15 Jan 2021 – What Over 70 Feels Like

Tue: as I leave for my grocery this morning in these wet weathers in between short spurts when the clouds were pushed away at BedokMall. Caishen 財神 God/Deity of Wealth kept a watch over me with a nice hot cuppa while waiting for the shuttle to Tampines Giant&IKEA.

Successful trip to Giant where they refunded S$17+ for the items I forgot in Nov2020. Could not resist this T-shirtS$5 as the OX is my year! Was hoping to get some food@IKEA but unfortunately what I needed or wanted are not in stock – bought this unusual little plant instead. Time to get the dying PoinsettiaS$12 (lasted for~a month) out and this succulent MiniJade Portulacaria afra, Elephant BushS$8 on the table for the CNY. Let’s see how long this one will last?

Yummy Dim-Sum Bday lunch@CantonParadise tkx to Audrey, my first co-worker, student & young friend when I returned to SIN in 1999. She tells me now that I am literally her oldest friend – hahaha. Met Audrey when she was in her mid 20s and somehow I cannot imagine she is in her 40s now! Same with some of my nieces&nephews who are now the about the same age as I was when I returned to SIN in 1999 – but then I am now over 70!! A must for my favourite mini-EggTarts here, but had to take away as we were too stuffed for desserts! Looking forward to our next lunch when I am planning to make Mexican!

Wed: doing some errands on this uncharted territory and less wet day.

Looks like they are ready for the CNY. 

Delicious TruffleWagyuBowl for dinner tkx to Gel. 1st visit to BedokMarketPlace and looks like there are some interesting eateries to try there besides TheBurningOak where we were.

Thu: many tkx to CC management&staff for a day early combined Bday celebrations for Estella, Sam’s father and I.

Appreciations and many thanks to James for harvesting the fresh&yummy mussels&fish, to Chris for driving me to&fro. 

to Estella for excellent Tequila that I sip neat without lime or salt,

to Cece, friend of Estella for this home-made cheese-cake, to Helen for the beautiful roses. Collage credits to Helen and pix credits to all who sent attachments via message or WhatsApp.

SGH the whole morning from 0800-1300hrs on different scans, finally located what they were looking for, Hyperparathryoidism. Managed to dozed in 2 (30minsX2) of the longer scans! Surgery is the next step – nothing too serious but should be done before my metabolism gets more unbalance, as it is there is too much calcium in me discovered thru’ a few blood&urine tests from last year! 

Bday dinner@MadameFan (1st visit but will not be my last), where the fish was steamed to perfection and the DrunkenChickenSoup was up to par with my mother’s which I have not tasted since she passed on in 1965. Interesting and a new taste – JasmineTea Smoked-Ribs where the meat practically melts in your mouth. Tasty AugergineTofuClaypotwBlackBean&Chilli and WanTanBlackBean BeefHoFun was a different taste to the regular BeefHoFun.

The former BritanniaClub (1950s) and then the NCO-Club (1970s), now reimaged to present days, but still carrying some nostalgic of the colonial days. Good food&excellent service, the best service experienced so far – highly recommended. One of the waiters must have overheard our conversation about it being my Bday and we were pleasantly surprised with a complimentary plate of Longevity paus 寿桃包 

https://www.ura.gov.sg/Conservation-Portal/Explore/History?bldgid=FBRC

You know you’re getting old when you get that one candle on the cake. It’s like, ‘See if you can blow this out – Jerry Seinfeld

To my family&AT hiking buddies, Glenda&Franklin from NC/USA, thank you for your beautiful flowers, calls&messages to end the week. Am sooo totally blessed&spoilt this week!!

11 Jan 2021 – Eat, Drink & Be Merry

Fri: evening drinking&snacking in good company@CC. Pink pomelo from MP market was juicy&sweet, appreciations to Desiree for the recommendation. Jan tells me that she can get pomelos in FL/USA. Tkx to Calvin for the Helinox pillow (new item in the shop), perfect gift as I was planning to buy it for my chair. Movie&snooze time in this chair are now tailored to perfection and will not need any other chair.

WilkieEdge, opening of a new restaurant/La Jia, do wonder how they can maintain F&B business in today’s circumstances. This cute cleaning robot got my attention!

