Short-Term Kitty Tenant

A female stray cat made itself at home at the house porch of our human's brother. Not wanting it to give birth repeatedly, it was sent to be spayed.

Our human decided to help look after it for a week for the cat's recovery and converted the MeowRoom into a VIP Recovery Room.

a - food area

b - bed

c - litter

blue arrow - entrances to MeowYard blocked

green arrow - scratching pole

Top picture - still groggy after the operation

Middle picture - since e-collar is uncomfortable, our human took out old kitties' clothes, sew strings on side and tie to fit this scrawny cat

Bottom picture - the late fatties' clothes kept riding up, our human decided to diy another; took out some old socks and cut holes for the legs and butt.

Right now this kitty is eating well including taking her antibiotic pill and using the litter box.

Can't Stop Them? Let Them Enjoy!

Continued from 30 October 2014  Who Done It?

Our human would like to thank all who gave suggestions to solve the wreckage our DIY hemp-wrapped boardwalk and figured that it was too much work for it to be repaired.

It was decided to allow the kitties enjoy wrecking it. The bitten-off hemp rope were not thrown away; it was tied to the kitty hardwood podium in the MeowYard with a knot on top and at the bottom to prevent it from being yanked off. The smaller bits of hemp fibers were collected and accumulated enough to be rolled into a hemp ball for them to chase and whack.

Strict Scrutiny

When the neighbour's pipe sprung a leak, water seeped through the connecting wall in the meowyard. Being in a sunny area, the damp wall soon had algae growing.

Afraid that the increasing patch of algae would affect the health of both human and cats, EJ decided to paint the wall with an acrylic waterproof sealer.

First the 18-foot long wall had to be scrubbed as clean as possible.

The painting took days as multiple coats are better at sealing than a single coat. But the real reason for the many days taken to do the job was the constant supervision and quality control inspection.

Curtain Calls

EJ never bothered with curtains till the new neighbour did major renovations to the house from front to back and top to bottom. 

With all foreign workers working and staying in, EJ felt a little insecure and decided that it was time to put up curtains on the two front windows.

Lugging this borrowed old drill that weighed like 16 tons to EJ up the low ladder on creaky knees wasn't easy. Holding the heavy drill above eye level, drilling was not exactly accurate. EJ took many tea breaks. Frequent climbing up and down lugging that ancient drill was tiring. It was a vicious cycle.

Putting up these curtains up probably take a couple of hours for professionals; EJ took days. 

Soon the weight of the curtains and the rod took its toll on that amateurish drilled part. The whole curtain threatened to fall.

Down came the curtain and the rod and up went EJ again on the ladder. This time EJ took the easy way out. All EJ did was stuff white cement at where the screw was and hope it would hold after the cement dried.

So far so good and hope it stays that way.

Working the Garden

The cats were freaking out the past few days. The neighbours' children were firing loud crackers and fireworks randomly and at odd hours. EJ stayed indoors most of the time with windows and door almost closed.

EJ knew it would be quiet today, the day of the festival celebration of Aidilfitri, as all of them would be leaving for their respective hometown.

It would be the best time to work in the garden. The garden dividing wall really do need a paint. Weather cooperated beautifully this morning. It was cool with the sun behind the glooming clouds.

As soon as the last of the neighbours' car left, EJ started scrubbing, scraping and washing the old paint off the wall. It took over two hours and EJ stopped when a slight twinge on the back was felt.

EJ plans to start painting first thing tomorrow morning, repotting and rearranging the plants in the garden the following days before the neighbours come back.

Slow Drive

The cats love their vet. When their vet left the clinic he worked in to start his own, EJ had no choice but to follow though it is almost 30 kilometres from home.

EJ was not always lucky to get a parking spot in front or near the clinic. There were times when the only available spot was some distance away. EJ then had to struggle with the cage containing two fat cats of seven kilogrammes each, looking a ridiculously pathetic sight.

The vets advised EJ that on future visits to notify them of estimated arrival time, double park momentarily outside the clinic and they would help carry the cats in.

