Reflections on 2014!

Lol, I must be getting old and demented: the year before last, I wrote that I distinctly remembered sitting down to write my reflections on 2012 before 2013 arrived, but aiya, now that 2014’s almost over, I must sheepishly confess that I don’t remember setting down to pen (well, type XD) my reflections on 2013! XD

Firstly, I will acknowledge that I’m feeling pretty depressed: see, every year, around 9:30pm, I hike upstairs to my former bedroom with my favourite teddy and have a lie on my upstairs bed to reflect on the year that has almost gone; around 10:45pm, I come back downstairs to write my reflections for that year, then at about 11:50pm, call the parents awake and we all sit on the couch to welcome the new year in together. This year, however, mother begs out of this, complaining of a headache. I suggested to her how about she takes two Panadol and have a lie down; at 11:50pm I’ll call her and see if she’s feeling better. If she is, she can come downstairs and celebrate the New Year in! Alas, mother was feeling particularly self-centered and refused; dad’s already gone upstairs to join mother, meaning it’ll probably just be me welcoming in the New Year with my favourite teddy … I also had one whole hour less to reflect on 2014 coz mother was like, “If you’re not coming downstairs now, you can do it yourself coz I’m going to sleep now.” But hey, I’ll just haveta try my best to keep a good attitude and see in the new year with just my most precious teddy for company, yeah? :o)

Physically-wise: well, obviously, if you met me for the first time, the first thing you’d notice about me is that I’m very disabled. This year, I trialled CIMT, or constraint induced movement therapy, for two weeks. CIMT is when your functional hand gets tied behind your back and your affected hand gets to do everything for the agreed period of time. When my physio first suggested I do it, I said I’d try, but on two conditions: that one, I be allowed to wipe with my functional hand after toilet trips and two, that I be allowed to wash with my functional hand during showers, unless my physio was willing to pay the water bill for me! Luckily, the physio agreed, and I did this frustrating therapy for two weeks; funnily enough, it ended the same night as the FX destress night and I attended it feeling super-relieved that I’d completed two weeks of this stressful therapy! XD

Work wise: For me, this has been another frustrating year. I know I mentioned last year that I’d given up on returning to tertiary studies and was instead focusing on finding a paid job; remember, I’m willing to try my hand at ANYTHING (even wash toilets XD) as long as I can do it sitting down and it gets me paid. Currently, I am registered with a disability employment agency, but seriously, they are USELESS. >< When I return to see them early next year, I will first need to visit centrelink and apply for my THIRD JCA (Job Capacity Assessment) ; that’s how totally incompetent they are! >< I had a little side job doing some editing work for a church brother who technically already has very good English, but because he grew up in Hong Kong before coming over to Australia, there are just minor points I can help him improve with his English grammar. For that, I get a little money and the title ‘editor’! Unfortunately, this year he’s been busy with helping his wife getting settled in Australia and hasn’t written anything at all to help him edit, meaning I don’t think I’ve had any income this year. That’s not good, because I don’t really want to be in the position where I have to ask mother for more cash next year just so I can buy her and dearest dad presents for their next wedding anniversary! ><

Sporting-wise: this was also a sad year for two reasons. Firstly, the mighty Maroons finally went down to the smelly Blues in the Origin. >< Never mind, I will console myself with the fact that (1) we’d won EIGHT CONSECUTIVE YEARS (a record; the last streak lasted only five years) and (2) the last time the smelly Blues won, neither the iphone nor twitter had been invented yet. XD Secondly, the sporting world was rocked by the death of poor Phillip Hughes. I’ve said he was lucky because he wasn’t struck down till he was like twenty-five (the cruel and unfaithful God so wantonly destroyed my life with the disabling brain tumour shortly before I turned twenty) but I’m more lucky than him in that I’m still alive to tell the tale, whereas the poor man is now six feet under … well, to end on a more positive note, Benny’s returning to the Broncos next year; I know both Ms. Wriggle :P and Uncle Colbert reckon he’s too old to make any difference, but hey, I’m hoping he can bring a premiership back to the Broncos!

