Saturday, October 29, 2011


I thought for a long time what to do with this wall space in the tv room, finally decided to put a little writing desk there. It really is a vanity table because it has a gorgeous three fold mirror, but since I'm superstitious about Feng Shui and it's no good to place mirror facing the window, I talked to myself into believing that I didn't like the mirrors there.  Anyhow, I think a little lamp can be called for on top of it, and it's the perfect space for writing if I don't want to head upstairs for my blue room. ( And please excuse the messy pictures scattered around.)

Thursday, October 27, 2011

From here.
I'm trying to figure out what type of curtains to hung for my breakfast nook windows. Half way through decorating my house I realized that my taste is really for the older things. I'm a little ashamed to admit this, but I love lace, and I love floral prints, and pretty much anything with a lot of frivolous details.  I know it's corny but I can't help it!

Speaking of lace, how about a bit of old world charm to make your day?



from here.

 and here

Tuesday, October 25, 2011

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I can almost forgive you for eating poop, almost...
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Birdcage converted into a mini plant holder. In a few weeks I will be able to tell you if this method works for the plants, in the mean time, this is how I did it. Line the bottom of birdcage with peat moss, then a layer of potting soil mix, select your favorite succulents and carefully plant them inside. Top the soil with another layer of peat moss, then water. I had to tilt the bird cage to let the water drain, my main concern with a bird cage is water not able to drain well, but we'll see about that.

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Speaking of bird cage, I found this black one at the flea market. I spent a couple of evening painting it blue.

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Hmmm, not a major improvement! I always have some decorating ideas but when it comes to fruition it never seem to make a huge difference. Oh well! No bird should be locked in cages, so this is going to be another plant holder:)

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Alfie follows me around everywhere.
Bobby's Tale - The Rascal

After I first got Bobby, I decided that Kelly and Bobby should be separated for a while when I was not home until they get used to each other better. So, Kelly got the living room, Bobby got the kitchen, and a door was closed between them. After a few days I thought, ok, this might be the time to risk it and put them together in one room. I was very busy then, going to school and working took a lot of time. One day when I came home, Kelly was in perfect condition, but this happened.


Exhausted, angry and shocked, I chased Bobby around the house with a magazine stick, he had fast legs and ran all over the place. Finally him and Kelly hid under the desk in the back of my piano room. Bobby being slightly bigger than Kelly, he turned out to be the one hiding behind her. I looked at the trouble maker and suddenly sat down on the floor and laughed.


Last winter when the weather started to get cold, I bought a red hooded jacket for Kelly, she loved new clothes and especially loved to wear it when I walked her in the early mornings when it was still pretty cold. After a few days I realized that I should get one for Bobby too, so the next trip to the pet store, I took the both of them and picked a green hoodie in the same style but a slightly larger size for him. He looked just handsome in it!


Around that time Bobby got ear infection, when I took him to the vet's office, I let him wear the green jacket. Everybody at the vet liked him, he looked like a little kid, and behaved really well. After we finished the examination, I let him sit on the floor while I paid the bill at the counter. In a matter of few minutes I lifted up the leash and there was no Bobby on the other end, I turned around and looked down, Bobby had chewed off the leash and he was free! Everyone laughed at how funny he was, including the other customers, me, and the receptionist. So with no leash, I lifted him up and held him in my arms and carried him to the car. On our way home, I purchased yet another leash.

Bobby loved to play, and he invented many games, one of which was to run after Kelly from one end of the house to another when someone "dared" to walk pass our street. Kelly would jump on the bed to get access to the window, Bobby knew he wasn't allowed, so he barked on the floor. Often times if I wasn't in the room and he forgot the rules, he would jump on the bed too, but the second I stepped in, he immediately jumped off, wiggled his tail and pretended like he didn't do anything wrong.

That night when we came home from the vet's office, I let him wore the jacket around the house, and I went into my piano room to study. When I came out, I saw him sitting on my bed with the most awful look on his face and he didn't jump off as soon as I came in the room. He just sat there and froze. I knew something was wrong, as I walked over to look, he had peed on my bed!!! I didn't scold him this time, it was my fault, and I felt sorry for him. He probably didn't know he could move or pee like normal wearing a jacket and was holding it in for a long time. I took him off the bed and cleaned up the mess, it was another night staying up late waiting for the laundry cycle to end and then another to start. From then on, no more clothes for Bobby, not that I didn't want to dress him up, but I didn't think he enjoyed wearing anything.


