ON TEACHER'S DAY

Whenever  the topic of.... 'what do you want to be when you grow up?' came up when I was still in primary school, it was my mother who would 'hammer' the idea of being a teacher was the best profession for a woman.

Mom's 'theories' were that teachers only work half a day and have long year end holidays. Good arrangements when the babies starts to come along were her exact words.
How far 'wrong' did she get?

Can't really blame her as back then if you're a girl it was either being a teacher a nurse or an airline stewerdess. Just pick a choice.

I laughed now because I founded one that does exactly all three.
Three in one?...  :)  like those instant beverages?
Yea..it's called ....mommy!


16th May is a date allocated for these people who made it in life to earn the title as teachers.

I won't give a list of names here because I simply  don't  remember the 'real' teachers during my schooling days .
Logically as with everything ,we need a piece of paper to certify us as that.

But then again  you need not actually go to get a degree to be honour by the title 'teacher'.

'Teachers' are the ones who taught us our early steps in life. They are the ones who taught us how to discipline ourselves. They are the ones who made us realise our own potentials.
They are the ones who motivated us to achieve our dreams, corrected us when we were wrong.

Above all,  they are the ones who loved and cared most about us, besides our parents of course.
These are the real  people in our life whom we call  'TEACHERS'.

Learning is a wholelife process  and therefore teachers comes and go throughout our life.
We take the 'good' lessons and leave the 'bad' ones while moving along.

Teachers' day for me is for remembering them who had moulded me into who I am today.
I remembered.......
Thank you ....thank you..... thank you

I'm sure mom wasn't dissapointed that I didn't turned out to be a teacher  afterall because my sister June is one. So is my brother Atlas and his soon to be wife Laura.

MAKE THE DAY COUNT

I figure life's a gift and I don't intend on wasting it. You don't know what hand you're gonna get dealt next. You learn to take life as it comes at you... to make each day count. - Titanic (1997)

How true... as young as Tisha may be , she does 'feel' what I felt reading theses words.

When you're young options of what lies ahead seems so abundance.
I  look at the things that I do on a daily basis and see the same routine lies infront.
*sigh*....I want to make each day count but the energy and zest for what lies ahead just wasnt going with the speed limit twenty years ago.

OF FAVOURITES

Everyone has their list of favorite.... restaurants, favorite shopping places, and favorite cafes.

Whenever, I go through my list, I find, most of the places are my favourite because I have memories of wonderful time spent there with wonderful people.

People who have touched my feelings on life in general.

People who have come and 'gone' .
People who will alway have a place in my heart.

"I shall not pass this 'way' again-
Although it bordered be with flowers,
Although I rest in fragrant bowers,
And hear the singing of song-birds winging
I shall not pass this 'way' again...."

Such a sad thought when we think of the memories of yesteryears....
eeeeeeerrrrrrrrrrr...what a way to make me feel 'old'

Can't help but remember this oldie hit ....

Being useful

I had actually planned since last night what I wanted to do this morning.
There were so many 'things' that were listed on my 'list of things to do before ......I die'. :)

 As usual, I would normally 'do' my stuff in the earlier part of the day thus setting the 'working mood' into action.
Furthermore with the internet line down for the second day in a row, I figured I might as well do somehing useful .

Woke up at five twenty as usual as it was a school day.
My day started the moment lydia left . First I prune my bunga kertas.
Then weed the bunga cempaka pots, then going over to the lime pots.

The sun made me stop . It was real hot by then so I went on to do the maid's chores.
Today she didn't turned up.....again!
The third day in a row infact that she took leave....more of MWR...missing without reason

There were just a few pieces of dirty clothing so I did the washing by hand instead. This gives me the reason to 'play' with water on a extra hot day.
I didn't even bother to use the dryer as the heat from the hot sun was enough to dry them within the hour.

Made another pizza as I have promised Lydia .
She has been telling her friends at school that her mum was going to bake pizza for days now.
She definitely would be having home made pizza for lunch today.
I didn't feel like pizza though so I cook myself  lunch . ....A real lunch

                                           Lydia and  her wish ....

My back is killing me...I can't think of what I overdid this time.
Did I move any of the potted plants?.... hhmm

HA HA HA...BEAUTIFUL SUNDAY

Sunday morning up with the...lark?.... no, it was more of  with a bark.... or barkings.
Those 'babies' of mine won't give me peace and quite even on mother's day.
Aarr...it's a rainy sunday and it's mother's day. ... would have been sooooooooo ideal to stay in bed longer.
When I finally managed to drag myself out of bed it was already almost seven.
Trying to get back to sleep was nearly impossible knowing that  there were 'things' that need urgent doing.
yea.. yea.. 'things'  that  associate with four legs.

I could wait for the maid to deal with them but that would be tolerating the 'voices of demand' for a whole hour or so more depanding on the discreation of her working hours.
For a fact too I know she comes in late on Sundays.
So much for mother's day to be picking 'poops' huh.... nervertheless that was what I did before giving myself the day off.

Mom came over with Lydia at around two. She complained her house phone was not working.
Likewise!...I told her.
My cordless phone is out of order and so is the TM free phone. It's been days but I just haven't made time to 'deal' with that issue yet.