Spiritually-wise: come Feb. the 3^rd, 2015, it’ll have been eight years since the cruel and unfaithful God so wantonly destroyed my life with the disabling brain tumour, and almost eight years later, I’m still waiting for Him to tell me what it was that I did/didn’t do that was so bloody sinful that He found it just reason to totally destroy my life. God won’t tell me, and my point is, He can’t! I mean, He can and He has, but my point is if He really is the faithful and loving God that He so claims to be in the Bible, he shouldn’t! >< Earlier this year, Pastor Chong asked me had I considered baptism, and that there were other baptism methods other than the full immersion practised at BCAC (like how Reverend Lam just sprinkled some water on Leanne’s grandma’s head instead of having her walk down into the pool and get submerged), but I told him that I wasn’t planning on getting baptised until either (1) God fully healed me, or (2) He let me know exactly what it was that I did/didn’t do that was so sinful, it  made Him totally destroy my life so I could go about rectifying that. *sigh* sometimes I wonder: does God sit up in heaven and gloat to all his worshippers, all his angels that aren’t aware of the depth of his cruelty and unfaithfulness, “You see that female down thee? Her life was good, you know, she was studying hard at uni, she’d just gotten her first paid job and she’d recently achieved her driver’s licence. Then I decided that she pissed Me off, so I completely and totally ruined her life. Now, she has no hope, nor any future. Screw Jeremiah 29:11; that’s a complete lie. Aren’t I powerful? I rule!” Seriously, I sometimes think that’s what He does up in heaven … while all my peers are getting married and having families, I’m just stuck here, disabled, useless and discarded by the cruel and unfaithful God. I mean, I only hate Him because He hated me first; it’s because of His hatred that I am good at hating, that I know how to hate. If you check out this blog, earlier this year I wrote a post titled Apostasy; you may wanna give that a read.

Politically-wise: I’m the first to admit, I don’t follow the politics of Australia; I generally have zero idea whatsoever what’s going on. XD Who’s our prime minister? Tony abbott? And maybe our premier’s Campbell Newman … seriously, I know next to nothing about politics; when it comes time for voting at elections, I vote for the first politician that sends his/her flyer to my letterbox, because I think they show foresight to get ahead early. I know zilch about their policies. XD

Everything-else-wise: Well, firstly, I’m gonna be super-relieved that I haven’t managed to fall flat on my butt this year, not even once! I’ve had three close shaves, and the last danger for me to overcome will be making my way over to the couch by my lonesome just before midnight without falling over, but if I can do that, I can proudly say I honestly made it through the year without even one fall! Now, wouldn’t that be a dream …

Concerning afternoon tea, well, this year mother has gleefully restricted me to half-toasties, on the account that she thinks I’m a fat pig. However, I’m super-happy to note that I managed to get myself one full toastie several times this year! ^^ like I say, the way to my heart is through my stomach; feed me and I will love you forever. XD

There really isn’t much more to reflect about, I don’t think, so I’ll bid a very fond farewell to 2014 and welcome in 2015 with open arms!

Cheers,

Em. ^^

P.S. Next post here … think I wanna write a post about lei, the chinese shifu whom I get a massage from like once a week. It’s funny! XD anyways, until then~

Xmas Greetings 2014

Heylo one and all! Wow, suddenly it’s almost mid-December; gosh, hasn’t this year flown by! How has your year been? Hope you and your family have enjoyed 2014!

My mother has always wanted to visit Tasmania; she’s heard the scenery down there’s absolutely stunning. Me, to be honest, I couldn’t care less. You show me a pretty flower? Sure, it’s beautiful. Next! What, you mean you want to stay here for thirty minutes and take photos of said pretty flower?? Sorry, I guess I have no appreciation for scenery.

We didn’t manage to go down to Tasmania last year because of some severe bushfires plaguing the state, but this year, mother tried again and her wish was granted: we went down to Tasmania for a week! My reason for wanting to go down to Tasmania was quite different to my parents’ reason, however.

See, over my demented left ankle and calf, I wear a funny little yellow boot. Called an AFO for short, it enables me to walk for short distances; without it, I seriously wouldn’t be able to walk. This boot was made for me by a guy who comes from Tasmania, and he told me that all Tasmanians have two heads!

“Sure, where’s your extra head, then?” I challenged him.

“Well, obviously, I had the extra head amputated before I came up to Brisbane to work; how could I work with you staring at my extra head?” was his reply.

This guy’s son corroborates this story with him, but I was determined to visit Tasmania and find out the reason why I didn’t see two heads on all the Tasmanians!

