English Angora

There are many species of rabbits out there. Finding one that is suitable with your traits is the secret. My advice is to always do a bit of research before purchasing one. Don’t look for one merely because you find it cute. Find one that is suitable to what you can offer. 

I notice there are many people who purchase pets (any pets) who later find themselves unable to care for it properly due to the fact that it was cute in infancy but as an adult it is not cute and cuddly anymore, no time to look after, it’s becoming a nuisance, it’s messy, difficult to toilet train, it chews my shoes, it scratches my furniture and or its expensive to maintain.

Remember a pet is like a child, it needs patience and guidance to flourish. Owning a pet can be very rewarding or a nightmare. It all depends on you and how to take care of it. If you provide your pet with ample love and care, you will get the same in return. You will end up with many blissful years and wonderful memories to cherish.

On 19 April 2014 my wife and I purchased a pair of pure breed English Angora. They are a vast different from the lion head rabbits I previously owned. For one it is very docile and not aggressive. They tend not to run much too. They resemble the characteristics of a Persian cat.  

I feed them Oxbow Bunny Basic pallets (product of USA) RM39.90, Petssion Timothy Hay 1 kg (imported version) RM25.90, Kangkung (Water Spinach), Carrots and Papayas. They also sleep under a fan 24 hours. What spoilt brats. 

They are only 3 months old. The pearl blue is male and the brown is female. We have not named them yet. My son suggested Kratos (God of War - PSP Game) and Gypsie Danger (Pacific Rim). Definitely not going to name them that. You can see the level of maturity of kids now days. At his age, 6 years old, I would have chosen names like Peter, Jane, Patch, Dot, etc. 

Kratos and Gypsie Danger, if my son has his way

Tasting my Orchid Leaves

Scouting the area

Very Manja. Have not been combed. See the messy frizzy hair

Uncombed. Looks like a huge hair ball

The Grooming process begins. Usually comb them every 4 days

See the amount of untangled hair that easily comes off

I prefer using this brush as the end has a button which you merely press to push the hair to the surface. It is indeed easier to use compared to other brushes

I also use this purchased at RM18.90 from Pets More S/B, SS15. CPG - Coatclean Waterless bath. Just spray and wipe. They will smell as if they had a bath using Johnson & Johnson baby shampoo. But the smell does not last long

See how neat they look, after being groomed. Sorry she's hiding her face, camera shy

Back into their cage for rest

See their fur. It's silky soft and very fine. Similar to cotton

Turbo (Garden Snail)

Hmmm where shall I begin or more appropriately how should I begin? How would one go about discussing this topic? Well let’s begin with how it all started. Back in July 2013, the DreamWorks movie Turbo was released in Malaysia. It is about a motoring mollusc, or more commonly known as garden snail that breath, eat, live, sleep and dream of competing in the Indianapolis 500.

Needless to say we did not catch it in the cinemas when it came out. So we did the next best thing. We bought the DVD. It remains one of the best investments yet. At only RM49.90 (Purchased from Speedy Video, Pavilion including a replica of Turbo) my kids have watched it more than 50 times since purchase about a month ago. Sometimes up to 3 times a day.

How do I cope? Easy, it is entertaining enough to even keep me amused and this is coming from a guy who fancies Pulp Fiction, Star Wars, Kill Bill and etc. Turbo to me is that good.

Viola, behold Turbo

The DVD concerned

I am using the term garden snail as there are many varieties of snails that can be found. Garden snails naturally have an internal shell that varies in color, shape and size.

Here's a picture of the snail cooling itself at the base of the water fountain

Unplugged

You can see the snail comfortably curled under the flower pot

Up close and personal

Snails tend to feed on a variety of items found in their natural habitat. Hence, what they will actually consume depends on where they live and the species of snail that they are.

In the movie Turbo, snails love fresh tomato. Therefore, being the genius that I am, I placed cut slices of fresh tomatoes where they rest for them to chow down. Guess what, not only that they did not eat it but they refuse to return to their rest place.

However, I am happy to say that my kids will request for cut slices of tomatoes to eat whenever watching Turbo.

What I have learned since then is that your common garden snail’s diet includes plants, fruits, vegetables, and algae that grow in their natural surroundings. Plants that are decaying are often a good meal for them. Seeking for calcium to get a thicker shell, snails usually will eat the dirt.

Snails are nocturnal so they will be looking for sources of food during the night. However, I had noticed that our garden snail tends to make its rounds even during the day in shaded areas in our garden only.

