Funny...

How to tell if your cat is plotting to kill you.

Football fever

In April 2008, I was in London for work and I went to a pub for dinner. Manchester United and Roma were on the telly for a Champions League knock-off game. The pub patrons were all very much into the game, except me. I’ve never really watched much football and I was reading a very interesting book at that time. Half time came and it struck me that the atmosphere in the pub was like the pubs in Vancouver when the Canucks play an NHL play-off game. Then I realized I really should put the book down and watch the game, too. This is so British, so London, and I should be present in the moment and take advantage of the opportunity to experience something so local.

So I watched the second half with great interest and I found myself really enjoying it. I didn’t know the rules, although it wasn’t hard to figure out what was going on, and I could not hear the commentators but it didn’t seem to matter. I was engrossed in the game I was watching.

This World Cup finals, I’ve been watching many of the games. Brazil is fun to watch and so is Argentina. Portugal’s goal extravaganza was very entertaining, although at 4-0, I felt really bad for the Koreans. This is like watching hockey during the Olympics when the level of play is so good that you can’t help but enjoy watching, no matter who’s playing. Too bad the World Cup and the Olympics come around only every four years. Would be great to have them every year... but I’ll probably get fired because I’ll never get any work done!

With my mom and sister

I don't have many photos with my mom and sister. We just never think of it when we get together, I guess. We had a nice, long lunch this weekend and I finally remembered to take a photo using my Blackberry. Yay!

Papa's birthday

Today is my dad’s 79th birthday. He lives in a care home in Manila because he has Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s. His dementia has progressed enough in the last two years that he doesn’t remember who I am, which makes the decision to phone or not to phone him on his birthday a tricky one. I haven’t phoned him in a while, to be honest, because the last time I did, I introduced myself a few times to try and make him remember me. But he just handed the phone to the caregiver and walked away. I felt bad that I may have made him feel bad for not remembering me. So I haven’t called again, which also makes me feel bad because I feel that I should be phoning him. But if he doesn’t even remember me, does it really matter if I phone or not?

I remember my dad, the way he used to be. He was a difficult man to grow up with but I will always be grateful for the opportunities he allowed me to have. I have a pretty good life now because of his hard work and because he pushed us hard. So even when he can’t remember me now, I still wish him a happy birthday and a good year ahead.

Not so fragile

As part of our prenatal classes, I attended two classes on healthy pregnancy. The topics covered included the ailments and discomforts we feel during pregnancy and the remedies we can do, proper nutrition, and exercise. Another topic was about the myths versus real risks during pregnancy. Busting the myths was liberating! I found out that:

- In BC, it is safe for pregnant women to eat sushi because our health code requires that the fish be flash frozen. This kills the parasites that are the main concern for people (not just pregnant women).
- It is fine to eat eggs with runny yolks because the salmonella is found in the egg shell. So as long as the egg white has been cooked enough, it’s safe.
- I read on the Internet that green tea shouldn’t be consumed when you’re pregnant. Total myth.
- Sleeping on your back is fine! If the vena cava artery does get affected by the extra weight of the baby, my body will feel it well before the baby is affected in any way and instinct will make me turn to my side, even during deep sleep.

And on and on it went. I’ve heard and read so many “pregnant women shouldn’t blah blah” from many different sources the last few months that it’s hard to know which ones to believe and which ones to ignore. Pregnant women are not as fragile as a lot of people believe! Of course we can’t carry on with everything as we normally do but all the “don’t do/eat” rules are also not necessary.

Just today, I went to a shoe store in the mall and I wanted to try on a pair of sandals with 2.5 inch heels. The sales lady paused, looked at my tummy, and said “you want to wear shoes with high heels?” Both my mom and Ed’s aunt had told me already that wearing high heels may cause a miscarriage (a total myth, btw), so I knew what the sales lady was alluding to. I just chuckled and replied “yes, I do”. When she brought the shoes out for me, she pointed to another pair on the display, a pair of shoes with flat heels, and said that I should wear shoes like that instead. I didn’t argue; I just went about trying on the shoes I liked. I’ve been warned that this is just the beginning, anyway, of people offering their opinions without being asked. It’s a good time as any to start practicing my Teflon reaction to it all.