The first woman I asked just laughed and said, “Oh, we all had the extra heads amputated in like 2006/2007, coz it was too annoying having to carry an extra head around everywhere.”

The second person I asked was a Cantonese waiter who was serving my parents and me one night when we were having dinner at a Chinese restaurant; when I asked him why the Tasmanians didn’t have two heads, he only shrugged, laughed and said, “How would I know? I was born in Hong Kong with only one head before coming to Tasmania to work with all the two-headed people!”

Well, fine. So I found one more lady and told her, “Think carefully about your answer, because I will let it be the be all and end all of my research: why don’t I see two heads on all the Tasmanians?” This lady gave me a perfect answer! “Oh, we have the extra head amputated off when they’re still babies,” she explained, “so that way, when they grow up, they won’t haveta remember the pain of the amputation.” So now I know! XD

This year, my birthday fell on a Thursday; actually, the Thursday that coincided with my fortnightly Garden City shopping trip! Nowadays, mother restricts me to only having a very little ice cream on Wednesdays; whenever I have a shopping trip on Thursday, I ask mother if I can please delay my ice cream night for a single cone on Thursday. Really, I just like to try a free flavour before choosing an actual flavour for my ice cream! Mother had kindly said yes, so that Thursday, I’d gone to the shop, tried one flavour then picked another flavour. As the lady was reaching for the ice cream, I asked her, “a big scoop please; it’s my BIRTHDAY today!” She stopped, looked at me and asked, “Really?” when I nodded, she said, “Choose another flavour, then.” Score, my first double scoop ice cream cone ever, only for the prize of a single cone! I immediately had a photo taken of my cone, and several months later, before Garbo underwent extension renovations, this same lady came out to tell me that they’d be closing down. Recognising her, I dug through my mobile, pulled up the photo of my double scoop ice cream and I and showed it to her.

“Oh, I remember you now,” the woman laughed. “You were so happy. XD

Nowadays, my life is consumed by physio. Yes, you may read: I have no life. >< I am constantly terrified that I will fall over and seriously injure myself. Yes, I am aware that the few times I fall over each year, I usually just land on my backside, and you know, fat butt, good cushioning! XD Only I’m also terrified that my next fall might be a really bad one and that I may seriously injure myself. My physio, who knows this, one day decided that for me, the new f-word was ‘fall’. “You’re not allowed to swear in physio, Em,” she commanded me. “I don’t want to hear the word ‘fall’ from your lips ever again.” So I went about working hard during my physio session. When it drew to a close, my physio teacher looks up at me. “What’s the f-word, Em?” she asks me.

“You mean I can swear?”

“Sure, go ahead. I’m giving you permission just this once. What’s the f-word?” Jess replies.

Firstly, I check to see all the other patients have gone. Yes, they have. Next, I check to make sure that mother isn’t back yet. No, she isn’t. All clear, then.

I look up at Jess and grin cheekily. “The f-word is …” I emphasise rather loudly, “F*UCK!”

“Em!” my teacher yelps with shock, before immediately bursting into laughter. I join in, and after we finish laughing our heads off, I reassure her, “Look, I promise I usually try never to swear out aloud, but you gave me direct permission to; I even double checked!” I swear (no pun intended), it was the most fun I’ve ever had using bad language! XD

One more highlight for me this year was attending my high school ten year reunion! It’s hard to believe that one whole DECADE has passed since I graduated from high school; cripes, I’m feeling ancient now! Originally, I’d been terrified that I would’ve forgotten everyone’s names, but to my enormous relief, once I saw a face, the name would immediately come flashing back to me, phew! I even enjoyed a new alcoholic beverage: vodka with orange juice! XD

Anyways, I’d just like to take the time to wish you all the very best in what you’re doing now, be it study/work/family life. May all that you’re working hard on now continue to go well for you, and may whatever you’ve just started bring you every triumph. Personally, I’ve had a very successful year: I haven’t fallen flat on my butt, what with my atrocious walking balance, this year yet! I’ve had three close shaves: first, when I tried to walk down the stairs from our church’s main hall, I fell backwards, but luckily, Kwany caught me; secondly, once when I was walking to the Springwood Fasta Pasta but tripped over my untied shoelaces; luckily, Julz caught me (and you can bet now that every time before I stand up now I check to see both my laces are done up!) and thirdly, one night I somehow tripped forward and smacked onto the tiled floor (got myself an awful bruise on my right knee for that), but I can happily say I haven’t fallen flat on my butt even once this year! Alas, I honestly don’t believe that I’m good enough to get through the entire year without falling flat on my butt at least once, but when that happens, I can at least congratulate myself on the fact that at least I lasted all the way until mid/late December before finding the floor!

