Impawtant Announcement

As of tomorrow, July 1 2011, Brad will assume position as top blogger. Why? Because July is Brad's gotcha month. It's been four years since he came into my life. For those of your who are new here, the history is this: In July 2007, Mama agreed to babysit Brad for a family who went overseas for a holiday. He came to our house....and he never left. He was at first my pet, then my slave and now officially adopted by the family. If you ask me, he's a pest.

To kick off the celebration, here's Brad's anatomy documentation...lest you don't remember which one is him.

Angelina's notes: Have fun people, see you in August. I'm going to hibernate. purrr....meow!

Wordless Wednesday: Greedy Angelina

Tom on Tuesday: New Family Member

Mama's been bad. She went out to Ikea and brought back an unwelcome creature. We already have a hard time trying to assimilate cats from two continents but now there's another species in the house. The girls went all "eeeuuuwww" upon seeing it while the boys....hmmm.....strangely they seem to like it. Especially me. Weird, I admit but I like its plush body.

I was minding my own business on the study desk when....

....suddenly a squeaky voice said: Hi Tom. May I be your friend?

Hey...don't bite my tail if you wanna be my friend, I said.

OK, I won't bite your tail but I can climb you, right? the squeaky thing added.

Oooohhh...I love you my new friend, said I. I love you too, Tom, it reciprocated.

He ain't heavy...he's my nip mousie....

Nikki the Bad

Teeheehee!!!! Nikki was scolded real bad. Mama was so upset with her. What she did was...hmmm....how shall I put it....real bad. Mama hasn't forgiven her yet. She's also been banned from Mama's bedroom. Coz that's where the crime took place. It involved a headboard, a curtain and a window. Oh, and a cat with a pair of blue eyes. Yeah....as if the eyes help. So, what happened? Just look at the pictures.

Can't see much of the "crime" here.

Let's zoom in a little bit. There....it's clearer now isn't it?

Did she do it so that it's easier for her to access the window?

Look at that face! Not a trace of guilt on her.

Her defence: Mama, now even you can see if Dad has come home.

Angelina's note: Mama is yet to sew the new curtains for the house. It's important that she needs to replace this torn one. Remember how she went all the way to Tangkak to buy the materials? Mama's excuse is that we can't take the sewing machine out as it's blocked by all those boxes that have just arrived. OK, valid reason....so we'll need to sort out the boxes fast, ya? purrr.....meow!

Kimi Has Arrived

Besides Dad and her furkids, Mama's other passions include her rides. Just like us, they are also named after famous people. (Cars have personalities and souls too, she said.) The elder one that stayed here with Tom and family is Ms Sophia (as in Loren), a large black automatic sedan while the younger, that I used to go gallivanting with in Sydney is Mr Kimi (as in Raikkonen, the former F1 champion), a cute white tiptronic sedan.

Now, together with our boxes in the container is Mr Kimi. It took a while to get Mr Kimi out of the port, there were taxes and charges and what not to be paid before we could see him. Thus he was delivered a week later than the other boxes. Mama was so happy to see him that she hugged and kissed Mr Kimi in public when it was delivered. tsk tsk tsk... Shame on you, Mama.

As the battery had gone dead due to prolonged non-use, Mama and Dad had to buy a new battery to get it going again. Mr Kimi was towed from the port to our house. He's not allowed to roam the street until he's legit, anyway.

Mr Kimi upon arrival. Isn't he handsome?

Mama inspecting her darling Mr Kimi. The whole condo complex inhabitants could see her hugging and kissing him. Shame! Shame!

Mr Kimi is undergoing a process of turning him into a Malaysian (no...he doesn't need to sit for any citizenship test). Dad is taking care of everything....inspection, insurance, registration while Mama is playing ignorant....teeheehee. Mama said she took care of Mr Kimi all by herself for six years in Sydney so now it's Dad's turn. In return, Dad is allowed to put his name down as the second driver in the insurance document. Come on Dad, something is better than nothing. What if she had put my name instead? A driving cat? Woohoo!!!!

