Final Post of 2016

It may be NYE, but like all previous years, we have no plans to celebrate it. We were initially invited over to W&Y's place for barbie but Y fell sick yesterday & hence had to cancel. 

1 week of my 2 weeks Christmas shut down gone. But we've kept ourselves busy. Hubs took 2 days leave on the 27th & 28th to spend time with me for my birthday which translated to 6 non working days for him. The thing with me is that if something costs a lot, I need to get it on impulse. If I allow myself to think it over, it never happens. So on impulse, I went to Power Fitness on the 23rd & grabbed 2 sign up forms. (I've long discontinued my work place gym & have extra flabs to show for it.) I thought I would have a hard time convincing hubs to sign up due to ongoing costs. But surprisingly, he didn't protest. Perhaps it was becoz I told him, "This is something I want you to do with me & you can't say no." We headed down the next day to submit our forms, have our photo taken, orientation done & access card given to us. I signed myself up for gym plus unlimited classes & hubs for gym only since I don't think he'll be interested in classes.

Christmas Eve. We went to the gym for the 1st time. When we got home at 7+ pm, I noticed something was wrong with Basil. He wasn't as energetic, he was shaking, he wasn't very interested in his food which never happens. I was concerned & in the end, I made the decision to bring him to a 24 hour vet which cost me $200+. His lower back was tender upon palpation & the vet thought he may have hurt his back. He was given a painkiller injection which made him very woozy. Half an hour later, she felt that he was still responding to palpation & wanted to do some scans & hospitalised him but I chose to bring him home. Otherwise it would have cost us more than $200. I made a good call though for he was back to his usual self the next morning. Sometimes we have to remember that they're a business & we as dog owners do know our dogs better.

We were in Yanchep for a Christmas BBQ lunch organised by my group leader. I learnt it the hard way not to buy Mascarpone on Christmas Eve. It was sold out everywhere. Apparently, tiramisu is a very popular dessert during Christmas time. I was forced to use cream cheese instead which was less than ideal as it taste completely different. I had 3 cocktails & 2 glasses of champagne over the lunch & possibly dinner party. When we finally left at 5+ pm, I've had some barbie items, a fair bit of the various salads & heaps of desserts. Not exactly the best way to start the gym journey. Lol. Well, to our credit, we got home, rested a bit & worked out at the gym. I thought we were very "on", gym-ing at 9 pm on Christmas Day & that the gym would be deserted as everybody's partying away. Hah! There were many others at the gym working out too!

26th. Hubs was asked by his colleague to help feed his fish while he's back in his hometown for 4 weeks. He asked hubs to feed the fish 1, 3 & 5. Hubs questioned the fish not being fed on Sat & Sun but he was told that it was alright. This was Monday on week 2. When we got there, 4 out of 5 fish were belly up. I know nothing about fish other than they're very fragile. Did they die becoz they weren't fed on Sat & Sun? Was it water ph or temperature or lack of oxygen? We didn't know what to do & hubs just scooped out the dead fish. Sorry, I think dogs will fare better with me than fish. Since we were already all the way down south, we went to Cockburn Gateway to buy me my birthday present. I wanted an IPL machine & I just told him to pay for it. When you've been together for so long, presents get increasingly hard to choose. I had $85 (was initially $120 but I spent some of it) birthday money from my colleagues & he just topped up the balance. 

I think it's very true that if you leave it to a man to plan something, it is always left for the last minute & in the end, you have to make do with what's available. I see it in other couples, even more so for hubs. He didn't make any reservations for dinner till 1 week before my birthday only to find that it's all booked out everywhere. (For his birthdays, all plans were already in place 2 months before the actual day.) In the end, Nobu was the only restaurant with availability on 27th at 8.45 pm. We were given a table overlooking the pool. You'd think that it being fine dining, the noise level would be low. We could hardly hear each other talk & despite the waitress attempting to speak really loudly, I still missed chunks of what she said. Dinner came up to almost $300 but it was so good I didn't mind the price. Not that I was paying anyway. Haha.

28th, my birthday. Started the morning with Konga at the gym. It was hard but I did manage to keep up majority of the time. Drove back home & found hubs just waking up. We had lunch at Bullcreek Hawker as recommended by 1 of my colleague. We loved their salt & pepper squid tentacles. It being Wed, we headed down to feed the remaining fish only to find that it had died. Hubs then said that he will return on Friday to drain the tank. It was gym in the evening & though I managed to finish my routine, I struggled badly most likely becoz of the exertion from Konga in the morning. I didn't feel older but I did feel that I really need to stick to a regular exercise regime. I'm not working at the moment which makes going to the gym easy. It is when I restart work that the challenge really begins.

So, we've come to the end of 2016. I've put in good effort at work, which, of course, I'll continue in 2017. I shall make a firmer resolve to take better care of my health & increase my fitness level. Health & peace to all. 

Struggling With Puggy's Loss

This week had been nothing but an uphill struggle. I received the news on Sunday evening. I hardly slept that night, resulting in my previous post at 4 am in the morning. At 5 am, I texted my colleague who lives halfway between me & our workplace, if it was possible that I carpool with her. It takes me an hour to drive to work & she's 30 mins from me. I thought I could hold it together but when we got to work & the usual "How's your weekend?" greetings came, I simply burst into tears. Between sobs, I recounted the story. Even the surgeon came to give me a hug. It was a long day, with us finishing at 6 pm. I didn't eat. I didn't feel like it at all. My eyes felt like sandpaper from all that crying. I finally got home at 7 pm that day.

I was exhausted, sleepy mostly. But despite being so tired, I found myself unable to sleep again. I repeated this routine, arriving home after 7 pm everyday. Hubs tried. He kept asking me how can he make me happy. He brought me out to dinner. He gave me massages every night coz my body was just aching terribly for no apparent reason. At work, I talked, I chatted, I laughed. I still feel the loss. I just didn't show it. I didn't want my colleagues to feel sorry for me.

It's a curse every pet owner must go through. The pain will dull with the passage of time. In the meantime, I just have to sit it through. Everyday, I pray for his soul. I wrote a eulogy for him 2 days ago when FB shared a picture of Puggy that I posted 6 years ago. I spoke from the depths of my soul & I hope wherever he is, he'll receive my message.

6 years ago today. 6 years later today you're gone. If you had only waited just a bit longer, you would be savouring the life we have in stored for you. You're so similar in character to Basil that I'm sure you guys would be the perfect partners in crime, stealing food you know you shouldn't have. I can just imagine you cuddling up with Basil on the doona on cold winter nights.

You were still young, we thought we had time. But you were so suddenly & so unexpectedly taken from us. I chanted for every dog that I know who passed. Everyone of them came to say goodbye. Even DX who detested me came to say goodbye. But I couldn't see you. I couldn't even feel you. Where have you gone? I don't want to hold you back from your next destination. I'm sure a beautiful life awaits you. I have to learn to let you go. You will always be my naughty 2nd son, the one who ate the dining chair. I love you, my boy. Till we meet again.

