On Policemen and Butterflies

Hey guys

So it seems I've becoming lax in my reporting over the insect world lately... what with the personal dimension suddenly thrown into this blog and all... so I'm just going to kick things off again with a little anecdote of something that happened to me yesterday. Okay. So it all started when I was heading off to meet Ray for lunch - and also to put the cement on the patching up of our fight the night before - when I saw a most beautiful Atrophaneura sp. butterfly fluttering over the bougainvillea at Sunway University. Immediately I knew I simply HAD to have it and so I took out my extend-able butterfly net from the back of my car and went after it. The butterfly got away, unfortunately but because I was already running late this meant that I had to carry my net, and container, with me all the way to JUSCO at Sunway Pyramid to have lunch with Ray and then head back. Lunch itself took place without incident, as the journey back, but it wasn't until I was heading back to my car to return the items that I was stopped by two policemen doing... oh I don't know what, their rounds possibly... in a white police car. I'll admit I was more than a little bit apprehensive, having run afoul of the police just a week before but it turned out they wanted little more than to take a look at my butterfly net and have a go at it themselves. Now, I'm just assuming here that they were off duty (so as to not imply that our men in blue were 'slacking off on the job' or anything) but we did have quite an enjoyable time, chasing butterflies down in the Sunway University football field. They even bagged me two! A pair of lovely tawny coster males Acraea Terpsicore which are ever so abundant around this time of year.

Butterflying with Law-Enforcers!!! Who'd have ever thought of that!!!

Whoooo areeeee youuuuu?

I've been feeling so lost lately. Just wondering if human beings really are complicated, or if it is just our selves that make things so? What I mean to say is, what's so great about being complicated anyway> I mean sure, we have our myriad of thought processes, our ability to appreciate all forms of aesthetics and all manner of beautiful and non-beautiful things, not to mention or capacity for imaginative and inspirational thoughts as well as critical outlooks towards life but- oh wait... I guess that's precisely what's so great about it. I do suppose that I acknowledge that life is only about uas complicated or as simple as one makes it out to be ... and there are times when i wish I coul make my life as simple as it can be. But then I think about it again and wonder... but why? What's so great about being a simpleton anyway? What's so great about the inability to exercise the very complicated thought processes which makes me... well, me!!! But perhaps that is just another bit of self-existential narcissism coming through. Though, a lt of people would complain - rather they would make the statement that they are complicated and hence cannot be understood - which sounds to me almost like a complete disregard for the complexity of other people's lives. Now I don't know what it is about that but I can't stand that so much. In actual fact i do believe quite to the contrary; that we are all similar in that we are uniquely complicated creatures by nature... well most of us anyway... and that the only differents between the complexity of human beings is the varying degree and form of that complexity itself. I also believe that this happens because we make our lives so and that the worst part of it all is that we can't help it. I mean thinking and processing and making complex equations out of everyday symbolism and itnerractions is so much a part of our lives that it has become almost natural to us. To desist would be like telling a fish to desist flickign its fins to maintain its level of bouyancy in the water, perhaps ... or a butterfly to quit flapping its wings and flying. But then in all of this, I'm not quite sure who or what I definitely wish to be. I suppose on many levels the life of a simpleton can be very appealing - to be without care in the world - but on the other hand not caring is something that is extremely difficult to do once you have experienced things in the world. Arguably even simpletons are complex in themselves and I do believe that to experience the world through the eyes and mind of a human creature is to inevitably compexed. Then again being entirely complex has its downfalls too because there will inexplicably be moments where I exacerbate things by pondering upon my own state of existential existence leading me to ask unsolvable and roundabout questions pertaining to the very state of existence I am doubting in the fist place possibly leading to roundabout and unsolvable explanations quite like the one i have just posted here which still begs to answer the question; "Who am I, Who are you?"

Caterpillar: Who are you? Alice: Why, I hardly know sir. I've changed so much since this morning you see...
Caterpillar: No, I do not C. Explain yourselfAlice: I'm afraid I cannot explain myself, you see, because I am not myself, you know.
Caterpillar: I do not know. Alice: I can't put it anymore clearly, sir. Because it is not clear to me.



