2) Loves to read the Manga Bible
3) Has been doing some serious contemplation when at work
4) Looking forward to Saturdays' drinks for Halloween
5) Thinks that Irn Bru is just like Kickapoo Joy Juice
6) Has too much to write about but does not know where to start from
7) Highlight of the week: Fever breaking and knowing I have SuperMOM as my wife!
M
Sometimes they can just be about wearing the white shirt or the blue shirt or perhaps should I have grilled fish shioyaki or sashimi for lunch. Other times it can be life altering, like should I leave this job and move on to the next. Life is full of decisions....left turn or right turn?? Go straight???
Depending on the magnitude of change, they are hard but change is good, sometimes. The burden of decisions sometimes gets easier when you have been partnered with a woman of wisdom and understanding. Such is what I have found in the woman sleeping next to me. It's 6.36am and that person is obviously the wife, to be exact Sophie is between us, but that's another blog post altogether.
She's an analyzer, well she does it for a living, so she is a fantastic analyzer. Pros and cons, cost benefit, long term vs short term gains are just some to the tools in her unseen arsenal. Whatever the case maybe, her opinion carries weight, to me! Especially when I am emotionally clouded she helps to wade through the crap and baggage and bring clarity to all situations.
Proverbs 31:10-11 (New American Standard Bible)
10An excellent wife, who can find?
For her worth is far above jewels.
11The heart of her husband trusts in her,
And he will have no lack of gain.
Thanks babe! You are my Proverbs 31 wife!
M Uber Blessed
2) Is glad that he is wanted from a professional standpoint. Thank you Jesus!
3) Has fallen in love with Japanese salads at Tomo Izakaya.
4) Needs to find healthy Indian food, it must exist!
5) Is privileged to be in ROCK KIDZ!
6) Knows that this is a season of tremendous blessing
7) Highlight of the week: Dressing up as a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle for ASA!
M
2) Has a new life altering decision to mull over.
3) Loves to talk about holiday plans with the wife.
4) Fell madly in love with Saffire in Freycinet, Tasmania. -- AUD1.4K a night!
5) Chee Cheong Fun with no sauce just chilli, has been included as a breaky alternative to 4 hard boiled egg whites, I am stoked!
6) Shiro maguro is my now fav sashimi.
7) Highlight of the week: Negotiating with a headhunter while walking in Spotlight. -- the quietest place I could find.
M
For the past two weeks I have been on a, what some would say, crazy diet. The goal was mainly to detox my system because it seemed to be bursting at the seams quite literally.
Prior to starting work, for some reason I went on an eating rampage. To ingest all my favorite foods if possible within the short time frame of a few days before my work started. My typical day would be to wake up early, send the wife to work which signalled the flag off for the food odyssey.
| Breakfast Location: Madras Woodlands Meal: Rava Thosai with copious amount of red (chilli) chutney followed with two appams with coconut milk and orange sugar Drink: Indian coffee | ||
| Lunch A Location: Toa Payoh Lor 5 Meal: Bar Chor Mee Drink: 100 Plus | OR | Lunch B Location: Jalan Kayu Prata Shop Meal: Chicken or Mutton Berayani Drink: Teh Halia |
| Post Lunch Dessert: Magnum Almond. -- they were running a 1for 1 promo so guess what? Yep genius here didn't want it to melt so makan both! | ||
| Midday Snack: Some potato chips perhaps | ||
| Dinner: was whatever was cooked at home, regular stuff | ||
| Midnight cravings: When wife and baby is asleep, I sometimes stepped to the prata shop for two kosong prata with a Teh halia chaser! |
This happened for a few consecutive days. Excessive no! It didn't last long. My digestive system protested violently and I was in world of discomfort. It wasn't a sickly feeling but when you are backed up back there, moods go for a swing. Not a good thing especially when starting a new job. So now I am on a detox program. Here my new menu, it's short so don't fret
Breakfast: 4 hard boils eggs -- white only, strictly no yolk
Drink: Kopi-O or Teh-O kosong or water
Lunch: Salmon Sashimi -- no soy sauce just wasabi and a squeeze of lemon
Drink: Water up till 5pm!
Dinner: Bowl of salad, with only vinegar and olive oil dressing.
Drink: Funky tea that makes you go the next day.
Result:
I'm down 4 plus kg in weight and also two belt holes. I feel a whole lot better for sure. Moods are in check too.
I guess to some extent sustainability will beg and I will answer, moderation is key. Healthy diet goes a long way. I am not going to shun my favorite foods but I intend to make this a lifestyle choice. To choose to eat healthy when the alternative is there, and once in a while to indulge myself.
This weekend will mark the 2 week of this regime, which signals the return to normalcy from a dietary perspective. Of course, i ain't gonna let all that hard work and abstinence go to waste, so I say again "Mod in Key". New mantra!
With a dinner party tonight and a wedding lunch tomorrow, let's see how I go.
