WHEN YOU ARE TIRED...

When you are tired, any which way will do...

Kiki from 3.5 weeks old to 1.5 years old.

November 2011

THE ‘NEW’ LOLO – SNIPPETS OF A REKINDLED LOVE

After abandoning Lolo for newer, and more exciting alternatives, my friends and I returned after more than 5 years to find Lolo was like a spurned lover who went on to do a ‘makeover’ and returned to show her ex-lover what he missed all this while, and made him regret what a gem he has given up!

The ‘new’ Lolo we found was refreshing, giving a wonderful sense of space, with a peaceful feeling and oneness with nature.

Sg. Lolo used to be our usual haunt back in the days when we were active trekkers.  But it was not always our top choice because the walk had always been long and boring.  It was one of those places that we go because we needed to practise for Tahan or Kinabalu, or because we could not think of anywhere else to go.  So it was no different on 6^th November 2011, when we couldn't think of any place that is near enough to KL for a day trek to a cooling jungle stream, that we decided to revisit Lolo with our kids in tow, all of whom were just toddlers when we last visited Lolo.  And the Lolo which greeted us was indeed a very pleasant surprise!

But just like any jilted lover whose former love came back to look for her, Lolo made sure we worked hard for it!  :p  And worked hard we did, starting with a steep climb hardly few minutes into the walk.  The new trail to Lolo was totally foreign to us, but it was a much more interesting walk compared to the old trail, with its ups and downs, and more leeches than we remembered!  But what was especially impressive were the tall bamboo trees (which seemed to have multiplied a lot) lining both sides of the trail for a quite a bit of the walk.

And, like most rekindled love where you discovered exciting new things about your old lover, the end result was gratifying because at the end of it, we found 2 waterfalls which we didn’t even know existed although we’ve been to, and camped at, Lolo more than a dozen times during our active years... which lead us to ask each other at the end of it, was it indeed Lolo?  Or did we discover a new love?  ;p

The steep climb at the early part of the walk.  And this is just one of a few...

The long trail...  Bamboos on the right...

 

Bamboos on the left...

And bamboos everywhere, giving a serene feeling...

First sight of the beautiful river... does that look like the damaged water catchment where the orang asli hut used to be??

Clear, beautiful meandering Lolo...

On and on...

The children taking a break.

And here's the first fall which we didn't know existed!  Err... but where was the old campsite??

The second fall with a decent sized pool for a wonderful dip.

It rained as we were packing up to go, but instead of dampening, it was invigorating!  It's been ages since we walked in the rain in the jungle - aahh what a wonderful, carefree feeling!  :D

November 2011

THE BEST MOTHER'S DAY'S PRESENT A MOTHER COULD ASK FOR....

THANK YOU!!

by Zoey Leow on Sunday, May 8, 2011 at 12:22am

I was never the perfect girl. I'm still not. 
I can't manage my time correctly. I rush my homework too much and deprive you from your shopping.
I have to do the same also later this morning.
But have fun without me?

'You sheltered me from harm,
kept me warm,
Kept me warm.
You gave my life to me,
Set me free,
set me free"

You always told me the ending to a certain thing I was about to do.
All the times, you were right.
Most of the times, it wasn't nice.
I realized I was very lucky.

Zoey & her mum... who's the one with huge eyes? ;p

It always hurt. 
It always does.
But at least you never stopped me from doing thus.
THANK YOU

Every time I did something wrong.
Or I became careless and forgotten about my meds,
You would scold me with your HUGE eyes.
I suppose that's your job.

Right now, I'm sitting at my friends and typing this.
You are chatting with your friends.
If you turned around,
You would scold me for being 'anti-social'
If only you knew.
;)

But by the time you see this,
I would be asleep already. (or rushing my history notes next to you)
I just wanna say,

"MUMMY, I LOVE YOU" Happy Mother's Day. Sorry for not having enough time to get you a present. 

.

TRIBUTE TO ALL MEAN MOTHERS THIS MOTHER'S DAY

The following came through one of those meaningful email chains that I received and (without taking credit) I thought it would be most appropriate to put it up (with minor modifications) in view of the coming Mother's Day as a tribute to all Mean Mums!

************

Someday when my girl is old enough to understand the logic that motivates a parent, I will tell her, as my Mean Mum told me:

I loved you enough …

to ask where you were going, with whom, and what time you would be home.

I loved you enough …

not to be silent and let you discover the hard way that your new best friend was a creep.

I loved you enough …

to stand over you for two hours while you cleaned your room, a job that should have taken 15 minutes.

I loved you enough …

to let you see anger, disappointment, and tears in my eyes. Children must learn that their parents aren't perfect.