As for Ms Sophia, she'll start a new life as a staff member of Mama's company. She's been useful as goods and people carrier all these while anyway as she has a big butt boot.

Mr Kimi is having a make over as we speak. Dad says he needs a new paint job and touch up. Whatever that means. As for his new identity, we'll only get it next week or so. No, he's not under any witness protection programme. He's been a good citizen of Australia and hopefully a better Malaysian. purrr....meow!

Thoughts on Thursday: Malaysianising Angelina????

Mama says I'll have to sit for a citizenship test soon. Brad too. But it seems like I've been the only one doing all the studying, for him as well. He's such a lazy spoilt brat.

Anyway, besides the language lessons, cooking sessions and culture absorption, I also have to be imbued (Mama's word) with patriotism. It's tough being her daughter you know. What I like is Mama has been using heaps of multimedia stuff as teaching aid. I particularly enjoy this one patriotic song. Hey...who says they have to be boring and dry? Someone went to great length to produce this YouTube thingy. Enjoy.

I don't understand all of the words too but I just sing along. But deep down in my heart, I'm still an Aussie girl who's missing Down Under. Show me a footie game and Olivia Newton-John anytime, mate! Just like this:

Wordless Wednesday: Precious "Book"???

Monday Blues With Michael

Angelina's note: All of us had been subjected to Mama's documentation project. She has pawprinted us all, photographed every inch of our bodies and then videotaped our anatomies. What is she doing? I'm not really sure. This video of Michael is an example of her handiwork. purrr....meow!

Hiccups

No, I'm not having hiccups. It's the blogging activity.
You see, our container of stuffs from Sydney has finally arrived. There are 54 boxes of various sizes delivered to our door. So far, we have managed to open and cleared only 8 of them. So, there are 46 of them still unopened. Mama said she wants us all to help her unpack before August comes. I don't know what's so special about August but whatever Mama says, we'll have to abide or else.....
So, forgive us if our blogging activity is lagging, especially the blogwalking and commenting. We'll try to do as much as possible if and when possible. We'll throw a party once all the unpacking is done.

Brad wants a piece of the action too. Hmm...I think that box is wayyy too big for him.

Michael thinks we should open the box from the top.

Nikki was checking if the box can bear her weight. What do you all think?

Nikki checked out MY chair. This was from one of the opened boxes.

Friday Special: Only for Hardcore Nikki Fan Club Members

Angelina's note: Told you it's only for Nikki's hardcore fans. She was sneezing but Mama thought she was choking hence the massage of the neck that became a long scritching session. Have an awesome weekend kitties and people! purrr....meow!

Thursday with Brad: Just Watch Him

Angelina's note: You've just wasted five minutes of your life looking at a sleeping cat. har har har *evil laughs* purrr....meow!

Wordless Wednesday: Nikki's Fetish

Look out for the red-eyed monster!!!!

Meow Meow Meme

We were tagged by One of Fae's Humans to do this. We had to vote and decide on who should be featured as there are six of us in this house. In the end, the unanimous decision taken was that each question will be answered by everyone. Hold on to your seats, this will be a loooong ride.

1. Where do you like to hang out?

Tom: Mama's bed obviously
Nicole: Yeah, Mama's bedroom, coz there's the air-conditioner there.
Angelina: Mama's bed of course.
Michael: It's a choice between the ironing board or Mama's bed.
Nikki: Why are we even arguing? It's Mama's bed definitely. (though I like the cool bathroom sink too)
Brad: Next to Mama on Mama's bed. (I like the scritches.)

The three boys hanging out at Mama's bed.

2. Who is your kitty crush?

Tom and Nicole: We only have eyes for each other.
Angelina: I already have three fiances, should I add another one?
Michael: Does it have to be of the opposite sex?
Nikki: Aren't other kitties supposed to have a crush on me?
Brad: I need to set up a fan club first.

No infidelity in Tom and Nicole's marriage. They've been together for almost eight years. It was an arranged marriage.

