Posts under ‘Daily Events’

Random Pick: The Rose of Jericho

Mar 8th, 2010
by soph.
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“An ancient species of everlasting plants known as the Resurrection plant that can withstand almost total dehydration for decades (losing 98% of its water content) and return to life unscathed when rehydrated … The Rose of Jericho is also said to have mystical properties and bring peace, harmony and abundance.”

I am so not the gardening type, but I was curious enough to put this in a bowl of water, almost a year after I first received it with a press release. I got it all shrivelled up and this is what it looks like after it has bloomed. It reminds me of those Chinese tea things that start out as a ball and blossom into a flower when you add hot water. This is probably going to be the only thing I ever “plant” in a long, long time to come.

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Happy Chinese New Year!

Feb 14th, 2010
by soph.
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Our Chinese New Year reunion dinner was exceptionally pretty this year. Y and I have never been big on the whole visiting shebang, and luckily for us, neither are our families. Here’s wishing you a wonderful Chinese New Year break, one that turns out just the way you hope for it to, and an even better year of the Tiger ahead. Gong Xi Fa Cai!

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My first Akad Nikah ceremony

Jan 31st, 2010
by soph.
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The Akad Nikah is the marriage contract or marriage solemnization part of a traditional Muslim wedding. I knew a little bit about it, things I’d learned from photographs, friends and wedding assignments for work, but until yesterday morning, I’d never actually attended one before.

The thing that struck me the most was how simple and communal everything was. The couple’s closest friends and family gathered around them for the ceremony, some sitting on the floor, others standing around. It felt really homely because it was held in the groom’s living room – some opt to have their ceremony in a mosque – and everyone just seemed laidback and happy without detracting from the solemnness of the occasion. I thought there was something really beautiful about that aspect of it.

In the picture, the groom is taking his marriage vows and signing the marriage contract before a religious official while the bride looks on. The bride doesn’t get to say anything during the ceremony, which I’ll admit felt a little weird to me.

The couple exchanging wedding rings after the ceremony. In more conservative fashion, the bride kisses her new husband’s hand while the groom kisses his new wife on the forehead. Unlike the Western ‘you may kiss the bride’ custom, which feels romantic, this feels really sweet. And did I mention that the newlyweds are absolutely darling?

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We finally let our predictions out of the box

Jan 2nd, 2010
by soph.
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In December 2007, the boys, Sivin and I sat down to dinner and wrote predictions for ourselves and for each other. Without reading any of them, we put all the slips of paper into a box and we were supposed to open the box at the end of 2008 to see whether our predictions came true.

This is how good we are at procrastinating: we finally opened the box this New Year’s Eve. And the interesting thing is, way more of our predictions came true in 2009 than in 2008. Are we better at looking into the farther-future as opposed to the nearer-future or did the extra year simply increase our chances of getting something right?

Just off the top of my head, these were some of the predictions for me:

I would buy at least two pairs of shoes: Too easy. I’ve bought two pairs of shoes in a day.

I would sponsor a World Vision child: We did. Two, in fact.

Hubby and I would have a major fight: We had our worst ever fight in early 2009.

I would learn to cook: Technically I do know how to. I just suck. If it meant I would cook more, it didn’t happen.

I would cook a meal for the guys: Nope, didn’t happen either.

I would find a close female friend: I think it meant one here in KL. All my closest girlfriends are overseas. And no, that didn’t come true.

Hubby and I would think about starting a family: We talked about it in mid-2009. And decided not to just yet.

I would get pregnant: Less than a month after our talk… well, you know what happened.

Hubby would admit that I was right in front of all the boys: I can’t remember if that actually happened but I must say he’s become a lot more… receptive over the last two years.

Y would become a better husband: Yes. Especially in 2009. After that major fight.

Reading others’ predictions for you tells you a lot about how they perceive you and what they hope for you. There were two predictions on cooking, two on starting a family, at least three on our marriage. These are just ten of them. There were heaps more. And as G said, whether or not they came true didn’t matter, they warmed his heart. And mine.

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Happy New Year!

Dec 31st, 2009
by soph.
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What do you say on the brink of a new decade? To say nothing seems a little remiss, somehow, yet to say anything feels inadequate. For the first time in three years, hubby and I will not be ringing in the New Year at home. I usually take some time to sort out my thoughts in the final hours of New Year’s Eve but this year, I got a headstart. So have a wonderful New Year, everybody, and be safe. Here’s to 2010. A new year, a new decade. May it also be the beginning of new hopes and dreams.

Update 01/01/2010: Of all the places I thought we would be when the clock struck twelve, being struck in traffic because the police had set up a roadblock definitely wasn’t one of them. But that’s where we were. We eventually made it to G’s, where we stayed past 4.30am. The last time I stayed up so late was years and years ago but what an apt way to start off 2010 – with a little change. It was good. I’ll remember this.

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Christmas without Christmas cheer isn’t such a bad thing after all

Dec 24th, 2009
by soph.
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It’s Christmas Eve and hubby and I are keeping it quiet this year. Or rather, I am. As I type, he is engaged in fervent online warfare with his brother, having recently – finally – discovered the joys of X-Box Live. Safe for the sounds of gunfighting and valiant fighters dying and er, respawning(?), it is actually really peaceful.

For several days now, I’ve been thinking about a post to mark Christmas this year. But despite the exchanging of presents during my office’s annual Secret Santa (I got a lovely jewellery box I’m sure exceeded the pre-set budget, thank you Secret Santa!), the dressing up (everyone wore red, white and/or green yesterday), and the Christmas decorations and carols that accompany the holiday season, I’m still not quite feeling that Christmas cheer. The mood comes and goes, but for the most part, it stays away.

