Forlorn

These days...

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Time snailing through

It is 10.30 a.m. on a workday.

The person next to me is focused on her screen, stressed over an escalation mail. The person in front is engaged in a conference call. The person behind is having a team discussion. Another person at the end of the row is occupied with a sales proposal. Another can be seen in the conference room, immersed in a serious conversation. I, after having completed all required tasks, am looking out the window and thinking of how to get through the day. 

I turned to my messaging platforms in search of my chat buddies. One is rushing to meet a deadline. One is focused on an ad-hoc report from the boss. Another is getting prepared for a meeting. Oh-kayy.

I then went onto the internet. Read the local news. Read the business articles. Scrolled the social media websites. Read the international news. Gone through the gossip columns. Read some life inspiring articles. Watched some short videos. Browsed a few shopping sites. Looked at the time - 12 p.m. What?

It's either I was being too efficient or there was just isn't enough to do. On any regular day, I get to relax for more than half of the time - that's after clearing mails and accomplished tasks. Some may argue that it is what they desired - having a stress free job and being paid to chill. For me, it was great in the earlier days. But now, it is just damn freaking boring. I'm beginning to feel wasted. That's how I'm going to spend my hours each day? Just by surfing the net? Not doing anything significant? Even if I scout around and poke my nose in matters that doesn't involve me, there's still hours left to be utilized.

How is it that everyone else is screaming for more time and yet here I am wishing that it would just pick up pace? Such imbalance.

It doesn't make sense to continue on this way. It's getting demotivating. Got to start to look at options now.

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Haze

It looks like the end of the world. It sure serve as a good backdrop for some Hollywood movie.

Yep, that's how my city looks like now - on one of the worst days of the haze blanketing the entire country. It doesn't seem to get any better in the coming weeks.

We are stuck indoors. Schools are closed. And the moment you step out, you'll suffocate.

There goes my year end vacations.

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What? Locked?

We rely on our phones so much, that it has come to a point where we can't live without them. We store so much data on them, that once gone, we are goners as well.

For some reason, my mobile decided to lock itself the last weekend. The scanner malfunctioned. And, of course, the backup password have long been forgotten. I was, alone, on my way to a drinks session. Panic sets in. I can't operate the mobile! I can't get through the login screen! I can't communicate! Oh wait, my notes are in there as well. So does tonnes of my pictures. And they are all without backups!

I was momentarily lost for action. It was the first time this has happened and I was stunned. I was so used to working my mobile and now that it was inoperative, I found myself in a sudden state of paralysis. Oh man, what do I do? I can't call for help. I have not set any emergency contacts. There was no one beside me to lend me their mobile. I have not even activated the PC login - which I eventually found out there was such a function.


And all the while, I hear the pings coming in on my WhatsApp, presumably from my friends updating their whereabouts. As I thought about it, I realized we no longer use the mobile to make calls and talk anymore. My mobile was, in fact, still active - it was locked from sending communications, but it can actually receive them. If someone were to just call, I can actually get help. Or let them know of my predicament.

I realized soon after that no one was going to do that. We are so used to sending texts that it didn't bother us one bit when someone failed to reply back. We simply brushed it aside thinking the person was just too busy or maybe even ignoring them. It scares me now to know that in the event of an emergency or crisis, where someone's mobile was just not working the way mine did, no one would ever know. Perhaps not until it is too late.

It was a full day later when luck stroke. I was close to giving up and re-formatting the mobile, thus erasing all that I've stored in there. A final attempt at the password proved fruitful. I blamed myself for entering such a complicated one and for not saving it elsewhere. So much for contingency plans. And yes, if you are wondering, I immediately backed up everything thereafter!

So people, pick up the phone and start calling! Is that so hard to do? If you have forgotten, that's what phones are made for. All the rest are just side functions to ease things. If your friend is not responding like they used to, start taking note.

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Arghhh!!!

Have been trying to change the outlook of my page and for every template that I picked, there are bound to be errors - the title is not looking the way it should be, some entries have gone missing, the dates doesn't show up, the pictures get all mixed up, the layout runs....and the list continues.

It has been close to 20 templates now and not even one of them fits! The page is looking way off and all I had wanted was just a simple design.

Something must have been wrong with the codes and am pulling my hair out on how to get them right.

So darn frustrating!

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Amigurumi

The interest started late last year.

A friend had shared a picture of these cutesy hand crafted owls and I was completely smitten. How so adorable! Hmmm, hand crafted? So I can make one too? And so, I got into a little digging and found out that they are actually called Amigurumi - a form of Japanese art of crocheted or knitted small stuffed animals. 

