CARTOON LAGOON: August 2015

31 Aug 2015

Coffee Withdrawal Symptoms (Day 5 and 6) and Rebounding UPDATE

Coffee Withdrawal Symptoms Day 5

I slept in on Saturday morning (Day 5) and woke up at about 9am with no headache! Brought the dog for her walk then released her back into Tessa's room (a very happy dog) to sleep some more in her 'master's' room. Both kids were still asleep and I didn't want to wake them up.

Hurried to the nearby mall to buy Macs breakfast for the kids and I think a side effect of not having any coffee is brain fog because I had forgotten to bring money. Yes, money; notes and coins. Fortunately, my pouch had my NETS card. Macs did accept NETS, except, I left Macs thereafter to get my breakfast and realised that I had left my NETS card IN the NETS machine (Yah, it's sort of self-service nowadays; you're expected to insert and remove the card by yourself). I ran back to Macs and my heart sank as I saw no card in the NETS terminal. Fortunately, some kind soul in the queue must have noticed it and returned it to the counter because the manager had it safe and sound in his pocket! Praise God for good people!

I didn't need money to buy my own breakfast because I had with me, a free meal coupon I had won at the mall which was expiring soon. Ordered a Toast with Kaya and Butter Set that came with soft boiled eggs and had tea with milk AND unfortunately sugar. The drink came about because my brain was definitely fogged when the counter guy had asked me if I wanted coffee or tea. I told him tea whilst my mind was thinking of black tea with no milk and no sugar. Except I realised that I should have articulated my thoughts and said "Teh-O-Kosong" (just like Kopi-O-Kosong). Instead, I got tea with everything.

It was nice to sit in solitude and have breakfast. NO ONE to hurry me (OK, I knew I had to get the Macs breakfast back to the kids soon)! I have done this a few times and I will definitely be having breakfast by myself more often from now on! I tried but I couldn't finish half a cup of the Teh. It was just too sweet for me.

Thereafter, I went to the supermarket to get some groceries and then scooted back home. Kids woke up very late so much so their breakfast was their lunch. While they were having delicious Sausage Egg McMuffins for lunch:

Sausage Egg McMuffins

I was having this yummilicious meal:

(above) Sauteed mushroom with onions, salad and cheese

and my lemon detox water

(above) Lemon with cucumber 'detox' water

I managed to do housework till the evening, then rebounded for 30 minutes, all headache free.

Just out from the shower after a rebounding routine; sans makeup

HOWEVER, a headache started at about 11pm that night. I don't know why and I don't know if it is a caffeine withdrawal symptom although I think it is likely. I wasn't able to sleep properly and tried my best to fall asleep so that it would not hurt so much. The pain was located at my right temple. It wasn't as bad as before (like having the pain behind the eyes!).

So what happened the next day?

Coffee Withdrawal Symptoms Day 6

I woke up with no headache and managed to cook Japanese Curry for lunch that day.

Japanese Curry

Yah, see, I am still eating a full plate of rice (and more because hubs gave half his rice to me). We were supposed to head to JB for the last time in our car before we scrap it but we scrapped the idea when we realised that the next day was Malaysia's national day (which would mean the Malaysians who were on holiday, might be jamming the causeway, coming into Singapore). Because hubs had worked that morning, I preferred to let him rest at home. The family just sort of lazed around doing our own thing.

My headache came lightly just before evening as I was lying in bed listening to hubs tell me something. In fact, he made me laugh sooooo hard because he was humming KC and Jojo's "All my life" and twisting his arms and body here and there. Yes, mimicking my exercise actions. He asked me if I thought he hadn't noticed my actions? He joked that he has been a patient man but the creaking of the rebounder springs would drive him over the edge one day for sure! For a very serious man, he really made me laugh and laugh, all the while, nursing my dumb *ss headache! Oh and by the way, he thinks, he sees NO DIFFERENCE in me at all.

It was such a nagging irritating thing (the headache, not the hubby) that I told myself to take a short nap. It was a really short nap and I woke up about 20 minutes later feeling much better. Got up to prepare a steak dinner for the family and didn't suffer any more headaches that night. Managed to rebound for 30 minutes and it felt really good.

All sweaty after rebounding. Looking like crap but feeling fantastic!

Look what happened on Day 7?

Lost inches but not weight

I was dressing for work and had put on a trusty black skirt and found that it had slipped to the bottom of my hips making me look clownish because the hem was touching my knees! Ok, this I admit, when I bought this skirt, it was a loose fit for me because I hadn't wanted it tight when I sit at the office desk doing work. But I can't wear it anymore. It sucks because I have TWO of the same kind (yes, I like to buy duplicates of clothes which I like). I look forward to the day when I can't wear any of my skirts because they've become way too loose for me!

From the above pic, you can see that I still have a long way to go to flatten the stomach bulge. The few crunches I am doing are seeing results in slow motion! Grrrrr! Meanwhile, I do feel different as in, my body seems to be 'burning' a long time after each workout routine. I must say, the loose skirt was a pleasant surprise, given that I had eaten full plates of rice for lunch and dinner and even had a whole cup of ice-cream!!! This is good inspiration to carry on and I hope that by sharing pictures of myself looking all horrid and sweaty can inspire someone else to run the race with me!

To a better lifestyle!

28 Aug 2015

Coffee Withdrawal Symptoms (Day 4)

Day 3 (How it ended)
The headache was still there when I left the office. Decided to pray and sing in tongues. It helped a lot and I felt so much better.

I reached home and told hubs I was still having the headache although it felt better than the day before. He advised me to take a nap and I did. I just plonked on the bed and fell asleep. I woke up about 2 hours later to go for dinner with him and decided that perhaps it wasn't just caffeine my body was yearning for, it could have been carbs.

All I wanted to eat was veg but I decided to eat carbs instead to see if it would help my headache. I couldn't think of any dish that would appease my palate except perhaps mee pok dry (dry flat noodles) or a Korean stir fry. The Kopitiam near our place does not sell nice mee pok so I ordered the Korean hotplate chicken and beef for hubs and I to share. It was super yummy and I did not have an issue finishing up my rice and a bit of his (because hubs is not much of a rice eater).

Went back home and munched on some Famous Amos cookies we had bought (naughty, naughty me, I know). While I was munching on the cookies, I told hubs I'd take another day of rest from rebounding because I think my body needed the rest. He agreed.

When I retired to the bedroom, I decided, heck! I NEEDED to rebound. I needed to feel good and alive instead of so dang tired and sick because of the headache. So I did. Hubs was quite surprised to find me on the rebounder when he entered the room later. No regrets. Although my head did feel weirdly heavy when I was doing my jumping jacks on the rebounder, I felt so much better after the whole routine. I even offered to give hubs a lymphatic massage after I had taken my bath!