There was no question that Bobby liked to explore the house and find stuff to chew. Between him and Kelly, at times they went through $20 worth of chew bones in a matter of a couple days. On top of that, he jumped on table tops rummaging through perfume bottles and papers and find tasty chewy things. His philosophy? As long as mommy wasn't watching, she would NEVER know! He chewed my high heel pumps, tassel off my loafers, button off my cashmere cardigans, pillow from a full set of bedding, expensive leather handbags, CDs, razer blades,  you name it, he even chew on my blouse while I was wearing it whenever I lifted him up and carried him in my arms ( I have to admit, that was freaking adorable though!) . But the worst time of them all, a brand new pair of Ray Ban reading glasses. As usual, I kept them on the night stand thinking Bobby wouldn't get to it, I forgot that he had extremely mobile paws, he could reach almost anything with them. When I came home, the glasses were not on the night stand, it was on my bed all chewed up. I must had my jaw dropped and lost my mind for a second, coming out of the shock, I jumped up and started chasing him around the house to spank him, frightened, Bobby went hiding under the bed. I couldn't reach him, so I called Jeff. He was on the way to see me on that day, and I told him to take Bobby back to the pound as soon as he gets here.  The 30 minutes it took for him to get to my house, I had already calmed down. I went to the bedroom and called him out, he slowly crawled out, peeking out only the nose, seeing that I wasn't going to spank him again, he came out, wiggling his long hairy tail, licked my feet and walked around the house and started sniffling and playing with Kelly again. Then, the idea of sending him back to the cold and harsh shelter to die became unimaginable to me.  Jeff got to my house all prepared to take him back to the shelter only to find me hovering all over him refusing to let Bobby go. After a lot of back and forth, he finally said, "ok, I see how it is. If I took him today, we'd just be back to the shelter an hour later to pick him up. AND I bet the shelter is going to charge us another $80 bucks for adoption fee." I burst out laughing and that was the end of that.

Over time, all these behavioral problems waned off. Whatever problem remained with him, I accepted him as the way he was. After all, how much "chewed up stuff" is worth a best friend forever? If I could have him back for anything in the world I would. He could chew up anything in the house and I  wouldn't give a dime. Pulling on the leash for example, I got used to it, in fact, it always made me laugh because it just felt so comical and he always seemed so silly and happy. After Bobby was gone, I missed terribly the little bundle of energy pulling on the leash and just loved to run and run and run.

Monday, October 24, 2011

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We took the dogs to the dog park yesterday. It was the first time we took Alfie. Last time we were here with Kelly and Bobby, they walked through the gate and immediately lost sight of where we were even though we were not far away. They stood by each other and looked really worried until I finally walked over close enough for them to see me well. Bobby used to ran across the park from time to time, but that seemed to put an end to it, the entire time he and Kelly hid under the bench where Jeff and I sat and refused to go an inch away from us.

Kelly was her old self, sat by me the entire time except a few attempts to jump off the bench and stood at two feet away for a few minutes, Alfie was swooned by a beautiful white mini poodle girl at the dog park. He thought she was sooooo fine, he followed her the entire time that she was at the park. The owner even got a little annoyed that he wouldn't leave her alone. Finally they left, Alfie followed her all the way to the gate, and watched her leave. As soon as she was gone, Alfie spotted another beautiful white mini poodle at the park, and followed her everywhere for a while!

Well, at least we now know his type, he loves white colored mini poodles!

