The Thing about India is:

it's a land of inimitable records.

The enormity of 1 bil people just doesn't sink it, let alone the consequences of having 1 bil people. Subsequently, the only reply I ever hear is "no" and "I regret to inform ..."

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See, first, there were NO train tickets.

Then, NO flights.

NO rooms.

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No, no, NO ...

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Geez , I've never heard so many "NOs" in a span of 3 weeks, as I just have.
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But amazingly, I've remained relatively calm (ok, not so calm about the flights and more so with the breaking news of Benazir Bhutto's assassination when faced with a relief ticketing agent who didn't know how to search for flights!).

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Normally, I would react.

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I mean R-E-A-C-T. Look, 'metta' is not in my vocabulary and I am being dead on honest.

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... but there is just something in the demure of the Indians that makes everything seems ok, and to a large extend put shame in me for thinking endlessly about me and my poor, poor plight.

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More interestingly, there's always a coy stranger observing from far and giving me the reassuring smiles and head gestures; with the occasional ones that reaches out to offer help. For a nation with 1 bil people, I would have thought that people would be primarily concern with their own welfare; but I thought wrong and apologise.

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Well, in slightly over a week, I will find out as I will make the 1,000,000,001 person ... oh well, not quite - and yes, stretching the census here! {wink}

Quote of the Day

Deep down in every human soul is a hidden longing, impulse, and ambition to do something fine and enduring.

Grenville Kleiser

My Tired Lil' Santa

IT'S A FAMILY TRADITION...

or mine at least!

Every year without fail, Bryant will be dressed up for our family Christmas cards which is handmade by me and mailed just-in-time, simply because I am a self confessed procrastinator.

This picture was taken in our patio and I had substituted handmade knitted dogs as reindeers!!! Rover, our real dog, never made it to any pictures post Bryant's arrival (12 May 2003) for hygiene purposes. With a kid like Bryant - who has severe brain injury (hence cerebral palsy) since birth and has not been able to cry, suck, swallow (eat), see, hear, sit ... - we can't help but be careful.

The photo here is not sharp as I was trying not to over-exert Bryant, since he was propped up. He spots a dopey eye-d look here, but truth be told he has actually fallen asleep and that's the maximum size his eyelids will shut.

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Although we have a new arrival in the family this year - Rebecca (Becky) - I did not include her in the photo shoot as it's a mammoth task to prop both Bryant and Becks simultaneously. Next year, we'll include Becky and nana-banana (granny).

More on Bryant's condition and what happened:
http://www.midwiferytoday.com/enews/enews0607.asp (feedback)
http://scrap-n-crop.blogspot.com/2007/10/amazing-world-of-google.html

OR in need of a support group? Please contact me or http://scrap-n-crop.blogspot.com/

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My Tired Lil' Santa Christmas Card made by Penelope Gan

All supplies from http://www.scrap-n-crop.com/

Paris {Part 2}

Paris {Part 2} chronicles the travel experiences Val, WT and I had - from the delightful cafes we perceived to the famous vibrant Parisian nightlife of Moulin Rouge.

While Paris {Part 1} would have given a hint of indication that our trip was far from appealing, truth of the matter was we were horrified with what Paris had to offer!

Our first night in Paris stands as testament to this as it was hell! Not realising that besides being an artsy fatsy place with the Moulin Rouge and Basilique du Sacre Coeur, by night Montmartre transforms into a seedy red district area. With prostitutes, sex shops, drugs and pimps abound, Val and I were swamped and deliberately trapped in a cocoon made of humans, while the syndicate tried to mug WT. Shoved and roughed -up, thank God we had the sense to shout out warnings in Chinese, pushed our way through the crowd in panic and made a mad dash for our lives.

Over the days we realised that Paris is not very different from any city in the world: graffiti, missing children, child labour, filthy streets, the homeless ... they are all there ~ the dark side of PARIS.

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Paris: Part 2 Mini Accordion Scrapbook Album made by Penelope Gan
All supplies from http://www.scrap-n-crop.com/

Photos by Penelope Gan

Love?

Is it possible to still love when all you feel is raw hurt?

When your first reaction is to destruct and annihilate?

To feel anger and resentment whenever he succeeds?
When he is happy?

Can you open your heart and accept that he made a mistake?
But does not appear to regret his decisions?

Can you trust? ... where is the line?
When will it stop hurting?

Wait.
Am I still in love? Or just hurt?