I wanted to watch my mother's day marathon movies on DIVA but the girls were doing their homework in the living room ( where the air cond was on ) and so the rest of my 'holiday' was spent going through youtube.
Doing  'nothing' -What a wonderful holiday to celebrate one of the most important people in your live.


My thoughts of my mother on her day
When I think of my mother or mothers in general, I think of someone powerful, caring but importantly someone who is always there when we need her. Mom has always been my girls 'backup' mother.
Much to the envy of my siblings.

People always says that we will 'grow up' and become our mom. ..really?
And despite hearing countless remarks on how much my looks and mannerism reminds them of her,
I totally disagree.I am nothing like her.
Look wise, mannerism wise moreso personality wise.
Never was and will never be....end of story!

We have a special bond with all it's complex emotions, anger, resentment,competition and of course, love.

I love her, sometimes  hate her. Sometimes she’s the last person I want to see.
These are  the seesaw of feelings between my mother and me.
She is after all ...not me. .She is another person altogether.
But...she is my mother.
One of the two person who gave life to me.

I’d like to think that I have a good relationship with my mother now....to a certain level. At least we are able to be in the same room long enough to hold my disagreements before 'blasting' them off  to any ears ( willing or otherwise) once I'm back home.

 But it's not always like that.There were and are still lots of 'things' that we can see eye to eye.
These seesaw of feelings with my mother went on  for years as far as I can remember.
One minute I was telling her everything that was happening in my life, and the next minute, I was sneaking out and hiding the truth.
Maybe because of the 'generation gap' or her mind stayed 'old fashion'
..or she herself ( or me ?) just grew 'old' ..hehehe.. ( thou it's more growing up for me.)

These past years, she doesn't  seem to 'see' a lot of 'things' my way (again...or is it the other way round?).
To avoid any unnecessary arguements , I would normally bite my tongue and just 'see' it from her point of view.
What I have learned in life, especially when mom is concerned is that I have to choose which battles to fight with her. Not all of them are worth fighting for....at least not for now.
I am the younger mom and therefore must make ways for she who .....
'ate salt' first......???
A statement which I don't totally agree although I willingly embrace and cherish her motherly love for the fact that she is my mother and she will always be my mother not matter what.
Honoring that fact simply by respecting and loving her back.

I don't have to like everything about her though I do love her very much.

Can men and women be just friends?

Can  a woman be 'buddy-buddy' with a guy other than the usual romantic way?.

Which brings me to another question.  Can you love somebody and yet be inspired by another?  And I’m not talking about being inspired by a celebrity or famous person.  I meant being inspired by somebody you know personally.  Would that be wrong?

Maybe such a relationship can exist, but I still believe some amount of attraction (not necessarily physical) is present.
I guess it doesn’t really become so unusual when one become “inspired” by some other person you know cause as I have said, emotions are often mysterious, it's always a dynamic thing, and we just have to ride on it and put a rein on it whenever it becomes a little too over the hedge…

Come to think of it, I have lots of male friends. These men say that I’m “one of the guys.” I think it’s easier to deal with men than with women (no offense to female readers), generally speaking.

FULL DAY... Advance mother day dinner

Woke up at almost seven. The thought of going to church this morning did occured to me as Atlas was here.
As usual when the maid don't come , I had to rush and do all that is of urgency before eight.
Service starts at 8.30 am so we would need to leave the house around eight.

When Lydia called, laziness kind of change my mind and told her that I won't be going afterall .
That said, I went in to do my cafe :)
I had actually done all the necessary last night.
Sandakan residence had been 'warned' online that today the water supply would be 'cut' off.
I had done the laundry plus wash the compound last night right before mom called asking us to come over for a session of 'sago eating'.

Yona's training would start at eleven thirty. We left the house an hour earlier because we wanted to take early lunch at Zakaria's.
I had missed their murtabak daging and the yearning was shared with Yona.
Training takes about two hours plus but somehow today it seems to go fast as I sat outside chitchatting with Hj Sojie and Carol's mom.
Today too I got to see where Carol was staying when I send them home after training.
Her dad was away in KK and her mom doesn't drive.I was more than happy to send them since we were going through the same route. Moreso I felt pity knowing that they have to take two bus to reach home.

Stopping over at BDC's Swee Teck  and browsing over the new stuff they had just finish displaying took about an hour more of our journey home.
Another stop at Kim Fung's market also took about an hour.
Both of us were feeling hungry over today's early lunch. We ordered a big bowl of hot porridge each.
It was almost five by the time we finally reach home.

I had the feeling that  mom would be calling us for dinner tonight as Atlas and Laura were around.
I went out to get some batteries for the cordless phone when she didn't call after eight.
Well, she actually did call just as I left the house according to Yona.

They had started dinner before we all reached there.
...mother's day dinner that is.
It was normal for Atlas to have something simple ready for mother's day or any other celebrated day whenevere he was home.

Missing one of my powerpuff girls

2011 mother's day cake

my piece of cake

Awh....saying it with flowers

I didn't joined in the prepration except in the photo session and the makan makan..
 Mother's day afterall was not exactly today.....then again you don't really need a mother's day to remind yourself of what a great mom we all are.