Month: September 2023
‘CELEBRATING MOON FESTIVAL AT COUNTRY COTTAGE.’
‘CELEBRATING MOON FESTIVAL AT COUNTRY COTTAGE.’
Written by Ken Hua (1,212 words)
Wednesday, 20th September 2005
Revised 26th August 2016
“Big Brother, what a beautiful spring morning at Country Cottage!”
“Fluffy Sam, do you know that the Moon Festival is coming soon?”
“Yes, I have noticed that the Lady of the House and our Master have been busy in tidying around the house, I think there will be some sort of celebration coming up soon.”
“Yeah, we will be celebrating the Moon Festival tonight and I think we will have nice food followed by moon cake and a cup of Chinese hot tea. What I am concerned the most is nice food.”
“Oh dear, you are always concerned about food, nothing else. No wonder the Lady of the House dislikes you, because whenever she feeds you, you just grab it and you almost bites her elegant fingers.”
“I am sorry, sometimes I just can’t help it. Whenever the Lady of the House or our Master feeds me, I just get excited, so I just grab the food and then put straight into my mouth.”
“I think you must change your eating habit, otherwise you will get into trouble. All right, let’s go to the main topic. Could you please tell me about the history of Moon Festival since you have been at Country Cottage much longer than I?”
“While I am going to tell you the story of Moon Festival, could you please make me a cup of Chinese hot tea and turn on the Moon Festival CD, which our Master bought for the family.”
“It is good that sometimes we listen to some Chinese music, it gives us a chance to practice Chinese.”
“Fluffy Sam, all right, are you ready to listen to my story now? The Chinese people have been celebrating the Moon Festival for the past seven hundred years. It was in the Yuan Dynastyat that time, the Mongolians ruled China with cruelty and oppression. Most of the people were poor and did not have enough food to survive and did not have the freedom to travel around. As the people could not stand the hardship any more and they were secretly trying to organize a revolt against the government.”
“It seems to me that it is going to be a long and complicated story. Could you please just stop for a moment and let me figure out if I understand of what you have just told me.”
“No problem. After that I will continue my story. The story goes like that: Before the Moon Festival, people participating in the revolt had prepared moon cakes and distributed to others around the capital and the big cities with a special note hidden inside the moon cakes. The special note asked the people to meet at the gathering points at an arranged time to revolt against the Mongolians. The revolt was successful and the Yuan Dynasty was collapsed.”
“Oh dear, it is a very interesting story. The Lady of the House told me that the Chinese and Vietnamese have quite a few similar customs. Could you please tell me more?”
“Sure. For example, they both celebrate Lunar New Year, the Great Poet’s day, Confucian Birthday, Moon Festival and quite a few other celebrations too. A lot of Vietnamese literature is extracted from Chinese.”
“I was told that there were a lot Moon Festival celebrations in Sydney Chinatown and some major town centers, how did they go?”
“Oh, it was just spectacular! There were hundreds and thousands of onlookers in Sydney Chinatown. There were dragon dancing, martial art demonstrations, singing competition, moon cake tasting and games for the children and other entertainments as well. On the other hand, the celebrations in Western Sydney especially at Cabramatta Town Centre were in a smaller scale, nevertheless they had attracted a lot of people in the local and surrounding areas.”
“Whenever there is any occasion of celebration such as Christmas, New Year’s Day, Easter, Mother’s Day, Father’s Day, Lunar New Year etc. Our Lady of the House and our Master are kind of missing their loved ones living thousands and thousand miles away especially the Golden Boy and the Golden Girl.”
“The Golden Boy and the Golden Girl have been away for some time now and they don’t know when the moon was quarterly full, half full or full moon, also they don’t know how the moon cakes taste like.’
‘Listen, shall we send them a parcel of delicious moon cakes today?’
‘It sounds a great idea. We will send them by special freight, so that they will receive it the next day.’
It has been a while that the Diamond Boy had not given our Master sufficient allowance, so the latter had to budget himself. A few days before the Moon Festival, he visited one of the Chinese groceries to get some moon cakes.
