I'm definitely no expert when it comes to driving but I love watching F1. Haven't been watching it much this year because of obvious time constraints but I still keep an eye on whats going on.
When Kimi drove for McLaren he was aggressive, bold BUT with a million car reliability issues and bad luck. I thought the move to Ferrari would sort things out for him and we'd see Kimi on the podium every week. Reliable car and crew, still the same aggressive Kimi. PLUS, Alonso had moved to McLaren so....its Kimi's turn to shine.
So, why is it that after 5 races, Kimi Raikkonen is still only at 23 points? 15 points behind Alonso! Both Ferrari drivers are behind BOTH the McLaren ones. I need to start watching again. I have no idea whats going on!
Monday, May 28, 2007
Vitamins, antioxidants, cancer....MLM
Up until we moved to Palembang, we were always surrounded by talk about supplements and how our normal food intake does not contain enough vitamins and antioxidants. How stress and free radicals are going to lead straight to cancer and the such. Well, its true, the modern lifestyle and diet is just not a good combination.
In comes MLM - Multi Level Marketing. There are so many in the market today...Amway, Lifepak, Usana. I usually run the other way but I liked what Lifepak had to offer a couple of years ago so we signed on. Do I have any downlines? NOPE. I thought I could get into it but...I didn't.
Today, I'm contemplating Usana. It certainly does have more antioxidants than Lifepak for a similar price. However, I don't think I'll be lured into signing up as a MLM-er for them. I just feel too awkward going up to the few friends I have and asking them to buy something from me. I'd gladly give a product a free plug but somehow, asking people I know to buy something doesn't sit right with me.
Maybe I'll change my views one day. Maybe I won't. Who knows?
In comes MLM - Multi Level Marketing. There are so many in the market today...Amway, Lifepak, Usana. I usually run the other way but I liked what Lifepak had to offer a couple of years ago so we signed on. Do I have any downlines? NOPE. I thought I could get into it but...I didn't.
Today, I'm contemplating Usana. It certainly does have more antioxidants than Lifepak for a similar price. However, I don't think I'll be lured into signing up as a MLM-er for them. I just feel too awkward going up to the few friends I have and asking them to buy something from me. I'd gladly give a product a free plug but somehow, asking people I know to buy something doesn't sit right with me.
Maybe I'll change my views one day. Maybe I won't. Who knows?
Sunday, May 27, 2007
I love this outfit!
Aaron was given this outfit around November last year. Of course, it was too big for him then so I kept it. We've been waiting for an occasion for him to wear it because its just sooooo cute and in the end, the first time he wore it was in KL. Unfortunately, its already a little too short for him. But it looks SOOOOO ADORABLE. So, even though its a little warm here in Palembang, we dressed him in it to go to the 6.30am mass this morning. We still don't know anybody here so there was nobody to show-off the new outfit to. Hence, this post with all the photos!
See how strained the pants are against his diaper?
Its noisy but I love looking at this face!
Doesn't he look like a big boy now?
I actually like that gap between his top teeth.
See how strained the pants are against his diaper?
Its noisy but I love looking at this face!
Doesn't he look like a big boy now?
I actually like that gap between his top teeth.
Do you know what thumb sucking is like?
I do. The second you put your thumb in your mouth and close it, you're immediately enveloped by feelings of contentment, comfort, tranquility and happiness. Its bliss....heaven even. Of course, I didn't know how to describe it this way when I was a thumbsucker but luckily I didn't break the habit till I was *xxxxx* so I still have the memories of how it felt like to be able to describe them to you today. I don't think many parents understand how powerful thumbsucking is.
Aaron is not a thumbsucker. He's a index-and-middle-finger sucker. Personally, I can't imagine this being better than thumbsucking since the nails will hit the roof of the mouth....but he likes it. Just take a look at how peaceful and content he is when he's at it.
