Yes, I did it!!! :)

Remember my post that I'd volunteer to be part of the SLE research? I just did my first appointment during lunch time and it turned out quite well. I collected sample of stool and urines in the office and collected the blood, tears, and sliva samples in the hospital.

I thought I'd stumble upon the tear test, but I survived! Hehe... I felt pricky on my eyes, and that produced really lots of tears. Haha... Maybe those stars did that also so that they could cry during filming. Haha.. While closing my eyes and collecting my tears, the lady asked me the questions for their research. Before going there, I also had to fill up questionnaires. I feel blessed that so far everything has gone well and no big thing happens yet.. Hope it won't come though.. I wish...

Before ending the process, the lady was asking me again if I'm interested to do another research to find out about the relation of SLE with the likelihood of early finding of heart disease for SLE patients.

In other words, she was saying that SLE patient will suffer from heart disease earlier than a normal people. Hehe... I am a bit overwhelmed with all these. I mean, my days of living is shorter than any other people who don't have this disease. That's the fact that I have to accept. How fast? We never know. But at the end of the day, everyone will die, that's the real fact. How soon? We also never know.

It is not necessary that my life will be shorten due to this disease. Other things might happen and not related to this. So, I just tell myself not to think so much. When it comes, it will eventually come. Right now, I just have to focus on the present times, cherish my time with my loved ones, families and friends, especially my Baobei. Recently he follows me in things that I do. E.g. When I used computer, he would sit beside me and started a conversation with me, about his favorite games, about his upcoming Birthday party, while ignoring me who was trying to concentrate on the screen. He would watch Running Man and laughed together with me, and he even talked with me while watching, which disturbed me a little bit. When I arranged my medicine drawers, he sat next to me despite a limited space available, and he would talk with me, asking me what medicines were those, etc. Hehe.. It's a joy of becoming a mother. I have to enjoy it now while I can. When he grows up to teenager, he may not talk as much as he is. He may not sit beside me and talk with me anymore. He may spend his time out of the house playing with his friends, or dating with girlfriend, and so on. Or he might prefer to be quiet and live in his own world :)

I still have many dreams to be realised. I hope I can make it come true... :)

Back to the topic... Yup, a journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step. I have done my first and 11 more to come. I hope everything will go smoothly. Jia you!!!

Happiness and Peace by Venerable Master Hsing Yun

On Sunday, 18 November 2012, ET, PY and I attended the Fo Guang Shan Refuge-Taking and Five Precepts Ceremony cum Prayer for the Public at Kallang Indoor Stadium. Venerable Master Hsing Yun came to witness the ceremony, talked about the Dhamma (about Five Precepts), and did the prayer for public.

I attended this event because I wanted to see him. All this while, I only heard about his name, but never met him in person. He is 85 years old this year. My friend told me that he might not attend this type of event anymore in the future due to his age. Even when he came, he came sitting on wheelchair.

I was so glad to be there with my two best friends. Both of them are free thinker and have brief knowledge about Buddhist teaching. After hearing about five precepts, they have become clearer about what the five precepts are and corrected their wrong view. E.g. First precepts is not to kill. Both of them thought if they want to do five precepts, they must be vegetarian.

Below was taken from the program book given to us on that day. The title of the article is "Happiness and Peace". I put this here, to remind myself on how to achieve happiness and peace, just in case one day I might forget about it... hehehe... Happy reading :)

In today’s world, technological and medical advances have prolonged the human lifespan. However, such advances have also led to increasing estrangement and apathy among people. More and more people are feeling the lack of happiness and peace in their lives. Hence, the theme of this year’s General Conference is “Happiness and Peace,” through which I hope all of you can take home the essence of happiness and peace and spread it across the world, apply it to your daily lives, and be free from sorrow, worries, suffering, and trouble. At the same time, may happiness and peace broaden your minds and raise the standard and quality of your lives to higher levels.

Speaking of happiness and peace, what is the purpose of our existence in this world? Is it to find happiness? Or to experience suffering? Of course, most people would say, “Happiness!” In reality, how many people actually enjoy happiness and peace? What we hear and see most often are the wails of grief over the catastrophes of this world. These include natural disasters and man-made calamities such as war, violence, famine, poverty and various stresses and anxieties experienced in everyday life. Very few people think of life as truly happy.

The average person is committed to become famous and rich, but is happiness and peace found within fame and fortune? The answer is not entirely yes. In general, people like to pursue money and love, but can happiness and peace be found within money and love? Again, the answer is a bittersweet yes and no. As for those who pursue freedom and democratic, without inner peace and ease, life is still without true happiness and peace. Therefore, it can be said that the happiness and peace that have been sought by people for so long are in fact in the possession of very few.

How do we attain peace and happiness in life? I offer the following four suggestions:

1. Happiness and peace come from detachment and contentment
In this world, some people pursue material happiness and others pursue nature’s tranquility and peace, while some pursue material transcendence and spiritual happiness attained from detachment and contentment. So what type of happiness should we be pursuing? Material life may satisfy our daily needs, but it does not bring sustained happiness; only detachment and contentment allow us to enjoy lasting happiness.

