Mi Mi the Cat with Elaine & Peter

2009-01-19T02:05:00.001+08:00

Papaya

2008-09-05T00:42:00.005+08:00

Peter brought home a papaya this evening, and Mi Mi is very, very happy.

Time for a break!

Hey, don't take it away from me!

He's Back!

2008-04-21T11:05:00.001+08:00

Merry Christmas

2007-12-24T01:32:00.000+08:00

Make a slideshow - it's easy!

Imagine

2007-04-29T01:56:00.000+08:00

Imagine everyone thinking you're a happy person
not a worry in the world
while all you feel inside is anger and pain

Imagine feeling lonely when you're not alone

Imagine being misunderstood

Imagine being away from your family and friends

Imagine being someone special
then just being someone who has to take a backseat to everything else

Imagine not being able to tell anyone how you really are
no one knows what you're going through

Imagine telling yourself everything will work out fine
while the progress is slow and painful

Imagine...

Peter and Mi Mi

2007-03-01T21:46:00.001+08:00

Mi Mi loves to be around people, and that's Mi Mi looking very serious with Peter.

Day or night, no matter what we're doing he stays by our side. He doesn't like to be alone for too long, maybe he feels better knowing we're around.

When we drive to the animal hospital for his blood glucose level test, Mi Mi wouldn't stay in his carrier, he likes to come out and see what's outside the window. He likes to sit in the driver's seat with Peter.

I love watching them together, sometimes they curl up in bed in the same position, sometimes the sit and watch TV the same way. They both like to talk, but when Mi Mi talks to Peter, Peter doesn't seem to respond to him very often, I wonder why??? Maybe a translator is needed...or maybe sometimes words are not necessary.

water

2007-03-01T21:20:00.001+08:00

Yes, that's right, that's Mi Mi drinking water from the faucet.

Everyday, we get summoned to turn on the water for him.

He usually gets his head a little wet too, like he just washed his hair.

The only problem with him drinking water this way is that no one can turn the water on for him when we're not home.

He drank water out of the water dish when he was at the hospital.

Maybe he just doesn't like doing that unless it's absolutely necessary.

I got him a water fountain which runs quietly with a small motor, the water flows quite nicely, but Mi Mi doesn't seem to care for his water fountain very much. Drinking out of the basin or the bathtub is the way to go!

2007-02-20T01:28:00.000+08:00

We are now bilingual.

If you'd like to see the blog in Chinese just for the fun of it, follow the link to my yahoo blog. See you there!

Happy Lunar New Year!

2007-02-17T01:20:00.000+08:00

Wishing everyone a healthy and wealthy year of the "golden pig"

Mi Mi especially wants to wish everyone a prosperous new year!

p.s. grandpa and grandma Chen, this is our "almost one-year-new" sofa.

Notice Anything Different About Me?

2007-02-12T00:56:00.000+08:00

The last couple of times when we visited the animal hospital, Mi Mi was tripping everyone over because he was very quiet while he walks around in the hospital. So, in order to let everyone know that Mi Mi is coming, I had to dig up his old collar that has a little bell attached to it. Now I hear Mimi coming and going all the time, even when he's got an itch, just scratching himself.

I think red goes quite well with his coloring, don't you agree?

Let me in, Please...

2007-02-07T00:35:00.000+08:00

2/6

Mi Mi is back at the animal hospital for a check up, get his blood work done. Normally, he gets to walk around the hospital while waiting for the results to come out, but not today. There's 15-year-old cat in there cannot be disturbed, so Mi Mi can't go inside the office area to hang out. He waits by the door for a chance to go in, but no one would let him inside.

Poor kitty, next time when we come back, I'm sure you'll be able to hang out anywhere you like.

Lost and Found

2007-02-03T00:13:00.000+08:00

We found what we were looking for...stuck on the blanket

Where is it?

2007-02-02T23:40:00.000+08:00

See my white whisker?

Dr. Chen says it makes me look wise.

But I woke up one day and it was GONE!

Mommy and I looked everywhere and can't find it!

Oh, I'm so tired from looking, guess I'll take a nap first before we start looking again.

Ah-Chew!

