Another hamster baby!

Mum called me @ home yesterday morning when they were shopping for grocery. My parents saw a hamster running in a plastic container near an aquarium stall in a wet market @ Ang Mo Kio Ave 10. They found the hamster pitiful as some of the sawdust were wet with water spilled from a plate, the hamster's bum looked wet. No sign of food was around. Sunlight was shining into one side of the container. Mum asked whether we should buy the hamster and rescue it from its horrible living conditions. I told her why not as our house has room for another hamster. (We have 3 winter whites and 1 campbells, each living in a "bungalow" aka big plastic container) They bought the hamster @ $6 and Mum told the owner that he should put the hamster's container in a shady place.

The hamster should be at least 6 months old. Quite puny. I still can't tell whether it's a boy or a girl but sis named it Pip. Pip must have never seen so much food in its life and it stuffed its cheek pouches with food (looking like a furry cobra) and run around the new house and on the exercise. Here are some cute photos of Pip:

Sterilise your pets!

I thought I do my part in spreading this message since I can't go down to the AVA's roadshow today too. Still sniffing and coughing :(

I scanned this ad from today's Sunday Times (Page 27). It would make an even nice ad if not for the smudging of ink from the other side of the paper (Notice the weird appearance of 2 heads on the top left and right of the ad. )

I have experienced vicariously through the blog accounts of Dawn and 5-Cat Style & the Flyer. Check out their blogs under my links :>

Porridge for lunch

I always like to eat Mum's porridge or cook my own porridge. Mum taught me her new method of cooking porridge using rice cooker instead of the stove.

First, we cook the rice with water and diced pumpkin. After the rice was cooked, I added half a cup of hot water into the rice cooker, a tablespoon of instant oats, some sesame oil and fish slices and pork (which had been seasoned with half tablespoon of light soya sauce and small amount of non-MSG chicken stock) and some Chinese coriander and spring onions.

The result was this! I like the not salty taste as I didn't add much seasoning. The flavour of the porridge came from the aroma of the fish, herbs, sweetness of the pumpkin. Yummy! I felt good, satisfied and happy eating every spoonful of it :>I will cook porridge for myself using the rice cooker the next time.

Breakfast and exercise

Mum said it was strange that yesterday there were a couple and a lady feeding the cats during the day and today there was no sign of them. Mum and I decided to go down and see our feline friends. Shadow seemed happy to see us and ran towards us.

Hunter came a short while later.
See Dad's sexy legs and Mum's handy brolly to shelter us if we were at a hot spot.

Hunter seemed to enjoy his crunchy breakfast :>

Shadow did some stretching exercises after her breakfast.

Down

I have been down with runny stuffy nose and cough since Thurs. I have wanted to go on leave yesterday but cancelled it as I wanted to present the outcome of the meeting @ Hua Hin to senior management and colleagues yesterday afternoon. The presentation was earlier scheduled on Wed and postponed to Thurs and finally Fri as it was hard to find a common free time for all. I was relieved after the presentation yesterday as everyone now understands the issue and how to move forward. At least I can go on leave on Mon.

My task @ hand is to rest, drink plenty of water. I have sort of quarantined myself @ home today. I was supposed to go for a walk with Adele and her dogs this morning but in the end, our other friends couldn't make it too and I am sick. I have also told my other friends that I couldn't join them for dinner this evening. I have wanted to visit AVA's road show @ Ngee Ann City Civic Plaza but it seems like I may not be able to go down tomorrow too.

I hope to recover on Mon. Maybe I can still make it for dinner with Joan or do some baking :>

No fresh basil @ my doorstep

Mum and Dad have been keeping these pots of plants outside our flat unit. I have wanted to grow some basil plants from the seeds I have kept from the earlier harvest but Mum said it's better to wait after the lifts @ every floor have been built. I think it will take at least another 6 months as currently they are only drilling holes in the ground in front of our flat.

Parents have thrown some chilli seeds and the result is the bunch of plants in the middle of the pot.

A fruitful and interesting Sunday

This morning, I went to my friend, Shuhui's place to discuss our story for children (under the initiative by MDA). We had a fruitful discussion based on my first cut of the text for the first few chapters and Shuhui's lovely sketches. We will meet again 2 weeks later and hopefully, the text for the first 4 chapters will be confirmed (MDA only required 1st 3 chapters).

I also joined Shuhui and her family for a lovely lunch of fried noodles (with prawns, char siew) and stir fried veggies prepared by her mother before I made my way to Cat Welfare Society's party @ SMU. It was nice meeting people who care for the cats and also being able to put a face to some of the bloggers who have been commenting on Dawn's blog. Jolanda also used a cat trap to demonstrate to some of us who were interested to know.

I also helped my friend, Adele to ask 3 experienced ladies (Shireen, Sabrina and Nan Nan) tips on how to comfort the two 4 week old kittens (she picked up from Bt Timah yesterday) who keep crying. Feeding them every 2 hours, keeping them warm, using a wet tissue to induce bowel movement and burping them like a baby should be able to help calm the kittens. As Adele has a dog and recently adopted a puppy from ASD, she won't be able to keep the kittens and has emailed to CWS on how she can put them up for adoption.

@ Slushy's place

Yesterday, I reached Slushy's place around 4pm. Fairy Godmother came too. I had a lot of catching up to do as I have not met them for the past 2 months. We also did some baking and we tried the recipe for Choc Fudge brownie. The girls couldn't help but sprinkle some mini M&Ms on top before we throw it into the oven.

We are very happy with the final product. It is yummy, chocolatey. I shall make this brownie for Slushy's Christmas party on 17 Dec.

Nimbus looks more handsome with the dash of orange in his cost.