Aaron has had issues with sleep since he was 3 days old. He's only recently began to soothe himself to sleep (occasionally) and BACK to sleep (once again, occasionally) by sucking on his fingers. This has given me many precious minutes of extra sleep and extra time for things like this blog. But I know that this is a habit that we're going to have to break sooner or later. I must be digging my own grave now for letting him continue with it. I justify it to myself by saying that its not as bad as my habit since he pulls his fingers out the second before he falls asleep. This habit is starting to have side effects though - a little blister on his finger.
For now, I'm trying to limit the finger sucking to when he needs to communicate hunger or is trying to sleep.
Aaron is not a thumbsucker. He's a index-and-middle-finger sucker. Personally, I can't imagine this being better than thumbsucking since the nails will hit the roof of the mouth....but he likes it. Just take a look at how peaceful and content he is when he's at it.
Aaron has had issues with sleep since he was 3 days old. He's only recently began to soothe himself to sleep (occasionally) and BACK to sleep (once again, occasionally) by sucking on his fingers. This has given me many precious minutes of extra sleep and extra time for things like this blog. But I know that this is a habit that we're going to have to break sooner or later. I must be digging my own grave now for letting him continue with it. I justify it to myself by saying that its not as bad as my habit since he pulls his fingers out the second before he falls asleep. This habit is starting to have side effects though - a little blister on his finger.
For now, I'm trying to limit the finger sucking to when he needs to communicate hunger or is trying to sleep.
Saturday, May 26, 2007
My own Ladies Fingers
My ladies fingers, also known as Okra. Can you see them? They are quite tiny in this picture but since I took it, I have harvested 6 and eaten them. We planted them around the beginning of April so it has taken us nearly two months for this first harvest. They are just starting out now and different plants are at different stages so we haven't been able to collect enough to make a decent sized dish. We'll get there soon enough because all the plants have little ladies fingers on them now.
They are my favourite vegetable but unfortunately one of those that cannot be bought in any market here in Palembang. There is another Malaysian house near us that also grew them. They were growing like crazy but the maid there told me they got so tired of them that they cut down all the plants and planted spinach instead. So...I'm looking forward to lots of Ladies Fingers.
ACRONYMS
It looks like there is no escaping acronyms.
When I started my first job, I wondered if they were speaking the same English that I was taught at school. "OK LT, Please LTHL L9384729 ready for GYAT. And then bring it along for RRP". I soon learnt and after awhile it became second nature and it was my family that wondered what I was talking about.
The period we lived in Klang was relatively acronym free. The only ones used there were OK and A/C. Nobody said anything like "Lets have some BKT"...They would just say "Lets have some Bak Kut Teh"
Here in Palembang....its both the merging of words as well as acronyms. "When is your ulta?" The only word remotely resembling ulta that I know of is unta (I think), which means camel. I don't have a camel! Turns out that ulta is short form for ULang TAhun (birthday). Geez! And then there are the acronyms PIM, PS, PTC, etc etc....and the harder part to is is that they pronounce all their alphabets using phonetics. Guess what my HAR PEH is?
Lately, I've been getting addicted to the Australian Breastfeeding Association Forums and there is a whole new set of acronyms to learn there as well. Here are just a few:
AP - Attachment Parenting
ABM - Artificial baby milk (formula)
CC - Controlled Crying
CCC - Child Care Centre
CIO - Cry it out
DH - Dear Husband
DW- Dear Wife
DP - Dear Partner
DS - Dear Son
DD - Dear Daughter
DF - Dear Fiance
DB - dear boyfriend
DSD - dear step daughter
DSS - dear step son
EBM - expressed breastmilk
LO - Little one
SAHM - stay at home mum
TMI - Too much information
WAHM - work at home mum
I should try to write an entire post purely in acronyms and abbreviations...but then again, I won't. I hate it when other people get carried away with all the sms style writing when there is a perfectly comfortable keyboard to use.