3. What is your favourite scent?

Tom: A just opened can of tuna.
Nicole: Fish crackers, fried not baked.
Angelina: Fresh raw meat....preferably beef.
Michael: Mama's newly laundered clothes.
Nikki: Nothing beats the smell of freshly laundered linen...
Brad: Vanilla...as in Magnum ice cream.

Nikki loves the smell of fresh linens. Would be the first to try out whenever Mama changes the bedsheets.

4. What is your favourite TV show?

Tom: Can I skip this one? I don't watch much TV.
Nicole: Yeah...who cares for the idiot box.
Angelina: Ooh...it must be Inspector Rex, it's an Austrian production, available on SBS. (So what if he's a German Shepherd????)
Michael: I'd rather watch the birdies outside.
Nikki: Anything that Mama's watching coz I'll be on her lap.
Brad: Any sports live telecast like the Soccer World Cup 2010...waka waka....time for Africa...I love you Shakira...yeah!!!!

Brad loves live sports telecast....he'll follow intensely.

5. What is your favourite movie?

Tom: Tough one coz I've never been to the cinema. Do they even allow cats at the movies?
Nicole: I watched Cats and Dogs on DVD once, not bad.
Angelina: Avatar, coz Mama and Dad made me watch the DVD with them.
Michael: The Borat franchise, he's hilarious.
Nikki: I'd rather watch 'The Making of....' of any movie.
Brad: The Pirates of the Caribbean series coz I was a swashbuckling pirate in my past life... Capt Jack Sparrow rocks.

6. What is your favourite feline wisdom?

Tom: If it ain't broken, break it.
Nicole: Life is like a scratching pole, even if you do nothing, they'll still attack you.
Angelina: You'll never know unless you've tried it at least once (...like running away from home...)
Michael: Life is like a flea bite, the more you scratch, the more chances you get taken to the vet.
Nikki: I'm not old yet so no such nonsense like feline wisdom from me. Who follows them anyway?
Brad: If you can't beat them, join them. (applies to this crazy family)

There you have it. The meow meow meme from the Cruise-Kidman-Schumacher-Lauda-Jolie-Pitt household.

As for passing it to three other felines, after much consideration, deliberations, video-conferencing, ding dong ding dong and six cans of tuna, here's the list:

1. BoBo Salem and ChaCha

2. Austin of Catachresis

3. Gorogoro and Nikoniko

Angelina's note: Thanks to all my family members for their cooperation. Took us many days to complete this. It's exhausting, I must say. For the three blogs we've tagged, you can choose not to complete this meme. We won't mind at all. We won't bite you. purrr...meow!

It was sooo exhausting I decided to hide on top of the kitchen cabinet. No more memes for the next three years, OK?

Monday Blues: Budding Journalist????

Angelina's note: Nikki was caught sleeping on the job. Hmmm....too many graveyard hours perhaps. purrr....meow!

Thai Green Curry ala Nikki

Thai Green Curry ala Nikki.....yummmm....served with rice or rice noodles.

My mother Nicole is a Siamese cat, therefore I'm half Siamese. (Does that explain the blue eyes?) Anyway, being Siamese also means I'm partial to Thai food.

You must know that Thai cuisine is more than just Tom Yum or Patprik. There's also the curries - red, green, panang and massaman. My favourite is green curry with loads of lime leaves. I just love the balance of hot, sour, salty and sweet of it. The aroma of kaffir lime leaves and lime juice just give it that extra "kick". You can make the curry with meat, fish or seafood. My favourite is chicken - just the thigh fillet....*drool*

We made this for lunch yesterday. The aroma just enveloped the whole house and made my tummy growl non-stop until lunch time. We also grilled some mackerel....but that's another story.
Here's the recipe we used. It's the classic green curry recipe but of course tweaked here and there to suit my palate.

First, gather all the ingredients. It's a long list of exotic Asian stuff but just pay a visit to Chinatown or Vietnamese shops in your area. They should have most of the ingredients.

