Keeping optimism alive

The advantages of getting injured during Chinese New Year (assuming that you're in a country that celebrates it).

1. You are guaranteed an ang bao.
If you're young, you'll probably get an extra large ang bao. If you're old yet unmarried and on the verge of no longer qualifying for an ang bao like yours truly, you get guaranteed one.

2. You can excuse yourself from any preparations.
This includes the spring cleaning, shopping, preparations for the reunion dinner and cleaning up afterwards.

3. You can excuse yourself from visiting any unsavoury relatives.
Don't like that uncle who has bad breath and asks for money every time the relatives get together?
"I can't go... my leg hurts."

4. You can guilt trip your parents into buying you anything you want.

5. All the tastiest morsels of food will probably end up on your plate.

6. You can order your siblings around like servants.
"I can't get up... get me some water!"

7. People will let you win at Mah Jong out of sympathy.

8. You get to sleep in late because you are "recuperating".

Well, i can't think of any others but feel free to add to the list. 8 is a prosperous number anyway!

Another reminder of increasing age

The new year. Another period to plunge into a regular existential crisis. Erhem. I mean, to review the past one year, to learn from one's mistakes and castigate oneself into the next century. *cough*

I mean, in hopes of improving oneself.

Resolutions? I don't make any. Stopped doing that in primary school. Why? Because i always come up with something that involves changing my personality.

Let me elucidate.

Procrastination has always been my forte. As a young student, i would aspire to be conscientious, to complete my homework and assignments ahead of schedule, and to study for tests and exams in advance. I swear in my 17 years as a student, that has never occurred. All that i managed to achieve was excellent short term memory (from countless last minute cramming sessions), questionable long term memory and a sizable amount of guilt and disappointment come the following new year.

I was 9 when the concept of  the new year resolution was first explained to me on new year's eve as my family camped in front of the tv watching the countdown fireworks. I gave up on it after 3 unsuccessful attempts.

So when i see someone my age twit something like "New year. Same goal. Renewed hope." I can't help but think that this person's IQ has plunged into the depths of the earth's core.

If one has had an entire year to realise a goal and was still unable to attain it, what are the chances that it's going to happen in the following year? 

Resolutions? I don't have any. Call me an unmotivated, directionless coward with no drive for self improvement. It's time for my free fall anyway.

A touch of death

Call for me once
And be comforted by my beguiling smile

Call for me twice
And you think you’ll feel better in awhile

As I tinker with your humours
You feel reassured of my skills

But haven’t you heard the rumours
That too much of my attention kills?

My presence is like a drug
Wondrous in small doses

Too much of it however
Encourages necrosis

So avoid me if you can
Stop wasting your breath

You don’t want me to linger
For I have a touch of death




i mourn for your passing, DW.

Breath taking NZ

Yes. I'm finally getting to it.

After 6 months that is. My skills at procrastination are definitely improving.

We started our trip in Hamilton.

I love the colours in the Japanese Garden. I like the mossy rocks and the quiet stream. It gives off an atmosphere of tranquillity and harmony. A feeling as if there is all the time in the world for contemplation.

The Italian arches. I must have picked a good season to visit because the golden brown leaves accentuate the rustic feeling of the twines spiralling around the arches.

Lady Knox Geyser erupting regularly at 0900 every morning. Initially we thought it must be some wondrous geothermal timetable only to find out that the eruptions were man made. Who knew that surfactant had uses other than in neonatal lung disease.

 

The Waitomo caves were breath taking. Unfortunately, we chose to visit after there was a torrential downpour. The glow worm caves which were accessible by boat via underground stream was partially submerged and we only got to go around in a small circle looking at the naturally fluorescent poop of cannibalistic carnivorous worms.

The other caves were magnificent as well. What was more impressive was my mother's new camera. The clarity, the lighting all done without flash!

I swear i took this picture and didn't plagiarise if from a post card. I did see a post card that looked exactly like this in a shop in the airport on our way back though. I'm just that talented.

I have no idea what this is but it looks pretty.

We went to paradise springs and spend a few bucks buying feeds for ducks, rainbow trout, farm animals etc. But my mum fed most of it to the sparrows who were following us around. This one ate out of her hand.

Does it give you a Lord of the Ring's feeling?

Ahhh... Hot water beach. Where some of my favourite pictures were taken. The clouds. I could stare at them forever. Maybe that's why NZ gives off such idyllic vibes.






