Christmas Greetings

From our home to yours -

May Peace be your gift at Christmas and your blessing all year through!

Have a Blessed Christmas!

Morning Photoshoot

It was foggy this morning and that being the case I thought it would be a good time to try and take pictures of the wetlands at Consumnes River Preserve shrouded in fog.

So off we went. We passed beautiful foggy country scenes of goats, sheep and cattle grazing. No, no time to stop because I didn't want to miss the fog. But the further west we went the more the sun seemed to shine!

I was very disappointed when we got to the river preserve and there was hardly any fog there. In fact the sun was shining quite brightly! There was a slight haziness in the distance, and that was it! How I wished I had stopped to take pictures of the foggy country scenes! No, foggy scenes of anything from this morning but I did take some good pictures of the river preserve.

Click on the pictures to get a larger view.

A rather large spider in its web.

I wanted to capture the reflection of the trees on the water.

A large heron feasting in the water.

Geese were aplenty flying overhead and landing on the water. Wished I had a better camera to capture them in flight!

I love this scene of the sun coming through the trees by the water's edge.

Ducks swimming in the water.

If it is another foggy morning tomorrow, we will try to get to the river preserve earlier than we did today. Plenty of time to shoot some photos, get back and get ready for church later in the morning.

Grade School

I am now a parent of grade school kids. My babies are growing up! Before long, I will be a parent of tweens, and then teens ...

To commemorate their first day in first grade, I took a few pictures of the kids holding this piece of paper! One of my friends I did this, and to do the same thing every year as they move up the school grades.

At the end of the school day, the verdict from Duncan, "School was awesome!" That's a good start, eh! Denice was pleased that she did not get any time-out. My response to that was, "No, you do not want any time-outs!"

This is only the first week, and there are many more weeks to go! I hope the rest of the year will stay as promising as the first day! One can only hope.

I thought I saw a putty kat!

Putty Kat
Galt, California 2009

This cat of ours is so playful that she will jump and cling to your legs if you happen to walk by. Actually she lies in wait for you and then jumps on you!

One morning she jumped on Duncan and her claws scratched his back, lightly actually, but Duncan was so shocked by it that he cried. With fingers wagging at the cat, and through his tears, he cried,

"You're a very, very bad kitty! Very bad kitty! No dinner for you tonight!"

Boo hoo hoo. My goodness from the intensity of the crying you would have thought it was a major, major scratch!


***Cross-posted at Puteri's World.****

My unlocked iPhone works!

It certainly isn't fun when you are in possession of an iPhone but you don't have access to unlimited web browsing!

I finally got to test my jailbroken and unlocked iPhone. It works perfectly! I bought a Digi prepaid phone card yesterday, put it in the sim slot and voila, it worked!

At least now I don't have to be seen using my old out-of-date flip phone here in Malaysia! . Nah, I am not that vain, but since my iPhone works, hey, better to be seen using that than my old Motorolla flip phone, eh!

A friend of mine told me there are places in KL where they can help you unlock your locked iPhone and help you download and install whatever applications you want onto your iPhone. Well, since I have successfully jailbroken and unlocked my iPhone on my own, I won't need their jailbreaking services, will I?

You know, what's the point of having an iPhone when you can't access the internet just because you only have one of those cheap prepaid sim cards? And there is no wifi in my parents' home. The signal from the city's free wifi service is not strong enough. So, it is a little frustrating!

Oh well, at least I can still get on the internet using my brother's Celcom broadband modem on my netbook. Thank goodness for that! Slow but good enough!

iPhone aside, one of the best things about being home in Malaysia is that I can indulge in all the food that I have been craving for since my last visit home! The kids are enjoying themselves with the noodles and wontans!

Happy to be home with my parents for the summer!

Happy Father's Day

Many poems have been written

Many poems have been written to explain,
How a mother's love can soothe the pain.
But little has been said about a Father's concern,
So.. now... I think it must be his turn.

