Remedies for your aching neck & shoulders

It seems very common for ladies to have aching shoulders, neck and back. I seldom hear guys having such problem but I often hear my girlfriends complaining of that. To all my girlfriends, try the following when you have that nagging pain the next time.

1. Shen Nong Traditional Physiotherapy (神农中医推拿理疗所)
17 Carpenter Street #01-01 (directly opp Central shopping mall, Clarke Quay MRT exit E)
Tel: 64623372
Opening Hours: 10am - 9pm daily

2. If you want a little more ambience and don't mind some travelling, head down to Tea Tree Spa at Batam Holiday Inn. The massage is cheap and good. Recently I made a day trip on a Sat, paid only $99 and it includes 2-way ferry, land transfer, 1.5hr spa (0.5hr scrub and 1hr massage). It feels like going on a holiday yet I'm back to the comfort of my home at the end of the day. You can email them to enquire the monthly promotions - teatreespa@holidayinn-batam.com

3. If your neck/shoulder/backache is so stubborn, you'll probably need more than a spa or massage. Here's another tried and tested recommendation: Tay We Haw Medical Hall (伟华药行) Blk 52 Chin Swee Road #01-55. Tel: 65354771 Do not be deceived by the not-so-glam looking shopfront, the chinese phycisian is really good. Recently, the father has trained his son to be his successor. Though he may look young, he's just as good as the old man ;)

Morning Thots

I see the sun rising.....
Dawn of a new beginning
Another day of hope, another day of life given by God
Learn to cherish and live life to the full
For this day will be history when the sun sets.

Commercial Time

I just did something 'crazy' - doing laundry at 5 something in the morning :P I don't know why but I just couldn't get back to sleep after waking up at 4.30am. Was it the warm weather (but my room is air-conditioned) or my hungry stomach? Or maybe my mind was just simply too active?

The smell of freshly laundered clothes gave me the urge to tell the world about my new discovery - Dettol Anti-bacterial laundry sanitiser. Well, the product name speaks for itself what it does and I must say, it really does a good job :) This may sound a bit 'auntie' but do check it out the next time you're at the supermarket ;P

God's Blessing

What would you say if your car is inches away from an accident scene but still in one piece? I said "Thank you Jesus, Praise God!".

We had a shock last sunday after our shopping at Causeway Point. It was about 9.30pm in the evening, we were dragging our tired feet to the carpark when we saw a commotion around our car. When we got closer, we were shocked to see 4 'life-size bumper cars' next to ours. Apparently, a Hyundai weekend car has lost control, brushed past a parked car and slammed into another stationary car next to it. The impact was so huge that it sent the stationary car hitting the Mitsubishi next to it.

We looked in disbelief for this is the first time we see such a dramatic accident happening in a carpark. The drivers were busy snapping pictures and taking down one another's particulars. There were also 2 security officers from the mall taking pictures. Many cars leaving the mall slowed down to 'kaypoh' when they drove past.

Our first reaction after the shock was to check our car, which was parked next to the unfortunate Mitsubishi. Thank God that our car was not damaged :) We had parked our car more to the right because the previous car next to us had parked too close to our lot. The next time someone park too close to your car, don't be too quick to grumble. You'll never know, it could be a blessing in disguise :)

Thank God for protecting our car

Discovery

Over the weekend, I discovered another lesser known place in Singapore. I've long heard that there's a reservoir near the army camp in Lim Chu Kang, which can only be seen from the camp. Imagine how elated I was when I spotted the reservoir by chance from the other side :) I whipped out my wonderful E65 and snapped right away like a paparazzi. Unfortunately, it was drizzling and rather gloomy but I'll be back for sure, on a sunny day :)



Curious to know where it is? Lorong Semangka :)

Lunchtime again

How wonderful it is if we can survive without eating and sleeping!? Sometimes I find that eating is such a chore, especially if you're particular about what goes into your stomach. No preservatives, no artificial colourings, no transfat, no refined carbohydrates, no artificial sweetener, no fried food.....the list goes on and on.