Day 4
It's Day 4 that I'm off coffee.
I woke up early in the morning to take a leak and the first thing that hit me was a blinding pain at my temples, near my eyes, inside my eyes. Darn! I cannot even pin point the pain. I prayed in tongues and went back to bed. I must say, I did not feel like waking up later. I felt really sleepy.

It's not too bad today. It's not like a perpetual pain. It's a light ache and it's there but not so noticeable at times when I am not thinking about it. For some funny reason, the headache gets worse when I cross my legs while sitting at the table!!! Maybe my body is twisted up inside from all the times I have sprained my ankle. Oh yes, miraculously, my sprained ankle has all but straightened itself out. I can still feel it wobbly on very rare occasions but generally, I am back in heels! No pain!

So getting this headache made me wonder, is it caffeine or carbs that my body is yearning for? I really don't think it's carbs seeing as I have fed myself with regular portions of rice both yesterday and today. I do think it's the coffee and I'm not going to test it by drinking some. Nope. I'm going cold turkey. I'm already in the 4th day. Why ruin it? I'm looking forward to the day I wake up to no headache!

Rebounding For Weight Loss - End August 2015 Update (Progress Pics)

I was feeling down last night as I stepped off my weighing scale. I had weighed myself thrice. Once before dinner. Once after dinner and once after a 20 minute rebounding routine. I put on 2 kgs after dinner and lost 1.2 kg after the rebounding session. I asked hubs how that was possible. Of course hubs laughed it off because he figured the budget weighing scale he had bought me was totally off and again, he asked me how he was to know that at the time of buying. Okay, enough of the scale. I wasn't very pissed at the 2 kgs crankiness. I was pissed that I hadn't lost ANY weight in the past week.

But I took a look at my photos a few months back and my current photo and ...I am pissed no more.

Here I am in very early APRIL 2015, before I started changing my lifestyle. I was not exercising or watching what I ate at all. This picture was snapped a few days after my father's funeral and on the same day we had placed my late father's ashes in his niche.

(above) Early April 2015 - Before starting on changing my lifestyle

And....here I am NOW; end AUGUST 2015:

(above) End August 2015 - After about 2 months of rebounding and watching my diet

I have no BIG weight loss to report. None. I am nearly the same weight. The loss is negligible given that I yoyo up and down those few KGs. But it is apparent to me, that my body has changed. I feel leaner. I can feel my body toning up. Hopefully, it's really me losing fats and gaining muscle, that's why my weight is not budging.

I did measure myself and I have lost 2 inches off my Bust and 2 inches off my Waist but not my hips. Yes, of course, I knew it! My boobs would be the first to go! I think my face has slimmed somewhat although it is not very apparent and my double chin is still hanging around. However, if you note the pic in April, my tummy is rounder than what it is currently and the below pic was snapped after eating a whole plate of Ayam Penyet (smash fried chicken malay style) with a full plate of rice and unhealthily deep fried crackers! Tummy has reduced a bit, in my OWN opinion! LOL.

(above) End August 2015 - After about 2 months of rebounding and watching my diet

I think the body started to change after I started drinking my coffee black with no sugar. Now, I'm going to totally do away with coffee (and you would have read in my last post about the terrible headaches I was getting). I know that coffee helps to speed up your metabolism but I used to function very well without it and now, if I am getting withdrawal symptoms from not having it, I feel it is a wake up call to the effects it has on me. I was never much of a coffee person so it'll be easy to do live without it. At most, I'll go back to drinking tea. As for carbs, I don't have any set rules. If I eat a lot of carbs for one meal, I may skip it or reduce it the next or I might just eat!

So, here are some more pics, I'm not sure if you can see any difference from May 2015:

(above) May 2015 - Before I started rebounding or watching my diet

(above) June 2015- Just starting to tinkle with the rebounder and thinking about my diet

(above) Early July 2015 - Getting seriously pissed with how fat I look in photos

(above) Mid July2015 - Feeling I need to get serious about changing my lifestyle

(above) Mid August 2015 - Intense rebounding and reducing sugar and carb intake

(above) NOW - End August 2015 - After about 2 months of rebounding and watching my diet

While the weighing scale readings suck big time and make me feel low, I am not going to give up. It's apparent that there ARE changes taking place and it's a whole package. My eating and exercise habits have to become a part of my life and a way of life. It's not just a diet fad. I am happy that today, being Day 4 that I have weaned off coffee, the headache is subsiding (although I did wake up to a blistering pain near the eyes when I went to pee early this morning). I'm determined to do this and I hope that some day, I'll be able to share some actual weight loss pictures to motivate anyone who is looking for motivation, the same way I look to others for motivation!

27 Aug 2015

Coffee Withdrawal Symptoms (Day 1 to 3)

My KOK journey might never be completed. It's not that I am done with trying to change my lifestyle for the better, it's that I may be going off Kopi-O-Kosong forever. In fact, I may be going off coffee in any style forever.

Day 1
I have been having the MOTHER of all headaches for 2 days now and I did not see this coming. I accidentally went off my morning coffee 3 days ago because I had drunk a full cup of lemon detox water immediately when I woke up and was filling quite full. I decided I would skip ~~and~~ my morning cuppa and left for work. At lunch, I was still very alert so I thought, hey, if my lemon water is better for me, I should just skip coffee at lunch altogether. I made it through the night with no issues and no side effects. In fact, I started a new routine using wrist waists and felt really good that I had broken out into a sweat just after 10 minutes of rebounding.

Day 2
The next day went uneventfully through lunch. I did notice however, that I was constipated. It was erm, less than usual. At around 3pm, as I was sitting at my office desk, a terrible headache suddenly started. I am not prone to having headaches. The only time I ever get one is when I am having a runny nose and the sinuses are blocked (stuffy nose). That's the only time I may get a headache. So I sat at my desk feeling terrible. The pain seemed to be at my temples yet was not exactly at the side. It was like IN my eyes. Behind my eyes to be more accurate. The pain was excruciating. I went to the toilet and tried to throw up, thinking that perhaps it was something I had eaten at lunch that was making me feel sick (sliced fish soup with no milk and no rice/no noodles - healthy right?). I did eventually throw up and I expected the headache to subside but it didn't.

When I got home, I plopped down on the bed and begged hubs to help me microwave the left over food (because he had bought tonnes of food home the night before). When he called me to the table, I looked at the food, I felt like I wanted to just eat vegetables. (Yikes! What's happening to me?). Washed some romaine lettuce and drizzled some seasoning over it but still, I picked at my food. After dinner, I poured us some coconut water and I felt better after that. Went to lie down really early and hubs joined me. He made fun at me and asked me to get on the rebounder. I was like, no thanks. I'll skip it for today! My body was trying to tell me something!

It dawned on me that I could be suffering coffee withdrawal symptoms so I did some nosing online and surprise, surprise, the symptoms match mine. Anyway, hubs and I were ready to sleep and when hubs asked me for the time, we were both surprised that it was only 11pm.