Sunday, October 23, 2011

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A vintage bunny moved into our backyard today. His ears are chipped but I don't mind because he is pushing a little cart with carved flowers on the side, and he is wearing a coat with pockets and a scarf! His name is Gary the gardener:)
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Earlier this year I went on a trip with my husband to San Francisco. In order to cut down the cost, we stayed with a older couple who have become Jeff's good friends since his college days. They welcomed us into their home in San Francisco, and later during the weekend, invited us to their vacation home in a forest near a little town further up north called Mendocino. At the time I was very impressed with the shops, restaurants and museums in the city, but living in the woods proved to be difficult for a city girl like me. First of all, the restroom was a shack outside the little cabin that we stayed in. The idea of using a compost toilet didn't agree with me at all, and shower was a problem too. There was a indoor restroom in the main house but a five minute walking distance, in the middle of night in the woods, a five minute walk in complete pitch dark with who knows what was out there was not something I wanted to attempt. To top it off, the last night we spent in the cabin, as I lifted the blankets, a swarm of large ants had invaded our bed. In almost the middle of night, Jeff and his friend carried our mattress to another larger cabin that used to be a spacious high ceiling artist studio but newly renovated, again with no restroom. Our host lit the fireplace for us before taking off for the night. Jeff and I slept in that large room with huge curtain less windows as the fire wood flickered and crackled, and of course, there was no need for curtain because the only ones who were watching were probably just a bear or fox or two!

The kind of life experiences, though at the time seemed difficult in some ways or other, had only made me laugh in retrospect. While we stayed in the woods, our hosts prepared breakfasts for us in the house every morning. It was a deliciously prepared simple meal consisted of coffee, various kinds of fresh fruits, toast, juice, and various cheese spread accompanied by the sight of humming birds outside the window and a spectacular view of a pine forest that didn't quite show the end as far as the eyes could see. For lunch, our hostess made us smoked salmon sandwiches and fruits packed in a bag and ate with us on the beach while our eyes absorbed all the beauty that a deep blue sea could offer. We walked around the little beach town during the day, while I thought of my occasional dreams of becoming an artist or writer, or any kind of profession that would allow me to be tucked away in a remote little town immersed in nature and live in peace and quiet.

Lately I've been wanting to go back there again, it can get tiring to live in the city sometimes amidst all the pollution and traffic. There is something about trees and ocean that charge me like nothing else. Will I ever be able to live out at a quiet seaside city? Who knows, maybe one day!

Saturday, October 22, 2011

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Hello Saturday! Here comes my first fairy garden!

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The mini tree is going to grow taller than the trellis in a year or two if I keep it alive. It has tiny pretty white flowers but I don't know its name!
The vine is going to grow bigger too and climb up the trellis. Maybe I will add some bistro chairs later?

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Dream house, I mean, dream fairy house! More from here.



 Miniature garden furniture, from here.

And finally, you can't have a fairy garden without knowing how to attract real fairy to it, right? This place shows you how to attract fairies, this is what they say about how to summon a fairy. Have fun;)

Sit where the cat sits.
Cross your toes.
Close your eyes.
And smell a rose.
Then say under your breath:
"I believe in Fairies, sure as death.
Gadflykins! Gladtrypins!
Gutterpuss and Cass!
Come to me fairily
Each lad and lass!"

Friday, October 21, 2011

I've been so wrapped up in my own problems lately I neglected taking care of Kelly. Last night I noticed that one corner of her mouth became bald and badly inflamed and she kept rubbing it with her paws. I helped rescuing a little poodle dog two weeks ago who's got a highly contagious type of mange, so I was really afraid that perhaps she caught it through me. Today I immediate made a appointment with a local vet and since Alfie needed to remove stitches from neutering, I took him as well. It turned out to be just a skin infection for Kelly, we got medications for her and a health check up for Alfie.

No Kelly's picture today because the hair on the infected side of her face was shaved off. She looked like a chihuahua on the left and a Maltese on the right. The vet had grooming service, so I asked them to bath and groom Alfie, in the mean time while we wait for him to get ready, I took Kelly for some Chicken nugget shopping, and then walked around in my favorite nursery to look and "smell" the flowers. The great thing about dogs is that they are not self conscious about a bad hair cut, she had so much fun exploring the nursery. We checked out whichever plant she was interested and she helped me picked out plants for my very first fairy garden. I think she was proud like a little girl scout!

When I picked up Alfie from the vet after his hair cut, it almost gave me a heart attack how much he resembled Bobby... except that, Alfie has got such sentimental eyes. He is not the burst of energy like Bobby was, but he's got his quiet ways.

