76話 - 老瓦屋貓寫真 - 小花

老鼠叼著煙、哼著歌問傑：「那，貓想些什麼事情呢?」
傑說：「各種事啊。就像你我一樣。」

在老瓦屋，我的鏡頭總常對著小花；回到台北，電腦總是放著牠討食時、發出那令人憐愛的嗚叫聲影片，因此 lisa 總覺得我特別偏愛小花，但事實並非如此，而是因為小花的確是隻個性穩定、且乖巧許多的貓，那份乖巧安定，就像已經消失不見的貓 - 驚嘆號一樣。

說偏愛，充其量，牠只是得到牠應得的關愛而已。

小花，是姐姐的兩個兒子的其中一個，推估大略是去年五月中前後出生，然後在六月底時姐姐把兩個兒子帶到老瓦屋的屋簷下養育，因為某一天，貪玩的小米跑到浪瓦的細縫裡，可能卡住了不斷喵嗚喵嗚的叫，小花則是在我救下小米時，因為害怕所以躲到屋簷另一頭，卻因為不小心將頭卡在簷縫下，最後兩隻細細的後腳吊在半空中抓不到施力點爬上去，差點就從屋簷上掉了下來。

當我把小花也從屋簷救下來放在紙箱中，牠毫無畏懼地擋在小米前面對著我兇狠狠的哈氣，小米則是從頭到尾一直峱峱的躲在小花的後面。

那是我第一次正面見到牠們兄弟倆。


當然最後姐姐來把牠們領走了。

對了，為什麼小花明明是隻公貓卻被叫作小花，因為那陣子我正在閱讀原住民史，剛好發現小花除了擁有如魯凱族服飾色系的美麗花豹斑紋外，在眉間也配了一朵類似百合花的圖案。恰巧，魯凱族的傳統裡，只有真正的勇士才能在頭上配帶百合花，發現這個巧合後我們就以花字來稱呼牠。

雖然小花是在東排灣出生，但我一直認定牠是隻魯凱族貓。

過了差不多一個月，姐姐終於把牠們兄弟倆帶下來，牠們開始在門庭前前後後到處跑，那時候瘦巴巴耳朵又大到不成比例的小花看起來簡直像躲在熱帶叢林裡的眼鏡猴一樣。


當然，那時候的小米也是。


長大之後，牠胸口的白毛越發蓬鬆晶亮，從正面看起來就像聖誕老公公的大鬍子一樣，所以去年聖誕節時我隨口叫牠聖誕老公公或白鬍子海賊。


從食物喜好來看，小花是一隻有奇怪食慾的小貓，比起大家都喜歡的貓乾糧，牠更喜歡吃我手中的起士吐司，貪嘴的程度讓 lisa 因此叫牠阿督仔貓。長大一點，牠開始對我放到嘴巴裡的東西有了興趣，這個時期魚和貢丸變成牠的最愛，就算走得再遠吃得再飽，只要聽到我嚼食食物的聲音牠總會快步跑回來，抬頭睜著圓眼盯著我，滿懷期待的希望我能分享一點給牠吃，lisa 說小花都在吃我的口水。


比起其他的貓，牠食量比較小，也不貪心搶食，不過對剛煮好的新鮮食物無法抗拒，連我們放在飯裡的新鮮地瓜都喜歡吃，我倒覺得牠是一隻懂美食的貓。


因為過多鹽份對貓比較不健康，於是每次煮這類食物時我們總是以水煮方式為牠留一些，也不敢一次餵牠吃太多。

記得有一次我在撥貢丸給所有貓吃時，因為小花已經先吃過了，我故意躲了一陣子讓牠以為已經沒有了，把牠支開後，才出來偷偷撥貢丸給黃白貓(阿發)的兩個小孩阿財和阿金(#1)吃。

只是沒想到阿金吃了貢丸後不知是太好吃還是太開心，催促的叫聲把小花給引了回來，小花從遠遠的地方看到先是一驚，然後邊跑過來還邊發出嗚嗚嗚的悶叫聲，一臉好像被我騙了的表情。


通常每天一早姐姐一家三口和黃白貓阿發會準時來報到，等著我掃完院子後放早飯，通常小花這時喜歡跟著我的掃把到處轉，不知牠是不是對塑膠掃把和水泥地磨擦的沙沙聲好奇，牠總會在我停下來時走過來踩幾下掃把的刷毛，像在確認什麼似的。