Now my kids like to watch their garden snails from time to time to see its progress. They are fascinated by one of the many wonders of nature’s creatures. I do not know when or how they got into our garden. But it has been a year since they have made our garden their permanent home and they have grown almost twice in size since then. I guess they were looking for a suitable place to call home considering that all my neighbors no longer have gardens. Their lawn has been replaced with concrete slabs or tiles to accommodate parking of their vehicles. Leaving them with not much choice but to come to my lawn, but the kids and us are most delightful these garden snails choose our garden to make it their home.

Now to take a sharp and drastic turn, but rest assured that this will not happen to our snails. They will always remain safe and well cared for in our garden.

Like all good things, they end up served as Escargots. I doubt these are your normal garden snails, probably special snail’s bread for such purpose and fed with a special diet. Even the size is like your RM 50 cents coin unlike our garden snail which is the size like a RM1.00 note.

I had the privilege of trying Escargots à la Bourguignonne (Snails in Garlic–Herb Butter) when it was served in San Francisco Stake House in Summit USJ in 2006. Sad to say the outlet is no longer there.

Sample picture taken on the net but what we were served closely resembled this. Taste wise creamy, not chewy at all and easy to swallow. But with the above scenario now, I doubt I will be eating any more Escargots as I now look at them as “pets”.

Coliseum Cafe Jaya 33

Who has not heard of Coliseum Cafe? Practically everyone born and bread in Kuala Lumpur has. It remains One of the oldest and most established and prominent eateries that is still going strong. Located at 98 Jalan Tuanku Abdul Rahman, 50100 Kuala Lumpur, Phone:03-2692 6270. Open from 10 am to 10pm. It is almost a constitution. Almost everyone who is famous from local to foreign dignitaries has set foot in this establishment.

I still remember during my childhood my parents and uncle use to bring us there for their chicken and lamb chop. It was served with kopitiam style bread and butter.  

Only recently did I discover that they have their only branch in Jaya 33. What else, must make a point to go and that's what I did on 19 April 2014. The outlet is located on the ground floor, The Plaza, Jaya 33, Section 13, Petaling Jaya.Tel: 03-7932-3228. Open 10am-10pm.

The entrance

They also have outside sitting 

All cooking and washing of the dishes are done behind this partition 

Some of the patrons during our visit. Ambiance is conservative. They wanted to achieve the old nostalgic feeling. Did they manage to achieve this? Not quite, its really hard to get the feel with modern amenities and just outside you have luxurious skyscrapers.   

The Menu. I must say service was fast, professional and prompt

First page of the Menu, a brief history of Coliseum Cafe

Some old photos on the wall to reflect a bygone era

Supreme Chicken Cordon Bleu RM29.90. Very tasty. The outer later of the chicken is crispy but remain soft and tender on the inside. The mushroom sauce is ok but not great. MY only complaint was that the chicken was a tad too small

Close up. See what I mean. One of the better cordon Bleu I have tried

Braised lamb shank RM55.00. My son ordered this. He is a fussy eater but the fact that he managed to finish half indicates how good it is. The meat was soft and can be easily cut just using your fork. The sauce is just nice not too thick or too watery. Presentation is top notch. The lamb shank is big in portion too

Coliseum Fried Rice RM15.90. Not bad

Hainanese Fried Mee RM15.90. Wife had this. She said it's one of the better ones she had tried 

Banana N Chock Spring Roll. My opinion, it's different. It is sort of like Popia (Spring Rolls) wrapped around banana and dripped in chocolate sauce, served with vanilla ice cream. Verdict, not my cup of tea. The popia banana although crispy on the outside and soft on the inside just did not do it for me. I think the spring roll banana sort of killed the flavor. RM11.90

Apple Pie and Vanilla ice cream RM12.50. This is officially one of the best apple pie I have tasted. It is soft, including the outer layer pastry and you can see the sliced apples used in the concoction. It is not too sweet and just nice for my taste buds. My advise skip on the banana spring rolls and just order 2 of these. You won't go wrong 

The bill. Service charge 10% and Gov tax 6%. I obtained 1 10% discount using Public Bank Credit Card. Drinking water is not charged. Cheers and enjoy

Effective Hornbill Advert

Any animals should be conserved I feel. Which was why on 13 April 2014 I had a talk with my loving son and causally requested his permission to release his pet budgies. To my surprise, he agreed willingly without any coercion whatsoever. Me, my wife and two kids went to our porch and removed the top of the bird cage. The budgies remained stunned and did not do anything. They remained stagnant there for almost a minute. Then the ice blue and white female budgie made the first move. She flew up to me but seems struggling as if waving her wings in slow motion and all of the sudden she flew like lightning and disappeared up my roof. About 10 seconds later the green male followed and then the rest, all in different direction. I had noticed the same trend. Initial flight they struggle due to the fact they have been caged for so long that their muscles are not strong enough. I felt so good to let them free to soar the sky as nature intended.

