Tinkerbell & Riamfada - living with flighted CAGs

[shanlung]

My friend Phillip Little
http://shanlung.livejournal.com/139880.html

End of Qatar and visit to Riamfada & Dommie//Sieben //Phillip
http://shanlung.livejournal.com/140208.html

[liz]

I am so sorry that you have suffered the loss of your friend Phillip. I am Christian and believe that good souls are just "promoted to glory" to wait for the rest of us to catch up and be reunited.

If I read it right - congradulations on your surviving the nicotine.

I send best wishes to you.

[shanlung]

Have not been here for some time,
Perhaps what I wrote before might be of some use to folks who have not known me.
That there can be an alternate life to the one you currently having with your birdie.

[Wolf]

Glad to see that you have made it back here, and hope that you will share with us for a while. I have seen some of your posts on various other forums but have never had the opportunity to talk with you. I would love to hear about what is happening with you and your birds currently.

[shanlung]

Hi Wolf,

No birdies with me now. No beasties either.

There I was in the Himalayas wandering about Annarpurna and a good example to the saying only the good die young. I was saved from the Thorongla blizzard as I was late by a couple of days because I was making obeisance to Goddess Procrastinatia. And while minding my business in a remote village, an email out of the blue called me to rush down.

Cutting a long story short, I am now working in Riyadh, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, and will be here for a couple more weeks. I came here thinking perhaps I could have a falcon to live my life with. You realised my ideas for birdies have been different from most others and there were some ideas that I have with falcon. I never realised I signed up for a 66 to 76 hour week 6 days a week. Coming back so exhausted that I knew within the week I cannot get any sentient to live with me as I had not the time to give to them. Making more money a month that I spend in a year. And which will go to my wife future boy friend or toy boys when I go.

And then .... I guess I go extract from my facebook as I think that tell better.

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Background from facebook 21 april


We were living in Hongkong in Saikung, a tiny fishing village in the New Territories in 1994. The apartment was tiny as were most of the apartments in Hongkong. However, the apartment opened onto a huge balcony as we were on the third floor and a seafood restuarant was below and their roof was our balcony. When apartments in Hongkong were priced as to whether you had a sea view or mountain view, when on the balcony we could look out onto a sea view or turn to the right and enjoyed the mountain view.
We then thought of having kitties. At that time, we were reading the Vorkosigan saga by Lois McMaster Bujold. Where the two key characters were Miles , a clever manipulative guy who happened to be a runt caused by a poison gas attack on his mother when he was a fetus. He had a big handsome cousin called Ivan who was kind of stupid compared to Miles. We went to this guy who rescued 2 kittens from municipal bin. One was a runt who appeared to be intelligent and the other was a handsome tabby. So that was how Miles and Ivan came into our lives. Soon we found that Miles was the idiot and Ivan was the very clever one. They took over our balcony and then our apartment. They would explore by jumping out of the balcony and running about the roof and into places I could not imagine. One day I tossed Ivan over the balcony and told my wife he would jump back. He disappeared and a couple of hours to our shock, there was this meowing outside our door. Ivan somehow went around the apartment block, walked up a few flights of steps , and knew the door of the apartment to meow outside.
Ivan was a killer. He would chirped like a bird hidden behind the balcony and leap 2 meters up to catch birds on the wing. He left presents for me by my bed. The head, with 4 small paws and a tail in the proper position and something ickky between them. Excuse me if I did not describe that exactly as I looked away while cleaning up the mess. He might leave a bird or part of a bird. He would climb up and pretend to be stuck in the roof eaves meowing away pitifully to be rescued. When I got up to rescue him, he crawled backwards. I realised he was never stuck when meal time came and he jumped right out.
One morning, we woke up to hear a strange sound. We then traced that sound to a tiny baby bat which could not fly. We were sure that Ivan must have taken the mother bat. I felt sorry enough to rush out to buy a bird cage so the baby bat be kept safe until it could fly again.
I fed it with bananas.
One morning I woke up to see that the cage door was opened, without Batty inside. I thought that was the end, especially in the apartment with Ivan the killer cat and two feisty kittens that my wife adopted a few weeks ago.
Then I heard the squeaks and saw Batty hanging upside down from the edge of a suitcase. Batty was in between Ivan front paws. Ivan was positioning his body so the 2 kitties could not get to Batty to 'play'. I could hardly believed my eyes as now and then, Ivan turned and spit at the two kitties keeping them away. Ivan saw me playing enough with Batty to decide that Batty was family. And went on to protect her.
Batty was placed back into the cage again. Her flights at the beginning was weak and erratic. Batty seemed to like me and hang about me when I did my thing. Her flight became more controlled and powerful.
In a few weeks time, Batty flew off my balcony. Never to return.
It struck me that Ivan knew who was family even if he was a killer.
That was the incident that prompted me to decide if Tinkerbell could live together with Halftail the Bimbo and Zorro the ferret in Taiwan.
And later decided that Dommie and Katie be introduced slowly to Riamfada.
Ivan was also kind of psychic. I reported that in
http://shanlung.com/ivan1.html
Miles was chased away by a vicious neighbourhood tom cat. I trapped that tom cat and released him in another village 20 km away who complained in the papers rock pythons were eating their dogs and cats. I did not like pythons to be hungry.
So that was why Ivan was with us and taken to Singapore where he lived with my mom in law periodically when we were living in Taiwan and other countries.
When he was with us and I in Singapore, you seen how I would cook and prepare his meals. We both love Ivan very very much.
Recent photos of Ivan. He normally greet me when I got home by meowing at me till I stop and then he would jump to my shoulder.