As the saying goes, “a mind without desires makes a character noble.” A person may be without glamorous outfits or sensual enjoyments, but as long as he or she is not greedy for anything, he or she will naturally be noble in character. A person who is detached and without desires does not get jealous or compare himself with others, does not oppose or fight with others, and does not treat people or matters with arrogance and insolence, but follows any conditions with perfect ease. Take the many eminent and virtuous people throughout history, for example. They earned the respect of others not because of their wealth, but because of their moral integrity nurtured through living simple but content lives. They are the true models of living the philosophy of emptiness.

While most people pursue wealth and fame, they need to know that a beautiful life with a broader vision can be attained by “enjoying” instead of “possessing.” For example, although I do not own the mountains, rivers, lands, flowers, and trees, I can still wander through them in a carefree manner. Is this not happiness? While someone else may own the entire world and I do not, I can still enjoy the cool breezes and the bright moon. I can still care for the world I live in and regard all people as my brothers and sisters. To be able to enjoy the entire universe and the vast emptiness makes my world bigger and broader than owning a town, a city, a country or immeasurable wealth. Hence, life is not about the pursuit of what we can own, because no matter how much we have, we can never satisfy our greed. Enjoy life with a detached mind and happiness and contentment will be found everywhere.

Detachment and contentment give rise to the strengths of concentration and wisdom. The more detached you are, the more concentrated you can be, and thus, the more you are able to redefine the meaning and value of life.

Detachment and contentment means: there are things we should do, things we should not do in life; there are things that we should desire, things we should not desire in our minds. When we can be content, we will not be enslaved by life and will be able to settle both body and mind to enjoy the wealth and happiness of contentment. Therefore, detachment and contentment are true wealth, and people who understand detachment and contentment will naturally have happiness and peace in life.

2. Happiness and peace come from compassion and tolerance
Compassion is an asset jointly owned by all living beings; it is not exclusive to Buddhism. Only when there is compassion can humanity coexist in mutual prosperity.

Compassion is not a demand on others, nor is it a standard by which we judge people. It is a way to discipline ourselves. Compassion does not mean blind tolerance to physical attack or verbal abuse. When justice is threatened or when good people are being slandered or attacked, we should stand up bravely for them. Compassion is not a momentary emotion, but a persistent service for others. Compassion is not just being kind only to our friends and family, nor does it mean we are to expect anything in return. Compassion is not always about praises and encouragement. Sometimes, in the interest of common well-being or to subdue the head-headed, an angry expression is required to subdue villains. This is actually the greatest and most difficult form of compassion.

There are no enemies in the eyes of compassion. Compassion brings good affinities. Compassion harmonizes self and others, and is one with the universe. As the saying goes, tolerance fosters greatness; with compassion and tolerance, we can naturally unite people and create many supporting conditions.

However, compassion and tolerance alone are not enough. They need to be supplemented by wisdom. In this world, the meaning of compassion is often distorted, leading to excessive indulgence and turning a blind eye to what is wrong. When applied inappropriately, compassion can become the source of crimes and wrongdoings. For instance, the common practice of freeing live animals actually causes harm to more animal lives. Inappropriate and lavish giving of money only nurtures greed and corruption. Therefore, true compassion and tolerance must be supplemented by prajna wisdom to prevent traveling down the wrong path, rendering the initial intentions futile.

Looking at the conflicts in this world, they are usually caused by intolerance between different nations, cultures, races, and religions. Poverty gaps and social stratification are the causes of various conflicts, a problem faced by humanity as a whole. If we wish to be free from these dilemmas, compassion and tolerance are the only solution. Only compassion and tolerance can help to resolve conflicts, prevent wars; only compassion can enhance and sustain world peace.

3. Happiness and peace come from letting go and picking up with perfect ease
Very often, we hear people complaining about the stresses and anxieties of life, and relationships that become too much to bear. Exactly what is causing this lack of peace for the body and mind? When we feel too much pressure in this world, it is usually due to our lack of willingness to let go. Unable to let go, the human mind is constantly worried about all kinds of interpersonal problems, troubled by disputes over right and wrong, and plagued by all types of comparisons.

I often use the suitcase as a metaphor for life: we pick it up when we need to, and we let go of it when it is time to do so.  When we pick up something, we should be able to shoulder the responsibility with courage, with the resolve and sense of mission in serving. When it is time to let go, we should also follow conditions and let go in a calm and composed manner. The ability to let go makes it easy to pick up again. When you are willing to take a step forward, there will be hope for the future.

In picking up, we are picking up right mindfulness, right actions, right speech, right thought, compassion, morality, good conditions, and diligence. In letting go, we should have the flexibility to be big or to be small, to give or to take, to have or not to have, and to stay high or to lie low.

