Happy New Year..!!!

Happy New Year everyone..!!!


Don't forget to continue to have fun............. :)))

--moon




Blog name - carrot head and applemint

Counting sheep again...

--moon


Blog name - carrot head and applemint

Looking back at the crazy things we did

During one of our Uni's semester break, all 7 of us (the gang of 7) took off to Fen Nee's hometown, and went exploring Ipoh, it's caves, waterfalls, town, food, etc. One of the best time that I had. Imagine all 7 squeezed into a car.

                   Someone said this pix look like a DKNY advertisement.. :-D

Gunung Jerai (below), with my Mass Comm course mates. Love this shot and the one below, because it was so spontaneous & natural.

This was taken at M/V The Empress, when I was working in Empress Cruise Lines S/B. We were all trying to throw Capt Joachim into the pool during one of our company dinner onboard. Trust me, it wasn't an easy thing to do, that was a smart guy.

Finally...! See the the joy in all our faces..? Can't describe the feeling.. :))

Disco time at night at the Barracuda Disco with our ship's crews.

I can't recall why I was onboard the cruise ship on one Halloween night, but the crews decided to get creative. We found a pack of garbage bag, and everyone got creative, designing their own halloween costume. Mine was designed by Winston since I'm not an expert in that. See the one standing at the back with the head dress? That's me!

During one of those school holidays themed promotion, we were in Penang. I was totally stressed out, so I decided to join the Party Organizers (our activities crew onboard) and put on the clown suit. Had a FABULOUS time that day, pulling tricks on passengers and getting away with it scott free (is this how it's spelled - scott?). One of the best time I had in my working life. I'm the 3rd from the left.

This was taken during my Upper Six in Sri Aman school. It's Orientation Week. As seniors, we were allowed to do whatever we want on the faces of the lower sixes (the juniors). We had fun torturing them, but hey, they look like they enjoyed themselves too..!

I can't recall what game we were playing, but it's obvious, it has something to do with balloon throwing. Those balloons were filled with water. 


Look at the scheming faces of each of us, I find it so comical. I would certainly like to compliment the photographer who captured this moment, and I am most grateful that I seem to have a copy of this. That's me (2nd from left).

I would also love to get in touch with everyone that is seen in this picture too. Not all uses FB like some of us do, otherwise it will be very much easier.


This was taken in our Form 6 too, see how "sakai" we were. Must have been the exam stress. Yeah, blame it on that..

This one was at Club Med, Cherating. Born in the year of the monkey, I had to try my hand at the trapeze. 

My best friend Mooi was hanging on to the side for dear life, while my feet was wobbly, my hand sweaty & my heart pumping so hard at that time, I felt really dizzy. 


Not so much because of the height, more because of the "shirt-less hunk" who was strapping me up and giving me instructions.. :)))


Since I wasn't paying attention to what the hunk was saying, needless to say, I grabbed the handle, and swung down in all directions.... 




--moon


Blog name - carrot head and applemint

Home alone this Christmas

--moon


Blog name - carrot head and applemint

Merry Christmas, everyone..!!!

--moon




Blog name - carrot head and applemint

Laughter the best medicine

Came across this funny stuffs on someone's new year resolutions.


Resolution #1
2000    : I will read at least 10 books a year.
2001    : I will read 5 books a year.
2002    : I will finish the Pelican Brief.
2003    : I will read some articles in the newspaper this year.
2004    : I will read at least 1 article this year.


Resolution #2
2002    : I will try to be a better husband to Marge.
2003    : I will not leave Marge.
2004    : I will try for a reconciliation with Marge.
2005    : I will try to be a better husband to Wanda.


Resolution #3
2002    : I will not let my boss push me around.
2003    : I will not let my sadistic boss drive me to the point of suicide.
2004    : I will stick up for my rights when my boss bullies me.
2005    : I will tell Dr Hodger and the group about my boss.


The above was taken from Ahajokes.com




--moon

Blog name - carrot head and applemint

Five facts about me

1) I love pencils and color pencils. They’re such timeless, old fashion and sentimental item, especially in this IT & high tech lifestyle era (those wooden pencils without erasers type).

2) I don’t drink any alcohol or liquor. I used to drink only on occasion where I had to go on stage for speeches.

3) I'm a very forgetful person. In fact, I think I have a 5 sec memory retention capacity. After 5 sec, I forget what I’ve just said or what I’ve just written in my blog. 
People say it comes with age, but I don’t think so. Anyway, what was I saying….?

4) Things that happens to others, don’t happen to me. Things that doesn’t happen to others, happens to me ALL the time.

5) I am totally hopeless in lying. I’d rather go and jump into the sea than to tell a lie.. +__+

--moon

Blog name – carrot head and applemint

I'm dreaming of a delicious turkey dinner

                                                     Pictures taken from here

                                      Pictures taken from here

                                     Pictures taken from here 

                                     Pictures taken from here 

                                   Pictures taken from here

                                    Pictures taken from here


I know, most people tell me that it just look good on picture, that it is actually tasteless & tough. Well, sorry to disappoint you, people. I have tasted one of the best turkey dinner once many years back, and I've never been able to forget that. I guess it all boils down to skill and expertise in handling that fella there.. ;-)


It was my friend's restaurant in Mont Kiara, but it has closed down a few years ago. I can't even remember the name of the restaurant.. :-(




--moon


Blog name - carrot head and applemint

My new year resolutions? What’s that..?!?!