A Father's love for his offspring,
Is just like that of a solid gold ring.
No matter what, it is unending,
Never breaking; though.. sometimes bending.

His love is as strong as a mother's; although...
Due to his personality, it sometimes doesn't show.
There is no question of how strong..
Or of its lasting...however long.

So no matter if his child is good or bad,
There is no Love stronger, than that of a Dad.

♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥

Happy Father's Day, Apai. I love you!

Gladiola Buds

Gladiolas are such pretty flowers and I have very fond memories of them! When I was a teacher in Vietnam in the mid nineties, my students would bring me flowers, usually gladiolas.

This year, I have a lot more gladiolas in my garden and they are starting to flower right now. I am looking forward to all of them blooming. I can't wait to see the humming birds and the butterflies that usually come by when there are flowers in my garden.

Last year I missed the gladiolas when they bloomed because I left for Malaysia at the end of May and was there for about three months. At least this year I get to enjoy my gladiolas before I leave for Malaysia again in late June!

One thing that can be said about my garden this year, is that it is a lot prettier!

Swarovski Pearl Necklace

I love the look and feel of the swarovski pearls. They are shiny and feel warm on the body.


Last week I ordered some bright gold, mystic black, dark grey and tahitian colored swarovski pearls from my favorite online store. When the pearls arrived today, I just had to string them right away!

These particular shades of pearls were inspired by Nancy Pelosi's (yes, our speaker of the House of Representatives) necklace that I saw her wear one day. I don't particularly like the size of the beads that she usually wears around her neck, but the colors of the beads can be quite interesting!

I like the bright gold colored pearls and I can see them go very well with clear crystals. I can already imagine the finished product!

A Memorial Day Poem

I Stand Before You


I stand before you all today
But not one eye can see my way

My time arrived, to leave this earth
A fact so planned, to every birth

It happened where I had to go
My torch for life was so aglow

I transferred while in uniform
Protecting freedom, through a storm

Should I resent I died for you
Not on my life, red white and blue

Please help my family through each day
Tell all my friends, try not to stray

And of the country I did love
Do think of me, through God above

Your memories, brought forth this day
Send love to us, who could not stay

©2001Roger J. Robicheau
Former SP5 US Army

Free WiFi on Rapid Penang buses

GEORGE TOWN: Rapid Penang Sdn Bhd will be providing free WiFi access to its passengers, the first bus company in the country to do so, beginning with a three-month trial on two buses.

Its chief executive officer Azhar Ahmad said the company was installing the facility in two buses: The first plies the route between Balik Pulau and the Bayan Lepas International Airport, and the second on the Teluk Bahang-Batu Feringgi-Weld Key route.

He said use of the WiFi facility would be free and that the buses would have special stickers for easy identification by passengers.

“After three months, if response from passengers is good, we’ll have the facility installed in stages in all of our 180 buses, and also the additional 200 buses which will be delivered to us by the end of the year,” he told a press conference here Wednesday.

Azhar said the facility was provided to enable passengers to surf the Internet in the bus before arriving at their destinations. -- Bernama

Are the bus routes long distance routes? They'd better be or you'll have passengers missing their stops if they get too engrossed with their web surfing!

I wonder if the bus company ever thought about the possibility of passengers with laptops surfing porn sites while in the bus and what the reaction of the other passengers sitting close to the web surfer would be? Huh?

As for me, I'm waiting for my favorite long haul airlines to provide internet access! I'm even willing to pay for the service! The availability of internet access would surely make my long flight feel shorter!