“Good afternoon, Mr. Chairman. What can I do for you?”
“Madam, I am after three moon cakes please.”
“How come you only buy three moon cakes but not the whole box?”
“Because I don’t have enough money.”
“Did your children give enough allowance to spend?”
“Oh, it is a long story. My Diamond Boy has a mortgage to pay, so he rarely gives me allowance and the Golden Boy and Golden Girl live thousands and thousand miles away from home.”
“Poor Chairman! I know your children well and they are very good children. Perhaps they have some difficulty themselves.”
“Excuse me, I got to go.”
“Could you please wait for a couple of minutes? Here are two boxes of deluxe moon cakes for you and your family to enjoy. Happy Moon Festival!”
“Oh dear, you shouldn’t have done that at all. How can I accept your favor?”
Back to private residence of our respectable Chairman, there was the dialogue between Big Brother and Fluffy Sam:
“Big Brother, with the two boxes of deluxe moon cakes, the family had quite an enjoyable Moon Festival at Country Cottage.”
“Fluffy Sam, it was so nice that our Master gave each of us a quarter of moon cake and a cup of nice hot Chinese tea.”
“You know, that special Chinese tea we were drinking was the present of our Master’s first cousin, the Gentleman in China, who paid a visit to Down Under a month ago and when he arrived at Country Cottage on the night of beautiful bright full moon and he had this comment to make: “The full moon in the South Hemisphere particularly Down Under is the most beautiful on earth I have ever seen.”
“If our Prime Minister had listened to his comment, he would be extremely pleased.”
Usually a few days after the Moon Festival, there was moon cake clearance sale at the shops, some of them 39.99% off, 49.99% off, some 59.99% off, 64.99% off and some even 74.99% off. Because of his tight budget, our Master focused on those 64.99% and 74.99% off and he purchased a dozen boxes of moon cakes, which he would put in the refrigerator and gradually consume them until the end of the year.
‘Happy Moon Festival to everyone!’ This has been Chairman of Country Cottage andthe two brothers, ‘Big Brother’and ‘Fluffy Sam’reporting from Down Under!
Written by Ken Hua 20th September 2005
Revised 20th 26th August 2016
‘GOLDEN BOY & GIRL, THIS IS ‘BIG BROTHER’ CALLING FROM COUNTRY COTTAGE, DOWN UNDER.’
‘GOLDEB BOY & GIRL, THIS IS ‘BIG BROTHER’ CALLING FROM COUNTRY COTTAGE, DOWN UNDER.’
Written by Ken Hua (900 words)
18th December 2007
Revised 20th November 2015
‘Golden Boy & Girl, Happy Chinese New Year to both of you living thousands and thousand miles away from Down Under.’
‘Big Brother, It is a surprise that you called us today. Usually your Masteror your ‘Little Brother’, ‘Fluffy Sam’ called us. How is everybody at home?
‘Everybody is doing well here. Golden Boy & Girl, since ‘Fluffy Sam’is busy, so today I am ringing to both of you to extend our ‘Happy Chinese New Year’ greetings.’
‘Big Brother, it is ‘Happy Chinese New Year’ from two of usto all the family and you and ‘Fluffy Sam’.The other day, I received a phone call from your Master indicating that your ‘Little Brother’, ‘Fluffy Sam’had been bullying you sometimes. Is that true?’
‘Golden Boy & Girl,this is absolutely true. Since he is a couple of years younger than I and he is more energetic than I, so sometimes he often bullies me especially when our Masteris feeding us. He runs very fast to our Master. However since our Masterknows his trick, he feeds us separately.’
‘Oh, what a naughty tricky ‘Little Brother’, ’Fluffy Sam’we have at Country Cottage!’
‘Let me tell you something else. You know our next-door neighbor, Uncle Gordon who usually feeds us at about 8.30am in the morning and we usually waiting at the little balcony in the backyard. Since ‘Fluffy Sam’is faster than I, so most of times he grabs all the food that our next-door neighbor throws to us and it is not fair to me.’
‘Big Brother’ of course, it is not fair for you. Since most of the times he grabs all the food our neighbor throws to you guys; so he must eat more than you and as a result, has he gained any weight recently?’
