Co-Existing with Feral Cats

The only experience I had with cats was when Kuya had a cat named Valentino. Mom explained to me that he was called Valentino because he had a lot of girlfriends. My memory is fuzzy already about him since I was still in grade school then, but I remember he was white and grey. Kuya gave him up because he did something to his pet birds. 

So since then I was not interested in cats. Mom didn't like them also because they'd ruin her plants. It was in Singapore while visiting a friend when I had a really close encounter with her cat. During the visit her cat suddenly sat on my lap. He allowed me to pet him and he hung out for awhile. I actually enjoyed the experience. 

Grey, Kaley, Brimsley and kids

Months after moving to our new home, we noticed a grey tabby cat frequenting our place. It would sleep in the laundry area. We observed it and thought there would be no harm in providing a makeshift bed. Eventually that progressed to buying some cat food. We called the cat "Grey". Then came Kaley and Brimsley and some irregular visitors, Mang Tux, Cheyenne and Sandra. 

We learned though it's hard to get the trust of feral cats. It took more than 6 months before they stopped running away from us when we'd go out to the garage or garden. The older feral cats, Grey and Kaley, don't want to be touched. Brimsley allows Jay and Miggy to pet her when she's busy eating. We realized catching them to bring them to the vet to get spayed is easier said than done. 

As a family, we defined how we'll co-exist with the feral cats. One advantage of having them around is they help protect the house from rats and other pests. Second is they bring us joy. Our goal is to provide a safe space for them when they need it. We also hope we could bring them to the vet so they can be spayed. 

Feral cats are really different from domesticated cats. They have a mind of their own and follow a different code. There are very few videos on how to care for feral cats. One thing we learned is to co-exist with them with respect. The best you can do is to provide what you can and just let them be. 

#BeKind #StaySafe

Happy Sunday

Here's a good reminder from today's Godwhispers -

Happy Sunday everyone!

#BeKind #StaySafe

The Easiest Plant to Propagate: Mother of Millions

A year ago, Ate Rose gave me a pot full of kalanchoe pinnata. It's also commonly known as the mother of millions. I lost count on how many plants there were in the small pot she gave me. I re-potted them into separate containers with the intention of giving them away for Christmas. 

Kalanchoe as of July 2022

Re-potted kalanchoe

Well, I forgot to give them away. I water them just once a week since they're pretty resilient. They're the plants I least worry about when we go away for a few days. The tiny plants I re-potted a year ago is proof that this plant is indeed a mother of millions. 

Kalanchoe, August 2023.

I left it in the pots I put them in from a year ago and was super surprised they grew so big! I've been meaning to transfer them to bigger pots. I'll do that as soon as I finish re-potting another set of plants. Saw some videos though that this can grow big and maybe have flowers (?). I'm not sure, but we'll see. I probably need to get bigger pots so I can transfer them. 

#BeKind #StaySafe

Let's Make Homemade Tapa!

I love tapa especially when it comes as tapsilog. Most of those available though are too salty for me. I have to lessen my sodium intake for my health. It's been quite some time since I made homemade tapa. Found some sirloin in the freezer, so that's what I used. The meat is a bit more expensive than your usual lean beef, but it's much easier to cook. There's also no wastage because you don't get hard to chew ligaments.

Made 700 grams of tapa and we finished it in 2 meals. Paired it with Greek salad. I didn't cook egg anymore since we ate it for lunch. I went on a controlled diet plan after I made this, now I'm craving for it again, haha. Here's how I made it -

Maybe I should unearth my high school recipes for tocino and longganisa and make some. We never got around to tasting it. We marinated the meat and was supposed to cook it the week after. Unfortunately, there was a coup d'etat and school was closed. I think there were days when there was no electricity. The meat we marinated spoiled and we never got to try it. Next cooking project then :)

Full recipe at: https://recipesformyson.blogspot.com/2023/08/recipes-for-my-son-beef-tapa.html

#BeKind #StaySafe

July, Health and Kittens

So far doing well with my one second per day for the year. July was our most productive month this year I think. After our beach vacation we decided to focus on our health. Fortunately found new doctors since my former ones went MIA, plus they were keen to do surgery. My doctors in Singapore repeatedly told me not to have anyone poke me since my body is truly extraordinary. 