We made the paste from scratch using the ingredients. Slice them up and then plonk them in the food processor or blender, grind until fine. In the old days, the chefs would use stone mortar to make this paste:

4 cloves garlic (we used smoked garlic)

1 red onion

1 cup fresh coriander - root, stem and leaves

12 kaffir lime leaves - deveined

1 thumb (human thumb not my paw) sized galangal

10 Thai bird chili (this gives about the right degree of spiciness, you can lessen or add)

2 stalks lemongrass

1 teaspoonful shrimp paste

All (almost) of the ingredients for the dish.....the small green round stuff at the top are pea eggplants.

This is how galangal looks like. Also available bottled in brine or dried. We use the fresh one, of course.

Next step, prepare rest of ingredients:

2 cloves garlic - sliced finely

4 kaffir lime leaves - deveined and sliced finely

1 cup pea eggplants - separate stem from fruit

1 cup coconut milk - we used powdered with 1 cup water

2 tablespoonful fish sauce (nampla)

1 pound boneless chicken thigh fillet cut into bite-sized pieces

2 tablespoonful cooking oil

2 tablespoonful lime juice - freshly squeezed from three limes

1 teaspoonful brown or palm sugar - or to taste

2 cups basil leaves - any kinds, Thai, sweet, Italian, as long as not the red ones

I just looove the fragrance of kaffir lime leaves.....hmmmm.....

Aaah...the smell of garlic in hot oil.....the tummy goes rumble rumble...

Now, start cooking. Use a medium-sized pot or wok. We used an aluminium pot.

1. Heat oil in pot. Stir fry garlic until fragrant.

2. Next, pour in green curry paste. Lower the heat so it didn't get burnt.

3. Mix in fish sauce and stir. Let simmer.

Green curry paste happily simmering in pot.

4. Now, add in the chicken pieces, stir to let paste coat the chicken. Let simmer until chicken is cooked.

The chicken happily simmering with paste in pot. Ahh...what a merry combination.

5. Throw in pea eggplants, let simmer until soft. This is optional as it's not widely available. You can substitute with any eggplant (diced) or even snake beans. I've eaten green curry using both pea eggplants and snake beans.

Freshly squeezed lime is the best. Or you can also use the commercial bottled ones. Never ever substitute with lemon.

6. Mix in lime juice and coconut milk. Also sugar. Adjust according to your taste.

Useful tip: Don't wash blender after using it to make the paste. Instead, pour in coconut milk powder and water in there. Blend and it will mix with the paste left over. No waste.

7. Last but not least, separate basil leaves from stems, wash and add into curry. Remove from heat and serve with rice or rice noodles.

A pot of happiness on a Saturday afternoon.

Beautiful basil leaves....we used to plant this in Sydney as it was expensive.

Nikki's note: Burp!!!! meoww....Nikki

An Interview with Mama

Nikki: Thank you for agreeing to speak to me, Mama. I must admit it was difficult trying to set an appointment with you although we live under the same roof.
Mama: Nikki dear, you of all people know how I have neglected work, neglected the family, neglected my friends, our blogger friends...everyone....all because of that princess. It was as if time stood still for a week. So now I'm making up for those lost times.

Nikki: Yes...I understand, Mama. Hmm...shall we get on with the interview?
Mama: OK...let's get it over with.

Nikki: Could you tell me what happened on May 17?
Mama: As far as I can recall, it was a public holiday, religious day for the Buddhist - Wesak Day. You all had a nip fest in the morning...oooh...remind me to buy a new pack, OK? Then in the afternoon, we bathed Angelina...or rather Dad bathed her. You know how only Dad can make her wet. I can't do it to her.

Nikki: Oh yes. I remember how angry she was when you put her outside on the balcony so that she gets solar-dried like how we all do.
Mama: Yeah...I remember that as well. You and Nicole were inside the sliding door, she was outside and went all hissy hissy and angry.

Nikki: She could have just kept quiet and lick herself dry. I did just that when you gave me a bath last weekend.
Mama: True. Angelina, I'm afraid, still doesn't get the hang of wet cleaning.

Nikki: Ooops… we've digressed. Can we go back to what happened that day....
Mama: Oooh...sorry. OK, so we towelled her and let her stay inside my room while she dries herself completely. Then we all came out of the room for dinner. Light dinner for your Dad and I while Angelina was perched on top of the kitchen cabinet, as usual. There she was until we went in to sleep. That was the last I saw of her.