Less than 3 weeks to 2011, have you made your new year resolutions?

If you haven’t, then perhaps this is a wake up-call. If you’re one of those that gave up doing new year resolutions because you never achieve any of them anyway, perhaps it’s because you have too many in the list, you got lost. Either that or they are just too far fetch.

Try keeping it to three or four. This will ensure you have ample time to execute them and in case item no. 1 or 2 doesn’t really work out, at least you have one to two more others to target on.

If the list has something that will push you all the way and beyond, you just need one or two. If the list has something that is rather easy and mundane like, drink more water, phone mom, etc, etc, then you can have up to 8 or more.

Once you have drawn up the list, divide it into a monthly, weekly & daily task so that it becomes a regiment. This will get you to start incorporating the habit after a while, and by end of the year, it’s no longer a “to-do thing”.

When I did mine at every year end, I would ensure that the list covers different areas such as shown below “as example”. This was one of mine many years back.

No	List	Area	Target
1	Take part in charity	Humanity	Participate in 2 charities
2	Initiate family gatherings	Family	Once every 2 weeks
3	I will read at least 5 books (any books including story books)	Self improvement/self growth	5 books a year
4	I will start a journal (writing diary)	Personal	To start latest by end Feb
5	Take up part time lecturing	Earn extra income & gain new experience	Latest to start by end April

Always ensure one of the items is something that really pushes you beyond your normal comfort zone.

Now, before you begin, first things first. You need to do some reflection and evaluation of your 2010 achievement and know what needs further improvement. The new year resolutions will ensure you are anchored to what needs to be done, in the midst of your busy schedule.

Before you can change your behavior, we need to change our mind. And before we can change our mind, we need to be aware of the need for change. Awareness of problems leads to a desire for change and is the first step

Why do we need new year resolutions?

It is my believe that everyone is born with their fate already in a draft. However, it is still up to you whether you wish to just follow and take the road drafted for you, or you can choose to improve it the way you see fit or let it worsen. The likelihood of improving it is greatly enhanced for those of us who make a plan.

To succeed however, we must remember that resolution implies remaining resolute, steadfast, unswerving and unbending in our determination.

Remember, no pain no gain. Do not be afraid of pain. The more you experience, the more you will delight in your accomplishment.

--moon

Blog name – carrot head and applemint

Calm your mind and relax your body

                                                                                          Picture taken from here 

My yoga pose of the month – The Corpse Pose (Savasana)

Whenever I need to quiet down my mind & to zone out; whenever I need to un-plug from all things electronic, noise, distractions and focus inward instead, I turn to corpse pose. It calms my mind and relaxes my body.

I also make it a point to practice corpse pose at the end of my yoga session, as this posture rejuvenates the body, mind and spirit while reducing stress and tension.

How?

1) Lie down on your back, in a quiet and uncluttered room.

2) Let your arms and legs drop open with the arms about 45 degrees from the side of your body.

3) Close your eyes and breathe "deep and slow" through your nose.

4) Allow your body to become soft and heavy, letting it relax into the floor.

5) Scan the body from the toes to the fingers to the crown of the head, looking for tension, tightness and contracted muscles. Consciously release and relax.

6) Let your body move deeper and deeper into a state of total relaxation.

Benefits

1) Calms the brain and helps relieve stress & mild depression

2) Relaxes the body

3) Reduces headache, fatigue and insomnia

4) Helps to lower blood pressure

The best thing about this pose is, I can do it anywhere, anytime.

  

You might be interested to check out my other related posts below :

1) Want a strong ankle, back torso and toned tummy? 2) Release negative emotions, improve alignment and back pain 3) Relief for insomnia, fatigue and stress 4) Relief for stiff neck and upper back

--moon

Blog name – carrot head and applemint

Should have just let the sleeping dog lie

What a day, or rather, what awful few days. First it was the cancellation of Maldives.


Then earlier this evening, when we were on the way back from dinner, we saw our furball Sakai chasing after one of his enemy (another cat) at the end of our row of house. ST asked me to go down and see if I should get him home. Sakai was not in a good mood obviously, but after a while he seemed to have cooled down. So I carried him and starting scolding him.


I guess that was a wrong move, because all of a sudden, he turned around, bit and kicked my hand. It was painful beyond description. My hand went numb immediately after he released it. It looked rather serious at first, so ST insisted that he take me to the doc.


I got a jab (that was rather painful), a wash (almost in gritting pain) and then some application of the yellow looking medicine. Also took home a whole pack of antibiotics, painkiller and some cream. 


It's now swollen like a pork's leg (chue geok) coz I have sensitive skin and darn painful.. :((


Here's how it looks...

--moon


Blog name - carrot head and applemint

Technology gone wrong

Our lives are ruled by our smartphones, GPS systems, laptops and more. Here's what happens when they turn against us.

Cheers and have a fabulous week ahead..!