M Detoxing
2) Has discovered that taking the train to work is not all that bad when you have a seat.
3) Chicken Pox is no longer a one time event, it's can reappear as Shingles.
4) Is glad his shows are back on air.
5) Hard boiled eggs white can be a really filling meal.
6) What you put in REALLY determines how you will feel.
7) Highlight of the week is to have lost close to 2.5 kg with his new diet.
M
2) Is extremely grateful to be tithing again! It's a privileged I have so missed.
3) Loves to watch Sophie's head bobbing around as she rouses from her slumber.
4) Has found a new instant buzz with Toast Box's kopi cow!
5) Is finally buckling down to read A Purpose Driven Life with the wife.
6) Highlight of the week is the Singapore Grand Prix!
7) Wrote 1 - 6 on Thursday and forgot about it completely till Sunday, it's been a looooooong weekend. In a way glad it's over....doh Monday!
M
We have decided to ditch baby school for Sophie for the next year almost. After all the dramas that school brought her, we have done the usual young parent thing and begged out parents (Sophie's grandies) to be overseers with the domestic helper as the primary caregiver.
Definitely the sense of security is much greater with this arrangement but, we need to be wary not to get to a stage of taking our parents for granted as they help us out in such a big way. It's really easy to take them for granted with our schedules and scarily it's mostly unintentional.
When we get home from work, we would like to spend all the time we have with Sophie before she nods off to bed and by that time she does that, either we are completely exhausted and join her or prefer the sanity calming effect of the TV. I guess nobody wants to take their parents for granted but it just sort of happens. I dunno , it seems that when we decide to do something about it, it's normally too late. Oh well, at least it's in the back of our mind as we endeavor to not get thing to that stage.
M reflective at 6.18am
2) T.M.Levin shirts are poorly made and over priced, they look nice but they suck!
3) Never had so much fibre in his diet.
4) Bras Basah MRT station on the Circle Line is brilliant.
5) Is glad to have Sophie's care taking arrangements sorted out.
6) Realised that he is a child of the most high God, it's beats all and it's real.
7) Highlight of the week is being greeted by my awesome wife and daughter when I get out my car.
M
1) Is glad to have his smiley girl back.
2) Top Chef in Singapore! Wow!
3) Has found sumptuous sandies OZ style at Bratwurst Shop in Plaza Sing.
4) Is working in Internet Hell, all external emails are tracked and USB ports can only recognize mice. Wrote a blog but can't send it out, the post is literally trapped.
5) Two monitors are better than one.
6) Is thinking of how to self reward himself. Any suggestions?
7) Highlight of the week is meeting baby Emma.
M
It was a tough day. I usually do not have Monday blues because my Mondays are normally busy at work with an abundance of activity. Of course, this was my first “work Monday” in months but, it was blue because I spent the first part of the day aimless. I loathe starting a job when the first assignment is to takeover someone who is moving to a new position. One, they do not care about you but are more interested in their new position. Two, you spend most of your time, waiting for them to “find time” to show you the ropes. Three, I do not like waiting!!
This has been the case last Thursday and Friday, and first part of Monday was no different. It was made worse by the fact that the wife was away in Hong Kong, she left on Sunday night. So Monday morning I roused by myself to Sophie’s cries and brought her over to the bed for some quality time and play. As I was running out of time, I got ready to leave for the office but, when I was all ready to go, I just simply could not leave the house. I kept looking back at Sophie being carried by helper Jeanie. Sophie kept looking at me with those big innocent eyes of hers, and there I was struggling to get into the car. I would have given a king’s ransom to know what was going through her little mind.
I of course, got into the car after 5 rounds of goodbye, helper Jeanie was probably thinking I was crazy. I was heartbroken but I knew the Sophie would be fine but because we’ve sent off Mum countless time and as the cab turns the corner her attention is on something else. However, I clearly wasn’t ok. As the first paragraph and basically this post demonstrates.
But somewhere after lunch, I got an email from the wife. Errorlyn who was at home sent these to her in Hong Kong and she sent them to me!
My day, in an instant, was completely changed! I eventually had a great end of day. Thanks to my wonderful little GIRLS!
M so lucky a guy!
18 There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves torment. But he who fears has not been made perfect in love.
2) For This I Was Born by Brian Houston is well worth read.
3) Just visited Marina Bay Sands Skypark and am absolutely amazed.
4) Misses Sophie when I'm at work.
5) Has come full circle after 2 years exactly.
6) Ate at the Jalan Kayu cafe near office. Irony!
7) Just had his first TGIF in months.
M
In laws in town, always great have them around because the house becomes full of activity, kids running around always noisy. Laughter all around just warms the house so much so that the cats have moved in to soak up the love. Sophie is loving the additional attention, for us it's great to have more hands to carry her around.
