PSEUDOMORPHISM A.K.A Ladies Night

This was the show we almost forgot until two weeks ago when I was reminded in a passing conversation. I just spent money on a gorgeous Sleeping Killer custom too. My alotted toy money was spent!

I wish I was prepared and had more funds like the previous Paul Kaiju show. I was able to purchase my Dancing Boss art piece after everyone has made their purchases and he was just sitting there, unbelievably available.

Alas, I did not have the same opportunity this time and there were opportunities available but the fact that I came away with my number one choice was awesome!

I had been seeing teaser pics of the Vertebrata on Paul Kaiju's Instagram and I fell in love with her. I have one of the resin Strawberry Stigmata girls and she has been literally in the middle of our shelf display by herself surrounded by other PK monster creations for some time. I have seen the Dada headed girl and I hope that one will see production someday but I had no idea that Vertebrata was not just a promise on the horizon but she was coming and coming soon.

I had an opportunity to ask SuperJunk if she had any input on Vertebrata's design and she indicated that it was a straight collaboration between Kaji-san of Blobpus fame and Paul Kaiju. I was told that Blobpus did her skirt and one of the arms, (not sure which one), and Paul Kaiju did the body and head. They also were able to use parts of the Mockbat attachments for her hair which is sweet as her design possibilities regarding the head will have variety.

Nate and I got to TAG in the early afternoon yesterday. I wanted to be able to take pics without rushing and really look at all the pieces and plan the evening. I wanted a Vertebrata but I was not sure which one. When I got to the gallery there were more girls plus they were offering the unpainted ones as well which was a nice surprise.

As I was checking each girl out I kept wandering back to the Blobpus side. The gallery split the pieces on two sides. Left was Blobpus works and right was Paul Kaiju and in the middle was their collaboration masterpiece, Vertebrata.

I kept looking at this one particular girl. She had silver bluish skin and gold metallic highlights on the skirt. She reminded me of a steam punk design.I really liked her a lot.

Nate had also been wandering around and was looking at the Salamander Joe customs from both artists and the Boss Head Blobpus mashup.

A camera full of pictures, two tickets and heads buzzing with so much awesomeness to process we decided to go have lunch. Our original plan was to go to our favorite panini place but going there and finding parking when we got back was going to take awhile so we decided against it and eat nearby and talk about what we had just seen.

We like variety in our collections. So we had specific figures in mind. After looking at our pictures while we ate, I told my husband I am going for a girl. Nate agreed that she was beautiful and I love hearing the words, "Get what you want babe." Depending on price, maybe I can sneak in something small too.

Nate had been eying the Mockbat and Salamander Joe mashup. But he was realistic and we both concluded certain pieces will go fast due to popular demand. So he made his first, second, third etc etc choices. Considering fate has a big chance on your placement since it was lotto style we planned conservatively.

Anyways, we took our time eating and headed off to get some coffee and killed time by discussing the pieces.

We made way our back to TAG to have a last look and to wait for the show to start. Outside the gallery we reconnected with a friend we have not seen since SDCC. We used to see each other more often when we did the art galleries. He has helped me in the past and he still does up to now.

Ted I owe you $5. LOL

The show soon started. Todd and company did a great job keeping the process and purchasing smooth. There was a purchasing limit. One per each artist and it can't be the same figure. That was fair and gave everyone a chance to come home with something. I think I was the 9th person called? Not really sure.

Connell was my personal shopper and I checked out the girl I wanted and she was available! I got her and she was a bit more than I calculated so my second choice was limited. The Vertebrata I got was a Blobpus custom so I went over to check out Paul's side and I picked up an awesome Morning Man custom.

Nate was two or three people behind me and by the time he got there most of his picks were already sold. He was contemplating the last Blobpus mashups available but he ultimately decided to purchase another Vertebrata and Morning Man. I didn't know what he got until we were in line at the cashiers. I was expecting him to pick up other pieces. I was quite pleased with what he selected and after we paid he showed me which ones.

