Couplehood

Monday Faithful: Rainy, But Sunny

The Little Boy Says Hello

We're All Healing Up
It's not as fast as we would like, but we're getting there. The wife's sore throat and cold are almost totally gone, leaving me with a itchy throat and a head full of sneezes. Oh, and the little boy too.

He's Got This Awful Cough
He regularly hacks like an old man and occasionally chokes on the phlegm, which is makes me and the mummy rather sad. Surprisingly though, he's still manages a smile and laugh now and then, which instantly brightens up our day. He's starting to understand our conversation too. I've got to mention that he responds to his name very quickly, which shows that for all the head hammering he does to himself, he's not quite knocked himself silly – yet.

Poof Goes The Book
Yeah, the Very Special Stone didn't make the cut. All's well though, I think I know what worked and what didn't. And I wouldn't change a thing. It's special the way it is to me. Flawed, awkward, but heartfelt. Not unlike its author.

Game
I'm working on a card game idea that I came up with sitting at the back of a room during a meeting. I'll tell you more about it once I've done the prototype and the games. Let me know if you're interested in wanting in. Simply put, it's really just a game for kids pick up abstract numbers in a fun way (having read Malcolm Gladwell, I think this could be a Asian Cultural thing).

I'm Hooked On Sudoku
I never liked it before, but I can't seem to stop playing it. I'm on a free app that gives me a Sudoku a day, but already I'm craving for more than just a daily dose. Can't say what's come over me. I've never had number love like this before. It's weird.

Monday Faithful: Down, But Far From Out

Us 3

Between Us, We Have 6 Diseases
It's true. After David's 5-in-one vaccine on Saturday, and my bout with a nasty flu bug (which I also passed on to the lady), we were all down for the weekend. You can't tell from the picture taken on Sunday evening, but, we're all running fevers.

Strangely, among us 3, David (who is carrying the bulk of the pathogens) is feeling the best.

Other Non-Disease Happenings
We were just sitting down on Friday talking about how happy we were. Man, it's been a crazy year, but we've come out the better for it. It's a test of faith, will, and commitment - these are things I never thought would be a stretch until I was stretched in those areas. As I appoach the end of the first year of marriage, I must say that it's been the happiest year of my life, and I hoping that it keeps getting better. I think the lady feels the same way.

The Very Special Stone
That's the name of the book I'm working on, and if all goes well, you can get it from your local bookstores as a Christmas present! The artwork's done, and I think I'm through editing it already - so I hope things work out and we'll see it in a couple of week's time.

Finishing Up The Year
I'm just putting the finishing touches to 2008, and hopefully, it'll end as wonderfully as I began it. Sure, there was that nail-biting rollercoaster ride in the middle, but it's starting to finish off really sweetly. And I mean really sweetly.

Right. The boy and the lady are waiting. I shan't keep them.

Something Special For You, Dear

Wasn't it just about a year ago? I do want to go back there again.

Pictures Like These To Remember Us By

Man, These Are Nice Photos
I took a look at the photos Andy passed me when we visited him and the wife (and of course, little Raeann) and I thought a bunch of things to myself. I'll never want to forget these memories. He'll never be small like this ever again. Am I spending enough time with the family? Am I making these moments count for the lady? Will I ever get more than 5 hours of sleep? (Haha)

It's not easy raising the boy, says the lady, and I agree. It'll be much easier doing it together though.

Us
Because, you see, it's no longer you, or me, or him. It's us. We're a family. That's what makes it important.

We're Back (All of Us)

His HAIR! HIS HAIR! WHAT HAPPENED TO HIS HAIR!!

We're all home, finally. I've been shuttling about, to and fro, from my Kallang home to my in-laws in Bedok Reservoir. It's tiring, to say the least. Not as much as it has been for the Lady though. She's been needing to take care of his night owl habits.

Yes, he sleeps in the day, and terrorizes everyone at night.

In revenge, we shaved his head. Naw, I'm just kidding. But we shaved him anyway, because apparently it was good for him. I think it's good for cradle cap or something. He looks so different without hair.

We're just coming out from a tiring week. It's been so for me mostly because of the travelling, for the lady because she's had to carry David during the unearthly hours, and David because he's bald. I hope Sunday will be a good time to recover.

I've got some exciting news to share about where I'm headed in my career, and with some luck, I'll be able to soon. Remember what I said about living liberated? Well, it could be coming true soon.

Very, very soon.

Reconnecting

Important.

When there's a bawling, hungry, frisky little thing demanding all of your attention, it's really hard to settle down and spend time with each other.

That's why last night, in spite of being tired out of our minds, we found a space of time between feeding our boy, and just sat on a bed beside each other. Held hands and stuff.

I guess it didn't matter what we said. More, it was that we finally had some "us two" time.

I miss it too, dear. I didn't know how much until I sat beside you. Just like old times.