We should let go of our greed for fame and gain as well as attachment to troubles and defilements.  We should even let go of the delusive thought of having to let go of something. Picking up and letting go are two sides of the same coin; they are equally important. To pick up does not mean to fight for something; it is a resolve, a form of tolerance, and wisdom. To let go does not mean to ride on a loose rein and indulge oneself; it is the bodhisattva spirit of giving, only making contributions and not expecting anything in return. Knowing to let go allows us a much bigger world; being brave to pick up permits our short and limited life to be more at ease. Because we learn to give, naturally, happiness and peace will follow us.

4. Happiness and peace come from altruism and selflessness
No man is an island. We all must rely on various causes and conditions to survive. In other words, the life of a person is closely tied to all walks of society. However, the greatest flaw of humanity comes from selfishness and attachment. Only within simplicity can the greatest truth be found; only within the most ordinary can a longstanding path be found.

People who only think for themselves will not only lack the affinity and support of others, but will also encounter difficulties in accomplishing tasks without the strength afforded by teamwork. Being selfless and altruistic expands our hearts and saves us from being self-centered.

In daily life, each and every thought can be a point for cultivation. If we can face the world with selflessness, altruism, detachment, and no desires, then we will naturally have respect and tolerance for everything. As such, our lives will benefit so much more, and happiness and peace will come naturally.

To sum up, happiness and peace are what everyone seeks and the vision all humanity strives to attain. A happy outlook in life brings peace in living. It is my hope that everyone can nurture a character of contentment and detachment, have a mind of compassion and tolerance, learn to pick up and let go with perfect ease, and achieve a character of selflessness and altruism. Let us work together, contribute to the happiness and peace of humanity, that is filled with happiness and peace here and now.

Last but not least, may you hearts be filled with Dharma joy, and may each and every one of you live a life of happiness and peace.

Some thoughts of mine

“To love is not to have.” – How many of you have such a thought?

I do.

For me, that is “detachment” that I have to practice, over and over again. The things that we love can be human being, things, animals, success, natures, places, etc.

Actually it’s just an excuse for me not getting hurt further hehe.., also to control my desire, wishful thinking, and avoid thinking too much. Somehow it’s just sad to know that we love something, but we can’t have it, which is due to many reasons.

And this, leads to another sentence, “To love is to let go.”

When you see your loved one is happy with their lives, that’s enough. Let them be free, be happy. Not sure if they are really happy, but by having a thought that seeing them happy, we can be happy too.

Have you ever had thinking like this? “Everything is a dream. Nothing is real. You will realize that one day.” Well, perhaps… , all this is just a dream?

Below is the poem written by James Kavanaugh – for your reading pleasure :)

To Love is Not to Possess

To love is not to possess,
To own or imprison,
Nor to lose one's self in another.
Love is to join and separate,
To walk alone and together,
To find a laughing freedom
That lonely isolation does not permit.
It is finally to be able
To be who we really are
No longer clinging in childish dependency
Nor docilely living separate lives in silence,
It is to be perfectly one's self
And perfectly joined in permanent commitment
To another--and to one's inner self.
Love only endures when it moves like waves,
Receding and returning gently or passionately,
Or moving lovingly like the tide
In the moon's own predictable harmony,
Because finally, despite a child's scars
Or an adult's deepest wounds,
They are openly free to be
Who they really are--and always secretly were,
In the very core of their being
Where true and lasting love can alone abide.

My laptop is still alive!!!

I took out my laptop yesterday from the bag. To my surprise, it was still working well, only got slight problem with the built-in mouse - I couldn't make a left click. Old sickness. I didn't take it out all this while since beginning of this year, before we moved into this house. Thank God it's still in good condition. I still can browse online, open folders, files, etc.

This laptop was purchased in LA in year 2006 during my holiday trip there. I'd been using it a lot until year 2010 when it showed slight problems due to Windows that I had to upgrade and perhaps over storage? Luckily my good friend helped me upgrading it when he came to Singapore for working and I moved files to the portable hard disk to lessen its burden. However, I still stored many old photos, songs, and documents in this laptop, also saved lots of bookmarks (those favorite pages I used to browse) from many years ago. It brought me back lots of memories from the past.

I opened the saved bookmarks and lots of it were not available anymore. Especially the blog addresses. I used to read my friend's blogs, but seemed that many of them had stopped writing and some ignored it. And if you could remember 'friendster', that's the first social media website that connected people together, founded in year 2002. I thanked friendster a lot when it first came, because I could find lots of my school friends that were 'missing' after we left school. During those days, we didn't have internet and mobile phone where we could keep in touch. Many people using its blog service from friendster too. But too bad, in 2009 friendster has changed into a gaming site, since the rising appearance of facebook. All our pages, data, friends lists were all gone in friendster. Automatically, the blog service from friendster had been deleted as well. I used to have one as well, but only posted those forwarded email like jokes, quiz, and so on. It was not there anymore.

Hehehe... I know there is impermanence in this world. It's just that... I hope my laptop can still work in many more years to come. There is a sentimental value behind this machine that I wish to keep with me as long as I can... :)

Good morning Singapore!!!

Below were some photos taken during the Run For Hope today.