   

Nate picked up the Devil Man Tribute Vertebrata by Paul Kaiju on the left and that awesome Morning Man Custom by Blobpus on the right. I cannot even begin to say how pleased we are that we were able to have a Vertebrata and a Morning Man from both artists. What attracted him to this particular Vertebrata was how the skirt was painted. He loved the little details on the squid and tentacles. That Morning Man on the right was just insanely painted. 

After the initial rush of purchasing I spoke with my husband about what we got and what was sold and we conversed with other people to see what they got and generally enjoyed conversations with our friends and other fellow collectors.

It was a lovely evening and we cannot wait to have these toys in hand. We left early and had a late dinner and we were both tired and turned in early.

Nodame,  our Alpha Cat who sleeps with us, was very attentive last night and he spent quite a while kneading both of us while purring like a beast. It was a good way to end a hectic day.

Living Room Project - Progress

Our living room is slowly starting to take shape. This has been a work in progress for almost two years now.

Definitely a new couch is needed as the cats, not just Nodame, have essentially flattened down the back rests of the couches that we currently have. Plus, that couch is circa apartment era so a new set is long overdue.

It's got to be hardy to survive four cats and comfortable enough for our family and friends.

Fun with Fuji Instax Mini 50S

A treat for myself this tax season. I've been eying the Instax cameras for ages since I could not find film for our old Polaroid. I finally pulled the trigger and splurged on a camera, film and a couple of stickers. The end result is below:

I love how these pictures remind me of the 70's. We have a few Polaroids from that era and I enjoy looking at them. The Polaroid-type photos to me feels like you stole a bit of time and froze it. I am sure that's the whole premise of any type of photography but the charm of of instant is you see it slowly developing in your hands. It was like magic!

I wanted to relive that again then Polaroid pulled the rug from under me and decided to stop production of the film. Long story short, Polaroid came back as a bastardized Fuji. I've looked around on the net and the film for the re-branded Polaroid will fit an instax so it's a matter of finding a good price for bulk film. It just sucks that the classic size Polaroid is no more.

Despite all that, the end results gives me these awesome, one-of-a-kind photos. Smaller in size but they still have that charm of slowly developing in your hands. Like magic.

Nodame the Goofy Alpha Cat

No purchase at the end of this week. Unless you count some address labels. But most of the day I spent sleeping.

I woke up after noon and started doing chores. As I went up and down the house, Nodame was just sitting in the living room getting some sun. Marley was sitting at the window. Nodame always likes to sit reclining style. Like an old man. LOL

Essentially, most of our time as a family is spent upstairs. We hardly hang out downstairs which is a shame. The cats have the full run of the house except the Fourth Room and they have claimed the living room as theirs. This year, I mean to take it back.

I have plans for the living room. I want to make it a space where we can sit and chill, enjoy some movies and gaming. A place not just for the cats but for everyone. But before new furniture enters the house I have to direct their natural instinct of sharpening their claws elsewhere and I already have something fun for them to hang out in. I'll probably get it at the end of the month.

Toy News
Nate and I are very excited about the Paul Kaiju x Blobpus Boss Carrion Lottery. One per household so I entered Nate's name as he has better luck than me. I'm not going to lie. I thought about entering again just to improve our chances but when I look over and gaze at that beautiful Golden Mibora and how awesome it was to pull that from one bag, I changed my mind. We started the New Year toy wise in such a great way I am not about to ruin that by being greedy.

If we win, awesome! If we don't, there will be other opportunities. Learning to accept that and having the patience of a glacier keeps the hobby fun. We'll find out in 72 hours! There's other stuff dropping that I am looking forward to as well.

Morphy Auction - I won what?

One of my big toy regrets was hearing about the auction of auctions late last year. So many I would have gone for but alas, that boat has sailed.

A smaller collection was recently offered again at Morphy's. Most of the lots had a piece of two we were interested in but not enough to bid. I was attracted to five lots. One had the Canico Cats, a Charactics lot with a mini Gezora I needed, the Buta no Hana and two Booska lots.

Nate and I just spent money at Super7 Anniversary so we couldn't really bid at all. My eyes kept wandering towards the Booskas. I was like, what the hell. I bid on lot #551 but the reserve on it was past my budget. So I went for my second choice, lot #550 and my bid was accepted.