Then today, as I was driving home from work, I realised that it doesn’t matter. Because not feeling the Christmas cheer doesn’t mean I’m not celebrating Christmas. I am, but unlike last year, we’re keeping it quiet this year, and I might be the better for it. I’m in the mood for quiet, for peace, for writing and reading and contemplating and, not least, relaxing and doing nothing. And that’s as much what Christmas should be about as it is about everything else. Maybe even more.

I didn’t plan on taking much time off work at first, but seeing as hubby has been given the rest of the year off, I decided at the last minute to do the same. I joke that it’s going to be my last chance at a long, peaceful break, just me and hubby, for the next 20 years. Christmas will never be the same again. Just thinking about the week ahead makes me wonderfully happy so I know I made the right decision. For someone who isn’t really feeling the Christmas cheer, maybe I’m not doing so bad after all.

Merry Christmas, everyone!

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Thinking about 2010

Dec 15th, 2009
by soph.
2 comments

Ever since I received a 2010 diary at an event earlier this month, I’ve been rather excited about the new year. It’s become a newly-acquired habit of mine to think about/write down each December what I want to focus on in the new year ahead so I’ve been giving 2010 some thought. It could just be hindsight speaking but I’ve found it really sets the tone for the coming months when I do that.

For instance, 2008 was my year of travelling. I wanted to travel as much as I could and just enjoy life with Y. We ended up making trips to Tioman, Phuket, Singapore, London, Paris and Rome, and I even clocked a trip for work to Mulu, Sarawak. At the end of 2008, I decided I’d had enough of playing hard for a while and declared 2009 my year of challenges. I wanted to push myself in terms of my writing, thinking, personal growth etc. As it turned out, this was also the year Y and I had our worst ever fight and the year we discovered I was (and still am) pregnant with our first child.

So 2010 is going to be my year of many changes. Our baby is due on 1 April (yes, really) and I’m preparing myself physically, mentally and emotionally for life never to be the same again. Ever. I expect that by the time we settle down to this whole new chapter it will be 2011 and I’ll have forgotten what it feels like to sleep past 7am and watch DVDs for hours on end, but I’m also expecting changes to take place in terms of my work and my writing. And whatever else the year may bring.

Lots of people ask me if I’m excited about having a baby. To be honest, the excitement is only just beginning to creep in. The first few months, everything still seemed so far away. But time, as has become its slightly annoying habit, has simply flown by and suddenly we find ourselves in December, 24 weeks pregnant and with a due date that’s going to be upon us before we realise it. Oh boy.

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Today, a beautiful calm

Nov 23rd, 2009
by soph.
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The Saturday morning is cool, calm, quiet. I hear only the sound of leaves rustling in the trees as the wind blows. In a moment of quietness, a bird chirps. I take it as a sign that God is listening. The bird does not chirp again.

I had planned to watch DVDs in bed but there is something so rare and so peaceful about the trees and the wind outside my balcony doors that I find myself compelled to stay on in the living room. Just for a little bit longer. I take deep breaths and stare outside often, as if I am somehow trying to capture and immortalise this beautiful calm within me. I have spent many weekend mornings here alone, but today, something is different.

Today, I feel peace. I am relaxed, content. I hesitate to turn on the television because that would break the quiet. I want only to hear the trees and feel the breeze that wafts in through the open sliding doors. So I read a little bit. And then I write. Because it seems like the right thing to do.

Today, I feel peace. And I am grateful. I am reminded of the things that truly matter and suddenly, all my concerns and niggling frustrations seem so insignificant and unimportant. Perhaps if I wait a little longer, they will melt away. Perhaps if I sit here somemore, I will be able to bottle this up and take it everywhere with me.

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To support or not? A moral doggy dilemma

Nov 16th, 2009
by soph.
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I live in a gated community and one of the rules we have is no pets. A few days ago I got a letter from one of the residents asking if anyone would support her petition to abolish the no-pets rule. She says she’s got a dog that she never lets out of the house and she doesn’t see why she can’t keep it. She also claims her agent told her pets were allowed when she got her unit even though it’s stated otherwise in the sales and purchase agreement. Maybe she didn’t read it. Or, as hubby brought up, maybe she’s bluffing. (The thought did not even occur to me.)

This was my initial dilemma: while I am sympathetic – she has been told she needs to give her dog away – the fact that the rule was stated in the sales and purchase agreement means she doesn’t have an excuse, even if her agent did misinform her. On the other hand, while I am hesitant to voice my support, I am aware of other people who secretly keep dogs and just have never been found out and I don’t have a problem with it at all.

I say it “was” a dilemma because hubby and I have decided we cannot support the petition. Even if a little voice asks me if I’m being biased or a hypocrite. What would you have done?

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I might as well apologise to my neighbours in advance

Oct 31st, 2009
by soph.
2 comments

My brand new Yamaha P-85 digital piano has arrived. I cannot stress how excited I am to finally own one of these. It’s no contest against an upright or even, gasp, a baby grand piano, but given our budget and space constraints, it’s just about the best thing ever.

G dropped it off yesterday (thank you!) and hubby had kept it a surprise, initially telling me the piano was only going to arrive today. Then I got home after dinner and a 1 hour 15 minute traffic ordeal and it’s just sitting there in our living room!

I don’t care what he tells you, hubby was almost as excited as I was. He graciously allowed me the first notes from our newly-assembled toy and promptly demanded his turn. As he sat there banging away half-randomly, just one day after he arrived home at 1am and decided he was in the mood for a guitar sing-along session, I had visions of my neighbours turning to one another and groaning, “Oh my god, now they’ve got a piano!”

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