Puggy's Gone

I can't sleep. I'm consumed by sorrow, anger & most of all, guilt. 11th December. 1 year ago on this day, we brought Basil home to live with us. It started off with an intention to celebrate his 1 year anniversary with us. Nothing out of ordinary. Woke up, watched a movie on Netflix. Hubs had to help a friend collect the tool set he bought from gumtree. Went to Gallaria to buy Chris Cringle present for my work place. While we were there, I bought ingredients to make a meatloaf for Basil from Coles. Came home, watched another movie while fixing up the meatloaf.

Then, I received 2 consecutive missed calls from my dad. I don't answer when he calls becoz I will call back with the calling card which is obviously way cheaper. 2 consecutive calls meant that it was urgent. I quickly called back. He started off by telling me not to get too worked up, that Puggy has passed away. Then he went into cremation details, like how they will collect Puggy the next day, that it will cost this much if we want to leave the ashes at the columbarium & that it will cost this much subsequent months & that it will cost this much if we decide to keep the ashes.

Immediately, I stopped him & demanded to know what happened. At best, it was a story with no head or tail. At worst, it was a load of crap which I couldn't even understand. He said he was walking Puggy when he tried to bite someone. 1st, Puggy has never bitten anyone & being flat faced, I don't think he can actually open his mouth big enough to bite someone's leg. More likely, he wanted to charge at someone. So he yanked at the leash to hold him back. No details on what happened in between. Just that his tongue was hanging out of his mouth. Then, a young lad told him Puggy has no pulse anymore, his body was limp, he had already gone cold. How many hours have passed??? Who is this young lad??? Why didn't you bring him to the vet???

He said he doesn't know where the vets are. When I left for Perth, I gave my parents the names, addresses & phone numbers of 2 vet practice. 1 was for the nearest vet & the 2nd was for the 24 hr vet. This year's CNY when I went back, that paper is still stuck on the wall & I reminded them again about it. Now he's saying he doesn't know where the vets are??? Where did you bring him??? Then he went back to telling me the young lad told him no point in going to the vet coz it would just cost extra & there would have been nothing they could do since Puggy was already dead. He gave my dad the number for cremation services & he went on to repeat the cost of the cremation etc. I stopped him again. I said I wasn't interested in all these. I want to know exactly what happened. He went silent for a few seconds. Then he started to repeat the story of the cremation details again. I hang up on him.

From his half ass account, I think he either broke Puggy's neck or collapse his trachea pulling on the leash. But wouldn't that have taken excessive force? If it's only collapsed trachea, if you go to the vet they can perform emergency surgery. How many hours passed before he brought Puggy to this young lad that his body had already turned cold? Who is this young lad? Pet shop? I called the pet shop nearby but the guy on the phone said it wasn't his pet shop.

I feel so guilty becoz all of this wouldn't have happened if I brought him to Perth like I did with Ton Ton. My decision cost him his life. Why on earth did I think my parents would be capable of taking care of the dogs? They didn't want me to bring Ton Ton over, saying that they know how to take care of the dogs. Why must I bring him over? If I hadn't, Ton Ton could be dead too. I left Wang Wang becoz he's more of my dad's dog than my dog. I left Puggy behind becoz I thought it cruel to take 2 out of 3 dogs from my parents & also we didn't have enough money to send 2 dogs over. When we went back for CNY this year, I saw the less than best state they were in. Overweight, not much life in their eyes. I gave strict instructions on their diet once again. Why the hell didn't I decide to bring Puggy over then? Now nothing can bring him back.

Pug's life expectancy is about 16 years. He's not even 10 years old. I thought we had time. I tried saying goodbye with reiki. But I couldn't "see" his face in my mind, I couldn't even feel him. It's like he was just gone. All I saw were trees, in a forest or some sort. Then, a blob of light exploded into thousands of glittering lights that floated up into the sky. He really is gone. He isn't even on earth anymore. I caused his death.

7 Years Ago

7 years ago today, hubs & I started dating. It's an anniversary that I hold more dear than our wedding anniversary. It was a new beginning, my 1st relationship after my divorce. New relationships always start out with trepidation. You're learning about each other, wondering what the future holds.

I had an early finish today & we went out to swap our empty gas canister for a full 1. On the drive out, I teasingly asked, "Aren't you glad that you started a relationship with me 7 years ago?" There're no perfect marriages. We quarrel, sometimes really badly. We have good times too. We're such opposites. He doesn't think much of being politically correct. I prefer to be nice. But on the other hand, it'll only mean that he won't pretend to like you but secretly curse you in his heart. At the same time, we're so similar. Our love for food, our love for travels, our mentality towards marriage & finance.

I still send him off to work with a hug & kiss. He still greets me with the same when I get home from work. We irritated each other to no end. In fact, we all have nicknames. It started with Ton Ton. He has always been possessive & somewhat territorial. If he's in the bedroom, he doesn't allow Basil in. Similarly, if he's already on the sofa, he'll growl & bark at Basil if he attempts to jump up. But if it was the other way round, he'll just step all over Basil before planting his ass on Basil's head. So I called him the "big fat bully". Basil is no push over either. He'll push Ton Ton out of the way while Ton Ton is receiving scratchies from hubs so that he can take Ton Ton's place to be scratched. Hubs came up with this new nicknames for all of us. Ton Ton, the small (referring to size) bully. Basil, the big bully. He, the big fat bully & finally me, the house bully, becoz I bully all of them. That cracked me up good.

It scares me to think of the many couples who stay together without love between them & the possibility that we can be 1 of them. I'm thankful for the painful divorce I went through. Pain is a good teacher. Hopefully, I'm a good student.

Driving Incident

Oh dear. Nope, nobody crashed into my car. But people who've crashed into me were way nicer than this man who didn't. I really do wish public transport is an option for me. It is what it is & I'll try to keep as safe as I can.

I was driving to work yesterday morning & was approaching the city when it happened. There're 2 lanes in the direction I was travelling in & I was in the left like I always do as I believe in keeping left. This Hyundai on the right lane drifted past the lane divider without any signals on. I have no idea if he was trying to change lane without signalling or he wasn't paying attention & had just drifted out of his lane. Naturally, I slowed down becoz if I were to proceed & he really came into my lane, he would have crashed into me. It wasn't even a hard brake, nowhere near qualifying as e-brake. I think I lost about 10 km/hr in speed. This Hyundai probably realised that he was 1/3 into my lane & went back into his own lane.

Crisis adverted. Then I noticed this truck behind who continuously high beamed me non stop for perhaps 10 seconds. I check my mirrors rather frequently but the last time I checked, this truck wasn't behind me. I probably was also focused on slowing the car down enough to avoid the Hyundai coming from my right to be checking my rear mirror in the seconds prior to that. I ignored him. The left lane that I was on became the right lane somewhere further down. That was when I noticed the truck driver had cut into the left lane. He was held back by several slower moving cars & bus & we probably traveled another 2 km or so. About 100 m from the right turn into Vincent St on Fitzgerald, he finally caught up to me, flicked me the middle finger & drove off, cutting back into the right lane several cars down to make the right turn onto Vincent. That was a lot of trouble just so he could give me the finger considering that we were only 100 m from his turn.