Day 3
So, I had skipped exercising on Day 2. I just couldn't handle it with the headache and felt my body was calling for some rest. I woke up on Day 3 feeling sleepy. Not refreshed, not sick either but there is a lingering heaviness in the head. Like an ache in the head instead of a headache! I read that some people take many, many days to get over coffee. I have not been a coffee drinker for long. For the longest time, I was a tea drinker (English tea / Green tea). In fact, for many years, I used to just drink plain water in the morning. Then because it was easier to just pour an instant packet of 3-in-1 coffee into my breakfast cup then to yank a teabag in and out of hot water and add sugar to it, I went along with the 3-in-1 coffee. Also, it was always nice to sit with hubs and have a cup of coffee with him because he'd always ask me to make him an evening cuppa. I really hadn't realised that I had become reliant on caffeine. I did realise that I never used to drink coffee because I could not sleep at night but of late, I was able to sleep, despite drinking coffee. See how the body adapts?

Coffee withdrawal symptoms so far:
Headache (at the temple, behind the eyes!)
Sleepiness (need more sleep despite sleeping early)
Stuffy nose (like an allergic reaction more than a cold)
Constipation (yes, I am STILL waiting for the big one! Muaahahaha)

Will I be giving up my KOK journey? Yes. I shall go back to having my tea when the occasion calls for coffee but otherwise, I'm happy to stick to plain water or my lemon detox water. Why would I want to continue to abuse my body if I know it isn't doing it good? I have to stick with this and just ride out the withdrawal symptoms.

In another post, I will blog about the side effects of the new and exciting lifestyle changes I have made. Meanwhile, I need to ride this day out. The weekend cannot come sooner.

25 Aug 2015

Chicken Macaroni Night and New Weighing Scale

The girl has no classes on Mondays for this term so I was happy to accede to her request for Macaroni Soup last night. I popped into the supermarket and whilst lugging the 6 heavy plastic bags maybe 200 to 300 metres home, was thinking that perhaps I was done with my workout for that evening!

Chicken macaroni soup

Chicken macaroni soup is a very easy dish to prepare but I find that there are more pots and bowls to wash! As with any pasta dish, you need to boil the pasta and then drain it. That alone is a large pot and a colander to wash! I have a separate pot for the chicken broth and a smaller pot to boil the chicken and blanch the vegetables. Lots 'o washing but such a simple dish to make. Cut chillies dipped in soya sauce is a must!

The boy returned home from his first day of exams in time for dinner. He however, does not like macaroni (see what I mean about how difficult it is to satisfy the whole family's palate?). He requested for instant noodles as he said he had been craving for it the whole day. How was I to disappoint him? He wanted my dry 'specialty'. It takes me about 5 minutes to prep and I was happy that he was happy.

After dinner, the girl got into packing mode for her return to uni hall to stay for the rest of the week. While the very tired husband sank into the sofa to watch TV, I washed the dishes, cut up new lemons and cucumbers for our detox water, cleaned the kitchen, brought the garbage out, walked the dog, jumped on my rebounder and took a bath!!! Thought I could relax during the drive to the other end of the island but hubs told me to drive instead as he was very tired!

Used lemon and cucumber slices for detox water (minus the mint leaves)

It's a common sight to see me discarding sliced lemons and cucumbers in the sink. Of course I throw away immediately, lah. Just showing you for picture taking sake. If refrigerated, I find I can use them for 2 days. I used to make a jug for the room too but the ingredients didn't last a day unrefrigerated so I only bring in the water itself into the room. I have a habit of drinking water first thing in the morning, even before I brush my teeth. I find that it flushes out the overnight urine better if I drink before I hit the loo. Even a sip does the trick. I think the body is 'tricked' into believing that 'new' water is entering the body and so it is okay to release the old water. That's probably why people say if you do not drink enough, you will get water retention!

New lemon and cucumber for detox water (minus the mint leaves)

Here's a wonderful thing that occurred after the family started drinking the detox water (excluding the boy who hasn't taken to it). The girl, who used to survive on soft drinks, has started making and drinking detox water at her uni hall! She said she doesn't crave for soft drinks anymore. Hubs says it has made him drink alot more water because it tastes so refreshing! I concur. The detox water probably doesn't make me lose any weight but it seems to 'clear' me up by making me feel refreshed!

Somewhere in between taking out the garbage and driving, I had insisted I be able to do my rebounder routine. I knew that if I hadn't, I would have been tired and sleepy during the drive to the girl's uni and back.

I managed to rebound intensely for a good 30 minutes, took a bath and felt really refreshed during the long drive to and fro. Didn't feel sleepy at all. Hubs commented that it was really good that I was now looking forward to exercising. I agreed. I didn't see it coming but I really do. In fact, when I was walking the dog, I was staring at the loooooong pavement in front of me and thinking that I could easily run that distance now and know that I won't feel tired.

I've been jogging on my rebounder for longer periods at a go, trying to build up my stamina. I can now do jumping jacks / star jumps for 10-15 minutes non-stop and feel really good doing it. I've also started to do stomach crunches. Horribly tiring but no pain no gain. It felt so good after the routine. Out of curiousity, I took my BP immediately after getting off the rebounder while my heart was still pumping like mad. 156/101. Took it a second time immediately and it read 152/88.

I owned a relatively costly digital weighing scale before. It broke cos my son had stepped on it at a wrong angle and it had slammed down onto the floor. Thereafter, I relied on our old cheapo IKEA weighing scale which seemed to do the job since the measurements were similar to those from the polyclinic.

Hubby had surprised me with a new budget-priced, digital weighing scale last night.

New weighing scale from hubby

I stepped on it and was horrified that my weight had gone up! I asked him if it was accurate. Instead, he asked me how he was supposed to know? He said even if he had weighed himself at the store, he wouldn't have known how accurate it was (that IS true) and even if he brings it back to the store, the store would probably ask how we knew WE were accurate. He said if the calibration was off, then just minus the kgs each time I stood on it. Alamak!!!

Anyhow, I've decided to use his from today onwards because firstly, it'd be a waste not to, secondly, being digital, I can see the gram digits go up or down! Besides, it's good to err on the side of thinking I am heavier than lighter. By the way, I am seeing subtle differences in my shoulder blades. Firmer and less flabby. Must be the results of all the jumping jacks. Not complaining! Hoping for more changes! By the way, in a previous post, I had mentioned about 'fats turning into muscle'. I must clarify that there is no such thing. It's just a short cut way of saying that you lose the fats but you build up muscles. Quite a mouthful so people often say 'fats turning into muscle'! Fats are fats. Muscles are muscles. They do not turn into each other. But if you had a pound of fat, you'd be more flabby than if you sported a pound of muscle. So your weight may remain stagnant but you will probably look more toned. But please tell that to the BMI print out please. At my last check up at the polyclinic, the printed slip post weigh-in said I should be ideally 43kgs. WHOA! That's like my honeymoon skinniness you're asking for! I'd welcome it if I knew where to find it!

