The Shark and the Goldfish

The shark and the goldfish: Positive ways to thrive during waves of change by Jon Gordon is a good read. This interesting fable about a goldfish who has always been fed and the shark who looks for his food teaches an invaluable lesson that in the face of adversity, the difference between a full belly and an empty stomach depends solely on your faith, beliefs and action. A recipe to attain the life you dream of consists of taking the following actions:

• Embrace and ride the waves of change.
  
• Have positive thoughts, beliefs, and actions.
  
• To thrive, work hard.
  
• Focus ---> tune out distractions. Ask "What do I want in life?" and maintain focus.
• Always improve yourself ----> don't settle for being average.

A delightfully simple and easy read with powerful lessons in life.

So, it's important to pause and ask: "Are you a shark or a goldfish?" and assess the quality of our life.

Sherlock Holmes

I thought the movie was a little bit draggy - filled with the gloomy aura captured by the cinematography - it wasn't the type of aura I wanted to be in.  That said, I must say Robert Downey Jr. carried his role very well - with the air of arrogance around him. I loved his wits, humor and his sharpness at solving crimes. His remarks, eccentricity and experimental nature was comical. His observation of all the little details and his ability to connect the details to the bigger picture was awesome. The mystery kept me watching the movie till the end.

Farewell to cousin Kumar and family

My cousin, Kumar and his wife, Padma akka, children, Anirudh and Adhithi left to India today at 2 p.m. My father-in-law and I sent them off at the airport with a heavy heart. We had great time with them and we are going to miss them dearly. I especially grew very close to Padma akka as we had similar stories to share. She and her husband are very caring people and I adore them very much. We are definitely looking forward to visiting them in India soon.

After the airport, as soon as I came back home, I saw a lady standing at the guard house holding a bouquet of roses. And the moment she saw me, she asked "Are you Geeta? This is for you". I was surprised and knew instantly it was from my dear husband. What a pleasant surprise - the roses brought a smile on my face and made my day :) Thank you, love!

 

Family Trip to Port Dickson ~2nd - 3rd January 2010~

Devan and Tasha organized a family trip to Port Dickson on 2nd January and all our family members gathered under one roof and spent some quality time together. All my siblings, Usha aunty (my mom's sister) and family, Ravi uncle (mom's brother) and family, and cousin Kumar and family from India came for the gathering. We stayed one night at one of the bungalows which Devan and Tasha booked earlier last year.

We played football, cards, games and had a ball of a time at the beach. We had barbecue that night accompanied by lots of chattering, teasing and giggling. That's the first time I've seen my uncle (Ravi mamma) so jovial and sporting - he was so fun to be with! And of course the main entertainer of the lot was Uncle John with all his antics.

We had some desserts later - I baked chocolate cake with frosting and blueberry cheesecake the night before to bring for the gathering and all of them enjoyed it. After dinner, we played football at the field and then proceeded to play some cards and board games. Some of them didn't sleep until about 5.30 a.m. but still managed to get up the next morning to go to the beach for a second round of dip and fun.

 

 

A game of football - shirtless team against the team with shirts on

At the barbecue corner

 

The gambling corner

 

Vasco

 

 The next morning during breakfast

 

 

 

The gang walking towards the beach

 

 

 

 

 

  

 The antics at the beach

The family gathering was a splendid idea and we should have it more often. Everyone had a blast - and we are looking forward for more reunions! Thank you Devan and Tasha for organizing this outing and for bringing us closer.

New Year's Eve Party

Today is the New Year's Eve party at our place. We've invited family and friends over for dinner and then to watch the fireworks display at the KLCC park. We are so fortunate to be staying at the most strategic location during celebrations like this - there is no need to be trapped in traffic jam; we could just take a lift down and join in the celebrations - or we could just stand on our balcony and watch the fireworks display comfortably.