I cannot say I know exactly what happened but he probably was following too closely behind me when I had to slow down for the drifting Hyundai. Maybe he thought I was braking on purpose to deter him from tailgating like some people do. I think this is probably the most possible scenario. I knew it wasn't my fault. I was just trying to avoid collision from the Hyundai. But the rest of my day, I felt absolutely shitty.

When I was safely parked at work, I texted hubs that someone gave me the finger on the way to work. He immediately texted back saying he knew it wasn't my fault becoz I always drive safe & I don't speed. That was even before I told him what had transpired. He's not siding me becoz I'm his wife. He's ever told me off very harshly when I was the 1 at fault. He told me that he meets these kind of drivers all the time on the road & not to be affected by them. But even till now, I still feel like shit. I'm not angry, just really upset & I don't even know why. Too sensitive for my own good.

What do people get out of being mean & nasty? Hubs showed me this quote he came across on FB. "There are many nice people. If you can't find one, be one." It's a great quote. It's something I'm striving towards too. Now I can only let time lift up my spirits & confidence again.

Midland Farmers' Market

In case you're wondering what am I doing on a Monday morning blogging away while I'm supposed to be working, I have the day off. (Surgeon is away, no list for the entire day.) I've just returned home from my car servicing which is 500 km overdue. It's actually quite hard to estimate when I'll hit the 20000 km mark with unscheduled pick ups & drop offs. Even harder when I can only book in on a day off. It always feels so amazing driving the car that had just been serviced. It handles better, the car is more responsive & as a bonus, it gets a complimentary wash & vacuum. If I'm excited about the wash & vacuum, it can only mean how severely the hygiene part of the car has been neglected. Lol. 

So. My colleague was telling me about her weekly trips to the farmers' market in Stirling, where she lives. It piqued my interest enough to try to find 1 near me which I did. Midland Farmers' Market opens every Sunday from 7 am to 2 pm. Ordinarily, I would have preferred to go early in the morning to avoid the crowd & to avoid the midday sun. But I had yoga & I didn't want to wait another week (coz next weekend's already packed to the brim again). By the time we got there at 11.50 am, most of the crowd if any, were gone. We were able to get a parking lot easily & we didn't have to elbow throngs of people out of the way (just kidding, I don't elbow people). 

1st, we walked through to the end of the market for a quick browse. I quickly identified the stall that received good reviews for its Dark Chocolate Salted Caramel Cake on FB. We got to chatting with the stall owner, Paul & he mentioned that it was hard to get right as the different ingredients cook at different times. So the honey would be burnt by the time the rest of the cake is ready. It took him a while to perfect the recipe & he now supplies various cafes & restaurants in Perth. I got 1 slice of the cake while hubs got a slice of banana bread for $9. Even hubs agreed that the cake's pretty decent. It was a little bit too sweet for me but probably will do very well with a nice cup of tea. Here's a picture of Paul with his award winning cake, photo courtesy of MFM's FB page. 

Next, we stopped at John's artisan bread stall. That late in the day, the popular choices, namely his White Sourdough & Pumpkin Loaf were all sold out. But we did get the Potato Loaf which according to my palate is just amazing. We haven't cut into the 2nd loaf which is the Olive Sourdough but I can just imagine it lightly toasted & well buttered. Yum. The breads were going for $6 a loaf but he sold the 2 loaves to us for $10 being that late into the day. 

There were many stalls selling fruits & vegetables. Some of the stalls are big, have huge varieties & have large trucks used to transport the produce parked right behind. But 1 make shift stall caught my eye. 2 elderly men were sitting on their empty crates watching everybody pass them by. They aren't the cheapest & they had about only 5 types of produce but we both felt we should buy from them. So we got a kilo of fresh broad beans, 3 onions & 3 garlic bulbs from them. The man who served us was a bit hunched over & he wasn't walking super well as he moved about weighing our selection. They were definitely more expensive but in life, there are more important things than money. I felt great buying from them & hats off to hardworking, independent seniors.

I turned 1 onion, 3 garlic cloves & the entire batch of broad beans into a beef curry, served with sliced potato bread for dinner. That was how we spent our Sunday. Hope you've all had an enjoyable weekend too! ;)

Our loot from the MFM. Total damage: $35 including the cake & banana bread.

De-podded fresh broad beans.

Beef curry with broad beans & potato bread.

Beautiful Positivity

There's too much negativity in this world to the point where positivity is quite a rare commodity. So I'm going to strive my best to post happy thoughts, more encouragement, less disheartening words. Ultimately, just remember that you alone hold the power of change, of courage & nobody can take that away from you. Allow yourself to dream. Allow yourself to hope. Set yourself on the path you want to be on & don't overthink it. This applies to everything in life. Above it all, always do good. Peace.

The Little Things

This post was in my draft box from the 24th Sept 2016. It was from the weekend that we went camping in Yallingup. 

There are many little things in my life that I don't really take much notice of. They're always there, sometimes little nuisances, sometimes little pleasures. Hubs parked the car as usual. I got out to open the door as usual. I was expecting excited faces, whining & scratching at the door, like they always do. Like they've not seen me in ages. Like they can't wait for me to get through the door. I was at the bottom of the stairs but there was nobody. In that split second, I remembered that we've just came home from dropping the dogs at the boarder's.

We had dinner while watching Supernatural as usual. Nobody to attempt sniffing at our food. Nobody fighting over who gets to lie on my lap. No Tonz who will not hesitate to step all over Basil & plant his ass in Basil's face. No whining as they wait for me to get their dinner ready.

Bed time. No Tonz who always beat me racing to the bed. Nobody to burrow into the little crook in the back of my slightly bent knees as I slept on my side. No Basil waking me at least twice in the night when he gets up to scratch himself or gets up to walk about before lying back down.

Too empty. Too quiet. Too unaccustomed not having the boys around. I missed them already & I haven't even left for our camping trip. We're such an integral part of each other's lives that being apart is hard. 

More Time Yet Less Time

I received an email notification last week that Teacher had left a comment on 1 of my previous post. It's only today when I've only got a morning list did I finally have time to log in. I worked super long hours in Sg. Yet somehow, I've always had time for FB. Yes, I commute to work by bus but I spent both trips per day snoozing on the bus becoz sleep was such a rare commodity back then. My work hours are much shorter here. On a busy fortnight, I'll clock an average of 85 hours which is about 10 hours of overtime (since I'm to work a minimum of 75 hours a fortnight). That is like normal hours in Sg, excluding overtime (42 hours week x 2).

These days, I hardly have time for FB. Sure, I'll open up the app on my phone, scroll through the 1st few posts then close it. During breaks in Sg, everybody's just looking at their phones. Nobody's looking at one another, nobody's chatting with one another. Here, we're all chatting among ourselves during break times. Some days are inevitably longer which meant reaching home past 7 pm. I'll take a shower while hubs prepare dinner. We'll sit down to watch Supernatural on Netflix while having dinner (Yeah, bad habit but that's us. We can even eat steamboat while watching Netflix. Lol.) Then it's bedtime.