I wonder what they were lookin at. Ainsley has been making lovely sounds that we don't understand. Soon she will be talking!

A present for Zap

I bought a hamster shaped hideout for Zap. Mum said the corn hideout is getting small for chubby Zap.

Cat food

For the past 2 weeks, the cats have been eating Nutro's cat food. Fragrant and the cats have no complaints since they always gobble them up. I have tried the dry cat food from Friskies, Back to basic and Royal Canin but they have a strong smell and I would get a whiff of the smell when I open my bag (which I carry to work) as I will bring some cat food in ziploc bag with me if I'm meeting friends after work and want to visit the cats with some food and water before going home. Nutro's food has a nice aroma and I don't mind catching whiffs of it.

I bought this 1kg pack from Pet Lovers @ Shaw House and it cost me $12+. I dropped by Pet Kampung @ Novena Square recently and this Nutro pack is selling @ $11+. I know where to get more Nutro for the cats the next time.

Hibiscus?

This brighly-coloured flower greeted us as we were leaving the park and Shadow.

Shadow eating her breakfast

I took this photo of Shadow when my parents and I visited the park around 10.30am just now. I didn't see Hunter or Shrek around. Shadow was still timid and would move to the side of the pavement if there is bicycle or passerby, even though we were squatting near her.

Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire

Sis got free preview tickets for Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire on Mon(14 Nov) for herself, me and her friend. Lucky us! I think I have read the book about 2 years ago. However, I can't quite remember the storyline but throughout the movie, I find the pace rather fast and somehow the essence of the book is not fully captured. Then again, it is hard to compress a 700 over page book into a 2.5 hour long movie. The earlier Harry Potter movie is better than the current one. The special effects are good and all in all, the movie is entertaining and a must-watch for those who have been faithfully following the Harry Potter movies and books. The 4th book is also the most enjoyable and I have not yet to read the 5th and 6th book.

The Responsible Pet Ownership Roadshow by AVA

If you are a pet owner or are considering getting a pet, you may be interested to visit the AVA's roadshow on 26-27 Nov 2005 weekend at Ngee Ann City Civic Plaza.This year's theme is "Sterilise your pets". Animal welfare groups like SPCA, Cat Welfare Society and Action for Singapore Dogs will be participating and there will be educational talks, a Kids' Corner, expertspresent to give you advice and booth selling pet-related products.

Check out this link (http://www.ava.gov.sg/javascript/RPO/RPO_RS.pdf) for more information and tell your friends about it too :)

Upgrading Zip's house

This afternoon, parents and I decided to upgrade him into a new container, 1.5 times bigger and the same size as the houses of the other 3 hamsters. Dad was really a great dad even to our hamster. He used the plastic shopping bags to cover the sides of the container, so that it will not be glaring during the day.

After Dad finished with the wrapping, Mum and I started to transfer the stuff from one container to the another. Zip was very excited about his new home and for about 15 mins, he was busy exploring it before settling down.

I managed to hold Zap with one hand to my belly and take a photo of her with the other hand. 

Salt was sleeping soundly and looks so adorable! 

Shadow, Hunter & Shrek

Sis and I went to the park around 5pm just now and 3 cats ran towards us. Shadow, Hunter and another ear-tipped male. I can't decide whether to call him Shrek because he looks like a giant compared to the 2 of them, is gentle but handsome. Okie, maybe call him Shrek for this blog entry. hee.

That's him eating.
He looks like a small cat in this photo

Shadow doesn't seem to mind Hunter today but she made some angry hissing sound when Shrek was near and this affected her appetite and attitude towards her.

I couldn't resist taking some photos of the park.

Our house is the third corner unit from the top.

Shrek was lying there after eating more than a handful of dry cat food.

Sis commented that he looked fierce in this photo.

Doesn't Shadow looks adorable? She has such pretty eyes.


Shadow and Hunter greeted a Chinese couple in their 50s/60s who were smiling @ us when they walked past us to the foot reflexology garden (the footpath with smooth, protuding stones). The cats followed them, so Sis and I guess the couple must have be feeding them too.

Shadow

Sis and I have been feeding the black cat the past week and now she seems more friendly. A few times she would walk ahead of us and seemed reluctant to let us go or even want to follow us home. However, we can't keep her as our pet because parents only like our 4 hamsters and it will be unfair to thrust a cat that they are uncomfortable with when sis and I are working or out of the house most of the time. What I try to do it to visit Shadow (our name for the black cat) after work and over weekends to feed her and play with her. She is still quite shy but would stay near us after she finishes eating and drinking. I realise cats drink lots of water and I have been bringing along a small bottle of water and a plastic saucer together with dry cat food to feed Shadow and other community cats that I may bump into.

I just took this photo after breakfast from our unit @ the 11 storey and that should be Shadow hiding in the structural pillar in the park (see the black spot in the centre of the photo). She sometimes hides there from no one or from this other cat that we nicknamed Hunter. He comes and goes. We see him around sometimes and he would want to eat and drink too. Shadow would run away and hide if Hunter is stalking her.

I think this is one of the nicest photo I have taken of Salt. He is always so skittish and it is hard to capture a good shot of him. A few days ago, I managed to catch him drinking and feasting.

Mum said I should have brushed his hair, so that he doesn't look messy. Haha. I think Salt looks great the way he is.

We had this yummy dish (udon, instant noodle, cai xin veggies, egg omelette and sausages) for lunch today. I helped a little by doing a bit of stirring in the pan. Hee :) 

Mum bought this Strawberry Shortcake pencil case for me when she and Dad went to some wet market in Ang Mo Kio on Sun. This cartoon character reminds me of my childhood where the cartoon series featured Strawberry Shortcake, Carebears, My Little Pony, Smurfs, etc.