Was not there for dinner, but could not stop admiring the all these colourful congratulatory flowers for the opening. Tkx to Henry for the CoffeeCake@Han’s which hit the spot for the sweet tooth. Appreciations to Lisa in HI for her thoughtful gift  (received today) to make sure that my teeth are supplied with toothpicks for as long as there are teeth in the mouth.

WilkieEdge on Wilki Rd reminds me of cousin Wilki in HI who always stay@Citadines service apartments next to this building when he visits. It was Nov2019, 1+yr ago he was last here with his bro David+2 of his loyal students from HI, Huang & Kim. Trust my cousin Wilki to pick a place on a road named after him – hahaha

Sat: Thank you to YusoffAbdulLatiff who has featured 5Temenggong Rd in the Jan-Feb 21 issue of Passage, newsletter of the Friends of the Museum. It is quite exciting to see the house where I was born and grew up in here. Looking forward to Henri&Reis’s book&website on TemenggongRd. Just a minor correction, RG1LAM SongKee is my grandfather, not father as stated in the caption.

Tkx to Les&Ivy for scrumptious dinner last night@Angie’s Oyster Bar & Grill – shellfish starters and roast beef done to perfection with wines to match the meal. Both the oysters&mussels were good &fresh, but slightly on the salty side. So if you are like me, do request them to go easy with the salt. Appreciations to Lee&Adeline+Isabella for the ride back to the EastCoast.

Sun: pleasant snoozing weathers last night and still raining today, got ~9hrs sleep, feeling energized for the next event which will start the week of Bday celebrations! ShangriLa Hotel – the Tree Canopy, a ceiling art by HirotoshiSawada (Japan), featuring thousands of metallic leaves. Compressed sculptures of Children Dabbling in the Water were sculpted by YiHwanKwon (Korea). Mistaken them as stools at first-sight – thank goodness I did not sit on them!

Tkx to Clement for HighTea, yummy&pretty-presented food in good company. It has been 7+yrs ago (Dec2013) since I was last in this location with the other AmyLAM! cousin from CA/USA to meet with another cousin, JoyLAM – both from granduncle LAM JeeChiew’s branch. 

Mon: receiving early Bday greetings, so might as well start celebrating as tomorrow is promised to no one and who knows what tomorrow will bring! In the meanwhile, let’s eat, drink&be merry. Here is a fun challenge to see how many National Dishes you have tasted – 

https://www.listchallenges.com/national-dishes-for-every-country-in-the-world

My results: 167 of 615  ·  27%

The timeless in you is aware of life’s timelessness. And knows that yesterday is but today’s memory and tomorrow is today’s dream― Khalil Gibran/The Prophet 

7 Jan 2021 – Time Will Heal The Wounds

Mon: Grenseland/Borderliner – Norwegian crime drama series filmed in OSL. Glad to be able to watch this without subtitles as any other films not in English, subtitles are a must for me!

Tue: grocery day – trying to save on the promotions and bought more than I should have. Trolley-bag on wheels tipped over on the escalator@Bedok Bus-Interchange causing a fall, bruising&scraping the R-knee&elbow. Some kind souls stopped the escalator and helped me pick up my grocery. As my XX-father-in-law, John3, the orthopedic surgeon used say, that too shall pass – do not think any bones got broken, but sore around the R-ribs area and that too will soon heal.

Love all, trust a few,
Do wrong to none: be able for thine enemy
Rather in power than use; and keep thy friend
Under thy own life’s key: be check’d for silence,
But never tax’d for speech – All’s Well That Ends Well/Shakespeare

Saved S$4.09/Senior%, but will try and remember to not over-buy in future! Tue usually goes quickly by with grocery shopping and getting foods ready into small packages (enough for one meal) to freeze. Would pick up this amount ~1-2times per month and then will get bits&pieces of fresh produce or whatever I might need as the days go by.

Look what arrived in the mail today – made my day, especially after the fall. #4 is the one who has changed most in these pix. Vivid memories taking care of her first 14days when Linn had to be hospitalized after the birth in 2009. She is the only grandchild I had the pleasure to take care of so fully and such an easy cuddly baby – no complains, just happy as long as she was fed and clean diapers every 4hrs. 

Wed: Nollaig na mBan – Little Christmas or Women’s Christmas in certain parts of Ireland. Traditionally the last day for the Christmas tree to be up but also a day when the woman of the house is exempt from all housework! A day/night when women go out and relax, but for me it is time to take down the Christmas decorations.