I have yoga every weekend, usually on a Sat, either at 9 am or 5 pm, depending on my instructor's work shift. Then, we go for Buddhist study every alternate Sat starting at 4 pm. Once a month on Sun morning, we'll go to the SGI center in Osborne Park for a commemorative meeting. The weekend a fortnight ago, I signed myself up for a Tarot reading course which took up both Sat & Sun. The weekend that had just past saw us buying grocery late Sat morning, followed by our fortnightly Buddhist study. Our Buddhist study group got together on Sun at Neil Hawkins Park for a picnic. This particular day I woke up at 6 am (as usual), made bliss balls for the picnic, had yoga at 9 am, got home at 11 am & immediately left with hubs for the picnic. We didn't get home till 4.30 pm & by then I was completely knackered. I took a 2 hour nap, prepared for dinner, followed our evening routine of Supernatural & it was back in bed at 9.30 pm.

I work lesser hours but somehow have less time. Being here has taken my time away from social media & caused me to be more out here in the present. We're back to the way life was before mobile phones & tablets became all the rage. There's more face time rather than Facebook time. It is a very good thing, indeed.

The Dream World

They say dreams are a product of your brain processing your subconsciousness while you're asleep. Sometimes, they bring to mind someone whom you haven't thought of in years. I can't remember a dream that is a replay of reality life. They've always been works of fiction. Several weeks ago, I had a night plagued with dreams. Out of the many, I only remembered 2. 

I was reversing my car into a parking lot when I reversed it into a SUV in the next lot. I got out of the car immediately to inspect the damage to the SUV. Instead of speaking to me, the mother sent her 13 year old daughter to discuss the proceedings. I've not seen them in many years. In 2004, I took care of this girl in the ward. She was an anorexic at that time. She didn't look 13. Due to the malnutrition, she obviously missed all the growth milestone & probably looked like what an 8 year old would look like. What the psychiatrist thought was that the dad had the typical Chinese mentality, loved only the son, paid attention only to the son & that it was her way of seeking attention & love. I had a feeling that was why she stopped eating. She was at the puberty age. Anorexia will stop puberty on its track. She only wore pants, hated skirts or dresses. She refused to grow her hair long like what most girls desire. Instead, she would always get a boy's cut. She would put on weight in the hospital, only to lose it all & had to be readmitted shortly after she was discharged. The mother couldn't force her to eat back home. I don't know what happened subsequently as I was transferred to the Operating Theatre at my request. It's been 12 years. In my dream, she was still in her 13 year old body becoz that was how I remember her to be. Why did my brain drag out someone I've not even thought of in 12 years? Funny how the brain works. I wonder if she's well.

That same night, I had a totally different dream. I was going to meet friends for a meal in a restaurant. For some reason, I decided to go wrapped in a towel. Like just out of the shower wrapped in towel naked. Everyone else were dressed, except for me. I was feeling quite comfortable about it actually. It was only until I saw an ex-boyfriend in the same restaurant that I started to feel really self conscious about being almost naked. This dream I understood. I was comfortable about being barely dressed with my friends but I'm afraid to be "naked" around this ex-boyfriend. I care about what he thinks & I can't open up to him. This was the only boyfriend I had that we parted still in love with each other. I guess a part of me will always wonder how we would have turned out. 

Yesterday early morning, 2.43 am. I had a blueberry muffin with me. I entered this "cafe" which looked exactly like the instrument processing room in my previous work place (we call it Theatre Sterile Supply Unit or TSSU). In the front of the room, an ex-colleague, a healthcare assistant working in the department was mopping the floor. When I passed through the doorway to the back of the room, it looked nothing like the real TSSU. Instead, the back room was a patisserie, selling different kinds of pastries. Another ex-colleague who is an EN had just knocked off having worked there as a server. I asked for Dolly & she helped me get Dolly from behind the counter. I handed Dolly the blueberry muffin, wished her happy birthday & gave her a hug. She was very happy. Upon seeing that, my ex-collegue, the EN, took a chocolate croissant from the counter, gave it to Dolly & wished her happy birthday as well. 

It was her birthday yesterday. So this was also a dream I understood. I woke up from the dream at 2.43 am from feeling too hot & sweating. I whatsapp her immediately, told her my dream & wished her happy birthday. I don't usually text people in the middle of the night but I know her well enough that I wouldn't wake her. Lol. 

Honesty & Integrity

Being right is so subjective. In your mind, you're right. In my mind, I'm right. So who is truly right then?

You treat people with honesty & sincerity only to be taken for a fool. You know such people are aplenty. You know you shouldn't let it affect you.

At the same time, you know it is exactly becoz the world is full of cynics that it is all the more important that you remain true. For you can never change someone else, only yourself & the way you view the world. Becoz you know for a fact that it only takes 1 person to effect a change & that person has to be you.

这世界会如此就是因为太多人怕吃亏。施比受有福。是个傻瓜也要做个好的傻瓜。

If Only I Knew...

I don't know what triggered my childhood memories while at work today. Perhaps it was the not so fast surgeon, allowing me plenty of time to stare into space while scouting. I was bullied from Primary through to Secondary school. In Primary School, the girls were the vicious ones with their name callings & disparaging remarks. In Secondary School, the boys took it even further. They made retching noises when I walked past. I was allocated a seat in the back of the class by the teacher. Once, when the teacher returned our exercise books (to be passed down from the front), each boy took turns spitting inside my exercise book. The awful name callings. The "cool" girls just laughed at my misfortune.

But I was a quiet, awkward teenager. All I wanted was to be included. To be liked. To have friends. Even if they're not sincere.

If only I knew, that in this world, consumed by greed & violence, being popular is the least important thing of all.

If only I knew, that in the end, the only thing that really matters is kindness.

If only I knew, that even if it's not a big deal for you, it could mean the world to the person receiving your words or acts of kindness.

If only I knew. I would have started younger, creating a life of true value. If only I knew.

Reason For Living

It certainly has been a while since I last blogged. After 27 months in Perth, we've fallen into a routine, especially during weekdays. During Masterchef season, I would rush home to catch airing episodes without fail. Now that the season is over, I'm back to the gym even if I finish work late. Speaking of that, I'm finally doing 6 km jogs on the treadmill which is a milestone for me. I hope to get to 10 km someday. My Saturdays are pretty packed too. I have yoga every Saturday & discussion meetings every other Saturday. I'll be planning where to go & which new restaurant to try on Sundays which is why I haven't found time to blog.

I've already planned our next camping trip seeing that we haven't really camped in a year. We stayed in chalets but I don't count that as camping. Itinerary has already been typed out, tickets for a few attractions already booked & paid for. 2 fine dining restaurants reservations in the region have already been made. So much so that hubs asked me, "Are we camping or fine dining?" Lol. Absolutely looking forward to it. I love travelling. Back in Sg, we'll go on holidays up to twice a year. Now all my annual leave is saved up for Christmas shutdown & trips back to Sg. I suppose I can skip going back a year & use the 2 weeks to go somewhere else. But my parents & my dogs (Puggy & Wang) are getting old. They're far more important than going on holidays. Perhaps I can plan to go somewhere next Christmas which still leaves me 2 weeks to go back to Sg. Some serious plannings need to take place.

