The Cockroach Catcher II: Attempted Living---Private Asylum

 

Ruins of St. Paul's, Macau

What Lui wanted to know was whether he should do what his brother’s psychiatrist in Macau recommended, to put him in a mental hospital.

Lui had heard horrible stories about the goings on inside these institutions.  He was so worried that he set up a flat solely for the purpose of keeping his brother under round-the-clock watch.  He wanted me to give my professional opinion. Was the arrangement going to do his brother harm, and would his brother be better off in a mental hospital?.............

The three-bedroom flat was furnished and equipped to provide “secure” accommodation for his brother. Two maids were employed to look after him and they worked in shifts so that there would always be someone to guard him and see to his needs. Fancy looking sliding aluminium doors were installed in such a way that the maids could be kept “safe” from the sometimes violent schizophrenic patient.  These latticed doors formed secure partitions between rooms while allowing visibility and the patient was never allowed into the kitchen.  The doors were designed such that at meal times, the maids could put the food on the table in the dining room, retreat into the kitchen and lock the partition before letting the patient into the dining room.  Not difficult for a man in the aluminium business!

On Sundays, Lui would take the patient out to see the parents and have a nice meal, accompanied by one of the maids.

What could I say?

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The Cockroach Catcher II: Attempted Living.

Just published on Amazon

The Cockroach Catcher II: Attempted Living.  

Review on Amazon:

Maureen

5.0 out of 5 stars Not the ordinary memoir

Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on January 17, 2023

Verified Purchase  Am Ang Zhang has brilliantly woven together nostalgia, discoveries, astute observations and intelligent opinions. The fascinating title of the book is a deliberate understatement of his abundant life, where being a senior consultant psychiatrist is only a part of it . He is obviously a man of gifted intellect and refined tastes who, rather than hampered by material scarcity as a young child refugee, was fascinated by beauty in nature, and quickly acquired an appreciation of the finer things in life, enriched by travels and sustained by a keen engaging mind.
Reading his memoir is eye opening, and at times therapeutic. It was like meeting up with a learned old friend, as you sit with him and listen while his memories and ideas overflow. You travel with him as his stories move from continent to continent, from detailed episodes to gentle remarks, from freshly harvested catches to gourmet preparations, from ancient finds to modern scientific research ......
A most delightful read.

The Cockroach Catcher II: Attempted Living

Cockroach Catcher-Seven Minute Cure