How time flies!

As I sit and wait patiently, or impatiently, for my funds to come so that I can proceed to buy my new home, time has been passing me by very quickly. Half of October has gone by and this is my first posting since September.

Each day seemed to have gone by quickly and every day is full. Routinely, the day starts with the 7 am Mass in church. I could be serving the Altar, giving Holy Communion or just standing by in case someone on duty fails to show up. If my good friend Denis turns up for Mass, I will end up with him in the market eating small portion of noodles or porridge. Back home by nine, I have my proper breakfast of bread and cereal. If I do not eat my multi grain bread or cereal, I will not have enough fiber. Moreover, the bread left uneaten, can turn mouldy and I will have to throw it away, a great waste. Sometimes I skip cereal if I am full.

After this, I do my ablution which nobody else can do for me, that is, toilet. The rest of the morning is spent going through the newspapers. This is one ritual which I take very seriously, unless I have to attend to something more urgently, like medical appointments or attending a seminar or talks. My day is never complete without going through the newspapers. After that I will retrieve my email and go online. Lunch is in the hands of my wife, which is usually late.

Mondays and Wednesdays will find me brisk walking on the track, in the afternoon, for over an hour. I need to do this in order to control my weight which stands at 65.4 kg. After shower, it is green tea time with a biscuit or two to counter my hunger pangs. It is then that I have some free time to watch television, work on my PC or catch up with something or other. At 6.30 pm, I watch 'Around China' on CCTV9, followed by the CNA news, and other remnant documentaries.

Dinner is again in the hands of my wife, which is usually late, after eight. By the time I finish washing up all the dishes, pots, pans and woks, my lower back would be in pain and I would need to sit down over a cup of decaf coffee. At about 9.30 pm., I check my email and go online for a while. By 10.30 pm., my concentration will go into a hiatus and I will be so drowsy that I need to go to bed after another round of ablution like flossing and brushing my teeth and checking my blood pressure and putting my eye drops. Sometimes I am so tired that I will fall asleep in the middle of my prayer.

Tuesdays are my free days since I do not have to exercise in the afternoon. So I tend to go out with my sling bag, catching up with my personal errands. If my wife goes out with her friends, then I am off with my invisible friends as well. Browsing through Sim Lim Square, Rochore, Raffles City and Funan Centre, I now like to eat lunch at Funan because I can always get a seat in the food court. Sometimes I eat at Foodmore at Teka Mall or Food Junction at Raffles City. If at the latter, I will go in late at past two in order to get a seat. I also bring my water bottle because the fruit juice stalls charge two to three dollars for a fruit juice, which is very exorbitant. They pack in with ice and you will be lucky if you get half a cup of the juice. Removing the ice, they charge you fifty cents more. What a rip-off! Since I abstain from caffeine, the only available hot drink is barley or chrysanthemum, which can cost anything up to two dollars. Terrible!

Sometimes, when my wife is not going out, I will have early lunch at home before going out. If I do not tell her, then she will have lunch ready by two, which puts me in a quandary.

I have dedicated Thursdays and Fridays to Emma, as she spends the two days with us. It is always nice to play around with her and laugh at her antics and mischief. Always look forward to that. By late Friday afternoon, sometimes Samantha and Timothy would come from school, and the house is turned upside down. Not much problems with Samantha, but Timothy is something else. He will immerse himself in front of the television, throughout his visit (which I do not allow) or become fixated with his game boy, completely oblivious to what is happening around him. Tough being a grandfather.

Saturdays are free days as well, when the wife goes to Villa Francis, or out with her friends. But then it being Saturday, crowds gather just about anywhere and I always try to get away from the crowds. Unless I have some personal errands to run, I keep away from the crowds, and stay at home to catch up with something I have to do. At most, I would take the bus to Holland Village to eat lunch, and buy my bread. After that, it is blissful to enjoy some peace and quiet all by myself, listening to CD's or watching television.

Sundays are spiritual days for attending early morning Mass and carrying out my Sacred Duties in church, doing the collection, giving Holy Communion and Rosary in the Columbarium, first Sunday of the month. By the time I finish reading the newspapers, it would be near lunch time as I switch on the tuner for the oldies on FM90.5. However, very often, my son would take us out for lunch, sometimes with my daughter, Jason and Emma. Worth giving up listening to the oldies for family time. Sometimes we go house viewing, or to some shopping mall. I cherish these family times and always enjoy being with the children and going out with them.

It is now Thursday night as I sit to write this portion. Emma had just gone home with her parents after a happy day with us. She has been clowning away making us laugh. Emma has grown and besides being funny, she has her moments of being serious and behaving with maturity. She loves singing and dancing, and a very smart girl indeed.

For some unknown reasons, Emma refuses to take her afternoon nap. She will fight tooth and nail to avoid that. This trait has been passed down from her mother, who, at the same age in her childhood, also refused to sleep. Today, I managed to get Emma to sleep by applying talcum powder and stroking her back. She was actually very sleepy and cranky fighting against sleep. With the fan blowing and curtains drawn to shield the afternoon sun, she finally surrendered to slumber and fell asleep.

After dinner, while waiting for her mummy to collect her, Emma was clowning away in the kitchen. Suddenly a woman upstairs started to exercise her vocal chord by singing. It sounded more like wailing. This alarmed Emma and we told her that it was somebody singing. Emma then closed the kitchen door, pulled me down to sit with her on the floor, pointing a finger to her lips. She then pulled her grandmother, who was eating, to join us all on the floor. I thought it was rather hilarious, for a two year old child, to commandeer two adults to sit on the kitchen floor.

With November just round the corner, this is going to be our last Christmas here, not forgetting Chinese New Year. Sad to leave a place that has been our home for the last thirty years.

I am getting too long winded. A sign of a lonely old man who has nothing better to do.

Till then....