*blisto*

My dog farts. I never thought dogs could fart. Actually I never thought about whether they fart, but they do. It was a new revelation in my really mundane, but enjoyable day. The luxury of not going to an office where your time is not your own is indescribable. Heh. Well, today is my penultimate (learnt this word in JC from my human geog lecturer, Mr. Galistan) day of leave. Aargh. I shall not think about the dark confines of my oppressive office! Back to the dog! The farting dog.

I was draped over the sofa, on my tummy, absorbed in a novel and lost in the kingdom of Valdemar when IT happened. A foul stench assaulted my senses. I was, unfortunately, facing the dog's backside. Blisto was lying beside me on the floor and looked up guiltily at me when I scented his emission of smelly gas. He wisely and quickly removed himself from reach. But being kind-hearted, I forgave my super cute, but smelly pet, for farting in my face.

This is Blisto at his very best, a few weeks after being groomed.

















And this is my errant and shaggy puppy today (he's still a puppy in my heart, only 1 year old leh!), after a few months without any attention from the groomer (groom?).
















So cute right? I'll forgive my puppy anything. I think. Hmmm.... =P

Oh...by the way, I had to prop the annoying dog so that he would look at my nifty camera phone. Dogs can be so annoying. That's my thumb you see at the corner. Heh. I never torture him lah!

Oh...and that's my mother's backside in the background. =]

Envy

It seems like envy has been rearing its ugly head rather frequently in life lately. I wonder if envy can be forestalled. Because it's really hard to know when it will come on and where and what form it'll take or whether it's a mild case or not. I think envy comes when I start looking at others and comparing what I have to them or what they are able to do. I used to pride myself on the fact that I don't really envy others because I'm satisfied with what I have and because I know that God is sovereign and it's not for me to question his judgements or blessings.

*sigh*

Despite all this envy in my heart, I know the best weapon is prayer. I keep praying about envy these few days. It makes me so discontented and unhappy. Sometimes it even makes me cry. Which is so weird! Why should I cry over what I don't have? Harharhar...but I do. There are so many things in life that I want. Really want. And most of them are not even material things. And like a wilful child, I think, "Why can't I have it?" And at the same time, I know the answer all along. I don't think God withholds His blessings from us. I know things happen or don't happen for a specific and exact purpose. Nothing is by chance. What the speaker said today is so true. God engineers circumstances for his purposes. And when the wait just seems so long, the moulding so painful, the journey exhausting, I hang on to the sentence of a song - I don't have to understand to believe.

"A heart at peace gives life to the body, but envy rots the bones."
--Proverbs 14:30

And so the battle continues. Sometimes it's all uphill and sometimes it's a cinch. But I'm determined that envy should have no foothold in my heart. Nothing should spoil Christmas. After all we're celebrating the Saviour. =)

"For unto us is born this day a Saviour who is Christ the Lord."
--Luke 2:11

It's A Happy Day!!!

It's such a happy happy day!!!

This is my favourite song: -

It's a happy day!
I thank God for the weather
It's a happy day!
I'm giving praise to my Lord
It's a happy day!
Things are gonna get better
Living each day by the promises in God's Word

Praise God I'm born again
Praise God I'm alive!
Praise God I'm born again
So I don't have to try!

*****

I hope the lyrics are correct, but I sing it this way anyway. Heh. Such a happy song right??? Harharhar...I just feel full of joy today. Even though I worked from 9am - 8.30pm. But I accomplished a few things and the 3 day break (Sunday, Monday off + Tuesday MC) really refreshed my spirits. In addition, I also have 4 and a half days of precious, precious leave to splurge! Oh yah...I also bought a Christmas present for Emmeline, but not yet wrap. Hee...that's like one of the most difficult gifts settled and done. Amazing how I have time to shop right? Shall not disclose the procedure because it would not take a genius to figure what I got. Heh. Oh yah.........the horrid pictures of Emmeline with dengue...gonna show the world now.



These are the pills that she took. Don't know what they are and I hope it's not illegal to post it online. =P



These are her ghastly feet with calamine lotion (hope I spelt it correctly) because she said she was itching like mad due to the rashes. She had to paint her toenails red. I am reminded of vampires. The Chinese kinds you see in those Cantonese films. Yurrgh!



Another one of her in bed with the horrid hospital uniform which she claims is extremely comfortable. The nurse tried to stop us from taking photos, but in the end she just laughed and said don't take other patients' photos kae? Harharhar...she was a rather nice person. She looked like she was around my age.



Emma sick so ah lieow also gotta be in hospital. Harharhar...he had suspected dengue too! But in the end, he was fine.


She looks perfectly fine right??? Harharhar...see...that's why after I saw her, my worries of a pale and trembly shadow of a friend flew out of the hospital windows.

Ok! That's all! Gotta sleep soon, must still work tmr you know? Hee...

*Blessed*

Why save?