I was able to see the auction live and saw the one lot I bid on go past my reserve. I was like, "Oh well." But a day or so later I got notification I actually won the lot. o___o

I then paid for my win and now the waiting ends as this big box arrived at my home. It's a great way to come home from a tiring day at work.

Nate opened my box as I watched the cats gathering around the couches for a chance to go in it.

The giant Marusan and M1Go Booskas are the primary reasons I went for the lot. The rest I don't mind and I can use with the Yotsuba project. There's one piece I am not really into and I will probably sell that off to the board if I can.

This was our first non-Ebay auction win and I kind of enjoyed it. Granted the 17% buyer's fee hurt but in the end with just the two pieces in this lot, I got a steal. Plus a new obsession with Booska begins to Nate's dismay.

Being a Cat Mom means being responsible...

Time passes so slowly when you're mourning. Reading up on the disease that claimed P-Chan has opened my eyes to the proper dietary needs of my pets. Preventing liver disease has much to do with diet.

I look at the cats and I see a great opportunity to make sure that they are getting the proper nutrition they need to live long and healthy lives. I started researching online to see what would be the best food that is appropriate for them. So I can prevent what happened with P-Chan to happen to them.

Many sites recommended a raw diet. But that is not an option I am willing to take. I don't have the time and the equipment for it. So I looked for the next best thing and I stumbled on Innova. I was going to do their EVO cat food but the protein content might have been too high so I settled for the Innova line.

What attracted me to it was the ingredients. Here's the ingredient list for the Chicken and Brown Rice Stew Adult Cat Food:

Chicken, Chicken Broth, Turkey Broth, Dried Egg Whites, Potato Starch, Brown Rice, Carrots, Apples, Oat Fiber, Natural Flavors, Guar Gum, Whole Eggs, Sodium Phosphate, Herring Oil, L-ascorbyl-2-polyphosphate, Salt, Dl Methionine, Choline Chloride, Taurine, Potassium Chloride, Butter, Tricalcium Phosphate, Vitamins and Minerals.

Familiar ingredients. No by products or fillers like corn or wheat. Whoever heard of a cat eating corn?

Here's the ingredient list of Fancy Feast Grilled Chicken Feast:

Chicken Broth, Chicken, Liver, Wheat Gluten, Meat By-Products, Corn Starch-Modified, Natural and Artificial Flavors, Tricalcium Phosphate, Salt, Soy Protein, Concentrate, Titanium Dioxide, Potassium Chloride, Taurine, Choline Chloride, Vitamin Supplements (E, A, D3, B12), Thiamin Mononitrate (Vitamin B1), Ferrous Sulfate, Zinc Sulfate, Manganese Sulfate, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride (Vitamin B6), Niacin, Calcium Pantothenate, Riboflavin Supplement (Vitamin B2), Copper Sulfate, Dicalcium Phosphate, Menadione Sodium Bisulfate Complex (Source of Vitamin K Activity) Folic Acid, Cobalt Carbonate, Potassium Iodide, Biotin.

That's a lot of stuff that's unrecognizable, say the least.

If you look at store bought pet food they rank the lowest in nutritional value for your pets. I remember the recall that happened several years ago that resulted in many pets dying because of contaminated corn in their foods.

They used to eat a mix of Fancy Feast and Purina Dry Cat Food. Now I just buy a big bag of Purina dry food for the stray cats we feed in our neighborhood.

Now that I've chosen the diet it was a matter of introducing the food to the cats. I knew it was going to be difficult as cats are finicky eaters. Especially Nodame, whose personality is as finicky as it gets.

Innova is somewhat hard to find. You wont find it in PETCO. It's only available at feed stores and online. Since I live in the valley where horse property abounds it wasn't too difficult to find a local feed store. I still have to order the can variety that the cats like online at a feed store up in Northern California though.

The Cat & Kitten Food has a very strong odor that Nodame hated. The first time he sniffed it, he turned around and started doing the cover-the-food motion with his paws. Dhani, who will eat anything, and Pickles ate it without complaint. I mix wet and dry food for their meals.

Since Nodame refused to eat, I had to buy a couple cans of the EVO brand. I got the venison and beef flavors. He ate them without being picky.

