B2 is Home!

B2 returned home yesterday afternoon.  It was a long flight and he looked it!   We went to Jewel to explore while waiting for his plane to arrive.  It is the latest shopping attraction!  Everyone was there.  Long queues in most food outlets and resturants.  The waterfall is like Suntec City.  B2 and B3 observed when we first enter Jewel via Terminal 1 that it is like entering into Ion.  All the branded stores.  Then we see most of the regular brand like Bengawan Solo, Toastbox and a couple new stores from local like the Swiss Roll in Arab Street, Tong Gardens and some totally new foreign stores like Amazon cafe, Shakes Shack, Pokemon. 

The newness factor is incredible.  T3 which used to be quite busy become slow.  Plenty of carpark available and the foodcourt and Four Fingers are like...well,,, dead.

B3 try out a few new snacks stores.  A Korean fried fishcake, Maison's meringue and Auntie Annie's(not a new store).

We will be full force for the new few months.  Maybe I will be able to bbq more often as 2 boys means more food will be consumed.  It will be expensive to eat out plus so much easier to cook when the portions are bigger.

Up from Sitting on a Chair with One leg

There is a simple test.  My classmate send a viral video which says we lose about 8% muscle mass a year past certain age.  The only way is to reduce the loss by being active.  If you cannot perform this test, high chance of disability or immobility by age of 70s.

The test is sitting on a chair and getting up with one leg only.  Your hands must be on the shoulder.  So if you cannot do this, it is time to be more active to slow down the loss of your muscle mass.

Surgeon's Diagnosis

I saw my surgeon yesterday.  When I told him my symptoms, straightaway he said I lean forward and applied pressure.  He hit the nail on the head!  He says there is no diagnostic needed as it will just explained the symptoms.  I have to wait for it to heal and see him in 4 weeks.  He explained the screws and wires are in place and as they are fixed now the surrounding vertebra will take higher pressure.  I have to do all my necessary exercise to regain my strength and reduce the pain.

Seagate Personal Cloud Overheating

I have no idea why but my Seagate Personal Cloud keeps overheating even though I did not use it.  It is just left on.  Seems like this is a common problem.  Now I only switch on the Personal Cloud when I need to use it.  Leaving it on will cause overheating after a couple of hours whether you are accessing the drive or not.

Home Cooked Bak Kut Teh

B3 is under pressure to spend time to catch up on his study.  He now take a lot of candy and highly favoured snacks.  He also like soup with rice.  So today, we cook bak kut teh.  Two types of pork rib and a pack of Song Fa bak kut teh spices.  The soup is pretty good.  It is not as peppery as those in the store.  The meat is tender as we use the pressure cooker to cook.  But it still take a lot of time to prepare.  When it comes to supporting the boys in their studies, mummy is the best!

Some Improvements

The tension and tightness on the back has improved.  The weakness on the right thigh is still there.  Now, my gait is not like before.  Hopefully, with time it will heal and be back to like before.

I am taking it easy.  I was planning an easy ride this afternoon but my tire puncture.  So tomorrow I have to bring it to the shop for repair.  Seems like even Angel also say take it easy.

Also my fish tank is has quite a few mullets.  So my arowana has plenty of food on standby.  The pufferfish is doing well.  However, I still need to catch small fishes so that it has food.

Back Hurts!

Yesterday, my back hurts again.  The symptoms are similar to what I had before my back surgery where I had  my L4 L5 stabilized and a cage put between the 2 vertebra so that the bones will fuse together.

I suspect it is moving the heavy table which I used for my barbeque stove.  The other suspect is the odd angle and stretching to gain access to my rainwater tank.  Anyway, now it is all tensed up and stiff.  Surgery is now wasted.  My condition has returned!  Sigh!

I had no choice but to strain and sprain my back.

200 liters Drums

I bought 2 used drums that was used to store chemical.  It smell of epoxy.  Anyway, this afternoon when it rained, the drums almost filled up.  I need to store the water to dilute the chemicals first before using them.  I am happy to have capture rainwater for my plants.  They make my plants grow better.  Also I save on the tapwater which is very expensive nowadays.

Beo Cresent Happy Bakery

I saw a video on Traditional Bakery on YouTube.  This bakery is started by a old style baker who still use traditional ways to prepare the dough.  Since in the afternoon, I have to go for servicing in Leng Kee I decided to check it out as well as the hawker center there.   The prawn mee has a long queue but it did not taste good.  The fried carrot cake is ok. 