Hubs sometimes say I spend too much. You know, we need to rid ourselves of the illusion that we have all the time in the world. Today is never guaranteed, much less tomorrow. Something can happen in a split second & your life can be over as you know it. If you feel like having an expensive meal, go eat it. If you feel like trying something new, by all means go try it. As long as you're not doing any harm or spending money you don't have, why not? I didn't come here to repeat my life in Sg. To work & work & work & die. It's about the experiences in between & the memories you create together. 

Essential Oil Craze

I've used EOs since my teenage years when it became increasingly popular. Back then, I would diffuse the oils in a burner that was heated by tealight candles. Subsequently, I "upgraded" to an electric burner. More recently, I used it to make soap. Sometime last month, I participated in a "make & take" workshop which opened up many avenues where EOs can be used. After the workshop, I signed up to be a member. (doTerra is a MLM company but I'm not interested in recruiting members. I'm only interested in using EOs in my daily life.) 

I received my starter kit several days later & have been playing around with it. I made a further "upgrade" to an ultrasonic diffuser based on the knowledge that heat destroys the beneficial attributes of the oils. 

My collection thus far. Some of the oils are really expensive at over $100 for a 5 mls bottle. Some of the common oils like citrus oils are just over $10 for a 15 mls bottle. So I'm going to have to order a bit each month. I've made a doggy breath spray, doggy odour spray, deodorant spray & a perfume roll on. The perfume roll on is my favourite. I wear it every day. 

I also made some lip balm but I feel that it is too hard. Perhaps I'll half the amount of beewax from the recipe next time.

DIY car freshener.

Moisturising foot soak.

Made just this morning, toothpaste. At the moment it's more of a dry paste than a liquid paste due to the presence of coconut oil.

Some Day, Again

There were only 2 times where I was so distraught that I couldn't chant daimoku. The 1st time being the end of my previous marriage. In desperation, I contacted an ex-colleague who previously introduced me to Nichiren Buddhism. I didn't follow on. But I've tried every means to save my marriage & that was my last hope. She met up with me immediately & brought me to the Singapore Soka Association (SSA) HQ in Tampines. Once there, she bought me prayer beads & a pouch for the beads. Then, she led me into the hall where people were chanting. I could barely gasp out a single daimoku, my body racked by uncontrollable sobs. My prayers were not answered. But that was the beginning of faith. Of course, now I understand the significance of my failed marriage, it being the catalyst to the beginning of my human revolution. I still have a long way to go but I know I'll keep at it no matter what.

The 2nd being at Dawn's memorial service, 2 Saturdays ago. Even hubs cried as he sat beside me, chanting along. Many times I had to stop & compose myself so that I could offer daimoku to her. Eulogies given by her close friends revealed the Dawn I didn't get to know. How she offered a friend, suffering from severe burnout & depression, to stay with her while he took a break from the hectic life in Sydney. Knowing that he had estranged relationships with his family, she arranged in secret, for his family members to show up at the restaurant where she was celebrating his birthday for him. How, even in her late 60s, she went to Lady Gaga's concert & danced with the youngsters. 1 member who's known her for 16 years thanked her for being such a good friend, to which she replied, "I'm sure we'll meet again."

I'm terrible in my knowledge of the Gosho. But I know there is this passage where Nichiren wrote to his disciples, saying that they'll meet again at the Eagle's Peak, where Shakyamuni is. (Eagle's Peak is a figurative peak of the tallest mountain, where they can overlook the entire world.) In my heart, I imagine Dawn being at Eagle's Peak, discussing Buddhist philosophies with the Buddhas & sages who had departed prior. So long for now, Dawn. Some day, we will meet & we will discuss Buddhist philosophies once again.

Loss Of A Dear Friend

It's been a crazy, crazy fortnight. My work hours are over the roof. I clocked the most number of hours worked in a fortnight in my 2 years here. That's despite missing work last Friday as I had to fly off to Sydney for a work related conference. I got back on Sunday night & it was bang on again the very next day. My manager was away & I had to cover her duties as well. The 1 day that I finished early, was last Wednesday.

Following the news of her deterioration, I tried to contact her to visit her at home but I couldn't reach her. Shortly after, I was informed that she was found to be confused by a friend who visited her & she was sent to the hospital. In just a few days, she deteriorated further & was in & out of consciousness. I knew it was my last chance to see her. After finishing work at 4 pm last Wednesday, I drove to Glengerry Hospital where she was warded in the palliative ward. She had already slipped into a coma. I read her a quote from President Ikeda & held her hand the entire time I was there. Her close friend who intended to stay the night told me that she had a very aggressive type of cancer. As it was over a major vein, the portal vein in the liver, it was inoperable as a tiny nick will cause her to die from massive blood loss. I stayed for 3 hours & left at 7.30 pm. When I got home, I continue to send reiki distantly. I was very upset. She didn't look good at all. All along, I continued to hold hopes that she will overcome it. But seeing her in person, I knew it wouldn't be long.

I worked till 8.30 pm on Thursday & flew off to Sydney on Friday. My return flight was delayed due to busted brakes & I only got back to Perth at 11 pm. It was full on again from Monday with late finishes the entire week. I was telling hubs that I would like to visit her today, Sat. Then, I checked my email. The email informing us of her departure came on Thursday afternoon. Instead of visiting her at the hospital, I'll be attending her memorial service. I laid in bed & cried till I fell asleep. I only woke up becoz Ton woke me up, wanting to pee at 1.20 am. I haven't been able to go back to sleep since.

I don't know what to say. Just feeling overwhelmed from the loss of a dear friend.

Crazy Cooking

A new season of Masterchef marks the beginning of another year in Perth. This is the 3rd season we've watched since arriving in Perth. As with previous years, it inspires me to cook. I've never done any recipes from the chefs before. They're either too hard or they have ingredients you just can't get. The 1st pressure test of this season saw contestants cooking Shannon's Chocolate Peanut Bar, inspired by Sneakers. I had a look at the ingredients list & thought to myself, "I can do this." So I did.

There're many elements to the dessert. But unlike the contestants, I didn't have the time constraints they had. I took my time & the element I was most unhappy with was the tempered chocolate. It was tempered properly. But I didn't want to spend money buying the pallet knife & so I used a spatula to spread it instead. I didn't get it thin enough & had to pour more of the honey caramel sauce to melt it, causing the dessert to be overly sweet. 

I got all the other elements right. I omitted the tempered chocolate & honey caramel sauce on subsequent serves & they worked so well together. This is by far the craziest cook I've ever done. It's not very practical to do for own consumption as there was a lot of wastage. But it was a good experience & I got to temper chocolate for the 1st time. 

Element 1: Candied peanuts.

Element 2: Peanut caramel.
Element 3: Brown sugar crumble.
Element 4: Tempered chocolate.

Element 5: Honey nougat.

Element 6: Peanut ice cream.

Element 7: Chocolate parfait.
Element 8: Peanut crumble.
Element 9: Honey caramel.

Fruit Picking @ Pickering Brook

8th May 2016

Jen shared this post on Singaperth about apple picking at a farm in Pickering Brook. Many expressed interest & the plan was to go on Saturday. But I was asked to work on Saturday & hence I decided that we would go on Sunday instead. On arrival, we quickly purchased the empty cardboard tray for $25. Hubs even found out that we could buy a habanero plant if we wanted to for $12. (I recently bought 2 habanero chillies to cook & had reserved the seeds for sowing in warmer months.) 

