Monday, February 25, 2013

Rabbit Home

The rabbit pen has been in dire need of repair for a while. With 9 bunnies, they need to have a nice home! So, the time has come that the new home is being built. 

Edwin and Uncle Lawrence working on stage one of the new rabbit hutch.


By the end of the first night they had the basic frame finished. 

I will introduce our rabbits to you... some have names, but others we just refer to by color. There are 2 white rabbits- one male and one female; a female black and white one; Lilly, a grey and other color sweetheart (the main momma); an all black female; and a brown with white markings named Hammy (for Hamster) or Pony because it has a white stripe down its nose (gender undetermined up to this point). They all stay in the main large house that is on the ground (this is the one being redone). There they can dig holes and have a place to run around and be rabbits. We also have 3 others we keep in a smaller cage (but I DO let them out every day). We have Ginger, a light brown male with white markings; Little (named after me) a female mostly black, but with subtle brown in her coat; and Brownie, a male who is mostly various shades of brown. Now, why are they are separated from the main bunch? 

Some time ago, there was a new batch of babies: Ginger and Little are the surviving siblings. We wanted to tame them a bit, so we separated them from the others. We then also began finding that Brownie would escape from the main home. Meera loved it, of course, as she has a bit of a history chasing and killing rabbits. Naturally, we kept putting Brownie in and searching for the hole he used to escape, but couldn't figure out where it was. Several of these escapes involved us finding Brownie in a nearby drain. Once it was pouring down rain, another time we decided to use the hose to spray him out. Poor thing, but it was the only way! So we had a very wet Brownie whom I put back in the large caged area. I then watched what would happen. Sure enough, after a few minutes the large white male rabbit began aggressively chasing him around, and cornered him against the fencing! He then proceeded to bite Brownie! I discovered a weak point in the fencing, and Brownie was trying to escape out of it. I immediately helped him get out, and we decided to keep him with the smaller ones, Ginger and Little. They all get along just fine together. 

You see here (L to R), Brownie, Ginger, and Little. Meera faithfully 'guards' them when they are out. We tie her up when the rabbits run in the yard. 

I did think about taking the large white rabbit out, and putting these guys back in with the others. However, when I put Ginger and Little in first, Lilly and some of the others began chasing them around aggressively! So, I guess once they are away from the clan, they are no longer familiar or welcomed.

Meera, also helping... she has her own wood.


Bunny hutch in stage 2, the frame with the top covering- not sure what else to call it!


When finished, the new home will have two sections divided. That way we can keep them all in one place and not have to worry about them killing each other!




Monday, February 18, 2013

Storms

For some reason I've always been fascinated by thunder storms. It just so happens that Malaysia is quite well known for its tropical storms. If you fly into Kuala Lumpur (KL as the locals call it- something like how we refer to LA), in the afternoon the captain will probably talk about the weather being stormy. The weather here is, of course, very different from the Oregon weather I am used to. This is a tropical country, which means heat and rain! Though I've been here for 10 months, I still revel when a tropical storm comes in the afternoon. Mind you, it is like a big thunder storm with a downpour of rain that can typically last for 1/2 hour to an hour. The downpours are certainly not what I am used to, and I think they are rather cool! Also, the excitement of thunder clapping LOUDER than I've ever heard... just makes me want to huddle up and watch! 

Well, Today we had the first storm in a while come through- complete with lots of lightening and thunder! As usual the power went out... about 5 times. I get so excited, it's like I'm 5 again. I remember being 4 or 5 living in Missouri with my family... when a thunder storm came, we would go into the big room with the wood stove (it had a huge window). I would sit on mom or dad's lap and we would watch the storm, I always found it so exciting! So today, I begged my hubby to come sit with me as we watched some of the storm :) 

Here are a couple photos from today!

I guess the plants don't need watered today.


You can barely see streaks in the photo- that is the rain downpour!


And, even though this was not taken today, proof that we get rainbows in Malaysia!


Friday, February 15, 2013

Sobering...

I wanted to share the link to this article about our Holy Father, Pope Benedict XVI's renunciation. The times we are in call for all people to examine themselves and their lives. Faithful must remember that you do not want to be found as the maidens were, their lamps lacking oil and so missing the Bridegroom's coming. At the same time, we must be hopeful. There is evil, there is a definite force working against the Church- but we also have Jesus who has conquered all evil. It is our Pilgrimage. Let us use this time of Lent to humble ourselves, purify ourselves, and look at what is important: the state of our Soul. We pray for Pope Benedict XVI, his successor, and all people of the world. Amen.

http://www.lifesitenews.com/news/benedicts-renunciation-and-the-wolves-within-the-church?utm_source=LifeSiteNews.com+Daily+Newsletter&utm_campaign=5f7469ea2b-LifeSiteNews_com_Intl_Headlines_02_14_2013&utm_medium=email

Recent Happenings...


As you may know, usually you have only so many days/months that you are allowed to visit a country, before you must leave. Since we are still figuring out my spousal visa, toward the end of January we had a couple options: either pay the nice fee to extend my stay, or go for a trip down south to visit my friend Kirsty and then over to Singapore. So, we opted for the trip! Though it was a quickie, it was wonderful to see Kirsty, whom I had met in Corvallis at the Newman Center, and spend a bit of time with her and her parents. Johor (her town) is right across from Singapore, so we took an evening drive, going over to this wealthy country! So many people on such a small island! The city is quite built up and pretty clean... which is different from most of Malaysia ;) First we explored a church (below) and Edwin showed us the hospital that he used to work at. Then we went to Clarke Quay (2nd photo), which was kind of like a Disneyland for pubs and culture- we saw lots of white people! Everyone seemed out of touch with reality, and quite into their fashion and dinner parties. But, nonetheless, it was nice to see it. They have cute little boats going on the river right there, very romantic (though we did not ride one). 






The next day we did some touring of Johor with Kirsty and her mother. They showed us the two Catholic churches in Johor. We also drove to a marina where there were a lot of private boats kept. Edwin and I found one that we liked, which was for sale... only $4 million.... maybe someday ;)