Knit, you say? I was pretty immersed in cross-stitches back in my school days, but not knitting. They are more for the grandmas and housewives to kill time. I am definitely not in those categories yet! So obviously I wouldn’t know how to knit.

But as fascination got the better of me, I pulled myself to this knit shop to enquire about lessons. I was determined to make my very own amigurumi. It turned out that they have lessons for crocheted ones, which is hugely popular among youngsters. Seems like it's in the trend now. Oh really? Cool! Where do I sign up?

I immediately got myself some yarns and a hook and started stitching away. If kids could do it, so can I. There were some basic steps to grasp and the rest can be perfected through practice. After the end of the classes, I was on my way to stitch my collection of owl amigurumis. Yeah, how can I resist the cute baby owls.

crocheting tools

For a beginner, it was tough though. There were a lot of wrong stitches and missed stitches where I had to disregard all the previous work and to start all over again. Boy, it was time consuming. Not to mention that there were distractions as well in between which slowed down the progress. What could have been completed in a couple of days, took me months.

But I eventually got absorbed by crocheting. I began to enjoy picking at the yarns and working the hooks. I carried my kit wherever I went and jumped on them whenever I get the chance. I can be seen stitching away at Starbucks on afternoons, at my regular hair salon when I was getting my hair done and even at the airport while waiting to board. To the bystanders, I might beginning to look like an old lady sitting in the corner and stitching herself away. Hah!

As soon as I see my owls taking shapes, there was so much delight. My owls are “alive”! Finally! The feeling of finishing off something which I have never done before was just so satisfying. The feeling of accomplishment was very much overwhelming. Thumbs up to myself!

my very own owl amigurumis

I eagerly showed off my babies around, to which I got this instead, “What is this? A pig?” I know, I know…they are not perfect. In some ways, they are “deformed”. But hey, it was my first time okay. Cut me some slack, alright? Just so you know, there are some who wanted them as gifts. So they are not all the bad eh?

I might consider the gift idea. Either this or I’ll start to work on some other type of animals. How about a bunny…or a teddy…or a panda…or a hippo….

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Broken bonds

They couldn't withstand the test of time.

Once where they were strong, where they were thought to be long lasting, had been shattered by time. Or rather, they have been shattered by the changes in life.   

Differing priorities, differing circumstances, differing point of views, differing paths... one or the other have led to differing routes.

It's difficult to comprehend that you are no longer a part of their life. Those whom you have shared a significant portion of your life with.

The calls just stopped, the outings ceased, and a simple "Hi" is no longer uttered. They disappeared altogether. All you get is some pictures posted on social media. And you are left wondering what the hell happened along the way. How did it came to be this way?

As you engage with others in similar circles, you look back at the wonderful moments spent together and wonder if there is still a little of that bond left? If there is a possibility that they could have cherished it as much as you do?

Friendship is weird, at times.

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Neo Tamarind

I should stop doing this. It is just my luck.

A few years back, I was introduced to dine at the Tamarind. So I made reservations to a fancy dinner. Upon arriving only did I realized I booked the wrong one. But as I stood at the doors of the Tamarind Springs, it was a blessing in disguise. The place was awesome. Great cuisine, great ambiance, great setting. A splendid dining experience.

This time around, after having found the right occasion, I made reservations at another Tamarind. And upon arriving at the bottom of the steps, I found myself repeating history. It was the wrong one again!

Instead of the Tamarind Hill, which has been the target from the start, I found myself beneath the sign of the Neo Tamarind. And as with the first time, I had missed the entrance and it took me quite a while in getting it located. What embarrassment. Why does all the Tamarinds have to be that secluded?

Well, perhaps seclusion is what makes it special. And for that reason it fascinates me. For you see, Neo Tamarind is situated on a small hill in the middle of the city and hidden by green foliage. It boasts another great setting and great ambience, perfect for a tranquil dining night.

While the Tamarind Springs offers Indochinese cuisines, the Neo Tamarind serves Asian-European ones. I must say that flavours from both places have been to my liking. It was finger licking good. If we hadn’t been that stuffed, we would have licked the plates clean.

And I was very much captivated by our glass lounge seating, where we faced the swaying trees while we savoured in the delights that was presented to us.

stairs heading up 

our table 

cool, eh?

interior seating

bar area

 

appetizers

main courses

The evening had been wonderful. Cozy, quiet, great food, great companion and a great environment. We could do more nights like this.

There is just one last Tamarind restaurant to dine in. I will definitely not get it wrong the next time.

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