有時我會開玩笑的用掃把幫牠刷背和肚子附近的毛，每次看起來都很享受的表情。

小花是一隻脾氣很好的貓，同時也是一隻膽大又好奇的貓，當附近突然有比較陌生或巨大的奇怪聲響時，通常其他貓總是一溜煙跑的遠遠的維持警戒狀態，只有小花會迅速的獨自往發出聲音的方向跑，然後站在石牆上探頭探腦的看看到底發生什麼事，lisa 說牠是個好事者。


當然，這幾個月發生過的趣事很多實在說不完，電腦裡幾千張照片和幾百段影片也無法全貼出來。

現在，經過半年多，小花已經長成一隻大貓，長大後的小花收起了爪子，總是習慣用他墨黑色的肉球推推我的手，偶而走到我腳邊躺下來，對我任何撫摸抱握各種動作都顯得自然接受，眼神裡已經看不到野貓常有的疑慮，與人接觸的動作也不再帶有任何戾氣。


如果跟貓互動之間讓我有學到一些什麼，那就是耐心吧，貓是一種很需要耐心才能相處的動物，牠們需要長久觀察才願意承認你的對待到底是不是善意，對於你的任何動作是不是需要有所警戒，尤其是對原本就在林野間生存的流浪貓來說，要取得牠們的信任要花比較久的時間，如果是成貓或與人有過不好經驗的成貓，那會花更久的時間。

要說經過這些日子有什麼心得 - 對付出不要有過高期待或者急於想要牠們有所反應，然後不要把牠們當成一般寵物對待，大概是這樣。

原本我就不是特別有愛心的人，可是當我接觸越多，知道一隻流浪貓會因為食物或地盤競爭各種原因讓原本十幾年的壽命縮短為三年，貓的三歲大約等同人的二十來歲三十歲吧，如果這個年紀就死去未免太悲慘了些。

只是為了糊口飯生存又不是在革命，牠們不需要成為林覺民，只要這樣一想我就覺得不應該放任牠們不管。


最近，從我的立場看，小花似乎在小鐵皮屋頂上想起各種事情來。

或許牠已經意識到我可能將搬離老瓦屋，牠必須開始為了狩獵食物傷腦筋，然後再過一陣子還得為了母貓和食物分配、為了生存下去，開始與任何侵入的公貓打架爭地盤。

貓和人，從悲觀的點看起來確實沒什麼不同。

所以小花啊，不論之後能不能將你領養回台北，我都衷心的希望你能如同現在一樣健康快樂，然後一定要長命百歲。

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#1
阿發是我們最近才幫黃白貓取的名字。

在牠帶小黃白貓和小三毛貓來的第二天，我們就幸運中了一千塊樂透，日本人傳說三毛貓會招財並帶來好運，好像真有那麼回事的樣子。

小三毛貓本來叫做小布，但因為如此，我們就把牠另外取了名字叫阿財，小黃白也跟著應景的改名叫阿金。後來是有點開玩笑成份，說牠們的媽媽黃白貓乾脆改叫阿發，讓牠們一家三口組成"金發財"好了。


阿發不知何時開始被姐姐視為眼中釘，兩隻母貓三不五時就對峙、嗷嗚嗷嗚互相叫囂，甚至有時會打起來，有時姐姐的鼻頭和耳朵有時會被阿發抓出血痕來，因此我經常做為居中的調解人。

lisa 說兩個女人的戰爭起因是阿發搶了姐姐的老公小白的關係，加上兒子小米好像也對阿發有興趣的樣子，姐姐當然會不高興呀。(嗯，你的想像力回來了)

75話 - 毫無理由的惡意，像山一樣多

每次看見鄰居牆上寫的字，就讓我想起傑在1973年的彈珠玩具書裡說的：

「世上像這種毫無理由的惡意，卻多的像山一樣...。」

確實，這個世界充滿諸多不平，即使就擺在眼前，也毫無插手餘地；有時，明明知道是個謊言，卻總是沒有反駁能力。

然後，曾經有幾個夜裡，我靠著牆坐在窗邊，當房裡靜靜流洩著小提琴協奏曲時，聽見鄰居為了家用捉襟見肘蹲在門庭低沉交談與細細碎碎的嘆息，甚至有幾次也傳來吵架後摔門的聲音。

或許生活本來就充滿這種無力感，到處有人為隔日的食衣住行戰鬥著。

雖然不得不，但我知道在他們面前如果太過奢華喧鬧，即使一切是我努力得來，也會顯得自己有點卑鄙的樣子，所以我總盡量讓自己過得像他們一樣，將姿態彎得低低的，認真的為生活各種小事苦惱著。

那這樣的環境教會了我什麼?