Fearing to inconvenience and thus intimidate some impatient motorists in double parking though for a short while, EJ decided to make an explanatory onboard sign.

This sign, however, gave EJ many nervous moments on the road. Keeping to the slow lane, EJ did not speed on highways but prefer to move at a constant speed without sudden stops or starts to prevent the cats' noses being constantly hitting the sides of the cage.

All cars, big and small, economical and luxury including vans and big lorries follow EJ. And they all tailgate EJ very closely in the slow lane.

It was quite a while before EJ realised what the drivers were up to. They were all trying to read the smaller print of the sign. The minute they managed to figure out the small print, they immediately zoomed past at incredible high speed leaving EJ chugging behind.

On reaching the clinic, all three vets came out and helped carry the cats. Even the owner of the furniture shop next door helped look and reserved a parking lot nearby. EJ did not immediately plonk down on the bench at the clinic anymore.

Though not as eye-catching or colourful as those sold, EJ loves this plain self-made explanatory onboard sign.

Do you?

The Bane of Less-loved Cats

Kibbles bought from supermarkets and left-over human food were thrown or left on the floor or road for the neighbourhood cats.

Litter boxes were also not provided. So where would the cats go if they have to ease themselves? They were chased out if done in their owners' house, porch or garden.

Cats, being smart as they are, starting easing themselves in EJ's garden where they could not be disturbed. EJ would not mind if the garden is a sprawling few acres but it is such a tiny postage stamp-sized garden. These cats were not exactly in excellent health and their wastes stank to high heaven.

For months, the cats in the street where EJ lives used this tiny garden as their waste dump. Something had to be done before the cats spread the meow around the whole neighbourhood about their new private toilet. Various deterrent methods like sprinkling water were used but the cats were not afraid of EJ.

As a last resort, EJ thought of raising the dividing wall but wanted to give one last unused deterrent method a try. EJ got these creepers more than a year ago and kept winding them round the pot as they grew. Now that it has grown so long, it could be put to good use to line the dividing wall in the hope to visually fool the cats into thinking that access to the garden is blocked. The cats actually prefer to jump and walk on top of the wall en route to the roof and else where.

EJ's brother who was on vacation here then suggested hanging old CDs which EJ promptly did.

So far, EJ cleaned the garden twice and not twice a day. So it seemed to help deter to a certain extent.

Some of the neighbourhood cats; the gray ones did not have a chance to grow up and had already passed on. EJ has not see the one under EJ's car for over a week. Photos of the other three cats were snapped when in the neighbours' houses.

Little House for Tommy

During those days when Tommy and Tanya used to pay daily visits to EJ (they had an owner then), they slept anywhere in the porch where they thought was comfortable. Those were the days when EJ was a 'squatter' in mother's house.

Sometimes Tommy and Tanya would spend the whole afternoon at the porch. When it became too often and long, EJ decided to make a little house to shelter them from the sun and rain. It was one of the first few little projects EJ made for the cats.

This was it!

It was recycled from an unwanted cardboard box. The side that faced the front gate where the sun shines and the rain comes in was covered with plastic garbage bag held in place and taped down with masking tape, the only tape available in the house that time.

A tiny window was created by using one of mom's knives from the kitchen to cut a big 'U' and folded up as a shade for sun and rain. As you can see it was held up with lots and lots of tape!

The entrance, of course, was at the other end facing the house.

A slit on the side was purposedly made for extra ventilation and light.

Everytime EJ, mom or siblings came home and if Tommy was in his little cardboard-box house, Tommy would stick his nose, mouth and eyes out of that little window to greet and welcome them home with a meow. He cannot stick his ears out as his face was too broad for that window. Everyone was pleased, both human and cat!

This little house was much loved and constantly occupied. When it became worn out as well as when other strays started using it, constantly depriving both Tommy and Tanya of resting in it, EJ had to destroy it.