‘Yeah, Golden Boy & Girl, ‘Fluffy Sam’has gained about 1.88 kilos since he weighted last time and it was three months ago.
‘So, how did your Masterdeal with this issue?’
‘Oh, our Masterhad to go to our neighbor’s house and asked him to give the bread and ham he used to feed both of us, so that our Master will feed us instead. In addition to that, our Master has reduced his ration. Golden Boy & Girl,you know what happened. Fluffy Samwas feeling a little bit hungry later in the afternoon and he asked me whether I could give some of my food to him when our Masterfed him in the evening.’
‘Oh, what a naughty tricky Fluffy Samwe have at Country Cottage!
‘Yeah, it is a very good arrangement and our neighbor wouldn’t say ‘no’. Our next-door neighbor has been such a wonderful neighbor ever since our Master and his family moved to this neighborhood 20 years ago.’
‘Big Brother, we do have ‘a wonderful neighbor at Country Cottage!’ The other day, while on the phone talking with your Master,he told me that our next-door neighbor’s wife has been sick not long after she retired.’
‘Golden Boy & Girl, it is a pity that she suffered from dementia and her condition has been deteriorating and our neighbor is often feeling quite sad.’
‘Oh, poor lady! Please give our sincere regards our neighbor especially the lady. May God bless our neighbors especially the ladyat this difficult time.’
‘You know, sometimes we see our neighbor taking his wife for a walk in our neighborhood at about 10.00am in the morning and we see her fragile body walking up the street, we feel kind of sad and sorry for her. Sometimes we just could not hold back our tears.’
‘I understand. You have made me feel melancholy too. Our Master told us that she always keeps her house nice and tidy, spotless inside out. She was working for Dunlap Companybefore she retired, Sometimes her manager asked her to work on Saturdays but she refused his request because she wants to keep her house nice and tidy, so that it will give friends and relatives good impression when they visit the family.’ Big Brother,just wonder how is the Governor General’sfamily going these days especially Prince Andrew? Is he still a fussy eater like he was a little boy?’
*** Author’s note: the ‘Governor General’ is author’s sister-in-law.
‘Golden Boy & Girl,they are doing just fine as usual. As for Prince Andrew,unfortunately he is still a fussy eater just like when he was a little boy.’
‘Did the ‘Governor General’ raise her voice when this happened?’
‘Of course, she did. You know her personality quite well. Whenever she raises her voice, not only the roof of her house is shaking and her voice is so loud that it can be heard from Country Cottage.’
‘Big Brother, what is the distance between the ‘Governor General’sprivate residence and Country Cottageapproximately?’
‘Golden Boy& Girl, I would say about 8.99 kilometres.’
‘Big Brother, her voice can reach that far. She must have spoken in an extremely loud voice not only shaking her neighborhood but also Country Cottage.’
‘Oh dear, what a terrific noisy ‘Governor General’ we have at ‘Country Cottage’!
Written by Ken Hua 18th December 2007
Revised 20th November 2015
‘GOOD-DAY, DO YOU HAVE ANY VACANCY AS A PAINTER?’
‘DO YOU HAVE ANY VACANCY FOR A PAINTER?’
Written by Ken Hua (962 words)
Saturday, 24th March 2007
Revised 10th November 2015
‘Fluffy Sam, the weather has been awfully hot for the last few days.’
‘Big Brother, you are not wrong. Under this weather condition, our Master is still working quite hard.’
‘Our Master had done a very good job on the deck. Our Master had to sand the deck all over again before he painted because the Diamond Boy was not doing a very good job while our Master went on holiday in China last December.’
‘It was the first time that the Diamond Boy did not do a good job that brought the criticism from our Master.’
‘Fluffy Sam, a week ago our Master painted the garage of Country Cottage and this time he had donean outstanding job.’
‘Big Brother, the garage was one of many beautiful jobs carried out by our Master, who had converted that humble garage into one of the most delicate garages in the western suburbs.’