2007-01-26T00:02:00.000+08:00

Mr. Mi Mi has a cold. He's been sneezing a lot, got watery eyes and blowing air bubbles out of his nose.

Of course, the best place to be when it gets cold like this is...his red "washing machine".

Nice and toasty! Thank goodness daddy and mommy got this for me! It's so comfy, you can stick your legs out.

When a Diabetic Cat Gets His Shots...

2007-01-15T03:27:00.000+08:00

We need one black cat.

打針需要：黑貓一隻

Insulin, alcohol wipes and of course the needle.

胰島素，酒精棉還有超細的針

Pills and water.

口服降血糖加上護肝的藥，水

After the shot and the medicine, we have funny smelling dry food and yummy canned food.

糖尿病專用的貓食還有貓罐頭

Don't forget, gotta do this twice everyday!

別忘了每天早晚各一次喔！

Check-up

2007-01-10T04:12:00.000+08:00

Yes, we went back to see Dr. Chen for Mi Mi's routine blood test on Jan. 8, 2007. He can now cut down more with his insulin. Even though he's gained a little weight, but he's still not eating enough because he never finishes the 35g. of food he's suppose to take after his insulin shot. Looks like we'll have to give him more canned food along with his diabetic dry food.

The doctor also suggests that maybe Mi Mi just needs people around him more and when that happens, he might eat more.

So now, I'm on a mission to get my kitty to eat more after his shots so his blood sugar level is not too low, in other words, I have to fatten him up a bit, gotta think of new ways to get him to eat more food.

Mr. Mi Mi Hsu

2007-01-07T06:08:00.000+08:00

Time for an update!

Mi Mi is doing well. We give him insulin shots and pills twice a day, so we schedule our days around the time he gets his shots. He's on a special diet, dry food for diabetic cats mix in with some canned food. His blood glucose level is under control, in fact, he needs to cut down on the amount of insulin each day because blood sugar is low now.

Check out the new washing machine for the cold winter days!

(By the way, we want to thank Dr. Chen's wife, she bought a washing machine for her cats and that's where Peter got the idea to get Mi Mi one as well.)

We're going back for Mi Mi's 3rd follow-up visit on Jan. 8. I hope Dr. Chen will tell us he's doing well with his insulin shots and pills and we're keeping up the good work. Did you know Mi Mi just loves going to Mia's Animal Hospital? He complains on the ride there, but once he's there, he can't wait to get out of his carrier, he walks around as if he's home, lays down anywhere he wants to. Maybe he thinks of the place as his luxury vacation resort because everyone is so nice to him?

Brand New Year

2007-01-07T05:12:00.000+08:00

Happy New Year!

7 days into the new year!

So much has happened last year, some of them happy, but most of them not so great. Thinking back right now, I can only remember the bad things, is it because I'm always so pessimistic? Perhaps they happen for a reason, perhaps I needed to do some "growing up" as painful as they may be.

I wish 2007 will be a big improvement from 2006!

I wanna wish everyone I know a healthy and prosperous 2007. Stay healthy and make lots and lots of $$$$$$, ha ha.

I want to thank you all for your love and kindness, I wouldn't still be around if it weren't for you.

一定要幸福喔！

We Love You, Grandma!

2007-01-05T02:13:00.000+08:00

9/14，最後一次見到阿嬤的那天，我從紐約要回台北，那天傍晚我從醫院離開要回爸媽家時，阿嬤閉著眼睛休息。我不希望因為跟阿嬤說再見讓阿嬤心情不好，但是我也不願意不道別就離開。最後我還是小聲的跟她說再見，不知道她有沒有聽見。

阿嬤總是開心的跟我一起吃從台北帶回來的蜂蜜蛋糕，日本小點心。
阿嬤總是會記得問我咪咪好不好？乖不乖？仔細聽我報告台北生活。
要回台北時阿嬤總是想塞個一路順風的小紅包給我，最後跟阿嬤妥協，我帶著空紅包帶回台北。

