Mousey the Little Trooper

A month ago, we finally had the vet remove Mousey's bladder stone, and she made it through! She's our oldest guinea pig at 5.5 years, that's like 70 years in human years I reckon.

We've always had doubts putting her through surgery, having had no luck with surgeries in the past with Snowey, Fluffer and Tobey. We crossed our fingers and hoped that the stone could somehow be passed out in due course. But Mousey's bladder stone just kept getting bigger and bigger until in the end she was squeaking and in so much pain, we bit our lips and decided to go ahead with it.

We gave her more lettuce, more blueberries and more cuddles the night before, and dropped her off at the vet's in the mornig.

It was a big relief to get the call from the vet that afternoon: the surgery went well, and it was the biggest stone the vet's ever seen in a little piggy. Nasty.

So now Mousey's home and recovering, still hurts a little but she chomps away as much as she can and pees and poops more than ever! Such a little trooper! Yay Mousey!

Update: Now she's eating pellets on her own, and chasing any other piggy in sight!

Mousey

BeBe

and we finally named this one: Fudge-pie, or Fudgie :)

**

What's on your Face?

Quote of the day:


'What's that socialising thing they do on the computer now... MyFace??'

Zion and Bryce Canyons, Utah

A couple of weeks after, we loaded the car and drove through the desert, past Las Vegas(there's a big toy castle in Las Vegas!) and into the Red State. We spent 2 nights each in Zion and Bryce. I loved the clean, easy camping and the spectacular views in the canyons.

The first day we unwittingly did an 11 mile hike, and barely made it to the bus before it got pitch dark. And though we had kept our spirits and optimism up, it would have been most unpleasant if we had had to spend the night out there in t-shirts and shorts.

Not withstanding that, the trip was a lot of fun - we hiked through the trails, woke up for a beautiful sunrise, took photos of everything from mountains to rocks to water, stalked mule deer, chased after pronghorns, visited an amazing wildlife museum, saw some elk locking horns and a couple of great bisons, and a cow with the most massive horns I've ever imagined, and even hitched a ride in the back of a convertible driving up Zion.

*******

In my girl scout days, we pitched a tent with stakes, rope and a square of tarp, cooked our food over twig fires and did our business with a shovel behind the bushes.

Boy am I glad camping now is much more evolved. YAY for pop-up tents, flushable toilets and hot water showers!!

As I have also learnt, a plain steaming pot of instant noodles is great comfort food when you're out camping, so is a jar of Nutella :D

Some photos for now

********

Pantanal, Brazil

Back in September:

Awesome trip, loadsa fun in a stick-drive, and wa-aay too much doodoo everywhere

http://scottpenny.smugmug.com/Pantanal,%20Brazil

Natalie Comes To Visit!

When I was back in Singapore last year, I spied Natalie behind the pharmacy counter at a drugstore. We exchanged emails.

Back in junior college, we were in the canoeing/db team together. Those were happy, splashy, fit days of abs and biceps.

Now that Natalie is in California waiting to start on her new job, she comes to stay with me for a week while Scott is away diving in the Philippines. Why has he gone diving without me, I'm asked. I can drive, and I have the car and my credit card - I'll be fine, I say ;)

Me and my partner-in-crime, we tore through town and raided the malls, combed through the bargains and rung up the register with a vengeance. We huffed and puffed up the mountains, lamenting our soft thighs and weak lungs. We more happily padded barefoot down the beaches and sunned ourselves silly. We yakked through it all and late into the night til we fell asleep.

We had many shared and unshared memories to talk about, more than 10 years of catching up to do. It was all very comforting and very heart-warming and I couldn't have asked for better company.

Thanks Natalie! I'm so glad you came to visit! :D

more photos in title link

To All My Friends For Your Kiddos :)

Don't Forget To Flush

Aboard the Sea Bass yesterday, as divers waited for the head (i.e. toilet, on a boat):

"What's taking him so long, is he fixing on his pee valve?"

"Yeah, it's a pain"

"I know a guy who sells them cheap, for like $20, but they're not balanced, so water could go up the valve while you're descending."

"I'd rather just pay for a balanced one, you don't want critters swimming up the valve either you know..."

"So, how do you women do it in that drysuit underwater?"

"(She)'s got something similar to the valve."

"(She) uses one of those gadgets, what do you call'em? (everyone else: "the She-wee") so it's like a female p***s you hold up against you, do it standing up. You can just throw it in the purse and carry it around."

"Yeh, but she also has a zip at the crotch, so she doesn't have to undress to do it"

...

"I just hold, cut my dive short, come up and strip down quick"

...

and She Who Dived In A Wetsuit shrugged it and said:


"I flush."