Happy Mother's Day

"Mama"

Mama thank you for who I am
Thank you for all the things I'm not
Forgive me for the words unsaid
For the times
I forgot

Mama remember all my life
You showed me love,You sacrificed
Think of those young and early days
How I've changed
along the way

And I know you believed
And I know you had dreams
And I'm sorry it took all this time to see
That I am where I am because of your truth
I miss you, I miss you

Mama forgive the times you cried
Forgive me for not making right
All of the storms I may have caused
And I've been wrong
Dry your eyes

Mama I hope this makes you smile
I hope you're happy with my life
At peace with every choice I made
How I've changed
Along the way
And I know you believed in all of my dreams
And I owe it all to you, Mama

Earth Day

My kids and their friends at school will celebrate Earth Day with a spring science project. They will plant flower seeds, tomato and other vegetable seedlings to commemorate the occasion. That kind of commemoration of Earth Day, I can live with.

I don't know of anyone who doesn't want to live in a place with clean air, clean water and green surroundings. But the fear-mongering by radical environmentalists about man-made global warming is just too much for me. What are a few inconvenient facts, like the earth is in fact cooling instead of warming during the last decade, and that the Antartic ice is growing instead of melting to these global warming mongers?

For those who blame man as the main cause for global warming, one way they can help, is to remove themselves from the face of the earth. That would help the planet, won't it? To hear them say it, every little thing we do to help the planet helps, right?

On this Earth Day, I recommend two common-sense editorials from Investor's Business Daily. Firstly, The Late Great Planet Girth, and secondly, Save Capitalism. If you have the time, I recommend all their past editorials on the subject of global warming.

Happy Earth Day, and stop worrying that the Earth is on the precipice of man-made disaster. It is not.

Save money on furniture

I was at a hardware and gardening supply store last weekend and fell in love with some of the patio furniture sets that were on display. I've never bought any patio furniture before and wondered if this is the year I would do it especially now that I have a real garden going.

But when I looked at the prices, I wasn't so sure I was willing to pay that kind of prices for patio furniture. I was thinking, if I were to put aside money for furniture, I'd rather spend it on a leather living room set that I'd been wanting to get to replace the old sofa set in our living room.

I have been wondering if prices for furniture at Direct Buy are as good as the people, on the ads that we see on TV and hear over the radio, claim. I mean, there's a membership fee involved before we can even step into the store! But then again , in the long run, especially if I plan on buying more than just furniture, I can see the membership fee paying for itself through the savings.

Direct Buy stores like Direct Buy Houston, are everywhere, and there's even one not that far away from where I live. Direct Buy is even offering Free Visitor's Passes, and maybe I should get one so I can check out the store for myself before I decide if it worth my money to pay the membership fee so I can shop there. I mean, besides living room furniture, I've always wanted to upgrade my kitchen cabinets, my kitchen counter tops to marble counter-tops, and remodel my bathroom while I am at it!

Who doesn't want to save money, especially in the current economic climate?

Goose Stories

In the spring of 2005, Doug bought a pair of goslings. A male and a female. The following spring the female started laying eggs, and hatched 11 goslings. Unfortunately, one died a few days later, drowned in a basin of water. We lost two more last year, one succumbed to injuries sustained from who knows where, and one got eaten by a predator. Last month we lost three in a span of two weeks, most likely the victims of a hungry coyote.

When there were still 10 of them.

Early this year, the geese started to separate into three distinct family units. We only discovered this fact when we started putting them in two pens (we did not want to lose any more to the coyote!). In one pen, there were four geese and in the other, three geese. One goose, a male, in the pen of four, was always being pecked on by the others. He managed to squeeze himself out of the pen one night, and the first thought that came to Doug's mind, when he saw the dented gate and one missing goose, was that a coyote had manage to grab the goose from the pen!

Doug was so angry that day that he ordered some traps, traps that are illegal in California! But the funny thing was, the goose had escaped from the pen! He couldn't put up with the pecking from the other geese any more.

It became apparent to us that this lonely goose had lost his mates to the coyote. No wonder the other geese did not want to have anything to do with him because he belonged to another family unit. We let this goose stay in the fenced area in our back patio, and there he has been for a while now.

This is where our friend, Cory, comes into the picture.