我永遠記得小時候夏天一到，晚上阿嬤會跟我睡在阿嬤家客廳涼涼的竹蓆上。
我永遠記得阿嬤煮的麻油雞，花生湯，油飯，炒米粉等等好多好多好吃的料理。
我永遠記得跟阿嬤一起看日本節目，跟阿嬤學日文。
我永遠記得每次從阿嬤家離開時，阿嬤總是站在門口揮手一直到我們離開她的視線。

在醫院的時候三姨總會提醒我阿嬤不喜歡說『再見』，
每次要離開醫院時不想讓阿嬤難過，會輕輕鬆鬆的跟阿嬤說好好休息，明天見，Oyasuminasai。

阿嬤，OYASUMINASAI！

Grandma left us on November 30, 2006.

It was very sweet of everyone who came to see her on December 15 & 16, 2006. And the support given us is greatly appreciated.

Sweet and gentle, that's how I'll always remember you, grandma.

Home Away From Home

2006-12-02T23:38:00.000+08:00

December 2, 2006

Day 7 @ Mia Animal Hospital

Yes, Mi Mi's been away from home a week now. The doctor is able to lower his blood sugar with medicine and insulin, Mi Mi will be able to come home on Monday.

Today Mi Mi has a chance to come out of the cage and walk around the hospital a little. He seems to enjoy that very much.

Hmm...This is a good spot to watch what everyone is doing!

Is this Dr. Chen's privete office? Can I go in?

Ha ha ha...Mr. Mi Mi's very smart, he waits and walks right in the privite office when Dr. Chen opens the door.

Everyone at the hospital is very good to Mi Mi, we're very lucky. Mi Mi will come home on Monday, I can't wait!

Freedom

2006-12-01T23:00:00.000+08:00

December 1, 2006

Day 6 @ Mia Animal Hospital

No I.V. for Mi Mi today, so he was able to walk around the hospital while the staff are taking their lunch break. Naturally, he was very curious to see the place. He walked back and forth between different rooms. It must have been good to come out of the cage and stretch his legs for a bit.

Aqua Baby

2006-11-30T23:48:00.000+08:00

November 30, 2006

Day 5 @ Mia Animal Hospital

This is what I saw when I walked in to the room today...Peter and Mi Mi sharing a nice moment together. We went seperately to Mia Animal Hospital, Peter was already there when I arrived. By the look of it, Mi Mi seemed to enjoy his water very much.

I was able to pick him up and hold him and make him be in the pictures with me. He didn't mind at all...ha ha ha ha.

Since I wouldn't let him go anywhere after he got on the stool, he started to clean himself, after that he just gave up trying to jump to the floor.

Mi Mi's blood sugar level is down to 300, although not quite perfect yet, but it's better than yesterday's 500. We hope to hear more good news tomorrow.

Looking Sharp

2006-11-29T23:44:00.000+08:00

November 29, 2006

Day 4 of Mi Mi's hospital adventure

Mi Mi looked pretty good today. When we arrived the hospital he was just resting in his "room".

Dr. Chen said that Mi Mi slept near the water dish and got wet today, they had to clean him up. I told the Dr. that he's slept near the water bowl in our bathtub when he was home last week (around the time he was feeling weak) I think he did it because he didn't have to go very far to get a drink, Dr. Chen agreed it was a very smart way for Mi Mi to conserve his energy.

Cleaning is still a big part of Mi Mi's routine,

He pays special attention to the bandaged area on his legs.

Ready for my close-up Mr. DeMille.

Spending quality time with daddy.

Ja Mata!

I Think We Need a Bigger Room

2006-11-28T22:34:00.000+08:00

November 28, 2006

Day 3 of Mi Mi's hospital adventure

Today is day #3. We went to see him in the afternoon, Peter didn't stay long because he had a class to teach. But I was able to stay with him for almost 2 hours in the afternoon.

Mi Mi has a new next door neighbor, a white Persian cat named Mi Mi. Now there's a Black Mi Mi and a White Mi Mi at the hospital living next door to each other.

He looked a bit tired when I first saw him, probably because he was asleep when I got there. Notice that little patch of shaved area on his hind leg? That's where Dr. Chen drew blood every 2 hours to test his blood sugar level. The doctor. told me his blood sugar is still high, the treatment isn't lowering blood sugar very much, he'll have to take insulin shots when he leaves the hospital.