Such smooth untrodden sand, smooth enough for the receding tide to reflect the sky.



I wonder how that man got up that rock. It actually looks tempting to try it when looking at the picture. But it was a cold winter day and i wouldn't have touched the water even if you paid me to.

Coromandel Bay. What more is there to say?

 

Waiheke island. I took the anti histamine to prevent my famously predictable nausea for the boat ride and regretted it. My eyes got blurry, my mouth dry, my tongue like sandpaper. No wonder i threw up while i was scuba diving. Who wouldn't? I actually did better without it on the return trip.

There's 20 million sheep and 4 million people. Of course i have to take a photo of the dominant species.

 

Next time, i'll visit the South Island. I heard it's even prettier.

Mouth watering NZ

Back in June, Mum and I went gallivanting across the Tasman Sea in the picturesque home of the Lord of the Rings. Scenery aside, what could be more important than food right?

Here's the highlight of our culinary discoveries:


Home made organic beef sausage with mashed potatoes and a pastry (which i can't remember the name of) - HuHu cafe in Waitomo

Organic beef burger with fresh rocket salad, potato wedges and mayonnaise. Yum...

Perhaps it was our starving bellies, for we hadn't had anything to eat for 7 hours prior, but the food was delicious! Not to mention very reasonably priced. Who would've thought that such a gem would exist in the middle of nowhere?

Sirloin steak with pigtail fries and salad at Pig n Whistle in Rotorua. Did i mention the pigtail fries?

Lamb stew with beetroot and seasonal vegetables. Hearty pub fare.

Towards the end of our holiday, we made a trip out to Waiheke island from our base in Auckland. On that chilly winter morning, we decided to trek along the most popular hiking trails on the island. The sun did nothing to dispel the bite of the buffeting wind as we made our way, eagerly anticipating the stopover at the award winning Mudbrick Vineyard & Restaurant. Suffice to say, we were not disappointed.

The most tender, dissolve-in-your-mouth steak ever. Guess NZ has alot of cows for them to perfect their trade on...

The prettiest mushrooms ever served. Like eating straight from the vege patch, flower and all.

So we only had 3 decent meals while we were there?! We were starving ourselves to look better in our photos ;P

Good Samaritan?

Yesterday as i was heading towards the apartment complex my sister was bunking at, there was a black dog crossing the road towards the median strip of the tram stop.

Smart dog. Knows how to cross the road.

Who does it belong to?

As i observed it while walking towards the front steps of my destination, the dog wagged its tail at a man there. He paid it no attention. Guess it's not him.

Then the dog got excited about another lady at the tram stop, wagging its tail furiously.

I lip read her from across the noisy road "Go over there." She pointed to the safety of the grassy pedestrian sidewalk.

Rejected, the dog turned around and saw a man at the traffic light. By then, my sister and i were both at the front door, transfixed by the unfolding scene.

The dog happily trotted across the road, into the path of an oncoming car, who thankfully stopped to let it pass. Both of us held our breaths for a moment.

Not a smart dog. Totally lost without its owner.

The near miss was enough to prompt the man to gesture for the dog over to him. It promptly lay at his feet and exposed its belly for a rub, tail thumping vigorously the whole time.

Witnessing that, we both entered the apartment and i promptly forgot about the dog. That is, until my sister, the vet with the bigger heart, emerged from the bathroom after her morning routine.

"I think we should go out and check if it's still there."

"Oh alright."

The moment we opened the front door, the dog rushed up the stairs unceremoniously, tried to lick our faces as we bent to check her dog tag and invited herself into the apartment.

So while my sister was busy trying to control this hyperactive dog to prevent it from destroying the place, i served water, milk and wheatbix to the ravenous staffie, tackled her to the ground to read her dog tag and rang the council to report her case.

Several attempts later, we got a phone call from the owner. Angie the staffie lived a few streets from where we were. Apparently, she hadn't been missing long at all despite her deceiving whines in front of the fridge.

I learned a few things about my sis and I from this. My sis has a big heart, while i on the other hand, try my best to avoid being drawn into a potentially messy situation. But once i'm committed, i see it through to the end. My sis the feeler, and me the doer.

If not for my sis, who knows if Angie would've been dead by the side of the road. Can't believed she thanked me for saving the dog. Ha.