An unrequited love affair

April 22, 2019.Reading time 7 minutes.

I have an unrequited love affair with shoes. I love shoes. They just don’t love me back. The hurt and pain go a long way back. Like a one-sided relationship, I try them on and they feel so good. They make me happy. They come home with me and I wait for the right occasion […]

What for and why?

April 15, 2019.Reading time 5 minutes.

I cannot quite explain what I feel when I read the arrests of former ministers and corporate leaders. It isn’t jubilation or satisfaction. I thought I would feel happy because justice is finally about to prevail but I don’t. Now, I am just disappointed and sad on many levels. Disappointed at how these leaders, who […]

Forrest Gump

April 8, 2019.Reading time 7 minutes.

I did a Forest Gump. Stuck indoors for four days because of a nagging cold, I needed to get out and move. I thought I’d do a short 10 minute walk to Avenue K, U-turn and head back home. My feet had other ideas. They walked to KLCC and then to the park. One time […]

Baking Monday

April 1, 2019.Reading time 6 minutes.

I walked past Famous Amos the other day, and as usual, I shamelessly stole the sweet wafting smells of its cookies and brownies. But what was different this time was the realization that I now know how to bake cookies like the ones that were sitting invitingly in the display cabinet. It might seem and […]

Road trips with my mum

March 25, 2019.Reading time 7 minutes.

Road trip from KL to Butterworth and Penang

My mum is in her 80’s. She is not quite the sprightly and enthusiastic person she once was; game to travel, inquisitive and interested to try new things. These days, she is genuinely happy pottering around her condo, praying, doing her daily exercises, going for short walks around the block, reading her novels and watching […]

Present, Past and Future

March 11, 2019.Reading time 8 minutes.

ving in the present, revisiting the past and looking forward to the future

“Do not dwell in the past, do not dream of the future, concentrate the mind on the present moment.” Buddha[1] Wise people have said and continue to say we should learn to live in the present, not dwell too much on the past or spend a lot of time worrying about the future. I agree, sort […]

Stuffed tigers and real monkeys

March 4, 2019.Reading time 6 minutes.

I could not understand why anyone would want to buy an angry looking stuffed tiger. Its gaping mouth and serious demeanour were far from endearing or cutesy to cuddle up to. I first saw many of these stern looking animals in Kampung Cherating, a holiday village in Pahang. They were being sold in sundry shops […]

People make all the difference

February 18, 2019.Reading time 7 minutes.

My mum is prepared to travel 30 odd kilometres or km (one way) from KL city centre to see her cardiologist in Shah Alam, the state capital of Selangor. There are four credible hospitals including a heart specialist centre within a five km radius of where we reside. I, on the other hand, sit through […]

Cookies and lion dances

February 4, 2019.Reading time 6 minutes.

Chinese New Year (CNY) will be upon us tomorrow. Another celebration that we Malaysians have the good fortune to enjoy with our Chinese friends. To get into the mood, I put up our Lunar New Year decorations soon after storing away our Christmas tree until its next appearance in December ( I always feel a […]

Agreeing to disagree

January 28, 2019.Reading time 6 minutes.

Recently I met up with my university mates for brunch, and in the same week, had dinner with friends whom I used to work with. That very weekend, my brother popped over to my mum’s in the afternoon, and we had tea. To be precise, he had coffee and I had some chocolate that I […]