Perspective

ACE went for a swim yesterday after returning from an enjoyable time at the Disney on Ice show and a dim sum lunch. In between playing and 'racing' with Caitlin, I floated on my back for a couple of minutes, closed my eyes, relaxed and cleared my mind. When I opened my eyes, I saw the vast blue sky above me, dotted with big white clouds. I felt so small and these were my thoughts:

No matter who you are, you are only a little speck in the universe. Whether you are a ruler of a country, a successful entrepreneur, an accomplished singer or hold a string of paper qualifications, who are you in the eyes of God, or the universe? From what perspective do we see ourselves and others? Should we compare ourselves with others? Should we be prideful or self-righteous when we think we are better than others? Should we feel depressed and bemoan our misfortune when we think others are happier?

Girlfriends (part 2)

Those were the days, my girlfriends!

The rain and girlfriends

It's been raining every afternoon this week at around this time. The sky grows dark, the wind becomes cool and strong, then the heavens pour down like it's the last time it will ever pour. Visibility out of my windows and balcony is probably only 10 feet. The lakes in the golf course across fill to the brim and the sand bunkers become mini ponds.

Caitlin decides to play by herself, dancing, singing, reading...I guess she is relishing in her own private time since the heavy rain is excuse for not going to Mandarin class. So I'm left alone just at a time when I thought cuddling up in bed with her and an entertaining book to hopefully get her to nap would be nice.

I decide to check email and found I received a nice one celebrating friendship among girls. The gloomy weather and the email evokes some nostalgia of the good times I had in my YFS (young, free, single) school and early working life with my girlfriends. Here's what the email said:

TO THE GIRLS!!!

What's so poignant about this picture? Well, it shows a line of little girls holding hands facing the immensity of ocean waves. Alone they might be washed away, but together they stand strong.

Thank you each for holding my hand somewhere along the way when I was facing a wave of my own.
I hope you will reach for my hand when your own wave threatens.

All of us girls..
Old and young...
Near and far...
Hold special memories of good times we've shared.
We've had our share of hard times when our friends were there to make us feel better.
We've shared...
our hearts
our time
our secrets
our fears
our hopes
and our dreams.
Let us never break the chain of friends!

If you get this twice or more, you are lucky to have more than one girlfriend.

Someone will always be prettier.
Someone will always be smarter.
Their house will be bigger.
They will drive a better car.
Their children will do better in school.
And their husband will fix more things around the house.
So let it go, Be Happy!
And love yourself and your circumstances.
Think about it.
The prettiest woman in the world can have trouble in her heart.
And the most highly favoured woman on your job may be unable to have children.
And the richest woman you know, she's got the car, the house, the clothes....might be lonely.
And the Word says if 'I have not Love, I have nothing.'

So, again, love you.
Love who you are.
Look in the mirror in the morning and smile and say
'I am too blessed to be stressed and too anointed to be disappointed!'
I like that!
'Winners make things happen.
Losers let things happen'
Be blessed ladies and pass this on to encourage another woman.
'To the world you might be one person,
But to one person you just might be the world'.
HERE'S TO YOU MY FRIENDS.

My thoughts stray to a popular sitcom called Friends. I enjoyed watching it although I wasn't a crazy fan. The theme song by The Rembrandts says:



So no one told you life was going to be this way.
Your job's a joke, you're broke, you're love life's DOA.
It's like you're always stuck in second gear,
Well, it hasn't been your day, your week, your month, or even your year.

But, I'll be there for you, when the rain starts to pour.
I'll be there for you, like I've been there before.
I'll be there for you, cause you're there for me too.

You're still in bed at ten, the work began at eight.
You've burned your breakfast, so far, things are going great.
Your mother warned you there'd be days like these,
But she didn't tell you when the world has brought you down to your knees.

That, I'll be there for you, when the rain starts to pour.
I'll be there for you, like I've been there before.
I'll be there for you, cause you're there for me too.