The Only Exception

Tossing in bed, restless...unable to sleep. My mind seethes in a turmoil of unresolved thoughts, free floating particles that jolt my neurons into a senseless jumble, signals racing across the brains in an unintelligible flurry of electricity. Recovering, still from our last fight. Our biggest fight. I want to hit myself so hard sometimes because of the things I say, and also the things I do. More specifically its the way I seem to react to things; loud, explosive, full blown, kinda like a grenade going off. I know it takes two to clap, that every one reaction has a cause to its action and that every cause has a catalyst which sets the powder keg aflame, but because this is my story and I'm telling it from my point of view, perhaps it would be best - to avoid any confusion or misintepretation - that I will only refer to my hand which did the clapping, my reaction to the action, my share of the spark which ignited the fire.

It wasn't until I was around 17 or 18 before I started believing in Karma. Growing up as a teenager in KL with pretty much everything I wanted in life it was very easy to take things for granted, very easy to forget that everything has its consequences. Its very easy, when you are young and youthful to believe that the universe really does revolve around you, that every action you make does not have a consequence or, even if it does, those consequences are ones that shall be easily bared. And so I did the things that I did and made those calls I had to make, many of which I was not proud of... until it actually starts to hit you and that's when I realised that everything has a consequence and that even I have blows that I could not bear to stand. I was torn, broken, thrown off of my throne. I had my heart torn out and broken before my eyes. But just as I was about to claim injustice, just as I was about to mope on my sad, sad fate, I realised that everything, all the terrible things that were not happening to me were in actual fact in many ways similar to the things I had inflicted upon others in the past. And it was so that I believed, in my own way, in Karma. And everytime I started to fall deathly ill, everytime I had dirty kicked in my face, everytime people shouted names after me in the hallway, or splashed my face with water, everytime I had my heart broken, I thought about all those people I've wronged, all those hearts I've broken in my callous attempts at satisfying myself, all those dreams I crushed in my unbridled climb to the top of my trade, and I remembered I was simply receiving back all that I had dished out in the past, and though it hurt, and though I sometimes cried and complained, I took it with the knowledge that I was simply paying up for all the bad karma I had sent out in the past.

And then you came along, and suddenly I knew what it was like to be with someone so patient, so understanding... someone whose been through so much and yet was so innocent to the ways of the world, and for the better part, I was happy. But I should have known that in reality, Happily never comes hand in hand with Ever After and that eventually as with any couple fights would break out, and though it probably seemed - and felt like too - the right thing to do by defending my point of view, I always felt shitty afterwards. I mean what's the point? The Universe was giving me a second chance here, and what was I doing with it? Arguing? Raising my voice? And over really petty and stupid things too which, I have no idea why, seem pretty big and important at the moment.... but you know, we're still together... stronger, probably, from all of this and I can see it now that you've been carrying a lot of the weight on your shoulders. I guess its time I finally shouldered some of it. Besides, as a wise lesbian just told me "no quarrel then no understanding on boundaries mah!"

You are the only exception,
and I'm on my way to believing.

Fit for a Queen

Hey guys!!!

So since Artemis' final moult she's not only grown wings, but a lot bigger as well!!! I decided the old tank wasn't just gonna cut it for my big-little girl so it was time to dig in the store-room for larger containers. Fortunately for her (and me) I still had one large empty tank lying around - from my newt keeping days - so all I had to do was empty out the gravel from the container and give it a good washing with soap and warm water which sorta annoyed the familia considering I chose to do all of this at 3am in the morning and the pipes to get a little bit noisy when we use them at that time of the day... anyway the effort (and annoyance) was worth it as you see because Artemis now has a huge and lovely new home to live in.

Artemis' new home

UNDERBELLY!!!!

with all you can eat bug-fets everyday

Choice hanging locations

All in all truly a living space fit for a queen! And with this much room I get to see her climb around and even test her wings occasionally when she gets active at night! Such an amazing creature to observe. As always I do love watching her hunt for her food. I'm not sure about the tint of blue though... and it seems what once enhanced the colour of the underwater denizens of this tank doesn't seem to be doing much justice to Artemis'  own brilliant green and pink hue but oh well, I don't think it bothers her terribly. On a separate note I will be leaving to Saigon in a couple of weeks and, besides missing Ray dearly, I've come up with the huge dilemma of whose going to feed  and care for my pets. Naturally the dogs, birds and turtles can be cared for by other family members but I do have some which require quite special needs. My mantids, and other invertebrates for example. I wonder if I throw in a cricket or two will it sustain Artemis for as long as I'm gone?