Cory stayed in our trailer parked at the side of our house, one weekend, to help us watch our geese while we visited our other home in Los Osos. He called us daily to update us with the well-being of the geese and informed us that he had befriended the lonely goose. They're buddies now, he said.

Cory, the goose whisperer.

I am still amazed at how Cory is able to tame this goose! He calls the goose over, the goose goes over to him. He pats the goose as he would a dog!

However, don't for one minute believe that the goose is as friendly with just anyone! He still puts his neck out and tries to chase anyone he doesn't like! Duncan, my 5-year-old, has been pecked by a goose or another many times!

This particular goose came after me yesterday. I was trying to let it out of the fenced patio area since we had fenced off the entrance where a coyote could have entered the backyard. But the stupid goose instead charged at me and managed to peck me on my knee! And it kept charging at me! You should have heard me scream! This is the first time I'd been bitten by a goose!

Amazing how a goose peck can bruise you!

Doug asked me, "Does that mean we are going to have roast goose for dinner?" He'd been asking me for the longest time when we were going to feast on our geese!!

Those are pets! No matter how vicious they can be!

And they've been very good about providing us with eggs that Doug has turned into salted eggs.  Yummy, best eaten with rice porridge!

Obama and global warming

President Obama says potentially historic flood levels in North Dakota are a clear example of why steps need to be taken to stop global warming. Heavy rain and blizzards have caused eight rivers in the state to swell to flood levels and emergency management officials are warily watching the Red River, which could surpass record levels late this week.

"If you look at the flooding that's going on right now in North Dakota and you say to yourself, 'If you see an increase of two degrees, what does that do, in terms of the situation there?'" Obama told reporters at the White House Monday. "That indicates the degree to which we have to take this seriously."

Full story here.

Global warming is to blame for the floods in North Dakota? Puh-leeze!

Can anyone say melting ice from an unusually cold winter and spring rain? Hello?

Earth Hour. So What?

I will be taking the RedState pledge today, on Earth Hour.

I do solemnly swear that I will honor Earth Hour by turning on every light in my residence at 8:30 p.m. on March 28, 2009, for one hour. God said, “Let there be light.” Who are we to argue?

Nobody keeping himself/herself in the dark for an hour is going to make an ounce of difference to the planet. All it does is make you feel good about yourself. Yeah, go ahead, give yourself a pat on the back.

But how exactly have you saved the planet?

Update: Bose SoundDock Charge Converter

The Bose SoundDock charge converter that I ordered from Ridax arrived about 10 days from the date I ordered it. Like I said previously, it is a bit pricey for such a little thing, but it works like a charm.

Even though the message on the iPhone said "This accessory is not made to work with iPhone", you can see from the top right corner that the iPhone is indeed charging.  As it should be!

The converter also works with my Belkin TuneBase FM Transmitter. So now I can listen to my podcasts via the FM channel on my car radio while on long drives without having to worry about the iPhone not receiving any charge from the device.

All in all, worth the money I spent on the charge converter!

First Day of Spring

Today, 20th March, is officially the first day of Spring. Spring has always been my favorite season of the year. I love to watch the trees in full bloom, the fresh new buds on the trees, the mild weather during the day, and most of all for the sense of rebirth as you watch nature shrugging off the cold winter months.

I hope to start my garden early this year (compared to previous years!). The gladiolas are already bursting forth from under the ground. I cannot wait too see them bloom this year because there are a lot more of them this year than in previous years.

I also hope to grow some tomatoes, corn, squash, water melons, and flowers that attract butterflies and humming birds. This year I will have some help and that is one reason I am optimistic about starting my garden early this year!

For those with allergies, I hope spring time will be more forgiving this year! Don't forget to take your medication when you do your gardening!

Happy Spring everyone!

Extreme Sheep LED Art

You gotta watch this!

