Miscellaneous Reflections

I was very upset when the rain decided to cry for five minutes, just hours after I had washed my car. It was horrid. Mud smudge. But then, yesterday's downpour for about nine hours gave my poor car that little bit of dignity back.

//

An urgent meeting was called at short notice today regarding pay structure for the next financial year. I didn't attend but received a letter re the matter. I'll have questions once the changes sink into my saturated brain.

//

Make the most of your Queen Esther moment. Jesus says "I am King. I will lead". Thank You Lord for reminding me today.

My not so pearly whites

Made an eventual trip to the dentist a couple of weeks ago. I was so overdue for a tooth checkup. My last visit to the man with the nifty dental plague remover was way back in October 2004. You can call me a procrastinator (well, what’s new?) and I guessed there’s no harm paying the dentist a visit since I am now entitled to a free teeth checkup, scale and clean twice a year, courtesy of my private health insurance cover of which we all pay increasingly high premiums for.

My pearly whites are slowly turning brown, no thanks to the hot caffeinated drinks that I now consume in an alarming manner. The air conditioning in my building isn't too weather friendly, unfortunately. A jacket just doesn't cut it as my internals are still freezing cold. Some people look at me funny for drinking hot water. Hey buddy, whatever keeps me warm, I'll do it. Besides that, I usually have a hot drink of milo for breakfast, a cup of black tea for morning tea, and a hot chocolate for afternoon tea. Recently I’ve found delight in indulging into a stronger hit of caffeine - instant but frothy three-in-one lattes, spiced up with a hint of vanilla or hazelnut flavours. Yumm. And I used to wonder why Australians can’t start their day without their cuppa. I'm in their shoes right now.

Anyway, back to my dental dilemma. My dentist is concerned for my lower two wisdom teeth, growing at an angle that warrants attention, possibly causing holes in the adjacent healthy tooth. X-ray is the only way for him to know if the situation is critical, or maybe he just wants me to go back for consultation and squeeze more money for himself.

I don't know if I really want know how bad it really is. Jem rocked up to cell group (or life group as my church calls it) earlier tonight with a swollen left cheek after her wisdom teeth extraction a week ago. After her day surgery, she could hardly walk, felt groggy from the heavy medication and pain killers, and was nauseous most times. It's freaking me out. Please be kind to me, dear wisdom tooth. If you can just quietly hide in that little corner, I promise to eat more potato chips and chocolates to satisfy your desires. Can this trade work?

My fifteen minute dental therapy session finished with a floride swab that tasted like melted marshmellow. Double yum.

Conquering D.F.O.s

window shopping
totally unproductive
charcoal grey
carpark fiasco
sambal belacan kangkung
horrid table manners
green apple green tea with green apple coconut jelly
tension monitor
little toe blisters

In StoryLand

Overdue entry, but nonetheless. Made a second trip to Hunter Valley in the space of only four months. I must say the first trip back in January was pretty rushed, so this was more laid back and relaxing. First winery stop was at Iron Gate Estate, where the group made the most wine purchases after some good persuasion and delicious chocolate cakes that complimented the sweet wines well. I'm all for sweet wines and dessert wines. Yum.



After lunch, we hopped over to the Hunter Valley Gardens. The pictures speak for themselves. Storyland Garden brought back a lot of childhood memories.

Jack, Jill and friends went up the hill
To fetch a pail of water
Jack fell down and broke his crown
And everyone came tumbling after!

Humpty Dumpty sat on the wall
Humpty Dumpty had a great fall
Everyone who went to garden
Was glad that Humpty is one again

Crashing in at The Mad Hatter's Tea Party


Georgie Porgie puddin' and pie
Kissed the girls and made them cry
When he tried to get another peck
I gave him a slap, oh what the heck!


Enjoying the tranquility of the Japanese pagoda in the oriental garden


So many more gardens not mentioned - enough said! Go visit.

Dessert Night

Yumm....big red juicy strawberries dipped in rich smooth chocolate fondue, perfectly complimented with a variety of dessert wines. Heavenly.