Thu: putting away the Christmas decorations, 2020 has had the least decorations up ever since the start of decorating for Christmas. Also taking notes for 2021 Season’s Greetings+gifts list – the next celebration will be CNY, 12Feb, the year of the OX.

Of all the greetings, there is only 1 that is hand-painted – do look forward to receiving Inger’s (Sweden) artwork every year. 2019, she did not paint any, commented that I missed her lovely paintings. Also do like all the pix greetings, especially when I can see the difference of how the children have grown. Most of all, really enjoy hearing from each&everyone with their annual updates. Thank you for the gatherings with good company + foods,  gifts, and to all who took the time to write. Have been slacking with 2020season’s greetings, but will try to make it up, ie by getting the hard-copy&postage ready to be mailed by 1Dec2021. 

3 Jan 2021 – 18/28 Temenggong Road

Fri: Happy New Year&TGIF on this 1st 2021 Friday – a good weekend and a Happier&Healthier 2021 to all.

Back dating one day to yesterday, Thu the last day of 2020. Appreciations to Reis&Henri in good company of Mr&Mrs XiaoXin+HaoHan for a yummy New Year’s Eve dinner last night@Temenggong Rd –  1st visit inside these amazing Artists-In-Residence B/W houses.

Strange to be back in my childhood grounds&surroundings – hoping to hear the blasts from the ships’ fog-horns at midnight, but somehow, things do not go according to the norm lately. According to George, it might be due to the masses of condominiums at the water front area, the ships move further away thus the fog horns can’t be heard. Tkx to the 2gongs, we managed to ring in 2021.

Did not manage to capture clear decent shots, not sure if it was bc of the moonlight or bc of how I was feeling? Focusing to not be nostalgic of times that seem simpler or of memory for long-gone moments. How to keep these memories and not be emotional? The crepitation of the cicadas+with a beautiful full moon playing hide&seek were of no help to calm the mind.

If memory is a lie we tell ourselves in utter honesty, who’s to be trusted?

https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s12144-997-1000-5
https://www.newscientist.com/article/mg24032010-400-why-memories-are-an-illusion-and-forgetting-is-good-for-you/

Knowing that my memories might be somewhat blurred&faded, but they are definitely not false or illusions. And whenever I visit TemenggongRd these words from Wordsworth pop up:

What though the radiance
which was once so bright
Be now for ever taken from my sight,
Though nothing can bring back the hour
Of splendour in the grass,
of glory in the flower,
We will grieve not, rather find
Strength in what remains behind;
In the primal sympathy
Which having been must ever be;
In the soothing thoughts that spring
Out of human suffering;
In the faith that looks through death,
In years that bring the philosophic mind.

Today has been very wet, but a nice cool day, a day to snooze and to reflect.

Sat: another wet&cool day and it has been raining relentlessly the past 2days. How delightful to catch this shot thru’ the kitchen window – a little person who seems to be enjoying the rains, tempting me to get my rain-gears on to join in. Perhaps even more tempting for a swim, hahaha – swimming pix downloaded!

Bridgerton is an American drama series based on Julia Quinn’s novels London high society when debutantes are presented at court with Regé-Jean Page as Simon Basset, Duke of Hastings, one of London’s most eligible bachelors. He is certainly one hot&sexy eye-candy in my eyes! but do we really need those moaning&groaming scenes? Pix downloaded.

Sun: managed to do some grocery at the local market before the rains. Enjoy the ambience and checking out the latest gadgets, no did not buy any, but did get some dried flowers& mushrooms in this new stall.

Tkx to MeiPin for the ride to Les&Ivy’s steamboat dinner in good company of us in our 70s, the Chuas+MeiPin.

2 – Happy Bday Darryl
5 – Happy Bdays Gerald  & Leonard
6 – Happy Bday Cindy
9 – Happy Bdays Judy & Lee
10 – Happy Bday KeeYang
11 – Happy Bday Mick
15 – Happy Bdays Angie  & me! 
18 – Happy Bday Isabelle (SunSun)
19 – Happy Bday Kari
21 – Happy Bday Michael
22 – Happy Bday Katy
24 – Happy Bdays 15thUncle  and Ole K

31 Dec 2020 – Phase3 & Byebye 2020

Sun: needed today to myself to rest & take a break from foods&socials. Safe (1season with 8episodes), a British TV drama mini-series created by crime author Harlan Coben and written primarily by screenwriter Danny Brocklehurst. Not only kept my mind off the present situation but got me trying to guess the twists&turns of Chris’s death – good way for me to relax on this cool wet afternoon. Pix downloaded.