‘There was hardly any paint dropped on the floor. You know, years ago when our Master was painting the ceiling and there were a few drops of paint on the carpet that had drawn strong criticism from the then teenager boy, Diamond Boy.‘
‘I just wonder how come our Diamond Boy is quite strict and fussy about our Masterand other people. Should we have a word with him?’
‘I don’t think so. He is a powerful person in the family. Sometimes he is as stubborn as our Master when he was young. As the saying goes, ‘Like father, like son’. Since the Golden Boy is not home, the Diamond Boy is second in command. In addition, he is more technically and mechanically minded.’
‘I am surprised that you know all these little details.’
‘Fluffy Sam, because I have been in this household much longer than you.’
Oh, what a wonderful Diamond Boy we have at Country Cottage!
‘Good day, I just wonder do you have any vacancy for a painter, Sir?’
‘Yes. We do have a few but only experienced and licensed tradesmen should apply. Can I ask you how long have you been in the trade and do you have work references?’
‘I have been in the trade for ten years. I do have work references including the one given by previous employer.’
‘Oh, that is terrific. Can you start work in a week’s time? By the way, can I ask how old are you? We don’t employ people over 40 years old.’
‘Yes, I can start work in a week’s time. I am 38 and a half years old.’
‘Excellent, we will be looking forward to seeing you then.’
After he enquired about the job, our Master had to do a lot of make up and undergone plastic surgery including dying his hair to look young, so that he would look like a 38 and a half-year-old young man.
‘Big Brother, could you please give me an example of our Master for being stubborn years ago?’
‘Fluffy Sam, some years ago, it was about 38 degrees in a very hot afternoon, our Master insisted in mowing the lawn despite the advice of the Lady of the House and the children. He was sick for three days, since then he started listening to other people’s advice and became less stubborn.’
‘How come our Master has been doing a lot of painting recently?’
‘Our Master is looking for a new venture. This time is not just a painter but something more sophisticated.’
‘Really? You must be kidding! At his age our Master is looking for another job!’
‘That is absolutely true. Our Master likes working. Working makes him feel well and happy; besides he does quite a bit of volunteer work too. Helping people is the source of his happiness.’
‘I think I have a very exciting story to tell you. Make sure that you don’t tell anybody. You know some years ago, our Master had to fly to Perth, Western Australia to paint the hugemansion for the thenFederal Opposition Leader and after two weeks’ hard work, he was packing up and was ready to come home.’
However after the Opposition Leader checked around the house and came out half an hour later with the cheque in his hand looking very upset and he told our Master:
‘Mr. Chairman, I don’t think you are a professional painter as you told me on the phone when you applied for the job. What an awful bloody job you have done to my deluxe mansion and you are a big liar!’ As everybody knows our Opposition Leader is huge and gigantic.Luckily our Opposition Leader was not in a very bad mood on that day otherwise he should have swallowed our old fragile Master in minutes.
Our Master sensed the seriousness of the matter; he hurried packing up all his belongings and put them in his bags and left straight away.
‘I just wonder why this happened to our always reliable Master.’
‘Because during that time he was only in his first year of apprenticeship and had not much experience whatsoever so he did not do a good job.’
Our friendly caring Master was lucky to arrive at Country Cottage in one piece after painting the huge mansion for the Federal Opposition Leader in Perth, Western Australia because the latter was in quite a good mood on that day.
‘Our Masterhad learnt a very hard lesson from that experience.’
After that experience, our Master continued to work as a painter and after five years’ practice, he finally became a professional painter of all times.
Written by Ken Hua 24th March 2007
Revised 10th November 2015
‘INSTALL A RHEEM AT COUNTRY COTTAGE.’
‘INSTALL A RHEEM AT COUNTRY COTTAGE.’
Written by Ken Hua (821 words)
10th October 2005
Revised 20th December 2015
“Fluffy Sam, did you know that the hot water system at Country Cottage collapsed yesterday?”
“I know, Big Brother. It was about time that the hot water system collapsed, because it was a little too old, even older than our friendly Master.”
