Bandaged Soul...so I can open my heart to you again.

I'm feeling so tired for the past few weeks. And recently with health issues both parents are going through, I'm affected with ferrying the folks to and from hospital - 2 different places. This is the first time I have been assigned to do such tasks and it doesn't help when both are not staying with me. Other things around me have been giving quite a bit of stress. Car, phone, CNY obligations, work and anything relationship-related. Plus it's the time of the monthly biological cycle that I get easily tensed about things. There's a limit to how many groups of people a person can commit to. I think I've reached my limit. I'm feeling choked. A colleague put it right that it's like we have so many plates to spin so no matter what, we need to be careful to do the rounds so that every plate stays spinning on the rod. We only have 24 hours a day. I'm in desperate need of a break. Perhaps I need to be pulled out of my need to be in solitude. Maybe I'm to

Took leave today to drive Matrix for check-up. The 'medical fee' came to $729 mainly cos I changed all 4 tyres. The whole thing took about 3 hours. Thank God I brought my ASUS Eee PC and watched a couple of CSI episodes while waiting at the workshop. Then I went to find Zam at his VideoEzy outlet and dragged him away for a drink and chat at McD. Since I was feeling rather bored after that and couldn't keep Zam for long, I decided to go window-shopping at Fairprice opposite his shop. I just wheeled the trolley so I didn't have to carry my heavy bag around. Would anybody actually think that this squid was sicked before? A check on the dictionary explains 'Cured' as the act or a method of preserving meat, fish, etc., by smoking, salting, or the like. I learnt something new today. Still couldn't find my fish sauce. Only found these at Giant (a few days ago) and Fairprice (today), respectively. I shall persevere... Well, in the end (as usual) it became more than

Path way between DES School and Student Development Centre The weather has been rather hot lately. I was on my way back from lunch at DES canteen when I noticed that a big part of the grass patch in front of my office building (photo above) has turned brown. Is the Church in Singapore really going through spiritual drought just like the land is now experiencing physical dryness? For the past few weeks, the sermon has revolved around harvest and the lack of labourers. Hence, calls were made for the congregation to respond to 'Go', or 'Give' (support the 'Go') or at least to 'Pray'. Pray that the Lord of the harvest to thrust forth labourers. It's time to put our hands to the plow, whether we are going, giving or just praying. And to have what it takes is really to simply make ourselves available and do what we can. Even if we are not willing, be willing to be made willing. Let's pray that we won't miss out on the work that the Lord is doing.

Didn't realise we have sooo many CCAs in TP: Students' Union TP Students' Union Academic Studies Clubs Applied Science Studies Club Business Studies Club Design Studies Club Engineering Studies Club Humanities and Social Sciences Studies Club Informatics and IT Studies Club Adventure Adventure Club Experiential Learning Facilitators (ELF) Arts and Culture BAND Chinese Orchestra CHOIR Dance Ensemble (Modern and Hip Hop) DIKIR BARAT Divo Diva FUSION PERCUSSION Indian Dance Group MALAY DANCE GROUP MUSIC VOX Production Crew Salvo Drums Teatro (DramaTec, Titisan Temasek and Rauthirum) Community Service Community Service Club Interest Groups Aerospace Engineering Interest Group Blackbox Beyond Boundaries Double B Energy Oasis ENGINEERRUS Newsletter Team FDM (Integrated Facility Design and Management) G-Force Global Connect Club Green Interest Group International Students i.Live Japanese Cultural Group Microsoft Student Community NYAA Challenge PACEsetters TP-BP Mentors TP Cliquer

The plan was simple. I would bring the staple for a late picnic-style breakfast. Charles volunteered beverage while the rest of the girls just bring any leftover CNY snacks from home. Zam and Charles would bring their guitar to either entertain us or lead worship. Those who have it would bring picnic mat. With one sms, Fiona gave instructions for carpool and everything was set. It's amazing how when you're excited about something, it takes more to feel tired from all the preparation. Last night I stir fried my favourite Korean 'dong-fen' with leek, chives (a check on the internet says it's called 'chinese leek'), minced luncheon pork and 5 eggs. And of course, fish sauce. Let it in the frying pan and heat it up in the morning before packing it into a box. Also mixed a pack of crab sticks with mayo, sesame oil and garlic oil, and black pepper and left it to chill in the fridge overnight. Set aside some leftover sausages to be packed into the ice boxes in the

I love cooking with fish sauce. You can say I grew up with it. My favourite hawker food since childhood - fish ball noodle - uses it. Ok, those that use soya sauce can step one side. It makes a good difference if the cut chilli is soaked in it. So I was just eating the minced pork porridge that mom made. It tasted a bit plain so I added some fish sauce. Mmmm...I'm going to eat another serving. :P~ You know how you would sometime wonder. How could something that tastes so good be really good for health. One lingering thought I have about fish sauce that occasionally popped up into my mind to haunt me is...does fish sauce contain MSG? So I decided to indulge my curiosity this time and did a search on the internet. Well, apparently, the low grade ones do. And the article on 'How Fish Sauce Is Made' has it well covered. Well, it was enough for me :D One paragraph by the writer, Kasma, made me extra happy, "For your information, good quality fish sauce not only works wonde

Last year it was mom and everyone visited her and had a mini reunion dinner at TTSH's visitors' lounge. This year, dad couldn't make it. He's also staying at TTSH. If not for mom who was recovering from the operation she underwent a month ago and couldn't move around too much; if not for the fact that dad's was an accident and we had already planned (food and all) to have reunion dinner at Peck's, we would have done it again. We had time to prepare for mom's admission. BUMMER! :( So my plan was to sleep in on Saturday morning. At least till 10am before I do my final lot of spring cleaning and then fetch Dad, David and Sean to Peck's house for Reunion Dinner. But I was awakened at 8plus. Mui called to say that dad is in pain and wanted to be sent to the hospital. I pulled myself out of sleepy state and rushed down to pick him up. On the night of his fall, Peck brought him to get an x-ray at CGH. The doctor couldn't find anything wrong. The pain mu

I'm so glad dad's ok. Falling down from a high chair at his age is no joke. Anything can happen. When I read Peck's sms, the first thing that came to me was guilt. All I could think of was that I shouldn't have told mom to call him to fix the living room light, which was probably the cause of the semi lights out at home since last night. But that one has been flickering for a few days. Mui rushed down from the office first and brought him to the clinic downstairs and Peck drove down from Bukit Panjang. Where was I? I was in the office working and my phone was in my bag...in silent mode. When I got back, Peck and Mui were already waiting for the medicine at the clinic counter. Dad was sitting on the bench with bandage around his head. My heart is still in a sunken mode. I'm thinking about the small pool of blood on the floor that came from his head. I pray that it's just external injury. I wanted to say sorry, but I knew I would cry if I said it. I did manage to

God knows I need it. I'm desperate, more than I can admit it. More than I am conscious of it. Only God knows how much I am dying without it. And I felt it today. He did not let me go. He did not leave me alone in "Numb Numb Ville". It's strange to say this, and even sounds a bit cheesy. But I feel that He went there to find me. I got lost and He found me. His hope led me out, giving me the courage to move out of the counterfeits and into what could really satisfy. Let Your compassion fill my heart and awaken my soul. May I desire more and more each day to see You glorified in me and through me. Help me to stop being so caught up with my own needs. Open my eyes to see the world through Yours and enlarge my heart to understand what breaks Yours. Compel me to go. Get me out of my complacency and apathy, and respond to what really matters. Jesus, You are the Way, the Truth and the Life. Let me not settle for anything less.