It's Been A Pretty Good Week

He's One Week Old!
All in all, it's been fun. I must admit that having an excellent confinement lady has taken much of the chore for us; we wouldn't know what to do without her. She's helped with housework, comforting the baby, and cooking. Not that we're not learning on the job though - we're insisting that we have a hand in as many things as possible, so once she's gone, we'll know what to do.

Stitches
The lady's healing up nicely. She's in better spirits now. I think she's handling motherhood wonderfully.

Away Time
I only fear having to travel. I'm going to be in Malaysia for a week, with another possible trip to Indonesia. This means family time will be over Skype. Not ideal - but as a family, this is a decision that we made with eyes wide open. My commitment is that if the traveling gets overboard, we'll start to reconsider the current arrangement - but for the moment, it still looks okay.

Keep us in your thoughts :)

Are Your Sleep Phases Out Of Sync With Your Life?

A Promise I Need

I've Had Mostly Bad Experiences With Sleep - Like Some Of You
I'll leave those memories of sleeping between 3 grotesquely corpulent people on a bus to Scotland out of this - but yeah, I've been having trouble with sleep. A while back ago, I gave sleeping and rising early a shot. To this day, I've had some good experiences but mostly bad ones waking up in the morning. It was particularly bad today - I felt like a ton of bricks just hooked itself to my eyes. So, it's enough for me to do a little research.

Do You Have DSPS?
Or, "Delayed Sleep Phase Syndrome".You see,

"Delayed sleep-phase syndrome (DSPS), also known as delayed sleep-phase disorder (DSPD) or delayed sleep-phase type (DSPT), is a circadian rhythm sleep disorder, a chronic disorder of the timing of sleep, peak period of alertness, core body temperature, hormonal and other daily rhythms relative to the usual norms. People with DSPS tend to fall asleep some hours after midnight and have difficulty waking up in the morning."
- Wikipedia (which also matches other medical sources)

Well, historically speaking, I don't get sleepy until 3am. Ask the wife, I'm an energizer bunny from about 9pm - 2am. Lying in bed at 11pm is dreadful, because I toss about in bed until a light sleep kicks in at 12mn. I was thinking, "maybe it's jet lag!" but I haven't been travelling to far away countries at all. In fact, when I did do some travelling last year and the year before to distant time zones, my body adjusted to my malfunctioning sleep phase cycle. Curses.

Maybe You Have ASPS
That's Advanced Sleep Phase Syndrome. Which means,

Advanced sleep phase syndrome (ASPS), also known as the advanced sleep-phase type (ASPT) of circadian rhythm sleep disorder, is a condition in which patients feel very sleepy early in the evening (e.g. 18:00-19:00) and wake up very early in the morning (e.g. 03:00).

Nah. Definitely not me. You guys who have this are lucky.

"Just A Few Problems, Off The Top Of My Head."
With David on his way out, we're going to be spending A LOT of time awake looking after him. This is why it's more of a concern now for me than ever before - if I've got a messed up sleeping cycle, I should start to look for ways to make sure it doesn't stay that way.

Hey, if it's like that for you, I recommend fixing it too.

Some Weekends Are For Emotional Spartans

Originally uploaded by useful_fiction

Horrible Things That Have Happened
I'm literally steaming over events that happened over the weekend. If you're interested, we can catch up over tea and scones, and you can hear me growl about it - but not here. I'm just making a mark on this blog to time-stamp the issue that I'm boiling over. Honestly now, I'm using what self-control I have left to hold myself back from writing about it (I'm not doing a good job, eh). Whatever the case, I'm thankful for my family, and I'm glad that they are beside me no matter what happens.

Good Things That Have Happened
I've submitted more articles, which I hope will reap some good news. I ought to be more specific: I'm hoping for a possible long term gig that will help the budget situation, and give me some exposure to the community of freelance writing. There are other bits of interesting news, but I'll share those in detail in time to come.

Friends, Unsatisfied - Me Too
I had a chance to meet a bunch of buddies Friday night, people whom I've known come ten years now. Two are engineers, one's a lawyer, one's a manager. All in archetypal Gen-X careers. I sense all of them want to change that, and change soon. "But how?" they ask. "Just go for it," says I. I see the Missus smiling approvingly, which is assuring. Which reminds me, I've got to show you guys something. A friend of mine's just started a new line of customised golf/duffel bags, which are entirely aweseome. Go check it out!

See Shores
I was telling you that I feel like I'm going through multiple phases of life at the same time. It's probably true. Things are happening so fast I can't keep up.

Also, I realise that once David comes, our couple-y times would most probably evaporate. While I would have liked a little more time to enjoy our couplehood together, and not need to expend energies on worthless situations, like the ones that happened over the weekend.

I need some time at quiet beach, away from it all, like we used to. Even if it's just for a while.

I'll bring the McGriddles, and you can bring the apple juice, dear.

 

The Lady Whipped Up an Amazing Meal

She started at about 3pm in the afternoon, grating ginger and chopping garlic. All for two, very sumptuous dishes, which were actually her granny's specialties. Simple, delicious, unforgettable.

Unforgettable, because it's the first meal she's prepared since she moved in. Man. Can't wait for the next one.