Wednesday 21 December 2016

how many shades of grey.....

I have always struggled when it was time to dye my hair.

I hate the fuss and the drama of going to the hairdressers and getting colour put into my hair and even hate getting a hair cut.  Its something I do grudgingly.

As an asian I am limited with hair colour, its dark brown or black,  I cant go blonde or red or light brown... so its always a dark brown for me and it just seems so artificial.

I never coloured my hair when I was younger, didnt experiment with colours but when I started to go too grey I was persuaded that it was the done thing to cover all the grey.  I hated the trips trips to the salon which were always far and in between.  I would find any excuse not to go, to delay going or just forgetting about my hair until my mother would nag at me to go colour it..

I am done.  No more colouring my hair, I want to go grey and let it go at its own pace.  I love seeing an elegant older woman with a cascade of white hair, it looks natural, its how its meant to be.  I am 54, why bother colouring,  I feel like we are in denial about aging and colouring the hair will make us look or even feel younger..  well I dont see the point of doing that.  I am getting old, my skin is going to sag, I am going to get wrinkles, I want to embrace it and love who I am, and be happy in my aging body, grey hair and all.

and its really odd when the curtains dont match the rug....


Tuesday 29 November 2016

it's that dirty word again.....

So these last three weeks or so I have had this flu slowly creep up on me. Each week it gently engulfs me with a new symptom.  I had to go to the doctors 3 times, to target a different symptom, from body ache, fever, runny nose, diarrhoea (which I got I am sure because of the antibiotics) and sore throat.

Since I had to go to the doctors for the third time, I decided I to go see my old family doctor, who has known me since I was 7, and who looks after my thyroid issues.   His records showed  that I hadn't had a blood test to check my thyroid for 2 years.  And to throw in for good measure he also wanted to check my blood sugar levels….

Well today I got my results and my blood sugar levels are higher than normal….

 I am extremely diligent with what I up into my mouth, I am gluten intolerant so I avoid all types of  biscuits and cakes and confectionery, I eat a lot of fruit, veg and limit my carbs, eat only sweet potatoes, don’t drink sugary sodas and hardly eat any bread ( If I do eat bread its GF Bread)  Yes I indulge sometimes with fries and chocolate but its like once a month or so (and really I am not kidding here) …so how the bloomin hell do I still have elevated blood sugar levels!







Its that dirty word again….exercise! 

This time there is no avoiding the exercise, I have 3 months before the next blood test and I bloody well have to get off my backside and do something as I do not want it to develop into type 2 diabetes… 

oh the joys of getting older….
me... very soon


Saturday 26 November 2016

the 100 day challenge

So one of my friends recently posted an article on facebook, about  how we buy things we dont really need.

I am guilty of that.  I wander around the shops and convince myself that I need another blouse, tshirt, jeans or shoes...and end up spending money on things I dont need.

In the article, the person didnt buy anything new for 200 days ( see here for the article) which got me thinking.  Why do we have this insatiable need for new shiny things.  Boredom, that thrill of buying something new, like a reward we think we deserve..

I put myself on a challenge,  to not buy anything new for the next 100 days, and I am in day 14 of the challenge and it has been difficult.  I spent most of my adult life looking at my household budget to ensure we had enough money to last till the next paycheque.  When I finally had enough money set aside as savings, I began to spend more, on useless things I didnt need.  $300 on new tops, and dresses every 2 weeks, justifying to myself that I needed another top for work.

It had to stop, I had a cupboard full of clothes that I wasnt wearing and just because I had put on a bit of weight didnt mean I had to go buy more.... I still had enough clothes that fit me.
Its only been clothes and shoes that I spend extra on, as I prefer flea market finds to brand new for kitchen and house things.  My strange love of old telephones for instance, and the insane habit of looking for old enamel ware, so spending money on new dinnerware is not something I would do anyway.  But the clothes and shoes!  Enough was enough.

With Christmas around the corner, its going to be tough as the office started this secret Santa thing and we had to make our wish list and I have to get someone a 'new' gift.  no second hand things here! So for that one day I will have to cheat on my challenge and get that person a new gift and get one in return.  I did put in my wish list, food items which were part of my daily routine which in a way didnt make it new, if that makes sense...

so heres to reducing waste on clothes and wasting money on things I dont need...just 84 days to go.