I went again this evening around 8:30 after my yoga class. He was just resting, not doing much of anything. He sure is getting plenty of rest there.

Well, I'm glad Dr. Chen and his staff are taking good care of him. Everyone there told me how nice and gentle Mi Mi is, I'm so proud of him.

Mr. Mi Mi, the House Feels So Empty When You're Not Here

2006-11-27T23:44:00.000+08:00

Mi Mi has been acting a little strange for the past few days.

He wasn't eating very much, he seemed to lose his strengt and some of his weight as well.

All he did was sleep, drink water from his red bowl we left for him in the bathtub and use the litter box.

First I thought maybe he was mad at us for leaving him at home, alone, this past Sunday night. (Peter and I drove to Tai Chung for a concert and didn't come back till Monday night.)

Then I thought maybe it's because of the weather, for it's gotten to be more and more winter like. Mi Mi usually gets to be more lethargic when it gets cold. I even tried giving him some catnip but he wasn't interested.

After seeing him like this for days, I took him to the vet on Sunday. Dr. Chen did a blood test and found that Mi Mi's blood sugar level was high and suspected that he had diabetes. The doctor asked Mi Mi to stay over night at the hospital so he can give him IV shot and monitor him.

Peter went to see him the same afternoon and brought him the blue "Citibank" blanket, one of his favorites. He was very happy to see Peter. Even came out of the cage for a big hug.

Monday, Day 2 of Mi Mi's hospital stay. We were there to see him around 1:30pm. He looked much better than yesterday, he was more energetic. I was able to get him to eat some of the food that were in his dish. He also wanted to come out of his "room" to walk around. But the IV was still going, with the tube attached to his front leg, he wasn't able to get very far.

Dr. Chen confirmed today that Mi Mi has diabetes. Mi Mi needs to stay 5 more days at the hospital for the Dr. to figure out what's the best treatment for him, he will have take insulin orally or get shots twice a day to control his blood sugar level.

So it's been 3 days not having Mi Mi around. It feels very very strange to come home and not see his silly face. It feels strange when I use the computer he's not here to hog my keyboard or the mouse. I wish he can come home soon, very soon.

2006-09-21T03:53:00.000+08:00

9/7/2006, after 18 months...

Finally...
NYC here I come.

Bye honey, see you in 10 days!

My last 2 drinks before boarding the plane. (because you know, no liquid with your carry-on) I hope no one makes bombs out of yogurt drinks or they maybe forbidden at the airport as well.

And here's the 747 that would take me back to NYC. The flight was scheduled to depart at 16:25, but the air-condition wasn't working properly, so after boarding the plane, they made us wait till it's fixed. We sat on the ground with no AC, not even air, it was HOT. 30 minutes later, we were ready for take-off. And away we go!

Looking out of the window from seat #12K.

Is this the moon or the sun?

After flying 9 hours we arrived in Anchorage, Alaska for a stop-over. Nothing to see there except the duty-free shops, but it was good to walk around and stretch the legs a bit after sitting for so long. With all the carry-on restrictions, the shop was still selling perfumes and make-ups in liquid form. I asked the shop lady and she told me that after you purchase those items, they'll take it directly to the gate where you re board the plane. Isn't that convenient?

The plane we were flying needed some serious rest, I think. Because after we re-boarded the plane, the AC was out, and once again we had to wait for the ground crew to fix it. After flying another 6-7 hours we were finally in NYC. My luggage came out rather early, I think I might have been one of the first to come out. I waited a little bit for my folks and boy, I was happy to see mom and dad when they came running toward me! It's been too long! So after almost 20 since I left my Taipei home, I'm in New York.

Who Is in My Drawer?

2006-08-28T18:23:00.000+08:00

Mr. Mi Mi Hsu found a nice spot in my drawer today.

He hasn't done this in a while, so he moved pretty quickly as soon as I opened it.

The space was a bit small for him, but he moved around and found himself a comfortable place to settle in.

People do strange things when they get older, do cats to that as well?