A Mean Mum with her daughter

I loved you enough …

to let you assume the responsibility for your actions even when the penalties were so harsh they almost broke my heart.

But most of all, I loved you enough ...

to say NO when I knew you would hate me for it.

These were the most difficult battles of all. I'm glad I won them, because in the end you won, too.

And someday when your children are old enough to understand the logic that motivates parents, you will tell them.

Was your Mum mean?  I know mine was. We had the meanest mother in the whole world! While other kids had a Pepsi and a Twisties for lunch, we had to eat proper, boring meals.

Mother insisted on knowing where we were at all times. You'd think we were convicts in a prison. She had to know who our friends were, and what we were doing with them. She insisted that if we said we would be gone for an hour, we would be gone for an hour or less.

We were ashamed to admit it, but she had the nerve to break the Child Labor Laws by making us work.  We had to wash the dishes, make the beds, learn to cook, vacuum the floor, do laundry, empty the trash and all sorts of cruel jobs. I think she would lie awake at night thinking of more things for us to do.

She always insisted on us telling the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth. By the time we were teenagers, she could read our minds and had eyes in the back of her head. Then, life was really tough!

While everyone else could date when they were 12 or 13, we had to wait until we were working.   Because of our mother we missed out on lots of things other kids experienced. None of us have ever been caught shoplifting, vandalising other's property or ever arrested for any crime. It was all her fault.

Now that we have left home, we are all educated, honest adults. We are doing our best to be mean parents just like Mum was.

I think that is what's wrong with the world today.
It just doesn't have enough mean mums!

22 April 2011

IN MEMORY OF A GOOD FRIEND

 "Although it's difficult today to see beyond the sorrow, 

 may looking back in memory help comfort you tomorrow." 

  - Unknown

CHAN HON FONG

Departed 16/03/2011

A man of few words..... and a thousand words!

I couldn't think of any words more apt to describe Chan than the above which, to me, are reflective of someone who is knowledgeable yet humble. 

When I first met Chan more than 20 years ago during one of the MNS trip, he came across as the strong, silent type.  A man with a serious demeanor when he was not smiling or animatedly talking, he was not somebody that you would approach in the first instance.  But after our first few trekking trips together, although he still wasn’t much of a talker, he showed himself to be a responsible, helpful guy and once we got to know him better, he became the person for whom our respect was without reservation.  When part of a group, he would start off more as an observer rather than participant, until he was asked for his opinion on the topic in hand.  But once he got started, there would be no stopping him!  :D 

In other words, he was not the type who would dominate a conversation to show his know-all, unless he was pulled in.  But it doesn’t matter to the rest of us because whatever was the topic of discussion, he was able to offer an opinion and to back them up with facts and stats, and all we could do was take our hats off to him for his vast knowledge.   A man full of interest to know what makes the whole world ticks, he liked to keep himself updated by reading up on all sorts of materials, be in the sciences, politics, DIY, health and whats-not.  Like our other dear belated friend, Heah, Chan was also a very good cook and a capable DIY person. 

Lending a helping hand

He was a loyal friend, always reliable whenever help was needed so whenever we go on a particularly tough or unknown trek, our confidence would doubled should he came along.  One of the fittest guys among us, Chan was always obliging and carrying more than his fair share of the communal load.  During a few of our trips, when somebody got into trouble and needed help, he would always be one of those who would stay behind to lend the helping hand. 

A kind, humble man who was always respectful of the elder and a true blue family man who took good care of his family and made sure that he was home every day after work to cook dinner for them, it left an ache in the heart of his loved ones and all his friends that God should decide to have him by His side so soon.  Maybe God has other plans for him, and one of them was for him to serve as a reminder to the rest of us to not take for granted what are around us but to take a step back now and then to appreciate those around us and to take care of ourselves, if not for ourselves, then for our loved ones.

In his trademark trekking outfit

To his wife, our dear friend Kwee Eng, be comforted that Chan was much-loved and respected by all those whose life he touched, not just his siblings for whom he was the pillar, but also his close MNS friends and he will be dearly missed.  And we hope, over time, his sons will emulate all the good qualities that their father stood for.

20 March 2011

NEW YEAR AT CAMERON HIGHLANDS

The decision to break more than a decade's tradition of watching fireworks in KL on New Year's Eve by spending this year's eve with friends at the MNS Research Centre in Boh Plantation, Cameron Highlands, was well worth it when my daughter and I managed to 'capture' the following beauties with our cameras to feast our eyes, in addition to the wonderful company, great weather and plentiful of food!  HAPPY NEW YEAR! :-)

January 2011