When I got home after sending the girl, I took my BP again (did not rest prior to that), and it read 142/80. Hmmm....not good. I have a theory that my BP spikes whenever I take a lot of soya sauce and that it does not when I take fish sauce instead. I'll have to test this theory out more comprehensively.

Here's a funny thing. Hubs had blasted Bon Jovi loudly in the car as we were reaching home and THAT really made me wanna jump on the rebounder again! However, I thought about the bath I just had and how troublesome it would be to take another bath and shoved the idea aside. Actually, I'm beginning to find the long hair a chore to take care of with this exercise routine in place. How nice to just have short hair and shower every day and have it dry quickly. Hmm....just when I decided I'm a long hair girl, I'm seriously having thoughts of chopping off my locks, again.

I am thinking that not long from now, I won't be surprised if I will want to rebound in the morning before work and in the evening after work! I hope to see the day I am obsessed with clean eating and clean living!!!

24 Aug 2015

Taxi Uncle update

My dear, dear Tuncle (short for Taxi Uncle) is back at work with a T-loan vehicle. Apparently, his former vehicle was up for scrap anyway and so God willing, his new cab (Hyundai Sonata i40) should be in the works a couple of months down the road.

After the accident, he had a whole week to rest while his vehicle was at the repair centre. I look back and wonder if this rest period had been arranged by God. You see, my dear Tuncle does not easily give himself a full day off. He drives from very early in the morning until his shift ends in the late afternoon. Of course he will force stop his shift earlier if he is really very tired and he has had a few days off here and there when we had taken short trips abroad. But in the past year, we haven't taken any long holidays. He cannot make himself tear away from the cab because of the daily rental. Even on Sundays, he will make time for Sunday Mass with us, have lunch with the family and then scoot off on his rounds again because he has no relief driver for Sundays.

Well, recently, I prayed that God would let him have enough rest because I felt that he was very tired and needed a break. Although having the accident meant a financial penalty and loss of income for that whole week, it allowed him to rest. I was doubly happy because the guy could not sit still and was doing housework instead of resting!!! He helping with the housework meant I didn't have to do as much housework! Super happy I was.

Now, he's back to driving and when I catch pockets of time to speak to him over the phone, I can hear how tired he is. I don't know how to help him. He's asked that we sleep earlier every day. I will agree except that by the time I wind down after housework, it's nearly midnight. How else can we sleep earlier? But he really has to sleep earlier than that.

I know deep down inside that he doesn't think I should ever make taxi driving a full-time job because I won't be suited to it. I told him, if I had no choice, I had no choice. He says I have so many choices how could I say I have no choice but he doesn't get what I mean. If you really had to do something to feed your family, you'd do it, whatever it is. Saying this also makes me think, maybe I should just keep up the positive attitude at my day job and shut out what the idiots are saying or doing and shut my mouth. After all, every job will have its clowns to deal with. Food for my thought.

Rebounding update - Blood Pressure Surprise!

I have to say that I pigged out the entire weekend and thus, my weight went up. I rested Friday night because it had been a long day at work and I just didn't feel like it. But I did rebound intensely for 30 minutes both on Saturday and Sunday.

The weighing scale depressed me. The little bit of weight I had lost, I had piled on again. But I haven't gone beyond my 'original' weight so I should be glad. On the other hand, non-weightloss aside, I am happy to say that I received a wonderful surprise!

Okay, I might as well not keep it private because if I am going to share to help anyone out there, then this has to be said. Before I started rebounding, my blood pressure readings hovered at a high 140s / 100s. On bad days, it would go up to 150s / 110s. Yes, scary. That's when I decided I had to get off my *ss to really make a lifestyle change.

So if you've been following my posts, you will know that I am not following any strict diet. I am eating the portions and foods I am usually eating except that I have made a conscious effort to cut sugar and milk from my coffee and to eat less rice. I still do eat sugar and I still do eat rice. It's just making an effort to reduce my intake. I have also been rebounding on my mini-trampoline (aka rebounder) for about 20-30 minutes for at least 5 days a week. I've only been doing this regularly for about 2 months.

My blood pressure has not gone lower than 130/85 in a very long while. Not even when I was sick (remember I wrote that I had been very sick while taking my TDVL course?). Therefore, I was first surprised when I had vertigo and gone to the doctor. He recorded 136/67 and told me my BP was fine. I didn't argue. I thought his manual BP machine was faulty. From the past week, my BP has been consistently lowering. I can tell you that the battery is working fine AND because I could not believe it, I had taken both arms and the readings were about the same.

When I got off the rebounder last night after an intense 30 minute workout, it was already late at night. I cooled down, then went to take my bath. When I came out, I lay on the bed and did some surfing on the net before I decided to check my BP. To my surprise, the reading was 124/80. I was like, WHAT? So I took it again. 128/87. I was quite stunned.

Hubs was already fast asleep. So I kept my excitement to myself. Then my morning reading was 132/84 which if it remains this way, is a really 'good' reading for me already. If I can maintain it at this, I am quite sure I won't need to be put on High Blood Pressure meds.

I can tell you, that I am super excited. You know, when I used to get my BP taken at the polyclinic's BP stations before I actually got to see the doctor, I'd always get told that my readings are very high and I'd be advised that it was due to the fact that I had just arrived. So I'd be told to rest for a while before getting my BP taken again. Maybe it's white coat hypertension (where patients feel more anxious when they have their BP taken by medical staff and thus show higher readings than they normally would) but I have ruled it out because I was also getting high readings at home.

So, is it the exercise or the KOK meals that are helping me in lowering my blood pressure? I don't know but I think I like the way things are going (except I'd be happier with some weight loss). I'm going to start to reduce the portions of my meals to see if this will help me with the weight loss. Meanwhile, I'm really happy with the BP readings and wonder if I can actually fall to the 120s/70s and keep it there.

Homemade Wanton Soup

Wanton Soup is a very simple dish I like to make for the family on weekends.
Only the girl and I relish it.
The boys will say it's nice and eat it but it probably isn't their choice food.
The girl and I like asian dishes with more sauce.
The boys like bread, snacks and unhealthy, fried foods.
So in having to cook for the family, I've given up trying to please ALL of us!

Just need:

Homemade Wanton Soup
Minced meat of your choice (usually I use pork)
Wanton skins (sold in a pack at the supermarket for slightly over a Singapore dollar).
Soya sauce or salt
Pepper to taste
Garnish of your choice (I like fried shallots)

I forgot to take a pic of the unseasoned minced meat. Only realised it when I had this ball of meal left but you know what minced meat looks like anyway.

