On a long coffee break

New Year’s Reflections

Looking back on the months gone by,

As a new year starts and an old one ends,

We contemplate what brought us joy,

And we think of our loved ones and our friends.

Recalling all the happy times,

Remembering how they enriched our lives

We reflect upon who really counts,

As the fresh and bright new year arrives.

And when I ponder those who do,

I immediately think of you.
Thanks for being one of the reasons

I'll have a Happy New Year!

By Joanna Fuchs

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By the way, this is also to inform you that Jacqui's Curve will be inactive for a couple of weeks. I will return earlier, if I am able to. In the mean time, have a splendid 2008.

P.S. I will try to respond to all comments the soonest possible. Cheers! (oops... I can't do that with hot coffee)

Thanks for the memories

"Have you been naughty or nice?"

Although this question relates to Christmas and receiving a gift from Santa, I believe we can use this question to reassess what we have done throughout the year.

2007 has been, on the whole, a good year for me. Although there were occasional hiccups, I choose to celebrate the positive things that took place. Besides moving from country to country which left me a little drained, I entered the exciting world of blogging, thanks to the encouragement of Tony Gayondato. I have to admit that when I first started blogging, I was more active with my posts and visits. It seems like I had more time on my hands. Thus my ability to start a blog. However, as time wore on, other activities seeped in and I had to learn to divide my time. Some days, it feels like I should have my computer room set up this way ....

I have made so many new friends from blogging. Friends who are, more often than not, lovable and encouraging - friends who have helped me journey in this life and made me a better person. I appreciate each and every one who have waltzed into my life ... yes, even the blogger who told me that I am not ambitious. (Read here). I appreciate that moment because it made me realise that I always have choices in life. I choose to believe in myself.

So, have I been naughty or nice?

Well, I heard that nice girls get good gifts from Santa and naughty girls get what's coming from his brother, Chuck. Although I have been fairly nice this year, I would like to say that I've been naughty. (Hello Chuck! yeeha!)

Since I am naughty, there is no sense going back to nice. So, here's something naughty I would like to share from my archives ...

A Christmas Story

'Twas the night before Christmas--Old Santa was pissed.
He cussed out the elves and threw down his list.
Miserable little brats, ungrateful little jerks.
I have a good mind to scrap the whole works!

I've busted my ass for damn near a year,
Instead of 'Thanks Santa'--what do I hear?
The old lady bitches cause I work late at night.
The elves want more money--The reindeer all fight.

Rudolph got drunk and goosed all the maids.
Donner is pregnant and Vixen has AIDS.
And just when I thought that things would get better
Those assholes from the IRS sent me a letter,
They say I owe taxes--if that ain't damn funny
Who the hell ever sent Santa Claus any money?

And the kids these days--they all are the pits
They want the impossible--Those mean little shits
I spent a whole year making wagons and sleds
Assembling dolls...Their arms, legs and heads
I made a ton of yo yo's--No request for them,
They want computers and robots...they think - I'm IBM!

Flying through the air...dodging the trees
Falling down chimneys and skinning my knees
I'm quitting this job there's just no enjoyment
I'll sit on my fat ass and draw unemployment.

There's No Christmas this year now you know the reason,
I found me a blonde. I'm going SOUTH for the season

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By the way, end of the year usually means it is time for your employers to evaluate you. Good luck!

Since this is my last post for the year, I would like to wish all who celebrate the season, A Very Merry Christmas and A Happy New Year. Thanks for the memories, my dear friends.

Random sharings

I have the same complaint - I do not know what to blog about (what?? again??). I could talk about the folks around here but there isn't much to share. I hardly see my neighbours around unless I take my dog for a walk, pick up my mail from the post box or when I am washing our vehicles. Truth be told, the conversations I have with a couple of neighbours are just not worth repeating. It is like those kind I used to get in Malaysia when I am at the train station and a familiar face comes up to me and asks "waiting for train ah?"

Of course, I cannot say it is the same for all the neighbours. The one that lives next door is very friendly. Whenever she comes to town (she lives outside New Orleans and keeps a house here as a getaway), she makes sure we get together to do something. So far, we have exchanged home-made cakes and gone out for a picnic with her family.

One interesting thing I have noticed is that everyone around me has stopped cleaning up their gardens. So now, I don't feel bad neglecting the leaves strewn all over the lawn. If I think my lawn looks bad, I just have to look over the fence and feel better. :) Some say it is good to leave a layer of leaves on the ground. That way the grass will not freeze on some cold mornings. I have yet to see temperatures dip down to zero degrees celsius and as hard as I try to ignore the garden, it is getting unbearably ugly. Then again, there is no point in my raking leaves today because mother nature will present me with a fresh blanket of dead, crispy leaves tomorrow. One thing I can appreciate about this season, there are some interesting plants I have not noticed before. Here are pictures of what is growing in my garden. A garden which is yet to be cultivated or landscaped to the way I want it. It will take some years and money. Slowly but surely.

What shall I blog about? I could talk about what took place over Thanksgiving but there is nothing much to share except the excitement of meeting a couple of in-laws I have not seen in some years. It was fun catching up with them. Food was good too. That resulted in some men sleeping in front of the TV after a huge meal. (By the way, I did not notice any unbuckled belts or unbutton pants - a much talked about behaviour of some men after a big meal). You'd think that a huge meal would have been enough for them. No siree ... after a couple of hours, the men woke up for dessert and joined in the laughter and conversation.

Here are pictures taken on Thanksgiving Day.

