Painting

Speaking of new hobby...Laoniang is recently into acrylic painting.

Started painting by numbers again and I’ve gotten like maybe 6 sets of 20X20cm canvas art with pre-pri ted designs on them. You just need to follow the numbers printed on the canvas, match it with the assigned palette colours and start painting.

I’m also going to try doing up my own paintings as well. I’ve ordered paints, new flat head brushes, 15x15cm stretched canvas pieces. Plus I’ve other 14x18cm canvas boards from Daiso from a long time back.

Looking forward to more fun painting!

===============
As with any new hobby, you read up and slowly start learning about the tools needed, the techniques used and the different terms used as well.

Never knew there was such a thing as Tempera paint but now I know.
Never knew too that people could paint with metal knives specially designed for art purposes.

Hope my creative juices (if any) can flow properly and I can make some swee swee art pieces. Hahahah ;p

$$$

Laoniang really went on an online shopping frenzy in the last 3 weeks
I just did a count and I’ve spent almost $400 since 6 Aug.

Slightly more than half are for the girls’ birthday party goodie bags and their presents for their teachers for Teachers’ Day. And the rest has gone to....feeding my new hobby, 2 new casual pants for me, some cutesy items for myself (couldn’t resist), etc.

Qoo10 and Shopee should count me as one of their loyal customers siah....

Conversations with a 4yr-old

The other day, Alyssa asked me to show her a picture of a deer. Any deer.
So I showed her a picture of a stag with big antlers.

Alyssa: The horns are so big! Sooo horny!

Me: ???!!! (Laughing madly inside)

雪拼

Laoniang has been on a shopping spree lately.
On both Qoo10 and Shopee. :)

Besides stuff for the girls’ birthday party goodie bags...I got stuff for myself as well.
Cute stuff..stuff I couldn’t resist...

I think I still had a certain amount of set-restraint lah.....
Else my house would be flooded with stuff already :)

Succulents are not for me I guess

I really don’t do well with succulents.

One just went kaput on me. It lasted pretty long actually, maybe because it was in the office. The aircon probably helped it last more than a few months :)

Another one at home is around 80% kaput liao.

I have one last survivor at home! Let’s hope this particular succulent will last long long!

Winter Bear

Some of BTS' songs have brought me strength and comfort. And a recent solo song written and composed by V was released. It's called Winter Bear and it's captured my heart...
Partly because he wrote the song as a tribute to his grandmother for her 3rd death anniversary.
It made me think a little of my granny too...


Winter Bear - Kim Tae Hyung (V)

She looks like a blue love parrot
Would you come fly to me?
I want some good day, good day, good day
Good day, good day
Looks like a winter bear
You sleep so happily
I wish you good night, good night, good night
Good night, good night

Imagine your face
Say hello to me
Then all the bad days
They're nothing to me
With you

Winter bear
Ooh, ooh, ooh
Sleep like a winter bear
Ooh, ooh, ooh
Sleep like a winter bear

Breathe....

Seems like people always only wake up after June has passed.
Many things happen only after June...and now laoniang is abit swarmed...

Even the foreign folks whom I am dealing with too...

Ganbatte!

Yay!

ST shared good news with me today. For the past 3-4 weeks, she's been on hospitalisation leave and taking meds and injections for her 3rd IVF cycle. And today...she found out that the embryo has latched on!

She said she cried when she heard the news. I felt so touched and happy for her that I teared too.
Felt touched cos well...I've been with her since her 1st try and I know the ups and downs she's been through all throughout her IVF journey. Really not easy.

Praying for a smooth pregnancy and journey of motherhood for her!
I can finally pass her my maternity wear! Dump the whole load to her hahha...

Mindful walking

Mindful eating is one thing. Mindful walking is another thing altogether.
It is much more difficult to do!

Mindful walking entails just walking and focusing on your steps, your breath, how you feel, what you feel the ground is like, and/or focusing on the air and trees around you...not letting thoughts cloud your mind and just focusing on all those things...

Difficult. Been trying it on and off for some time...I can't do it for long, just a few minutes and the I'll get distracted by something or someone walking by or a dog barking or what not...

Shall try it out and practice more...

Chloe & Atom

Happened to meet Chloe and Atom yesterday when I got off the bus. 

There were at the same bus-stop waiting for Bus 26 to bring them back home. :) 

Was so happy to see Chloe. I was also very glad to see her happy, smiling, contented and .....grounded...for lack of a better word. She seemed in a good place. A very good and happy place. And it was heartening to see that. 

They looked good together too. Both were so happy and cheerful! And in sync with each other. :) 

I miss the times when we would chat on MSN (yes, it was that long ago). I could talk to her about anything and everything, literally everything, even the grossest stuff haha. 

When they got on their bus, I left with a smile on my face. :) 

Conversations with the girls

Both girls were quite cranky last night and anything and everything would trigger them. 
And so...Nadya had an argument with K ...

N: I already had a nightmare in school today. Do you want to give me another one tonight?
Me: I have nightmares too.N: You are giving me a nightmare and headache!Me: I have two headaches.N: They are not real!Me: Believe me, they are very real. One big, one small and they walk all over the house.N: Not talking to you!