Goofing Around on a Wednesday Afternoon

2006-08-26T01:00:00.000+08:00

G'day Cafe is my one of my favorite spots in Taipei. It's where I go whenever I feel "home sick" for American food.

We usually go there on Saturdays or Sundays for brunch, but lately we've been going there during the week as well.

G'day Cafe has a very relaxed atmosphere. They serve American style breakfasts, omelets, cheese burgers, French Fries, pasta, curry fried rice, fajitas... they're all delicious with a generous portion.

So on this fine Wednesday afternoon when I found out the show I was supposed to be taping got canceled, and I have 4~5 hours of free time, I asked Peter to G'day for late lunch/early dinner.

Update on Peter's New Look

2006-08-24T01:52:00.000+08:00

It's been a week since Peter had his stiches taken out. Everything is back to normal, no more bandages.

Here's Mi Mi, staying real close to Peter even when he's doing work on his laptop. Sometimes I can't get him to stay away from my desk either. As matter of fact, he's laying right between me and my keyboard as I write.

Meet Lucky

2006-08-19T21:23:00.000+08:00

Her name is Lucky. She has a real sweet face.She came out of nowhere one day, Peter and I thought she might have been abandoned or lost. We couldn't figure out why someone wouldn't want a pretty little lady like her?

Lucky for this little lady, our super took her in and she's been living in the super's office for years now.

BTW, this is her summer look, she's normally a bit more fluffy.

It was 2 days ago, I came home from work late in the afternoon (which is very unusual for me because I normally work till 11 or midnight). I found her wondering around outside our apt. building, taking her afternoon walk. I walked up to her, hoping to take a few pictures. Lucky was happy to see me, she kept real close to me.

It was just to hard to pet her with one hand and take picture with the other. As you see, I wasn't too successful with my picture taking mission. I did have a nice time playing with her though.

Today's Mi Mi

2006-08-18T01:17:00.000+08:00

This is Mi Mi standing at one of his favorite spots.

He's not too thrill to have his picture taken for some reason.

Got this goofy look on his face.

Peter's New Look

2006-08-14T01:11:00.000+08:00

Peter had his very first minor surgery last Thursday to remove a cyst on his scalp, and this is what he looked like for 3 days after the surgery.

While feeling bad that he had to go through with the surgery, I still think he looked very, very cute with the bandages on ;)

Peter is doing fine, he removed the the bandages today (happy happy joy joy). He will go back to the hospital this Thursday to get the stiches out.

Does anyone want to see what's underneath the bandages?

Mi Mi

2006-08-13T18:10:00.000+08:00

Remember Mi Mi? grandpa mi mi" in human years is older than both Peter and I.

Peter first got him when he was 6-months old, he's now 16, "
Thanks to our good friend Bettina, who brought him with her from NY to Taipei we're able to have him with us here.

Now that he's older, he doesn't come to the door to greet us when we come home. Most of the time he's still sleeping when we come in the house. I don't know if he just doesn't want to get up or he doesn't hear the door as well as before.

His attitude toward strangers has changed as well, he's not afraid of them anymore. He's extremely attached to Peter and I, always stays by our side while we're home. Climbing up the desk to where our computers are, sitting or laying on the keyboard when we use the computer.

Notice he has white whiskers? He's also getting a lot of gray hair.

Did I mention he sleeps a lot?

We love him a bunch, we think he's the bestest kitty. We hope he lives to be 100!

2006-08-13T16:46:00.000+08:00

It's a Beautiful Day in Taipei!

Today is one of those days where the sun is shining brightly, not a cloud in the sky and the sky is clear and blue.

Thank goodness for the cool breeze so it's not hot as hell! I can even stay home without the AC going. That's pretty amazing for a summer day in Taipei.

Too bad we're not on vacation, on a white sandy beach somewhere enjoying the beautiful weather, that would have been real nice. Instead, let me show you Taipei 101, the tallest building in the world (so far). It's taken from the roof of our apt. building, (the wind almost blown me over while I took the picture with me cell phone). See that clear sky? I know we get that in the US all the time, but not here in Taipei, it's kind of rare to see sky like this (usually right before a typhoon we get something like this)