Whenever I go to the supermarket, I always end up buying the same old, boring (but healthy) stuff. Though I enjoy looking at the endless shelves of snacks, biscuits and instant food products, they seldom land up in my basket. No matter how tasty they look, I'll always put them back on the shelves when I've scrutinised the ingredients. Once, I succumbed to temptation and bought a pack of mini Oreo cookies. I never get to eat it because it was expired by the time I thought of having a munch. Unknowingly, I had left it in the fridge for one whole year!

I think the chinese idiom 望梅止渴 really fits me. Very often, I am satisfied just by looking at the food without consuming it :P Today, I'm back to my healthy (some say boring) lunch again. It has a list of 'no' too - no oil, no fat, no seasoning, no frying. Healthy steamed vegetables (see picture) with a cup of carrot/apple juice and yoghurt. And the best thing about my lunch is......I don't have oily plates and frying pans to wash ;)

Give Thanks

Give thanks when......

You can eat, sleep, breathe and walk.
You can see, hear, feel, smell and taste.
You can wake up in the morning and stretch like a kitten....
.....Without feeling like an old rusty machine.

How easy it is to praise God and sing of all His goodness when things are going well. But how many will continue to sing praise when troubles are mounting and the situation seems impossible?

To trust God is to praise Him and give thanks even in the face of adversity.

Psalm 103
Let all that I am praise the Lord;
with my whole heart, I will praise his holy name.
Let all that I am praise the Lord;
may I never forget the good things he does for me.
He forgives all my sins and heals all my diseases.
He redeems me from death and crowns me with love and tender mercies.
He fills my life with good things.
My youth is renewed like the eagle’s!

The Lord gives righteousness and justice to all who are treated unfairly.
He revealed his character to Moses and his deeds to the people of Israel.
The Lord is compassionate and merciful, slow to get angry and filled with unfailing love.
He will not constantly accuse us, nor remain angry forever.
He does not punish us for all our sins; he does not deal harshly with us, as we deserve.
For his unfailing love toward those who fear him
is as great as the height of the heavens above the earth.
He has removed our sins as far from us as the east is from the west.
The Lord is like a father to his children, tender and compassionate to those who fear him.
For he knows how weak we are; he remembers we are only dust.
Our days on earth are like grass; like wildflowers, we bloom and die.
The wind blows, and we are gone— as though we had never been here.
But the love of the Lord remains forever with those who fear him.
His salvation extends to the children’s children of those who are faithful to his covenant,
of those who obey his commandments!

The Lord has made the heavens his throne;
from there he rules over everything.
Praise the Lord, you angels,
you mighty ones who carry out his plans,
listening for each of his commands.
Yes, praise the Lord, you armies of angels who serve him and do his will!
Praise the Lord, everything he has created,
everything in all his kingdom.

Let all that I am praise the Lord.

I get to vote :D

Yippee!!..... my estate is going to have a new coat of paint this June. It's exciting to see what kind of new look will emerge after the transformation. Lately, my estate has been undergoing some upgrading works. First, it was the BBQ pit, then the pool, the playground, the landscaping..... and now the buildings :D I feel like I'm 'moving house' though I'm still staying in the same estate :P

Honestly speaking, my estate still looks pretty new and some of these upgrading works are quite a waste. Just the other day, I walked past the HDB blocks opposite my place and saw how worn out the synthetic flooring at the playground is, yet nothing has been done. This is quite a contrast to the playground in my estate which is still very new but has been upgraded. There are probably more children utilising the HDB playground than the one in my estate. Somehow I feel sorry that their playground is inferior compared to the one at my place :( Life is unfair but what can we do?