Ivan on me IMG_5674
Ivan on me IMG_5675
Ivan on me IMG_5680

A couple of weeks ago, my wife told me that Ivan might be getting blind, banging his way about and not noticing my wife waving her hands in front of him. She told me Ivan did not seem to be in discomfort and able to find his way to the food, his litter box and his favourite sofa chair that he taken over.
A few days ago, my wife told me Ivan seemed to be getting weaker and weaker.
Then two days ago, my wife said Ivan refused to eat even though my wife spooned the wet food to his mouth. And that he wedged himself into a tight space. I told my wife to carry him to the bedroom where he spend so much time with us.
This morning Riyadh time, and about noon Singapore time, Ivan was still alive. My wife did what I asked her to do. Scritch Ivan head and tell him that was from me and I love him very much.
She then went to work. I called her about noon my time when she was just getting back to the apartment. She told me that our Ivan was no more with us.
She told me a bit of her died. I felt a bit of me died too. They had been times I thought of leaving KSA and Ivan was part of the reason.
Even though I felt that was coming over the last few days, the ending was very painful to me. I am happy enough that Ivan was not in pain and was with my wife that he loved very much.

You all understand now why I lifted up those earlier postings , as a kind of memorial to an incredible cat Ivan that shared a lot of our life together.

The catalyst
Posted the day after Ivan died



I was with Ivan from halfway round the world and separated by 5 time zones. Seeing him from photos taken by my wife and send to me via whatsapp. I suggested how to position him to make him comfortable on his favourite pillow and to roll up towel under his head for pillow.
You all know I am in Riyadh working a 66 hours week and up to 72 hours week on busy week.
We all have to get on with living even while close companion walks on. Ivan passing trigger a paradigm shift in me. That life is indeed very short was brought home to me in a way no words can convey.

I decided to get on with my life. The day after Ivan passing, I gave my notice of resignation. I agreed to stay on for 3 months to allow a replacement for me and for transistion.

I probably will resume on my interrupted retirement and checking out of likely country and places for me and my wife.



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Ivan is back home with my wife, in a little porcelain jar , and in his favorite place.
The company persuaded me to work until 7 Aug 2015 with me flying off on 8 Aug 2015.

Until I find a place to retire in and a permanent or semi permanent place, only then I get a birdie into my life.

Saying goodbyes taking a big big toil on me.

[Wolf]

Well it appears that your procrastination worked at least once to benefit you and let you know that you still have things left to do here. As long a Murphy and his legions don't interfere too much. Yes I am aware that your thoughts about birds and other animals were a bit different than those of the majority of peoples and frankly I have found that to be refreshing to say the least. That was one of the reasons that I have kept an eye out for your appearance on various forums that I have visited. Sometimes it was a little difficult to follow what you were saying, but that is fine as sometimes I tend to ramble on with related things come to mind while I am talking or writing. Any way, I have always wanted to thank you for sharing what you have learned concerning birds and other beings. I am looking forward to reading even more of your thoughts about them. Thanks.

[liz]

Shanlung, it is good to have you back.