The Sixth Sense

Not the movie. Not about dead people too.

My sixth sense has always been pretty accurate. I wonder if it’s got to do with me being emotional most of the time. If I put my emotions under control, does that make my sixth sense go away?

More importantly, can I survive without my sixth sense?

When I feel something is happening without being told, I want to confirm if my hunch is accurate. There are many times when I cross the line and end up creating more trouble. But my hunch has served me well (in a few situations). I know pretty much what lies beneath that mask people wear.

People always have a wrong impression of me – few words, demure, shy. I am just quietly observing/sensing what’s going on around me. I sometimes observed things I’d find to be important while others think it’s weird.

I am definitely not quiet, demure, and shy. It’s just an act. I nag a lot. You can ask my sister.

My sixth sense is telling me something has happened, and it’s making my head throbbed. Should I probe further?

I guess not. Just a waste of time.

Even if I know the truth, it’s meaningless to me now.

Borrowed toy!

A sudden whirlwind of events/meetings/activities going on this week. I’m so tired that I wish for a 24 hours uninterrupted beauty sleep. My dark eye circles just keep getting darker. People probably take one look at me and think pandas have started walking amongst them.

Been so busy that I forgot to blog about this: I met up with IT and her friend JL for dinner on Tues. JL has kindly lend me his Nikon D70 so I can get a feel of how a DSLR works before making the BIG decision to buy.

It’s so exciting! My first study is of course my hamsters. I always think having a better camera will finally get me some excellent pictures like this one. I realized with huge disappointment it’s all about skills. The pictures are still blurry. The weight of the camera is another concern. You carry the camera with the right hand, leaving your left hand free to do the zoom or focus. So I’m probably going to develop a bigger right arm in a few months?

JL’s advice is to play around with the ISO and aperture combination. If I can master these two, I probably do have a certain degree of aptitude for photography. Maybe HL would like to be my next study? We can walk along Singapore River and take some nice portraits.

The heart of the human problem is the heart of the human

First day of Asia Conference I was already seeing stars.

Berlinda Lee and Jack Neo are members of my church. Along with a few others. The church took some time to interview Jack Neo about his born again experience.

He shared a lot of things. When asked how does his movies struck a cord with the audience, he couldn't be more correct: these are movies about the everyday Singaporean doing the everyday Singaporean thing, and neglecting the most important thing: love.

People are lost and they don't know where to find love. They look high and low in all the wrong places when love is right in front of them.

When Jesus took the cross, He too, did it out of love. But love doesn't have to be dramatic like His final hours on earth. It is found in the more subtle actions that we always take for granted. In a phone call, a loving look, a simple home-cooked meal, spending time together. All done because of love.

In this week:
How many times have you had dinner with your family? How many sentences did you speak to mom on the phone? How many times did you hang up impatiently? Did you even call her this week?

Only when a problem is given the full, uninterupted attention, will you be able to see what exactly is the problem. Jack highlighted these problems in his movies. And because the audience is watching in the enclosure of a darkened hall, they see the light.

And the message struck a cord.

It's simply love

(A) Absence makes the heart grow fonder

(B) Out of sight, out of mind

I’d been wondering, is it really (A) or (B) these days?

I realized the key factor that governs whether you feel (A) or (B), is simply love. When you love, you will chase the person, and you will miss him when he's gone. When you don’t love, you drift away, and should whatever happens to him, you won't give a damn.

Your attitude towards the relationship will determine your behavior.

JOY.NU talked about how external forces have tried to sour her relationship with bf. The Bee Gees has an answer in "How Deep Is Your Love".

But again, there exist relationships that are destroyed by the very hands that created them. No external help needed.

My feelings? I used to float around in a bottomless sea of love, but it is finally ebbing. My feet is beginning to touch some solid ground.

God always reminds me of how much more I can gain, and how little I’d lost.

Housework

After reading For One More Day, I decided not to take my mom for granted. I helped her with the housework today. I am fully aware of all the tasks she needs to do and how unappreciative me, sis and dad have been.

Housework is not only physically demanding – you can really sweat buckets in 1 hour – it also requires some strategic planning. Otherwise you will be wasting time and precious resources.

I can understand her frustration all these years. Imagine being alone from 8 A.M to about 7 P.M. every weekday. You cook, clean, mend broken stuffs on your own. In your spare time, you meet up with what few friends you have for coffee or some shopping. Your kids and husband come home and take your efforts for granted. They complaint when some of their stuffs are misplaced. They do it when they find the same food for dinner again. And again when they can’t find that shirt/blouse/socks they want.

During weekends, when you thought the kids can spend some time with you or help out with some chores, they go out with friends or sit in front of computer watching mindless videos or playing useless games. Your husband wants to read newspaper and play Sudoku. When you talk to them, they take your nagging like poison to the ears. Blah, blah, blah.

I don’t blame my mom for blowing up every now and then. She is doing what domestic helpers are doing today and she doesn’t get paid. Above all, she still has to be a wife and mom. She has made a lot of sacrifices, but is unappreciated and gets complaints. She is home alone for a good 55 hours per week and feeling tired all the time. If something happens to her, no one will know. That is pretty lonely and dangerous.

I think 2 other factors that made her frustrated would be (A) house is too big and (B) cumbersome furniture. My house is a 135 meters square 5 room and it’s nothing like the small pigeon holes HDB build these days. To clean it in 1 day is too tiring. My mom has staggered her cleaning schedule (sweep today, mop tomorrow) but it’s still taking a toll on her body.

The furniture is not being helpful either. The usual sofa, coffee table, beds, tables, chairs all get in the way. If you still live with your parents, you will understand what I’m saying. The bigger it is the more durable and steady. There is some furniture that’s the same age as my sis.

My future home will have a “leg-less” concept. Anything that can be mounted on the wall will go there. If it can’t be mounted, it’s got to have wheels. It makes the cleaning so much easier. Walls will be white. . Some nice art work or painting will provide the much needed color.

Barack Obama

Yes he won. I’m sure you have heard and read enough about him.

Let’s take a look at some great photos taken of him over the past few months at Boston.com .

Nobody's old and wise without first being young and foolish

How true.

A new perspective from an old friend. We lost contact for a couple of years and it feels good to talk again tonight. We were friends since P3.

It's an extremely comforting moment, kinda like hugging your favourite, smelly bolster/blanket/pillow from childhood when you're feeling insecure, sad and lonely.

Dear friend, we need to catch up more often.

New toy?

I keep seeing Canon EOS 1000D (Rebel XS / Kiss F) ads in the papers. I guess it's time to retire my trusty Olympus, which has served me faithfully for 6 years in all-weathers! My only complaints would be it's lack of functions and clarity.

I really hope my dad would like to co-own this new toy with me! Soon!