for the next 4-5 days, so I can enjoy some beach time after the race tomorrow.

Have a good weekend and bark at ya later.

Stoli


Daily Woof and Weather April 18

Jipped again.  So I go to the boat today as I had three fundivers to take to Koh Tao including my friend View and when I get to the boat they made everyone take a breathalyzer test.  They tell me I failed the test and could not go diving today.  That is impossible because I have not drank alcohol since Songkran.  They then tell me that it is not alcohol, but I got rejected because my breath stinks!!  Can you believe this?  Ok, so I haven’t brushed my teeth in let say 6 months or so, but this is unfair.  who can smell my breath underwater anyway?  Are they afraid I will scare off the fish?

Either way, it looks like I missed a great day.  Eric, Claudio, Axel, Joe and Stella were all on the boats today and they all had fun.  They even saw sharks today at Koh Tao.  I bet they could have used me to kick that sharks ass.  Congratulations to Joanna and James on completing their open water course and to View on her first dives.  View actually got very scared on here second dive when she got too close to a turtle.

Tomorrow we are off to Sail Rock, but I guess I will be home brushing my teeth and buying mouthwash so I can go on the next trip.

It looks like we may get a little storm now (5:00), but then back to sunny and hot for tomorrow and the rest of the week.

I will leave you with some pictures of what you (and I) missed today.

Bark at ya later,

Stoli


Daily Woof and Weather April 17

Yo Yo,

I am back with another post after recovering from all the partying that has been going on in Samui.  I can’t believe it, but we are still real busy in the shop here even after the holiday.  Since I haven’t spoken to you guys in a few days, congratulations to Philip on his open water certification and to Danny, Leslie and Sharif on their advanced open water certs.  Sorry that I could not be your instructor guys, but I was tied up for a few days. (hungover).

Well, now that it should slow up a little it will give me a chance to give the guys a few days off soon i hope and we are starting our yearly process of replacing our equipment to keep everything fresh and new for the upcoming high season which is only a couple of months away again.

It will also give me some time to get to the beach and try to pick up some babes for myself.

Today we had the gang on the boat with Axel, Joe and Claudio going to Sail Rock and Koh Tao and tomorrow we have Eric, Axel, Joe, Claudio and Stoli on the boat.  I want to go because it is my friend View’s first time diving in the open water.  She is only 10 years old and I will teach her the ropes tomorrow.

As far as weather goes, it is the dog days here.  tomorrow is supposed to be the hottest day of the year so far and no rain or wind in the forecast.  I think I will stay in the water.

Here are some pictures from yesterday, today, and our night dive for you to enjoy.

Bark at ya later,

Stoli

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Daily Woof and Weather April 14

Yesterday was Songkran (Thai New Year) and what a blast we all had.  The boss decided to close the shop and no diving so everyone could get out and enjoy the party.  For those of you who don’t know what goes on here for new years, it is about the biggest water fight you will ever see.  Basically no one works and everyone starts drinking at 8 am.  No one is safe from getting ice-cold water sprayed or thrown on them including dogs.  It doesn’t matter if you are in a car, on a motorbike, or on a leash.  You are going to get wet!

So I went down to Blue Fin in the morning and the whole gang was there.  All the guys who I dive with.  We had big trash cans of cold water and I had my own watergun which I kept filling all day and spraying everyone that went by.  After a while everyone was wet with water, beer, and even whiskey.  We stayed all day and had the best time.

I’m including some pictures of the day for you to see.  Back to diving tomorrow.

Bark at ya later,

Stoli


Daily Woof and Weather April 13

Happy Songkran Day everybody.  I will be taking the day off to celebrate and spray everybody with my new Scooby Doo water gun.  Bark at ya tomorrow.

 

Stoli


Daily Woof and Weather April 10

Yo Yo,

Well I spent the day getting ready for Songkran.  Even picked up my Scooby Doo water gun.  Hey, how come they don’t have a Stoli water gun?  Is this Scooby Doo guy really that cool anyway?  I think it would be a lot better having me in the show with my Stoli snacks.  I also don’t need that little scrappy guy around.  I can have my friend View instead.

So, looks like I made a big mistake and should have been on the boat today.  Our guys saw so much stuff today that my tail is still spinning from looking at all the pictures and video.  We had a full house again with Danny and Leslie doing their advanced course, Taron, Seth and Adrienne doing their open water and lots of fun divers.  Looks like everyone had a blast.

I am posting a lot of pictures today as there are so many good ones.  Also, we have some pictures of our new divemaster trainee and my buddy View in the pool.

Any winds are supposed to calm down tonight and the forecast is for no rain or wind for the foreseeable future.  This must be why we have such incredible conditions right now.

