A good, better or ok 2024

January 1, 2024.Reading time 6 minutes.

I hope 2024 will be a good or better year. Peace on earth, friendlier weather, people-centric governments, equitable social and economic growth, and all that. Ok is also alright. If the new year’s generic wishes for good health, happiness, successes, steady/true friendships/relationships and fun holidays are somewhat realised or enjoyed by one and all. Good […]

Heavy heart

December 25, 2023.Reading time 6 minutes.

An onslaught of upheavels and emotions. My heart felt like it was going to burst right out of my chest. I felt claustrophobic. I needed to get out of my home/condominium, and be out in the open. It was late, sometime after midnight. I was having difficulty sleeping. My mind was all over the place, and […]

Thinking,talking,remembering

December 18, 2023.Reading time 6 minutes.

I feel unsettled. More than a week has passed. I think of Gunda, brother number 1, almost all of the time. It’s no exaggeration when I say I wake up thinking about him. Go to bed thinking about him. Remembering that he is no longer with us. This is on top of talking about brother […]

Brother number 1

December 11, 2023.Reading time 6 minutes.

I am sad and tearful when I think that my Gunda is no more. I know what has happened but my head and heart are having a hard time accepting, believing. Most of this year, brother number 1 was not in a good way. In and out of hospitals for his protracted prostate condition. And […]

Service and satisfaction

November 27, 2023.Reading time 7 minutes.

Generally, customer service should be about answering customers’ questions on products and services. Providing advice and guidance. Finding solutions and/or resolving complaints to problems. In a quick, easy and empathetic manner via face-to-face interactions at brick-and-mortar stores and/or online through emails, WhatsApp, live chats, and telephones. My recent encounters with two companies made me question […]

Deepavali 2023

November 20, 2023.Reading time 6 minutes.

Deepavali came and went last Sunday. It was the most low key in recent years. Even my mum, who looks forward to and gets excited to this one festival in a whole series of Indian celebrations each year, was reticent. This despite the presence of sister number 3, the family’s in-house chef, who returned home […]

News detox

November 6, 2023.Reading time 6 minutes.

I like to stay current with current news. For me, reading, listening and watching the latest happenings inside and outside the country, is par for the course. I also write about topics that interest me. Monday to Friday, I listen to the ‘Morning Run’ on the BFM radio station. I like the business news coverage. Corporate […]

Revolving door

October 30, 2023.Reading time 6 minutes.

The onion man made me think of the revolving door of people, shops and trends my husband and I have encountered/experienced in the 15 years we’ve lived in our condominium in Kuala Lumpur. We have remainers. Owner-occupiers like us and many of our neighbours. We are mostly lift or lobby buddies. The usual meeting place […]

Prolongation

October 16, 2023.Reading time 6 minutes.

People are living longer nowadays. Thanks to a host of factors like advancements in modern medicine and cutting-edge treatments. Also, better health policies, improved hygiene, smarter lifestyle choices, and a constantly growing population. ‘In 2020, the number of people aged 60 years and older outnumbered children younger than 5 years… By 2050, the world’s population […]

Photographs

October 9, 2023.Reading time 6 minutes.

Niece number 3 snapped several photos with her pink, an ala-Barbie polaroid camera, at my mum’s recent 90th birthday party. She took one of my mum and me. An instant, hardcopy photograph that captured a special moment on a special day. A fitting keepsake. And, a party favour of sorts. See, touch, immediately own. I […]