For rent

One bedroom for rent end of June. Fully furnished. Central city location and close to the beach, public transport and supermarkets. Perfect for those looking for convenience (and lazy buggers). Female only. No smokers. Must be able to live with a nocturnal white creature constantly roaming the living room for flies and bugs.

Laptop is crooked too

My laptop is in hospital. It has been sick for a long while now. It’s not terminal –thank goodness for that- otherwise I’ll be devastated if all my digital photos stored in my laptop were lost. And no, I didn’t back it up. Silly me.

The Problem
MSN messaging is stuffed. In addition to that, I can’t log on to most websites that require passwords, and I’m possibly starting to annoy my poor housemate by my constant intrusion on her mac.

The Solution
Tried to get assistance over the phone from computer-literate friends, but it frustrates me when I can’t find what they want me to look for. A brief conversation with a friend at band practice restored my confidence that it’s not too late. He has offered to fix it, for free. Yey!

The Results
I hope to hear good news by the end of this week. That will eliminate sneaky entry blogs at work and restore my housemate’s full usage of her laptop for her assignments.

The Contingency Plan
A new laptop!

For show

Would you also have jumped out of your shoes if you walk into a toilet cubicle and see this?



I hate creepy crawlies - even the fake ones.

His greatness

I was almost energy-drained. Not that I had a long day or anything to whinge about, yet the dawning thought of knowing it's Saturday tomorrow and I don't have to work seems to almost switch the gear into neutral by 4pm. I was tired, yet fully attentive at the young adults meeting tonight. Luiz, ahh he's such a sweet kind boy and he permeates that aura even as he makes his appearance as a debut preacher. He is so cool and funny. He'll make a good pastor, I'm sure.

He spoke about God and His amazing greatness tonight, and that got me thinking - and eventually mind wandering. When my grandfather passed away a few weeks ago, I thought about a lot of things. I realised I haven't achieved much in making a Jesus difference with my relatives. It was sad and disappointing, knowing that I won't be seeing my grandfather in heaven. Occassionally I had prayed for their salvation, but that's not going to be good enough. I will persevere to pray for my grandmother every day, and my relatives. I pray for an interceder, someone who can relate to them and speak their language, that of which continues to be the major barrier between us. But I know my grandparents respected who we believe in, and more importantly who mum now believes in. They had never forced us to hold any prayer sticks or bow to their prosperity and kitchen idols. They know we are different, yet they haven't heard too much about the good news.

I reflected on my conversations with God and realised that many a times, I like to use generic words. Lord, I pray for the salvation of my family and friends. OR Lord, bless me with all things good. Of course, God is a God of all things, who knows it all. Let me encourage us to pray more specificly. If you have names of friends or relatives you'd like to see saved, speak their names out and lay them at the feet of Jesus. God loves specifics. He loves details. He is so awesome yet wants to know more. Tell Him. He is interested.

I sat behind Luke who was wearing a white holey t-shirt. Initially I was amused by all the intentionally and fancy-made holes all over his top. Looking at my own brown and stripey Zara top I was wearing, I remember getting upset when I found two holes at the back of my newly bought top. I had only worn it twice! How those holes came to being was beyond me. The third time I wore it and washed it, a third hole appeared. Anyway, the holes behind Luke's t-shirt isn't the point. At the top left hand corner of his t-shirt were the words "In God We Trust". What a timely reminder for me. God I truly trust you. I know I like to speed things up and ramble on and whinge when things aren't happening, but I want to be faithful and believe that You will do things in Your own time. Help me to be patient. Help me to be faithful.

I trust You.

I love the words from United's latest song - From the Inside Out

A thousand times I've failed, still Your mercy remains
And should I stumble again, still I'm caught in your grace

Everlasting, Your light will shine when all else fades
Neverending, Your glory goes beyond all fame

Your will above all else, my purpose remains
The art of losing myself in bringing you praise

In my heart and my soul
Lord I give you control
Consume me from the inside out, Lord
Let justice and praise
Become my embrace
To love You from the inside out

And the cry of my heart is to bring You praise
From the inside out, Lord my soul cries out

Slowly but surely

I went back to work today after taking a good one and a half days off. A couple of my colleagues commented that I sounded terrible. My manager walked past my desk and happened to hear me force out a cough. “Why are you at work?” was his immediate response.