An English Tom Delaney, a paediatric surgeon and widowed father of two teenage daughters who is struggling to connect with his daughters as they still grieve the loss of his wife from cancer one year prior. After his 16-year-old daughter Jenny goes missing, Tom uncovers a web of secrets as he frantically searches for her.

https://www.netflix.com/sg/title/80201500

Mon: good Mon morning from SIN as we open to Phase3, a good week ahead to all.

Throwback to 1976/44yrs ago in Tromsø/Norway with the Hald family bringing back precious memory of Christmas past! Thank you for those good old days when&where All You Need Is Love – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1A8sOOKianA

1st-born was only 2+ and 2nd-born was not even thought of then!

Was going thru’ some old Christmas pix to discover that the last 2Christmas spent with Linn&May in FL/USA was in 1997,

and then in 1998 when we were together for Patricia&Albert’s wedding in SIN. Have not had a Christmas together with just my 2daughters since then…

Tue: good to catch up with Seb for the afternoon. Lunched@MT Hawker and take away dessert. Tkx for helping to stream the BBC series so that I could watch Singapore Grip filmed in Malaysia. Agreeing with the critics, interesting, weird and dark, it took me long into the 6episodes to realize what the title really meant! AT hiding buddies (especially a young hiker by the trail-name of Magic/2005) would have got a kick from this title, hahaha!

Finally, just before the end of the book, he is told the true meaning of the term: it is the name of a very specific sexual technique (Look away now if you don’t want to know, but: the technique, also known as “pompoir” or the “Singapore Kiss”, involves the woman using her vaginal muscles to stimulate the man’s penis while both remain stationary. And now you know.)

However, the novel also suggests some alternative definitions for “The Singapore Grip”, including the ‘grip’ or ‘stranglehold’ of the British Empire and Western economies on the so-called “Far East”. Pix downloaded.

https://www.radiotimes.com/news/tv/2020-09-09/singapore-grip-meaning-definition-explained/

ITV drama called harmful and deeply upsetting… colonial history told through a white gaze.

https://www.bbc.com/news/entertainment-arts-54085249

Wed: the mind is telling me that paperwork needs organizing&filing, but the eyes prefer otherwise – not focus, getting distracted easily while trying to digitize some old pix&papers. 

Thu: goodbye and good riddance to 2020. Praying for those effected in this landslide. Tkx for concerns about my 2nd-born who lives in OSL and not in this area. 

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-55484627

Will be celebrating this evening, the last day of 2020 at 28TemenggongRd which will bring back childhood memories – next posting as there will probably be many words!

31Dec 2020: WorldOmeter of COVID-19 deaths are as follow:

SIN/pop 5.6+mil in an area of 721SqKm – 29
SC/USA/pop 5+mil in an area of 82, 932SqKm – 5,249
Norway/pop 5.3+mil in an area of 365,268SqKm – 436

26 Dec 2020 – Season’s Socials

Wed: who can ask for more with desserts from Châteraisé+DimSum&Roast, a Cantonese starters&dinner last night. Appreciations for gifts-exchange and this yummy meal from CantonParadise/BedokMall in the comforts of my own 4-walls with good company of niece&nephew. Had to pick up these FestiveCelebrations-platters as they could not do delivery for these platters. A direct bus there-back cost less than S$2 and no delivery can beat that price!

Thu: thank you to CC management, staff&friends for the ups&downs in 2020. Just dropping in with season’s greetings&gifts+a glass to wine to cheer the end of this strange year and what a year it has been! See you all in 2021 for happier&healthier times. Pix credits to Helen.

Reply: so do I, feeling comfortable surrounded by all these outdoors’ gadgets&gears and with ppl who enjoy the outdoors.

Fri: TGIF on this last Friday in 2020. For those who believe&celebrate today as the birthday of Christ – Merry Christmas and to others, enjoy the holidays.