When I started my first job, I wondered if they were speaking the same English that I was taught at school. "OK LT, Please LTHL L9384729 ready for GYAT. And then bring it along for RRP". I soon learnt and after awhile it became second nature and it was my family that wondered what I was talking about.
The period we lived in Klang was relatively acronym free. The only ones used there were OK and A/C. Nobody said anything like "Lets have some BKT"...They would just say "Lets have some Bak Kut Teh"
Here in Palembang....its both the merging of words as well as acronyms. "When is your ulta?" The only word remotely resembling ulta that I know of is unta (I think), which means camel. I don't have a camel! Turns out that ulta is short form for ULang TAhun (birthday). Geez! And then there are the acronyms PIM, PS, PTC, etc etc....and the harder part to is is that they pronounce all their alphabets using phonetics. Guess what my HAR PEH is?
Lately, I've been getting addicted to the Australian Breastfeeding Association Forums and there is a whole new set of acronyms to learn there as well. Here are just a few:
AP - Attachment Parenting
ABM - Artificial baby milk (formula)
CC - Controlled Crying
CCC - Child Care Centre
CIO - Cry it out
DH - Dear Husband
DW- Dear Wife
DP - Dear Partner
DS - Dear Son
DD - Dear Daughter
DF - Dear Fiance
DB - dear boyfriend
DSD - dear step daughter
DSS - dear step son
EBM - expressed breastmilk
LO - Little one
SAHM - stay at home mum
TMI - Too much information
WAHM - work at home mum
I should try to write an entire post purely in acronyms and abbreviations...but then again, I won't. I hate it when other people get carried away with all the sms style writing when there is a perfectly comfortable keyboard to use.
Friday, May 25, 2007
Fried Squid
I guess fried squid can also be thought of as calamari rings. YUM! But thats not the issue today. Fried Squid translated into Cantonese is Chow Yow Yue. To be sacked! Fired! Become Unemployed! Experience loss of income!
So anyway, today I've been wondering whether it is justified to fry an employee's squid if I don't like their attitude. Bad attitude certainly is not good for the work environment but what if this is their natural personality. Then what? Wouldn't it be unfair to them if their natural disposition was to be sour all the time, with no proper manners or ettiquette? Perhaps they weren't taught these things? Maybe the poor village they come from didn't put any value on this. Yet how can it be? Even poor people are taught to greet others, to have respect for people and place.
Bad attitude transcends everything. Interaction with surrounding people. Quality of work.
If you haven't guessed....I'm seriously considering getting my fry pan out. To be fair, I have given the person a talking to. In my mind she is on probabation for the next week. Yet, even the 'talking to' was ineffective because she did not stop what she was doing and half the time did not even respond. That alone pissed me off enough to cut short the talk. Its to her own detriment since now she won't know the extent that she has pushed me to. Why should I feel guilty about it? This is a home environment, not a publicly listed company. I don't need to give 3 warning letters and go through a peer review before I start frying!
So anyway, today I've been wondering whether it is justified to fry an employee's squid if I don't like their attitude. Bad attitude certainly is not good for the work environment but what if this is their natural personality. Then what? Wouldn't it be unfair to them if their natural disposition was to be sour all the time, with no proper manners or ettiquette? Perhaps they weren't taught these things? Maybe the poor village they come from didn't put any value on this. Yet how can it be? Even poor people are taught to greet others, to have respect for people and place.
Bad attitude transcends everything. Interaction with surrounding people. Quality of work.
If you haven't guessed....I'm seriously considering getting my fry pan out. To be fair, I have given the person a talking to. In my mind she is on probabation for the next week. Yet, even the 'talking to' was ineffective because she did not stop what she was doing and half the time did not even respond. That alone pissed me off enough to cut short the talk. Its to her own detriment since now she won't know the extent that she has pushed me to. Why should I feel guilty about it? This is a home environment, not a publicly listed company. I don't need to give 3 warning letters and go through a peer review before I start frying!
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