We started off very rapidly but soon slowed down, becoming more picky with our picks. They had red, pink lady & granny smith. We picked just a few granny smiths for apple dessert as this variety is too sour for my sensitive teeth. (I was thinking ahead. Lol.) The tray was getting heavier by the minute. Towards the end, hubs simply carried the tray on his head. We had a pile of apples & had loaded the tray in the boot when we met 2 other Singaperth families. We went over to say hello & introduce ourselves as it was our 1st meeting. They told us that there were persimmons for picking as well. My eyes lit up. They're my absolute favourite after durians. Just then, Nix & family showed up as well.

So off we went to the car, picked up the tray & went for 2nd round. The persimmons were tiny & hard. But I was told they're sweet & not "siap" like the ones sold in Sin. Most of them were high up in the trees. So I decided to climb up the tree. I've never climbed a tree before. But with a childlike glee, I climbed up & plucked persimmon after persimmon. Hubs then handed me the tray which I really struggled to carry to try getting more persimmons for me. Earlier on, he had found 1 that he said had a penis. He came back to me after a while, obviously excited, hand behind his back. He asked me for the persimmon with the penis & I handed it over to him. He then said, "You have 1 with a penis. Therefore, you must have 1 with a pussy." & whipped out the persimmon he had hidden behind him. I couldn't stop laughing. It certainly looked like the persimmons had male & female parts. 

Hubs then asked me if I wanted the habanero plant. Upon order, the farmer will drive his tractor to wherever it was, dig the plant up & drive it back to you. It was huge & $12 is a very cheap price to pay. But I decided against it as it was really too big. I already have a chilli plant producing plenty of chilli at home. Habanero is too spicy to use in large quantities. So I'll try my luck with the seeds. 

I've been having apples everyday for breakfast & lunch since. We still have a huge amount of apples. Well, the ice cream churner is in the freezer ready to go. Apple sorbet anyone?

Apple farm in Pickering Brook.

Red apple trees. 

Happy picking.

Our tray of assorted apples & persimmons.

The cheeky male & female persimmons.

Penguin Island

24th April 2016

I was trying to choose between Rottnest & Penguin Island for our day trip. Rottnest's charges are pretty outrageous, $100 per pax for the ferry ride & bicycle rental, or close to $200 for the guided tour of the island. In the end, I chose Penguin Island simply becoz they're close from June to September for the nesting season. 

I drove 1.5 hours to Shoalwater in Rockingham & bought the tickets for the 45 mins Penguin & Sea Lion Glass Bottom Cruise at $38.50 each. It was a cloudy day, just the way I like it. Although the cruise didn't cover dolphins, we did manage to see some wild dolphins when our skipper purposely took us close to the dolphin cruise. The dolphins like surfing the "waves" that were created by the dolphin cruise & that was how they drew the dolphins out.

We saw only 4 sea lions & our guide explained that these 4 were oldies or juvies & they were all males. The females were all up in Jurien Bay & all the fit adult males had swam over for a rendezvous. They were all just lying on the sand, looking dead. But they were in fact, just resting. We were told to "never stand between a sea lion & the sea". If we see sea lions on the island & get too close, they will feel threatened & try to escape out to sea. If we are between them & the sea, we'll get mowed down.

After the cruise, we were dropped off at Penguin Island where penguin feeding would take place shortly. The fairy penguins are of the smallest variety, are also known as little penguins or blue penguins. They grow up to 33 cm tall & majority of the penguins on Penguin Island are wild. There were 10 penguins in the sanctuary that were deemed unsuitable to return to the wild due to blindness, some were orphaned & hand raised hence they would not survive in the wild.

It was a nice day trip & very enjoyable. Next on the list will be Rottnest. With a price tag of $200 for 2, I'll have to think about it. But it's just 1 of those things that I feel we should do at least once in our life.

Pelicans & sea lions on the tiny island.

1 of the fairy penguins in the sanctuary.

At the time of our visit, there were 10 fairy penguins deemed unsuitable to return to the wild. 

She was sitting on her eggs. I was trying to take picture of something else. Apparently, I got too close for comfort & she abandoned her nest. But she wasn't too happy about it & kept squawking at me. 

This Is Job Satisfaction

Some of the surgeons I work with can be pretty dead set about how they feel with a new scrub nurse. I'm not new but we all have our own surgeons that we scrub for specifically. They can get very uncomfortable when someone who hasn't scrubbed for them before has to do it. Recently, Dr F was offered the Thursday morning slot that had been left open since another surgeon left the practice. His usual scrub nurse, my colleague, D, only works full days on Mondays & Fridays & half days on Tuesday. Imagine his "surprise" when he walked in on Thursday few weeks ago & found me scrubbed & setting up my trolley. My manager told him that D doesn't work on Thursday & so I would be scrubbing for him that day. He pulled my manager who was scouting for me aside, telling her that she needs to roster D on whenever he has to come in for the Thursday list.

The 1st time I saw him, I got the vibe that he doesn't have a mild temper. Over the course of 2 years, I've seen & proven that my intuition is right. Naturally, I was stressed & anxious about having to scrub for him. But still, a job is a job & I just had to get that list over & done with. It wasn't too bad & it wasn't until the next morning that my manager told me his feedback. He was initially pretty opposed to having me as a scrub nurse. But after that morning, he told her that I am to scrub for him every time D isn't around & that I was very calm & I did very well. So I have been doing it for the past few weeks, slowly getting used to his techniques.

Princess has always been "my" surgeon. Nobody wanted to scrub for her. So when I joined, she sort of got "pushed" to me. Since she's received the nickname of Princess, you can imagine how she's like. She can be quite fussy but over time, I got familiarized with her preferences & it became easier. Or perhaps she's mellowed. I know she's complimented me before on my ability to mount suture for left handers. She told me that of so many scrub nurses she's worked with in so many different hospitals, I am the only 1 who correctly mount sutures for her.

Earlier this week, my manager told me that Princess told her that I am the best scrub nurse she's ever worked with & it is always enjoyable to work with me. I am so flattered. To me, I'm just working to the best of my ability. Coming from Sin, you don't expect positive feedback from surgeons. Putting it in Singlish, "Never scream at you already very lucky. Still want them to praise you ah?" So I am very appreciative for their comments & it actually drives me to perform even better. I used to say all the time back in Sin, "I love my work but I hate my job." Now I can say, "I love my work & I love my job."

Still Water Runs Deep

This phrase was used to describe me by my colleague. That must be the best compliment anybody can pay me. Really appreciate it. This came about becoz she felt that I came across as a very simple, very innocent, very quiet girl. But underneath the exterior, I have so much depth to me. So thank you very much for such a generous compliment.

I don't know if I really am a person of depth. But the description of my exterior is pretty spot on. I've said many times that I'm socially awkward. People don't like to be around me becoz they feel uncomfortable. I often don't know how to reply to comments or have an appropriate response in conversations. They don't understand me so they prefer not being around me. This explains the many years of childhood literally friendless. It is the same thing still now, but probably to a lesser extend.

