Pain in the neck

This is from earlier in the year....I've been suffering from severe pain in the neck and shoulder region. 

Got a couple of diagnoses: one is a brain situation that was revealed in an MRI - turns out I have a congenital disease called a Chiari malformation. 

The other is just...well...bad posture and a whiplash kind of effect on my neck due to a lack of curvature in neck - called cervical lordosis. 

So I've been working on neck exercises through regular physiotherapy. Even a day without exercise is terrible pain. 

Pain is so....painful. All I want is to be pain-free but that feels like a distant dream sometimes.

PeeBee is a child abandoner

 I was cuddling the girls at bedtime tonight - my favorite activity everyday - and there was some drama. I told S1 I was done cuddling and was leaving the room when she declared, 

"I'm so disappointed in you, PeeBee. You're such a child abandoner."

Big kids, big words. 😂

P.S.: My nickname has gone from Dop Dop to Dop to PB to PeeBee over the past couple of years.

Happy 2024!

It's been a tumultuous 2023 and I'm thrilled 2024 is upon us. 

Yes, I'm one of those who likes resolutions. Whether I manage to keep them or not, I like the ritual of goal-setting and the clarity of priorities that come with the territory.

In 2024, I will work for more:

- Health: Close my Apple watch rings everyday.

- Hope: In the darkest of times, there is hope. And I shall cling onto it for dear life. 

Just like how I clung onto dear Dumbo in Disneyland last month. :)

- Honesty: I will reflect on what I expect from others and ask for what I want kindly and firmly.

All this may or may not point towards happiness. I've never been one of those pursuing happiness, since I believe that all emotions are valid and chasing happiness is a sure fire recipe for unhappiness. Folks who try to be happy all the time without acknowledging their pain and the spectrum of feelings arising within them are those I tend to stay away from.

Read this article today and felt a strong connection to the author: https://thebeautifultruth.org/life/mental-health/meaning-not-happiness/

Side note is that I'm in the process of switching careers to becoming a psychotherapist. Now that truly makes me happy! :)

Happy New Year to you all! 

Pssst - any resolutions?

Of course, as soon as I wrote these, I was motivated to change all of it to include fun and whimsical resolutions. I read an NYT article by Tanya Sichynsky who quoted a certain Suzanne,

“I’m still forming my dreams and goals for 2024, but I’m heavily inspired by my friend Jessica. Her 2023 resolutions were as follows: eat as many different shapes of pasta as possible over the course of the year, try a new fruit every month and smile at every child she saw. I’m heavily leaning into the idea that resolutions can be silly side quests that just exist to wedge more joy into my life.” " I totally want to steal from this list and include: - Try a new fruit every month - Smile the widest smile possible at as many people possible every day - Learn the names of and try a new pasta shape every week

The busy man

 

From Pinterest

The busy man

The busy man works very hard

Before dawn, after dusk 

Until his eyes fall shut

We want to chew him up

Bit by bit by bit

Until all that’s left

Are his eyes mouth and ears 

Aha, we think

Finally, we have control 

Take him where we want

Feed him what we like

Place him on the mantelpiece 

Now he can’t work so much 

He will always be with us

But, it feels like there is a but

He isn’t a man any more

Just a puppet doll

But hey, always with us.

- written in jest to entertain the kids. 

Pandemic pets - meet Marshmallow and Hermione

We got guinea pigs. I never had or wanted pets and somehow one thing led to another and now we are the proud owners of two cutie-pie guinea pigs. We went from idea to adoption in just three days. Their quietly curious personalities provide so much delight and comfort for all of us that I think they are therapy animals!

Here are S1, S2 and my caricatures of them.

Sketched by the gullible one who never wanted pets but now fell in love with them anyway.

This cartoonist is the primary caregiver, you should see the excitement on the guinea pigs' voices when she feeds them

She never wanted pets and she said they would stink and poop and be a royal pain.
Now that the pets are here, she is delighted and loves to carry and pet them

We are experiencing the totally unconditional love these pets have for us. Well...not entirely unconditional, I guess. Feeding time generates the most undying affection as does petting time. In a pandemic world full of emotional and unpredictable humans and moments, these pets are giving us much needed, non-judgmental cuddle time!