The only thing louder than the groan I let out when I saw your face was the inescapable sound of your fail.

Sleepovers

I hate to admit it... but I feel like I'm starting to take it for granted sometimes, how good it feels to have a warm body next to me when I close my eyes each night, when I open them each morning... but I guess its true what they say that no matter how hard you had to wait to get something, no matter how much you treasure it when you finally get it, that it too will eventually become normal... sinking slowly into the realm of the mundane.

I loved it when you held me last night, the air conditioner set at sixteen degrees thrumming through years of overuse and neglect, as we snuggled together in bed, your arm draped around my side, my head nuzzled in the small of your neck, dressed in nothing more than thin shorts and tatty shirts, protected from the cold by a cocoon of comforters and pillows... and your ever present warmth. Like two moths huddled together for heat, the proverbial  "snug as a bug in a rug". I loved it... yeah, I loved it. As I have mentioned time and again if I could stop time at any given moment of our lives it would be during one of these moments. Problem was, I didn't love it enough. Used to be, I would stay up as long as I can, forcing my eyes open with every single ounce of strength in my body... dying to savour every second of these moments, live every bit of it. But last night, I was out in a blink. Barely even a kiss goodnight before I crawled into my usual spot - between your arms, cocooned by the warmth of both layers of comforters and your body - and fell asleep. What does it mean?

I mean, its not like I loved you any less. It was just that I was getting used to sleeping with someone, a real person.I guess its true, what they say, that you never know what you really have till its gone. Which is why tonight, as I tossed and turned in bed, thinking about what it was that was keeping me up that I realised what it was. Your touch... your warmth... but most of all, the reassuring feeling I get knowing that when I wake up in the darkness from one of my dreams that I'm not alone. That somewhere, right next to me, always within my reach is a body... warm, comforting that always has my back. I don't think I'll ever sleep the same way again, not now... not that I've had you with me. And I know the day will come when we shall always wake up together in bed, and eventually the feeling fall back into the realm of the routine... but for now, I will just take this moment of absence as yet another marker, a reinforcer of the way I used to feel the first night we slept together, when dark circles meant as little to me as things like cars or politics. And boy... oh boy, can I not wait to stay over at your place next week.

My favourite days are the ones where you sleepover =D

Skinned

Yeap!!! It's my beautiful Artemis, all gone through her final molt and now with wings!!! Real nifty eh?

Sprite's Public Debut!!!

Hey guys!

Do you remember my comic book superhero, Sprite? Well, he's made his first public debut and this time it is to join the battle to defeat TGV Cinema's villain, the insidious Gertrude Sinclair!!! Anyway, in order to be selected to join this fight, Sprite needs the help of the people who believe in him to tell those at TGV headquarters that he is worthy with his powers of flight and plant manipulation to take on this sinister crook! Think Sprite is up for the task, simply click on the picture of him below, or follow the link HERE to vote for Sprite. If you are directed to the main page, simply select "Gallery" and scroll to hero number #1317 to give him a vote.

Click here to vote

Now remember, you can only vote for Sprite once a day but can do so multiply over a number of days so please, whenever you have the time, show some support :)

Night Lights

Even those that haunt the night, are drawn to the lights

The Anniversary Butterfly

Hey ya'll

this post is pretty self indulgent and the title itself is really quite explanatory. Basically for our anniversary I made a little stop motion cartoon for Ray. For some reason I could not upload it the way I regularly do on facebook so I had to do it through youtube. Enjoy :)

Co-Evolution

Hey ya'll

So I was just spending my time, bumming around and reading up from the National Geographic magazine that Ray had swiped from somewhere earlier this week when I came upon this section on co-evolution (defined as the change of a biological object triggered by the change of a related object) which had this really nifty sub-chapter on the Angraecoid Orchid and Madagascan hawk moths. Now, I'm not sure if you've heard of this story before, but basically, Charles Darwin (who, by the way if you do not know need to read more books or go less to church) while studying the biodiversity of the Madagascar Islands came upon an orchid whose blossoms seemed to baffle him. He speculated that the orchid, possessing a nectar chamber of over eleven inches deep, had evolved in such a way that it would target specific forms of insects most beneficial in the process of pollination. True enough, it wasn't long until the following moth specimen was found, with a proboscis of over thirteen inches long ensuring that it would not only be able to access the sweet nectar that lay at the end of the Angraecoid Orchid's nectar chamber but also aid the plant in spreading its pollen thus ensuring its species' continued survival.