===============
Before bed, Alyssa and Nadya got into an argument as well...I don't remember what they were arguing about but it came to this....
Surprisingly, the smaller one "won" the argument! It was hilarious to me but I couldn't laugh out loud in that situation haha. 

N: I will shoot you!
A: But you don't have a gun.
N: Then I will throw you into the swimming pool!!
A: But you don't have strength to carry me.
N: *huffs in frustration and starts to tear*

Sometimes

Sometimes you really don't need advice

When you say things or gripe a little, you just want a listening ear

Sometimes there really isn't anyone else who you think would understand or know

Sometimes you end up talking to yourself, which isn't very healthy 

Sometimes you end up talking to a wall, which is better 

Except that the wall reverberates at times and gives off other vibes you have to contend with

Sometimes you just want to express yourself but don't know what to say or how to say it

And you end up staying silent again, lost in your own thoughts

Sometimes you talk but get brushed off or feel invalidated 

And so you end up staying silent again

Sometimes you just write and let the words flow

Words which could not get past your mouth for whatever reason 

Sometimes you just listen to music, or that emptiness in your head 

And let it bring you somewhere, anywhere

Sometimes 

Sometimes 

Taiji

It IS a skill. A survival skill of sorts.

Of which The Coll is very adept in.

How she does it shamelessly is another skill.

Memorising

I used to be damn good at it. Especially in secondary school. Rote learning mah. ;p

I could memorise some Jap songs last time in my late teens and early 20s as well.

I'm trying to learn a Korean song now.....to no avail. Hahaha.
Still stuck at second sentence after a whole week lol...

The brain is not what it used to be I guess. Plus a w hole host of other things are taking up my brain and mind space. :D

Nvm...at least I will learn some bits of the song, if not the whole thing!
Paul Kim's Me After You....

Reminder?

"The best way to avoid disappointment is to not expect anything from anyone."

This came up on my FB newsfeed. It is a good reminder.
Though in reality, execution is not so easy. :)

For we often, knowingly or unknowingly, place expectations on others, especially those closest to us.

Mindful eating

I've been practising mindful eating whenever I can over the last 2-3 months. Usually it's lunchtime in office if I'm not eating with someone else. 

It started out awkward and boring. I started out with a short duration of 5mins only just to try the concept out. Then it increased naturally to 10mins and then to 15mins or so. 

Over time, it's been quite enjoyable actually. 

You clear your mind of all things and just focus on eating. You focus on the chewing, the sounds (if any), the textures of the food, the taste, the colours, etc. 

And when you're done eating, you just go back to whatever it is you want to do next...

LH

A little sad.
A close team-mate and ally just showed me her resignation letter. It's dated today...
I was her buddy when she first joined in 2014.

She has mulled over her decision for several months and it's now come to this.

I still hope she stays...maybe after a deeper conversation with our boss she might stay?

I can only hope.

Concidentally, just yesterday, I thought of making her a card today.

9 August 2019

It is the nation's birthday.

It is also Mei's birthday. I've been wishing her for 17 years and this year, out of habit I texted her to wish her happy birthday as well. After sending it out though, I wondered if I was doing the right thing.

Adrian was in Melbourne. In less than 10minutes, I got a text from him saying "I got a text from Marc. Please do not send Mei greetings anymore."

I felt hurt and disappointed. For some reason, I also cried. It was an immediate raw reaction.
I guess, I was hurt because all the things she'd said previously seemed to be just lip service.

"Keep in touch. Take care."
"I'll have a small housewarming and invite you when the house is ready."

Nada. Zilch. Zero. Nothing.
Just lip service.

Maybe she did mean part of it when she said those words last year but grew cold feet as time went by.

Anyway, she wants to cut off all communications. Ok fine. I respect that choice.
I'll tell myself and remind myself that. No point in trying to keep something when it isn't working or when the other party does not want to.

Just need to tell myself to move on.

Yet

Rivulets
Yet, dry

Crowded
Yet, alone

Happy
Yet, sad

Forwards
Yet, backwards

Growing
Yet, stagnant

Staccato
Yet, monotonous

Moving
Yet, still

Yet


==========
Drafted
On a day, at a time
When I was feeling down, tired, sad, alone, a little frustrated and out
Just a small being in this big universe
But who knows for sure
The best is YET to be

God has his plans for us
Probably written out
I wonder if they are in drafts or finalised versions
I wonder if he will rub off some text and re-write our future stories
As the scenes unfold slowly

Still popping up

Still happening after so many months...the number 44 keeps popping up. I take less note of it now though...used to it already perhaps....

• When I tap my phone to check the time, more than half the time, it'll be the hour and 44 minutes. e.g. 2:44pm, 5:44pm....
• Took a walk with K yesterday and when I glanced at the lamp-post next to him, it was numbered 44....
• The other day again when I checked the microwave to see whether my food was going to be done soon...the timer showed that 44 seconds was remaining..

Goosebumps lol!