Sunday 20 November 2016

dont ask if you dont want to know


There is something about having your say, having someone actually listen to your feedback, whether good or bad. Which is why I love doing surveys, giving feedback etc.  Must be my busy body personality....

the email that started it all....


When people send me a survey for feedback I respond, whether good or bad service,  I try to respond with a fair review.  If your bloomin email says to me, we value your feedback as we want to make it better, I respond, so I was surprised when Redmart, a grocery delivery service I use, responded to a review I sent, based on their email asking me for feedback, that I needed to "edit" my review" as it did not meet the website guidelines..
it was a negative review of the product, I just said the meat smelt bad by the time I got it and that they perhaps should look at the chillers they were using for delivery.

To be nice ( I can be nice sometimes) I thought why not, just edit and see what happens


it didnt let me edit my review,  I kept getting the response that I had already submitted a review....computer glitch?  user problem?  WTF?


Thursday 17 November 2016

2 steps back

This past week has been a disaster, I have been sick for a week and it keeps getting worse.
Finally went back to the doctor yesterday to get antibiotics and I headed home to rest.

Rest didnt quite happen as some fucker decided to renovate his home and it was jack hammer day yesterday... today is drilling day, how fun..

As I lie on the sofa, watching mindless drivel on the tv ( cant be bothered to try to watch anything else as the drilling and jack hammering means my headache is getting worse by the second)
I have to think about my future too.

When I switched jobs last year, I took a pretty hefty pay cut, but I worked a 4 day week and only one  job to do.  Then in May, the company asked if I would take over the office manager position as well.  I didnt quite think that through but accepted the job with more pay.  Now, the office I work in is a rather peculiar place , as Feng Shui plays a very important part in the overall scheme of things.  Which means as office manager I was worrying about trivial things that the boss thought were the most important.

I was worrying about water features that didn't quite work and the water feature's bubbles were  responsible for the decline of business ( dont laugh) , yellowing bamboo plants that meant that something bad will happen, lava lamps with bulbs no one carried and I had to run around finding bulbs and salt jars that had to be filled just right.
I do have an assistant to help me with all this but the constant worry about these things plus I had to battle with finance on cheques to pay the beer man (we have 3 beer taps in the office and I had to make sure they were full).  Add into the equation the fact that I had to sort the pantry, clear and organise the stationery store and of course the event store for props and things we use for events.


what i feel like doing
It took its toll on me.  I think back to why I took this job and it was so that I could spend more time doing things for me, and I seem to have lost my way.  I was not sleeping because of a stupid water feature's bubbles were not working. The one we ordered would only be delivered in 5 weeks and the boss was not happy.  So I quit.  well there was alot of yelling and although everyone says he wasnt yelling at me, as office manager I took the responsibility for the thing not working.  I take things to heart, I certainly do and I took this too personally, which is one of my weaknesses. Something i have to work on but at 54 do I really care....

the office MD and the COO spoke to me on Monday to ask me if I wanted to just go back to doing what I originally wanted to do, but I would go back to my original salary.
Now that pissed me off.  After one year of clearing up all the shit ( and there was alot to organise and clear) they want to keep me but as I was stressed all the time, it made sense for them to offer me this, but I felt hurt and a little insulted that they didn't seem to value me enough to offer me a bit more.
I got the usual talk about budgets for admin salaries blah blah and how the economy was doing and I was not the only one working so hard blah blah.

Which brings me to the question if I should stay or leave.  Am I being unreasonable to ask for a little more than what I was making or do I just suck it up and wait and see if in the new year, we get increments across the board.

I will probably stay, but i have to constantly remind myself to not give my usual 200%, I have to focus and give only what is expected as giving 200% always puts me on the losing end.
I am supposed to be looking at semi retirement now so a 4 day week and focusing on one job should be an ideal situation, so why  do I feel like I am taking 2 steps back.....


Sunday 13 November 2016

i am a dick sometimes...

I never professed to be perfect.