For the party, I cooked and baked the following items:

• Cakes
• Chocolate cake with frosting
• Blueberry cheesecake
• Orange almond cake
  

• Pizza - with an assortment of toppings of pineapples, button mushroom, capsicum, brinjal, minced chicken, chicken ham, sliced tomatoes, stuffed olives, tuna, crab - topped with mozarella and cream cheese. I prepared the pizza dough in the afternoon; by the time I finished kneading the dough, I was worn out. But, it was all worth it!
• Vegetarian ikan bilis sambal
•  Idli
• Fried lady's finger in yogurt
• My in-laws brought some pasta and pie.
  

The spread of food

Ingredients for the pizza

 

 

Everyone had a great time - chatting, joking and giggling. And watched all the funny movies - Proposal and Kung Fu Panda - it was merry and fun.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The beautiful view of KLCC's tip accompanied by the moon - a perfect sight.

At sharp 12.00 a.m. - 01.01.10 - we popped the champagne and gave a toast to great health, happiness and abundance for the brand new year. We enjoyed the fireworks display - it was so exhilarating to usher the new year with our loved ones accompanied by an array of fireworks and baloons on the sky. HAPPY 2010!

Reflecting 2009

Today is the day for me to sit back and reflect on the memories of 2009 - the time of the year to look back at all my accomplishments and setbacks for the year that is almost coming to an end. It is equally important to spend some quiet moment reflecting on how I've spent each second of all the last 12 months.

Accomplishments:

1. Getting married to a wonderful and loving husband.

2. Traveling experiences:

• Honeymoon @ Mauritius and Reunion islands - absolutely the most wonderful experience.
• My 30th Birthday @ Phuket - mind-blasting experience.
• Perth visit - informational and inspirational - learnt many tips of managing and raising a family.

3. Resignation from my job. I decided to resign from my job at Multimedia University since I couldn't rationalize being away from my husband and travelling to and fro from Melaka. Despite letting go of a job which I was so comfortable in, it was the best decision I made for myself. Now, I have more time and flexibility to do anything I wanted with my time - a sort of liberation from the monotonous life I had before. That said, I am definitely missing my colleagues. The 5-month leave I took gave me the freedom to do whatever I wanted with my time - and I had more time to relax, breathe and enjoy life at a quieter pace. However, like all things in life, anything done excessively is not good for you. So, I guess I have rested and traveled a lot during the past 5 months and I guess it's time for me to gear-up for some serious goal-setting next year. Though I am ashamed to admit that I have been slacking in my PhD studies recently, I am still glad that I have gone to places which I have never been and experienced new and exciting things with my husband. We've maximized the time spent together.

I realized how the first half of the year had been a very hectic one for me - classes, marking, administration work and the preparations for our wedding and reception; I was basically juggling everything and hardly had anytime to breathe. On the other hand, the second half of the year had been going on a totally relaxing pace - I had so much time for myself and for my loved ones. I learned that in everything that we do, moderation is the key. I have to learn to balance my time - I believe that the best way to know if you have utilized your time to the best is to gauge how accomplished and contented you feel at the end of the day.

4. Discovery of a new passion - hiking. This year, especially the last 5 months, I discovered how much I love hiking and trekking - something that I look forward to doing more in the future.

5. Conquered Mount Kinabalu. It was certainly an important milestone for us this year. It has taught us some invaluable lessons.

6. Incorporated some healthy eating habits. Now, juicing has become a daily morning routine which we look forward to so much - savoring the freshly squeezed vegetables and fruits is the most rewarding experience at the break of dawn.

7. Physical activities. We have made it a routine to walk around the KLCC park almost every morning. Although sometimes I have to drag myself out of bed, the morning walk is absolutely revitalizing.

8. Learnt to cook many new dishes and received compliments from family and friends, especially my husband :)

Setbacks:
The year has thrown an equal share of setbacks to us - Alfred's surgery and the ensuing chemotheraphy; the demise of his beloved paternal aunt and grandmother - a great loss to his family. As the saying goes, 'Behind every cloud there is a silver lining", the most important thing for us to remember is to learn and grow stonger whenever life throws challenges at us; and be very grateful for all the wonderful things we have. 