Since it proved so much loved and appreciated, it encouraged EJ to bigger and more ambitious projects later.

To see how Tommy and Tanya looked like those days before they adopted EJ, please click here for Tommy and here for Tanya.

Prevention is Always Better

Anticipating the new neighbours, being young bachelors, may not keep their surroundings as clean as EJ would like them to be, EJ decided to take action a few months ago before they shifted in.

There was a gap at the lower part of the dividing chainlink fence between EJ's and neighbour's porches where dead leaves and carelessly discarded stuff can move across when the wind blows.

Luckily EJ did not discard the remnants of the plastic mesh (considered junk) used to cover all windows and grills in the house to deter the cats from sneaking out. These remnants were used to line and cover that gap along the dividing chainlink fence.

The work was pretty fast. It only took only one whole morning to put together using plastic cable ties.

Less dead leaves and other stuff migrated to EJ's porch now. Dead leaves are still on the neighbour's porch on the right while there are none on EJ's on the left.

EJ is pleased as nothing was wasted. All remnants were made use of as well as less sweeping and cleaning of the porch.

Ubiquitous Duct Tape

Lately EJ found the toilet dirtied faster than normal and has been scrubbing it a lot.

It got EJ curious why this should be and decide to have a closer look. It was found that after flushing, the water flow did not stop. It flowed continously. It was that small flow which deposited those rusty-looking stains.

With the cistern cover taken off, it was discovered that the water level had exceeded the maximum mark. If the float handle was made of metal, EJ would have to bend it. Unfortunately the whole contraption is plastic which got EJ stumped.

The orange-coloured arrow points to the little knob that controls the inlet water. After several flushes, EJ found that the knob was a bit too far out and needed to be pushed in. EJ tried but could not tighten the plastic screw that probably control how far that knob goes and also feared that the whole plastic thing could break.

So out came the duct tape. EJ cut a small piece and folded it into a tiny two millimetres thick square and taped it to the knob thus pushing the knob in.

Test flushes was done several times and it seemed to work.

But this is a temporary solution. And so far so good.

Make your Bathroom Smell Good

When EJ's favourite mug chipped which would make drinking out of it dangerous as it could cut your lips, EJ did not want to throw the mug away and decided to think of ways to make use of it.

The chipped mug was placed on top of the cistern tank as a decoration as well as container for pandan leaves.

EJ used to hang the pandan leaves collected from the garden to make the bathroom smell good. In this picture, the pandan leaves have been split to allow the release of more pleasant smell.

Pandan or screwpine is widely used in Asian countries. It is used to flavour rice, puddings, cakes and even ice-cream. It is a repellant for pests such as cockroaches and ants though EJ has not tried it.

Home in a Home

A stopcock on white wall is not a pretty sight.

To hide it, EJ bought a shell-shaped pot and grew (what the locals call) money plant in it.

As this particular pot has no drainage hole, EJ had to use a chair to climb up to see how much water was needed on a daily basis. Soon EJ found it too much of a bother and decided to replace it with the plastic version that needed zero care.

The plastic version looks real. So real that even a potter wasp got fooled and build her nest on one of the stalk.

The nest was really a lovely work of art. EJ wished it could be kept but had to snip off that plastic stalk as a precautionary measure.

PS: Money plant is also known as the Pothos, Silver Vine, Centiped Tongavine, Devil's Ivy and Solomon Islands' Ivy. Its scientific name is Epipremnum Aureum.

Animals lovers, please do take care as this plant is listed as toxic to cats and dogs due to the presence of calcium oxalates.

Make it Look Good

The tiny house EJ lives in is an old house. Obviously not everything is in tip-top shape.

Frequently used sink in the toilet had an ugly stain of dirt trapped in the crack between the sink and the wall. Since getting professional help for such a small repair will definitely be turned down, EJ believed that this was not too difficult a job and decided to tackle it alone.

First, that ugly dirt has to be get rid of. A pointed instrument like a small screwdriver or scraper was used to carefully scrap off the dirt.