Well, let me get these pics out to you and bark at ya later,

Stoli

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Daily Woof and Weather April 8

Hey Peeps,

Well, today they didn’t take me on the boat, so I decided to go to the spa and get my hair cut and a manicure.  I want to look good because I have some playmates coming to stay with me for a few days.  I might have to take a few days off of work to hang at the beach.

The shop is still busy and they had trips to Chumphon Pinnacle, Koh Tao and Marine Park.  They even saw a whale shark at Chumphon today and we had a big family trying their first dives in Koh Tao.

Tomorrow is a little quieter with trips going to Koh Tao and Sail Rock.  And of course we have Songkran on Friday and I will be ready to get wet and spray everybody.

The weather is still hot and sunny and will be for a while so good time to be out here.

I’ll leave you with some pictures from today and bark at ya later,

Stoli

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Daily Woof and Weather April 7

Yes, It finally happened.  I went on the boat trip Friday to Koh Tao.  We were so busy that they gave me 3 DSD’s to teach.  I did a great job of course and everyone had a ball.

In between dives, I even made a new friend on Mango Bay beach and played with him on the beach when I wasn’t begging for food from everyone.  Other than that, we had a full boat of people and I got to play with everyone all day long.

After my day of diving all I wanted to do was go home and sleep.  When I woke up, I found out that my dad and Stella went for a night dive at Sail Rock.  They told me that the trip was for instructors only.  Does that mean that dog instructors can’t go?  Isn’t that discrimination?  Wait till my lawyer gets a hold of those guys who organized the trip.  Even worse, I found out they saw a whale shark on the trip.

Tomorrow is another busy day here with trips to Koh Tao and the Marine Park.  Eric, Claudio, Axel, Claire and Bruce are all on the boats with Joe still on the sideline with an ear infection.  I thought only cocker spaniels get ear infections, but I guess I am wrong.

Also, congratulations to my buddy Noah (Axel Mini Me) who completed his open water course today.

As for the weather, today was hot and sunny and we expect the same all week as usual.

I’m going to leave you with some of my pictures that I took yesterday during diving and a couple from the day before at Sail Rock.

Bark at ya later,

Stoli


Daily Woof and Weather April 5

Ok, so I have been promised again that I get to go diving tomorrow.  I am starting to think that this will never happen.  They are probably going to drop me off in a dog hotel again and go have fun.

I am sorry for not blogging a lot lately, but I have been so busy I have not had time

What I do know is that we have been crazy busy for the last two weeks and looks like it for the next week also.  I think it is because of the great diving conditions we have now.  Tomorrow we have 18 people on the boat with Eric, Claudio, Axel, Stella, Claire and Bruce all working.  Joe has to stay in the office with an ear infection.  We have all sorts of divers going tomorrow.  Courses and fund divers tomorrow.

The weather is supposed to stay real nice through the week with sunny skies and hot, hot, hot!!

I know I haven’t given you guys any pictures to look at for the past week or so, but here are some from this weeks diving.  Hope you enjoy them.

Bark at ya later,

Stoli

 

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Daily Woof and Weather April 1

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Well, looks like my dad did and early April Fools joke on me.  I was all packed up for my trip to Doggieland, and so excited and jumped in the car only to be dropped off at the doggy hotel while my dad and Stella went diving in the Similans.  That is the last time I trust that guy!!

Meanwhile, not only did I not get to go to Doggieland or the Similans, but I heard that the diving conditions here got really awesome and I had to miss it.  Sail Rock was 35 meters visibility yesterday and last week there were whale sharks there that our divers got to swim with.  We even got the boat to stop on the way back on Friday to snorkel with another one near Koh Phangyon.

On another note, last night was the big fundraiser and raffle for Dayna and it went really great.  There were some awesome prizes donated including a dinner with me.  I hope a cute girl won that one.  All in all over 100,000 has been raised to help with Dayna’s medical bills.  Since Dayna is my good friend I wan to thank everyone who helped out and donated cash and prizes.

The shop ahs been really crazy busy and not sure how they survived without me last week, but I will be back in the shop tomorrow to straighten everything and everybody out.

Today was a washout as we got a real bad storm last night and there was still a lot of rain and lightning this morning and we had to cancel the boats due to safety reasons.  the good news is that the weather got better in the morning and supposed to be good all week.

Tomorrow we are crazy again with Eric, Claudio, Axel, Bruce and Claire all on the boats with open water courses, scuba diver courses, advanced courses and fundivers.

Like I said before, today we got a little storm, but it looks like smooth sailing the rest of the week so we can get out and enjoy those great conditions.

I’m gonna go grab myself a shower and get to bed for work tomorrow so I’ll leave you with some pictures of last nights fundraiser and I’ll get some of last weeks great pictures to you tomorrow.

Bark at ya later,

Stoli