Search Engine Results

One of my favorite things, when I look at the list of visitors to my blogs via Feejit, is to see how they arrived at that particular blog of mine. I always put my cursor on the link if they came to my blog via a search engine. Some of the searches that are made can be quite hilarious.

One such searches arrived on my post called Shopping for a Mattress. Guess what this person was really looking!

Canoeing with a latex mattress?


Does a latex mattress even float?

The funny thing is, I saw a story on the TV news several days ago. People were sliding down a snowy slope on an air mattress!

So why not canoe on a latex mattress, eh?

How about this searcher who landed on my post about a Baby Shower.

Guess what this person was looking for. Nothing to do with baby showers, for sure!


NYAK sex? Huh? What the heck is that?

Careful how you ended up on a particular blog eh, in case said blogger decided to do a story on how you ended there!

iPhone 3g in Malaysia

While we are still on the subject of the iPhone 3g, I learned today that the iPhone 3g will be available in Malaysia in a week or so through Maxis.

And the price? RM1900 for the 8gig and RM2290 for the 16 gig, with a 24 month contract.

Huh. Pricey. But according to heavy cell phone users in Malaysia, that rate is about the same as what they are paying right now, and with the iPhone 3g included to boot.

Compare that to the additional $30 for unlimited browsing on top of your existing plan with AT&T, and only $199 for the 8 gig and $299 for the 16 gig iPhone. Don't think you can find a better deal than that outside of the US!

I jailbroke my iPhone about a week ago, and with the jailbroken iPhone I can add a lot more applications that are not available at the iTunes store. One thing I have to watch though, is that I do not accidentally upgrade my iPhone to the latest firmware. Otherwise it will revert to its original unmodified state.

I have added PDANet which allows tethering with the iPhone. The ability to tether the iPhone is the main reason why I jailbroke my phone. And, oh, my iPhone is now unlocked. Er, at least I think it is, but I have not tested it because I do not have the SIM of another carrier to test it with.I have also added Snapture which vastly improves the iPhone camera. I can now touch any part of the screen and not have to rely on that little area on the screen to take a picture.

I think the iPhone is a wonderful machine .. it's like your Mac computer in a little piece of equipment.

Update: After I posted this entry, I went back to check the iPhone Video Recorder application offered by DreamCatcher. I bought it and it is indeed a cool app!

Bose Sound Dock Converter

Soon after I bought my iPod Classic, I bought a Bose Sound Dock for it. I love the sound coming from the Sound Dock and love to listen to my mp3 files in my iPod on it.

Imagine my disappointment when I upgraded my cell phone to an iPhone 3g and discovered that the Bose Sound Dock is not able to charge the phone while it is docked to the device. It plays the music or radio stream from the iPhone except that is is not able to charge it. Something to do with the absence of fire wire in the Bose Sound Dock connector. When you listen to a radio live stream on your iPhone, it drains the battery pretty quickly.


Today, quite by accident, I came across sites selling charge converters that can be used with devices that do not charge the iPhone 3g or the newer iPods. I did some googling and was pleased to have found the iPhone 3g charge converter. A bit pricey for something that small and sold by a company in Sweden.


I immediately made an order and can't wait for it to arrive! I love my iPhone, and can't believe how much I am willing to spend on applications and accessories for it!

Move Over Princess!

A couple of days ago, I was at an intersection waiting for the traffic lights to turn green. I was amused when I saw the words on the frame of the registration plate of the car in front of me.


Too bad, my cell phone camera does not have a zoom in feature. The words on the frame say,

Move over Princess!

Here comes the Queen!

And there I was sitting in my car, with this registration plate on!

Maybe it's time I change my "title" to Permaisuri, the equivalent meaning to "Queen"?

Women Drivers

*My husband forwarded to this me.*


This morning on the Interstate, I looked over to my left and there was a

Woman

In a brand new
Cadillac

Doing 75 mph


With her
Face up next to her
rear view mirror

Putting on her eyeliner.