Pretty nifty eh? An insect with an organ so much longer than yours. 

And that's my informative post of the day. I do apologize by the way to my ever-increasing readership for the change of tone that my blog has taken over the past few days - what with the involvement of my love life in it and all that -  but I assure you that I will keep the SG to an all time low, the SX to its bare minimum and overall try to keep it somewhere under the line of PG. So yeah... just saying ...PLEASE STAY WITH ME!!! I NEED YOU!!!! =3 ... speaking of which though, there are possibly a hundred and one different sexual puns I could've made in describing the Orchid and the Moth but... I did say I would keep the SX to its bare minimum... well, in these little informative sections anyway.. so I guess I used up my quota with the pun on the organ and what not ... so I guess I'm just starting to ramble now to make this blog post look a lot longer than it actually is.... and...I'm out.

Seriously though, keep reading.

Weekend Reflections pt. 2

Took Caryn to the drag show at Funtheque above the Ship in Jalan Bukit Bintang, KL last Saturday for her 21st Birthday. Had loads of fun drinking electric blue cocktails and laughing to the lewd jokes of our hostess for the evening, but somehow watching other people performing on stage always gives me the little pang of envy in my heart, that they are so happily doing what I used to do, what once drove my every waking moment. But then I look to my side and see all that I now have instead and realise, that I wouldn't give it up for anything, not for all the stage time in the world, not even if I could somehow do it all over, erase my mistakes and "make it" in the "biz". I guess there are just some things which seem really important at the time which you must eventually let go when other, new important things come in the way. After all, a caterpillar needs to give up much of itself to eventually become a butterfly. ... right?

Exuent Stage right.

Timeless

We sat there in almost silence. The background noise of Burlesque coming from downstairs, the tip-tap-tap of the keyboards ever clicking against soft, finger tips. Together, we ate our modest dinners of chicken rice, packed in white styro-foam boxes that we knew were so bad for the environment and yet continued to use anyway. I longed to reach out to him, a gentle caress of the cheek, run my fingers through his hair, but instead my gaze focused downwards, and I continued to stare intently at the bits of chicken and yellow oiled up rice that slowly, but surely began to levitate from my spoon and fork into my mouth. He said something then, something which jolted me right out of my routine induced stupor. "We don't spend enough time together." I was surprised. "not enough time together? What do you mean? We're spending time right now... in fact... we spend pretty fair amount of time together." You said nothing. But I knew what you meant. How long has it been since we had just a day to ourselves... I let my thoughts bring me back to this morning.

...........................................

You lay in bed... with me. Next to me. Although actually that bed was nothing more than a series of sheets strewn on the floor. It's not that we didn't have a bed, we did. But the years of usage, coupled with the occasional dampness and the decay of wood made it sure that the bed wouldn't support the weight of two anymore and so we decided that we'd much rather make do with the floor than sleep separately. And I'm fine with that. In fact, I quite like sleeping on the floor. I heard you waking up and I pretend to still be asleep. You nuzzled against my neck and I returned the favour. I don't know how long we lay like that. I didn't care. If I could, I would stop time at that particular moment. I didn't want to get up that day, didn't want to leave. And so I tried... I hoped, and wished that something would happen that would preserve that moment forever in time. In fact, I tried so hard I even ignored the throbbing sensation in my bladder urging me to answer the call of nature like it did every morning. But I guess I didn't try hard enough because before long I kicked off the sheets, slipped out from under your arm and walked out the door and to the bathroom down the hall. There it was, the momentum had started... the day was moving on.