Cartoons taken from Readers Digest.




--moon




Blog name - carrot head and applemint

Every meal matters

This is my daily meal portion.


Consider the above circle as a standard plate. 1/4 of it consist of carbohydrate, 1/4 of it consist of meat/fish and 1/2 of the plate consist of veggies.


Healthy meal planning helps you to establish a pattern of healthy food choices & the size of it, which most of us ignores.


I am not a calorie counter, neither am I on those total protein diet, carbo diet, or whatever crash diet. However, I do make it a point to take healthy portions because I believe that every meal matters. I ensure that I take a balanced meal because I know the importance of carbo, meat and veggies.


When we are young, we can eat all we want. But once we reach the age of 30 and above, the food portion should slowly be reduced to the size indicated above, as your metabolism rate generally starts to slow down.


You can either slowly cut down on your food portion or increase the intensity & frequency of your exercise to maintain your metabolism rate. It's your choice.


These are minor lifestyle changes that we can make an effort to execute gradually so that we do not come to a point where the doctor has to tell us to cut down on this, cut out on that, stop eating this and start doing that. Because by then, what the doctors tells you to do would seem like an enormous and impossible task.


You can indulge every now and then or during festive seasons, but make sure you go back to this healthy eating pattern as your daily regime.


So, eat healthily all the time, at every meal. It's just that simple.

                                                Picture taken from here




--moon


Blog name - carrot head and applemint

Inspiring thoughts to get you thru that maze called life

                                                             Picture taken from here

“To be fully alive, fully human, and completely awake is to be continually thrown out of the nest.” – Pema Chodron

December, the time of the year where we would sit down and reflect back on what has happened throughout the year.

This has been a rather challenging year for me, career wise, personal wise as well as family wise.

In January, everything started on a high note for me, having gone to Hong Kong (one of the world’s most happening and beautiful city). However, in February, I found myself having to make a tough decision on my career path. That was an unforeseen situation that really got me thrown off balance altogether.

February was the start of all things uncertain for me. Just before CNY (Chinese New Year), also in Feb, I was informed that one of my uncle suffered his 2^nd stroke, which, affected his vision. Apart from that, there were other family matters that kind of like put a damper on the entire mood. This year’s CNY was quite a somber occasion.

During the entire chaos, (especially from Feb - April), I am most grateful & thankful to say that ST came to my rescue without a second thought and was my pillar of strength throughout. In April, we went to Bangkok. While I was there, I took the opportunity to do some soul searching, to determine on what I wanted, what needed to be done and what my next move was going to be.

I am a very simple person where career is concerned. In my life, I’ve always imagined myself to be an employee of a company, doing a 9 to 5 job (well, not really 9-5 in actual fact, but you get what I mean). However, the path that I’ve chosen to lead early this year was totally different from what I’ve always thought it to be. 

I won’t say I’m now a successful person who can look back and advise/guide others (in fact, I'm still far from it), but having gone through the above, and "still going through it", I feel like sharing my story here with whoever that cares to read.

In this duration of one year, how many times have I chided myself, on the decision that I made and whether it is giving me what I wanted thus far. I do get self doubts and nagging thoughts every now and then, and I did get lost a lot of times.

  

My considerations & unanswered questions are still abound. And whatever that I have chosen to do, will take me to a new level of busy-ness next year. With the busy-ness also comes the restrictions in a lot of areas & many obstacles which, will pull me in every direction. I am writing this in a way to give myself the courage to push myself through.

I came across this website recently and found a lot of inspiring articles written about facing our own challenges in life. And I find the following pointers to be extremely helpful. Unconsciously, I think I must have taken these 4 steps throughout the year.

1) Accept, invite and embrace

Accept whatever that happens and try to turn the situation into an opportunity. Things happen for a reason. Maybe it happens this way because God is trying to push you into doing something that you've wanted to do all this while, but not having the guts to go thru it. Maybe this incident is created purposely for your own growth and learning.


This is easier said than done, I know. FYI, I am still learning to adjust.

2) You don’t have to have all the answers at once

There were many occasions where I hesitated and got so so frustrated because I don't know for sure if what I am doing is the right thing to do.

Learn to take one step at a time. Trust your life situation. Bring your awareness to the present moment. Identify what you need to do for that day, that week, that month and that year. Stop worrying about the future, and start working on "now."

3) Use your imagination

Do you know that the images and pictures you create in your mind are a form of energetic wealth?

What is your life challenge? Developing strong imaginary capability is a practice. Start out loud. Speak your vision. Write it down in words. Assign a scent or feeling to it. Listen to it. Bring it to life with all your senses. 

That was how my initial journaling helped me start my blogging. And as I begin to let my imagination run, everything seem to start connecting to each other.

4) Look for the life lesson

Peer straight in the eye of the challenge and say, "I see you. What are you here to teach me? I can handle it. Give it to me. I am here to learn. Show me."

Take the nastiest, most confrontational, unexpected, and inconvenient of situations, and face them. Don't back down, keep asking, "What are you here to teach me?" Then listen. Not with your mind, but with your life.

The above pointers were extracted from Tiny Buddha.

--moon

Blog name – carrot head and applemint