As Catholics, we are supposed to have an altar at home. Unlike altars in a Taoist or Buddhist family whereby offerings are made, a Catholic altar is more for us to pray. Not so much of offering our offerings but more like a sanctuary for us to have a peaceful mind to pray.

We have shifted in for about 4 years and we have not set up the altar because we just keep pushing it back. 2 weeks ago, my auntie who is also my godma told me that it's about time to get this done so that we can start 2011 afresh as well. So today she brought us to this shop along Queens St to get the altar, holy family statue, picture of sacred heart of Jesus and we also got a crucifix to hang outside our door. It felt good to get this matter done finally!!!! Once the stuffs are delivered and set up, we can finally invite our parish priest over to bless our house! Yeah!

After which was shopping with my parents n sis!!! Words can't describe how happy I am to spend time with them. :)

EwF

It has been a while since we last spent some time in town on a weekend as it is constantly crowded in town. But this time round, we went in a goal in mind.... get ourselves a new wokpan and pillows (our CMI pillows which is only about 6 months old) is giving us too much sleeping problems.

Headed to Robinsons to search for suitable pillows and managed to find a decent Tefal wokpan. There are some discounts going on which suits our pocket (20% off for the pan and about 30% off for the pillows). We are officially about $230 poorer but came home with 2 firmer King Koil pillows and 1 Tefal wokpan (which once again I must emphasize it is not my choice!!!!).

So back to the main point of this posting, I am officially disappointed with Everything with Fries. I heard so much ravings about their food and was dying to try it out so we headed to their outlet at Orchard Central. BC ordered their char siew burger with sour cream fried and I had a bacon and omelette burger with garlic fries. Boy!!!!! Their food is damn salty!!!! BC managed to finish his burger only but I couldn't bring myself to finish my salty burger at all. Totally spoil our appetite in a way and we decided to just tabao the fries back. We highlighted the taste of the burgers to the person in charge while they were packing our fries and he was open to our feedback and told us he will look into it *pat on the back*. I hope for their own good sake that they can reduce the salt in their food but I don't think I will be back in the near future though.

Cats can make owners happier, healthier and gentler

Credit: USA Today

Why do 33% of the households in the USA have cats? And how do you explain why there are 16 million more pet cats than dogs?

Recently, we published a story on this page about how many ways dogs are good for our health and well-being. Cat lovers responded, demanding equal time. And so ... to cats:

Yes, kittens are adorable. Yes, they can grow up to be good mousers and are very entertaining to watch. And yes, cats are independent and don't require as much care as dogs. But research shows cats can also be caretakers for us and our families, improve our health and teach us and our children to be kinder, gentler souls.

Theodora Wesselman is 94 and has lived the past two years with her elderly cat, Cleo, at TigerPlace, a retirement community in Columbia, Mo. Their enduring friendship is a classic example of how humans and animals can become family and look out for each other.

Wesselman visits other residents, and her children stop by, but Cleo is her best friend, she says. They've been together nearly 21 years.

They start and end the day together.

"She sleeps on her own pillow right beside mine," Wesselman says. "In the morning, she pecks on my cheek to wake me up. It's really sweet. I pet her, tell her I love her and take her to the kitchen to prepare her food."

Cleo and Wesselman "live for each other. I really think they keep each other going," says Mary Kay Swanson, a TigerPlace employee.

Research shows that being able to care for a pet improves our morale, helps validate us and encourages us to take care of ourselves, says Rebecca Johnson, director of the University of Missouri's Research Center for Human-Animal Interaction. The body of research is leading more retirement communities and universities to roll out the welcome mat for pets.

Is one pet better for you than another? A cat can't make you healthier by begging with leash in mouth to go out for a jog, but a purr can lower blood pressure and quiet a stressed-out brain, research shows.

And they insist on compassion. They're enforcers, Johnson says. "A dog will let you bang it on the head and still love you. A cat won't do that. Children have to learn to be gentle to cats or the cat will go away."

Some parents welcome feline help reinforcing values during child-rearing, and the cats become an integral part of the family.

When one of their Bengal cats dashed out a window this summer, Jud and Katherine Smith of Cumberland, Maine, and their two daughters were so upset that they took out a full-page ad for three days in The Portland Press Herald with their telephone number, a photo of Kaden and an offer of a $500 reward.

Three weeks went by before someone found Kaden 7 miles away from home. He was lighter and tired, but he's "back with his family," Jud says.

Cleo's health recently concerned Swanson. Before veterinarians detected she had diabetes they could treat with insulin, Swanson talked with Wesselman about putting Cleo down.

Cleo was standing nearby during the conversation. Wesselman was distraught.

"I think Cleo overheard us talking," Swanson says. "She rebounded the next day. I've never seen Theodora so grateful or happy. Cleo is doing well. She's off insulin, and we're monitoring her blood on a weekly basis."

That morning peck on the cheek and nightly tuck-in endure.

Lately, my furkids have been super manja with me. Eden would want to nap on my lap, Titus and Simba wants to lie next to me. Somehow, I guess they know that perhaps I need their affection...... So sweet hor?

I seriously think that I am getting old...... I am always feeling tired and having neckache and now, the muscle that makes my right thumb moves is actually aching as well!!! (from prolong usage of mouse).

Seriously, this is really WTF. I think people will be laughing their heads off if they know that I am having this 'thumb ache'. I know I have been complaining for the past month that I am BORED at work because I have nothing to do. But now, I am super busy!!!! Just burnt my public holiday and weekend last week on work and I am already zombie-fied. I go to work feeling tired like shit like I can just drop and fall asleep. Gosh, and our government actually think the retirement should be 62 or 65? I am only half the age now and i already feel like I am 70. Damn!

Ok, to give myself a pat on the back, I have started hitting the gym during lunch time, so perhaps my energy level will go up? I hope so......