I got questioned on Sunday why do I save money. I gave the first answer that I thought would be slightly funny and instead I felt like I got slammed for what had seemed to be a harmless joke. Of course, it was in a subtle way. Just felt condemned at that point in time. Words do hurt. It's weird...I always thought that we should respect the views of others (NORMAL views and opinions, not the crazy ones, you know what I mean), but sadly, even in church, that's not true. My answer as to why I save was for retirement. I usually get a good laugh out of my colleagues when I tell them this rather ridiculous reason and I laugh about it too. Haha.

Seriously. Why do I save. There are a million reasons as to why I save. None of them I think is wrong. Neither do I think it's wrong to save. FOR ONCE AND FOR ALL, TO QUENCH THOSE WHO THINK I HAVE ABSOLUTELY NO FAITH IN GOD TO PROVIDE FOR MY NEEDS, YOU'RE WRONG.

I don't claim to have experienced any time in my life when there was a serious lack. I was never on the verge of starvation because, of course, Singaporeans don't starve even though they are not well off. But I have experienced being poor. So poor that my parents had to borrow from my meagre savings when I was barely 7 years old to pay the household bills. So poor that we had to pray as a family for the payment of food for the family next week. Again, I emphasize. I was never starved. I did not live in poverty. I lived in sufficiency. Whatever that I had was sufficient. Because God provided.

When my dad switched to his new job with a huge pay cut, I stopped taking pocket money from my parents. I gave tuition to earn my own pocket money. Is that a lack of faith? Did I think that I had to work for money because I had no faith? NO! It was because I had faith that God would provide for me. I gave tuition because it was a viable way to help with the family expenses. I did not expect God to give us money in an envelope not because I did not have faith, but because I choose not to box God up in the ways he should provide. To me, God provided for me by even giving me tuition assignments even though I was just a student. I was just grateful.

How can people understand the reasons for which I save? I quote someone," Believe for a rainy day and you'll get a rainy day." Come on! Do you seriously think I believe in a rainy day? Do you seriously think that I'm just waiting in anticipation for that rainy day to come? I thought you would have more faith in me, as a person. Not even as a friend. Just as a person. In my entire life, I have never WAITED for something negative to happen to me. Sure, bad things happen. Jesus never said that life would be a bed of roses. But I sincerely believe that I would never lack. Regardless of how much I have in my bank account. I don't have to be super clever or quote Bible verses to know from the bottom of my heart that God is going to take care of me. Neither do I have to show off that I have loads of faith with my zero bank account.

The reasons why I save I list here. To be transparent. I am human.

1. Some people are more blessed financially than others. I save because one day should my friends ask me for a loan, I would not only be able to give them freely, but I would be able to give more than is asked for. I want to be there for people financially as well as giving them the love and concern that they need.
2. I save so that next year I can go to Australia to visit my friends.
3. I save so that if God decides that I have finished my mission on earth tomorrow, there'll be something left for my family as well as to cover the funeral cost. Grief is enough without worry about not being able to pay for a funeral. As I said, my family is not well off. We don't own a car or have much savings, but by the grace of God, we live comfortably.
4. I save so that one day I'll be able to get married happily. Isn't it every girl's dream?
5. I save because I hope to further my studies.
6. I save because God may ask me to post an envelope of money to someone who needs it. It would be nice to be used by God, right? It makes me smile just to think that I can make someone happy.
7. Lastly, I save because I hope that if God hasn't come back by the time I'm 62, I really can retire. Harharhar...

I was angry. But I'm not anymore. It's silly. I guess I just wanted to validate myself.

Well...I can only justify myself through Christ...

I'm just grateful.

I'm back!!!!

I am finally back online!!!! Harharhar...feel so happy!!! Ever since I started work, my social life has been very much reduced. There never seems to be enough time to do everything that I want or need to do. But I'm absolutely beaming with joy now! There are many reasons to be happy. Even though my laptop still hangs and the techie says there's something wrong with the motherboard and I don't have money to buy a new computer if I want to buy insurance and I feel so tired everyday after work, I still feel happy! Because...

1. It's the 1st of December and December is the start of Christmas (at least in my mind it is lah!)
2. Tomorrow is a Friday and I work from 10am - 6pm (usually 11am - 7pm)
3. I'm watching 3D Harry Potter movie at the Science centre
4. The movie is free because my boss is paying for it
5. I get to bring a guest along
6. Louis is free to watch with me
7. Saturday will come soon
8. Sunday got company party at Hard Rock Cafe (I've never gone to Hard Rock! So swa-ku! =P)
9. After Sunday, Monday is still an off day for me!
10. I've got too many things to be happy about to be sad or grumpy

Harhahrar...that's my list...ok...I better post this before the laptop hangs or restarts by itself. I'll post pictures of Emmeline in hospital soon. Her dengue recently scared me. But then she looks so healthy even when she's sick that all my worries just flew away and I wanted to laugh. Hee...more on that...

~tata

oh...and I miss Bryan...and Clarissa...and Gerhardine...who's far far far far away... =(