Saving my ten little fingers July 21, 2010
Posted by The Giddy Tiger in : Close to Heart & Home, The Fairer Sex , 1 comment so far
I have always been prone to eczema and skin problems on my hands and fingers. And everytime the problem presented itself, I tried many methods to heal it. Creams, band-aids, abstinence from washing detergents, changing my diet, …you name it, I’ve done it before.
Several months ago, my hands and fingers started to crack very badly again. Sometimes my skin would crack till it bled, and I had to use a band-aid to make the pain more bearable. Many a time, you would see me with almost all fingers covered in band-aids. Not a very sightly thing indeed. Over-the-counter creams worked for a while, but it was only a temporary measure, because soon after, the problem recurred. Strangely enough, the only finger unaffected was my ring finger on my left hand…which led me to believe that I should probably wear rings on all my fingers. 
In addition, I sometimes had to do away with cooking for a few days in a row, to minimize my hands’ contact with water and detergents, resulting in the need to “tarpow” food for our meals. I was also very sad that I had to resort to using disposable diapers instead of cloth diapers, for fear of aggravating the condition of my hands.
Well, anyway…when I was in Ipoh for a holiday about a month or so back, the problem became so unbearable that I was forced to go see a skin specialist. The skin specialist took one look at my skin’s condition, and proclaimed it was contact dermatitis, which meant it was the detergents I was using that was causing the problem. Using rubber gloves did not help much too, because according to the specialist, I might be allergic to rubber gloves. So I was told to get cotton gloves and THEN put the rubber gloves on over the cotton ones.
The visit to the skin specialist in Ipoh cost RM175, and included a whole array of medicine! Twice a day, I had to soak my hands in a dilluted solution of water and Potassium Permanganate (the purple solution used to oxidize wounds), which acted as a very mild astringent.
Then, there were three different types of cream and ointment to apply on the affected areas: one each for morning, noon and night. On top of that, I was to apply vaseline as often as I could throughout the day, to maintain the moisture in my skin and prevent cracking.
To stop itchiness when necessary, the doc prescribed tablets; two different kinds to be taken morning or night, depending when the itch happens.
She also wanted to prescribe oral antibiotics, but changed her mind when I told her I was still breastfeeding.
Oh yeah, I’m not supposed to eat any beef, eggs or seafood too. SIGH. So no more steak and beef koay teow for me. I’ve still been taking eggs though, but only the ones from free-range chickens. As for seafood, I am only steering away from shellfish.
So how did all this medication fare? Well, after a week of diligently following doc’s orders, my skin has shown marked improvement. At least some semblance of my original skin is showing…But often times, I have forgotten to follow the regiment, and so sometimes I do find my fingers slightly dry. Thankfully, I can now resume my use of cloth diapers little by little and I truly pray my hands and fingers would be back to normal soon, but sometimes it’s very difficult especially since I need to cook, clean and look after kids too.
So here are a few pointers I keep in mind and practise:
- Carry and hand cream/lotion in my handbag, and apply it when I am in the car, either waiting for the lights to turn green or whenever I have my hands free. I need a recommendation for a good hand cream/lotion that is not too greasy though.
- Wear gloves when washing up, but in view of time constraints, I only do this when I know I have loads of stuff to wash. In my case, I need to wear cotton gloves first and then rubber gloves.
- Use Vaseline liberally. It’s safe for babies’ bums, so it’s the perfect solution for me since I need to be with the kids all the time. I’m paranoid about touching my kids with hands that have steroid creams on them, so Vaseline is definitely the best solution.
- *IMPORTANT*: Get hubby to help with the dishes
A year has passed… July 16, 2010
Posted by The Giddy Tiger in : Close to Heart & Home, Thoughts & Scribblings , 1 comment so far
Hit and Run in the Morning July 15, 2010
Posted by The Giddy Tiger in : Thoughts & Scribblings , 4commentsJust a small accident, really…but the shock of it all is appalling.
See…this is what my side mirror SHOULD look like:
It has a nice chrome shell, that gives my car its unique look, i.e. can spot a mile away.
But this morning, as I was driving my boy to school, I used my usual route…I drove along Green Lane, and right about reaching the area of the *gostan* flyover, a motorcycle appeared out of nowhere, sliced so ridiculously close to my car on the driver’s side, hit my side mirror and bent it outwards, causing the chrome shell to go flying onto the road! My son exclaimed, “Mommy, that motorbike HIT your car!”
Now if you know Green Lane in the mornings, it is very congested with traffic. There was no way I could stop. The only thing I managed to do after recovering from initial shock was to mentally note down the bike’s number. Yes, he bent my side mirror and rode off in a hurry. Come to think of it, it’s a good thing he didn’t lose his balance from the impact and fall off the bike!