Last Friday, I signed an employment contract, after almost 7 months of REST and doing all sorts of cool projects, I am heading back to work. Though I have not blogged much about it, it has been tough, not so much financially, but more mentally and emotionally. That for me was the major challenge, to not lose myself and faith amidst the discouragement and the disappointment. To basically to take all things as it comes and to truly see what is important in life. God and family!
Last Wednesday, our domestic helper dropped a bomb on us. She said she wanted to move to another employer to work. She claimed she did not want to take care of Sophie anymore, an excuse that surprised me because she loves Sophie so much. They have so much fun together and it all seemed so genuine. To cut a long story short, by Friday we were prepared to send her off, ONLY when a new maid arrives but as we woke up that morning we found her all packed up and ready to leave. We weren't expecting that! After a few rather traumatic conversations we reached the real reason, which frankly was darn stupid, we clarified and cleared the misunderstanding. End of story, all is back to normal, at least on the surface.
So pretty much your average roller coaster ride of a week. Let's hope next week is smooth, as I start work and as things fall back to normal. MIL will be staying an additional week, thankfully to help handle things with Sophie. Now all I need are some new shirts.
M in a new season
I have been expecting a call for the past few days. It has been a nerve wrecking wait. Every time, I step away from my phone when I come back to it, I religiously check it. And upon seeing that there are no missed calls, it leaves me sighing. Thank God for this Lock screen that counters all sighing!
It turns it into an instant smile!
M thankful for my two “S”es!
This post serves as a marker for today, the day we as family planted a miracle seed! No one plants a seed and leaves it without the expectation of a harvest. Funnily, early last year when we planted our first miracle seed, we saw many different miracles happening but the biggest miracle harvest of them all only came to our realization last week, when we looked back at when we planted our seed.
15th Feb seed planted, 2 weeks later after around 8 month of trying, Sophie was conceived. 9 months later Sophie popped out and each day with her has been a miracle that keeps on getting better. A supernatural harvest in 2 weeks!! Gosh! I can't hardly wait for what what Jesus has in store for us!
M more than expectant
1) Book is in final edit. So exciting.
2) Wants to watch YOG but tickets all sold out but the stands are so empty.
3) Misses Tex-Mex food from El Arriero in Kokomo, after having mediocre Mex food at Lazy Lizard.
4) Finds that Temasek Review gives for interesting a reading at the most.
5) Helped two people on the road to iPad ownership. Apple Evangelist?
6) Is going to plant a Miracle Seed for the immediate future this Sunday!
7) My book is out of final edit but, I realised that I will have to delay it for a while more to sort out some fundamental economic issues. Oh well. Enjoy a sneak peek at the cover!
M
One new discovery I wanted to share in more detail was the idea of eBooks. I was initially revolted at the idea of replacing actual pages, the feel, the smell of new pages, the texture of coarse beige paper with a lighted screen with text. I found the concept to be soulless. Typical of me to have such a strong opinion of something, only to quash it myself.
With the arrival of my iPad (thanks again wife, you are amazing, awesome & beautiful), and the creation of iBooks I was indeed going to give the idea of eBooks a fair shake. It bombed out!...with the fact that there is no iBookstore in SG. What a bummer. Then I found Kindle, which is the Amazon version of an eReader, instead it's build like an iPad/iPhone app. So after installation it was time to re-fire my long unused Amazon account.
Since, then I have read 3 fiction and 1 non-fiction book, all electronically purchased and delivered instantly via Amazon.com and all read via an iPad or an iPhone. So simple! With my next purchase, I was torn between 4 books, here's what I did. I downloaded a sample of each book, read each of them and eventually purchased one. In case you were wondering it's For This I Was Born: Aligning Your Vision to God's Cause [Kindle Edition] by Brian Houston and so far it's been rather inspiring a book.
Overall from a user perspective, the experience has been simple, efficient and most importantly enjoyable. I find buying books like clothes, in that they may look great in the stores' fitting room but on the mirror at home a completely different vibe. With Kindle, that no longer an issue. Do try it.
M Kindling
1) M chooses not to worry. Jesus will provide all things.
2) Is breathing super clean air; thanks to the new air cleaner.
3) Loves the fact that Sophie is in such a cheeky mood this week.
4) Just realized he missed an Asian Geographic Expedition to the world's highest railway by a few days. Damn!
5) Has been converted to eBooks, Kindle on the iPad has been a revelation.
6) John 8:31-32 - Then Jesus said to those Jews who believed Him,"If you abide in My word, you are My disciples indeed. "And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free."
7) It takes more faith to believe in the power of stones and coins than in the power of man.
M
1) Is about to self publish his first book! So cool!
2) HFMD is a bad word.
3) Has witnessed the first miracle this year!
4) Has been spending too much time at Mount A.
5) Has used up his bad news quota for the year. From here on; only Rainbows!
6) Need to start pounding the pavement soon.
7) Believes in the 'Dunamis' power of the Word of God
M
Posts
All Comments