*************


We had beautiful clear, cobalt blue water at Farnsworth yesterday. I call it Farnsworth Blue.

On a great boat with a group of wonderful funny people, that made the trip all the merrier.

Torpedo Ray aka Electric Ray

Dana brought me a raspberry chocolate cake for my birthday, and cuppy cakes with little sea creatures on it - Woot! love the crabby!

More photos by hubs

BeBe popped a baby!

Hubby gives each of our 3 girls a piece of cucumber, and we set out to the store for some dinner.

30 minutes later, we come back home, and I go to give them a piece of tomato.

Bebe was sitting way in the back of the cage, it was dark there, and I reached in with the tomato for her. There's a little dark something in front of her, I half-wondered what it was and prodded it without thinking.

And suddenly there was a flash of what looked like an eye, and then something scrambled away!

I gasped and I scrambled away.

"SWEETIE!! THERE'S AN EXTRA PIGGY IN THE CAGE!!" I ran out of the room to fetch the hubs, shrieking like I was struck with leprosy. At this point, I wildly imagined that the piggy had jumped in through the open window and somehow into the cage right where it sat.

The hubs stared at me with eyes stretched wide, in his 'No-Way!' manner, went "Whaaa?" and then marched right into the bedroom.



.."I told you!"




We adopted Bebe from an official rescue that had screened it for pregnancy, but I guess some things are hard to tell. Bebe got a little chubby, especially over the last week, but it never occurred to us that she could actually be pregnant. We just thought she was getting lotsa good stuff to eat.

This is the loveliest surprise, and boy are we glad that it was a normal, healthy labour and delivery for Bebe. And she is being such a good mommy too, always cleaning the baby and laying still for it to feed.

Sigh, happiness comes in such surprising ways.

Hubby diving the Oil Rigs

photos by Mikey B.

31

Just when I stamped a label on the hubs, he goes out and proves me wrong.

I was at work on Friday, when I called him during a break to say hello, and what does he tell me?

He tells me he's out shopping.

For my birthday(the next day) present no less, but make no mistake about it - the hubs is out. Shopping.

Not a targeted-purchase operation, not a hunger driven grocery cart pile-up, not a necessary 30-sec stop, but a true searching, looking escapade.

Sure I wished sometimes he'd just be my company when I shop, which he does too, but I never expected that he would venture out at it alone.

I love my hubby, he does everything and would do anything to make sure I'm always happy :)

In the end, just as even the most avid shoppers do once in a while, he aborted the mission when he remembered me delighting in a pretty charm bracelet a week ago (I hadn't meant it to be a hint on a birthday present at all then).

At once, he reclaimed his hunter-gatherer instinct and set out to secure the item of desire.

Target acquired~

I absolutely love it!!

How happy for a woman to get something so chirpily frivolous for her birthday, even at 31 ;)

Thank you sweetie!


Charms, beads, and lovely jewelry all handmade by Judy Carlson. Thank you Judy! :D

~
For my birthday, we biked down to Manhattan Beach for the day in beautiful sunny weather, and even met a group of bikers on the way - one of them had ribbons all over her helmet and a big birthday smiley with a party hat on the back of her jersey - I guess it's her birthday too!

Finally got back home and then a quick splash in our little pool in the courtyard to cool off. Ahhhh, I always liked that last bit the best. :)




31 and never happier :)

The Anti-Retail Man

Walking along the Promenade yesterday, we strode along a young couple on vacation from England (I presumed from the invariable bright pink of tourists in Santa Monica, and from their accent). We come to a stop at the light.

Across the street was the Victoria Secret store of sexy lingerie fame, that women adore in all its Pinkness. To the left was a pizza stop. At the crossroads of a fledging relationship, the guy gives a grimace.

"Oh I know that look, it's the but-I-don't-wanna-go-shopping look." chimes my jolly-wolly hubby to them.

The guy shoots us a look of self-pity and moans "We've been at it for 3 hours."

To which the hubs heartily dispenses some empathy and oft-executed advice

"Oh I totally understand. There's a Borders right down the block - make a dash for it."


How's that for instant camaraderie.

How Long Can You Hold Your Breath?

After a nice long sleep-in on my day off, hubs and I took off to Malibu for some freediving. There was a little bit of surf, not too much, but enough for me to feel wooozey after about 75 minutes. We went right through the mass of kelp, got tangled a bit, but without scuba equipment, it was much easier to get out and get through.

Looking down snorkelling was like looking through a haze, but once you dive right in, the water column clears up and there are beautiful sights - the bright green sea gras swaying back and forth with the surges, red algae, kelp forests, schools of baby perch darting about, rock fish, kelp bass hanging out, a couple big guitarfish cruising by, silvery baitfish everywhere, giant kelpfish playing hide and seek.