Angelina usually hangs out on top of the kitchen cabinet.

Nikki: So, we’re assuming she ran away between the time we all went to bed and our breakfast the next morning?
Mama: Correct. What was she thinking, eh? Causing so much distress to everyone.

Nikki: What was your first reaction when you discovered her missing, Mama?
Mama: It was odd that she wasn’t there during breakfast, you know. I looked in all the rooms, climbed to look at the high places where she usually likes to lie but she wasn’t anywhere. Dad had gone to work earlier and I phoned him to come back. I went down to ground floor to look for her, in case she fell down…..you remember what happened to Ralf……but she had simply vanished.

Nikki: What were the efforts done to find her?
Mama: We alerted the security people, we printed posters and pasted them all over the area, we offered monetary reward – every entrance, guard house, shops, amenities. We also had people from the office came and knocked on doors, talked to the neighbours....

The poster (this one's edited) that we pasted all over the area.

Nikki: Did anyone respond to the posters?
Mama: Actually, many people called. Some to say they saw a similar cat here, there and everywhere. Some even caught a cat and asked us to come and see if it’s really her…..I’ve actually made some new friends in this area. All because of Angelina.

Nikki: So something positive did come out of it?
Mama: I have to admit, yes. Also, many of our blogger friends rallied and prayed for her return. Some even texted me and lent me shoulders to cry on. Aunty Amal and Aunty Rose came to check on me....

Nikki: Could you describe your feelings the whole time that she was gone? It was about a week, right?
Mama: Hmmm….we discovered her missing on the 18th morning and then found her on 26th morning…yes…about a week. I must confess that I had mixed emotions as time passes by. It was 1. Distress, 2. Worry, 3. Sad, 4. Angry and 5. Disappointed.

Nikki: Wow! That’s a long list, Mama. Would you explain them one by one?
Mama: You’re quite an interrogator there, young lady. OK…let’s start with 1. Distress. Understandably I was distressed, greatly, when I couldn’t find her anywhere in the house. 2. Worry – it was that never ending questions in my mind, is she still alive, is she hurt, did she fall and get injured, was she kidnapped?

Nikki: Why would you then feel sad, Mama?
Mama: I was sad because I love her so much and she left me. It was as if she rejected me. Then I became angry at her. How could she do that after all these years? Didn’t she like living with me? Later on, I became disappointed that she, whom I have tutored and taught well, would still behave like a mongrel. Why would she want to live like a feral? I'm sorry to say that she didn't live up to my expectations. Maybe I over estimated her.

Nikki: Hmmm….would you feel the same way if any one of us, other than Angelina, run away instead?
Mama: Nikki, let me put it on record that I love all my furkids equally. If it had been you or Tom or Nicole or Mike or even Brad, I know I’d feel the same. Each of you are unique. Anybody who says it’s fine to lose one as I still have five, doesn’t really know me or understand the depth of love I feel for all of you.

Nikki: Thanks for telling me that, Mama. I promise I won’t behave like Angelina.
Mama: Thanks for letting me pour out my feelings, Nikki. You’re assuring me that I’ve done right in my upbringing of you all.

Nikki: Hmmm…let’s wrap up this session, Mama. Thank you very much again for giving me a slot in your tight schedule.
Mama: No problem, Nikki.

There you have it. Mama has spoken. It was quite an emotional interview, for me. You don’t know how lucky you are, Angelina. meowww....Nikki!

The family welcoming Angelina and Brad when they first arrived from Sydney.

Reminiscence on Friday: Nikki's Baby Pix

Once upon a time, Nikki looked like that. This photo was taken a few hours after Nikki, Mike and Ralf were born.

Nikki (on the floor) as a kitten. A hyper active kitten, Mama said.

Angelina's note: Nikki has the privilege of being born in this house in 2004. We'll celebrate her birthday come Aug 29th. Hmm....how come my niece is much much older than me? purrr.....meow!