A visit to acupuncturist

So today was one of those days I counted my blessings for being able to be free and available at home to run my own schedule as I need to. And it was a day when I had to take my mom for a detailed check up on her head-ache which has been lingering about for awhile now. Just like the rest of us, she prefers not to go see any other doctors but her own so it took quite a bit of convincing to get her to come along with me today to see an old TCM practitioner at TungShin hospital. I managed to convince my sister as well since she was also facing some issues that needed to be treated. So the catch was to tell them - it's only RM30 for consultation and so it was! Well RM35 because it was our first time there but otherwise it's usually RM30 i heard. The doctor was very patient, thorough and holistic in his approach, allowed them patients to be able to speak and share, feel comfortable and I was won over by the hospitality as well. And not to mention the efficiency of their dispensary and the entire works. Total cost for everything we did today was within RM100 but the outcome is worth way more than that since both of them said they felt much better, now that cannot amount to any dollar value. Hopefully their issues will be treated over the next few days while they complete their tablet medicines. I would strongly recommend anyone to go visit this clinic and specifically this doctor for his services is indeed commendable. We were done in 1.5 hours and back home to rest and for me, to run my other errands. Which included running around from shop to shop seeking for mandarin oranges to fulfil a customer order I had which had to include 2 oranges in the bags. All in a days work, we managed to complete all pending deliveries (outsourced from 2 locations) and Friday is free for rest. Also today marked day 2 of being vegetarian, was super tempted to taste the pan mee i ordered for the kids but decided against it to keep with my goal to a 40 full days of being vegan.

Travels

So the year 2020 was supposed to be THE year I did my SOLO travel. If you knew me personally, you will also know that I LOVE to travel! Solo travelling is something I had not done for more than 10 years now. I am used to travelling for work alone but for leisure and to another part of the world, nope the last of such a trip I did was to Nuremberg to visit a good friend while I was working in Singapore. So yes, it is more than 10 years now. However, given the current circumstances, I don't foresee borders opening anytime soon. It is rather touching to learn that my good friend still based in Germany had been exploring ways to return to Malaysia to wade off the pandemic, just to get some sun! I would have loved to have her around as well if not for the additional ridiculous charges to be paid to the immigration to get in during this time. So my advise to anyone who misses travelling, miss their spouse or other halves, please get yourselves distracted. Don't kid yourself with timelines anymore or wait for government releases on borders opening or travel bans lifted. This pandemic has no timeline to it, no end at the moment. Some predict it mid year, end year but honestly only GOD knows! So the best way to manage our mental health during this time is to be realistic and stop keeping up false hopes. When it opens, it opens aite. Even then you will be risking everything to travel out. Hence find a distraction. Pick up a new hobby if you need to, join a new group of common interests, online classes, heck start an exercise club if you need to. Dump your anxiety and energy into something that will result in a better outcome for yourself. Get selfish, invest in your own health and wellbeing. If you have not been eating well, start doing so. Miss the gym? Start running around your neighborhood. Miss your spa sessions? DIY a mask for yourself. Or buy a korean one from Shoppee. A simple pick me up mask is cucumber, aloe and honey. Especially on a hot weather as we have in Malaysia, it works great to rejuvenate our skin. So as for me, I have decided to not look forward to travelling for awhile now. But I am keeping a travel list of my own which mostly has Indochina and other parts of Asia in it for the shortest term. I honestly miss the Angkor Wat more than the Eiffel Tower. Kebabs more than croissant and the sun more than snow so Asia it is for me for now until the world comes to a stable point. Also, since i have technically covered quite a huge chunk of Asia and a small part of EU, I will have a good few years during retirement to travel the countries I have missed. So that plan has to also kick in somewhere over the next 10 odd years (IF i am still around that is). Therefore, fret not, fight not, flee not. Stop on your tracks, smell the fresh air you have, the flowers and sand around you and enjoy it while you have it. It's not a cliche statement when they say - Live today as if there is no tomorrow! As the scriptures have also affirmed this, do not worry about tomorrow, let it worry for itself.

February 2021

So the pages of calendar has flipped so fast and we are already into the 2nd month of the year. Having just finished celebrating the Lunar New year, which also marks the first year anniversary since Covid was born, this year has been another locked-up and lonesome year for some, since the inter-state and cross border travels are still not allowed yet. As for me, I have had a rather busy past 2 weeks, rushing out CNY gift packs and honey orders. It was overwhelming, THANK GOD! As the sole source of income, I was grateful for every opportunity that came my way and I fulfilled it. Including taking over another new state to manage the sales and stockist there- Klang! Now what I started as a running list of new things I wanted to accomplish by end of this year must average out to a minimum of 3 items per month if i wanted to ensure I reached my target. I know some might say that's a tough goal to achieve but as I told myself, some of the "mini projects" were personal, not to be shouted about, and for some, it may even be a passe. So far we are in the midst of February and the few things I know I had done differently were 4. Got my other half & the kids a gift (couple mugs & a family puzzle), acknowledged Valentines day, ordered lunch, and just chilled the day away. It ended up with a disaster unfortunately but my main motivation of doing this was to practise selfless giving without acceptance and I managed to achieve just that. So that's item 4 ticked there! 5. I also missed out another item I ticked off in January - reached out to someone who was in need of something, grouped a few friends together to join in and successfully sourced and delivered the items to the children in need. I have not done this in more than 10 years and that was another major tick! 6. I've always wanted to donate hair to charity and I successfully cut Nadine's hair and kept it to be given to the cancer society once the travel restrictions are relaxed. 7. I have also started my compost bin project since Feb started and this time, will be taking this a notch further and checking with the local community on a common area setup to create this for the community garden project. 8. As LENT starts this Weds, I am also going to challenge myself to remain a vegetarian for 40 full days and not compromise or give in to my carnivorous side. I have also stopped drinking alcohol for the past 2 weeks, as I was on a continuous drunk session from December until mid January. This item is not a checklist YET! Will update again on the 28th of March. The journey of LENT is not just about abstaining from meat per se. In the world of today, it also means giving up something dear to us, something that cripples or numbs us, addictions of many forms, obsession, and the whole works. This is also part of our complete journey of understanding our existance on earth, they why and the what to do. It's also a good time to journey with Christ in the desert, the same way he did and coming out of it as a stronger, firmer rock than the rough form we started. And then we can truly shine like a diamond in the rough. Besides, what fun is there if we go through life being normal/ numb/ regular right? We need to question, challenge and most importantly understand things from many point of views. One persons journey is very different from another, and the first step to understanding one is to acknowledge this. Not everyone has the same shoe size of taste. I for one still prefer my flip flops for walking and heels for dancing! haha digression right there! There's still another 14 days to go before I can tick off another 1 or 2 items for the month, the race to out-do myself continues.