Minced pork

Just go ahead to season your meat and wrap a teaspoon's worth of meat in each ready made wanton wrapper. You know what? If you search the net, you'll find lots of videos teaching you how to wrap the wantons. Initially, I folded them the same way. Then I started observing actual wanton stall holders and how they wrap the wantons in double quick time. It's like fold and throw (into their container). Wrap and throw. I never saw them using water or egg white to seal the edges (which I used to do). So I decided to copy their style and do away with the water or egg white.

Uncooked wrapped wantons

I reduced the amount of minced meat in each wanton to a teaspoon. Placed it in the middle of the wanton skin and just basically closed my entire palm and used my fingers (of the same hand) to squeeze the edges of the skins together. So it's a one hand job and the wantons don't look pretty but, it does the job and I was able to season, wrap and cook this entire meal in under 30 minutes.

Water to cook the wantons

The water in which you cook the wantons differs from the soup. You wouldn't want the flour from the skins to clog up or make murky your actual soup. I throw in about 5 wantons at one go into the pot and once they float or the skins turn more transparent (which takes about 2-3 minutes), I scoop them out and drain them. The cooking process takes the longest. You could cheat and dump the whole lot in one big pot to save time. Meanwhile, there is another pot of broth cooking on the stove which will be my soup. I just use chicken stock for the simple soup.

Draining the cooked wantons

I also boiled some macaroni to go along with the wantons. You can always just have wantons in your soup. Added some veg, fried shallots, pepper to taste and red cut chillies in soya sauce

Home made wanton soup

21 Aug 2015

Dinner (Home) and Lunch (Office) pics

Hubs and I are starting to have dinners which look like this:

Salmon with Salsa, Sambal Belachan and greens

Looks like a mother load of food, right? But it's actually just a piece of salmon on a plate full of greens (no rice). Although the salmon was pan fried the way ang mohs (or caucasians/westerners) would, I 'Asianised' (without the ubiquitous rice) the dish to the liking of my taste buds by stir frying my salsa in lots of red onions and sambal belachan. Hehe. Yummy. Hubs also said the salmon tasted very good. He's not into red onions or onions of any kind (like my boy) and not very into greens unless force fed! While I had my salmon with a lot of onions, chilli and greens, he had it with bread and cheese. To each his own.

We had purchased half a salmon and cut it up into quite a few pieces for freezing. I like to eat fish which has already been frozen and fish that is well cooked because I think it's gross to have squirming parasites in my fish which will ultimately end up in my belly! I'd rather forego 'fresh' fish in favour of an anti-parasitic fish meal!

What I usually have for my KOK lunch:

One meat, two veg and Kopi-O-Kosong

Sweet and sour pork, pumpkin and veg

The above pic shows quite big portions because I ahem, am quite friendly with the newly arrived female stall holder. She's more generous than the male ones.

In my previous post, I said hubs did not marry a short AND fat girl. He'd married a short and THIN girl. Here's proof of the pudding. Took a pic of a pic. Me on my honeymoon:

Honeymoon in Queensland, Australia

I was wearing a big, billowy sarong type skirt I had bought in Bali but look beyond it and can you spot the 23 inch waist? I was approximately 43kgs. Yes, I was not skinny-skinny. I was lightweight but still fleshy, lah. At THAT time, I already thought I was fat! As for hubs, he was in the infantry. His body was gorgeous. Drool. (It still is, to me, anyway; fats and all).

I had been having a case of vertigo the past few days. I think the rebounding saved me from succumbing to a very bad case of flu but the ears and throat sort of had an infection that affected my ears and thus my balance. Still, I forced myself to rebound. It really helped me feel less sick.

I'm now rebounding intensely for 30 minutes. If I start and continuously do an 'intense' routine, I'll break out into a sweat at about 10 minutes. If I go slow, it'll take 20 minutes before I start trickling sweat. Son says I then should be swaddling in clothes to perspire faster but I don't buy it. I'm not going to dirty extra exercise clothes. It'll mean more laundry work for me. Nah. I'd rather do it in my undies. Undies have to be washed anyway, right? The family leaves me be anyway and that's a really, good thing. I appreciate how they take it as the norm now; Mum in her room, bouncing away on the rebounder in her undies, music blasting away, while Dad is lying on the bed surfing the net (sometimes, blasting HIS own choice of music)! How I love this dysfunctional family.

20 Aug 2015

Rebounding update and diet change

I do not know how long this will last. I hope forever. I am now able to not consume rice during a meal. This is a very big deal for a person like me. In Chinese dialect, we refer to people like myself as 'Pong Tarng' or 'Perng Tarng' or 'Bee Tarng'. Which just means 'Rice Bucket'. You could just give me rice and sambal belachan for a meal and I would be most happy.

Then something happened.

In trying to change my diet for health's sake, I have been reducing my rice intake. Not to say I will not have days where I eat a full plate of rice but for most days, I will be eating little or no rice. You know how rice is a staple food in Asian meals.

Very difficult change for me but...
what happened was my body started to not yearn for rice.

Amazing. Happy.

For lunch, I was asked by the canteen rice stall aunty how I would be full eating so little rice. But she forgot that I had more than made up for it with the meat and vegetables. I have not felt hungry at all eating this way.

For dinner, I'll just have my meat (either pork, beef, chicken or fish) and veg (optional). I've also not felt hungry. I'll wash it down with the 'detox' water which I make for the family. I don't think any of us fancy the mint so it's just down to lemons and cucumber for the moment. I also bring a jug of it into the room for drinking at night and the first thing the next morning.

I'm still rebounding! Yay! Yippee!

I asked the kids recently how they knew their father loved me. They mulled over it and said it was because he could have had so many other girls but he chose to marry the short and fat one! -__-
Also, that the rebounder was so freaking noisy but he never complains even when I jump on it for an hour!
Hahahaha.....plop.
That's me laughing my head off. Kids. Very sharp. Very truthful.
Wait, for the record, when he married me, I was short, yes BUT I was not fat. I was skinny AND so was he. Hmmmph!

Anyhow, I'm rebounding 30 minutes now without panting. I will drip sweat but I'm not really panting. I take it as a good sign. I've been upping my routines to incorporate more intense movements for a longer time. I do relax and rebound gently but only for about 30 seconds before I do something more intense again. No rules. I just do what I feel like. That's what makes rebounding so fun! I can pretty much make up my own actions, the only rule being to NOT fall off the rebounder!

Any change in weight? NO. NIL. Not since the last time it dropped.
Is it a good sign?
I guess so because I do have days I pig out on food and yet, I haven't gained any weight. That must surely be good maintenance.

Blood pressure readings?
Systolic readings aren't so high. They've in fact fallen to surprising readings.
Diastolic not so good. Although reduced, it's not low enough to make me happy.

Well, at least I have gotten off my butt to do something about my health. I'm still eating healthily and not on a strict diet. I'm still on my KOK (Kopi-O-Kosong) journey and hopefully, somewhere down the road, I will be able to say I have arrived at my destination!