“Remember, not too long ago Country Cottage was the home of some universitystudents, who were good friends of the Golden Boy and they needed a place like home with love and passion. These students called Country Cottage their second home.”
“These temporary guests made the Lady of the House and our Master quite busy but they did not mind at all, because they were happy to help these special guests who need help and they are away from their family.”
“While the Lady of the House was tidying up, our Master was busy washing and cooking and they were just like a family. Today these young men all have a good career.”
“I understand even at that time, the hot water system was quite old already. Since it was still running fairly well, the family continued to use it.”
“Since there were quite a few people at Country Cottage, people had to register their names a day in advance to arrange a roster for taking showers for the next day.”
“Because the water tank was so small, after only three people had taken a shower, the rest had to wait for half an hour for their turn.”
“When the hot system collapsed, our Master had to convene an emergency meeting to discuss this critical issue including making phone calls to the Golden Boy and Golden Girl living thousands and thousand miles away. And after a lengthy discussion, the three children of the Lady of the House and our Master finally agreed to pay for a 100% brand new hot water system.”
“Oh, what a relief for our Master and he could not feel happier because it was extremely hard for his children to come to terms with paying such a bill.”
“There were quite a few sizes of hot water systems and since it was the children paying the bill, our Master chose the best and the largest size and afterwards he rang the installer to install a super king size hot water system.”
“Sometimes our Master was just a little tricky. Because other people were paying the money, so he had to take advantage of this opportunity. These opportunities only came once in a lifetime.”
“There were other reasons that our Master wanted to install a super king size hot water system because he was expecting a few distinguished quests including the Prime Minister of Australia and the First Lady of Ireland.”
“I was told by the Diamond Boy that a couple of years ago, our Prime Minister had requested our Master to be his guest at Country Cottage but was turned down by him because he was being afraid that the old hot system might break down while the P.M. was visiting Country Cottage.”
Less than six months ago, the U.S. President called ourMaster asking the latter whether he and the First Lady could be his guests but our Master was not home, our First Secretary of Country Cottage, Fluffy Sam answered the phone.
“Good day, this is the First Secretary of Country Cottage Fluffy Sam speaking, Sir.”
“Good morning, this is the Presidentof United States of Americacalling. Can I speak to the Chairmanplease? What is your name again?”
“Mr. President, how do you do, Sir? I am sorry our Chairman is not available. Can I take a message, Sir? My name is Fluffy Sam, theFirst Secretary of CountryCottage.”
“Your nameisFluffy Sam! Oh dear, what a funny name! Could you please ask theChairmanwhetherthe First Ladyand I could be his guests for one weeksometime in November? Do you think that he would agree?”
“I am not sure about that, Mr. President. But the chance is quite slim,Sir.”
“But I am the President of the United States of America.”
“Mr. President, it does not make any difference.”
“Oh, I think I will catch up with the Chairman later. What is your name again?
“My name is Fluffy Sam, the First Secretary of Country Cottage. Good bye, Mr. President.”
While the old water system collapsed, our Master had to go to the private residence of the Diamond Boy to take shower. Before he entered the bathroom, the Diamond Boy said to him”
“Mr. Chairman,please don’t use too much hot water, because I have to save money to pay some of the payment of your brand new hot watersystem!”
“Ah….” uttered the Chairman.
Oh, what a tricky Diamond Boy we have at Country Cottage!
Written by Ken Hua 10th October 2005
Revised 20th December 2015
‘KUNG HAY FAT CHOI, THE GENTLEMAN IN CHINA, THIS IS FLUFFY SAM CALLING.’
Author’s note: On the occasion of the Lunar Year, the Year of Rat, he would like to post this special writing for readers’ viewing pleasure.
‘KUNG HAY FAT CHOY, THE GENTLEMAN IN CHINA,
THIS IS FLUFFY SAM CALLING.’
(1,494 words) Written by Ken Hua
Sunday, 1st March 2015
Revised 18th December 2015
‘Kung Hay Fat Choy, the Gentleman in China, this is Fluffy Sam calling from Down Under.’
‘Fluffy Sam, it is a surprise that you called today. We haven’t kept in touch with each other for a fair while. Just wonder how is everybody at home especially your Master.’