I looked away

for a couple seconds!


And when I looked back she was

halfway over in my lane,


still working on that makeup.


As a man,

I don't scare easily.


But she scared me so much

I dropped


My electric shaver,


which knocked

The donut

Out of my other hand.

In all

the confusion of trying

to straighten out the car


using my knees against

the steering wheel,

it knocked


my cell phone


away from my ear,


which fell,

into the coffee
between my legs,


splashed,


and burned


Big Jim and the Twins,


ruined the damn phone,

soaked my trousers,


and disconnected an
important call.


Damn women drivers.

Purse

This is the English version of my Iban post, my response to a purse tag.

In the US a purse is usually a handbag. However, the purse is also known as the purse or wallet and a handbag is also known as a handbag.

Using the usual meaning of purse, this is how my purse looks like. It is filled with bottled water, 3 pairs of glasses, notepad, pen, tissue, gloves, cell phone, iphone ear buds, medical cards, medicine, antacid, food supplements, comb, and miscellaneous junk. There are not enough pockets in this purse for my stuff so I made a purse organizer for it so most things can be put away in pockets. Without pockets, it would be hard to look for things in a purse that is large and deep!


This is how my wallet looks like. It is filled with store credit card, driver's license, credit and debit cards, library card, business cards, some money, and tickets to the Taylor Mason's show for later this month. I do not have photos in my wallet except one of Doug which I received from him when I first met him, when he still had a lot more hair, was slimmer and cuter!

I enjoyed reading the purse tags of those who took part in the tag!

* A purse organizer pattern can be found here.*

Lactose Intolerant - English Version

This is the English version, with some modifications, of my post in Iban of the same name.


What does being Lactose Intolerant mean?

One is said to be lactose intolerant when one cannot ingest dairy products without suffering the effects which are gas and bloating. That means eating food containing dairy products like cheese, yogurt, ice cream, and cheese cake will result in gas and bloating much like the gas and bloating one suffers from eating onions, garlic or beans if one is sensitive to those foods.

When I was younger I drank a lot of canned powered milk like Everyday and Nespray and I did not suffer and adverse effect from it. I guess as one gets older one experience some changes in one's digestive system. My mother-in-law is also lactose intolerant and she never was when she was younger.

Last Sunday Doug and I took the kids to an ice cream and yogurt place. The kids ordered vanilla ice cream, Doug ordered a chocolate flavored yogurt and I ordered a coconut flavored yogurt. And last night I made a 3-cheese ravioli topped with Parmesan cheese and roasted garlic sauce for dinner. Mmmmmm!

Did I mention that I was lactose intolerant?!

Ahhhh. Let me tell you the secret!


I take three of these wonderful tablets before I take any food containing dairy products. This tablet contains an enzyme that helps break down the lactose so your system is able to digest the lactose and thereby helps prevent the gas and bloating that usually accompanies the eating of dairy products if one is sensitive to lactose.



I am able to enjoy my cold cereal and milk again because of the 100% lactose free milk that is available at our supermarket. When I stay up late at night, and my tummy gets hungry I always enjoy a bowl of cold cereal before bed time. That is, if I am not drinking my mug of Milo and four pieces of cream crackers.

When I was in Miri last summer, I wasn't able to enjoy my bowl of cereal because there was no lactose free milk available. If it was available, I did not know where to get it.

I am also not able to take onions, garlic and beans, but that fact does not stop me from enjoying them! There are products like Beano that you can take with your food so that you do not suffer from gas and bloating. Every time I pass gas I would ask the question of my children, "Who farted?" The response is always, "You farted, Mommy!" Of course I pretended it wasn't me!

We love to go shopping after a meal at a restaurant and when I am in the store, I will stay as far away from people as possible because I will be polluting the air with my farts! Chinese food is the worse because of all the garlic in their cooking! No, I do not want the other shoppers to gag from the "fragance" that I emit! Kekekekeke!