Cat bite updates...

This photo was taken 10 days after the cat bite incident.

Well... what can i say.... the look of it seems eerie, ain't it?! i call it the Godzilla's eye! haha... OK, joke aside, it IS a deep wound indeed! i left it to dry and heal since 4-5 days ago. I feel better now, but walking up and down the stairs is still a struggle for me at times. I guess water retention + wound = slow healing, but thank God it is on the road to recovery.


Quoting from my friend, Sandy:-
"Walau eh!!! How's ur foot now?
Eh... how come the cat bite you? Your wound is so horrible!!!! Looks very deep!!! Must be very painful and itchy hor!!!"

Well, those were some concern remarks i got from some friends who heard what happened, and i owe them this story :)

Just some explanation on "how it happened"....

Had dinner with some church friends in a restaurant. It all happened when we finished our dinner (that was about 10+ pm) and while waiting for the durian man to serve us the durian fruit, which was supposedly our dessert. The restaurant ladies were clearing and cleaning the table beside us, when suddenly one of the ladies started screaming. There was a cat under the table and i think it "touched" her feet (or something like that... no idea whether she stepped on the cat's tail??! *duh*) and i think being afraid of cats, she screamed soooo loudly that it scared the cat as well!

It wasn't any of our business anyway, and so we, being nice customers, didn't panic or anything, sat where we were and suddenly the cat attacked! After the loud scream, the cat came over to our table (seeking for refuge - i think!). I didn't know all that until of course after the cat bite. Hubby was beside me and according to him, the cat was under our table and he wanted to shoo it away, when it suddenly bit him first and me, a second later. It all happened just too fast. Hubby got 2 minor bites because he was wearing shoes then, and i got the worst of it - 4 bites including 1 that was a puncture and some scratches made by the cat's sharp claws. So we went to the nearest clinic after that, got it treated and well.... you know the rest of the story....

I guess the cat was a tame one (like any other that we've seen, except for a minority of "kucing gila" or crazy cats..) until the lady screamed and scared the hell out of it! Since that second, it changed to a defensive mode, became fierce and did what it did. I cant totally blame the cat, or that frightened restaurant lady, or my protective husband, or the durian man :p, or the whole incident, or our wonderful aunt that invited us over for dinner...

Like the malay saying - "Malang tidak berbau"... We could never expect these things to happen, and of all people, it had to happen to ME - the pregnant one! :p
But sometimes, things happened for a reason. Sometimes we wonder why... and at other times, we also wonder, is it worth going through all these? There could be so many "if only(s)... "

"if only we didn't join them for the dinner...."
"if only we didn't sit that particular spot..."
"if only the lady didn't scream...."
"if only the durian van didn't pass by...."
... and the list of regrets goes on and on and on....

I do not have all the answers, but one thing's for sure... It is part of life and i know life has so much more to offer than regrets that bring misery to those who dwell in it.

I thank God firstly for being my Protector, for being there with me through it all, for giving me such strength to overcome the many weaknesses i have... for truly, His strength is made perfect in me!

I thank God for a husband who cares, who has been there for me in all my pains and struggles, who cleaned my wound everyday, who made sure that the bed is comfortable for me to sleep every night!

I thank God for Aunt Stephanie who loved us, insisted us - very reluctant guests - to come over for dinner and have fellowship, who wanted to bless us with a good meal, who've been sms-ing me everyday after that - asking me how's my leg :)!

I thank God for all my family and friends around me who cared and prayed for me and baby throughout this whole incident. Nothing matters more than your love and concern... love u all!

So, apart from being in pain, there is so much more to give thanks for because life itself is a gift!
Thank you, Lord for everything!

Death of the Little tortoise....

Hubby lost his little pet yesterday morning... he came to the room, with a very sad expression on his face, saying, "one of the tortoise died already...." :'(

It's sad to see him looking so sad that morning. We guessed it was due to the water, which was filled with chlorine and he forgot to put the anti-chlorine in there. Due to the water crisis that happened for the past few days, we forgotten that the chlorine level in our water tanks is higher than the usual. And so, little tortoise died. The female is now alone in the aquarium.... how sad....