I hope they are ok and are thriving in the open. 

With their release, I realized that I felt good. Much better than when I had them caged and was admiring them from their cage. It is with this new found sense of looking at things that I decided that on my sons and daughters birthday I would buy birds from pet store and set them free by release them. It is also good karma.

I gave away the budgie cage by dumping it to the recycles. The balance food, I decided in time I will buy a wooden bird house and place it in my garden. I would place a bowl of seeds and water for birds passing by to take a break and fill their bellies. 

Coming to my current topic, I came across this advert in the covered ground floor parking lot of Tesco Extra Cheras. Located at 2 Jalan Midah 2, Taman Midah, 56000 Cheras.

To me it is the most powerful add and sarcastic advert to date on animal conservation. Its spot on and leaves a lasting impression.     

Hence, do not take things for granted. Animals are living creatures and deserves our compassion, protection and support. We share the planet with them and they with us. Can one live without the other?

Hadramawt Kitchen

Located at 13 Jalan Penguasa B U1/53B, Section U1, Temasya Square Glenmarie, 40150 Shah Alam, Selangor. Tel 012 371 1374. The reason a mobile number is provided is due to the fact that this place is relatively new, not even 2 months old, hence, there is no telephone lines or even internet line. Why I mention this? Credit Cards cannot be used. Cash only. Well as they say, cash is king. Went here during lunch time, seating was still available. Service was prompt and we got our food fast and it was freshly cooked.

If you know where VW, Volvo, Euromobile, Lambroghini and Perodua is in Glenmarie then you will be able to find it. This joint is on the opposite site of the main road from these car giants.

Ordered the set menu. Kabsha Chicken Set RM11.00. The rice was fluffy, soft and tasty. It can be eaten even without any sauce. Drinking water / Air suam is on the house 

Lamb Kebasa RM19.00 including Ice Lemon Tea. The lamb is so soft that it can be peeled with your fingers. Very tasty. My only complaint was that the quantity lamb was not sufficient to clamp my appetite.   

The sauces that came with the dishes, all were nice and not spicy at all, hence, if you bring your family of kids, they would not have problems eating the food here

The best part No Service and Gov Tax

Bumbu Bali

Bumbu Bali, lacated at 18 Jalan Persiaran Puteri, Bandar Puteri, 47100 Puchong, Selangor. If you're not sure where it is on your right is Giant Bandar Puteri, on the opposite left of the main road is KPMS Puchong Specialist Centre, behind this is facing the main road is this joint along with Bake with Yen. 

Ambiance is very Balinese. They also sell merchandise from Bali, wooden animals, umbrellas, cloth, costume jewelry and etc.

The Dinning area

Bali Trio RM49.00, the chicken skewers were soft, succulent and tasted very nice wrapped round the Serai stalks. One may compare this to the local satay but this is entirely different. Its in a class of its own. I would describe it as minced chicken mixed with well balanced spices and grilled to perfection.  Even on the next day after reheating it in the microwave, it still tasted juicy and tender

Burger RM29.00, very soft, tender and meaty. The burger I requested to be medium done. In this price range, it would go head on with other western grilled burgers and would or even may triumph on the top 

Pisang Bakar RM13.00, no cheap nestle vanilla is cream is used. This is the real deal. Imported vanilla ice cream is used with a concoction of something similar to butterscotch or caramel cream and coconut candy strips thrown into the mixture 

There is Government Tax charged. No charges for drinking water or air suam

Coke

Coca Cola or Coke, What can I say that others don't already know???

Nothing much.

Well, just to share my thoughts. Who doesn't like Coke? I started off as a Pepsi Cola lover through my teenage years and only in my 30's did I find that I no longer had a liking for Pepsi and begin drifting towards Coke and it has been like that ever since.

Colonel John Pemberton was wounded in the Civil War and became addicted to morphine. And his begin to find a substitute less dangerous opiate. Coca Cola was invented. 

The first sales were at Jacob's Pharmacy in Atlanta, Georgia, on May 8, 1886.It was initially sold as a patent medicine for five cents a glass at sofa fountains. 

The rest as you say is history. 

Famous Coke drinkers. You cannot get any bigger than the Beatles 

Evil Knievel 

Sammy Davis Jr

Britney Spears

Evolution of the Coke bottle

Evolution of the Coke logo

My coke sign, conveniently located in my porch 

The family coke drinking area which overseas our small garden

Enjoy Guys