Marina Bay Sands and participants running for Run For Hope

Beautiful White and Purple Lotus flowers from the MBS pond :)

I love this reflection so much!!! (Esplanade and Swissotel The Stamford)

Marina Bay Sands and Museum Art Science

Collyer Quay - Downtown Core, Singapore

Singapore Financial Center or Marina Bay Financial District

Marina Bay Sands

Clarke Quay in the morning

I just realized that Singapore is indeed beautiful, especially in the morning :) If you visit Singapore, make sure you visit those places in the morning. Hope you enjoy the photos :)

Run For Hope at Padang

PY, PW, Baobei and Me

Run For Hope (RFH) is an annual charity event organised by Four Seasons Hotel Singapore, Regent Singapore and the National Cancer Centre Singapore (NCCS) to raise much-needed funds for cancer research. This year, our company has participated the event once again. However the participation will depend on the individual staffs whether to join or not, and they can ask their friends and family to join as well.

I had participated the event twice and today was my 3rd encounter. For the past few years, the event was held in East Coast Park, but this year, it was held in Padang, in the center of the city of Singapore. There were 2 categories of run. One is 3.5 km Fun Run, suitable for families and friends, who wish to have a meaningful bonding time with a scenic city view by supporting a worthy cause. Another one is for the avid runner, to run for 10 km. We, of course, chose the 3.5 km one, hehehe..... :D

I asked my son to join, and my two other friends participated as well. Early this morning, we took the first MRT at 6.03am to go to my working place first. I needed to take some items for my friend and we had sandwich and water first before went out (to fill some energy up). From there, we walked out to Padang, which was about 10 minutes walk from my working place, together with the rest of the colleagues. There were 50 people registered from our side. Some took 10 km, but most of them took 3.5 km one.

Starting Point

We started it off at 7.45am. The weather was great! A little bit of sunshine, then covered by cloud. My son tried his best to walk fast. During the journey, he was so quiet and tried to endure with the pain and tiredness. Hahaha... My dear son was not used to it... But at least he did it. We all finally managed to reach the end point and finally we could see him smiling again... especially after he was allowed to eat McDonald for breakfast..... hahaha....

Can you spot my son?? :)

Compare his face with this one, after McDonald Big Breakfast injection... hahaha.... :P

Btw, I just had a look at my ex-colleague's fb this afternoon and found out that his wife passed away on November 1st due to cancer. She was diagnosed with cancer since year 2008. She had undergone Herceptine cancer treatment and recovered. However, the cancer cell had spread to her right lymph node and went for chemotherapy. I have lost contact with my ex-colleague after he resigned in Jan 2011 and only today I found out about the news. So sad. She was still quite young and left 3 children which are still very young too... I just hope my friend can be strong, as no matter what, life has to go on. Hope the three children will be able to cope and accept the loss of their beloved mom.

Many people died because of cancer. My father-in-law was one of them. Hope the charity collected today will be used properly for the right purpose, which is the progressive breakthroughs made by the NCCS team that can lead to a cure. Sadhu Sadhu Sadhu.

Regular visit with unexpected changes

After 5 months, I went for my regular check up again on Thursday. Dr. Lui was surprised to see my short hair. Hahaha.... Looked like he preferred me with a long hair :P Well, the result of the blood and urine test was good. He prescribed me with less dosage of prednisolone. Currently I took it 5 days per week and he reduced it to 4 days per week, 3 days per week and 2 days per week for one month period each.. The other medicine is still maintained at the same dosage. He would like to see if there is any reaction to my body with the reduction of the medicine and want to see me again in 11 weeks time :)

When I walked out from Dr Lui's room, a lady stopped me. She introduced herself and explained to me on why she stopped me. She asked if I can participate in the research study for SLE patients. What I have to do is to go to the hospital once a month, bring samples of urine and stool, do the blood and tear test, and answer general questionnaires. They will analyze the results of the samples for some study. It requires one year to do so.

Good thing is: I can stop whenever I want to; they will accommodate my time; and if the results show something unusual, they will also inform Dr Lui about it. He will then ask me to come for earlier appointment to check my situation; also, they will reimburse my transport of $30 per session.

At first, I was hesitating. It is inconvenient to prepare those samples required. Lucky no need to fast. As for stool, if I can't get one, that's alright because we can't force the nature call to come as we want. I am fine with the blood test, but never done the tear test before. She said, a piece of paper will be put at the corner of my eye and I have to close my eyes for 5 minutes so that enough tears can be collected as tears contains protein that can be useful to measure something. Every month I have to take time-off from office and purposely go there to submit all the samples.

The lady told me that so far she has gained about 60 patients. I was thinking, 60 only? It means it is not easy to get someone who is willing to do so. Not sure on how many patients who have the same illness, but Singapore is so small. I guess those who are in stable condition like me is not much. Talking about convenient? My office is not so faraway from the hospital (it's only 2 MRT station plus shuttle bus to the building or walk around 15 mins). It is not that from north to south or from west to east.