Seriously, I was getting bored staying at home. I cannot believe that I am actually saying this. Since knowing the fact that I have unlimited sick leave, I have always look forward to self-declared sick days, even at the slightest hint of a headache or simply to catch up on sleep. And now that I am genuinely crooked, which of course I am entitled to extend my recuperation period, I’d rather be at work than vegetate at home.

There’s just so much Oprah Winfrey and Ellen shows I can watch. There’s no one around to talk to or play with. Everyone’s at work, and the cat doesn’t count as a playmate. I’ve slept enough – even pigs need to wake up, eat and trot around. I’m frustratingly done huffing my nose off - even the philtrum is starting to get sore.

I’ve been told eating ginger or drinking air halia cures a cold. I don’t detest the root, but I’m not a big fan. Is there any other quicker way to kill the bug?

On an entirely different note, the overly advertise and anticipated boxing match is on tonight, if anyone cares.

Ga Ga

Made a trip to Glenbrook last Saturday, a town about 40kms away from the Blue Mountains, to attend a friend's baby shower. I seriously didn't know what to expect as I haven't been to one. Hence, I embarrasingly turned up without a present. Not good at all. I plan to make up to that when the baby is born next month. I won't forget.

It was a party to celebrate the imminent arrival of the little one, the gender of which was going to be a surprise, of course. We played games with a distinctly baby theme, one of which was guessing the main ingredients of five mysterious baby food tins. I completely failed this game, with my nose in serious condition by this time. I tried to blame it on hayfever, sighting pollens and the numerous trees around the area as possible causes. Even the cat got the blame, but I knew it couldn't be the cat as I own one myself. It could also be wood dust or tiny wood shavings floating in the house as my friend's dad was into woodcraft. Everything was a possibility, except the fact that I was catching a cold. In the end, I only tasted one correctly - pumpkin. The rest were a mixture of either apple, apricot or pear - I couldn't tell. I couldn't even identify banana custard or mango.

Nibbles and dessert were excellent, and so were the baby bingo game and baby items memory game. We left with a little momento - a pot of pansy.

Can anyone advise this flower bimbo on how to care for one before she drowns it with excessive watering?

Off Sick

I am officially sick.

After huffing and puffing for two whole days, I am seriously tired of pulling tissues out of the box. I did make a two hour appearance at work before convincing myself that I was terribly unproductive and staying a minute longer would cause the virus to travel into the ventilation system, thus infecting the whole building with the B.U.G. My colleague had also noticed red flushes across my face. That was my cue to leave.

Being a good citizen at work, I thought I'd see the doc anyway and get a medical certificate. I stopped by the closest medical centre near home, a place I had serious conviction that the doctors who reside there are completely useless and are just collecting dough for every patient they send out the door after a five minute consultation. And I still visited the centre to see the next available doctor, only because it was convenient and I was only there to grab an MC.

True enough again, the consultation didn't last more than five minutes. The doctor immediately prescribed a nasal spray for my symptoms, treating my condition as an obvious allergy to something over the last couple of days and to make matters worse, I had caught the flu virus. I asked if a particular brand of nasal spray that I previously used is similar to what she just prescribed. She replied the former had steroids. Trying to be naive and obviously not medically educated, I asked what she meant but she couldn't give me a definitive answer. Right. Anyway, use THIS nasal spray, though it's a little bitter, and you'll be fine. How helpful.

Eight hours on, I am still huffing serious muck out of my nose.

Happy Mother's Day

Earlier this week, I reminded myself that I would get mum flowers this year. I have sent pretty cards and little pressies over the years, but never flowers. Hmm, it is strange, I must admit. So I thought flowers would be something out of the ordinary. Come Friday evening, I slumped on the couch after a long weeks' work, watched Bert's Family Feud, followed by the news, then cooked myself some dinner. It then suddenly dawned on me that I had completely forgotten about the flowers. Yes I did procrastinate (just a little, I swear!) and quickly made an overseas phone call to a local florist near my house. Thank goodness they were still open, thank my lucky stars for the difference in time zone, and thank the heavenly angels that they were still taking orders!