In the old days, it was not called the Holiday Season; the Christians called it ‘Christmas’ and went to church; the Jews called it ‘Hanukkah’ and went to synagogue; the atheists went to parties and drank. People passing each other on the street would say ‘Merry Christmas!’ or ‘Happy Hanukkah!’ or (to the atheists) ‘Look out for the wall’― Dave Barry

 

Yummy KCH Laksa home-made by cousinKaren and one of the best hams I have tasted, good consistency&not too dry with the best tasting glazed by Karen – ordered from Smoked Gammon Ham Bone-In but had to pick it up, again no delivery like my last order! 

Checked their site and the food there looks good!

https://thecellardoor.com.sg/store/gammon-ham-bone-in-pre-order

So I will eat them in a box.
And I will eat them with a fox.
And I will eat them in a house.
And I will eat them with a mouse.
And I will eat them here and there.
Say!
I will eat them ANYWHERE!

I do so like green eggs and ham!
Thank you! Thank you, Sam-I-am! – Dr Seuss

Appreciations to Karen&Peter+Cala and LynneChan+TzeAnn for a lovely afternoon. Missing auntie Ngor/AnnaChan  

Sat: Happy Boxing Box and St Stephen’s Day. Have been wanting to taste from this stall ever since they opened here@MT-HawkerCentre and finally today, the line was shorter. Tkx to Henry for lunch – OK wonton, but will not stand in a line when there are more than 5ppl. Nice  to catch up with Henry before 2020 is over.

22 Dec 2020 – Small Family Christmas Gatherings

Sat: on this 4th and last Sunday of Advent, the thank you word is Grazie to the Yeohs for a scrumptious dinner of prawn-salad starters, chicken&ham, trimmings&sides, butter-honey-whisky sauce to top the Panettone. Even Rudolf without a red-nose but with its lovely lights shinning the joy of our family gathering with 3generations hosted by Pat&David+Lucas+Beth with Jo&Micheal, Les&Ivy and I.

No big family gathering this year, but many small gatherings limited to 5 outsiders (excluding those living in that household), it will go up to 8 on the 28Dec. Liz in France tells me that for them it is 6 in total which includes the household and guests. What then if your household is 7, like Linn&family???

Sun: tkx for this pix from Karen (Wigs), many have been and still are hanging on this year! Sometimes it is not a matter of hanging on or hang in there when the mind is not in sync with the body. Now it is a matter of accepting reality and doing it as graciously as possible.

Mon: delivered a gift to Theresa&ChengJun@MtE this morning, and also to do some last minute errands@PlazaSIN. The crowds (to me!) in an enclosed area for a Mon was more than I could handle. Got what I really needed and left the other errands to another day – probably after the new year when classes are back in schools.

Happy Winter Solstice/Dongzhi冬至節, the arrival of winter and the shortest day of the year. Enjoy your TangYuan湯圓, literally soup-ball – glutinous rice flour dumpling filled with various fillings like black sesame, my favourite. Usually just plain round balls either in white or various colours, but since I like to play with food, sharing these downloaded fancy ones! Hopefully a clear sky tonight to view the once in~400yrs? Christmas Star! Edited: here is one of my favourites of this recent Christmas-Star from BSU Planetarium in Idaho,USA.

A Singapore Airlines cargo pellet containing Singapore’s first shipment of COVID-19 vaccines is unloaded from the aircraft on Dec 21, 2020. (Photo: Try Sutrisno Foo).

https://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/singapore/first-covid-19-vaccine-shipment-singapore-pfizer-biontech-13818262

Tue: what a delightful visit from eldest nephew, Mun&his wife SK. Their first visit to my 4-walls since moving in 20+yrs ago! Blessed&proud of all my children+their families and  nieces&nephews+their families, ie the OG&PG. Appreciations for lunch in my hood and for the honey, never sweet enough, so more honey is always good for the soul.

What is happening to me happens to all fruits that grow ripe. It is the honey in my veins that makes my blood thicker, and my soul quieter ― Friedrich Nietzsche

 

18 Dec 2020: Irish Lunch And NZ Dinner

Mon: Mountain-Top(2017), a movie about a lawyer-turned-preacher living in a small Appalachian town is pursued by an eccentric man to represent him in court. Now involved in a case that ties into his own small-town life, the former attorney agrees to help a man.

Enjoyed the movie despite of being not religious. Beautiful scenes of the mts – would be interesting to know where or if it was filmed on the AT? Tried to do a search, but only got Huntersville&Charlotte/NC stated as the film locations.