I stood in the toilet for I don't know how long. My toes tapping on the slick blue tiles, contemplating whether I wanted to go for a shower or crawl back into bed and try stopping time some more when I heard your voice call from the room, "Hey Cy! Come! She's coming out!" There. That' made up my mind for me. Wrapping the towel back around my waist I'd come running into the room. "Look Cy! She's coming out!" The butterfly seemed to strain against the shell of its chrysalis. I couldn't help but smile at your excitement, your anticipation.  I remember having the same feeling of elation when I watched a butterfly eclose for the first time. True, I'd seen this probably like a hundred times over now, but I understood that it was your first, and I understood what it meant. But most of all, I was glad to be able to share that with you. I know these things hardly excite me that much anymore - though they still do to an extent - for your sake this morning, I was. "Quick!" I said. "Grab the camera!" And so we watched, as the little orange butterfly freed itself from the confines of her former life, and I held your hand as you held mine, and for a moment time did stop and everything was perfect.

...........................................

Fast-forward back to the present. We washed the plates and made a dessert of pineapples. You headed back to the room to do your work, and I gave you an hour to do it. Still I pondered on your words. "We don't spend enough time together." Still I knew it was true. I went downstairs and watched the remaining half of Burlesque while you were gone. Talked a bit to mum and dad. Even had time to take a shower. "I don't want to regret anything," you said. "I don't want to have to regret not spending enough time with you when you die." And this I knew to be true... quite simple because time is never enough. We can spend a billion holidays with each other... take an entire year off to go see the world. But like all things, time eventually catches up, and things eventually end. I will die one day, I suppose. I do not like to think about it... but we all know it is there. We all know it is coming. And when the time happens, I suppose you will feel like you have been cheated of me as much as I have been cheated of you. But I also believe that there are these moments, these moments that have become preserved in time... when we cuddled in bed all morning and watched as the butterflies crawled out from their chrysalids, when that second seemed like an eternity... that we will have and treasure in our hearts, for as long as you continue to live.

Timeless, don't let it end, no.
Now that you're right here in my arms where you should stay, hold tight baby.

The Brood (day 4)

I hope they make your skin crawl~ lovely babies 

As you can see, for some reason the caterpillars are quite communal and where one goes and starts eating, the swarm is sure to follow. This is a photograph of one corner of my caterpillar tank with one part of the swarm of medium to large instar caterpillars and on the other half of the tank (not pictured) were where the newborns and the really small instar caterpillars were buzy chomping away! I've plucked some choice leaves from the wild and kept them in the fridge to keep fresh because these guys really can eat and they'll defoliate my entire plant in no time if I don't do anything about it.

Torn (not quite poetry, not quite a prose)

We're not so different from butterflies I think.
We fly through life, fluttering in the breeze,

always goal oriented, searching for our purpose.
We sample the nectar from flower to flower
constantly searching for the right one,

always searching, never settling, 

for the breeze is strong and our wings are too brittle.
And sometimes we are battered.
But we're quite resilient, I think and we recover

from most of the injuries that affect us.
The small tears in the wing, what bit of scales that get scraped off,
but still we can fly, and so we keep on flying.
We cannot stop, for what is a butterfly that doesn't fly?
What is a human being that does not live out its existential purpose?
But I suppose sometimes the winds blow too strong
and our wings take one too many a beating
and I suppose there are some wounds that do not heal,

and that is when you cease to live, that is when you cease to be
you become a human without a being, a butter without a fly.
I've suffered my share of injuries, as have you
and I have temporarily lost flight, just like you
but one wing here and one wing there, between the two of us
we still can live, we still can fly.
And looking back on it now, I guess I realised;
oh, was I lucky... that when my wings were torn...
I had you to pick me up. 

MALACCA (is a swear word in Greek)

MALACCA!!! Now if I were Greek or if you were, I suppose you'd have every right to tell me to go rinse my mouth with clorox before using such profanities on the net... although considering how the word Malacca in Greek just means "wanker"... I suppose there are other, worse swear words I could've used in the net that would perhaps warrant for more than just a gargling with noxious cleaning fluid. Anyway this post has been long overdue considering how the vacation took place almost... well actually precisely a month ago. But there were issues with the publicity of this blog and what not.. so there have you. Anyway on the 16th of May, Ray and I decided to do something really spontaneous which resulted in, ironically, quite a bit of planning, a few phonecalls and concluded in a trip down to Malacca! Now I know Malacca is not exactly really far away from where we live but... considering how this city boy has never driven out of the city in his life, I daresay it was quite daunting. Anyway we got there, safe and sound in one piece and because I'm not really big on history (having to read up on history for my chapter, I need a break every once in awhile) we visited the butterfly park and the zoo instead. The rest is pretty much self self-explanatory. So enjoy the pictures and save me from having to write about it. 