It was jarring for me to go out often for doctor appointments and tests. I usually just go out once or twice a month and have been buying our needs online. I changed hospitals also and the vibe has been much better. The med techs don't freak out when they do tests. I like it there because people are more efficient. My new doctor also immediately gave me a certificate for disability. I think my other doctor was focused more on her research than taking care of me. 

Anyway, I did enjoy going for my check-ups and tests because it gave us an opportunity to try new things in the area. Got to eat things not available for delivery and even bumped into friends we haven't seen since 2019. Well, I must admit I had a few toy budols. I really need to work on fixing my Yoda display. 

The biggest surprise we had was Brimsley giving birth in our garage. She squeezed herself into a box set to be thrown away. She give birth over a span of three days. Three kittens I think, but one didn't make it we think. Never saw the third one. Two are now two weeks old and we hope they survive. We're getting a lot of advise from friends on how to care for them. 

We also managed to attend our very first public event. We went to the Coffee Home Brewers grand eyeball organized by Ros and Jose Margo. There was a typhoon, but the weather luckily cleared up on the day we went. Miggy also won a Breville kettle by correctly guessing the number of beans in a bottle. We're so happy about it because I was thinking we needed another one for our hot water needs. Rest of July was very rainy because of the typhoon and habagat. 

August will probably be full of adulting tasks. Of course, it's going to be a month long celebration of my birthday!

Keep safe and dry everyone!

#BeKind #StaySafe

If You Fail, Write a New Story

We just started watching Grey's Anatomy again since we recently signed up for Disney+. There was an interesting story line from season 17. Dr. Schmitt, one of the residents, lost a patient during surgery. He immediately lost confidence in himself and became depressed. Dr. Webber tried to get him to go back, but he refused and just stayed home playing video games. He said he liked playing because he can do things over again without bringing harm to anyone. 

Several episodes later, Dr. Schmitt had an argument with his mother. She walked out, but fell down the stairs. Levi then called Dr. Webber for help and that eventually led him back to the hospital. It was during his first surgery when a new doctor, Dr. Marsh, told him that he should just learn from his failure and write a new story. 

That line struck me because I felt I failed when I had to retire early because of my health. It took me a long time to accept my new reality, but I eventually realized I had an opportunity to re-work my life. It was indeed a major path change, but I know and trust that God put me where I should be. 

This little kitty is just learning how to walk. It probably can't see properly yet, but it's been ready to explore the world since he/she was born :)

I'm now probably just 1% of how productive I was when I was still working, but I'm where I want to be. I wanted to be in a place where I can create new, happy memories with my boys. I blog everyday as part of my therapy. I make videos to document some of our memories and I make tutorials as a guide for myself when I want to do something again. 

Failure is always an opportunity to learn and to write a new story. And as Amelia said in the latest episode I watched, let it soak in and use that pain to do better. :)

Remember, Papa God loves you. 

#BeKind #StaySafe

Picking Up Where I Left Off

It's hard for me not to work any quilt project. My day feels incomplete if I don't pick up a needle to sew something. I could spend hours working on my sewing projects, but my appendages don't agree with long hours. I haven't been able to see an ortho yet, so I started doing the arm PT exercises I learned a few years ago. I think it's helped and I'm also working on reversing my vitamin D insufficiency. 

I told myself I need to first finish projects I've started. I have a number I haven't finished. So yesterday i started working on the cat quilt cover for our blender. All it needs now is to be assembled. Decided though to add a pocket to the backside so I could put some stuff in it if needed. 

I timed myself so I didn't overwork. I just made the pocket and the backside. Started quilting on the pocket, but I started to feel some pain. I think the repetitive hand stitching isn't good for my arm. I immediately stopped and did some exercises. Pain subsided immediately and I rested after. 

Ending this post now because I'm excited to finish my cat quilt. :D

#BeKind #StaySaffe