Next, white cement was mixed with water into a paste. White cement can be bought from any hardware shop or shop that sells tiles.

Then the cement paste was placed onto the crack. A damp cloth was used to smoothen and wipe off excess cement.

The cement had to be completely dried before the sink could used.

EJ was very pleased with the result and is encouraged to continue to carry out other small do-it-yourself repairs to the house.

To Gugu with Love

They call EJ 'Gugu'. It means paternal aunt in their language.

Niece Erin, nephew TC lived with EJ when they were young. When Erin was five and TC a toddler still, together with their parents, they emigrated to Canada. Both Erin and TC are young adults now. Erin has finished her tertiary education in criminal law while TC is still in the University of Toronto.

Visiting each other entails a certain amount of planning and money as the countries they lived in are on the opposite sides of the globe, and cannot be as frequent as they would like to.

Inspite of the distance and absence of presence, love prevails.

Last month EJ's brother and wife came back for a visit. They brought a gift from Erin, a personally hand-woven friendship band of three colours - green, pink and purple.

EJ used 15 plus-year-old Cinders as a model to show off the beautiful colours and woven pattern of the band. It does look good on Cinders.

After posing for a few shots, Cinders got bored and impatient. She decided enough is enough and walked towards EJ meowing in protest.

Thank you Erin for the lovely wristband.

I Love my Letter Box

During our grandparents' time, news were mostly conveyed through radios and hand-written letters were delivered by post.

Nowadays with advanced technology, news were sent efficiently and quickly. But each house still has a letter box for the postman to deliver mail.

EJ believes that everyone still look forward to the postman delivering letters as there is a feeling of warmth and a special touch of happiness in opening a friend's handwritten letter or postcard.

Unless houses were constructed with the letter boxes concealed in gate pillars like in many modern housing estates; most people would prefer to buy their own choice of letter box. Letter boxes are sold in a basic box shape but with slight variations.

When EJ's brilliant red plastic letter box dropped and smashed to a million pieces (suspected due to unseen forces) coupled with a busy schedule at that time, EJ decided to put up a temporary letter box.

After finishing the last biscuit, EJ stared at the empty biscuit tin and thought, "Why not?"

EJ took out the hammer, a nail, a coil of wires and started work on the biscuit tin. Holes were made at the back of the tin for the wires to go through to tie the box to the gate. Holes were also made at the bottom to drain out whatever rain that may collect. EJ was extremely pleased with the result.

Visiting friends find this unusual letter box very amusing and would walk in with big grins on their faces.

With the biscuits finishing soon, EJ feels it is time to change the letter box as rust has filled the whole bottom of the existing one.

Useful Junk

When EJ's mother was a young lady, plastics did not exist. Whatever food and things that were exported and imported were not transported by aeroplane then but by ship. To safeguard its contents, foodstuffs and things were packed in wooden boxes.

It was not known how EJ's mother got hold of these two boxes - the box with lid that contained the Lactogen milk powder for infants from Denmark and the box without lid that contained fruits from California, USA. The guess was her grocery friend probably gave her these two boxes.

To make good use of these two boxes, it became EJ's and siblings' 'wardrobe'. Those days, clothes were usually folded and not hung on clothes hangers.

It was also not known or remembered how EJ inherited these two 'wardrobe' boxes which by now would be termed and viewed as 'junk'. Since it held such happy childhood memories, EJ decided to convert it to something useful - a coffee table!

The box with the lid would be on top.

The box without lid would at the bottom. Castors were screwed at each corner at the bottom of the box so that it could be easily move about.

Two fastener clips were purchased and one on each side was screwed on. The clips can be unfastened to gain access to things stored in the bottom box. When the clips are fastened, the top box will not slide off or move from the bottom box.

A thorough wood polish completed it.

Well, the two boxes did not exactly fit but the difference in size created a useful gap for easy retrieval for magazines and other reading materials.

At times, it is also a laptop table.

To EJ, this useful 'junk' is a beautiful conversation piece.