Scrolling thorugh the photos on the florist's website, I placed the order. The lady over the phone asked again if this was for a Mother's Day gift, and I said yes. She politely told me that the one I wanted was a wedding bouquet. I felt like a total idiot. A flower bimbo. Never mind. I know I was never an expert on flowers anyway. Later my housemate told me that usually carnations are picked for the bouquet. Oh well, mum will have to settle with the roses!

On a different note, my nose is stuffed. my head is heavy, legs are sore.

I hate the F.L.U.

Should I call in sick tomorrow?

The Penguin Trip

You can call me pathetic and an embarrassment. As a former Melbournesider, I have NEVER travelled on the Great Ocean Road, nor have I visited Phillip Island in my five years living in Melbourne. I have NOT camped at Wilson's Prom nor seen gold at Ballarat. Heads shake and eyes pop out. Can't say I was too poor a student then to afford such trips, considering I had two part time jobs while studying.

Anyway, I finally stepped foot on Phillip Island when I was down in Melbourne in March. It was a penguin trip but no photography of any kind was allowed during the penguin parade. That was a shame. I had mixed feelings when I was queuing up to buy tickets for this magical procession. Friends who paid to see the world's smallest penguins on various other occasions had left disappointed when only a small number of them turned up. Tickets weren't cheap to start with.

We rocked up an hour early before the expected arrival of the little ones. There were level platforms facing the sea to sit on and the winds were getting colder by the minute. Hot chocolates and lattes kept us warm. Finally, at the furthest end of the sandy beach where there were piled up rocks, a big group of black and white birds appeared and started making their way onto land. Moments later, another group appeared closer to the crowd. Then another, and another! I was so excited! I'd say there were at least a hundred penguins that turned up that night to find their burrows. At one point, a small group of them ran in between the crowd. People started standing up to catch a closer glimpse of them. I wanted to join in too, and in the process from uncrossing my legs and getting overly excited to stand up, I kinda hurt my ankle ligament. Again. Sigh. That was painful.

And to add to my agony, the guy who squeezed in between myself and another woman did the most uncourteous thing. At one point, I felt a warm sensation under my left thigh. Turning my head, I saw the man holding a half filled cup of hot chocolate. Moments later, my socks felt wet. I touched my sticky soaked up socks and jeans to finally realise that this idiot had spilled his drink on me. He only apologised when I exclaimed my horror. There is a reason why lids are meant to be placed over the takeaway cup, you nincompoop! Grrr...

I eased my frustration with the beautiful company of the penguins after the out-of-the-sea sightings. As we made our way back on the wooden boardwalks, we saw many penguins approaching and staring at us. At only 33cm tall, they were so close to my feet, motionless for most of the time. After that, they started limping about on the sand, resting midway on their bellies, then standing up again and wobbling around. I never expected to see them so up close and personal!

Earlier that day, we attended April's graduation. We almost didn't make it for the photo session - waking up late and getting delayed by the rain. Typical Melbourne habits. I was glad to catch up with some old pals. Everyone looked the same, as though I've never left Melbourne.



And yes, the dude on the far right on the belowmentioned photo is my brother. I know, he doesn't look like me at all, and most likely not as intelligent as I am. Haha. Friends have sworn that he is a big time joker (Krystin nods her head in agreement). I only wonder why I don't see the clown in him at home. The jester being selective in his crowd selection.



Not long after, we were on our way to the island, stopping at San Remo for some fish and chips. First attraction spot was the A Maze'N'Things. We spent a good couple of hours indulging in the intriguing, stimulating and bizarre world of optical illusions, mazes, puzzles, and mind games.

Here we've got Jas the gold digger and my bro having a go on the giant slide. I must say my heart didn't take that dip all too well! My heart didn't have time to find peace when the next section was to find four coloured flags in a huge maze, the whole aim was for you to get lost and find your way out. I hate using my brains, in the end I just followed Jas and Dot who did all the thinking. And because I failed to use my intelligience, I picked the wrong group. My bro and Ahila had found all the flags and wished us all the best as they exited the maze. In the end, a little girl taught us how to cheat in order to find the last flag.

