Tonight, as luck would have it, a cup of ill-timed teh tarik ensures that this blog gets some much needed CPR.
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Explanation: For the past 3 years or so, I've noticed something strange about me. Whenever I have a cup of teh tarik after 2pm, my body will react very strongly to the caffeine; I will not be able to sleep until about 3am. My mind will be whirring with thoughts and activities even though the rest of my body just wants to shut down for the night. And when I wake up, it doesn't feel like I've had much rest.
The solution is really simple - to avoid drinking teh tarik in the afternoon. But I am one incorrigible addict. I cannot resist the call of teh tarik when I'm at a new place. I absolutely must try the teh tarik, whatever the cost (ie, lost sleep).
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1. The younger sister got married! May Allah shower His blessings on both of them and unite them in goodness. Amin.
The nikah (solemnisation) was held at Masjid Tentera on a Thursday night. My father was rather emotional during the nikah (as was he during my sister and my nikah; can't tell whether he was emotional during all my brothers' nikah because he did not have to say anything during their nikah). Which father wouldn't? I think I will probably cry buckets at my children's nikah. Correction: I cry buckets at all my children's anything: first day of school at N1, K2 graduation etc etc etc..
The walimah (reception) was held on Saturday at Muslim Delight Venue (I'm sure that's the name, as kental as that may sound to some ears) which is at the shopping mall within Concorde Hotel. Not to be confused with the hotel itself. This place is at the shopping mall.
The original plan was to have the wedding at my sister's void deck. Her void deck is more spacious than the one at my parents' block. So booking was made. But, a few weeks after that, my father heard of this place. They have just opened and all the earlier slots are empty as most families would book the wedding venue and all sooooo much earlier. (See, procrastination is not so uncommon here and procrastination in this case brings great savings in time, money and energy!) To entice people to book the earlier slots, a very generous discount was given. Up til the end of the year. So if you are thinking of getting married, get it done by the end of this year. Haha.
After having had 6 void deck weddings, this one really makes us appreciate how little we have to do! Practically everything is settled by Muslim Delight itself. All we have to do is turn up, welcome guests, mingle with guests and enjoy ourselves. Masya Allah.
My one regret is I wish I had invited a few more close friends. But since this was the first time we've held a non-void deck wedding, I wasn't sure how safe it would be to invite more than the numbers we were allocated. Turns out, there was no worry at all. Service from Muslim Delight was waaaaay above excellent. They assured my parents that they would take care of the food and would ensure there'd be enough for guests even if we invite 100-200 more than the original figure. We just had to inform them beforehand. Wonderful. 10 million stars for them (out of 5).
2. Told the sister of the post-wedding funk when you miss your family terribly. You may have married the man you love dearly but at the same time, you will also miss your own family so, so, so badly. Especially if you move out of your home into your new home immediately after the wedding. And the sister has been feeling it. He he he. It'll take a few months to get used to the changes!
3. Back to the topic of teh tarik. We sent the brother and family off at the airport earlier. He was flying back to the UK where he is studying. (Digress a bit: I wish I could do that! Get a sponsor to sponsor my studies and take my family there. But as the brains have not been doing much work, it must be simple stuff like perhaps, a 3-year course on how to tie your shoelaces.) So after a couple of sad scenes and stoic faces suppressing tears, my parents wanted to stop by somewhere for supper. Of course, I had to try the teh tarik, right? It was 9.30pm. Very wrong timing. But this teh addict is, well, an addict. Poor self control, judgment et al. So, it is now 12.30am and I am not sleepy at all. Tired, yes. But not sleepy.
In another post, I'll write about the kids. So if you are expecting to read about them here, nope, not likely.
4.Photo-taking. Taking pictures at the nikah made me aware of one thing: suck in the tummy! The nikah photos in which my tummy was not blocked by someone else were horrible. I look pregnant. Not fat, just that mummy tummy which I have not done anything about. (Chope ah. I no longer do that stupid thing of fishing for compliment which I did when I was a stupid teenager. I'm very at peace with myself now and am aware of my flaws and (maybe) how others view me. Point is, not fishing for compliments here.) I know that most people do not think I'm fat (except my own siblings. we address each other in very loving ways such as "oi gemok".) I don't need people to tell me i'm not fat. Pictures, however, don't lie. I need to suck in the tummy for photo taking sessions. So, for the walimah, I was slightly cleverer during photo taking sessions. I remembered to suck in the tummy.
5. This brings me to my next thought. All over social media, people have to be reminded not to post things which may cause jealousy/envy in others. Why? Why are people envious of what other people post on social media? We must realise that what other people post are most likely, the best aspects of their lives. For example, if i were to put up a picture, i will most likely post a picture in which I look good. Why on earth would I post a picture of myself in something which accentuates my mummy tummy? Or, I will post about a happy moment I'm having with the kids visiting USS or the zoo. Will I post a picture of myself wringing their little necks while doing Science revision? So we all no need to be jealous of what other people post on social media, okay? That's the best aspect of their lives. Every person has their own challenges which they may not share with others. Be happy for others or if you can't do that, just ignore it.
Vaguebooking, however, is something that really gets my goat. Other than that, whatever you want to do on FB or twitter or instagram is really up to you.
6. Alicia Keys needs no make up to look good. I hardly ever apply any make up but my reasons are very different from hers. Laziness. Some fashion doyenne said, "There's no ugly women. Only lazy women." I suppose, you also won't need makeup if you are very diligent in your skincare routine. But, actually, it doesn't really matter. Roald Dahl said it perfectly: "If a person has ugly thoughts, it begins to show on the face. And when that person has ugly thoughts every day, every week, every year, the face gets uglier and uglier until you can hardly bear to look at it.
A person who has good thoughts cannot ever be ugly. You can have a wonky nose and a crooked mouth and a double chin and stick-out teeth, but if you have good thoughts it will shine out of your face like sunbeams and you will always look lovely."
So, it's time to let that inner beauty shine through your make-up free skin. Think good thoughts, always!
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It's almost 1.15am. I must force myself to sleep. Or at least, lie down and wait patiently for sleep to come. Or for Ihsan to wake up for his night feed. Yes, he's 2 years and 3 weeks old and still not weaned off. Trying to but have not been effective.
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