Oh, I'm so happy that I get to vote for the new colour scheme. I think my excitement is even greater than when I voted during GE :P The deadline is 20th Jun but I've already decided that I will cast my vote tomorrow morning when I go out for my breakfast. Hmm....what a beautiful saturday........*smiling to myself*

Keep moving

Recently I've been thinking about what really interests me and it seems that I've reached a point where there isn't much that makes my heart beat. But how could this be? I've not reached retirement age, there are still many things that I've yet to try, places yet to go. I guess I felt this way because I'm unable to do the things that I once loved. But life has to go on and I should start picking up some new hobbies. Who knows I might discover some hidden talent or develop new interest ;)

家有喜事

住在我家的宠物可说是比人还要多。前几天Ｇｅｏｒｇｅ兴起买了几只小虾（ｃｈｅｒｒｙ　ｐｒａｗｎ）回来陪家中的小鱼，没想到回到家却发现纸袋里居然多了许多虾宝宝。真可说是买大送小啊！为了虾宝宝的安危，我们家又添多了一个小鱼缸。不不不，应该是小虾缸。

这快乐的虾儿们才刚住进新家就迫不急待的开支散叶。昨晚十点多我家又传喜讯。原来虾妈妈正忙着生宝宝。我长这么大还是第一次目睹这种自然景观。都说是第一次嘛，当然反映也就比较强烈。不知情的邻居可能还以为财神爷降临我们家呢。顿时间，我们好象变成了小孩，一会儿忙着拍照，一会儿又忙着录影还时不时拿手电筒打灯。可怜的虾妈妈一定觉得我们很烦，侵犯了它的隐私权。

目睹这温馨的一刻，我不禁联想到上帝创造万物是何等的奇妙。大自然的种种景观是人类无法理解的，就像太阳为什么从东边升起，从西边落下。日复一日，年复一年，太阳豪无怨言的给我们温暖和希望。这就像上帝对我们的爱一样，是无怨无悔，完全无条件的爱。

天 离 地 何 等 的 高 ， 他 的 慈 爱 向 敬 畏 他 的 人 也 是 何 等 的 大 ！（詩 篇 103：１１）

Hope

Hope is the eternal well from which life springs.
Hope is the promise of all good things.

Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but a dream fulfilled is a tree of life. (Proverbs 13:12)

Learn to let go...life is beautiful

How do you reach out to someone who is heartbroken? Can one ever talk sense into a person who has lost hope? Why should one want to die when many out there are gasping for that precious breathe of life just to stay alive for another day... Just look around, it's not difficult to see that we are blessed. The very fact that we can wake up in the morning taking in the fresh aroma of roses, hearing the birds singing and seeing the beautiful sky is already a blessing. Yet, how often do we give thanks for that?

One will never cherish what he has until he loses it..

Too high? Too low?

Someone commented in the Straits Times few days ago that the seats at the Maxwell hawker centre are too high. I couldn't agree more. I was one of those who had to stretch my spine to enjoy my chicken rice. Perhaps some of you might have the same experience as me....besides stretching my spine unnecessarily, I had to sit near the edge of the seat so that I can rest my feet comfortably on the floor. Okay, I know some of you are laughing out there and I hear you saying that I have short legs (*hng* just you wait ;P) But, don't you agree with me? Just observe the diners around you the next time you're there. Most ladies, unless they are wearing high heel shoes, tend to sit nearer to the edge of the seat.

While the new seats at the Maxwell hawker centre must have been ordered by some 'giraffe engineers', I guess the sofas at the Sembawang community library must have been brought in by some young couch potatoes. I was there this afternoon after a long break and was pleasantly surprised with the moderately new look at the library. I thought the 4 rows of sofa facing the window was a pretty good spot to finish reading my book but I was wrong. Barely half an hour, I could feel the strain on my lower back. The sofas lack back support and are way too low in height. No doubt low sofas feel more comfy and look more trendy, I can't help but wonder how the old folks are going to get up and down easily. This is especially so for those who have undergone knee replacement surgery which renders the knee impossible to bend more than 90degree. I finally got up after 35mins or so as I don't wish to see a chiropractor.

It's up finally :)

Hey, I've finally got down to setting up my own blog :) *pat on my shoulder*