Wishing you and your family all the best for 2015~ Personally, I cannot wait until the Despicable Me minion movie arrives sometime around June; I believe everyone who knows me even vaguely knows about the complete obsession I have for those little yellow minions! XD All the best for the year that is to come, and I hope that we will be able to stay in contact!

Cheers,

Em. ^^

XMas Wishlist 2014

It’s been almost one year, Santa, since you last heard from me; I hope you still remember who I am, because I’ve composed a very detailed Christmas wishlist of all the presents I’m hoping you’ll bring me this Christmas! :D

(1)            BOOKS! Yes, despite me being such a pathetically slow reader now (it takes me almost one entire month to read one book, compared to the like twenty-four I’d plough through each month, before my disabling brain injury ><) but I subscribe to several e-newsletters from various book sites; every time they e-mail me a catalogue, my Xmas wishlist grows larger by several books! My favourite genres are fantasy, science fiction and historical fiction, but hey, I’m willing to give anything bar Mills and Boon a crack. If you’re thinking of buying me a book for Christmas but don’t know what I’d like, e-mail me and I’ll send you the whole long list I’ve collected since after my birthday this year! :D

(2)            Pet: okay, ever since poor Silver and Bronze (my two goldfish from Pole’s family birthday back for my twenty-first birthday) passed away around July 2008 sometime, in every birthday and Christmas wishlist after that I have asked for two more goldfish. None have arrived; I understand that’s probably because I mistakenly murdered them by not providing them with enough warmth! So if anyone is willing to buy me two more pet goldfish, please also buy me a heater so I can regulate the water temperature in which they swim with. Barring that, Luke Mac Court, the onus is on you to bring me a pet rock! When you first told me about them, I honestly thought you were trying to pull my leg, but a quick Google search revealed that there are actually entire WEBPAGES devoted to pet rocks! If you somehow do manage to bring me a pet rock for Christmas, please remember that he’ll need a face, like this :o). Remember, the nose is all-important!

(3)            Teddy bear: Yes, an item that appears on every birthday wishlist and every Christmas wishlist I create without fail. Each and every single teddy I have is named, and yes, all are loved. :o)

(4)            Minion-related items: I believe everyone who knows me knows of my total obsession with the Despicable Me minions! Donna Bella Baker, you are exempt from getting me a Christmas present this year because you’ve already offered to take me out to see the minion movie coming out in GOLD CLASS! I’ve never seen anything gold class before and am therefore ridiculously excited; everyone else, I’d love anything minion related!! :D

(5)            Phone sticker: will somebody returning to Hong Kong over the holidays get me this, please? See, I had an awesome blue cover over my phone, to which Joey had brought me back an Amish minion named Tim sticker from overseas for; unfortunately the cover broke and mother dumped it, sticker and all! My poor phone now is not only lacking a cover, but he has no name! >< XD

(6)            Cereal: you know, having Weetbix nearly every morning during spring and summer can get quite boring! Could someone either get me a pack of fun cereal (it’s like eight little single serves of different cereal), or a box of that Milo Duo cereal? Actually, didn’t Nesquik put out a box of cereal too? I’d like to try that, please!

Teehee, I know I said I had a very long and detailed wishlist for you to fill, Santa, but that whole long list that I had written was actually just all the books I encountered during my reading all those e-newsletters from random bookstores! XD In that case, Santa, I’ll keep this Christmas short and sweet, but I’m reserving the right to extend it should any other interesting items present themselves over December before Christmas arrives! Now please send forth all your Christmas elves (i.e. my Facebook friends XD) and go and secure me Christmas presents!

Cheers,

Em. ^^

P.S. I’ve changed my mind: Donna, will you please get me a Christmas present too? The minion movie doesn’t come out until like June 2015, so I’ll exempt you from having to buy me a birthday present! ;)

P.P.S. next post here … prolly my Xmas Greetings to everyone, due out on the 11^th. Until then~