Progressing.

The contractors completed Charlyn's room today. They were certainly quick. I called them yesterday, they came down, we did some measurements and i was given a quotation. And they completed the job the very next day. The job was $430.00. Don't know if i was ripped off but who cares if i was. Time is of the essence and i do not have enough of it to scout around for the cheapest rate.. she's coming on friday!

And the furniture from Ikea is arriving on thursday afternoon. So that gives me just a few hours to assemble the bed and drawer set. It's nice to see everything falling into place nicely.

On a different note.. i am FINALLY with Starhub Online!! Praise the gods! My brother subscribed to Starhub now that my contract with Singtel has expired. Their technician came this afternoon to fix up everything. And we have cable too! Yay! Of course, the cable is more for my dad to keep him occupied during the day when he returns home.

Singtel.. you SUCK!

In the mood to criticise.

3 points to touch on today..

Point 1 :
I think the only reason why MM Lee Kuan Yew was crying at Rajaratnam's funeral (may he rest in peace) was because he was probably thinking.. '*Sob* The next funeral i attend could be mine!!'.

Point 2 :
I really really do NOT understand blogs like these... http://www.theartofmischief.blogspot.com/. 'A' level student meh?!

Point 3 :
I am SICK and TIRED of the old man's stroke-fueled ramblings! This is really a fucking nightmare.

Relaxing day at Sentosa.

Played beach volleyball and threw around my frisbee there with some friends. Despite my aching body and abrasions on my knees, it was a good day. I managed to forget all my worries for just one day.


There was an almost perfect moment for me. I was sitting on the bench in my beach chair and drinking my beer when these 3 girls started a volleyball game with 3 guys. And they were right in front of me..

Yes, i'm a perv.

Recovering? You bet!

A sure sign that my dad is recovering is that he is more alert and being his usual cheeky witty self. When i brought him downstairs this evening for some fresh air, the nurses playfully asked where he was going and he replied.. 'to look at girls!'. When we returned, they asked him how did it go and he asked for viagra to be added to his medication. They burst out laughing.

I hope he doesn't get too cheeky with Charlyn.. that's MY job! Heh heh..

Btw, i've long discovered that i get my wit and sense of humour from my dad and my sarcasm from my mom.

New family member.

I've finally arranged for a filipino (her name's Charlyn) to be our domestic helper today. After attending the stupid online Foreign Domestic Workers Employers Orientation course and submitting all the relevant paperwork, she should be joining us next week on friday.

It's sure going to take a lot of getting used to. The last time we actually had a female living in our house and being a part of our everyday lives (excluding girlfriends spending the night) was like 24 years ago when my parents were still married!

I guess we do not really have a choice. The doctors say that he will need long term care and i guess i cannot be by his side for the rest of his life. When i made the decision to quit my job to look after him (and his affairs), it was with the assumption that his recovery will be quick.

More updates about Charlyn to follow soon..

There she goes..

I never saw her face, but she certainly caught my eye.

Lazy weekday afternoon..

The Constant Gardener.

I caught this movie yesterday.. and i swear by all that's holy, i will catch every single one of Fernando Meirelles's films (City of God) from this day on.

Finally!

Finally got my Honolua Surf Co beach hat from Hawaii!

They grow so fast..

Visited grandmother's place today to meet up with some family.

I'm not a 'baby' person but i thought i'd make this one exceptional entry.

Cousin Rania almost one year later.

Cousin Rania and sister Ira. Yes, i have a hot sister. And hot sisters normally have hot friends. I can hardly wait.

Doing what babies are normally good at doing.. being cute and annoying.

Fleeting moment of the day..

Took the following picture while walking home after buying dinner.


My new handphone is great. It's so convenient to take shots that interest me. My Canon A80 is still without a doubt the better choice in taking better quality pictures. But when it comes to convenience, the Sony Ericsson is ideal!

With the Canon A80, it is
a. Swing Crumpler bag to front to unfasten clips.
b. Lift open cover (it's velcroed).
c. Dig into bag for camera.
d. Take camera out of casing.
e. Switch camera on.
f. Flip out LCD screen.
g. Take picture.

With the Sony Ericsson 750i, it is
a. Take phone out of pocket.
b. Slide open lens cover.
c. Take picture!

Sigh.. the wonders of modern technology.

Just an update..

We brought my dad home today. The last time was a fortnight ago as the doctor didn't allow him to go home last weekend due to his condition. We brought him to the optician to make a couple of new pairs and have a hair cut at the malay barber. BOTH his spectacles went missing at the hospital and i suspect it's due to the inept attendants who assists my dad in the mornings. They failed to clear his pockets before sending the pyjamas off to be laundered i'm sure! Oh well, he had to make new ones anyway. The stroke affected his eyesight and he had to read the newspapers with a magnifying glass while wearing his spectacles.