So I do think I will go to the hawker center again.  After lunch, I went to Happy Bakery and bought 5 or 6 different items.  The cream is pretty good according to my wife.  I did not get to try as she ate both up.  She also eat one chocolate eclair.  I tried the oneh oneh and it is pretty good.  The kaya cake is also quite good.  I will go back there to check it out as I like to buy fruits from Sin Choon.  The Swiss Roll is ok.  So I shall return.

Beautiful Sunday Morning

Yesterday,was a busy day.  We had Peking Duck in Asia Grand Hotel.  It is a nice treat!  After lunch, my wife had work to do.  So I pass time at the wholesale center to buy both roasted peanuts and raw peanuts without skin.  I went to the Kuan Yin temple to offer my prayers and get two oracles.  Both did not turn out well.  It is one of my favorite things to do... get my questions answered usually in old language that is quite obsure.  So I only take the status of the "cheem" which is like a traffic light, good = green, medium = amber and bad = red.

In the afternoon, we went to our niece's home for our grandniece's 3rd birthday party.  It is a cosy family get together.  I am very happy to carry all the grand nephews and niece.  The pool is quite relaxing and I had a nap there!  It is very quiet considering it is such a big development.  Lots of angmos were having parties in the different estates.  It is quite confusing as the security guards just allows everyone to go in.  So many party goers came to our party and discover they are in the wrong estate!

I am up early as usual.  It is only quarter moon and the morning star shines bright.  Actually it is on the star visible.  The sun has risen and the birds are chirping.  Soon they will be coming to my garden to feed.  I am glad to have flowering plants.

Peanut Soup Dessert

This morning I went to the market to get youtiao or deep fried dough.  I was cooking my favorite peanut soup dessert.  I like them the traditional style with sliced pieces of deep fried dough.  Since I am making on my own, I can also reheat so that they become crunchy.  I prefer to get the crunch unlike Maxwell Hawker Center.  This time I made both so that my guests have a choice.  They are also bringing food.  It will be like potluck!

Last Day! Hurray!

My boy last exams.  He is going out with his friends.  I have a relaxing day to do whatever I like which isn't much~~~~

Tomorrow no school.  So I have friends over for lunch.  One of them want to see the birds and fishes that I showed them in our chat.  Curiosity and request!  So I make it happened for them:)

I am always happy to host visitors.  Hope they have a wonderful visit.

Common Test

RI has exams after March holidays.  This week is exam week.  B3 is working harder and I hope his results improve.  He has been focusing on his CCA and this year it is important that he catch up.  I worry as he spends lot of time on the phone while studying.  He need frequent breaks.

The queue is long!

Crowd in Chinatown

We decided to lunch in Chinatown.  Close to 1pm...yong tau foo had a short queue even though it is not open yet.  So I decided to join the queue.  Still it is half an hour wait. I get to enjoy a bowl of Hakka yong tau foo.  The food is good.  It is quite humid and after consuming the steaming hot bowl, I am sweating like a pig!   It is a nice warm satisfaction.

Grey Heron?

A baby bird was sitting in the middle of the PCN.  It seems to be unwell.  So I took it and put in near the green and it went inside.

Lucky Morning!

I have been going to Punggol for many years now.  This morning I caught enough baby shrimp to qualify as food.  I am very lucky to be able to gather so much shrimps.  I usually catch small fishes and sometimes the baby shrimps for my arowana.  There are always not enough for cooking.  This time, I managed to catch a lot with the help of right equipment i.e a net with a long pole.  The weight is almost 1kg!

School Holiday Tomorrow

One week of school holiday.  So I do not need to send B3 to school.  He will be having his exams after the short holiday.  J2 exams in RI is immediately after school holiday.  This way the kids have a chance to revise and study on their own.

Sleeping Pattern Change

Now I understand why my Grandmother seems to be up in the middle of the night all the time.  I am now doing the same thing.  My classmate who is an Urologist explains that the bladder becomes smaller and less elastic as we age.  So we need to pee more often.  Also the prostrate swells and block the urine flow making you feel like urinating again after finishing.  That is you have to pee twice unlike before.  Of course prostrate issues does not affect my Grandma.  I see some of my classmates up in the middle of the night.  So it is common to our age group.

We can actually manage this by not drinking or eating too much during dinner.This will not reduce the urine output.  Also my family physican says the kidneys perfused better when lying down.  So the 2 factors add up to waking up to relieve the pressure on the bladder!

Boon Tong Kee AMK

My choice of braised duck is not open.  So we go to Boon Tong Kee for chicken rice instead.  It is was nice with the aircon.  The meal is simple - one blanched chicken, two vegs and two chye poh eggs.  We talk till the resturant was closing at 3pm.  It was a good sharing and boasting time.  So nice and warm to just sit and talk about our war stories...