Happy discoveries

February 9, 2026.Reading time 6 minutes.

I couldn’t, maybe I could’ve, but didn’t in my condominium unit. Last week, my condominium manager sent out a notice for an electricity calibration exercise for the whole building. The notice said there would be temporary power disruption affecting all owners and tenants. Temporary. Hmm. I checked with the manager if temporary meant momentary, not […]

Pongal and others

January 26, 2026.Reading time 6 minutes.

I visited my mum for Pongal last week, not at her condominium, but at her final resting home. Pongal was an important celebration for my mum. It marked the beginning of the Thai month, which I, for the longest time thought, was the first month of the Indian calendar. Mainly as it falls in January, which […]

Thevaya

January 12, 2026.Reading time 6 minutes.

I learnt a new word from a local radio station, while I was driving. It was the Tamil word for necessary. I wasn’t particularly concentrating but I think the DJ said something about trying to teach listeners one Tamil word per day. A ‘learn-a-word-a-day’ sort of thing. As it sounded interesting and a bit of […]

A new year

January 5, 2026.Reading time 6 minutes.

Another new year. No big resolutions. No big wants. No big expectations. For me, 2026 will be a good enough year if I can carry on doing the things I did in 2025. Do a bit more of what I didn’t do as much as I would have liked to. Plus, one or two that […]

Money or passion …

December 15, 2025.Reading time 6 minutes.

Money or passion? Interests or needs? A few weeks ago, my husband and I had a good morning at an exhibition by students from a local art college. They were from the illustration department, and they put on an enthusiastic ‘show and tell.’ From the exhibits, we saw that much thought, effort, and time had […]

Train of thought

December 8, 2025.Reading time 6 minutes.

Last week, the plan was to write about trains. And, the trip my husband and I took from KL to Ipoh via the ETS or Electric Train Service. It got derailed by buses. I kid you not I had no plans to write about buses, especially as I don’t like them. The years of pent-up […]

Trains, not buses

December 1, 2025.Reading time 6 minutes.

I like trains. Buses, not so much. I’ve taken buses most of my life. To school in Alor Setar and whilst I was in university. For four years, I did a four-state hike of Selangor-Kuala Lumpur-Penang-Kedah. I travelled every three weeks, on a Friday, from Bangi to Kajang to Pudu Raya to Butterworth to Alor […]

Happy events

November 17, 2025.Reading time 6 minutes.

My husband and I were invited to two graduation ceremonies. The graduates were my nieces, number 4 and 5, brother number 2’s daughters. Coincidentally both sisters had their graduation in early November. One on the 1st, the other on the 13th. 1st November was niece number 5’s big day. She got a First in Mechanical […]

Vehicle spotting

November 3, 2025.Reading time 6 minutes.

I am not the most observant person going. I remember my mum asking me if I had seen this or that person wearing this or that, usually jewellery or something fancy or new, and nine out of ten times, I wouldn’t have/didn’t. She was flabbergasted at my ‘ability’ to not notice people and/or what was […]

My mum’s celebration

October 20, 2025.Reading time 6 minutes.

It’s Deepavali today. I’ve been thinking about my mum for a while now. How excited she got at every Deepavali. It was her celebration. She said and reiterated how Deepavali was the main event in her life. Not Ponggal, Thaipusam or even her birthday. Nope, it was Deepavali. From childhood, all through her married life […]