Far from it actually, and I accept that sometimes I am good and sometimes I can be a dick.  Yes women can be dicks too, quite often as a matter of fact.

definition of someone being a dick...

being an asshole, being stupid and just generally being an idiot

the last 2 weeks have been tough,  I forgot to take my pills to KL when I went for the MotoGP, pills like my thyroid, vitamin D and my herb supplements that I depend on to keep my mood swings and menopause symptoms at bay.  Which resulted a few days later to me me being hyper sensitive to anything that happened, and usually I end up in tears over nothing.  which as usual ends up me doing stupid things like quitting my job...

Yeah I know, I want to smack me too...

once calmness ensues and I see the world through drug induced serenity, I pass through the being a dick phase to what the fuck did i do phase..

Will I eat humble pie and hope the bosses know me well enough to know I was being a dick, or do I start looking for a new job... Stay tuned..

Tuesday 8 November 2016

the trip to sepang



line up for shuttle on Saturday, my hotel up ahead



I left Singapore on Friday morning all eager to get to Sepang to see the free practice in the early afternoon.
46 - Rossi's number
When I reached Kl airport, it was raining, heavy... which left me very disappointed, bummed, upset...

So I thought that I should just head back into KL, check into the hotel and if the rain stops, I can catch the shuttle to the circuit.... well that didnt quite happen.


I got to the hotel checked in and from my window I could see the last shuttle leaving for the circuit.  I could have kicked myself.
I should have just gone straight from the airport to the circuit.
Lesson learnt.


view of garages and track


Saturday and Sunday turned out to be fabulous.
I met up with Luca, the Italian guy I met last year and we hung out together all weekend,   mostly right in front of the Yamaha garage to gawk at Valentino Rossi,  and gawk and act like fangirls we did...

What a weekend!

Am already looking forward to next year.
Rossi Fans 

other attractions - the PR guy...cute

Race start

the man himself - Valentino Rossi
more pics of sepang on my Flickr page here

Saturday 5 November 2016

conversations

with a taxi driver

Taxi driver   " so are you married"

Me  wondering why the hell they ask me that - " err no am divorced"  and why I answer I will never know.

Taxi Driver " divorced! why, should not divorce!"

Me - " he wasnt a very nice person, beat me and cheated alot of people"

Taxi Driver - " Its ok what! husband and wife sure got problem, its ok once in a while he beat you"

Me !!!!!??????

Taxi driver was a an older male...


With colleagues

Colleague 1 - "people say I look very strict"

Colleague 2 - " You?  No way, your face too soft,  People sure dont think that way about u"

Me - " No way, you have a baby face"

Colleague 1 - " really!  I thought I have that bitch face"  (Colleague 1 is male by the way)

Me - " no you dont.  Thats me, I have the resting bitch face....

Colleague 1  - giggles " actually Yah you do"

Me - !!!!???


Sunday 23 October 2016

looking forward to Sepang

I cant wait

I went last year to Sepang to watch the MotoGP, to watch Valentino Rossi live.  To watch all the talented and brave young men ( and a couple of young women) risk their lives in an adrenalin fuelled sport. I got my tickets, hotel is booked and I am excited to experience the magic all over again.

We forget though that it is a dangerous sport and today while watching the Australian leg of the MotoGP, there was a crash where a couple of riders were run over which made me remember that five years ago today in Sepang, one such incident took the life of one talented rider, Marco Simoncelli.

The two riders of todays incident were very lucky to walk away with nothing but some bruises and a broken finger.  So while I look forward to Sepang to watch these brave young people race round the track, I pray hard that they all stay safe on the track.



RIP Marco Simoncelli

Saturday 22 October 2016

short getaway to Danang

Why do we take that short weekend getaway?
to recharge some batteries, to get away to relax in the company of good friends..

rainy beach
I have always wanted to visit Danang and Hoi An in Vietnam and as a couple of friends were there for work  another friend and I decided to join them after they had finished their work for a few days of R&R.
One thing we didnt check was the weather, it was the rainy season.. so we couldnt enjoy the famed beaches of Danang much.


street in Hoi An




Anyway...The Vietnamese people must be quite fed up of tourists trying to take pictures of them while they go about doing things that are quite normal to them.  When taking a picture please do politely ask them if not you will get told off or in my case got told " USD $1 for picture"  I politely declined.

