Tocktober a la Angelina

Angelina's note: The calendar says it's still October. So, I'm still not too late for Tocktober time, right? purr...meow!

IMPAWTANT NOTICE TO ALL

Hie Peeps! This is Angelina's Mama.
I'm afraid I have bad news.
Angelina is gone. We lost her. We've searched for her high and low. Our house is not big, impossible not to find a cat hiding in a tiny 900sqft apartment.
We think she may have jumped from the ledge at the balcony to the common area. And as she's still unfamiliar with the territory, may not have found her way home.
Until Angelina is found, this blog is suspended.
If she's not found, I have no reason to continue.
Pray for her return.

Down Memory Lane

Mama was complaining that there's not much memory left in the Mac. So, we got an external HD and transfer some of the old pix there. Being the ever helpful daughter, I helped her with the task of sorting out the kitty family albums. Then I saw these visions of loveliness. Oooohhh....I fell in love with this model that Mama's been photographing. See for yourself. Don't you think she deserves all the admiration in the world?

Oooo....so adorable...who can she be? 

She's so sweet and demure looking.

Cuter when sleeping.... 

Aaahhh....the purrrfect Hollywood pose.

Mama: Don't you know who that is, Angelina? That's you...when you first came to live with me.
Angelina: Really, Mama? I was that pretty?
Mama: You still are.
Angelina: Auw.....*blush* ... I love you, Mama.
Brad: Aaarrrggghhh.... *vomits*
Angelina: Oh..shut up little boy! Can't a girl admire herself? purrr....meow!

The Phone Call

Ring ring ring ring...

'Angelina Jolie's residence!'

'Hello. May I speak with Angelina, please.'

'One moment, please. Who shall I say calling?'

'It's her brother Tom.'

'Oh, very well. A moment, please.'

'Angelina, Tom's on the line. For you.'

'Thanks, Brad.'

'Hi Tom. Angelina here.'

'Hey pretty girl, howzit going?'

'Silly boy. Stop using American slang. I'm Aussie, mate. What's up?'

'Nothing. Just wondering how y'all holding up down under. How's Mama?'

'Not good. Mama's been sick since she got back. I heard her complaining to Dad about her body clock being topsy turvy.'

'Well, she's been having this persistent cough when she came back from her travel to the Middle East.'

'Yeah. That too. Plus she got caught in the drizzle when she fetched us from Uncle Is and Auntie If's place. And it's cold here compared with where she's been in the past six weeks.'

'Is she having a flu? Any fever?'

'I think it's the combination of everything. And lack of sleep. Hasn't been to work too.'

'That's a bit worrying. How are you coping?'

'Well, we've been doing our bit to help ease her suffering. I've been giving her massages while Brad keeps her warm by cuddling her. We hope that helps.'

'We'll pray for her too. Hope she'll recover soon. At least Dad is not sick. A bit busy though. He comes home late almost everynight.'

'Yeah. Send my love, hugs and kisses to Dad.'

'The same from us to Mama, OK?'

'Righto, bro.'

'Hey, who's being American now?'

'Teeheehee. You started it.'

'Don't be cheeky sister.'

'Sorry....send my love to Nicole and the kids, OK!'

'Oh, all right.'

'Ta....'

...click.

Australian Fruits 101

It is mid-summer now. My Mama says this is the best time of the year, for her, as this is the time when her favourite fruits will be in season. She loves fresh figs and plums. Let me tell you a bit about the plums as somehow it’s connected to me.
Mama says her favourite is the Angelina plums. I have the picture here. I did a bit of research about this fruit that bears my name.
About Angelina: Angelina Burdett plums are round to oval, medium-sized clingstone plums with bluish-black skin. They have sweet, juicy yellowish-green flesh. The tree is self-fertile to the point that it will even need some thinning as the fruit is growing. It is ready for harvesting late summer, early autumn. Can be used for cooking or eating out of hand. The plum was bred around 1850 (some think 1843) by a Mr Dowling of Woolston, Southampton, England. Named after a philanthropist, the Baroness Angelina Burdett-Coutts (1814–1906), granddaughter of the banker Thomas Coutts.
Scientific notes: A plum or gage is a stone fruit tree in the genus Prunus, subgenus Prunus. The subgenus is distinguished from other subgenera (peaches, cherries, bird cherries, etc) in the shoots having a terminal bud and the side buds solitary (not clustered), the flowers being grouped 1-5 together on short stems, and the fruit having a groove running down one side, and a smooth stone. Also called Prunus domestica (Scientific Name) Prune (French) Pflaumen (German) Prugna (Italian) Ciruela (Spanish) Ume (Japanese).
General information: Plums are the second most popular fruit in the world (apples are the most popular.) You can classify plums in many ways. One is based on what you do with them -- either eating them raw or cooking with them. Another divides them into three families: European, Damson, Japanese. Yet another is to look at those that are freestone -- the flesh separates easily from the pit -- from those that aren't (clingstone).
Not all plums are plum-coloured -- that is to say, purple. They also come in green, yellowish green, yellow and red. Consequently, it can be hard to tell if a plum is ripe based on colour, unless you are familiar with the variety. The best way to tell if it is ripe is just to squeeze it slightly to see if it is soft. Meanwhile, avoid all the bruised fruit that everyone else has squeezed. Plums will, like many fruits, continue to ripen after picking.
If the plums are firm, you can set them out at home at room temperature for a day or two for them to soften. Placing them in a paper bag will speed up the process. Though they will soften, they won't sweeten any more after they are picked. Once they are ripe, they are good for about 3 days in the refrigerator. All plums freeze and preserve well.
Nutrition: Good source of potassium, Vitamin A and fibre. An average plum has anywhere from 30 to 60 calories. The pit of the plum has cyanogens in it, which are bound molecules of sugar and cyanide. When this bond is broken, the cyanide becomes free and able to act. The cyanogens don't leak at all into the flesh of the fruit, for some reason, but should it ever occur to you to try fermenting plum pits, or to break them up and roast them as snack food, it might not be such a great idea.



Mama's favourite snack - Angelina plums....don't they look yummy?

Get to Know Me Better

Hiya peeps! Do you notice that I've always been talking about other stuffs but not much of myself? Let me remedy that.
I am a cat. Never doubt that. My name is Angelina Jolie, as a tribute to the Hollywood Star. I live in Sydney, Australia, in one of the suburbs, not in the city proper.
I won't give you my home address but suffice to say it's a home I share with my Mama and my pet, Brad Pitt. He's feline like me.
I love sleeping, playing,spanking Brad if he annoys me, cool winter night, snuggle up with Mama, looking at the world from up high, eating grass....
Things I hate: manicure, pedicure, food with liver bits, hot summer days...
Any questions? Tell your people to speak to my people...


Take me shopping anytime! I am, after all, a girl...


Guess what's my favourite brand of cat food?


Me on the massage chair.


The flower pot makes a nice snoozing spot too.


View from the window - on a rainy day.


I simply love looking out from the window. We live on the top floor. Can you see me?