So, that was my I-don't-know-what-to-blog-about post. Before I sign off, here is one of my favourite ads of the season, which I know my male readers will appreciate ...

The Art of Feeling Well

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The Art of Feeling Well
by Dr. Varella

If you don't want to be ill ... Speak your feelings.

Emotions and feelings that are hidden, repressed, end in illnesses as gastritis, ulcer, lumbar pains, spinal.
With time, the repression of the feelings degenerates to the cancer.
Then, we go to a confidante, to share our intimacy, our "secret", our errors!
The dialogue, the speech, the word, is a powerful remedy and an excellent therapy!

If you don’t want to be ill ... Make Decisions

The undecided person remains in doubt, in anxiety, in anguish.
Indecision accumulates problems, worries and aggressions.
Human history is made of decisions.
To decide is precisely to know to renounce, to know to lose advantages and values to win others.
The undecided people are victims of gastric ailments, nervous pains and problems of the skin.

If you don't want to be ill ... Find Solutions

Negative people do not find solutions and they enlarge problems.
They prefer lamentation, gossip, pessimism. It is better to light a match than to regret the darkness.
A bee is small, but produces one of the sweetest things that exist. We are what we think.
The negative thought generates negative energy that which is transformed into illness.

If you don't want to be ill ... Don't Live By Appearances

Who hides reality, pretends, poses and always wants to give the impression of being well.
He wants to be seen as perfect, easy-going, etc. but is accumulating tons of weight.
There is nothing worse for the health than to live on appearances and facades. These are people with a lot of varnish and little root.
Their destiny is the pharmacy, the hospital and pain.

If you don't want to be ill ... Accept

The refusal of acceptance and the absence of self-esteem, make us alienate ourselves.
Being at one with ourselves is the core of a healthy life.
They who do not accept this, become envious, jealous, imitators, ultra-competitive, destructive.
Be accepted, accept that you are accepted, accept the criticisms.
It is wisdom, good sense and therapy.

If you don’t want to be ill ... Trust

Who does not trust, does not communicate, is not opened, is not related, does not create deep and stable relations, does not get to enjoy true friendships.
Without confidence, there is not relationship.
Distrust is a lack of faith in you and in faith itself.

If you don’t want to be ill ... Do Not Live Life Sadly

Good humor. Laughter. Rest. Happiness.
These replenish health and bring long life.
The happy person has the gift to improve the environment wherever they live.
“Good humor saves us from the hands of the doctor".
Happiness is health and therapy.

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No one is perfect and that makes this an imperfect world. As long as this situation prevails, we will always be in need of doctors to take care of our ailments. However, I believe we can strive to do our best to make our journey of life simpler and take things in stride when the going gets tough.

"And in the end, it's not the years in your life that count.

It's the life in your years."

- Abraham Lincoln

Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving

(Edgar Albert Guest, 1881-1959)

Gettin' together to smile an' rejoice,
An' eatin' an' laughin' with folks of your choice;
An' kissin' the girls an' declarin' that they
Are growin more beautiful day after day;
Chattin' an' braggin' a bit with the men,
Buildin' the old family circle again;
Livin' the wholesome an' old-fashioned cheer,
Just for awhile at the end of the year.

Greetings fly fast as we crowd through the door
And under the old roof we gather once more
Just as we did when the youngsters were small;
Mother's a little bit grayer, that's all.
Father's a little bit older, but still
Ready to romp an' to laugh with a will.
Here we are back at the table again
Tellin' our stories as women an men.

Bowed are our heads for a moment in prayer;
Oh, but we're grateful an' glad to be there.
Home from the east land an' home from the west,
Home with the folks that are dearest an' best.
Out of the sham of the cities afar
We've come for a time to be just what we are.
Here we can talk of ourselves an' be frank,
Forgettin' position an' station an' rank.

Give me the end of the year an' its fun
When most of the plannin' an' toilin' is done;
Bring all the wanderers home to the nest,
Let me sit down with the ones I love best,
Hear the old voices still ringin' with song,
See the old faces unblemished by wrong,
See the old table with all of its chairs
An' I'll put soul in my Thanksgivin' prayers.

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In the United States, Thanksgiving or Thanksgiving Day is an annual one-day holiday to give thanks for the things one has at the end of the harvest season. It is celebrated on the fourth Thursday of November; the period from Thanksgiving Day to New Year's Day is often collectively referred to as the "holiday season", and the holiday itself is often nicknamed Turkey Day. (To read more on the history of Thanksgiving, go here)

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This week families will be getting together to celebrate one of the most significant holidays in America. The excitement of upcoming family reunions reminds me of home - Malaysia. Be it Hari Raya, Chinese New Year, Deepavali or Christmas, I am sure you will agree with me that we all look forward to reuniting with our loved ones during those holidays.

The poem above speaks true of a typical family reunions. The laughter and joys, the teasing and bragging. We will also notice changes in some folks - older, grayer, rounder, thinner, prettier, handsomer, younger (botox injections?), etc. Some return with additions to the family - children, grandchildren, wife, girlfriend, husband, boyfriend. While others to show off someone new - wife, girlfriend, husband, boyfriend. This usually brings about a healthy dose of gossip for the rest of the family - enough to last from the first hello to the last goodbye. We also have some reunions that are laced with drama and intrigue. Drama enough to fuel a best-selling novel or TV series.

Families are like fudge - mostly sweet with a few nuts. ~Author Unknown

Regardless of what a reunion brings, we all can agree that it is love of a family that pulls everyone together. No matter where we live in this world, family brings us home.

“The love of a family is life's greatest blessing”