Danang is a very busy little city, with beaches that stretch all along the coast, with 5 star hotels and lots of 4 and 3 star hotels fighting for space one road down.  The  food is delicious, cheap and fresh.  From the famed Pho to   the seafood that is in abundance all along the streets.  We found a few places and were surprised at what we ordered but it was all good.  For once I was the attraction, with my friends being chinese, and looking like the Vietnamese, me being the only Indian attracted a bit of attention.  Being told I was very pretty on a few occasions, did help to boost the morale..

some of the ruins at My Son



Danang is not a city I will visit again though, nor will i repeat my visit to Hoi An further along the coast, a quaint little town which has preserved the old part of town and is now a Unesco World Heritage site.  I did however enjoy our tour out to My Son to see the ruins of the Cham temples more info from Wiki here

The next Vietnam visit will probably be to go on a scooter or bike tour through the rural landscape, away from the cities and tourist traps.

All in, a too short getaway that didnt quite fulfil its promise....

more pictures on flicker - HERE



Sunday 2 October 2016

ramblings when doing nothing important

So I haven't been blogging much lately,  the words seem to have dried up inside me or is it that I just seem to be busier than ever doing nothing important.

I realise that I make myself busy to avoid the loneliness that creeps in when i have nothing to do.  Sure I could go take pictures, which I enjoy doing on my own or even go to the movies, but i seem to have found myself in a rut.  the rut of just staying home and avoiding doing anything except cooking and cleaning.

I reduced my working hours from a five day week to four, so that I could take time to go out and take pictures and go for that early movie when no one else is about, or just to walk about and see things, but somehow that hasn't worked out.  I crept back into old habits and allowed myself to hide away avoiding reality.  Maybe it was easier to just stay home to avoid the crowds of people, happy couples holding hands and families enjoying their time together.

I am lonely, but I don't know how to change that.  I have friends and family but it doesn't  seem to be enough any more.  I guess I have to get used to it, as  there is no energy left in me to go out and start looking for that special someone.  This is when I think that the movie Logan's Run may have had some merit and that perhaps we should kill off people ( but not at age 30 like in the movie) but once they turn 65. Perhaps a choice, those that have nothing can opt to be "retired"permanently.

What do we have once we get old, with no one to share moments with, no one to chat with, no one to be with. Just loneliness
to quote the black keys from their song "too afraid to love u"


"I wish loneliness would leave me
But I think its here to stay"




Sunday 18 September 2016

the night race

So I love motorsports, the F1 and the Motogp, but its been awhile since I actually watched an F1 race, simply because I tend to concentrate on the bikes and dont want to end up spending every weekend glued to the television watching sports.  I figured I should pick one as there were so many
part of the track all lit up
other things I needed to get done.
area near the stage, our Padang in front of the old supreme courts

Anyway
Singapore hosts the F1 in September, and its a night race, the whole Marina area of the city is lit up and looks spectacular, and there are also 3 days of concerts in the F1 arena.  This year Queen were here... yes without Freddie and John Deacon but then I figured when will I ever get to see Brian May and Roger Taylor live... so thanks to P ( yes am hanging out with P again) I attended the Saturday night concert and qualifying for the F1.



Brian May













Roger Taylor
                                           
What a night!  What a fabulous night.  Adam
Lambert, the flamboyant runner up of American Idol (cant remember which year) sang Freddie's songs and he was brilliant.  Nothing compares to Freddie's voice and no one is trying to I am sure, to replace Freddie Mercury, but Adam was excellent.

Brian again






One thing though, if our country wants to be the forward thinker in Asia, maybe we should leave our trains running a little later on F1 nights.  The organisers and the government encourages everyone to take public transport to the venue, but they seem to forget about the end of the night.... The concert ended at 12.20am, we walked to the stations but had to make a detour as they had closed alot of the entrances to the stations and by the time we finally made it to the platforms we had to run as we were told it was the last train.
penned in like cattle
Oh and since I am complaining.... the crowd control needs some more planning, to leave the penned up area of the open air concert, organisers opened up 2 gates where only 2 people could exit at one time... I am curious to know how many of us had to squeeze through those opening, inching slowly forward in a mass of sweaty bodies.  always the one to think of what if situations, i dread to think what would have happened if someone pushed, fell or was being an asshole..