So after the incident-accident, this is what my side mirror looked like…all botak and unappealing:
I wasn’t even sure I could get the same chrome cover to replace it, and I wasn’t confident of retrieving the chrome shell that fell off.
But on the way back, as I was driving in the opposite direction, I spotted the chrome shell placed on the side of the road. So I purposely drove over and took the shell back. One of the hinges was already broken, but I managed to fix it back on my side mirror anyway. That should do for now.
Thank goodness there was a good Samaritan out there who took a risk and picked up my chrome shell and placed it at the roadside. Thank you, whoever you are…
A Career in Nursing July 15, 2010
Posted by The Giddy Tiger in : Rainmakers , add a commentA dear friend of mine once told me she wanted to take up nursing as a career. Her demeanor and personality was that of a very caring person and because she always puts the needs of others before herself, I believe nursing is a very suitable profession for her. I did not ask her further, but I think if she really wanted to pursue it, she would need to register and apply as a Certified Nursing Assistant first.
Besides being able to draw a very generous salary, there are many other benefits of being a Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA). Programs for cna training are offered at colleges and vocational schools, and the fees range from $400 to $800 or less. In addition, financial support may also be available for qualified applicants.
Regardless, the role of a CNA is a very noble one and very high in demand.
The Cruel Game July 7, 2010
Posted by The Giddy Tiger in : Thoughts & Scribblings , 3comments
The World Cup 2010 has certainly dished out serving after serving of delicious meals of football, both for the avid football fans as well as for those once-in-a blue-moon watchers. While some matches have ended in clinical expected results, some have been shocking and depressing to say the least. Shed tears, hands on heads and finger-pointing have been by-products of this wonderful game we call football.
And while most of the time enjoyable, because, really…at the end of it, it’s only a game…we simply MUST admit it’s a darn cruel game. That’s what my hubby said as I expressed the unfairness of it all, as Uruguay marched away with victorious chants, beating Ghana in the quarter-finals on penalty shootouts.
All this after Ghana ALMOST scored in the added time of extra time. All this after Ghana was awarded a penalty in the final few seconds of extra time, and unluckily failed to convert. Oh, my heart truly goes out to Asamoah Gyan…imagine how he must have felt.
But then that is just an example of what the game of football brings to us, is it not?
Excitement.
Hope.
Then heartache….for some.
And joyful celebrations for the rest.
Kind of like what life does to us sometimes, doesn’t it?
There are times when we give our all, our 300%, expecting to receive a matching reward, if not something that would exceed our expectations. But life CAN be cruel, just like football CAN be cruel. And we sometimes do not get what we deserve, instead we are shortchanged and someone ELSE who does not deserve it, gets everything we deserve.
Just when we think we are about to grasp and own that final victorious second, it is painfully snatched away from us.
And that’s what life’s like….sometimes.
Is life imitating art? Or is it the other way round?
…something to think about while getting ready for the final 4 matches of the World Cup, huh?
It’s now Shell V-Power 97! June 25, 2010
Posted by The Giddy Tiger in : Thoughts & Scribblings , 2commentsI’d been hunting for the Shell V-Power racing fuel for my car for a few weeks now. And I couldn’t find any Shell petrol station in Penang that still carried it.
Finally, I found out today that Shell had recently launched Shell V-Power 97, which replaces the Shell RON97 fuel. It’s supposed to have added and better fuel performance (just like V-Power) but at the RON97 price of RM2.05 per liter. It was confusing because the V-Power logo is red but the pump handles are green. A bit contradictory to me.
Picture credited to and adapted from Shell Malaysia
Looks like no more Shell V-Power Racing for my car from now on…unless I go to the Klang Valley or Johor, that is…cuz some stations there still sell the Shell V-Power Racing fuel.
The World Cup is all different now… June 24, 2010
Posted by The Giddy Tiger in : Thoughts & Scribblings , 1 comment so far
…and I’m not even referring to the fact that my beloved France is out of the competition. Monsieur Domenech team’s clearly needs a HUGE change…but let’s not get into that, shall we?
We’re now heading towards the end of the 3rd round of 16 matches, and guess what…I haven’t even sat down to watch an ENTIRE match live. No kidding.
Yup, things have definitely changed in more ways than one.
- Matches at 7p.m. are not conducive for watching because it coincides with my dinner time. We like to keep the TV switched off as far as possible during dinner so as not to encourage having TV dinners. But we sometimes relent, just like the other day when there were 3 or 4 goals scored by Portugal during our dinner.
- It’s hard to watch the 10p.m. matches too, because most of the time, I only get to take a shower after the kids are in bed around 10p.m. After that, there is some washing up to do and preparation for the next day. By the time all is done, it’s already sometime into the second half. I only rush to watch the repeat of goals if I hear the commentator scream, “Goaaaaalll!!!!!!”
