This n that

Just some quick updates.

Well the BP looks like it is inching up, but I'm still kept on the same dosage of meds. The pee test came back ok but Dr C says the test showed no major albumen in it, there could be micro leaks as was shown in the last test so he will keeep an eye on this.

The house and the reno - we are living in a layer of dust! Bags of cement, debris, ladders, pails, stacks of sand, poles of PVC pipes etc lie in my garden. The house looks like a refugee camp with mattresses in the living room, boxes and plastic bags of clothes lining the walls. The maid's room at the back has been partitioned. The new porch roof is up. The next major thing to do is to repaint the house outside and in. But it's taking far too long and I've sent the contractor a couple of SMSes asking for more men so that work can finish fast - chop-chop!! Today he promised more workers to scrape the paint off the exterior wall, paint the sealant etc. So we'll see.

The car - sigh. The Wish is not to be. The kids are very disappointed about the video screen being a thing of history. But can't be helped. Dealer came back to us to say must top up COE. KH was furious because he signed on the dotted line on the basis of the dealer's earlier promise that no additional top-up was required. So he huffily got a refund of his deposit and kissed his Wish goodbye. So we are now proud owners of a new Carens which will arrive next week. Does this sound familiar??

The new Carens actually looks not bad - I like the seats better and always felt that it was a more comfortable ride than the Wish. Its higher than the Wish - which works better for me since I tend to get carsick. Upon further exploration of the car interior, I thought it had more nifty storage than the Wish. We even have a 'secret' compartment - great for bootleg dvds haha!
In terms of fuel consumption - yeah, not as good. But since the engine is more powerful than the current Carens (2000 vs 1791), hopefully it will be more efficient than the current Carens we have.

After we signed on the dotted line two weeks ago, KH and I went for Marutama Ramen (which he grudgingly conceded was nice but pricey at $12 a bowl - I agree. From what I read, a bowl of ramen in Tokyo can be had for less than 1000yen) and a walk around Clarke Quay sans kids. Can't remember the last time we had a nice post-dinner walk like this with no kids around. It felt nice, but strangely self-conscious and awkward, as if we were no longer used to this. We marvelled at the watering holes around Clarke Quay, shaking heads primly over how Singaporeans spend on drinks and how they love the good life - heh.

Today is wedding anniversary - we registered our marriage 16 years ago today. I still remember my mother telling me in the car as dad was parking the car: you can still change your mind you know. Are you sure you want to marry him? We can turn around and drive away!!

Gee thanks mum!

How mum loved KH eh? Hee. She just wanted the best for me - all mothers do. And I'm sure I will be asking my girls this same question too when its their turn. But mothers just get antsy about their children's happiness and while we always want to do our best, elicit guarantees of happiness and success from life and fate, in truth, we can't. Just need to trust God, keep fingers crossed and wing it.

Anyway, in that instant just as mum said that, I saw him standing at the entrance to the Registry of Marriages, eagerly smiling, almost dwarfed by this giant bouquet of lilies he was carrying. There was something so touching about that sight. How could I just turn around and leave? (You can tell - I have a saviour complex when it comes to vulnerable-looking men)

So here I am, 16 years and 5 babies later, married to this guy who now has a paunch and a head of salt-n-pepper hair. Well, I can't say its been all joy, doves-cooing, bells ringing everyday kinda thing. More like a potholed bumpy road with some nice views along the way. :-)

Some celebrity was quoted recently to say something like: love is not challenging because it has an ending, but marriage is a process. Something like that. I agree. It's easy to fall in and out of love, but harder to work at the process of marriage, a lifetime of negotiation and compromise, acceptance, tolerance and companionship.