Tortoise!!! Torrr-Toyse! 

Imma protect you from the GIANT SCORPION!!!

Okay, okay... so enough with the coupleness already and on to the other attractions. The butterflies, yeah just because I've had a change of URL and privacy features does not mean I have completely forgotten the purpose of this blog... uh what was the purpose of this blog again? Oh right... to document the insects and living things that I see and all that... though in all fairness I suppose me and Ray are living things too...but oh okay, taken out of context and all that. Anyway I'm more than happy to show off some of these winged beauties...

and let's get started with this beautiful male Papilio Memnon  of which I have a larvae which has still not yet changed into a chrysalis making it more than a month since I first adopted it... I wonder what it's waiting for?

Another beautiful male~ this Orange Tip made it a point to flash itself to use all day, fluttering in and out of my peripheral vision until I approached it with my hand and it flew away for good. Just like some people... teasers, I believe. The kinds that love to show but are all no go. 

There were tons of these butterflies, too. One of the many subspecies of Cethosias, I believe. 

And the beautiful Kalimma Inacchus which are a lot like certain people really, for most of the times when they remain motionless, they resemble nothing more than dried up leaves. But give them time to open up, and maybe they might even surprise you with a flash of colours! 

Though, on the other hand, there are those who just can't resist showing off. And you do have every right to I suppose, when you're the King of the Butterflies like this magnificent specimen of a Trogonoptera Brookiana

But I must say that my favourite exhibit it ANY butterfly farm... has got to be the chrysalis cabinet, or cocoon case.

reminds me of my own Eclosion chamber hahahaha which is just missing the lego figure of the Hazmat man to give it the mad scientist sort of feel... but oh well. willnotwhinewillnotwhinewillnotwhine.

And so that's pretty much what we saw when we were at the butterfly farm... which is pretty much standard for any butterfly farm visit I suppose, considering how I completely missed the Atlas moths... but well, there were other awesome things to do there, too. I suppose. And once we were done with looking at all the wildlife - something which, I'm afraid is a little tihng of mine (when we go to the mall I always insist on making a trip to the pet-store first!) - we went to Jonker street for a little bit of good food too, although in all fairness we only ate two bowls of Cendol... but we did get one step closer to curing Ray of his fear of snakes though. And I always joke that he's a little bit afraid of me as well (seeing as to how I'm born in the year of the serpent in the Chinese zodiac)... so that's pretty much how we spent our first vacation together, granted it was a mini-vacation since we only made a day trip out of it, but he still ended up staying the night at my place, and the night after that as well. I guess you can say its moments like these I'll remember the most... along with taking my first bike-ride with him across Subang, and the rest, as they say, is history.

Hissssss~ two snakes and a horse.

Irony

There are some strange moments in nature, when the strongest of them all eventually becomes the hunted.

And its at times like these when I can't help but stop and wonder if Mother Nature appreciates the irony.

I hit the MOTHERLOAD

Hey guys!!!

Nothing much to say except... I HIT THE MOTHERLOAD!!! Literally, it was like a jackpot of caterpillars!!! But rather than rant about it and then get sidetracked and talk about something else that's completely unrelated, I will show you the pictures instead. :D

What did I tell you... MOTHERLOAD!!!! And there were still tons of them when I was done. =P

And I even found PUPAE!!!! What did I tell you, it was like a lepidoptera jackpot!!!

Tawny Coster adult (Acraea Terpsicore)

Anyway after taking a whole bunch of them to breed in my house, I decided to pack up a passiflora plant myself to see if I can't cultivate it and create a terpsicore breeding pit-stop in my vicinity, as well as the demoleus and polytes breeding ground I've already established!!! Soooo exciting!

Passiflora vine

Anyway the main issue is, whose going to take care of them when I make my one month long trip to KK and Saigon next month >.< but hopefully Ray will be able to do it. Anyways, its back to chapter writing for now... gotta work extra hard before we play extra hard after all.