大概是不論在何處，不論對象是誰，都盡力釋出善意吧。

畢竟，世上像這種毫無理由的惡意，已經多的像山一樣了。









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即便這個案件如此，但某些地方某些人心中還是存在真理和正義。

長久被蹂躪的杉原灣生態 - 美麗灣渡假村開發案終於在近日被法院判決原環評無效定讞，必須即刻停止開發與營運。

那些在暗處覬覦曙光園區開發的財團，與可能因此做為幫兇的公務單位，請務必以此為鏡啊。

美麗灣案縣府敗訴 環盟籲拆建物 重新環評
美麗灣環評敗訴 東縣府：尊重判決
東縣未利益迴避 環評審查不合法
美麗灣開發案敗訴 成環評重要判決
最高行政法院：美麗灣BOT須重作環評
美麗灣環評 台東縣府敗訴

74話 – Explore Taiwan By Train: Stop At Houtong(侯硐) Station

Houtong(猴洞) got the name because in the old time, there were a lot of monkeys around. But some people thought the first Chinese word "猴" was not elegant and changed it to the same pronunciation but different word "侯". Since the second Chinese word "洞" has the radical of water and this area was the charcoal mining. Afraid the radical of water and the water meaning would bring bad luck, they changed it to the word "硐" with the radical of stone and the stone meaning. Therefore, this one place has different Chinese names: "猴洞", and "侯硐". When the mining was still running, this was a prosperous town. After the mining was closed, the town was declined. Recently, this place becomes a popular tourists spot because of street cats hanging around this town. More and more cat lovers visit and take photos of those cats. As photos were published on the internet, more and more tourists rush in. If you are a cat lover, you can visit this cats' paradise and say "hello" to those cats.

We visited Houtong on a cloudy day. As it was almost lunch time, we bought Taiwan Railway's lunch box with us. We prepared to enjoy our lunch on the train. Although it was not weekend, there were still a lot of passengers on the train. We couldn’t find any seats to sit and eat the lunch box. Therefore, we carried the lunch box with us to Houtong which was a BIG BIG mistake. After we exited the Taiwan Railway's gate but still in the boarding lobby, we chose a bench to eat our lunch. One big and one small cat approached. We ignored their meows as not to feed them with human foods. The small cat then sat on my husband's thigh staring at the lunch box. Then, later, he/she moved behind my back. Suddenly, he/she climbed on my left shoulder. I was startled. How active and daring this cat was. That was my first image about those street cats in Houtong. Remember not to eat foods in front of those cats as you never know how those cats would react. This was the lesson that I learned.
↓Boarding lobby of Houtong Station where we supposed to leisurely enjoy the lunch box

↓This was the Taiwan Railway's lunch box (NT$60) that drove the cat couldn't control oneself (side dishes may be varied)


↓Shops selling cats and railway related souvenirs



In this place, there were even streets named "Cats Streets" where a lot of cats hanged around people's front yards. As houses were built along the mountain slope, there were some stairs and hills needed to overcome. If the housewife bought a lot of foods or merchandises, it must be a really hard work to carry those heavy stuffs and steps on the stairs and hills. I would like to clap my hands for those hard worked housewives. Since you were unable to ride bicycle or motorcycle on those stairs, the only way was to walk on feet. After visiting the Cats Streets, my second image about those cats was that they were all fat and looked like old aged cats. I didn’t see any slim and young cats around (or maybe they were hiding somewhere else that I couldn’t discover them). I guessed that they got enough or maybe over foods from human beings. They didn't need to worry about next meals like most street cats did. They were very lucky.