‘Sir, everybody is fine including my Master. He is still working part time, two days a week.’
‘Fluffy Sam, I admire your Master so much because he has already reached retirement age however he is still working. A lot of other people at his age will be just hanging loose or go on holiday.’
‘The Gentleman in China, my Master likes working and working boosts his mood and he can also socialize with people. I think your English is getting a lot better than before. Does your beloved daughter still teach you and the Iron Lady two hours of English every week.’
‘Yes, Fluffy Sam, that is the reason why our English has improved a little bit. Can I tell you a funny story, after I drink a bottle of beer; I speak even better English. By the way, I like the Australian beer especially Victoria Bitter.’ Oh, what a wonderful feeling the Gentleman in China enjoys drinking Australian beer particularly Victoria Bitter and by drinking Victoria Bitter, he can speak better English.
Talking about the Gentleman in China, who is the first cousin of our respectable Chairman living in Zhenchen City, Quangdong Province, China. He fell in love with Australia at the first sight when he visited here in 2005 and he particularly fell in love with the brilliant full moon. It was a coincidence that when he visited Australia in 2005, it was brilliant full moon here and as soon as our Chairman and Lady of the House took him to Country Cottage to show him around the private residence of our Chairman, he told our Chairman that the brilliant full moon in Australia is the most spectacular and fascinating in the Southern Hemisphere.
After his visit in Australia in 2005, his wife, the Iron Lady of China paid an official visit to Down Under in 2006. The Iron Lady and the father of the Gentleman in China originally came from Shengdo City, Sichuan Province in Central China The Iron Lady has a beautiful voice and particularly she can sing Opera too. In addition, she is also a good dancer too. The love story between the Gentleman in China and the Iron Lady is said to be a fairy tale.
In comparison with our old fragile Chairman, the Gentleman in China is always looking brilliant and handsome although he is only a few years junior than our Chairman. Unlike our Chairman, who always likes to burn the midnight oil and runs the last minute’s rush and he usually shows up 10 minutes late for work although he is a good worker and he works consistently. When comes to job interview, the Gentleman in China turns up at half an hour before the interview whereas our Chairman turns up just 3 minutes before the job interview.
It was not until the year 1998, our Chairman had the opportunity to meet the Gentleman in China for the first time in their life in Zhenchen City, Quangdong Province in China when the Tough Lady originally came from Vietnam who at that time was still living in Hong Kong paid a visit to their first cousin in Zhenchen City and because of time limit, they only stayed in Zhenchen City for a day. They had also the chance to meet the Iron Lady in China, who is the wife of the Gentleman in China and the Princess of China, who is their teenage daughter. Although it was only a day’s visit, however they treasured their meeting a great deal and they promised to see each other when opportunity allowed.
*** Author’s note: The mother of the Gentleman in China is the younger sister of our Chairman’s father or Chairman’s auntie.
The Gentleman in China likes to mention about the photo taken in 1951; that is 64 years ago and a stack of letters that our Chairman’s father sent to his mother while the latter was in Vietnam every now and then. The photo was taken in Nam Dinh City; the birthplace of our Chairman in 1951 after the family risked their lives to travel by foot and sometimes by boat to escape from the Communist controlled area to the French controlled area such as Nam Dinh City and the family members treasure the photo so much. Our Chairman had another younger auntie previously lived in Shandao and she passed away in 2008.
It was not until 2006, the Tough Lady, who is the older sister of our Chairman and her husband, the Gentleman in Hong Kong had arranged to meet our Chairman in Hong Kong and from there they departed to meet the family of the Gentleman in China, the youngest auntie in Shandao and younger auntie in Shengdo City, Sichuan Province in Central China. Our Chairman had no problem to communicate with his youngest auntie in Shandao because he understands and speaks Teo Chew fluently. By the way, Teo Chew is our Chairman’s mother tongue, however he had a lot of problems to communicate with his eldest auntie in Shengdo City because she has a very strange and funny ascent. Her ascent is mixed with Mandarin, Sichuan and Teo Chew. Usually we would have her daughter or son to act as an interpreter.
