The day is almost done

This is 'part two' of my day thus far (see post below for 'part one'). The repairmen came. The pump that helps drain the water from the washer has given up after ten years. The new part is available and hopefully can be installed tomorrow late afternoon.

After almost two hours of cleaning up the mess (again) and washing and wringing all the clothes by hand, I'm back here nursing built-up gastric juices and raw, itchy fingers. I feel a backache coming and some joints are starting to remind me of my age, and probably my state of general health due to lack of exercise and strict healthy diet.

It's time now to cook dinner. So for the record, this is how I spent the day in the very middle of the year 2008. Tomorrow will be 1st July, the beginning of the second half of the year. May it be much better.

I'm thankful for my patience and perseverance thus far, and am reminded of less fortunate people who don't have washers, dryers, or enough food to feed their babies, so on and so forth.

A bad Monday

It's a day about my allergy, a rat and my washing machine.

The allergy terrorising my fingers flared up last night and I've got very itchy fingers today. Itchy fingers make me irritable.

As I walked out of the lift returning from sending Caitlin to school, the daily cleaner of my apartment block exclaimed and pointed out the scurrying rat around the gate of my unit. She chased it with her broom but it escaped. I'm glad it did not enter my home through the window while I was out. Now all my windows are close. I've complained to the building management guy. He said the pest control guys came just last week so he said he'll call them again.

We've been facing pest problems lately. There are more mosquitoes due to a construction project in front of my balcony. The green lung which was probably home to the mosquitoes is now a dusty, machinery-filled construction plot. So I guess the mosquitoes have flown up to find refuge (and food!) in our homes. We have donated quite some blood to these creatures of late. Some workers are also living in makeshift cabins in the construction plot. I guess that also contributes to the rats being around. This is the first time I'm facing pest problems since living here for 10 years.

I washed today's laundry almost three times today and it's still not done. My 10-year-old washer has decided to rebel. I wasn't aware it didn't drain and spin. It ended the cycle so I happily opened the door and the water gushed out. Wipe, mop, clean.... I was hoping it was just cranky so I tried a second time. While I was out fetching Caitlin, it ended the cycle so I couldn't tell if it drained and spinned. Because it was a full load, it wasn't noticeable whether water was still inside. Opened the door and again, flood waters, wipe, mop, clean. Opened the drain filter to see if it was clogged -- just some lint/fiber. Cleaned it, checked the outlet hose, started the machine one more time. Monitored the outlet hose, no water coming out. Turned the machine off. Called a repairman to troubleshoot. Hope he'll come in half hour's time as he said he would. My laundry is still sitting in the machine. I will open it only when the guy comes.

After all the wiping, mopping, cleaning, my fingers are anything but better. In between the wiping, mopping, cleaning and troubleshooting, the phone rang, Caitlin refused to help me answer it because the TV was more important. And her lunch was getting cold because TV made her forget to eat....and she is still watching now after I managed to stuff into her whatever was left of her lunch.

A story

The water supply to the village was found to be contaminated. It had been so for the past 10 years but was only discovered recently. A young resident villager shared the information with his older neighbours and suggested that they take precautions to ensure their safety. They were now aware of the situation.

Some took the information positively and thanked the him for sharing his concern. Some others slammed him, saying that it was not his place to open his big mouth. The young villager's conscience was clear as he felt he had not done anything wrong. He was however disappointed that his longtime neighbours reacted unreasonably towards his open sharing of information and personal opinion. Their emotions got the better of their objectivity, unfortunately.

People are wired differently and each has his own idiosyncrasies. Nature, nurture, culture, phobias, past experiences all contribute to how a man thinks, feels, acts and behaves. So be it. What is white could be black to one, grey to another or even purple to someone else. But telling the truth is important, even if it hurts.

"The truth will set you free. But first, it will piss you off" -- Gloria Steinem, feminist, journalist, women's rights advocate.

Only a mother

Only a mother would...

stay up all night watching her feverish child
eat her child's unfinished food and not think it's gross
ignore the numbness in her thigh when her child uses it as a pillow
wipe up vomit lovingly from the floor
sacrifice her favourite part of the chicken for her child
cuddle her teething child closer when he suckles and bites
carry her tired child despite her bad back
skip lunch to save and buy her child a much-desired book
accept her child with open arms after he made a mistake that hurt
drive through hail to deliver a forgotten jacket to the classroom
give her life to her child

Only a mother would. More precisely, only a mother at heart would.

Love song

While helping a dear friend search for songs for her forthcoming wedding, I came across Ol' Blue Eyes and his Too Marvelous For Words. It's a happy, lively love song!