Home Made Spicy Biltong (with Pictures) using Dehydrator

Home Made Spicy Biltong (with Pictures) using Dehydrator

I made Spicy Biltong for the family again so let's let Mr Ladybug take you through the steps:

First the beef.
You're not making steak. I don't think you need to be fussy about the cut of beef except to avoid the fatty bits (and only because the fats will drip oil). You just need to be thrifty and see what available beef doesn't break your piggy bank. Cut into thin strips or bits. It's entirely up to you but you need to try it a few times to know if you like the Biltong hard and chewy or in easy bite-sized pieces.

Raw Beef

Then you want to mix in your spices, keeping it as dry as possible. I'm not a cook who follows recipes to the core so I just wing it. It's not helpful to those who like to measure right down to the last granule but this is roughly what my own marinade consists of (after many tries!):

- Vinegar
- Salt
- Chilli flakes
- Coriander powder (because my kids hated the crushed ones)
- Any other spicy spice mix!

You can't be adding the spices and tasting it as you go along because the beef is raw and it's just NOT something you should be doing (tasting the marinade from the raw beef!). So just be conservative the first time you make it and then tweak the ingredients' portions as you go along. In fact, I am still experimenting.

Marinated Beef

If I have time, I will let the marinated beef sit out longer but if I am in a hurry, I'll just put it into the dehydrator as soon as I am done marinating it.

My Dehydrator

I try to keep the pieces of beef as dry as possible and not let it be dripping liquids when on the dehydrator. I do not need to strain but just sort of flick the liquid off the pieces before I lay them on the trays. I have about 5 trays worth of beef here. It's doesn't amount to much because the beef will shrink by the time it's done. You will see in the following pics that there's only enough for one plastic container.

Laying out the beef on my dehydrator trays

Tadah! After about 5 hours, this was still a little moist but I removed it because we were going out. I actually put them back into the dehydrator for another hour when we got back and that was just about right. So I would say, about 6 hours for 5 trays worth of beef. This is my family's preference.

Home Made Spicy Biltong using Dehydrator

After I've removed the dehydrated beef from the dehydrator, I will get my critics to taste and they will tell me if I should add more salt, chilli flakes or spices! This bunch of critics are very hard to please but I am getting there!

Home Made Spicy Biltong using Dehydrator

19 Aug 2015

Student exchange in Thailand (perhaps)?

A few months ago, my girl had been successful in getting a hard-to-get placement in a Thai University. She has been working very hard to maintain a good enough GPA to have a better chance of exchange. Of so many choice universities in the world, she had opted to apply to go Thailand. She had the option to accept or reject the placement. It was a nightmare for us but in the end, she had to reject the placement. Due to some misunderstanding (literally lost in translation), the available courses and credits which she would have subsequently been able to transfer back to her local uni were just not in her favour. We took it in our stride and said we would try again.

Fast forward to a few days ago. She and I had been sitting at the table, deciding on her options. She had a deadline to meet and choices to make. I know that deep down inside, she is an Asian girl. She loves the Asian culture and Asian food. Her heart is still set on Thailand. She left the table for a while as I prayed over our choices. In less than 2 minutes, she walked back to me, gasping in shock over the news of the bomb blasts at Bangkok's Erawan Shrine. My first reaction was, "Oh my goodness, that was fast". 'That' meaning the answer from God.

Today, I sit here wondering if I have done the right thing. We had still put Thailand as an option for this round's selection. She has my support. Why? Because we will never know where we will be safe. Thailand is a very big country. Singapore is a tiny country. Still, anything could happen to either country. Anything can happen IN either country. We can only pray for God's protection. This is what I try to imbue in my kids. It is so important to pray, pray, pray. Still, I know that I know no other parent who would immediately after hearing the news of a bombing, allow their child to choose to go to that place. But I know I trust God.

I need to mention something else. Perhaps this is just for the record. After I had heard about the bomb blasts in Bangkok, I had told the kids to leave me alone for a moment. I retired to my room to pray in tongues. I was suddenly plagued with a dark, sinister, sinking feeling and the word 'Exeter' entered my mind. It was so bad that I stopped my praying in tongues and said the Hail Mary instead. I did not feel that it meant a university in Exeter.

Refusing to let it rest, I looked up the word late that night and to my horror, discovered that there exists a 2015 movie named 'Exeter' and I had not even heard of it before. What does this all mean? I'm not exactly keen to watch that movie and scare the poop out of myself! I am not clairvoyant and I know I get made fun off by people (even if they are too polite to say so) but I only know that I get these extra sensory promptings sometimes when I pray. I don't ask for them. I am not bothered if people believe me or not or if people think me weird or look at me as showing off. Even my own kids annoy me no end with their, 'Hurry up, leh, Mum, quick pray and tell me the answer!'. What in the world? I'm not a fortune teller. I am only trying to listen. If we all tried hard enough, we might hear something other than our own voices.

By the way, if she had accepted her earlier placement at the Thai University, she might have been walking at the Erawan Shrine on that very day. The reason being, she had made friends with another NUS undergrad and they had planned to travel Thailand together. That undergrad did accept his placement and had planned to go visit the Erawan Shrine only 1 day after the bombs had blasted. The girl said that guy (who is just starting his exchange programme there) is now terrified and the girl asked me if this was the reason she 'couldn't' accept her first placement. I believe that we can only pray for God's blessings and trust in Him even when we struggle to make sense of things. If we believe in His goodness, than we have nothing to fear. It's not an easy task but we can help each other along. I hope that by reading this, you won't feel so alone with whatever fears you have and whatever tasks you find daunting.

Now, I don't know if I should be happy if she does get a place in Thailand again. The other option is very, very far away. Perhaps she won't go anywhere. Who knows. We leave it up to God.

14 Aug 2015

Rebounding for health - update

This has never happened to me before.

At lunch, I left this amount of rice uneaten on my plate.
It's deplorable that I could even think of wasting food. But I had piled my plate high with 1 meat and 2 veg side dishes. I had even asked for 'lesser rice' and still I couldn't make myself finish this. I look at it as a good sign. This SHOULD be a lifestyle change. Not the fact that I will start to waste food but that my rice intake will decrease.

I reached home deadbeat after work last night and since it was a 'free night' for me; free being I didn't have to cook for anyone because everyone was out, I lay on my bed (much to the disappointment of my dog who had been anticipating a walk) and fell asleep! Woke up at 9pm and walked the dog. I could have easily fallen back to sleep but dragged myself onto the rebounder. Once I started the gentle bouncing and put on KC and Jojo's "All my life", I felt energised! Pushed through a 25 minute high intensity routine and was just finishing up when hubs walked in. I encouraged him to NOT lie down on the bed but to get on the rebounder and he did! I replayed the song (I don't know why but that song just makes a person want to get up and go, go go!) and he managed to rebound through it. He did however complain halfway that the song was taking too long to end! Haha. As he'd had a long day, I was just glad that he'd made an effort to get his heart pumping, however short the routine was. Something is better than nothing.