I got a couple of cans of the beef and chicken stew and I am will re-order those instead of the cat and kitten wet food. They seem to like it more and it's not as fragrant.

To make the transition with the food easier, I started heating the portions I serve them in the microwave to give it that cooked texture. I take a couple of spoonfuls and put them in a tupperware container labeled cat only and heat for 10 seconds. I then mix a bit of the Innova dry food to bulk up the wet food.

I used to heat P-Chan's food and the cats always gravitated to her food bowl much to her consternation. She always growled at them when they did that. XD So I don't mind doing the same for the cats. I find it comforting really as it is a routine I used to do for P-Chan.

They love it heated! As soon as I get home from work they greet me at the door and follow me in the kitchen. Dhani always stands up and leans on the counter meowing softly because he wants to eat.
It's the first thing we take care of when we get home. I feed our cats and Nate goes outside and in the backyard to feed the strays.

After a little over a month of feeding them the new food I noticed changes in their coat, eyes and behavior. Their coats look so much better and their eyes shine bright. They are active and play often. Running up and down the stairs. They poo less. I believe it's because most of their food now is being absorbed. They drink less water as well since they are getting the water in their food.

When they were on Purina and Fancy Feast the cat box was always full and they ate like pigs and drank a lot of water.

Pickles, who I was afraid was getting overweight actually looks leaner. He's still a bit chunky but he's got more energy now. I don't want to have fat cats. I want lean and healthy ones. According to my vet, my cats are big cats and if they were overweight they would look like Jabba the Hut cats or I is a fluffy white cloud type and I don't want those kind of cats.

Dhani always looks annoyed when I take pics of him. He does not like the camera but his coloring is so cute that I pester him anyway. He has a slight pink nose now and a brownish tinge throughout his fur. He has given me the least problems with the new food. Not only will he eat his share, he will eat Nodame's and Pickles. He will be a bigger cat than Nodame no doubt.

Pickles or Piglet as I call him sometimes due to his large appetite. He still eats like a pig but he looks tighter and not as flabby. Despite my efforts to keep him lean I have already told my sister as he grows to an adult cat, he will probably need the weight control food. He tends to eat too much. He likes the food but likes what I give Nodame more and he will patiently wait for Nodame to finish eating and eat his left overs. Only then will he go to his bowl and eat his food.

The Alpha Cat, Nodame. He is very clear to let us know when he does not like his food or the condition of the litter box. He was insistent in showing his displeasure at his new food and I accommodated his request to change it to a flavor and smell he liked. Then I catch him eating the food he turned his nose up to after he eats his favorite. I was like, "Nodame you liar!".

They've taken to the food very well which is a relief. I also got them a automated water fountain. I got the PETCO brand one which broke in two months so I ordered a replacement from another company. The cats love the fountain, when it worked. I see them drinking more often. They were at first frightened by the noise it makes but they got used to it.

I've ordered a new case of their food, a new pet water fountain that I hope wont break and Da Bird. A feather wand toy that I know they will go bananas for when they see it. Considering they broke their last one due to intense play.

Am I going overboard with the cats? Maybe I am. But taking care of them now means less vet bills due to ill health and the benefits are a longer life with my family. The loss of P-Chan has made me determined to be more responsible as a pet owner. Our pets give us so much pleasure and comfort that the least I can do for them is to keep them healthy and happy.

They wont be so happy with me in a bit though...as it is bath time!

Nodame's 1st Birthday

On a cold Sunday morning, sometime last year, MomCat was huddled on top of a nest of twigs and leaves in our backyard. My mom found her and lifted her gingerly and discovered kittens!

Three large kittens. BoyCat, Nodame and Marley. I do not know the order of who came out first but Nodame was definitely the smallest one. We immediately relocated the lot into our guest bathroom. MomCat did not resist as I think she knew she would be safer in our house.

Months pass by, MomCat was fixed and released, BoyCat and Marley found homes and we opened our house to our first ever cat.

Today is his first birthday. We celebrated it with bubbles. His favorite toy. Nodame and the cats have been a great comfort for us especially since we are dealing with the loss of P-Chan. I am trying not to focus on her so much but it's hard and today is a bitter sweet day.