My India Brag Box

Call me CRAZY, but I started planning for my travels to India back in November after casually flirting with the idea in October 2007.

Although as I write this, I am still in the midst of finalising ticket bookings, hotel reservations, VISA, shopping etc., the experience thus far has been exhilarating, frustrating and wonderful.

The frustration it appears is largely due to the fact that India, as it turns out is as diverse and spectacular as a Bollywood movie - colourful, exuberant, exciting, loud and dramatic.

During my course of 'research', I realised that India is a place to expect the unexpected!

Hence, armed with an exhaustive lists of "to dos", "must have" and "don'ts" coupled with priceless advice from Indiamike.com and a new found friend, Vijay Pandey, I will set out and discover India in January.

Unable to contain my excitement much longer, I altered this tin mini suitcase (My India Brag Box) to store all the memorabilia, knick -knacks and memories I will have on India.

Love it, or hate it, I am pretty convinced India will jostle my entire being and fill my Brag Box up.

... and if not, I am glad to have found a gem in a person, whom I will cherish for life.

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My India Brag Box made by Penelope Gan
All supplies from www.scrap-n-crop.com

Paris {Part 1}

Paris . . .
has time and time again been nominated as one of the "World's Top Destination" and has earned taglines such as "Places of a Lifetime". In fact, the mere mention of 'Paris' conjures romantic, convivial, vain, and even petty images in our minds.

Being one of Europe's leading home to haute couture, masterpieces of art and architecture, and temples of fine dining - but also cozy bistros, vibrant ethnic enclaves, and bohemian cafés it is no wonder that I was lured to visit Paris.

.

Besides the masterpieces of art, Paris unfortunately was a disappointment in every possible way; with WT bailing out and returning to London on Day 2, while Val and I stayed back only because Eurorail refused to change our tickets and it was cheaper to stay the course than to re-book our tickets!

To document our travel, I've created two Mini Scrapbook albums {Paris: Part 1 and Paris: As Is} - the first admittedly a cross between picture-perfect postcard shoots on attractions in Paris and an anthropology study on Paris through rose-coloured glasses, while the latter captures the raw account of our travel in Paris.

Paris {Part 1} Mini Scrapbook by Penelope Gan

.......

People. People. People.

Pretty much sums up the scene of Eiffel Tower, regardless of the season or time.

Deciding it would be futile exercise to spend 2 hours in queue just to get tickets, we decided to wander around the base and the gardens surrounding the Eiffel Tower.

The results were these pretty amazing, unconventional shots we got (!) of youths performing back-breaking, breathtaking street stunts.

Best Seen @ Dawn
{ True... but hey, I am on vacation! }

So, the other available option is to do the Louvre at sunset when the setting sunlight hits and reflects IM Pei's glass pyramids.

Besides getting free entry into the Louvre earlier in the day - thanks to the French going on work strike - we got some extra special bonuses with these candid shots of real people relaxing around the Louvre.

iojghj[QHG[H

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Paris: Part 1 Mini Accordian Scrapbook Album made by Penelope Gan

All supplies from www.scrap-n-crop.com

Photos by Penelope Gan + postcards

Genius/Madness

Aristotle once claimed that "there is no great genius without a mixture of madness"...

This genius/madness paradox has long intrigue mankind and has seemingly been observed in some of the greatest thinkers and artists who thrived and works were documented over the last three centuries; John Nash, Emily Dickenson, Edgar Allen Poe.

But is genius and madness linked to degenerative neurological disorder?

Or is it pure coincidence that intelligent individuals just happened to suffer from mental illness?

Or were their talents linked to their illnesses as some doctors and scientists implied as in the case of Nash who was a schizophrenic. But is schizophenia a casuality here?

Or was their illness a resultant of their talents; creativity requires the cognitive ability to explore novel and sometimes unconventional idea(l)s, as well as requires creative individuals to be capable of defocusing attention, divergent thinking, and non conformity?

While ample research work have shown that genius and madness may be closely connected, none have proved that genius and madness are one in the same nor does it imply correlation or causation between genius and madness with any strong statistical relevance.

What is clear to an average man though is: moodiness, neuroticism and maniac depressions are bound to occur as a consequence of the 'entire' world not 'connecting' nor understanding those who are dubbed geniuses point of reference.

{just a musing from me, a non-clinical bipolar disorder sufferer who hasn't got a clue why/what/how}

Why do we need to work?

... yes, Sunday is nearly over and I've got to face the brutal facts of (my) life:

W-O-R-K