.....times of refreshing.....

When I was younger, I used to buy and read a lot of self improvement books and one of them is a book on affirmations. According to wikipedia, Affirmation is a declaration that something is true.  Some self help books authors like the late Norman Vincent Peale suggests affirming biblical verses like Philippians 4:13 - "I can do all things through Him who strengthens me." daily to overcome fear.


Affirmations can be used for all occasions and I thought it might help to overcome Monday blues too. I guess maybe we can repeat statements to ourselves like :-

- I am doing well and getting better in my work/project daily
- I derived satisfaction from my work and I enjoy my tasks/projects
- I will improved and become a better engineer/doctor/accountant/manager ..etc as times goes by.
- I love work, it makes me alive
- etc.


And if we are facing some pressing issues in work which could likely demotivate us on a Monday morning, we can repeat verses like -

- I will be able to solve/rectify this issue this week, I can do it and everything will return back to normal
- Everything will be allright with the project and unlike last week, I can see good results this week
- There's always a solutions to everything and I will look forward to a great weekend ahead, when all problems are solved
-etc


I guess it will be a great way to start a monday morning with a good night sleep, a refreshing cup of good coffee and  positive affirmations on work before starting our new work week. Then, go through our to do list and enjoy the challenge!

Yes....finally the long weekend is around the corner! It's a holiday (Wesak Day) on Friday in Singapore and Malaysia while I'm also taking a day off from work on next Monday. Thus, I have four long holidays and  I will be only working for four days next week..this is great! Next, I'm pondering on what to do during the holidays.... thought of checking in to some resorts like this one with my family but most of them are fully booked on 28 May, thanks to my late planning. :(  Will have to think of some plans to spend the holidays!

Two factors causes me to write this post, while I'm on the way back from JB to Singapore yesterdaynight and after I read Eugene's post this morning. About yesterday first, all of a sudden I felt I'm wasting time over the weekend where I shopped, doze and became a potato couch in front of the tv, either watching dvds or tv programs. I just felt I didn't utilised time productively, though weekends are suppose to be sabbatical. Well, it's really true we took the opportunity to rest on non working days but then, it will be great if it is well-spent. Rest but also do something fulfilling.



Then, after reading Eugene's post on sudden death this morning, the more I felt that we(or rather myself) should spent time wisely. To me, it's all about balancing our life and priorities.  Perhaps, sometimes it's good to list the things that we wanted to do badly like -

a. Spend more time with family
b. Spend more time with parents
c. Achieving our goals
d. Do religious work or volunteering work
e. Spend time to exercise
f. Improve ourselves and overcome our weakness...and etc



Sometimes when I look back to my past, I find that I did waste a lot of time which if it's utilised well, I may stand to gain something more. But, anyway, the past is past and most importantly, it's to live life to the fullest now!


This is the day the LORD has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it. - Psalm 118:24.

I love music! Well, not so much on those pop, rock or heavy metal stuffs (which I listened to during my teen years) but soothing, relaxing music. I never failed to listen to music everyday, be it instrumental, new age or classical. Music is especially good for our mind especially in times of stress or depression. I noticed sometimes when I felt stressful especially after a long day, meditating on the music helps to calm me down and refreshes me.

This is the MP3 player that I used since 2008 and my companion for two years while travelling to work. Together with a good headphone which costs me a bomb, it really gave me some great personal moments!

I didn't really have a good collection of  music CDs though I did buy a lot over the decade. Some of those I listened to includes Kitaro, Kevin Kern, Medlyn Goodall, Jia Peng Fang, Kathryn Toyama (who gave me a CD all the way from US on my last birthday) and etc. Anyway, seems like lots of music shops have closed down here in Singapore and it's getting difficult to shop for CDs and I don't like to buy online.


Anyway, one of the good things in Singapore here is they have a classical music radio channel, called Symphony 92.4 FM, which has been running for a while. You can listen online here.I usually played it while hitting the bed and set my player to sleeping mode.Try listening to soothing and relaxing music everyday and felt the difference in your daily life.

"You gotta rest for at least 2 weeks but if the pain do not go away,it will be longer", said the doc. "Very difficult to stop leh...", I told doc. And she chuckled and said, "This seems a good problem". I ended up with three packets of medications, pain killers, anti-inflammatory and muscle relaxants.

Arhhh... I have to stop badminton for at least 2 weeks or longer .... maybe 1 month or so! That's really bad news! Well, I have been having a shoulder pain which likely is a ligament problem for almost a year now. And, after rubbing expensive heat rub  from Ebene (almost S$15 instead of S$9 from the normal brands), ketotop plasters and bought shoulder support (cost me around S$30+) , it's still not effective. So, I end up consulting  a doctor and that's what she advised me. Alamak...I guess I likely have to stay away from my beloved game for a while, guess 2 weeks are not enough.

Shoulder injury seems very common in badminton. Most of the folks I played with also have this problem, including my bro. I guess after you have reached a certain age, your muscles may got weakened and you have to reduce the frequency of play which stresses the muscles. Well, I played for a consecutive of two nights per week, though I didn't earn any Datukship from that game.:P

What I like of the game is it really gave a good workout which makes me feels good especially the next day, as well as socialising. Well, I gotta find an alternative now, a sports which sweats me out and not a bored one, like running on a treadmill. Any suggestions, folks? :)

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A man placed some flowers on the grave of his dearly departed mother and started back toward his car when his attention was diverted to another man kneeling at a grave. The man seemed to be praying with profound intensity and kept repeating, “Why did you have to die? Why did you have to die?” The first man approached him and said, “Sir, I don’t wish to interfere with your private grief, but this demonstration of pain is more than I’ve ever seen before. For whom do you mourn so deeply? A child? A parent?” The mourner took a moment to collect himself, then replied, “My wife’s first husband.”