Tue: appreciations to Carmel for a beautiful&tasteful Irish Christmas lunch. Home-made Irish soda-bread, scones, puddings, bite-size egg-sandwiches, Ballymaloe relish with KerryGold cheese&butter bringing back good memories of the Emerald Isle.

What a treat to be in this lovely decorated home, makes me want to decorate my 4-walls – JK, hahaha.

Greetings trimming a colourful framed-artwork, a tree where Ireland, Malaysia&SIN are represented and a gift-basket filled with yummy Irish goodies. Go raibh maith agat for this enjoyable afternoon – so nice to catch up.

Wed: for those who like coconut water and the meat, this is so far my favourite (~S$4+), besides fresh coconut. Highly recommended. thanks for this good share, Jan! The best explanation in words so far and will be using this for my future season’s greetings which should be done by the weekend.

Thu: to all on the EasternUS-coast with snowstorm, and in Fiji Island with CycloneYASA, stay safe. Thoughts are with them all who are effected by the weather.

Hawker culture in SIN is now officially in the UNESCO Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. Maxwell being SIN oldest hawker center and  Chinatown, the largest amongst the ~110HawkerCenters here.

https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/singapores-hawker-culture-added-to-unesco-list-of-intangible-cultural-heritage

Kia ora (thank you in Māori ) to Pauline, Tama, Ruben & Eva for a delicious NZdinner.

GreenLip mussels cooked in wine&coconut-milk, BBQsurf&turf+potato&veggie, FeijoaCrumble, (first tasting of this yummy NZ-fruit), ANZAC biscuits from NZ.

With Eva’s lovely voice entertaining us on the keyboard, the evening passed by quickly in the charming&delightful company of 2well-brought-up teens&their parents. Such a pleasure to catch up with Dika’s Kiwi-sister. Has it really been 4yrs ago since they moved to SIN? How those teenagers have stretched! now taller than their parents!

https://amylamsg.com/2016/11/12/welcome-29/

Fri: laptop acting up and has been quite a challenge to even get this post up. Thanks to Leonard for coming by with another laptop which will be on loan to me. Am so grateful to have such helpful young ppl who can help. Teaching an old dog new tricks is not an easy task, and will be needing time to get familiar with this HP-ProBook.

13 Dec 2020 – Happy St Lucia’s Day

Wed: got caught up with another Netflix-series thinking that it was only for oneSeason. How wrong can I be when Sweet Magnolias E10 cliffhanger ending left me in suspense – that will teach me to check more thoroughly before watching another series! Serenity, SC is a completely fictional town, was wondering how I could have missed a place with that name after all the years I have been visiting and driving thru’ SC? Also it was filmed in GA, not SC and based on a book by SherrylWoods. Pix downloaded.

Thu: donated my father’s LAM TinYue(1911-1996) old B/W photo albums (1920-1950s)+various original documents to SIN NationalLibraryBoard/NLB.

 

Sharing one of the pix in one of the albums (1920s-30s) – former General Post Office, now Fullerton Hotel. Notice how he used photograph corner-stickers – really classic, classy&tasteful against the black background. Wished he kept using them, but unfortunately he changed to glue in later years, making many of the old B/W photos to turn yellow. 3 of the original documents with the origin real postal-stamps.

Appreciations to MeiChenLEE&NLB-staff for taking care to preserve the LAM-Heritage for future generations who might have an interest – copyrights are still mine and NLB has been notified and they can be shared for research&educational purposes, NOT for monetary or for profit purposes. Tkx for the tea, looking forward to tasting it.

Fri: 11Dec – Happy International Mountain Day and the quote from J Muir makes me miss the being in the mts – The mountains are calling me and I must go but can only dream&imagine for now. The materials are donated and out of my hands, am still struggling to get gifts, etc ready before the rush for the seasonal socials, etc.

Sat: @SingPostCentre to do some shopping since I was in the area to meet for dinner.

 

Appreciations to Ting&CH+Bev for good company with my 1st experience@Providore. Good to be able to meet up for our annual Christmas gathering, this time not within my 4-walls. Lack of energy to host&clean-up nowadays. Tkx for all the yummy edible gifts, the best gifts to receive.  Delightful cool&wet evening dinning outdoors under the shade.

https://theprovidore.com/stores/paya-lebar-quarters/

 

Sun: 3rd Sunday of Advent and Happy St Lucia’s Day. Have not made Lucia boller since moving away from Norway. Bought a packet from IKEA to taste, not enough of raisins, but being not a fan of raisins, it was OK for me. 