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Tonight after dinner I started working on my fairy garden. I asked Alfie to stay with me in the backyard but he disappeared into the house. I thought he didn't want to stay with me at first, but a few seconds later he came back out with his chew bone. Ahh, I got it, he brought out his chew bone so he could have something to do while keeping me company. Alfie Alfie, you are much too sweet!

My friend found this on youtube, I had to post it on here. Watch til the end, it's so funny! Donald duck, Mickey mouse, Tom and Jerry, these were my favorite cartoon characters as early as my memory could go! When I was a little kid, if I missed an episode on tv I'd throw a fit rolling on the floor and demand that my mom call the tv station and have it play back, of course it never happened.


November


November was a movie I saw with a classmate back when I was a college student years ago at a independent theater in Pasadena. Back then seeing a late night movie after 10pm didn't seem as extraordinary as it does now.  I had only saw it once but it always had a place tugged at the back of my mind.

It is essentially a movie about the process of dying, if you've read books by Elizabeth Kubler-Ross, it has a similar idea. I've become obsessed with the topic of death and dying lately. I wondered if there is really such a thing as religion and afterlife.

At times it feels almost inappropriate that a dog's passing caused me to do some serious soul searching while many significant family members of mine passing away didn't.  I don't think I've ever received so much sunshine and happiness from any human as Bobby did give me. He was unique in such a way that, in spite of me looking through every animal shelter in drivable distance, checking out every dog that had a slight resemblance to him, none could compare. The fact that he is gone left a gaping hole in my life that nothing else could fill. 

Wednesday, October 19, 2011

Tuesday, October 18, 2011

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      Alfie really loves to sit, he also loves to dig holes in the backyard.  He's not as athletic as Bobby, somehow it seems that his back legs don't coordinate too well but he loves to play tug of war just like Bobby.  I've got little holes here and there in the garden. The first night he got to my house, he stole Kelly's chew bone and dug a hole in the backyard and hid it. I think he is saving it for a "rainy day." I must admit, he's got far superior financial senses than a lot of humans. 

      When Bobby first died I went into a panic mode, and desperately sought for a similar dog on the internet.  I have to admit, it was quite hard to resist not to buy a puppy in the same breed that has so much resemblance to our beloved baby.  I putted down half of a deposit for a new puppy that looked like the baby version of Bobby from a out of state breeder, but after finding out that the puppy's tail was docked I changed my mind. Apparently there's a whole world out there that requires the puppies' tails to be docked, ears clipped, and de-clawed and it is all considered as "common practice."  It sort of reminded me of the common practice of women foot binding in ancient China. So strange what some consider to be beautiful and standard is so ugly and deeply disturbing to the rest of us. Now those good deposit money just went into thin air, instead of waiting for a new litter from the same breeder I decided that I was going to adopt one from the animal shelter after all.  It finally felt like the right thing to do. I just couldn't see any good sense in having a breeder "make" a new puppy while there are thousands of perfectly wholesome and good dogs out there desperately in need of a home.

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           On a side note, I made omelets this morning using some of the left over meat from the weekend BBQ, I rarely make them, but this time it actually looked like a real omelet!

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          Last week I finally made it out to Pottery Barn for a floor lamp. Shopping for household stuff is always a pain because it takes so much time and you have to drive out from place to place to shop around. It is almost never a good idea to order online unless you've seen it in person already. The lamp I originally wanted looked so good in pictures but not so much in the shop, so I got this one instead.

Friday, October 14, 2011


I've been looking around trying to find a good ceiling light for my breakfast nook, this one from Barn Light electric is pretty perfect.

This is another option for the tv room floor lamp. I have a couple of gift certificates from Pottery Barn that's been sitting around for a while, maybe I will finally go and get this lamp.

Thursday, October 13, 2011

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I met a lady who is older and wiser than me today, and saw her small but incredible garden, it was very inspiring and comforting. Today was the first day that I did not cry for Bobby since he was gone. I felt a ray of sunshine in my heart and gained back the urge to work and study again without having to try too hard. I'm happy for this change. Such is life, I suppose there is a time for everything.

New Year Preparation

I always like to do a bit of preparation at the end of each year to welcome the new year, although this year things were very challenging, I...