Some more, if the research can benefit the future development, or for next generation patients, why not? At least I can contribute something right? In the end, I agreed to sign the form. I collected the empty bottles and the empty questionnaire form that I can fill up before going for my appointment. I told her that I will go there during my lunch time so that it will not affect my working time so much. Hope everything goes well :)

In 5 months time, there are some changes in the hospital. Now we can use the self-register machine to register ourselves. No more putting the appointment card into the tray and wait until my name to be called (less human contact and less waiting time). The queue number will be printed out from the machine immediately after scanning our appointment card to the machine. We wait outside the room and wait until our number was displayed.

The pharmacy that I used to go at B1 was closed too. Now everyone has to go to the 1st floor. It's a BIG pharmacy. First, you have to submit your prescription to the counter. Since everyone has to go to only 1 place, queue is unavoidable. After submitting your prescription, the person will hand in a small paper containing your queue number.

After seeing the doctor, I handed in my appointment card to the tray and waited for the admin officer to give me the next appointment date and make payment. And usually, right after that, I will go to the pharmacy first to hand in my prescription, then go back to the clinic, get my appointment date, and make payment, to save the waiting time.

When I returned back to pharmacy, there were 30 people before me who also registered their prescription.
There were many people sitting down and waiting. Since I expected it to be slow, I went to other place to buy soya milk and peanut pancake, as a tea break hehe...

When I returned, I was surprised to see the number moved very fast. It was almost my turn. There were about 8-10 counters who distributed the medicines and previously, you could see there were windows at their back where the pharmacist would pass the medicine to front area. Now the back part was all covered with wooden partition and you could find a conveyer belt delivering the medicines that were put inside the white basket. Hahaha...

Conveyer belt behind them flows from right to left direction

Conveyer belt is not only be used to deliver luggage or sushi, but now it can also be used to deliver the medicine.... What an efficient process and increase in productivity with a help of technology!! No wonder they closed the pharmacy at B1. They focused all the manpower at the bigger pharmacy plus the help of the technology!!!

Unclaimed queue area

The photo above was taken at unclaimed queue area. The belt moved from right to left. So this area was on the left side. After passing by pharmacist, there would be baskets flowing with no medicines claimed by the patients yet. So there was a room beside these seats which stored the unclaimed baskets.

And after the baskets were emptied, they will put it into the place as seen at the photo, and will be transferred back to the place behind this partition wall, where the medicines were prepared. Interesting right?? :)

Payment will then be made in other counter beside this area.

I'm sure many elderly are not getting used with the new process. The numbers in the screen move very fast. Even I missed out my number. That's why I went to this unclaimed area and collected my medicines. Hahaha..... And that's why I could take the photos above :D

Running man fever

Last Saturday I finally met up with my school friends who also stay here. It's been months since we last met. They were asking me to meet them and another friend somewhere back in June. But since I moved house in Feb, I was very lazy to go out to Orchard area. It was quite a distance to reach there, and it was a very crowded place especially during sale and holiday season. After that meeting, they wanted to go zoo and asked me to go with them. Again, I rejected them due to some other reason. After that, they labeled me as 'anti social', hahaha...... So this time, although I was still down with flu and a bit sore throat, I still went and met up with them.

A came a bit later, so S and I had a walk first. We browsed into an American label branded clothes called Abercombie - It was first time I heard it though... :P It was quite new shop, been there for few months? Anyway, it was our first time entering that shop. We were greeted by handsome and friendly guy after we stepped in. The shop was dark, only illuminated by dimmed yellow lights. Smell of strong perfume could be found in every corner of the shop. The price is very expensive too. A simple t-shirt costs SGD 66 and a simple sweater costs SGD170. Not our taste.. Although the material quality looks good and it feels so soft and smooth, it is made in China. And since it was so dark, my friend was even mistakenly talking with other people who was also wearing black shirt with short hair. She thought it was me. Hahaha... She felt so shamed when she knew it wasn't me...

Since there were still quite some time before A came, we sat down for a hot tea with milk. We chit chatted as there were many things to update. When time's up, we went to other building to meet A. We had our dinner at Cineleisure. I chose Soto Ayam, Indonesian chicken soup as I didn't want to eat spicy food, but I didn't know that the seller put the chili on the soup without asking me in advance and at the end, I still ate spicy food. Haiya......... My other two friends were having green chili smashed chicken. I told them I wouldn't choose that because my Aunt would also bring the original one from my hometown the day after that.. Hehehehe.....

After dinner, we moved to another place. We sat at a coffee shop called Old Town White Coffee, also at the same building. We chit chatted there and enjoyed our drink. I had hot honey lemon, suitable for my sore throat, while the other two were having lemon and blackberry frozen yoghurt. A mentioned my plan to go to South Korea next year, but I told them it's not confirmed yet as I was still waiting for another friend confirmation. Both of them had been there before so they were telling me on what was nice, where to eat the best Korean food, what was cheap to shop, etc.

