respite@friends

Fresh oysters,
Mushroom soup with white truffle essence,
Tender lamb shoulder or striploin,
served with wine,
Pear soaked in red wine, served with ice-cream, or
Warm brownie topped with ice-cream, or
Tiramisu ice-cream in a simple single scoop, and
hot chocolate or mocha latte to round up the dinner.

Having a break,
a respite,
a counter to long-term fatique,
an antidote to poor morale.

New Orchid Sprays

The Orchid.

Lying dormant, as usual,

with nary a flower or bud.

Dried up perhaps it be, dried up of new sprays perhaps.

Then we spied new life.

Orchid buds gradually forming.

Not just one, but two new orchid sprays!

beef soup dish

Beef kway teow in Singapore

Beef noodle in Ho Chih Minh city

a good day?

Is today a good day?

The Mop Remade

The Mop,

it has a new life.

The Mop,

it now sits atop a new pole,

its new "body".

The Mop,

it's rejuvenated,

almost new.

As it hangs on the dryer rack,

with its new "body" beneath,

in the cool night air,

the cries of a baby filters through the air.

A new life.

The Mop

The mop broke today.
Perhaps the cleaning lady was a tad too enthusiastic,
cleaning hard after weeks of dust.

There it hanged,
the mop head on the drying stand,
like a scarecrow without its body,
the pole standing nearby.

The mop,
it withstood cleaning agents, water, and
sunlight, at times, harsh, and
rain, at times, heavy.
Through the ravages of time, it stood.

The mop,
as its head rested on the drying rack,
the part of the pole in a jagged end.
A somewhat pathetic sight,
reminiscent of a warrior with a spent spirit.
Does it have any fighting spirit left,
one wonders?

Well, not this mop.
It's done with cleaning.

Mingling @Mingles

Chilling out with waffle that has walnut buttercup ice-cream a-top.

And of course, the main course.

Of fish tempura done like sushi.

A homecoming

A homecoming,

after a year of sabbatical,

a year of broadening horizons,

of deepening intellectual capability.

A homecoming,

more matured and toughened.

Ready to lead.

Sleeping on and on

Like Sleeping Beauty under the spell,

sleeping in the castle, in deep sleep.

Time to get up,

to get some nourishment, some medication.

Yet sleep, she would not be roused from.

How pesky all these people around her,

the many voices around, oh so noisy,

so difficult to concentrate, no energy to focus.

The eyes open, yet close again, almost instantaneously;

the face devoid of spirit, almost soul-less, frighteningly.

When will the spell be broken?

When will the Prince come thrashing through the forest?

When?

Would I?

Would I be brave

in the face of viruses and diseases

that ravage organs, body systems?

Would I be brave

when faced with needles and probes

in scan after scan,

to test for this, that and everything?

Would I be brave

when faced with the prospect

of balding head, nausea and other discomforts

that come with treatment?

Would I be brave

when faced with body weakness and lessened mobility?

Would I fight back

with resolve and steely determination?

We would not know.

Like preparation for crises,

one doesn't know if the plans work,

really work,

till the crisis itself.

Would I be brave

in the face of health challenges?

How would I know?

So how to pass judgement now

on others and their reactions to health challenges?

Would I be brave?

One wonders.

One only hopes

should the occasion arise,

I can rise to the challenge

in true can-do spirit.

I hope,

a little voice says.

ice-cream so heavenly

The favourite flavours - tiramisu, rum and raisin ... but heavily ladened with alcohol. And other flavours, like gila melaka attap chee, chempadak, mao san wang durian, durian 24 ..... So heavenly! At Udders, near United Square.

purple-coloured porridge

It had a somewhat innocuous, though grand, name - signature pork rib porridge. I had in mind just the pork rib porridge. When it came, it was an unusual sight - purplish in colour.

Turned out it's "purple rice", supposed to be beneficial, the waitress at Zhou's Kitchen said. Well, it was tasty, a bit like pulot hitam in porridge. :)

Praying for Recovery

The usual weekend crowds

at the Kwan Im Thong Hood Cho Temple

at Waterloo Street.

The usual ritual -

lighting the joss stick, praying and putting it into the urn,

then entering the main hall and

kneeling down in prayer on the big red mat.

And donating some contributions,

getting a "fu" in return,

a "fu" to bless one and keep one safe.

Pray, pray, we did

for good health, safety

and a speedy recovery.

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corn muffin, corn nibblets and more

Some respite, tucking into corn muffins, pork pie, and ribs at Kenny Rogers Restaurant at Great World City! :)

Fave duck porridge for breakfast. At chinatown.

A Sneeze

A sneeze here, a sneeze there.
Each increasing in intensity and frequency.
How fast the germs act.
A sore throat quickly developing, the nose turning runny.
Fighting germs.

But a far smaller battle than the titanic one yonder.

The Artery

The artery. What a crucial channel. Keep the flow running, the blood flow. Blood to carry nutrients to the rest of the organs. The artery, keep it open. Don't let it choke like expressways in rush hour. The artery. Keep it clear.

Hearts a-glow; One Heart falters

Buildings a-glow. Hearts too, warmed by the exuberance of the NDP. One heart however faltered, triggering distress calls and an ambulance trip. The pledge resounded on the bay. What a pledge moment it was. Yes indeed.

A sea of red and white hearts at marina bay.

Majullah Singapura.

Doing the kallang wave

The Red Lions landing on marina bay.

A sea of red at the Marina Bay.

Getting to the NDP!

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The Discarded Bull

The Bull,

it slipped and fell one day,

while tilling the land.

The Bull,

it tilled the land for close to a decade,

helping it flourish

from barren land

to fertile farm land,

growing green leafy vegetables

and succulent fruits.

Together, working paw in hand,

the animals and the Old Farmer built up a prosperous farm.

But times changed,

and sell the farm the Old Farmer had to,

after a White Knight turned out to be Dark Knight.

Life was never the same again.

Animals, previously harmonious,

started finding fault with each other

and almost stopped working together.

Fractured the team was,

eroded was the esprit de corps.

With a heavy heart,

the Bull knew what was forthcoming for him ...
as happened with others.

The next day,

shipped the Bull was,

out of the farm ...

and immediately, in came a strapping young bull.

The animals, who went through thick and thin,

saw it with sad eyes and a ladened heart.

While miles away,

the Old Farmer stared into the air,

his chair rocking in a melancholy rhythm.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Crab bee hoon!

Yummy crab bee hoon at DON at Chinatown Square! :D

The space and its use

It's for the rubbish bin!

A hole, a space

A gaping hole, a space,

in the hallowed corridors of a new building

in a learned place.

What may it be for, we wonder?

Make a guess?

A fallen leaf

A rustling sound, and

a big palm leaf hurled to the floor.

Not to its own garden where it grew,

but over to the neighbouring patch.

The signs were there

- the browning of the leaf; and

the gradual detachment of the leaf from the tree trunk.

How blind not to see.

Perhaps it's choosing not to see.

No need to call in the gardener,

don't care if it falls over to the neighbour's backyard.

How neglected the leaf must feel,

if it can (feel).

One moment it was producing food

from the chlorophyll ...

the next, it was dropped unceremoniously

from the tree that it had been faithfully feeding.

So near its homeland, yet so far away.