- Let’s not start on the 2:30a.m. matches. Many a time, I have told myself I will wake up to watch, but that has never happened. Oh wait, I did wake up for that England match and watched it for like 10 minutes, but that was about it. Sleep is so much more important now…well, not till the knockout rounds, that is.
- I still haven’t got into the whole ”waka waka” groove yet. Ricky Martin’s “Go Go Go, Allez Allez Allez” from World Cup 1998 was so much more catchier and easier to sing. I can now only manage 4 lines of the Waka Waka song, ending with “It’s time for Africa”
A haven of Ipoh food June 21, 2010
Posted by The Giddy Tiger in : Close to Heart & Home, Drooling & Cooking , 1 comment so farFour days in Ipoh just wasn’t enough to savor all the different wonderful types of food this hometown of mine has to offer. But I did what I could in whatever time I had…I even forgot to take some photos because I was way too excited to rekindle that love when I laid eyes on the feast before me.
Anyway…one of my must-haves is the Canning Garden chee cheong fun, now relocated to Central restaurant somewhere near Hotel Excelsior. I ordered the small plate the first day and the day before I left, I ordered the large plate. Tung-koo-chup chee cheong fun at its best…it just doesn’t get any better than this.
I didn’t miss out on the dim sum either. There are so many dim sum shops in Ipoh, we were definitely spoilt for choice as to which one to choose.
And then, definitely NOT to be missed, the chicken koay teow (kai see hor fun) in Ipoh Old Town. Kong Heng probably has the best kai see hor fun around, and it was definitely a bowl to savor. I was definitely sorry when I finished the last bits of my bowl. Ipoh koay teow is still the smoothest in the world, and slurping up every bit is just plain delicious!
I also wanted to have the ever famous Caramel Custard from Thean Chun, located just right beside Kong Heng. But apparently due to rivalry and whatnot, we are allowed only to order from Thean Chun, and bring the custard over to Kong Heng ourselves. That being said, it was still well worth the effort (Thanks Mom!) and the smooth custard with the sweet-sweet caramel sauce drizzled all over it was just heavenly!
Of course, I didn’t forget to tar pow the famous Yee Hup Hiong Piah. They’ve now made it halal, and the packaging is all done up nicely, like so…yum!
Missed out several other types of yummy Ipoh food like the salt-baked chicken, beef stew, etc but there’ll be other times…
Score!!! And it’s a GOAL! June 20, 2010
Posted by The Giddy Tiger in : Relax & Celebrate , 4commentsAt the price of RM1.50 for The Star newspaper, which included a free Galaxie magazine, free key chain and World Cup daily supplement, we were given a *chance* to score a goal from a free kick. Obviously hubby was the one who stepped up.
Check out the difficult angle the ball was placed at, and given that hubbs is a right-footer at best (the ball was placed where a left-footed shot would have been better), and the ball was a really light beach ball (read: difficult to control), he slammed the ball straight into the goal (which was quite small to begin with). I was thrilled!
It wasn’t the free shoe bag we got for scoring that made me happy, but the mere sight of the goal being scored.
Now, don’t you think my hubby could be a great asset to Liverpool? Perhaps as a manager? *hint hint*
Lost and gone, but now recovered… June 14, 2010
Posted by The Giddy Tiger in : Blogging, Thoughts & Scribblings , 3commentsI just got home from Ipoh 3 days ago. Hubby had been away on business trip for about 5 days, so I took both my kids to my hometown, so they could spend some quality time with their grandparents, since it coincided with the school holidays.
5 days in Ipoh meant 5 days of photos of kids having fun, photos of food and some scenery. But when I wanted to show them to my hubby from my camera, to my horror I discovered that almost ALL the photos had VANISHED from the memory card! I do not know how it happened but I have a feeling I might have accidentally formatted the memory card! I don’t think there was a warning message before I clicked on OK and somehow it happened….
A quick google search told me that all was not lost. Apparently formatted SD cards still contain *memories* of what used to be in them, and the photos could most likely be recovered.
So yesterday I spent some time downloading software to recover my photos…finally I chose Stellar Phoenix Photo Recovery which I felt produced the best overall results, and voila, aabout 98% of all my photos were recovered successfully!
I’m definitely a happy camper! The 2% unrecovered photos were not really unrecovered, it’s just that the high resolution ones of the 2% were irrecoverable, and I only got the smaller sized versions. But it only affected like 2 or 3 shots, so basically I got almost all the shots (and my sanity) back.
See…this is what the software looks like…I get a preview of the photos which can be recovered, and I can select the ones which I want to recover. Click on RECOVER and everything will be saved to a specified location.
Needless to say, I am really really happy with the results and I’m glad that now I don’t have to post a blog post with only words and no pictures…
…I’m off to edit photos now!
Little Miracles
Our Journey of Love