RUNNING MAN

After that S told us, before you go Korea, you's better watch a show, called Running Man. It's a variety show, much better than Amazing Race, Jacky Go Go Go and others. S explained more about it. It was not a new show as it started since year 2010. S suggested us to watch the first few episodes in order, so that we could understand how the games were played and sometimes there would be connection from the previous episode. The show was participated by Korean famous MCs, singers, actors, etc. Although you didn't know anything about them before, as you watch few episodes, you'd become familiar with them. Choose the one with English subtitle, otherwise you wouldn't be able to understand the whole games were about.

One episode after another, it was sooooo.... funny, hillarious, and entertaining!!! I couldn't control myself. I was just laughing, laughing and laughing, especially the moment where they pour the coffee, sugar, egg yolk, etc and when they threw the dice on the floor to determine how many egg yolk or how many lemon to be poured inside their cup... Hahahahaha.....

My son watched the first episode in his school on Monday. His teacher played the show for them to watch. Later on, he was addicted into it as well. Soon, both of us can watch it together.. Hahahaha....

Yesterday was Deepavali and we had off for one day. In the afternoon, 3 of us went out to Tampines. I hadn't been there since we moved house and we browsed around the 3 shopping mall within few hours... So tiring... We had a cuppa of coffee at about 2.30pm. We went back home around 7pm. I watched one episode after that. Since my throat was dry after laughing, I decided to drink a cup of hot honey lemon in our house balcony, suitable for a cool after-raining day.

At 11pm, I tried to sleep. To my nightmare, I couldn't sleep at all. I tossed my body left and right, up and down, still couldn't fall asleep. It was 12.14am and I was still awake. It must be the effect of the caffeine that I took that afternoon, plus the honey lemon??? Alamak!!!

I decided to grab my ipad and watched it on my bed. I put the ear piece so I wouldn't disturb my sleeping hubby. I watched episode 14. As I said, when you watched it, you couldn't control yourself to laugh!! I was laughing, giggling, and shook my body along, until my hubby got irritated and told me not to watch and remind me that I'll have to work tomorrow morning. I continued watching but with silence giggling and laughing at heart... Hahahaa.... So difficult to control... But at least, no more complain, until this morning, he called me to share his irritation last night. Hahahahahaha......

I watched it until 2.15am and before sleeping, I prayed hard that I could wake up when alarm ring! I had less than 5 hours to sleep last night. Now, I am still quite awake, wah, the effect of the caffeine was really strong!!! Better remind myself not to drink coffee after 12pm, especially when next day I have to work.

In conclusion, if you want to see what type of show that made me crazy by laughing and giggling myself, you can watch it online on youtube. But not all episodes were shown there. There are other website that contains the whole episode. But slowly enjoy the show as it's now 120 episodes already... Hehehehe....

Gotta work now!! Enjoy your day!!! 2 more days to Friday!! :)

FAMILY

I LOVE YOU ALL ALWAYS!!!

This photo is dedicated to my family :) Although we're located in different places, in my mind, we're always together!!! Like said above, we argue, we fall out, we make up, we love. Hope all of you feel the same too....

Cover duty month

My collegue takes a 1.5 weeks leave this month. After that, another colleague will be on training for 2.5 days and will take half day leave. That's why I put the title 'cover duty month'.

Due to nature of my job, I have to cover two person's duty when they are not around. Usually other people, depend on their post, will cover another person duty. But it's ok, I still can manage, as long as they their leave as per planned, not last minute, and not during busy month-end closing.

Actually I'm lucky enough that I can take long leave in this place. Some people, due to the nature of their job, can't even take leave during weekend. Or even if they take, when they return back to work, they still have to do their works as noone helps to cover their jobs when they're not around.

I woke up early today as I couldn't sleep. I think because of the medicine that I took last night. I caught flu again yesterday. It was raining heavily 2 days ago when I went out for a walk after lunch. It was fine when I left the office, but when I wanted to return back, it was raining so heavy. Although I had my umbrella with me, I chose to wait. After 20-minutes waiting, the rain still went on. It's already past my lunch time. I went inside again, having a warm dessert, but too bad it wasn't as warm as what I expected, then had a one big walk inside the building, then went out. The rain still went on, but it was lighter. So I went back to my office.

The air-con was so cold everyday inside the office. I have to wear sweater everyday everytime, sometimes I even put a shawl around my neck when I wear top cloth with no collar. People who enter my office will find me weird, as if I am in winter season. Ironically, my other colleague, always feels that it is never cold enough. He even turns on the additional air-con that directly blows into his position. Hehehe....

And two days before, my son forgot to turn on the timer of our room's air-con. Usually we set a timer so the air-con will stop at 3.30am. That's why I didn't feel well yesterday morning. Seems like my flu came back visiting me, and that's why I took the medicine last night, and I couldn't sleep now...

Hubby and son can't sleep without air-con. That's why I can't isolate myself in no air-con room. Although I put on blanket, it won't be able to cover my face. Still feels dry on my throat and nose.

Just hope I can get well soon... These few days weather really keeps changing between hot and raining. November rain... Like a song title... Hahaha...