As I was taking a breath at the surface, I spotted a harbour seal about 60 feet away, doing the same and checking me out for a bit. Through my foggy mask, I thought it was hubs, albeit strangely grey and spotted, until the real McCoy bobbed up right in front of the imposter, just as it ducked, splashed, and dived down under1 ~ Whaa..???

Freediving was a lot of fun - much lighter, streamlined, thereby faster, and quieter without the bubbling(you hold your breath and dive under for as long as you can). You can sneak up on fish and get up closer, that's what the hunters and photographers( like hubby) do. But really, I just think there's a lot more freedom of movement and speed, you feel like a mermaid!

case in point: Feeling and looking like a mermaid are two very different things.

Bubble Bubble

Hubs and I went swimming in Laguna early in the morning yesterday, it was a beautiful sunny and the water was clear as can be. With all the fishes and reefs under us, it was like swimming in a huge aquarium! I saw lots of silvery topsmelt swimming just under the water surface, a school of barracuda, a harbour seal cruise by on the sandy bottom, a baby bat ray, and the hubs saw a dolphin close by.

My Little BeBe!

We have a new piggy!!! She's a little 8 month old abby-peruvian mix, and she's a little darling! We got her from a rescue. Her name from the rescue is Phoebe, I'm calling her BeBe. She has a plume of hair on her hiney!






And here is the love of our lives, Mousey. She's been with us since she was a little baby, now she's almost 5 yrs old, somehow she still seems like a little kid that's never really quite 'grown up', if you know what I mean.






So now we have Mousey-Pie and Cookie-Pie and Bebe-kins to rule this house - the guinea pig way - once again everybody! ~

She's A (Weather-Man's) Lady

I saw a weatherman dance on the news tonight, to Tom Jones' She's A Lady. Boy was he really enjoying it, rockin' it, and even unbuttoning his jacket at one point. He had not a care that he was on national tv, he did not once look into the camera. Just doin' his thang, and finally dancing off the screen with the warm and cold fronts billowing around behind him.

Of course, I was so amused watching him, it didn't even matter that not a word on the weather was said.

That was some spontaneous en-ter-tain-ment :)

Seriously, who can resist Tom Jones?

Well, she's all you'd ever want
She's the kind I like to flaunt and take to dinner
But she always knows her place
She's got style, she's got grace--she's a winner
She's a lady
Oh, whoa, whoa, she's a lady

I Hope BW Has A Solid Evacuation Plan

So the earth shook beneath my feet today. Technically, under the feet of the massage table I was on.

It was a 5.4 on the Richter scale. Even if it were a 7, I was too noodled to gather enough strength and power to jump off the table and duck under it.

In my semi-consciousness, what registered was a gentle rumble accompanied by chandeliers tinkling. It might very well have been a new spa relaxation technique before I snapped out of my dreaminess. Anyway, it was over before I had the chance to panic.

The epicenter was 40 miles away, so we didn't get the worst of the earthquake. Although we're probably about 10 or 12 meters above sea level, so the tsunami that may or may not happen could bury us in a tremendous flush.

On that note, geologists are warning of an impending BIG earthquake(since San Fransisco) courtesy of San Andreas. It's been 150 years and no one can hold anything in that long.

Seriously, I think we need a portable radio and a bigger dining table.

1st Anniversary!

On April 4, to mark the day of our customary wedding, I made the sweet dessert soup that we had during the tea ceremony in Singapore.

Sunday, 25 May marked our first year anniversary. A year ago this day, we were in Letchworth State Park, Buffalo, saying our vows and drinking champagne to cello music with friends and family, and ended the day with the wedding reception in the beautiful Botanical Gardens.


I had to work the afternoon, but that evening, we went down to our favourite grassy spot on the beach, stood close under the palm trees, and said our vows to each other once more. I bawled my eyes out again and felt more thankful and more loved than I had a year ago.


Blessed always, blessed always
For the arms of God surrounds us
Let our joy be so triumphant, that we rest in God and say Amen
- "Blessed Always"

***

Wish I had some photos to share, but I forgot the camera.

Dinner at 26 Beach Cafe was excellent, they have the best salad ever - pan-fried goat cheese medallions in a summer salad blend with sundried tomatoes, berries(raspberries, strawberries, blueberries) and walnuts, served with the most heavenly raspberry vinaigrette.

And a good ol' slab of lasagne, you know it's freshly made when the lasagne doesn't come shaped like a box.

The smiley waitress, having learnt that it was our wedding anniversary, even brought us a surprise - oozy chocolatey brownie topped with a huge dollop of vanilla ice-cream with chocolate fudge and powder - yumMMY!!

Constant Vigilance!