Took my bath and went to the kitchen to whip up a late dinner. I know I shouldn't have been eating at 11pm but I hadn't taken dinner and didn't want to crash and stuff myself sick at lunch the next day (because I would be starving by then). I do not have a habit of skipping lunch or dinner. Hubs had bought APOM (did I spell this Indian pancake thingy correctly?) but I chose instead to stir-fry some salsa I had made (which I had kept refridgerated) with some mushrooms and onions. I ate a mountain of it but didn't feel bad about it (yet). I did wake up this morning feeling that the food had not digested very well and had been stuck in my gut for a very long time. This is probably due to the fact that I had gone to sleep too soon after that meal.

I woke this morning and didn't feel the aches and pain that I had felt the morning after my first intense workout! I don't feel tired but I don't feel energised. I do feel like I did a lot of work yesterday (you know, like how you feel the next day after you have cooked for an army the day before?) but I shall not give up and will keep pushing myself to try the short but intense routines this whole weekend, to get my body used to it. I need to know what works best for me. Is it long and comfortable rebounding routines or short, intense rebounding routines?

Morning after a 25 minute intense rebounding routine.

I am trying to see if my face has slimmed down in any way. I cannot see a difference. My double chin is clearly still hanging around. I do know I do not feel bloated so that is a good thing. I thought I saw a flatter stomach last night but without asking him, hubs actually commented that he saw no difference in my tummy! Wah liao!!! (that sort of means 'WHAT THE HECK!' in Hokkien, a Chinese dialect but emphasizes how shockingly pissed you are with the situation).

I know my tummy is usually bloated after a full meal of rice but last night, because I hadn't taken dinner before rebounding, I had noticed that it wasn't as bloated like usual. I also thought that my butt has reduced considerably but I have an old pair of pants and well, that particular pair of pants has NOT been slipping off my butt. Maybe because it is a tight fit at the butt area (clings to the butt) but maybe because I really have not reduced in that area at all. I'd like to think that I have melted fats but replaced it with muscle. One can hope, right?

It is disheartening when I step on the scales. Since the last time it moved downwards, it has not budged. I should be happy that it also means that it has not moved upwards but still, it is disheartening. Hubs asked me how long before I reach my 1st goal (the specifics I shall keep between him and myself but I had set a small and feasible goal first)? I told him this was not just about losing the weight but about changing my lifestyle and hopefully sticking to it for life. If I was just aiming to lose weight, I would have junked the exercise and just dieted. That would have guaranteed a weight loss but that's not what I am really aiming for although I would be happier if I actually see a substantial weight loss.

When you read and if you happen to be some fitness guru or dietary expert, you will probably think I am talking crap. Why is this girl obsessed with the weighing scale? That's just wrong! Right. If I don't move the scale readings downwards, my BMI isn't going to do well at my next medical appointment. My self-esteem will also take a beating. I am just journaling my journey in trying to change my lifestyle which includes incorporating exercise and better eating habits into my life. I am no expert. I have my ups and downs and I will journal this because I am not perfect and hope that someone who is also not perfect, will be motivated, knowing he or she is not alone. Hopefully, I will turn out to be a success story one day down the road. The worst case scenario is you will be reading future posts on how I had given up and turned back to my old ways, fats and all. I don't know. I only know that this is primarily for the sake of my health, without which, this blog will not even exist. Nor will I.

Hubs has always told me that the fastest way for a person to lose weight is when they fall very sick. I agree. We have all seen it, to our friends, to our family, to people we know or might not have known. CHOY!! (that's sort of a Cantonese exclamation for "Good riddance to bad rubbish!"). I don't want to wait till that happens. Being slim does not guarantee good health but the least I can do for myself is to keep a healthy lifestyle. The rest, I leave to God.

13 Aug 2015

Daughter's hair and L'óreal hair dye

I am not endorsed by any company to say this (in fact, as if today, I am still getting zero money from writing on this blog) but after using so many different brands of hair dyes, I must conclude that for a home D-I-Y hair dye, L'óreal is the best.

Earlier in the year, Darling Daughter and I had hair dye jobs done at Snip Avenue that resulted in our hair being very dry and damaged! When I finally had to touch up my roots, I decided to buy the L'óreal hair dye and surprise, surprise. Not only did the colour look way better, my hair actually felt better! It is still in better condition than after the Snip Avenue disaster.

So when daughter wanted to go JB to dye her hair (because her JB salon experiences were all pretty darn good), I suggested using L'óreal to dye her hair for her instead. She let me trim off about 5 inches of dry ends and then I dyed and blow dried her hair for her.

Tadah!!!

My daughter's hair after about 2 hours at Mum's Salon

Not bad, huh? Looks so silky compared to what we called her all-tangled-bird-nest-hair before that! She had to move into uni hall that night so I've no idea if her hair has turned back into the bird nest condition. But when she comes back this weekend, I'll pamper her hair for her again. I guess I miss fussing over my daughter. She's no longer a kid. She's an adult. But who says we can't still pamper them?

Hubby rebounding!

Look who finally got on the rebounder?

Don't even think of using this pic of my hubby's feet without permission!

Hubs and I had a quiet steak dinner at home and then we hurriedly completed some household chores before retiring to our room. He did his usual surfing (on the bed!) while I hopped on my trusty rebounder. By the way, I should mention that before every rebounding session, I will lift up the rebounder to tighten all the legs. The legs are screw in type so there is always a chance they may come loose after any session. I don't really fancy falling off the rebounder accidentally and hitting my teeth against any of the sharp corners in our room. Fortunately our bedroom is big enough to even fit this piece of equipment in but should I fall, I will definitely be hitting some furniture with sharp edges.

So hubs retired to bed to relax via watching youtube videos while I did my routine. I decided to try 20 mins of intense workout this time. I have to say, I woke up this morning very tired. I mean, 20 minutes of non-stop jumping jacks. Bluek. It must be good for my body but mentally, I woke up spent and not energised. Could be that my body is not used to having such an intense routine. Instead of giving up, I will give it a go again tonight. The reason I want to try out a short but intense routine is, I hardly think I can keep up an hour long session and I may just give up in the long run. This is an exercise routine I hope to carry on doing for a long time so I think setting aside 20 minutes would stand a better chance than to set aside 30, 40 or 60 minutes. I'll keep the lengthier routines for days non-work days like I mentioned before.

I surprised myself. I was actually able to keep up star jumping and jumping jacks non-stop for 20 minutes. You go try it and let me know if it is a mean feat! I decided not to push myself further than that because I was waiting for hubs to fulfil his promise to me to step on the rebounder for 2 to 3 minutes. Well, well, well! He DID and not only for 2 to 3 minutes. I think he did 10 minutes BUT he did get off it and plopped straight onto the bed exhausted. So I stepped back on it and bounced a little just for fun (because rebounding IS so fun!) and asked if he wanted to to carry on. He declined. Hehe.