The doctors have cut down on his medication as they discovered that the medication is making him 'spaced out' most of the time, thus affecting his rehab. It seems to have worked. He remembers how to walk with the walking stick now compared to the last time when he kept forgetting how to! He's even putting in some effort in trying to walk more at home for practice. But he still irritates the hell out of me sometimes. I know it's not his fault and it's all due to the stroke but still, there were times i had to control very hard not to hit him on the head! Like just now, he kept insisting on finding his 'thai oil' (god knows what that is!). My bro and i searched high and low for it but we just can't find it. And even after telling him repeatedly that we cannot find it, he'll still insist on finding it.. Argh! I felt like screaming 'ENOUGH WITH THE THAI OIL ALREADY!!!'

Anyway, i cooked chicken soup for dinner and i suggested to my brother why not just give him a little beer to cheer him up (and to make him forget about the damn oil). Because one of the effects of a stroke is the inability to express emotions, i sure as hell hope he was happy!

He did try his luck in hinting for a cigarette... GET REAL OKAY!!

Hello cutie!

I was climbing at SAFRA Yishun this morning when this cute little bugger came along. Eugene had a camera and i managed to get some close-up shots of it. Because it was moving around quite a bit and i was using the camera's macro function, this was the best of the whole lot as the rest was not quite focused.

Ain't it cute?


And here are MORE cuties! Well.. the exceptions are the ones on the extreme left and right..

Dan Wen, Jasmine and Eugene.. just a few of my climbing buddies.


Some of the walls at SAFRA Yishun.

My new toy.

Nothing like a little splurging to keep the spirits up eh? Been eyeing this baby (the handphone) for some time so i finally decided to get it. I love it's functions and all that but it's going to take me some time to get used to it as i've been using Nokia phones since the beginning of time!


The following were taken with the HP's 2 mega pixel camera..




It's nice to be able to take shots of interesting stuff without having to lug around my normal Canon camera.

Gratification..

Today was a good climbing day. I finally managed to complete a 6c+ endurance route at Climb Asia (my regular bouldering hangout). And to make sure that it wasn't a fluke, i succeeded at completing it a second time!

The route had 30 tiles and i kept failing at number 24. I knew that i had the strength to pull it off but i was just not getting the technique right. I sat down and studied that portion and attempted many solutions. It was really a problem solving situation. Then after countless attempts, i got it!

The whole experience of facing a problem, finding a solution and being able to solve the problem on my own was certainly a gratifying one.. I cannot remember a time when i felt so gratified while climbing.

7a.. you're next.

PS - I know the above is totally alien to non-climbers. To understand what i'm talking about.. TAKE UP CLIMBING! Females are more than welcomed to contact me for lessons..

Pretty girls and Jet Li ROCKS!

I watched Fearless this afternoon at Lido and it was.. great! I love chinese gong fu movies (none of that hollywood crap please) and this was certainly entertaining. The only thing that ruined the whole experience was me having to control my bladder halfway through the movie.

Anyway, my dad's doctor informed me that he's recovery is taking longer than expected. Because the stroke affected the part of his brain that controls memories, he is always forgetting what he has learnt during rehab. For example, during rehab, he is able to walk on his own with a walking stick. But in the afternoon, he forgets everything! That would explain alot! He would often forget simple things like why the hospital room he is in belongs to him.

I told him about his memory loss (he agrees he has it) and explained to him that we will have to do some mental activities like playing scrabble etc to stimulate his brain. He also suggested chess. So tomorrow, i'm going to look for a nice little chess set to play with my dad..

On another note, i had dinner in Holland Village with an attractive female friend (she writes for Shape magazine!) tonight. It certainly perked me up :)

Domestic help?

Been discussing with my bro whether we should get a maid to help out with the household chores.. and also with my dad. Indonesian? Nah, we need her to be able to speak English. Sri lankan? No way.. i want to be able to have my meals without feeling nauseous. Filipino? Hmm.. perhaps. If she's young, pretty and can speak English, why not? Just don't piss her off or she'll CHOP UP YOUR BODY!!

But then again, do we REALLY need one? Our household has always been a male domain and we've survived well on our own. We can cook (almost), clean, do our own laundry and ironing and stuff like that.. so do we REALLY need one? I've left my job to look after my dad and will definitely have time to do these household chores. Besides, we do not have any room for her and i just cannot bare the thought of asking her to sleep in the kitchen.. what if i chance upon her sleeping naked! Waitaminute.. that doesn't sound so bad.. HAHA!!

Anyway, i've been reading some horror stories about maids and i wonder, do we want to take the risk? Well, i guess we'll see how things go after he's discharged from the hospital.

In the meantime, i guess it doesn't hurt to start picking out some uniforms for the girl..



















Hmm.. nice, but a bit 'over-the-top'.


Nah, she'll catch a cold (i very welfare one ok!). The opposite neighbours will get a fit too.


Too much whites.. easy to get dirty. Suitable for Christmas though.


Too much whites here too, and the fluffy armbands look cumbersome.


Yes.. this is more suitable. Simple in design, yet allows the wearer to do her job.


If you'd like to help, please let me know which uniform you think is best..
a. Over-the-top
b. Catch a cold
c. Christmas
d. Fluffy
e. Simple