All in a great night though.  Thank you again P for the ticket!

More pics on flicker of the skyline of Singapore at night


Sunday 4 September 2016

wedding and a family vacation

So there were about  18 of us traveling from various places to Victoria BC, for the sons wedding, not including the soon to be married couple.

Its was quite an experience to get everyones travel plans and itinerary to know who arrives when and the sort of family get togethers we would be having.

some of the occupants of 221 Quebec st
221 quebec st
The majority of us arrived in Victoria on the 10th of August with some uncles and aunts and son no 2 arriving a few days later.  We managed to find this house in the centre of the tourist area, 221 Quebec Street ( I dont know about anyone else, but the 221 in the address had me thinking of Sherlock Holmes...)
 anyway...it had three apartments with 2 bedrooms in each apartment, it became our
base of operations for the wedding party.
basement apartment, was me, sister from Perth, sister from London and her partner and an extra space on the sofa bed in the living room.  the middle unit had eldest sister and her husband, mum, my aunt from Perth and my cousin from Toronto.  Top floor had the wedding couple, their two friends and son no 2.
14 people on 3 floors....
after the wedding .. on to the cocktail reception
My Uncles, mums brothers ( one from Melbourne, the other from Singapore) also made the trip as well as my Uncle and his wife on dads side...
Now its so much easier for Indians to identify the maternal and paternal sides as we have different names for the Uncles from the Mothers side - they are called mamajis and the Uncles on the dads side also have different names, older brothers are called tayaji, and my dads younger brothers are  called Chachaji. I can go on and tell you exactly all the names for the sisters and the grand parents  but then that will really lengthen this post even further,  so  back to the wedding story..

wedding decorations... 
Megs earl grey birthday cake
Wedding day was on the 15th of Aug, which gave us a bit of time to get over jetlag, and do some sightseeing as well as meet the sons, in laws.  My soon to be daughter in law's (her name is Meghan) birthday was on the 12th of August, which gave us a good opportunity to have her parents and grand parents over for tea
and cake.


st ann's academy, victoria, wedding venue with the flowers
We also arranged a BBQ at the vacation rental on 221 Quebec street, on the day before the wedding to meet all the in laws so that Meg's family could  see we were not some strange tribe trying to steal her away.  it was after all an inter racial marriage and I knew that her side had their misgivings on who we were and what we were like.  My uncles, aunts, sisters are all wonderful people who unlike me, are sociable and enjoy meeting people, which helped tremendously to ease everyones fears that Meg was not marrying into some strange traditional Indian family.  We had a blast.  It was supposed to be an afternoon BBQ with everyone leaving by 7pm, we had to chase everyone out by 10 as we were exhausted and we did have a wedding the next day.....
I promised the son that I would not post pics of them on their wedding day but I am posting a few pics that I took, but just not of them....  yet.

I could not however leave the cake out of the pics, it was glorious, and the top tier was gluten free... I did try the gluten cake too though, it was too delicious not to try just a bit...well ok I had a slice.

After the wedding we headed out to Nanaimo, 11 of us ( the uncles and their wives split from us here and went on an Alaskan cruise)  to enjoy the harbour city which son no 1 calls home. We spent a few days  there then we headed onto Vancouver, losing more of the wedding party, who had gone on to maximise their holiday so far away from home.

All in, it was quite an experience, dealing with 4 strong women ( my sisters and me) and looking after mum.  Not something I want to repeat.  While I love my sisters, I doubt I could travel with any of them as we want to do different things and we have become selfish and unyeilding in our wants.

I dont feel any different though... acquiring a new daughter in law, maybe because I dont see Meg as an in law, she is part of the family.  I now have one more child to worry about....

(some of the pictures are dark as the sun did not cooperate with my limited photography and editing skills... more pics on Canada on Flikr... wedding pics will only be available after Son no 1 gives the green light. )

Sunday 7 August 2016

no spanx for me

Well suffice to say, I havent made my ideal weight.
I am stuck as I havent exercised and that my friends is the key to losing weight when one gets older, diet control can only take you so far.