St. Lucia Day marks the beginning of the Christmas season and honours the memory of St. Lucia, who was persecuted and eventually killed after she was accused of smuggling food to Christians living and hiding in the mazes of underground catacombs below the city of Rome.

Saint Lucy (Lucia) of Syracuse was a young Christian martyr who died during the Diocletianic Persecution of Christians in the Roman Empire in 304 AD.  According to legend, she converted to Christianity after an angel appeared to her. Lucy dedicated her life to Christianity and started giving away her family’s wealth to the poor and needy. She was betrothed to a man from a pagan family and when he heard that Lucy was giving away his dowry, he reported her to the authorities. Refusing to honour the Roman gods, she was put to death.

The tradition dates back to 1764. Travel writer Rick Steves writes, ‘the Scandinavian version of the legend is that a young woman born of rich and noble parents – dressed in a white gown with a red sash and wearing a crown of lingonberry twigs and blazing candles – traveled from one farm to the next in the early morning on December 13th. She carried a torch to light her way, bringing baked goods to each house, returning home by sunrise’.

https://www.thereisadayforthat.com/holidays/sweden/st-lucia-day

8 Dec 2020 – Hyperparathryoidism

Fri: tkx to the help of Calvin, Chris & Andy, this mobile wall-bottle is finally corked with the collection from my bro, Calvin & Andrew over the years! Christmas gift to Campers completed. Cheers-  tis the season to eat, drink and be merry.

For my own 4walls, do not have the energy or mood to get out any of the decorations besides the hand-embroidered AdventCalendar made years ago and have decided to use it to learn to say thank you in 24languages. My host of 11GuardianAngels are always here, but this time as a reminder that there are only 2Fridays left to Christmas which will be a very different one without the usual family gathering. Appreciations to KK for the 1stChristmasDinner with Les&Ivy, KK has trained his helper well to make yummy healthy foods. How decadent to have coconut-water severed in this beautiful glass from Turkey+saucer from Iran.

Sat: somehow I should really get the decorations out, but the thought that they have to be put away in less than a month got me sitting in front of the screen, talk about laziness personified! Watched The Queen’s Gambit E1-7 and enjoyed it.

The Stranger E1-8 British mystery thriller series written primarily by DannyBrocklehurst kept me guessing who the murderer could be after guessing that Corrine was murdered.

Sun: on this 2nd Sunday of Advent, light a candle for PEACE and may you find PEACE in your life’s journey

Tkx to Clem for this Sunday’s Peranakan lunch@TingkatPeraMakan/ARC – for overseas families&friends, Peranakan or Nyonya foods are a blending of Chinese+Malay ingredients&cooking techniques, uniquely in SIN, Malaysia&Indonesia.

Cantonese/Chinese DimSum@CantonParadise –  we all thought that these piggy Salted Egg Yolk Lava Buns oozing with cholesterol, were cute, thus ended up here for tea. My favourite place for EggTarts are from all the CantonParadise outlets. Somehow these one-bite size with just the perfect consistency yummy filling taste in the flakey pastry is exactly how I like them best. Clem ordered the AvocadoPudding, but there was no hint to any taste of avocado! maybe they got mixed up with Pandan? being the same colour!!

Mon: an afternoon@SGH for my Hyperparathryoidism to check for the results of the ParathroidScan from 2weeks ago, but the scan could not pick up the problem even with another scan done today. More appointment and this time@NuclearMedicineImaging on my Bday! Oh well, no emergency and time will show. Should never have had that cuppa in the courtyard! kept me awake until the early hours into Tue!!

Just missed the 196bus and had to wait 15mins for the next – had to pee so badly and Fullerton Hotel was a convenient stop. 

Both Fulleton&RafflesHotels are my favourites for their Christmas decorations here in SIN. These old colonial buildings have characters and fortunately they also know how to decorate appropriately for the seasons.

It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas – Everywhere you go…

especially when I can remember buying stamps here across the tiny gates over the counter (pix downloaded from MITA). Such a different era when snail-mail was the norm and pen-pals were the way to go to have contact with oversea strangers – the anticipation when the mailman brings the mail.