In loving memory of Daddy...

February 24, 2001... a day to remember when Daddy left for a better place in heaven.

It has been 7 years and I would like to dedicate this day in loving memory of him.

A few days ago, i was talking to my little princess in me, telling her that I'll always love her from the bottom of my heart... all the days of my life! Daddy & Mummy are here, waiting for her arrival and will love her always *huggies*... She's such a cutey! That's what i call her too... "baby cute-cute!" and sometimes she responds to that. hehe... She's been kicking, hiccuping, moving (sometimes vigorously!) and sometimes it does hurt me (physically), but all these seem so worth it.

Walking down memory lane... I remember receiving Birthday cards from Daddy & Mummy every year when I was studying in college. And of course, my sis & bro never forget me too. They send me personalised cards with personalised message... (cool ya?! :)) My daddy was very good at choosing the best cards for his children. Every year for 3 years, he would send me a card with words so beautiful and meaningful I would cry.

When I turned 21, being blessed with so many people who loves me, i received many gifts and cards. Yet, the best card I've ever received was from that one man I called "Daddy"! :)

I felt so special and blessed to be born in a family that showered me with so much love and especially with a daddy, who may not be very good with verbal expression of love but the best in written expression!

Quoting from the card...

Dear Rachel,

Even when you were a little girl, we always knew that there was something very sweet and special about you. We never had a doubt that someday you'd grow up to be a caring thoughtful woman who would bring such pride to us.

A lot of parents wonder, as they watch their children grow, what kind of people they become and how their lives will go.

But from the first time that we saw your face and held you tight, we knew you'd turn out perfect... And you know what? We were right!

Love always,

Mummy & Daddy

"Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God" (Matthew 5:8)

Tears rolled down from my eyes when i read that.... many times when i open that card, i cried buckets too. It left me with a smile on my face knowing that - that was all that matter and that was in their hearts, in his heart....

So dear daddy, thank you for being my role model - to become the bestest dad (or mum) to my own child. I know that when the time comes, when i hold her in my arms.... it will be the same as when u held me in yours. I'll tell my girl those same words you expressed to me through that card! I love U! :)

Water Crisis in Seri Kembangan

View from the 7th floor (zoomed-in of course! :))
Water truck from Syabas!
Residents of BH queueing up to fill up their pails!
Waiting for the lift...

Not sure whether it happened only at our apartment, or the surrounding neighborhood, or the whole of SK, but it sure was an experience for those staying here. Not sure what happened but there wasn't water at all in our tank! Not a single drip! It was like desert since Saturday afternoon. 2 truckloads of water supply came to our rescue, but still... it wasn't enough for the residents here. I guess it was on a 1st come 1st served basis.

We filled up 4 pails of water, and that was as much as we can take for that night. Had to forgo cooking at home and so we went out to dine instead. (there goes our fresh spinach we bought from Giant!) sigh...

Still no water on Sunday morning, but (*phew*) thank God water came back on Sunday evening (or maybe late afternoon) - filled up all our pails again (just in case!).
Sunday night - no more water (again!)!!! Monday morning - no good news yet! Really ridiculous! *sigh*

So, hopefully, we will go back tonight with water supply in our water tanks.

hmmm... i wonder whether the coming election has anything to do with this... hmmm...

A cat's bite (is it dangerous?!)

Finally, i was able to catch some sleep last night after the incident that happened last Sunday.
I've been waking up at least once from my sleep during these few months for 2 reasons - re-positioning my body to find the most comfortable position (but...) and of course the most common call for pregnant women, ie nature's call. :) (OK.. OK.. as i've not been updating my blog for some time.... this is news to the www (haha!). The good news is i'm expecting with my first right now, and am truly excited with this new phase in life. *happy happy*) OK.... moving on with this cat story....

Sunday dinner with some church friends was an experience i'd never forget in my entire life!!! After a nice fulfilling meal in a restaurant, as we were all waiting for the durian man from the durian van to cut open the durian fruit and serve them as our desert, i suddenly screamed, "Aaarrrrggghhh... PAIN!!!" Almost everyone at the table panicked as they thought... "IT IS TIME!!!" LOL!