But I will not be wearing spanx.  I did go buy a pair of super undies and spent an obscene amount on something that I will never wear...  I tried them on and thought, what happens when I want to go pee... it would not have been an attractive sight.

So in my dress at the wedding, I may protrude in some places, but I will be me and I will not be in spanx.  If only I had realised that before I bought those un-returnable undies

anyone want to buy a pair of tried on spanx undies??


Friday 29 July 2016

I may have to buy spanx

Never say never

I know that saying will always come back and bite me in the ass..
my ever growing ass

why do they put skinny women in spanx?
While I have lost some weight, its not fast enough for me... perils of getting older, the weight takes a whole lot longer to melt away.

I have been good (except for those cocktails, and wine) well ok I have done my best, but its not good enough. So this week I have to step it up a notch and give up those beautiful cocktails if not I will have to go buy a pair of super undies that will hold my love handles around my hips in.

Stay tuned...will I get spanx?


Monday 11 July 2016

battle with the bulge revisited

So the sons wedding is in about 4 weeks

I bought a dress some time back with the smug confidence that I will be slim and trim for the wedding.  The dress fits but it fits a little bit too snugly and I was sure I could lose 3 kilos, no problem.

Yeah right

I have put weight back on, as usual, the yoyo pendulum has swung in the opposite direction.
So I have to put myself on a diet and exercise plan....
Motivation is zero right now, even the fear of looking fat in the dress hasnt pushed me to get off my ever increasing butt and actually do some walking to get that butt to stop jiggling.
Spanx you say... no thanks i say.  I am one of those people who will not suffer for fashion, I'd rather go get a new (loose) dress than wear spanx.

I set the alarm every night earlier than usual so that I can get out of bed and go for a brisk morning walk...but then at 4 in the morning, I adjust the alarm and dont bother with the walk.

fingers crossed that I actually roll out of bed tomorrow, eager to get into shape and actually get some exercise done.....

I always was an optimist...


Monday 4 July 2016

my phone died...

It was fine this morning, but when I got to work it just stopped working.

I dont really have the time to go get a new one today so I have no idea what I am going to do as I depend on my phone to wake me up in the morning.
Will I be able to survive without a phone?

I could just go get an alarm clock to wake me up....the way we used to do it.

we are too connected to our phones...... hmm social experiment time?
am sure the bosses at work will freak out if they cant reach me once I am out of the office...

I am sorely tempted to be without a phone just to see what happens.....

Friday 10 June 2016

Pictures from Mexico


bungy jumping anyone
They look like they belong in a Robert Rodriguez movie...
the glass factory
more pictures on flickr HERE

Viva la Mexico

I am in Los Cabos Mexico for work, yes I feel very lucky that I get to visit an amazing place...but its for work and I dont get to do what I want to do...first world problems I guess 




Sunrise over the sea of Cortez
I would come back here for sure to see more of the country, the people here are friendly and genuinely nice.  They want to talk to you, to find out who you are.  Some of them talked to me straight away in Spanish until i tell them, Habla muy poco Espanol,  and then they ask where i am from.  Its been great.  Mexicans are a great people....

Love Mexico!



Thursday 2 June 2016

jet lag and excitement?

So it seems I am off to Mexico tomorrow.

Its been really busy in the office, I took over the office manager position as well as being the 'bitch' in the project management department, and there is lots to do.
To add to my work ( somehow bosses just love doing that right..) I was asked if I could accompany the head of the creative dept to Los Cabos for a site inspection.  We are short handed right now and the person in charge of this project cant make it, so they asked if I would help out

Who in their right mind would say no... Even if it means extra work, being stressed out and I know I will end up being behind on all of my own work.

I have a good assistant now, so maybe it wont be so bad when I get back to the office in 9 days..
Its a long flight, Jet lag, running around in Los Cabos, then another long flight back and jet lag..... I am no spring chicken......

God help me, I am an idiot to do this Mexico trip...but I felt the old adrenalin rush and the excitement of old and ....... its Los Cabos!