No one could ever know me, no one could ever see me.
Seems like you're the only one who knows what it's like to be me.
Someone to face the day with, make it through all the rest with,
Someone I'll always laugh with, even at my worst, I'm best with you.

It's like you're always stuck in second gear,
Well, it hasn't been your day, your week, your month, or even your year.

But, I'll be there for you, when the rain starts to pour.
I'll be there for you, like I've been there before.
I'll be there for you, cause you're there for me too.

Pretty appropriate for a time like this when I'm missing old friends and watching the rain.

Sleep, or rather, lack of it

It is 3.45am right now. I was woken up by some music coming from one of Caitlin's toy boxes. I guess in the weekly cleaning yesterday, the toys in the music instruments box got jolted and one of it could have pressed against another that has buttons to make music. I could not go back to sleep after getting up to restore the quiet in this cool morning. My two 'kids' are sprawled comfortably in bed, one big 'log' and one smaller one, oblivious to the world at this wee hour....

I am a light sleeper. I am also an 'uneasy' sleeper. I don't fall asleep easily anywhere, anytime even if I'm sleepy unlike some people who can just nod off and start snoring on the couch, in the car, while travelling....

I can't remember when was the last time I actually slept through the whole night without waking up at all. I think it must have been over five years ago before I had Caitlin. Those days, my sleep was pretty regular, going to bed by 11pm and waking at 6.30 or 7.00am to get ready for work.

When Caitlin arrived, it was night feeds, diaper changes (breastfed babies tend to poop more, anytime of day), night wakings for attention in the early years. Now, I wake up at least once every night, either to turn off the fan if we forget to put its timer on, to check on Caitlin (while asleep, she has this uncanny habit of lifting up her PJs, exposing her abdomen)or to get a drink of water. Sometimes it's hard to get back to sleep because I have an active mind. Thoughts about things, events, people, ideas, start creeping in and my brains start cranking up its gears....

My foot reflexologist tells me every single time when I visit him that I do not sleep well. Based on his reflexology knowledge and experience, he can tell because it's a certain spot on the sole that hurts each time he rubs it.

Now my tummy is feeling empty. I guess I'll go foraging....

Check out this picture gallery of people sleeping. It's very interesting.

Electro-smog: The Invisible Intruder

While the evolution of technology has provided us with amazing gadgets for our convenience, are you aware, (and if you are, are you taking it seriously?) that electronic gadgets emit electromagnetic fields (EMF) that could pose a danger to your health with frequent and prolonged use?

For some of us, owning several latest state-of-the-art mobile phones, hanging out at some coffee joint with WiFi and laptops on our laps or on the table (at level with our vital organs like kidneys, reproductive organs, heart!), cooking and re-heating food with microwave ovens, seem to be the 'coolest' things to do.

There have been tons of email circulating information and warnings about excessive usage of these things and how they can harm you. Some are true and some could be hoaxes (One must know how to tell the difference these days with online info being so widely used and abused).

But it is true that EMF (or plainly known as e-smog)poses a health risk. This article here provides some facts and tips on how to reduce your exposure to e-smog.

The article states: In September 2007, the EU's European Environment Agency (EEA)and the country of Germany both issued warnings to their citizens advising them to avoid the use of WiFi and cell phones until further long term studies are conducted, citing fears that the ubiquitous use of wireless technology has the potential to become the next public health disaster on the level of tobacco smoking, asbestos, and lead in automobile gas.

It also cites a real case of someone who has been affected: Hayley (pseudonym) spent many years in front of a computer and is now so electrically sensitive she cannot be around microwaves, air conditioners, cell phones, or airports without experiencing distressful cardiac and neurological symptoms.

Having witnessed several demonstrations on how a scalar energy device reduces e-smog emitted from mobile phones, I would advise that you do not hang your phone around your neck, put it in your front or back pants pocket, or anywhere near your body for too long. There are of course many other factors that contribute to ill health but does that mean we should allow another, e-smog in particular, to join these 'bad boys'?

As they say, prevention is better than cure. You could be at risk more than you realise it.