My GOALS for 2010:

• Complete my PhD thesis
• Bring a new life into this beautiful world
• Be more patient and loving to my wonderful husband
• Religiously indulge in activities which I am passionate in
• Meditate religiously
  
• Maintain a closer connection with my friends
• Find new friends
• Find new passion and indulge in it
  
• Lead a healthy living - physically, mentally, emotionally, and spiritually. 
• Instill good habits and practice it as a ritual
• Be more hardworking, disciplined, and focused.
• Live the motto of 'Do it now or never'.
  
• Be more kind and patient to others.
• Participate in charitable acts.
• Live in the NOW - present and aware. 
• Read more - especially inspirational books. 
• Learn a new language.
• Learn new dance steps
• Write a short story
• Practice Yoga and Pilates religiously

As the year is drawing to an end, I would like to take this opportunity to wish everyone a Happy New Year - may the coming year bless you with all the good things life has to offer. Be joyful!

Baking Spree

Today is a baking-spree-day for me. I baked chocolate cake with frosting, blueberry cheesecake, and orange almond flourless cake - all-in-a-day's work. Despite the tiredness, it puts off huge amount of stress of having to do it all on the day of the party - it's just impossible. Tomorrow will be all the cooking and pizza-dough-preparation day.

Planning and Organizing

28th - 30th - basically busy days organizing, arranging, and preparing for the New Year's Eve party on Thursday. With a list of to-dos and proper planning, it takes lots of stress out of the equation. I am getting better at planning and executing - and am aware at how effective planning helps to alleviate huge amount of tensions.

Xmas @ Singapore

On the 24th December, after dropping my cousin and his family at my grandpa's place in Seremban, we headed straight back to Melaka. The plan is to drive down to Singapore on Christmas day - partly because we had to pick my cousin up at the airport on Christmas eve and partly to avoid the Christmas eve traffic jam.

We left Melaka at about 10.30 a.m. on 25th December and decided to take the 2nd link to Singapore. There were practically no cars at the checkpoint - so it was a smooth and relaxing journey for us. We joined Aaron and his former colleagues for lunch at one of the eateries and then headed back to his apartment with his girlfriend, Jocelyn. Since he had to attend a family gathering that night, we both decided to stroll along Orchard Road to bask in the Xmas mood with all the lights and decorations. The road to Orchard was closed due to the concert and celebrations, so we took the MRT to town. We had dinner in one of the food courts there - it was jam-packed and there were no vacant tables- so we decided to just stand and relish the best-ever-rojak we've ever tasted - I am practically drooling at the thought of it while typing this - it was damn good! Then once we found a place to sit, we ordered some Chinese dishes - which was so mediocre compared to the ROJAK.

 

At the food court

After dinner, we walked around the beautifully-lit and decorated Orchard road. It was just too crowded and we had to shove ourselves around. Despite the crowd, we enjoyed the Christmas atmosphere with all the brightly lit lights and ornaments - it was just so Christmas-ty.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

At the Orchard Road

The next day (26th Dec), we had dim sum breakfast with Aaron and Jocelyn - we ordered the steamed dumplings - it was a hearty breakfast. At noon, we went over for a Christmas lunch at Uncle John 's sister's place in Marsiling Road - it was so merry with the house full of relatives - and delectable food! There were abundant food everywhere. We had great fun there and left in the evening.

We hung out with Aaron for dinner that night. Went back to his place and watched Inglorious Basterds over some wine. The company was good but the movie - a chronically violent and funny movie - I didn't like it.

The next morning (27th Dec), Aaron brought us to the famous curry laksa place for breakfast. Then, we had the best ever coffee (I was never a coffee person - but at the first sip of the coffee, I fell in love with the smooth and aromatic flavor). We left Singapore at about 1 p.m. and stopped over Tangkak to indulge in some durians! Reached home around 7.30 p.m. and brought my parents and sister out for a Chinese dinner. A great and eventful Christmas weekend - thank you God.