Those who stuck around often find that I'm actually pretty crazy & say the lamest things. But that side doesn't come out until much later. I don't open up easily I know. I guess that's something I'll live with for the rest of my life. Surprisingly, I'm alright with that. When I was younger, I'll give anything to be sociable, to always have the right thing to say. That's what age does to you, isn't it? Learning to accept & love yourself just the way you are.

Obsession Compulsion

I love a good thriller, 1 that keeps me guessing till the end. I don't know many who reads. None, I mean seriously, none of my friends read at all. The only person I know of who reads like I do in Perth is P. Several weeks ago, he handed me some novels for my reading pleasure. At the same time, he recounted his trip to the library to loan out a novel by S J Watson that has received superb reviews. He suggested I check that out the next time I go to the library.

By then, I had forgotten the title of the novel. Surely, Watson has written more than 1. But there was only 1 on the shelf & even if it was the wrong 1, how wrong can it be? A brilliant author will produce brilliant novels. I don't know why but I kept thinking Watson is female. It wasn't until minutes ago, when I did a search that I realised Watson is a man. He has written in total, 3 novels & the 1 I grabbed, titled Before I Go To Sleep is his 1st.

Obsession & compulsion drove me to flip page after page incessantly. I did nothing else but read the moment I got in after work. I couldn't wait to find out what indeed had happened to her. But at the same time, I wanted to draw out the time it took to finish the book so I could savour it. It should have been an easy guess. But yet, I was caught by surprise. Hubs probably could get it right early on in the novel. Only he hates reading, wants nothing to do with it.

He's asked me before, "What is it about reading that you enjoy it so much?" He very much rather watch a movie. They do the same thing: tell a tale. But a novel covers so much more details. I've read adeptations before. Or rather, I've watched movies adepted from best selling novels. I can tell you the book is always more enjoyable than the movie. You turn the words into scenes, chain them up into a movie in your head. You notice the smallest details just as they've been described in the novel. You make a guess & just a tiny tinge of annoyance when you get the murderer wrong. Yet you feel annoyed if you do get it right becoz it has been too easy for you. No way to really satisfy me. But I rather be wrong coz then I marvel at the genius of the way the author thought out the story.

I've just finished James Patterson's Invisible that I started on late last evening. I definitely have been deceived by his deceptions. People are surprised that I read. I'm surprised that they don't.

That Humble Raisin Loaf

In just 2 more days, we will have fulfilled our minimum stay requirement to be eligible for a Resident Return Visa. Only 2 years, yet it feels like I've spent a lifetime here. Perhaps I have. It was the start of a different life, 1 in which we had no idea where it would lead us. 

No job, no money, not much hope left best describes our situation in the early days. For some reasons, raisin loaves are always on half price, even as of now, 2 years on. This humble $2.50 loaf would feed us breakfast for a few days, coupled with $2 Woolworth's home brand instant noodles. To make it go a longer way, we would share a single pack of noodles for dinner. That was all we ate a day, everyday. A slice of raisin toast with half a pack of instant noodles. I've not bought another raisin loaf since I landed my job. I am that sick of it. But I thought it was time to revisit those humble beginnings. So on our grocery shopping last night, I grabbed a loaf of raisin toast which will serve as breakfast today. 

The reason why we fight so much, is becoz we have too much. We let greed, pride, envy get to our head. There is this growing inability to let things/comments slide. Nobody is better than the other. All our lives are worth the same. We all 1 day have to die anyway. Terrorism. No such nonsense in the caveman age. They were too busy trying to survive 1 day to the next. Better economy, better technology have made our lives better, easier. But have we, as humankind grow our humanity as well? Not so much, isn't it?

There was a time when I was much younger, that I resent the fact that my parents aren't financially well off. I envied peers born with gold spoons in their mouths. But now I know my life is meant to be this way. The spiritual growth fueled by sweat, blood & tears is unrivaled. Of course, the soul must be willing. So on this 2 years mark, I shall have raisin toast. It is time to remind myself again of our humble beginnings here in Perth. Let this is be my silent reflection for our 2 year anniversary.

悟

Received the very sad news that a friend is unlikely to survive from cancer this morning. Diagnosed in Nov, it's only been 5 months since diagnosis. Such is cancer. Silent & aggressive. There is nothing I can do except to continue praying for her & send intensive distant reiki to her. I was worried that I won't know what to say. But "coincidently" (for we know there is no such thing as coincidence, only what's meant to be), while scrolling through FB, there was a post on how to relate to cancer patients. You don't have to say anything. Just being there is enough.

I was very upset upon receiving the news. I cried even as I chanted for her. We met at her place almost 2 years ago when we 1st got here. Since then, we've been going over fairly regularly for discussion meetings. We've shared initial teething problems in Perth, then issues with work colleagues & of course, discussions on Buddhism. She looked well & nothing seemed amiss when we last met her in Oct.

At the end of life, everything becomes insignificant. All the petty arguments, were they even worth your time & effort? The only thing worth striving for is making the world a better place. By keeping peace, by promoting it. Just as Andy Lau so aptly put it in "悟":

为何君视而不见规矩定方圆?
种颗善因陪你走好每一天。

Manager On Leave

My manager went on a 8 days leave. Before she left, she gave me the run down on what I needed to do while she was away. Basically, I had to collect all the time sheets, make sure everyone signed their column & make sure I have everybody's time sheets or someone wouldn't get paid. I also have to send the billing (of the patients) every other day. As I don't have the access to the other building where the finance department is housed, I had to leave all these paperwork in the finance pigeon hole & call the respective staff for collection. On Wed, I had to remember to bring out the empty bottles so they could get replaced & we'll continue to have fresh, cold water for consumption. At the end of the week, I had to order the consignment lenses that we've used over the week. This is easier as I just had to stick the labels on the order form & email it to the respective company's customer service.

I also have to chase after the chosen lenses for surgeries in the near future. If we don't have the lens in stock, I'll have to order them. I've been doing this for a while now so no learning curve there. The only tough thing was that I had to do all these on top of scrubbing & scouting. Also, sometimes, the surgeons choose the lens just the day before surgery. If we don't have it, it's a mad rush to call Sydney for overnight delivery. Becoz of the time difference, I must place the order before 3 pm or they'll be closed for the day. But I had a really good colleague in recovery who would help me "chase" the lenses list.

Of course, there's always Murphy's Law. The 1st day my manager was away, we arrived at work to find the dining area completely flooded. Maintenance staff was called & apparently, the air con duct was blocked or choked, causing a back flow & thus a major leak. That was most major incident that happened while my manager was away. Thank goodness!

I was pretty stressed but I was being hard on myself. If someone places their trust in me, I have very high expectations of myself. Even if there's no such thing as perfection, I try my best to strive towards it. I also can't leave mess for my manager to come back to. But all is good. My manager had returned to work on Tues & I've gladly handed back all the work. :P

Blue Jazz Has Shiny New Ass

If there's 1 medical check I hate the most, it has to be PAP smear. But I'm overdue & as much as I hate it, it has to be done. So I made an appointment for PAP smear on Friday morning (which now feels like a lifetime ago). After that, hubs drove me to the hirer in Osborne Park to return the Outlander before being driven back to the repairer in Balcatta via taxi. Blue Jazz came out, sporting a new shiny ass. Beauty!