I encouraged him to not give up and to push himself a little further the next day. He agreed. Well, let's see how that pans out. It's a good start anyway.

We decided to not talk about the accident. What's been done, has been done, right? The cab's in the workshop, he'll have to foot the bill of the repair according to the excess payment required according to his taxi company's insurer. We don't EVER know if any accident will be the last before the taxi company lets you go. This is the risk ALL taxi drivers have to take. So we just lifted it up to God to take care of it for us. We decided it was beyond our control but taking care of our body is within OUR control so we might as well just spend our time and energy doing that instead!

Before we fell asleep, we were snuggling in each other's arms. Hubs hugged and thanked me for my support and told me he loved me. He didn't need to explain to me the context of what that meant (I don't mean the loving me part lah; we say that to each other every day) but I knew he meant the accident and not nagging him about it. I kissed him all over his face and asked him if he felt compelled to call me once he had the accident. He said YES he called me immediately because he wanted to get the scolding over and done with! Haha. Indeed.

12 Aug 2015

Rebounding on a sprained ankle (and road accident)

I managed 30 minutes on the rebounder last night and could have carried on but for the fact I had other chores to complete. Let's just say, even with 1 kid (already officially an adult) and 1 not far away from being one, there are still things to be done as a mum! I actually intensified my moves last night as I was feeling energetic. However, hubs started snacking on some salted kachang (nuts) and muruku. That was my downfall. I felt sick after eating the snacks and I was actually pleased with that! It means that my body is rejecting these unhealthy snacks. If I don't feel good after eating them, I won't be looking forward to eating them again. That is a good thing, right? Maybe I will really end up yearning for carrot and celery sticks some day. Sorry, my point is, I exercised then snacked. Sounds shitty, right? What a blardy waste of my time. I was fed up with myself!

I'll end this post with rebounding again but meanwhile...
Sometimes, I don't really feel like writing bad things. I want to stay positive but that's not really telling the truth. Bad things do happen to decent people. If I am just saying BE HAPPY, STAY HAPPY, EVERYTHING IS HAPPY, HAPPY, HAPPY, I would be lying. Everyone has bad days.

Today is a bad day. The other half has been involved in a road accident. Thankfully, no injured parties. The road was wet. Accidents happen to the best of us. Perils of being on the road for long hours. Your risk increases. Pissed as we both may be, it's part and parcel of life. We just have to deal with it and count our blessings amidst the disruption.

No driving means no income. No income means I am the lone income. Being the lone income means I cannot think about me, myself and I and how I feel like I am drowning in a cesspool sometimes at work. I just have to do it. I AM trying my best to stay positive but you know, truth be told, like the gazillions of other Singaporeans, I wish I could just strike the top prize in Toto or Big Sweep and not have to work any more! Yes, I do buy lottery tickets and I am not shy to say it.

Do not ever take for granted the lovely sunrise or breath of fresh air you get to enjoy as you walk about leisurely in the morning. I have not done that in ages because my mornings are always about rushing to work. If I am not rushing to work, I am desperately trying to catch up on sleep. Yes, I know I am not alone and probably 90% of our tiny nation does that. I may be able to walk in the evenings, you may think. Yes, in fact, I need to walk our dog but I am usually too dead tired to stop and smell anything but dog poo.

I yearn for the luxury of doing nothing. No, I do not wish to be jobless and worrying about the bills. I yearn to be able to not work and yet be able to live comfortably, lah. But I cannot think about me. No, I cannot think about me. I have to think of others first. It sucks some times you know. But I am always reminded that as Christians, we're not made to just have a picture perfect life. That would be life in Heaven. Life on earth is about sacrifices. Life is a journey and not the end result. We need to see the beauty through the pain, smell the fresh air through the pissy odour, to see the light through the darkness. Sometimes, we spend our whole lives grasping for glimpses of these ethereal moments and sometimes, we see it in everything and every moment. Which mindset do YOU have? I straddle and struggle between being both.

When hubs called me early in the morning, I immediately stoically asked, "What happened?"
His reply was, "Sorry, lah, Darl".
My heart sank. I knew it. I just knew it.
He wasn't really apologising to me like I was the taxi company and owned the cab but we understood each other. He was sorry for the inconvenience caused to our lives and probably the damage done to our bank account. He was sorry because his nagger of a wife had said everything before that needed to be said.

First phone call: I tried not to sound upset. I knew he was already upset.
Second phone call: I was upset. I gave him an earful.
Third phone call: I'd calmed down and advised him to take this lull time (while the cab gets repaired) to rethink and realign his life and priorities.
Fourth phone call: he told me where he was headed.
Fifth phone call: he would probably have to spend the rest of the day reporting the accident.

Thereafter, I struggled as I said my morning prayers. I wanted to know WHY? WHY? WHY?
The Holy Spirit gave me an answer and I understood why. It is enough for me.

Out of respect, I am not going to repeat what the answer was to me.
So I am trying to stay upbeat. It's only money, right? Damaged vehicles can be repaired and replaced. Lives cannot.

In the end, I am glad that in moments of trouble, Mike turns to is me. He may come across as cool and manly most times. A man of few words. Listens to no one but himself. Stubborn as a mule or worse. But he knows and I know that he always comes running to me when it comes to the crunch. I know he doesn't like to hear my nagging and he thinks I am an*l about some matters but in the end, he knows I am effective. BAH!

Back to rebounding:
The hardest part with this rebounding routine is to actually carve out the time to do it. Rebounding itself is not difficult. I feel strongly that rebounding with my sprained ankle has actually helped my ankle to straighten itself out faster. I am amazed by the fact that I was able to rebound with my injured ankle and that the pain has eased somewhat (although it is still there). I am able to turn my ankle more without feeling the pain. I'm not sure how to explain this but I actually look forward to rebounding. Last night as I was jumping, it brought back memories of me jumping on my parents' bed as a kid!

One good thing. In our phone conversation this morning after the accident, I continued what I had talked to him last night before we went to bed, about changing his lifestyle for health's sake. He agreed that he would start rebounding today. That is a start. At least a shred of silver lining in this very dark and gloomy day.

With effect 7 March 2012 until further notice, we've stopped accepting hand painted shoe orders (WHILE I WAIT UPON MY MAKER FOR GUIDANCE ON OUR NEXT STEP). Please see blog post dated 7 March 2012.

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(All opinions expressed on my faith journey are SOLELY MINE & I do not represent or speak on behalf of any religious organisation. So PLEASE DON'T SUE ME. I am only a poor servant trying to give thanks and praise to the goodness of God our Father, Jesus the Son of Man and the Holy Spirit ~ Fiona)