Omens & Office Politics

Hey ya'll

was walking back  today after dropping off Ray when I noticed this guy perching on the wall of his university. It's really cool actually not only because of its immense size (this moth was almost as long as my index finger!!!) but if you look at it closer, maybe you can see something that is quite creepy.

Can't see it yet? Let me get a little closer...

Doesn't that marking on its back look a little bit like some demonic face or something? Gives me the heebie-jeebies! Anyway this moth sure was feisty cuz when I tried to pick it up it just sorta did a buzzing thing and dive-bombed my face for a bit before flying away. Wonder if its an omen for something nasty to come... although speaking of nasty, I've had to deal with some pretty bitchy people in the office lately but I wonder if it would be professional for me to blog about it here. She did, after all, send out a mass email to all my office colleagues and professors but I think I will not stoop as low as she did. Yet. Anyway Ray and I made a trip to the butterfly park over the weekend and I've been meaning to blog about that and post up the pictures.... but there's just so many of them... and I'm just so lazy!!! So maybe I'll leave that for another day. At any rate, there's just so many things going on right now in terms of birthdays and celebrations and... well I wonder if it makes my any less of a friend if I say that sometimes.... well just sometimes, I get tired of it all.

Up in the Trees

Hey guys!

It's been approximately two months and twenty days and I believe we are finally beginning to sink into the traps of normalcy and comfort. But really, I don't feel like isn't a bad thing. I mean, I've always wanted to know what it feels like to be normal... to just live a normal life, not waking up everyday and worrying if I will be alone or not, not stepping out of the house wondering if there would be anyone for me to have lunch with. I know, these things sound trivial but really, they aren't. It's just the small and simple things that are so easily taken for granted that if I just step back and look at, will realise that if this was the last day of my life, it would be these few seconds  that I will cherish as though they were my first. It sort of makes sense, I suppose, in an idiosyncratic way. Now I'm not sure if I even used that word; "idiosyncratic" correctly. But anyways, I digress.

This week has been one of the most tiring weeks for me - although in retrospect I would think that the authorship assignment was way tougher - so perhaps it wasn't after all. Then again, this week is pretty activity packed though, if I do say so myself. I mean re-writing and entire chapter's worth of research to be completed in less than a day's time where it will be presented to the scrutiny and ever appraising eye of Dr. Andrew is not something I look forward to particularly... in fact, it is not something I look forward to at all. But you know its just one of those things that have to be done. Like swinging through the trees, maybe this is just one of those things, you know... one of those things that feel scarier before you actually try them! Speaking of swining through the treetops though...

WAAAAAAAA~

YEAH!!! Pretty cool no? This was act Skytrex actually which is this place located in Bukit Cahaya, somewhere in Shah Alam... I'm not exactly sure where but I'm sure you can google map it, and what's so cool about it is that you get to grapple among the canopy of the trees like a monkey... or one of those blue people from AVATAR,  I suppose... which is quite cool! Seriously though, its a whole other world up there, the canopy and you realise how clumsy and vulnerable you are compared to the other creatures that call it their home. Like seriously, I thought it was so ironic that I would be clinging on to my cable for dear life, praying to Goddess that the carabiners hold when these little flying lizards were just gliding here and there, from branch to branch. If there was one word I had to use to describe my feelings it was probably awe.... or jealousy. Possibly the latter.

Super flying NINJA DRAGON LIZARD!!!!! 

Seriously though, everything was really avatar up there!!! Flying lizards, small 'feathered' bugs that parachute to safety the moment you got too close! I'll even bet my torn RM50 note that most of those plants and animals would exhibit some form of bioluminesence should you come visit the park at night! Of course, there were regular animals also...

Ray's favourite...RABBITS!!!

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TWINS!!!

Hey guys!

Just wanted to post up the magnificent double-birth I had today! It's so rare that I can wake up to a butterfly's eclosion (yeah, I sleep like a pig... or a python after a particularly large meal) but what a pleasant surprise to wake up to two! Beautiful pair, one male and one female and though I'm tempted to try breeding them in captivity, I know they'll be better off flying in the wild so until the construction of my outdoor aviary... its bye-bye butterflies.