I also remember catching guppies and tadpoles at drains, to the horror of one of childhood friend's mum. She was in the opinion that that was not what 10 year old girls should do after school on late afternoons. I hope she is cool about this now, because we still hang out, but we do more normal stuff.
And of course, catching more tadpoles and guppies at puddles, after Bible school on Sunday afternoons, when others went to play Captain's ball and volley ball. I still remember vividly, one boy, asking me how long do they take for them to turn into frogs, pointing to my guppies, and I corrected him that those were actually guppies. That alec insisted that he was correct and i think i told him something like, " they will still be like this even after a very long time" He went on babbling and I guess, it went from a dialogue to a monologue.
As a cranky 13 year old, I remember flaring up at my little sister, for spilling my tadpoles on the floor. I had kept my jar of metamophosising tadpoles at a corner in the living room. Those were my treasured possesion, because they were turning into sub-adults, froglets. And i was super thrilled. Legs were sprouting and every day, I would eagerly check on those that were mature enough to be transfered to the froglet container, where I filled the water level to only about 5mm. I forgot what happened to them, but i am sure i was given a good scolding for flaring up at my sister because of those tadpoles.
I don't really remember details on most of those incidents, but those were indeed little moments, of my childhood, related to frogs.
As i was growing up, out of boredom, I rared frogs, which I bought from aquarium shops. I thought i was really doing them a huge favour because i was saving them from the gastric juice of hungry fishes of expensive taste fish breeders. And the toads which come along my home, just to say hi. I remember this particular toad, an Asian toad (Bufo melanostictus) which would bow, if anyone put his/her feet in front of it. It somewhat made me feel as if I really was in control of my little pet, and definitely my mum's old mixing bowl which was its pseudo habitat while it was my housemate.
I am seriously tempted to buy a Rana Casebianas or 2 from Sheng Siong, to accompany my other 2 tiny ones, my friends gave me for my birthday recently. But, i know they are rather ruthless and are known to eat their own breed. The mystery back home, on how our 6 American bullfrogs became 5, my dad told me when he took over raring them, and pampering them with crickets when I came back to school after the summer hols.
Now, in school, I get occasional thrills by bumping into toads, when i take walks near the field.
Maria + Siti
alicia