I told hubs that the only thing I like about the Outlander is the pickup. I feel that Jazz's handling is much better. Which was why I asked him to drive the Outlander back to the hirer to have a feel of it. Then I asked him to drive shiny ass Jazz back home so he could make the comparison. (I've never allowed him to drive Jazz coz I prefer the way I drive. :P) He agreed with me that the handling is much better on the Jazz & the only flaw is its lack of power. Hmm... maybe they can produce 2L Jazz but then the fuel consumption won't be as good. Jazz is now consuming an average of 5.3L/100 km unless I'm stuck in a few jams over consecutive days which will ramp that up to 5.8 - 6.0L/100 km depending on how bad the jam is.

I know there're people who drive for decades without ever being in an accident. Hopefully I've met my quota & stay accident free from now on. Having said that, I was driving Jazz out to Coles earlier & this lady who was travelling in the other direction was texting while driving & her car was headed directly towards me. People, it doesn't kill to pull over or wait till you reach your destination to text. Don't text & drive at the same time! Not even at a red light.

Jazz Is In

After changing the appointment for Jazz's repairs 3 times, I finally successfully brought it in on Friday after work. The repairer only opens Mondays to Fridays, 8 am to 4 pm. I just couldn't make it. Not with the hours I put in. After dropping off Jazz, they arranged for a complimentary taxi trip to the car hirer.

After some paper work, the lady pointed out the window & told me that will be my car for the next 1 week. Immediately, I thought, "Holy sh*t!" I couldn't tell from inside what car it was as I could only see the roof, only that it was tall & long. I went out & discovered that they had given me a Mitsubishi Outlander. It had these big ass side mirrors which didn't occur to me that they would be a problem until later.

I adjusted the rear view & side mirrors, pulled the seat all the way forward so I could reach the paddles. Feeling somewhat stressed, I drove off. It was an unfamiliar car & I didn't know the route home. I had to watch the road, sneak peaks at the GPS & make sure I kept the car in the dead center of the lane. I discovered the problem when I came to the 1st roundabout. I realised that the big ass side mirror was completely blocking my entire view & I couldn't check for traffic coming from the right. Somehow, I managed to get home safely. Once parked safely in front of the house, I had a look & found the lever to jack the seat higher up. I made sure my line of sight is completely above the side mirror.

I thought it would take a while to get used to a bigger car. But surprisingly, it came naturally. I'll just need to drive it for another 4 days before I get Jazz back. Can't wait to see the "finished product".

Elizabeth Quay

I hate driving in the city. The roads are often confusing & change into turning lanes without warning. Parking is expensive & the lots tiny if you can even get 1. So it was my bright idea to take the train instead. My colleagues were talking about the pop up Night Noodle Market in Elizabeth Quay & it ends tomorrow. So after work yesterday, we drove to Guildford Station, the station closest to us. Attempting to buy the ticket was hard enough. I thought I only had to select my destination & the price will be calculated for us. But I had to select the number of zones I wanted to travel. I looked around & found the zone table. We were travelling 2 zones which cost us $4.50 per person. Ticket bought, waited for the train. Train came, err... why aren't the doors opening? I finally realised that we had to press the button to open the door 2 seconds before the train departed. So the train left & we lost 25 mins waiting for the next 1. Duh!

We had another problem when we got to Perth Station. So where do we switch to the Mandurah Line to get to Elizabeth Quay? I couldn't find the signs & ended up asking a staff member. Turned out we had to take 2 escalators down, before there'll be signs telling you where to go. We finally arrived at Elizabeth Quay & not knowing where to go, we followed the smoke. Lol. There was a long queue to enter & we had to show some kind of identification to be allowed entry. We showed our Driver's License. I'm not sure why though.

It was super crowded. Food was alright but not super fantastic, probably due to cooking for so many people. We tried food from as many stalls as possible. I think we really contributed to the economy. Haha. After stuffing ourselves silly, we walked along the Quay. It was a nice night out. I'll return to see what special stuff they sell in the city. I haven't been away from Sg long enough to miss the city life though.

Ribs, Pad Thai, Sakura Burger, Assorted Buns, Peking Duck Fries, Chicken Skewers, Waffle On A Stick

Night view of the city.

"Camping" Trip In Wongan Hills

For the 2nd long weekend in March, I had already booked a powered tent site in this caravan park in Wongan Hills. It was supposed to be a camping trip with the dogs. But after the absolutely awful farmstay, I decided to send the dogs for boarding. The look they (especially Basil) gave me as I left was 1 of panic & sorrow. Of course I knew I would go back for them but they didn't. They thought I was abandoning them. But I had no choice. Perhaps another man would have been more accommodating. But not hubs. So I'll probably just do day trips from now on where I can be home with the dogs in the evening.

Since we were without dogs, I upgraded us to a cabin due to the forecast that it was going to pour. & pour it did. I did the driving & the scenery was magnificent. I don't think I'll enjoy living in these country towns but it's good to visit every now & then. The 2 surrounding towns, Cadoux & Ballidu, we visited were "ghost" towns. Apparently, everybody leaves for the coast during long weekends.

View from Mt O'Brien.

Our 1st stop upon arrival was Mt O'Brien lookout. It was warm & I wanted to go closer to sunset. But the sky really didn't look good so I decided to leave earlier. I forced Jazz to handle the unpaved road & at 1 point, the incline was at least 45 degrees. I didn't think Jazz would have made it but engine raving at 4k rpm, we managed to scale that "mountain". By the time we got back to the cabin, the rain was really coming down. With nothing opened & nothing to do, we watched Food Network the entire evening.

It was obvious that the roads had been flooded from the downpour when we drove to Cadoux & Ballidu the next day. The roads were filled with debris, branches & sand/soil. Some parts of the road were even still submerged in water. Approaching from afar, I saw this brownish black longish thing that looked like a branch on the road. I wouldn't avoid it if it was a small branch. When I got really close, I realised that it was a reptilian lizard trying to cross the road. Both of us went, "Arghhhhhhh!!!". I swerved & when I looked in the rear mirror, saw it nonchalantly continued crossing the road. That was close! I'm glad to say I haven't had a roadkill till date. Flying insects excluded.

No cars, no human.

There wasn't much in Cadoux & Ballidu as well. All the shops were closed, not a single soul to be seen. I wanted to park & walk around to take in the town. But hubs didn't. So we drove back to the cabin & continued watching Food Network. I love nature & I will love to do hikes. Perhaps when the weather cools down even more, I can bring the dogs by myself & hike in the regional parks.

We drove back to civilization the next day & picked up the dogs on the way home. They were so excited to see us. I had a pet hammock over the backseats but somehow, Ton managed to get under the hammock, went down onto the floor of the backseat & climbed to the front through the gap between the driver & passenger. Smart dog. He loves his shotgun seat. Not-so-smart-in-this-aspect Basil kept trying to climb over the hammock. Thank goodness he isn't so smart. We can't have 2 dogs in the front. That will be too dangerous.