Our Chairman and his aunties were so thrilled to see each other because it was the very first meeting for our Chairman to meet his auntie in Shandao City and the other auntie in Shengdo City. The Tough Lady and the Gentleman in Hong Kong had met the two aunties several times. After the visit of 2006, our Chairman often called the Gentleman in China and his aunties to keep in touch. It was sad that his younger auntie living in Shandao passed away in 2008.
In March 2011, our Chairman flew to Hong Kong to attend his niece’s wedding reception and dinner there. Prier to his niece’s wedding reception, our Chairman and the family of the Tough Lady from America went on a tour to Shantow and Teo Chew cities, the birthplaces of our Chairman’s parents and then flew to Jinzhaigow Valley in Sichuan Province for sightseeing and the scenery was just fascinating. During the visit to Jinzhaigow Valley, our Chairman and the Tough Lady’s family took time to see their auntie and her older son and daughter in Shengdo City, Sichuan Province, China and they were very happy to see each other although the duration of the visit was short.
We would like to mention that the mother of Gentleman in China has been a remarkable lady. Her husband passed away when he was quite young and she had to raise her three children single-handed and during the China Great Culture Revolution, the Gentleman in China was sent to the farm doing the hard work as a farmer and he was not allowed to attend university because his family had relatives such our Chairman’s father, younger uncles living overseas. It was not until Deng Sieu Ping’s ‘Open Door Policy’ was established, then his older sister, older brother and he were allowed to study in the university. He told our Chairman that the life in the farm was like hell and however he had to face the reality. He tried to be patient and endeavor and overcome the hardship facing him. We don’t think our Chairman would survive such ordeal if he were under that situation.
‘Sir, my Master told me that he was planning a trip with the Tough Lady and the Gentleman in Hong Kong now living in America and the other first cousin living in Adelaide, South Australia to visit Shengdo City in China on the occasion of your mother’s 96th birthday in September this year.’
‘Fluffy Sam, that is a terrific idea! We will be looking forward to see our loved ones on my mother’s birthday because we haven’t seen each other for a number of years now.’
‘Excuse me, Sir. I got to go. The telephone is ringing and I have to answer the phone. Cheerio, the Gentleman in China, it has been nice to talk with you. Please convey our regards to every member of your family.
After the conversation with Fluffy Sam, the Gentleman in China told the Iron Lady: ‘Sweet heart, everything in Australia is different, even my first cousin’s family dog, Fluffy Sam can speak some Mandarin and Cantonese besides English and he can answer the phone calls on his Master’s behalf.’
Oh, what a wonderful feeling for our Chairman and his loyal companion, Fluffy Sam!
Written by Ken Hua
Sunday, 1st March 2015
Revised 18th December 2015
‘FLUFFY SALLY, YOU ARE ALWAYS IN MY HEART.’
‘FLUFFY SALLY, YOU ARE ALWAYS IN MY HEART.’
(456 words) Written by Ken Hua
Saturday, 1st September 2007
Revised 18th May 2015
‘Good morning, is that Fluffy Sally, darling! I haven’t seen you for a long time and I am dearly missing you.’
‘Oh dear, I am missing you awfully lot too. The renovation in our house has not been completed yet. I think my Master is a little bit slow.’
‘Is it that he is the only one doing the renovation? I think it has taken too long already.
‘No, he gets the help from our Lady of the House. It is because she wants everything to be done perfectly, so that is why it takes a little bit longer to complete.’
‘I just wonder have the three Golden Girls been helping them?’
‘As far as I can see, they are not helping much. Because girls are not supposed to do this type of work, you know.’
‘Oh dear, your poor Master and the Lady of the House have to do all the hard work. How are the three Golden Girls doing?’
“They are doing just fine, the two older Golden Girls study and work part-time, the youngest attends year 9.’
‘It was so nice that our Master came to your family barbeque. It has been some time that our Master hasn’t seen the three Golden Girls especially the youngest one, who has grown up 5 inches taller than when he last saw her and she has the look of a movie star, so as the other two girls.’