Christmas is coming in one month's time. There is Christmas decorations already in shopping malls. Shops has started selling the Christmas presents. I love to see the special edition Christmas chocolates although I don't really eat it. I haven't yet browsed the Orchard road, where usually the Christmas decoration will be put along the road and inside the mall will have different theme of Christmas decoration. Usually me and hubby will take one day or one night to browse around the Orchard road and take pictures :) See if I can do it too this year. Will share the photos here.

TGIF!!! Today I will be busy, covering my friend's duty... Hehehehe.... But tonight, I've planned to watch finish my Korean series. 4 more episodes to go, means 4-5 hours watching. I'm gonna burn the midnight oil later hahaha.... Don't know if it will result in happy or sad ending, but usually it will end in happy ending. Unlike real human lives, we really have to face the unexpected in lives. It may be something that makes us happy :) or something that makes us pretty sad until we don't desire to live anymore. No matter what, how we look at it will depend on ourselves, won't it?

Kinda hungry now... What should I eat for my breakfast later??? I miss vegetarian wantan noodle sold in market near my previous house...Too bad it's kinda far from here, otherwise I could just wake up now, get myself ready, and slowly enjoyed my breakfast before heading to office to work...... :D

Well, hope all of you enjoy your day! Have a great weekend and take care of your health! Some people enjoy busy life, some people, like me, enjoy a simple live... No matter what type of life you choose, you can't ignore your health! Hehehe... Seems like I am talking to myself hahaha... Happy Friday everyone!!! :)

Golden Girl VS Golden Gate

True Golden Girl :D

My parents just visited my 2nd sis in HK. Pa (my father) told Erjie (2nd sis) that he plans to go to another place next year. Erjie said, "Wah, maybe I can join you...", and Pa replied, "It is not easy to bring you along, as you have to take care your two children and husband. Unlike Meiqi (me), since her mother-in-law is able to take care her son." So Erjie replied, "Then, maybe I can join you 10 years later when my children have all grown up." Pa replied her again, "10 more years later, I may not have the energy to travel anymore...." (Pa is 65 years old this year)

Dajie (my eldest sis) laughed hard when she saw my Erjie message in what’s app and told Erjie, “Aiya, you just wash your clothes la… You don’t need to wonder when Pa praised Meiqi because she is the Golden Girl. Unlike me, Golden Gate. Hahahahaha…” She continued, “That’s why you don’t need to expect much ya… Just wash your clothes la… (Fyi, Erjie is a housewife). I’m who stay in Jakarta also never been asked to go along…”

Erjie said, “Yaya… No wonder you laughed so hard, because you also have the same fate as me.. Hahaha… Treatment for Golden Girl is indeed different…. Hey Meiqi, we’re just joking, okay?” She continued, “Hey Dajie, 10 more years later, are you still strong enough to travel???” Dajie said, “I think, yes… If not, there is wheelchair mah, later we can take turn to sit and to push… hahahahaha….”

Dajie continued, “Last time Pa was given lots of Meiqi’s saliva when she was fetched by motor to school. So they always stick together even until now.” – This refers to my primary school time. My school was located quite far away from my house.  My Mom put me there since the nearby school did not accept me to enter since my age was a bit young and they wanted me to wait for another year to enter. Of course my Mom rejected because she thought age was not the problem and she thought I could catch up with the curriculum.

So, every morning, there was a driver who will drive me to school and Pa would fetch me by motor after class.  I sat behind him with a helmet on a hot weather. After a tiring school, it often made me sleepy and fell asleep. While sleeping, I would drop saliva on his back :P~ hahaha……. Sometimes I could hear the other rider warned my father and told him that I was sleeping – That person worried I would fall down. But not to worry, I always held my Pa’s waist so hard so I wouldn’t fall down even I was sleeping hahaha…..

My sisters always make a fun of me. They always feel that Pa loves me the most. I believe every parent love all of their children with same weight, but in different way. Pa asks me to travel with them, since I was the only one who was able to get away from home. First, there must be hubby’s permission. Their hubbies love them too much until they can’t live without their wives hehehe… :D , and second, there must be someone who is able to take care their children (Erjie and Sanjie (3rd sis) have to take care the children themselves), while I am quite lucky with my mother-in-law around.

Erjie also mentioned those punishments received when they were young. Well, I was also punished before by Pa, only that they were too old and too busy to know… hahahaha….. Sanjie was my partner-in-crime and sure she’d know about it :D Well, I write until here. Hope all of you have a great day and be content with what you have :) Ciao!

It's November!

Another weekend passes by. Yesterday, me, Baobei, and 2 of my buddies went for lunch at Chili's, Clarke Quay. It was to celebrate PY's birthday. Ellen also passed few snacks to me and PY as she had just returned from her holiday in Hokkaido, Japan. Tq Ellen! :)

Lunch at Chilis

After that we went to Bugis, praying at Kwan Im Temple. Then had a walk including OG and Bugis Junction. We separated thereafter. I felt sleepy after having my flu medicine and decided to go home. Ellen also went back home. She wasn't feeling well too these past few days. PY continued her walk to another temple and meet her friends.

