Oxymoron In The Tropics

 I am not a musician... the highest claim I have to being able to play is possibly assistant cheerleader and key-presser for my son when he had his music classes once upon a time.  The young man is a six footer now and hasn't needed any keys pressed for him for quite a while now, so that already says much about my musician skills.  However I totally adore music.  Especially music that is multi-layered, spins stories in my head and weaves magic around my ears.  So you can imagine how I feel about a lot of mainstream music nowadays. Thankfully I came across this prodigy who has restored my faith in young musicians.  The most exemplary Dimash Qudaibergen.

When I go around bolstering people, I like to imagine a halo of energy around my head and shoulders and that I'm sending a stream of energy out to others. While I talk to them or listen to them, I'm 'supplying' them with energy. But I forget sometimes that I need energy myself, especially when I'm fresh out. Today I was feeling low and depleted, especially after I left my Form 5 class. It was my first class with them after they found out that I was leaving the school and they were not happy. Then I read some posts online and remembered that the state teacher debaters were checking into PSPN today. After a few smses, I realized that they were low on motivation, thanks to some incidents. I knew I had to go to PSPN. But I badly needed backup and so I asked Henry and Eric to go along. I knew they could give a lot of input to the team members and they could also reaffirm their support of this particular team. At the same time, they could also 'support' me...

Sometimes things happen that rattle me. They aren't earthshaking or life-endangering or stuff like that. But when they happen in a combination, I get rattled. So when that happens, I look for my security blanket. For some people, security blankets may mean an old teddy bear, a favourite rocking-chair or whatever. My security blankets are human beings who let me vent and they even go,"Uh-huh..." very patiently when I spout nonsense. My husband is one (obviously!) and I also have one in Johor, one and a half in KL and two in KK. But after pouring out all my fears and worries onto them, I feel so relieved. In case anyone wonders, this particular kind of security blanket takes about ten years to develop.

Answers given by 2nd grade school children to the following questions: Why did God make mothers? 1. She's the only one who knows where the sticky tape is. 2. Mostly to clean the house. 3. To help us out of there when we were getting born. How did God make mothers? 1. He used dirt, just like for the rest of us. 2. Magic plus super powers and a lot of stirring. 3. God made my Mum just the same like he made me. He just used bigger parts. What ingredients are mothers made of ? 1. God makes mothers out of clouds and angel hair and everything nice in the world and one dab of mean. 2. They had to get their start from men's bones. Then they mostly use string, I think. Why did God give you your mother and not some other Mum? 1. We're related. 2. God knew she likes me a lot more than other people's Mums like me. What kind of little girl was your Mum? 1. My Mum has always been my Mum and none of that other stuff 2. I don't know because I wasn't there, but my guess would be...

My aunt Joan has been in and out of hospital and she is due for surgery tomorrow morning. She was actually supposed to have that surgery earlier but the blood bank was bankrupt.  Fresh out.  Well, it WAS. Two days ago, a doctor appealed to us to find blood donors for O+ blood type.  Otherwise my aunt would not be able to go through the surgery.  So I told my sister and did some sms sending.  Audrey went a step better (after finishing all the credit in her phone) and put up a bulletin in Friendster. Since then, the response has been amazing.  She's had total strangers calling her up to ask her who to donate for (as they needed to complete the form at the blood bank!). Today, when Suzie Labadin went to donate at 5 pm, she was informed that she was the 10th person to do so for Joan Casius.  Today alone.  Yesterday, we know there were at least three.  We know that some people have already planned to donate tomorrow.  I doubt that my aunt...