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A policeman was patrolling a local parking spot overlooking a golf course. He drove by a car and saw a couple inside with the dome light on. There was a young man in the driver's seat reading a computer magazine and a young lady in the back seat knitting. He stopped to investigate. He walked up to the driver's window and knocked. The young man looked up, cranked the window down, and said, "Yes Officer?"

"What are you doing?" the policeman asked. "What does it look like?" answered the young man. "I'm reading this magazine." Pointing towards the young lady in the back seat, the officer then asked, "And what is she doing?" The young man looked over his shoulder and replied, "What does it look like? She's knitting."

"And how old are you?" the officer then asked the young man. "I'm nineteen," he replied. "And how old is she?" asked the officer. The young man looked at his watch and said, "Well, in about twelve minutes she'll be sixteen."

Taken from 101 Fun Jokes.

This is not a paid post and I don't really subscribed to paid posts ( at least for now... :p). Well, just like to share the wonders of this health supplement called Co-enzyme Q10. I have taken it few months ago for almost two months and I noticed my endurance in sports has really improved, where I can last longer in badminton sessions. Initially I thought it was due to consistent training which led me to an improvement in stamina. Thus, without noticing the effects of the supplement, I stopped taking it and I'm back to where I have been before, puffing and feeling so tired throughout the badminton sessions.

Well, I thought this could be due to aging as I'm no longer in my 20s anymore but I also realize I feel lethargic most of the times, especially on weekends. Well, it could be lack of sleep or maybe stress but however, I came to know that the cholesterol lowering drug, statin, actually reduce the level of naturally produced Q10 in our body. Check out this article.

It seems there's a lot of health benefits with this supplement and I decided to continued taking it since I'm on statin too. Let's see if I got the same effect again after taking it this time round. :) Here's an introduction to this supplement. Btw, I got mine from Blackmores, cost me $62 for 60 capsules.

Disclaimer - I'm not medically trained and this post is just an opinion of mine. I disclaims any and all liability for injury or other damages that could result from use of the information obtained from this article.

There are times which can be tough in life, a change of management in work, stricken by a disease, out of love, out of job and etc. These can be short term or long term but it can never be permanent. Sooner or later, the bad times will get over and good times will be back. As the saying goes, Time will heals. And the time will also come when you get out of these dark times. It's just a matter of 'time'.

Thus, whether you are learning a new skill with a deep learning curve, facing your fears, fighting to get out of your doldrums in finance or health...keep going positively and work on it constructively, though you may not see the silver lining yet. There are no overnight stars but rather one who is polished in difficult times for a while in their darkness and they emerged as 'somebody'.

Endurance and patience will always work..it works for sportsmen and in my opinion, I'm sure it work for us. It's just like running on a treadmill, initially we run with determination and motivation but when we reach the last 1-2 laps, our mind and body give away and we thought about quitting. That's where endurance comes in and by enduring the last few laps, we accomplished our fitness goal. I believe this applies to life too. Just endure the difficulties that you're facing now or the race to accomplish your goals and with patience, soon you will come out victoriously!

This eatery seems to open more and more branches in JB and they have every  reasons to do so. I'm not sure if there's a main branch at Pontian, Johor which I guess it's likely, but their noodles are really good. I heard that there are some branches in Singapore too. Well, I really need to try it!

I had their famous curry Laksa and it's very delicious! Just spicy enough and not too hot, nice delicious 'hums' or cockerels, I keep going and going with the bowl of noodles until it finished. Their laksa is a good recommendation.
The eatery is actually well-known for their wantan noodle and I try some, which is actually for my wife.  :) The noodles are indeed nice and fragrance. Anyway, I still love their Laksa and I was not surprise most of the folks there ordered curry laksa.
This is another good one-their fried wantan. Very crunchy indeed!
Here's their advertisement sticking on their glass door at a branch in Permas Jaya. Luckily it's air-cond inside there ...imagine having a bowl of curry laksa on a hot weather!!

Pontian Wanton Noodles is located at  - 61, Jalan Permas 10/1, Bandar Baru Permas Jaya, Johor.

I always wanted to bring my kid to attend my church's sunday school since last year but he always reluctant to go, thinking that a clowny Santa Claus always lurking in the church as he is afraid of every human being in costume...be it Santa, clowns, bears etc.... Then yesterday, while I'm almost ready to go to church, my wife suddenly joked with him whether he wanted to follow me. My prayers are answered.

However, since it was quite late and I'm unsure of where the kid's classes, I thought I just let him have a 'feel' of the church atmosphere while I bring him to the sunday school some other time.  After a while in the service and the sermon about to start, he asked me to bring him to the toilet. After he's done with his pee pee, I decided to sat at the last row, thinking I gotta leave early as he's getting bored.

Suddenly, a lady nearby waved to me and suggested me to bring him to the sunday school instead. That kind lady brought us to the class of his age group. I was delighted, didn't expected to bring him to the sunday school so fast..haha... I even skipped the sermon in order to accompany him.

My kid, in blue, above doing his colouring and that's where he started to enjoy the class. He was bored initially during the storytelling as he doesn't know the kids as well as the teachers.
Here's his 'masterpiece'... colouring a picture of Andrew and John casting their net onto the sea upon the Lord's Jesus Christ order. I will start bringing him to subsequent classes till he's used to it, then I will go back to attend the church's sunday service.