No, it wasnt time! one more month to go! *phew* :)

A cat bit me and left me with some scratches, 4 teeth marks and wound on my right foot/ankle! After cleaning it with some water & dettol solution, we rushed to the nearest Clinic in Puchong. Thank God it was still open at 10+pm. Doctor Harjeet said that 1 of the 4 bites was a puncture and he needed to clean it and may need to do a minor surgery on it (minor only la... *phew*). He gave me a tetanus jab, clean the wounds and then considering the need to do a minor surgery, he gave me an anesthetic jab, cut a piece of my flesh, cleaned deep and bandaged my foot! He said that i would need to change the dressing for at least another 3 - 4 times for the next few days. Thank God for my hubby who was there with me through it all. He said he was proud of me for being strong. kekeke... i said i guess it is a practice for labour pains in the near future :p

Went to see 2 other doctors on Tuesday (Seri Kembangan) & Wednesday (Petaling Jaya) to change the dressing. SK doc didnt say much, but was kinda surprise that a cat would do such a thing... It only cost us RM7 to clean the wound and change the dressing. However, the next day, PJ doc said I dont need a new dressing for it anymore. I should just go back and take a shower, wash my foot clean, leave it open to heal naturally and apply a special solution onto it. A few words + a small 10-cents-coin-size container of cream cost us RM45! So, taking his advice, we didn't do the dressing that night. However, the pain was unbearable that night compared to the previous nights. Gosh... didn't know how to take the pain then. Slept at 12mn, woke up at 3am and couldn't get back to sleep from then on. The pain seemed to increase throughout the day - in office until back home, and due to extreme tiredness (i believe), i developed headache + feeling of throwing up. Couldn't wait to get back my sleep!

Prayed for healing to flow.... really asking God to give me the strength to move on. The days seemed slower than other days. Thanks to many friends, uncles & aunties who had been praying for me too. (thanks guys & *huggies*) It's not just about the wound that was caused by the stoooopid cat, but the whole package of tiredness, body discomfort and water retention on my feet that made it all seemed so impossible to walk or live "normally" at this time. I was also very concern over little princess in me that is going through those pains with me. So my prayers went all out to God, asking Him to take over. I'll trade this sorrow with joy. I'll try to always think of happy thoughts! :)

So... the question for now is... "Is a cat's bite dangerous?" hmmm... i really do not know. I've heard and read from different sources and i cant tell which is for real. But i always believe that prevention is better than cure! 1st doc says.... "A cat's bite is 2nd most dangerous after human bite!"... and so he did all the necessary steps to make sure that i don't get infected. Thank God! The 2nd doc says nothing... except "A cat can do such thing, huh?!" :-| The 3rd doc says.... "Cat bite, dog bite, human bite.... which one will i choose? I'll definitely not choose the human bite because it is extremely dangerous. So for your case, don't worry, you're safe."

But actually most articles i came across in the net state that cat bites are indeed dangerous, especially if proper care is not taken.

Some articles i got from the net:-
http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/313923/cat_puncture_bites_to_humans_are_highly.html
http://familydoctor.org/online/famdocen/home/healthy/firstaid/bites/024.html
http://www.vetmed.lsu.edu/animal_bites.htm

It's been more than a year...

... since i last blogged in Multiply. I've thought of starting to blog again... but where should my blogging platform be? hmmm.... is it Multiply? blogspot? or perhaps i'll have my own personalized website... well... one day. :)

Anyway, I'm back to blogging. i hope this would last longer than my previous attempt!

Life's journey has been interesting the past one year. So many things happened... so many things to pen down... (yet) it seemed like there isn't time for journaling. (bad excuse! :p)

I've told a couple of friends that i'll start blogging soon... and so to justify my words....
"Here I Am"! kekeke....

More coming up from me! :)

For older blogs.... there were more in http://rachelmyeo.multiply.com/
Enjoy reading... God bless! :)