the continuation...

if you don't know what the title means, then read the blog below first.

so...kwang says, "they're cats, they're my grandmas. come here, i'll show you." and she took me over to a fence at the back of the carport. i will mention at this point in time that pinoi's grandma lives in a smaller house on the same property. in fact, it is just on the other side of the car port (which...have i mentioned...house six cars at any given time). i could walk to her front door in under ten seconds. yet, i have yet to meet this mysterious grandma. i find that most peculiar. when i asked kwang about it a week ago, she simply told me that her grandma doesn't like to go outside. i am determined to meet this woman before i leave. but i digress.

so i walk over to the fence and peer in. "can you see?" says kwang. "yes." and yes i could. there in front of me, behind the yappy dog in the back yard of her grandmother's house, were four cats in a cage the size of a large dog travel kennel. i'm not lying. and they live that way. i pursued this further with kwang, as being a cat lover my heart cried out. i asked her why they are in the cage. she said, " i think because my grandmother does not want them to run away." and they stay in the cage? "yes." why not in the house? "i don't know." but cats need to walk around. "they can't walk" well...that's because they are kept in a cage. cats are just like dogs, they need to run around. why does she keep them like that. "because my grandmother, she loves animals" HUH??? i then tried to convince her to have a talk with grandmother, and even though she said she would i somehow doubt it. now i am wondering if that is the reason that there aren't more stray cats out and about. but to think that one could keep them in such a tiny cage!! part of me wants to set them free before i go, but i don't know what is more cruel, to leave them there, or to leave them to their own devices. i can't imagine they would get far, their muscles seized up and all. jeepers. and somehow i don't think there is any kind of animal welfare control. maybe i can approach the teacher who was collecting for the handicap dogs???

fish. we eat a lot of fish. in fact, there is fish for breakfast here. i have never eaten so much seafood in my life and actually wouldn't mind a steak as the first meal when i get home. i suppose because it's sooo plentiful here. every meal is so elaborate too. i have settled for just having yogurt for breakfast (they kindly bought some for me) because somehow a full fish (with eyes a poppin of course) and sweet and sour vegetables don't do it for me in the morning. don't forget the rice of course!

my homestay even has a pond in their yard. actually the pond is the size of an entire lot. i had just thought it was some crummy sewage place until i saw pijai feed them one day. it's actually enclosed by another fence, which is why i didn't realise it was part of their property. they have tons of fish and even a turtle and a few coi.

fish are a big part of this culture, as i mentioned, and feeding the river fish seems to be even more important. every temple has it's own pond where people can go feed the fish. the first time i did this (during my first weekend here) i was impressed. these fish were huge, and tons of them would swarm to the surface, flapping water everywhere to get at the food you toss their way. kwang says it has to do with luck and respect for the temple. and it really was interesting the first time. it lost pizazz after a few. so i was a little puzzled when yesterday in the car on the way home from school, kwang asked me if i wanted to feed the fish. i am coming down with a cold, and wasn't feeling all that perky yesterday, and thought, here we go again. we went to the temple by their house and walked out on the docks on the river. we could see the market where we had been last week. and you know what??? i actually found the whole thing very relaxing. maybe that's why they do it. friends would sit on the dock and chat and get splashed. i wandered around, just enjoying it and actually felt better.

no that i feel fantastic today though. i had to buy some vitamin c. the boy in my homestay, git, and also a boy we drive to and from school every day, are both currently fighting a cold. it was only a matter of time.

but i a cold doesn't kill me, perhaps malaria or the west nile virus will (wow, what a segway!!! ha). but seriously. i must get anywhere from 5-15 bites a day. i got two just in the shower this morning. they seem to camp out and wait. i got another while i was on the computer in the morning. and another on the way to school, even though i had put lotion on. i got two more at school!! i really hate the buggers. and though i was trying not to kill them before (because buddhists respect all life), they are on the top of my hitlist now. even so, i refrain from swating them in front of the family, because i think they may find it barbaric. today in the car, one was flying around and kwang simply opened her window and tried to shoo it out. when that didn't work, she simply shut the window! acckkk!

a note on some other insects. there were ants in my sugar this morning. which only phased me the first time it happened. however, when i saw how "familiar" the thing seemed to everyone else, i quickly acted like it was not a big deal. and i suppose it isn't. that is until i find one in my coffee. and at dinner the other day, there was a huge fire ant crawling on my table. my first instinct, of course, was to smash it with my hand. but i held back and calmly pointed it out to pi noi with a smile on my face. with lightening reflexes he grabbed the culprit by one leg and called the maid over. she cupped it in her hands and set it free outside. hmmm...if they didn't have the cats locked in cages, maybe there would be less insects. then again. i don't think it matters. it's just...interesting.

well...i'm off to go bowling...