I received a call at about 4.30pm. My friend, Sheryn, invited us to have dinner in her house, which is located just the opposite of my block. We're living under the same HDB complex. Her hubby likes to cook during weekend and usually he cooks with quite big portion and two of them wouldn't be able to finish. And last weekend, we also invited both of them and her hubby's best friend to our house, to have beer at our 'Beer Garden', hehehe..., it actually refers to our home's balcony :)

Beer Garden

That night me and hubby were relaxing in our balcony and had a beer. I posted the photo in fb and they read it. Since they were free, and we had beer stocks inside our fridge, I asked them to come, anyway, it's only a three-minute walk to our house. So they came, and we had beer, snack, and chit chatted whole night. It's a good session to know each other as well, since my hubby hadn't met her hubby before. Sheryn is my hubby's NS (National Service) friend's ex-wife. We chit chatted and didn't realize how time flies and when looked at the clock, it was 1.30am already. So they went back home and that's also why they invited us to their dinner. Hehehe....

At 7pm, we walked to their house. Their best friend, Bernard, and his wife and son were also there. His wife cooked Prawn cereal and helped David to cook. When we reached, the food were almost ready. Sheryn showed us her house. They just moved there around 2 months and will have housewarming next month. Although we stay in the same complex, our building structure and layout is different. So we browsed around and had a look.

Stir-fried Kangkong w/ Dried Prawn and chilli, Prawn Cereal, Curry Chicken, Fried Egg w/ Bacon and Onion

That was our menu for dinner. Most food was spicy, except for the egg. I brought 'emping' with sweet soya sauce as compliment for the dishes. Hehehe.... All was finished... :)

Me and hubby, Sheryn and David, Bernard, Stephy and Bosco

Thank you for their warmth food that filled our stomach. Sheryn also served Konnyaku fruit jelly as dessert :)

We went back home at 9.30pm after watching TV show there. I watched few episodes of Korean series before went to sleep and today I woke up quite late hehehe... My son couldn't even wait for me and cooked his own instant noodle with egg. He was so happy that he could break the egg himself successfully :)

We went out at 2pm. I had our lunch at food stall near Bus Interchange and met my mother-in-law there who was also having her lunch. Then me and Baobei took MRT to Compass Point. We went to library to return the books and borrowed few books back. Baobei went to buy his Gundam. He has saved his own pocket money so that he could buy his favorite toys. I waited for him choosing the one he likes.

After that, we went back home. It was raining. I had only 1 umbrella, so we shared. But as we walked, the rain got heavier. So me and Baobei walked faster and we got ourselves wet at the end. Hahaha.... Imagine, one small umbrella for both of us... :D

Good accompany for a cool raining day :)

We took a bath once we reached home. I boiled water and made Milo (chocolate milk) for both of us. I opened our balcony door and let the cool air coming into our living room. We ate Yakun kaya toast with Milo, a perfect combination for a cool raining day..... :) Baobei then continued building his Gundam.

Baobei and his new Gundam :)

 It's still raining outside. Good weather to sleep... Hahahaha... Nolah, I will continue watching my Korean dramas. Enjoy the rest of the weekend everyone!!!

I hate flu :(

Instead of getting better, it gets worse :( I went to see doctor yesterday after work because I don't think the medicine that I took worked. My nose was dried and pain hiks......

Happily went back home, having my dinner and medicine. Went to sleep at about 11pm. I thought things got better... Who knows I woke up at 2am and until now I couldn't fall asleep due to my running nose... Huaaaaaa..... Tomorrow I have to work due to month-end and no excuse of getting sick for the next two days. I took the previous medicine to stop the running nose and to fall asleep faster (drowsy medicine).... Hope I can fall asleep soon....

In the evening, I called back home from the office. My son told me a good news!! He was asking me to guess how much he got for his recent English exam. Out of 50, guess how much did he get??? I told him.. Hm...... 40? Hehe... Better to guess lower since it's his favorite subject. He was so happily telling me, no, it's 47 out of 50. I could hear the joy from his sound. He said, that was the highest mark in his class and only 2 persons got it.

So I asked him, "What do you feel when you get good grades?". He answered, "Happy..." And what do you feel if you get a bad grades?". And he said, "Sad..." So, you know what you have to do for tomorrow's exam ya??? He just laughed and smiled2.

I don't expect much the exam results from the other 3 subjects... So far, he could only score for this English, and not including composition. He is quite lazy in developing story. Not yet about those grammar mistakes.... Like usual, I just leave it to nature.. The exam is his, so he is the one who goes through it and gets the results from it. We can just support him from behind. For me, I just wish him for happiness. Passu, the Bhutanese blogger, came out the GNH (Gross Happiness Model) improved model. I was asking him how can we, as a parent, use the model to improve the GNH of our child. Hahahaha...... Am I a little bit too much??? Well, at the end of the day, the goal is to find out the purpose in whatever they are learning so that they find purpose in their lives. We'll see.... :)

Going to sleep again.. Try to.. Hope I can wake up and get ready to work later.... Good night.... :)