‘You are not wrong. The youngest Golden Girl has registered her name in Universal Studio in Sydney and she will be making movies next year.’
‘On behalf of all the staff of Country Cottage, this is Fluffy Sam, the First Secretaryof Country Cottage, would like to congratulate her. If she is successful, his father, the CEO of the Coca-Cola & Juice company might retire early and goes on holidays with the Lady of the House.’
‘I think she will be very successful in her future stardom.’
‘I just wonder when can I see you again. Because I am kind of missing you.’
‘I am too. I just can’t wait for that day to come.’
‘Oh, could you please if there is any juice left in the house because your Master has owed my Master about ten and ten cartons of orange & apple juice.’
‘There will be no problem. I got to go now. Darling, we will be seeing each other soon.’
‘Sure, I can’t wait for that day to come, sweet heart.’
‘Oh dear, you are always in my heart, forever and ever.’
Written by Ken Hua 1st September 2007
Revised 18th May 2015
‘FLUFFY SALLY, I HAVE BEEN THINKING ABOUT YOU.’
‘FLUFFY SALLY, , I HAVE BEEN THINKING ABOUT YOU’
(594 words) Written by Ken Hua 16th October 2008
Revised 15th May 2015
*** Author’s note: Fluffy Sally is author’s neighbor family dog and she is of Golden Retriever breed, the same breed as author’s family dog, Fluffy Sam.
‘Sheezz, is that Fluffy Sally? This is Fluffy Sam calling. Is everybody asleep?’
‘Yes, everybody is asleep. Don’t worry, Fluffy Sam. Anyway, please try to keep your voice down. I have been thinking about you.’
‘So have I. Every time when my Master took me for a walk and passed by your Master’s luxurious house, I often peered through the gate but there was no sign of you. How have you been doing?’
‘I am doing okay except that I am not lucky as you are. Your Master always takes you for a walk but my Master rarely does to me.’
‘Poor Fluffy Sally, so you must have been feeling lonely and bored.’
‘Fluffy Sam, you can say that again but there is nothing I can do since I live in a different environment.’
‘How has the world been treating the Lady of the House and three Golden Girls?’
‘They are doing all right. The Lady of the House has been working for a number of years now. One of the Golden Girls went to university this year.’
‘I think you must have a lonely and boring life and there is no freedom.’
‘I know that, Fluffy Sam. However there is nothing I can do. It seems to me that I have been locked up in prison, being isolated and I could not see the outside world.’
‘Sheezz, Fluffy Sally! I’ve got an idea. How about we arrange a time to meet together and you dare try to escape from where you live.’
‘Fluffy Sam, it seems to be a dangerous attempt. I am scared and frightened to death. If I get caught, I will be locked up for the rest of my life.’
‘Fluffy Sally, leave it to me. I am a courageous individual and you are an elegant lady. You know, there is a saying ‘You would rather die if there is no freedom.’
‘Fluffy Sam, it still sounds scary to me.’
‘Don’t worry, Fluffy Sally. I will have a good plan to help you to escape from the prison.’
‘Are you sure we will be successful? As a matter of fact, I am kind of shaking now.’
‘Fluffy Sally, listen to me carefully. Next Sunday at around midnight while everybody is asleep, you go to the corner of the front gate and I will be waiting for you outside. I will have a handyman to break the fence and you just sneak out. A car will be ready for us and drive us to our destination.’
‘Fluffy Sam, where is our destination? I am still very frightened.’
‘Fluffy Sally, our destination will be our ‘Love Nest’ and from that day on, you and I will be together for the rest of our life in freedom. You must be strong, Fluffy Sally and together we will overcome the obstacles. Let’s do it together!’
‘Yes Freedom! Fluffy Sam. That is what I have been longing for a long, long time. Fluffy Sam, as a matter of fact, I can see there is light at the end of the tunnel! May God bless Fluffy Sally and Fluffy Sam!
Oh, what a beautiful love story of Fluffy Sally & Fluffy Sam we have at Country Cottage!
Written by Ken Hua 16th October 2008
Revised 15th May 2015
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