This Life

I quote an acquaintance of mine:

"and it is this balance that brings meaning to life...
for would we know the meaning of happiness if there is no sadness...
the joy of success and winning if there is no defeat ...
and appreciate light if there is no darkness ??
but one thing that i have learnt is that however long the night ...
dawn will eventually break ... "

Many a things have happened in my life recently...
Some not so significant,
Some more significant,
When I piece them together,
I think to myself,
What is my purpose of being?

I'm not thinking of ground-breaking discoveries,
Not about how the world works,
Not what the Buddha has discovered many aeons ago,
I'm far from Nibbana...
I just want to realise what I want out of life...
Out of living...

I haven't been praying much,
The turbulence of life sweeps me from day to day,
I hardly keep track of time or day,
I don't seem to recollect a recent time I've sat quietly,
To be still...

Even in sleep,
I am restless,
I wake up with thoughts in my head,
The feeling of fulfillment,
Is lost on me...

I've started to pray again,
For the people around me,
For my loved ones,
For the dearly departed
And I guess I'll pray,
For me...

To discover some sense,
To sense what's right from what's not,
To enjoy the here and now,
To be happy and healthy,
To be still...

This Life

Testing the Limits

KT and I went to his friend's wedding dinner at Zilver's. There were alcohol at the table, a bottle Shiraz and Remy Martin VSOP. I didn't talk much, so I decided to test my alcohol limit. I don't drink on a regular basis, not even socially, and since KT was with me, and neither of us were driving home that night, I felt "safe" to test the waters.

Throughout the night, I had one wine glass (perhaps a little bit more) of Shiraz and one glass of VSOP.

Verdict?

I don't think I tolerate red wines - I had a slight headache after downing the glass, and I didn't like the oak aftertaste of the Shiraz.

The VSOP? I loved it. For 40%v/v alcohol content, it was surprisingly easy to down, except to the fiery trail it burns down the throat. At the end of the night, one of KT's friends dropped us home, and I remember talking a lot considering I didn't know them that well. To my recollection, I didn't talk nonsense, but KT said I did.

Alcohol does loosen inhibition - that's a proven fact.

I didn't throw up, though. And I didn't drink enough to have a hangover. Guess I do tolerate alcohol well enough. ;)

Testing the Limits

Hot Pot on a Cold Windy Night

Great success!!! We even had side dishes!!!

Monday evening: cold and very very windy. As usual, we had a predictable pattern of unpredictable weather. PY suggested hotpot, and what a good idea that turned out to be. The soup base was kim chi flavoured chicken stock, and we had some home-made sour and spicy pickled cucumber and stewed potatoes. This was the first time we ever had a proper hot pot!

We had some soup leftover, and it'll be the same thing tonight, except that the weather today is, if you haven't guessed it, hot!

Hot Pot on a Cold Windy Night

Flower Festival Trip to Canberra 21/09/2008

We didn't get much of a spring this year. The weather has been on either extreme - too hot on one day, too cold the next. Thank goodness for air conditioning.

What about today's weather? Cold and dreary, rainy. We had a late night yesterday celebrating a friend's birthday, and daylight savings started today, too. I woke up at about 9am, neither here nor there.

Spring is a pretty season, and I'm glad that we made the trip to Canberra to see the Flower Festival, held mid-September each year. The flowers were amazing, planted in patches, each patch with a movie theme (e.g. Babe, Happy Feet).

For a rainy day, these pictures brighten up the screen, and my mood. :P

Flower Festival Trip to Canberra 21/09/2008