Although it was a cloudy day in Taipei, it was a raining day in Houtong. The weather was humid and cold. Maybe it was because of the weather that I didn't see any happy or smiling faces on those cats. They were not afraid of human beings, but most of them closed their eyes tightly when we passed by. I thought that they all put the same facial expression for tourists or strangers. Maybe that was their camera face.
↓Same camera face from different cats




Since there were a lot of cats walking around, I wonder whether this place has dogs or not. The answer was "YES". I saw some dogs. But those dogs didn't chase cats around as from my understanding that most dogs would do. Maybe they grew up together as friends or neighbors. Therefore, they would not attack each other but to live together peacefully. This place was cats' paradise.

Before leaving Houtong, we chose a small restaurant to have some hot soup in order to warm up our cold bodies. When the ordered dishes were put on the table, we stared at each other as surprising how small these dishes were. However, after we tasted it, we both agreed that they were delicious. Since it was around the tea time and we were not considering it as dinner, the amount of food quantity was enough. After finishing our snacks, we hurried to take the train back before we ran into the off-school hours since a lot of students were taking trains as transportation between schools and homes.
↓Small but delicious dishes that I particularly loved the fried tempura


Although it was a cold raining day, there were still some visitors like young girls from China, a couple shooting their outdoor wedding photos and some small groups. If we visit Houtong on a good sunny day, maybe those cats would look happier and willing to have suntan. In that way, we can take more beautiful cats photos. I am looking forward to visit Houtong another time.

73話 - Living in Aboriginal Tribe

After living in the Taimali's tribe for a period of time, I have noticed few things from these aboriginal friends. First of all, I think that "Where are you going" is the greeting phrase when they encounter friends in the village. Why would I think so? As I was enjoying the mountain views and stars on the roof balcony, that phrase is the most common heard from my neighbor's yard. As people were passing by, my neighbor would salute them with this phrase. For us, the non-aboriginal people, "Have you eaten your meal?" will be the greeting phrase among friends. I think that the reason for the different greeting phrase is because in old aboriginal tribes, people will share their hunted wild boars or foods. Therefore, there is no need to wonder whether their friends have eaten or not. Moreover, the neighbor told us that in the tribe, there will be no orphan as other people in the tribe would take care of this child. However, in the old non-aboriginal society, some people may not have food to eat. Therefore, the first priority will be to concern whether your friends have eaten or not when you encounter each other. However, this is my own interpretation about the greeting phrase. Please correct me if I am wrong.

Secondly, these aboriginal friends love to chitchat in their yards especially after finishing one day's work. Instead of sitting on the sofa holding TV remote control or hanging on the internet like most people do in the big cities, they choose to visit friends or neighbors to talk about their works or today's news. I think that this is their way of strengthen the relationships and gather information about big or small news. They will chat in the yard but not to invite friends to go inside the living room. I wonder why. Maybe that is because their living room is relatively smaller. On the contrary, the yard is bigger and is the opened space. The yard will provide fresh air and more comfortable feelings. Moreover, one thing has caught my attention. Most of time, people who visit my neighbor's yard at night are males. Maybe females still need to work on household chores or take care of children at night. I guess that night time is the happy hours for these men.

Thirdly, the Pacific Ocean is like their refrigerator and the mountain is like their back yard. They will go fishing if they need some seafood. But, the refrigerator won't guarantee to give them the seafood that they desire. It depends on the luck. And, of course, they need to choose the right season and timing in order to increase the chances. Moreover, there are a lot of wild vegetables grown on the mountain. They know which one can be eaten and which one can not be eaten because of poison or bad taste. These aboriginal friends have the wisdom and experiences to live in the wild and rural environment.

Below are the gifts given by these aboriginal neighbors taken from the nature
↓Wild vegetables (unknown name but taste like potherb mustard) wrapped in a leaf, instead of using plastic or paper bag

↓"Tree bean"(樹豆) grow in the neighbor's yard: need to peel off, eat only those green beans

↓See the color of those "Tree bean"(樹豆), can be cooked with rice or add spareribs to make it as soup

↓Closer shot of "tree bean"(樹豆) still growing on the tree

↓Some kind of deep-sea fish


I can not image if I need to live in the wild and rural environment. There is no way that I know how to survive. But I believe that these aboriginal friends have more chances to survive in the harsh environment when the disaster comes. Besides having the skills to find food in the wild environment, they also help and share foods with other people. I believe that it can help each other to overcome any harshness or difficulties than fighting alone by oneself.