Saturday 14 May 2016

sometimes bland is nice

Sometimes bland is nice... I guess its just what we want in life

I craved the excitement far too long and look where its got me... alone at 53 & 3/4
Rathtrevor Beach

Will I embrace the bland and safe.. I dont know, but sometimes its nice.  Just like Canada with its fresh air and open spaces.....
So Canada isnt bland, its serene, like a grand old dame.
New Pics on Flickr



Cathedral Grove

Wednesday 11 May 2016

could I live in Canada...

Its been interesting here in Canada...Vancouver Island to be exact

So while I have been hanging out with Son no 1, while he goes through blood tests ( last week there were daily blood tests) and just to be with him, we have been traveling a bit to see Victoria ( where he will be getting married in August) and just around where he lives now, Nanaimo.
Downtown Nanaimo

View from Son's balcony
Its a beautiful area, there are mountains, then the sea and beaches and walks... all amazing.  The weather is lovely, although it did go up to 26C during the day.  The people....
Now I am Indian from Singapore and I grew up and lived in a city, a city where diversity rules.  We have all sorts of food and cultures mingling to create this fusion of language and life.




so this little island off Vancouver looks very white to me.  White people, culture and living.  Slower pace of life and everything seems, on the surface, to be nice... passive aggressive almost.

So while I love the open spaces and the weather, I almost find everything else to be a bit, dare I say it....bland...
Nanaimo downtown by the wharf
I never realised I was so used to a fast paced environment with all the diversity that a  multi cultural world class city has to offer.

I am sure in a few years I will change again and probably hanker for the slower pace and actually look forward to a more relaxed way of life....retirement is still a way away for me I guess..
Driving to Victoria, views








Tuesday 3 May 2016

my baby

So this last couple of weeks have been hard, I got a call from son no 1 and the news wasnt good

He had gone to the ER for his bad back and figured that while he was there maybe they could check out his swollen arm...  they found a blood clot in his left auxiliary vein up to the junction of his jugular.

I freaked, so did he.  I wanted to get on a plane and go straight away to be with him, his fiance was away doing her practicum for her teaching degree, but she flew back the next day, she was equally freaked out.  They put him on blood thinners and the first few days was him going back and forth getting blood tests to set the right dosage for blood thinners.  He has had a few tests to find out why it happened but so far all tests have come up positive so we are no closer to finding out how and why.

His fiance had to go back to finish her practicum so she will be away 3 weeks, and I am here in Canada as I just had to see my baby.

Monday 25 April 2016

I met pond scum

So I decided to go back online to try to date... After all I knew no other way to meet men...

From experience I knew that the first two weeks online would be all the scum trying to get in touch with me, there are of course the genuine ones but mostly all u get are the predators.  I had one of those very bits of pond scum get a little nasty with me, my mistake was not trusting my gut instinct the first time this particular bit of floating algae contacted me.  The mail I got screamed scammer but did I listen.... No.    I did not go out with him, these scum don't live in the same time zone so meeting them is never on the cards.

I am ashamed to admit but I did give him my number, against better judgement and Simone screaming in my head... But when he called me, trying desperately to imitate an English accent, but failing miserably, and letting his African accent come through, I almost laughed. I cut the conversation short and emailed him not to contact me again, that's when he replied with really nasty words......
If I didn't know before I sure as hell knew then that this man was not who he claimed to be.  I wonder though, how do they get all those family pics of decent looking men to create profiles on dating websites.... Facebook? Instagram.? People secure your Social media please!

I have never had this happen before, the scum seem to be getting bolder, more nasty.
To all scum bags out there, male or female, may the evil you do to others come back and bite you in the arse.
Will I let this deter me from online dating, I don't know yet......

Saturday 23 April 2016

peering through the lens

when I bought my camera in 2013, i joined the Nikon club, which gave me access to classes that Nikon put together.
I have attended one basic class and this morning I attended a meet and shoot session, where we met at the CBD area of Singapore and went down one of the old streets where one can find all the interesting old shophouses.

I miss taking pics, i forget how much I love it.  I let life get in the way and I miss out on spending time peering through the lens.

more pics on my Flickr page ( son said "what who uses Flickr anyway".... I do son)
https://www.flickr.com/photos/102809648@N06/

the river and view of the fullerton hotel which was our general post office

an Indian temple in the middle of the CBD, this street has also a Mosque and a Chinese Temple

the old and the new in the background