Precious Moment

Rare....a very rare scene indeed.

I was fast asleep when the spoilt brat crept up and silently dozed off next to me. Mama thought she would lose the moment if she had gone to fetch the DSLR from the study so she took the photos using her mobile. True enough, when I realised what the rascal did, I showed everyone my tail of disapproval. But the sofa was too comfy for me to move elsewhere so I let him be.

I promise to myself I will never ever let this happen again. purrr.....meow!

Look Ma! Toes...Toes!!!!

OMG!!!! This cat has 30 toes!!! 8 in each front paws and 7 each at the back. And people thought it odd that we normally have 5 in front and 4 at the back. (Does that answer your query Ayoh Wang Shariff???). Such large paws the feline has.

Reading the news piece in Utusan Malaysia, which is in Malay language, the cat, named Lawa (meaning: Pretty), was a stray trapped in a contraption meant for catching civets. He/she (the news didn't mention the feline's gender) now lives in a village not far from the Malaysia-Thailand borders.

Hmm....mutant cat? Genetic modification? Too much tom yum goong? Who knows if some mad scientists are not conducting experiments at the border. Truly a different take on the hand, food and mouth disease.

I'm wondering if Lawa enjoys mani/pedi...or has he/she ever had hydrotheraphy. purrrr....meow!

Ear Candy at QVM

The Queen Victoria Market is not all about retail therapy or groceries. Sometimes, you can feast your eyes and ears too. What's better than the sight of four hunks (eye candies) producing beautiful music (ear candies)? And they don't mind a cat, a very cute one at that, documenting them on video. Check them out at www.larumba.com.au.

Wish I had castanets with me.....aarrrgh....purrr....meow!

For the Love of....CATS!!!

Never ever give a nickname to my Mama. She's fine with the name her parents gave her, she said. Not even Catwoman!!! (unless you think she's divine like Halle Berry)

But, know what? I don't think she'll mind being called Catwoman. Coz she's been hoarding cat stuffs since God knows when and from wherever her feet took her. Now, before any of you start organising Mr Clooney and his Ocean (11, 12, 13????) gang to come and rob her treasure, purrrlease beware. There are four guards with serviceable fangs and claws (aka Tom, Nicole, Michael and Nikki) abound. They bite and they don't discriminate. The home contents insurance people were not amused when they saw Mama's list. Cats are good at keeping inventories and database, OK?

The sign that says: We had to get rid of the kids, the cat was allergic - is from Christchurch, New Zealand. The marble cat next to the froggy hails from Penang's famous Batu Ferringhi night market.

That book is a classic that Mama picked up at an antiques shop in Kiama (south coast, NSW). The teenie weenie wooden ones sitting on stairs are from Bali.

I love that signpost: My cat is not spoiled, I'm just well trained. Oh, Mama was referring to me, of course.

The one with the card that says "One of a kind...." is a quaint find in a Frenchie resort in Bukit Tinggi, Malaysia.

That purple jigsaw puzzle is also from Bali while the red/brown batik cat is from Bandung, Indonesia.

We have other animals too in the collection...bears, ducks, frogs, turtles, koalas, monkeys....

Pencils, keychains, pencils with keychains....The yellow figurine next to the bowl of gems is a Siamese cat picked up in Phuket, Thailand. The tiny porcelain ones are from Paddy's Market in Sydney.

Brad's name plate prominently displayed versus that of Tom and Michael. Hmmm....who's been rearranging the display, eh? Oh, the chocolatey figurine (bottom right corner) is a limited edition from Madrid, Spain.

Mama says that cat with shades and shorts lounging on the lazy chair is so like Tom! That cat in a box is from Japan.

Everyone has their own car plate in this house. Hey...mine is hidden by Nikki's.

So, there you have it. Mama's precious treasure. Priceless! purrr.....meow!

200 Reasons to Visit St Kilda

It was in 2003 when Mama first visited the market at the Esplanade of St Kilda beach. Then, there were 222 stalls selling all sorts of handicraft that she had blisters on her feet as she visited all of them - from #1 to #222!

I wasn't even born yet then. So, as part of my Australiana lessons, Mama took me there so that I'd appreciate home-grown art. You see, the organiser of the market is very strict in making sure that the products sold at the Sunday event is truly Australian - they'll even visit the home or factory where the products are claimed to be made.

And am I glad they do that. At least, I'm assured that we won't be buying some clunky products that are imported from some dubious manufacturers that employ child labour or prisoners! The downside is, however, as is typical of any Made in Australia product, the offerings at this market are pricy. But doesn't stop us from dishing out the moolah....as some of the products are just so exquisite and unique. It's as if they know my weakness for the finer things in life....Wish I were a millionaire like my namesake!!!

We took the tram from QVM to Flinders St, then changed to another one that took us direct to the Esplanade on St Kilda Rd.

The tram we took from QVM to Flinders St.

In the tram...gets more crowded as it picked up more passengers at every station.

Best burger in St Kilda? We didn't check it out though as that would mean getting off the tram too early and then walk far to the market.

As Mama had learned a very good lesson seven years ago, we didn't start from stall number 1. Instead, we started from the middle. That was where the tram stopped anyway. Then Brad and I tossed a coin to see which direction we should take (head = left, tail = right). It was the tail and so we headed to the right. I think we did good although we didn't get to see all 200 stalls.

At stalls where we actually made a purchase, the owners didn't seem to mind us taking photos. At the rest, we usually asked their permission first. Some put up notices that no photos are allowed. We had to respect that, don't we?

The first stall we visited at the Esplanade. Lovely bells, eh?

I love playing with puppets...the good Uncle allowed me to play with his.

That smiling fat white cat is now ours!!!!

Mama bought me a couple of these lovely silver bracelets....plus some other jewellery pieces.

The beach at St Kilda is always busy and crowded.

Interesting handicraft....Brad likes that alphabet thingy.

Wouldn't you want to take home one of these beautifully crafted time keepers?

Yeay! A new retail therapy "piggy bank" for me!

Aah...Mama's favourite - unique fridge magnets.

We saw many canines accompanying their masters....they must be envying us, two felines with a slave...har har har!

Errr....do we look like these? Definitely not....

I love pet-friendly stall owners.

Bold and beautiful...amazing talent...

Ice cream parlour @ St Kilda... Brad was happy enough to lick them scoops after all that walking along the Esplanade.

We spent quite a long time at St Kilda, at least three hours. My feet felt like lead by the time we took the tram back to the city. Mama said we can all take a nap as soon as we checked in at the hotel. Which hotel? Shhhh....it's a secret!

This tram goes round and round the city....for free!

Catch the pigeon! Stop the pigeon! Feed the pigeon! Ooohhh...can't decide what to do with these pigeons. Too many of them...aaaarrrgh!!!

Mama was checking out the train station. She'd have to take one to her meeting place the next day.

Hmmm...my sister-in-law Nicole seems to be well-known here. Must tell Tom about this.

We returned to Sydney on Monday. Oh, Virgin Blue had a computer glitch starting 9am on Sunday. Phew! Lucky our flight was earlier. Then, we thought our flight on Monday evening would be delayed or cancelled. It wasn't! Boarding was late by 30 minutes but the flight still arrived on schedule. Hmmm....was the pilot speeding up in the sky? purrr....meow!