kittens I

More than once I've written about my dad's garden of abundance. It is a little oasis of greenery where fruits and vegetables are grown.. It is also a playground for birds and cats to hang out..

My parents are not into pets, so we didn't have any when we are young.. but our garden attracted a few cats that made it their home although some of them come and go as they like. One did stay and gave birth to two litters of kittens the last two times I went home.. and they were soooo adorable..

The first pair was born mid of last year.. we didn't know their gender but I named them Tom and Jerry anyway.. :) Tom is grayish white while Jerry has black spots on his body... here are some photos of Tom and Jerry..

'whatcha' looking at??'

chilling with mum

Jerry: 'I'm sooo sleepy after that big meal..'

Tom: 'Can't a cat take a dump in peace?'

'Need to hydrate.. even if it's drain water..'

Do you know that cats eat papaya? No? Here's the proof.

It was fun having Tom and Jerry around with their mum. But good times seldom last, even for cats. Tom went missing a few days after I came back to Taiwan last July. My dad said that he was probably 'kat-nap' by cat lovers who lives nearby. Jerry is still around, now as big as his mum.

Next, Tom and Jerry's siblings - Garfield and Kopi... :)

Sunday Serenade: brand new me

This weekend I'll be sharing a song by Alicia Keys called Brand New Me.. like the lyrics very much and her voice is amazing...

Here's to a brand new kind of free.. :)




Have a great week ahead! Be safe and stay happy!!

Poetry Solace: for an album

Continuing with another poem by Adrienne Rich. Enjoy!

For An Album (1987)
Our story isn't a file of photographs
faces laughing under green leaves
or snowlit doorways, on the verge of driving
away, our story is not about women
victoriously perched on the one
sunny day of the conference,
nor lovers displaying love:

Our story is of moments
when even slow motion moved too fast
for the shutter of the camera:
words that blew our lives apart, like so,
eyes that cut and caught each other,
mime of the operating room
where gas and knives quote each other
moments before the telephone
starts ringing: our story is
how still we stood,
how fast.



Have a great week! Be safe!

smoking

Smoking kills.. one way or another..

A freak accident happened in my University a few days ago.. it actually happened within my Dept's building.. Three freshmen from the Finance Dept went up to the rooftop to smoke during a short break around 10am. No smoking is allowed within the campus so they went up there to get their nicotine fix. They allegedly climbed over a 1.5m wall and sat on/around a lighting shade (采光罩). Unfortunately, that shade was not meant to handle the weight of an adult, it gave way and one of the freshmen fell. He came crushing through (from 12th floor) and landed on the 4th floor patio. He didn't make it. His two friends were shocked but unscathed.

I was not in campus that time nor was I aware of this accident until I received an email from the University later that day asking all its students to be observant and safe within the campus. When the news broke that night many people commented on it over the cyberspace. Almost of all them had nothing good to say about the stupidity of those freshmen and most condemned their brainlessness in tempting fate. It is common sense that the function of lighting shade is to allow sunlight through and is NOT meant to be stepped on much less sat on. It was something that even the kids know never to do. Thus there is no surprise that the online communities were having a ball chiding and criticizing the stupidity of these freshmen. And it didn't help when the parents of the deceased asked for the 'examination of the lighting shade for possible design flaws'.

Sadly in this time and age, young people are still taking up smoking in great numbers. Even when we are informed by scientists and doctors that smoking kills, people are still hanging on to their nicotine addiction. I pity those young people who continues to smoke because they think they are cool by buffing away. And I take even greater pity on those who 'worship' smokers because they 'looked' cool with a cigarette in their mouth/fingers.

I'm all for personal freedom, but that personal freedom does not include polluting the air that everyone is breathing. I really want to ask all those smokers to smoke and breath their own smoke, like the drawing on the left. Then they can smoke anywhere and anytime they like. If they want to shorten their life and damage their lungs, they are entitled to do that. Just not within the same space as mine.

Sunday Serenade: a thousand years

First of all, I must say that I am NOT a fan of the Twilight Saga although I did watch The New Moon in the cinema while holidaying in Australia. That was more to experience movie-going in downunder than to 'support' the franchise. In fact, I have yet to read the novels and don't plan to do so unless I have absolutely nothing left to read, which is highly unlikely..

Anyway, this song is very 'memorable' and the rhythm, especially the chorus, kept echoing inside my head after I caught it a couple of times over the radio.. So if I ignore my bias against it for being used in that movie, I can totally enjoy the song.. :p

A Thousand Years
performed by Christina Perri





Have a great week ahead! Be happy and stay safe!