After that, we headed to the blow hole at Summerlands, walking along the boardwalk and enjoying spectacular views of the coast. The wind was roughing out on us, sending constant chilly breezes and freezing our ears and noses, not to mention the various hair dos we had to endure. Lucky us, we spotted four penguins taking shelter under our boardwalks. Those are the only photos I have of those little buggers. Out on the choppy seas, we also spotted seals playing in the water.

The next day we went go karting in view of the Formula One Grand Prix weekend. Since we can't drive the real ones, go karts will do just fine. As usual, I turned up last again with hands in an awful lot of pain after gripping the steering wheel with all my might. I can't help it, somehow my brain justifies it with controlled turns and avoiding embarassing spin offs. Jas had to help rub my hands to relax it a bit.




The koala conservation centre wasn't as exciting as I thought it would be. It was more of who-can-spot-the-koala-in-the-wild kinda thing. There were signs placed earlier in the morning that indicated that a koala was on this particular tree. Imagine it still being there at three in the afternoon. Truly it does sleep twenty hours and spend the remaining hours eating eucalyptus leaves. What a bummer!

On the way back to the city, we detoured a little towards Dandenong only to realise that we weren't going to reach Miss Marples in time for jam and scones. Instead, we dropped by at Ben and Annie's place to see little Charlotte. :) Then it was a matter of eat-all-I-can-for-I'll-won't-be-back-in-a-while-to-eat-Sofia's-most-famous-pasta-mista-for-two! We only had half an hour for dinner, gulped it down within said time, rushed back to the apartment to grab my luggage before engaging into Formula One racing to reach the airport in the nick of time.

To Jas, LH, Dot, and Ahila, thanks for your company. I had so much fun. Will be back to visit again!

Wedding bliss

It was the strangest wedding ever.

She is Japanese. He is Korean. Neither of their parents speak English. Wollongong, where they first met, seemed the most suitable place to hold the wedding. Guess Australia is a neutral ground for both sides. The MC hired for the day wasn't quite informed of our violin-piano duet and a couple of other program items. He had never met the bride nor the groom either. I wonder how he was hired in the first place. Yellow pages? What if he wasn't good looking for an MC? Thankfully he had that overly-caffeinated type behaviour which certainly lifted the mood. The solemniser is another story by itself. He seemed to be constantly making a mockery of the Asian guests, reminding them time and time again that he would be speaking at a s-l-o-w-e-r tempo so that they can understand the words he was about to speak.

There were only eighty guests, including myself - a total stranger, selfishly filling up a spot on the table. I had thought a light lunch would be served. Instead, I had the heaviest wedding lunch in my entire life - an entre of overcooked prawns on skewers, main dish of chicken breast topped with cream sauce, finished with chocolate mousse dessert decorated with strawberries. I shouldn't be complaining, really.

Above all, the newly-weds were extremely happy. No stress, no rush, unlike typical Chinese weddings where the whole world is invited otherwise one of your amazingly distant relative would be offended, so help you god. The bride's dress was simple, yet elegant. Three change of clothes? No nonsense like that. The master of ceremony even had a little competition going on in view of the lack of kissing by the newly-weds, largely due to the lack of glass tapping. First up, an Australian couple showed them how it was done. Next, an Indon-Korean couple lifted the bar that the newly-weds had to surpass. In the end, the groom tipped his bride close to the ground, made the heavily-applauded kiss, and dropped her gently to the ground. Awwww.

I should also mention that I rudely turned away a guy who asked me for a dance. My immediate response was a firm no and I said nothing further. Split seconds later, I realised what I had done. Seriously, I should have at least said:

"No, but thanks for asking." OR
"No, but I really suck at dancing." OR
"No thanks. I'm right."

OR anything along those lines for that matter! He must now think of the most horrible things of me. Sigh, bygones are indeed bygones.

Anyway, in essence, I made music, ate a sumptous meal, got paid when I wasn't expecting to be paid, and received a gift of Sakura-shaped Japanese crackers for contributing to the ambience. I now have another wedding next month to plan for - music please!