A year on

August 29, 2022.Reading time 6 minutes.

It’s August 2022. A year on and my mum is coming along as well as can be expected. I am super grateful. This time last year, my mum’s health took a turn. It all began after she had fallen off her queen-sized bed on 10 August. As she sat on the floor at the foot […]

Learning

August 22, 2022.Reading time 6 minutes.

I Googled the respiratory, pulmonary and circulatory systems. I think I learnt a fair bit from various websites about how the three systems keep me ticking along. Nothing warranted the online search. I did it out of interest. Strangely, that made me think about my school days, and biology. And, other subjects that I studied […]

Driving

July 25, 2022.Reading time 6 minutes.

I usually drive. My husband navigates. That’s our standard arrangement when we drive anywhere, and when we are on holiday – local and foreign. I prefer driving as it gives me something to do. I get fidgety and bored, otherwise. It was no different during our last holiday. We picked up a rental from the […]

Saudia

July 18, 2022.Reading time 6 minutes.

My husband and I are safely home. Our bags, all 3, arrived safely with us. Big relief. Four weeks ago, we flew to London, my first trip abroad since 2019. I had written then that there were almost no seats and sky-high ticket prices on the 10 airlines that we had looked up. With no […]

Flying again

June 20, 2022.Reading time 6 minutes.

Last week I wrote that I hadn’t flown anywhere outside Malaysia since Dec 2019. I didn’t know then that I would be getting my new yet-to-be stamped passport stamped this soon. Yay. Hmm. My husband and I will be leaving for England tonight. It was all very last minute. We have a more or less […]

Bing by choice

June 13, 2022.Reading time 6 minutes.

I’ve not been out of Malaysia since Dec 2019. Not boarded a plane. Not visited a new country or revisited a previously gone-to destination. The longest my passport has not been stamped. Nothing. Nada. Of course, the inactivity has been largely due to the pandemic. Covid-19 and its ominous variants are still present despite the […]

Ageing

June 6, 2022.Reading time 6 minutes.

There are creams and serums to delay and minimise the appearance of wrinkles. There are aesthetic procedures to rejuvenate the face and body. There are exercises to keep muscles fit and flexible. There are diets and supplements to help stay healthier a little longer. Promising. Because it means we have access should we wish, want […]

Love

May 30, 2022.Reading time 6 minutes.

I like the L word, love. A happy, serotonin, feel good emotion. It’s nice to love, and be loved. And, it’s not just romantic love between lovers and married couples. It extends to the special love and affection that exist between parents and children and vice-versa, siblings, friends and even random people, who leave a […]

Alternative meds

May 23, 2022.Reading time 6 minutes.

There are three potted aloe vera plants sitting on my mum’s balcony. They look quite healthy despite being neglected. I can’t remember to water them. Still, they continue to survive rather well. I also don’t remember to use the slimy aloe vera gel to soothe a burn or a cut. It does work but it’s […]

Praying and rituals

May 16, 2022.Reading time 6 minutes.

My mum retracts her legs and covers her feet when she watches the images of gods on TV. She prays when she sees the ‘Thivarthanam’ or oil lamp/light offering to the deities. She does so each morning as she listens and watches Astro’s Channel 201 that features devotional songs, prayers and rituals conducted in temples […]