Got into an accident on the freeway - it was not major. It was bumper-to-bumper traffic and slow-moving, but I guess this is where constant vigilance for brake lights in front of you comes in.

No one in all three cars involved were hurt(can't say the same for the cars though), although the impact gave me a sore neck for a c0uple of days after. The car got smashed in with the hood half crumpled up, so we were at the mercy of the nearest mechanic. Luckily for us he's our regular mechanic who doesn't try to rip people off.

We also had the foresight to have all our registrations and insurance updated just a week ago, thus avoiding more complications and paperwork.

The price paid is small, the lesson taught is huge - buckle up, and put your cellphone away. Unfortunately, in LA, where people spend half their day sitting in traffic or on the road to the nearest store, such precautions are often conveniently forgotten.

I really think it's just a matter of developing good precautionary habits and behavior, which in our case, everyone did for the large part and had their seat belts buckled in. This, undoubtedly, more than saved us from further and more serious injury.



Constant Vigilance!
-Professor Alastor "Mad-Eye" Moody

Hello-OH COOKIE!

Say hello to Cookie!

Cookie is a sweet, bright, 3yr-old black and white abby. She came to our home as a companion for Mousey, who's been very lonely and depressed since Tobey passed away. Cookie also lost her cage-mate, albeit to more tragic circumstances.

When we visited Cookie at her home in the previous family, she was named Oreo. She looked lovely, but had a very extensive balding patch on her back near the rump. The owner said some baby piggies that were there a year ago had been pulling out Oreo's hair, and being the sweet little pig that she is, she let them. The hair never grew back.

Back home, we re-named her Cookie and put her with Mousey. Cookie is the sweetest thing ever, and wow, we've never seen Mousey so bossy! Mousey's just running around Cookie, sniffing her, following her around like she's guarding Cookie and checking what she's up to, planting herself next to her at the hideys, giving her big wide yawns to show teeth. Even when we tried to tempt her away with some lettuce to give Cookie a break, Mousey would come over, grab the lettuce and run right back to station herself next to Cookie. But it's all good, Mousey seems a lot happier with something to do. Cookie's just completely blase about it.

3 weeks later, they are happily trotting after each other, running around the cage and apartment, looking for secret hiding spots, chomping on lettuce and hay, chasing each other and sometimes just sitting side by side in the hideys.

Mousey has since recovered from an unknown source of URI, and sustaining her weight. She is a lot livelier, and I have seen her popcorn (a quick jump-n-twist that guinea pigs do to show they're happy!) more often than I've ever seen her. Cookie has since grown back all her hair in that bald spot, and she looks lovely and healthy - she's even gained 2.5 ounces!


On a different Cookie note: I'm rooting for David Cook to win AI Season 7 cos he does such wonders with some of those songs, although D. Archie gives me goosebumps every time he sings, I so love his voice! It's a tough choice, and I can't wait to find out who wins! :D

We miss you Tobey

Tobey died last Tuesday on April 1, on the surgical table, struggling in the midst of an enema. It was painful to watch her, and then her heart just stopped. Even as the good doctor tried to resuscitate her, I watched her fall limp and go.

Tobey ate everything we fed her, she loved big green leafy lettuce, parsley, spinach, carrots, cucumbers, apples, strawberry tops..anything, she was such a voracious eater.. Blueberries, Tobey loved blueberries and wanted one after another. She loved oranges, even when the other piggies turned away in uncertainty after sniffing at them. Tobey would linger for minutes and lick at the spot on the carpet, where the orange juice had dripped. Tobey loved tomatoes, just like Mousey.

Tobey liked her cheeks rubbed, burrowing under and into the fleece, blankets and pillows. She loved exploring. She was the fastest and the strongest. Of 6 piggies, she was the fastest by far to reach the top of the stairs. She dashed all over the apartment during floortime. The piggies loved getting under the bed, and we would set up a barrier using all sorts of stuff - boxes, baskets, bags, boogie board, but Tobey would find her way through a crack, or make her way by chewing, pushing, butting at, jumping over the obstacles. She was not one to give up easily. She knew where to go and remembered how. She was such an gregarious, amazing little thing.

Tobey had malignant cancer, but she lived such a vivacious life. In her last days, she had terrible bloat, and that broke her.

We had hoped to bury Tobey with her mommy Fluffer in Solstice Canyon, because they were so close when Fluffer was still alive, but Solstice Canyon was closed for restoration. We buried Tobey in Temescal Canyon instead, in a private little corner sheltered by overhanging branches and surrounded by lovely soft green grass.

We love you Tobey. We miss you in the apartment. We know you are now under the rainbow bridge with Fluffer and Scrappy, in a big field happily chomping on all the grass and veggies together.