Diet Pyramids

Always have heard of Diet Pyramids, but never heard off of the Asian, Mediterranean and African Diet Pyramids. And not surprisingly they all have many common items. To begin with all starts with physical activities. This I would guess is the most difficult thing to start with. As for the rest of the items of consumption in the pyramid, they are somewhat similar : greens, beans, legumes, poultry, fish, meat, etc. But the thing that struck me as unique was the African Diet Pyramid as they have broken the classification of greens into many sub categories and included something called "tubers"...aptly named after the physical look of these vegetables or root products.

source: http://www.oldwayspt.org

The eager me says, just follow any of these pyramids and I will on the way to a healthier me. Afterall, there's nothing that you can't get here in Malaysia. But it all boils down to commitment. As it is my daily breakfast staple has been alternately with oats (no sugar / milk) and buckwheat porridge (again, no sugar / milk) with 2 slices of wholewheat breads and a cup of coffee. But the nagging fact is that I am not getting enough of the other good stuffs like greens, beans, nuts, etc. Now where do I start?

2012

The one thing I want to do this year is to spend more time blogging. What about? Hmm....just about anything that hits my mind. This is not a resolution, really. It's more of a MUST to do item.

To start with, I think I'd like to talk about death. Yeah, sounds morbid, doesn't it? But that is the reality that has been hitting my company's intranet. Todate from December 27 to today (Jan 9), there has been 7 deaths ranging from the company employee to fathers and mothers who have sadly passed on. Sounds troubling. Deaths ranging from unknown diseases and probably old age.

But to look at it from the positive sign of these demises is the gift that Allah All Mighty is giving the living ones. The gift that we are still breathing, eating, sleeping, walking, defecating, smiling, talking, thinking etc etc etc and blogging ...means that Allah is giving us another day to enjoy and appreciate this life He has bestowed on us the living. So, Alhamdulillah for this. For anyone out there who is reading this, regardless of race or religion, this is my message: take the time in every day to thank the One that created us and the world around us as we know it.

I know I will, insyaAllah.

Ramadhan 2011

Alhamdulillah for this Ramadhan: Allah's has given me another opportunity in this short life to enjoy this blessed month, to seek His Forgiveness, to seek His Compassion, and to seek His Many Bounties

Alhamdulillah for this Ramadhan: For sahur, a bowl of cereal, a slice of bread & 3 dates goes well with my delicate tummy

Alhamdulillah for this Ramadhan: For iftar, a bowl of oats, topped with dates & fruits keeps me full till after the tarawih prayers

Alhamdulillah for this Ramadhan: Allah has put a sense of peacefulness in my heart as I prepare for iftar for my family

Alhamdulillah for this Ramadhan: Despite the busy schedule, I have 20 minutes a day for reciting the Quran and guide my 11 year old with his Muqaddam (yup, still in the junior series)

Alhamdulillah for this Ramadhan: When I see my husband every evening, he's all smiles, despite all the worries he's shouldering

Alhamdulillah for this Ramadhan: My 4 year old managed to last 9.5 hours fasting! But I guess the water in the fridge was more tempting, ;)

Alhamdulillah for this Ramadhan: My 15 year old will be sitting for her trial exams while fasting

Alhamdulillah for this Ramadhan: For my dad who's still going strong at 75, despite his knee aches, he still performs the tarawih

Alhamdulillah for this Ramadhan: For my mom who still managed to put up a feast for iftar last Saturday. She amazes me. I pray and hope I will be able to do the same for my kids in the future...insyaAllah

Alhamdulillah for this Ramadhan: I have contributed what I can in the name of Allah for charity and hope in years to come will be able to do more

Alhamdulillah for this Ramadhan: my MIL's have been somewhat "nice"...hopefully no hidden agenda ;)

Alhamdulillah for this Ramadhan: For the somewhat nicer weather in the evenings which makes the tarawih prayers a breeze

Alhamdulillah for this Ramadhan: Malaysia is still quite a nice peaceful place to live in

Alhamdulillah for this Ramadhan: there are millions of Muslims around the globe who are able to fast despite the problems their countries face (political instability, weather, famine, etc, etc, etc)

Alhamdulillah for this Ramdhan: Allah has and will keep on giving His Manyfold Bounties to the ummah of Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessing be upon him)

Alhamdulillah Alhamdulillah Alhamdulillah this Ramadhan has been better than the last and InsyaAllah, the next will better than this....

Ramadhan is surely beautiful isn't it?

Haven't blogged in the longest of time. Friends complained....but fell on deaf ear. Hmmm.....am getting good at giving excuses.

Perhaps this is because, I am just sick and tired of the office politics that goes around here. So much so, I have been updating my resume. Funny how people update resumes only when they unhappy....(or is that just a simple fact?) Have been updating and updating and still not quite done. Am I a perfectionist? Not!!

Now, I have to excuse myself (for real). Just received the audit report. Upcoming...shall write about auditors...

Meeting with the Officials

Yesterday, I had a meeting at one of the Government agency. The meeting began at 2.45 pm and lasted 2 hours.

There were 6 Government officials, while from my company there were 5 of us. The meeting was Chaired by the Government official and it started with some funny comments and informal conversations. But as the meeting went on, I realized that the Chairman just loved to repeat himself. I figured it could be his age or he just loves repeating. And I also realized that the moment me and my colleague looked down at the papers in front of us, he would ask us if we had problem. (Though my colleague and I were just scribbling messages on the paper) So each time he called out my name wondering if everything was okay, I would have to quickly think of some items to discuss. This game went on for about 1 hour and 45 minutes. The last 15 minutes, they served us the guests tea and kuihs. What a relief that was.

My conclusion about this meeting? They have lots of time to repeat what they've said. They loved making jokes on services providers like us. The meeting was not even supposed to be chaired by a person of his title. This meeting was not even necessary. It could have been done via a couple of emails. Gossshhh....At the end of it, I was tired beyond words....

Girlfriends

I can't seem to recall when was the last time I met this old schoolmate. Maybe it was during one of the festivals I think when she visited me with her darlings, big and small.

I must say I was pretty ashamed that I had to text her asking if she was still working at the old place. Hmmm....friends need to know other friends workplaces...just in case. Anyways, upon confirming, I asked if we could meet up for lunch. And despite of having to drive at 110 km/hr, I made it to her office within 12 minutes but parking my car took longer than that. Calling her, I complained about the parking and there she was at one of levels, holding two spots just for me..lol

And there she was. I used to call her "Momma C". I've known her since we were both 18 and she was always in charge and had full control of things. Though we've grown into motherhood and I sooner than her, she'll always be Momma C to me, she's the thinker, the resolver.

I only had about an hour of her lunch time. But just in that 60 minutes, we exchanged notes as quickly as we would put on our shoes. Into our conversation, we pulled in other people of importance in our lives, our dear friends, our family, our jobs...ow, just about everything that matters, I guess. Maybe this is what set us women apart from men. We get right to the point and out.

Lunch was simple but wonderful. Exchanging of ideas were great. To tell the truth, driving at 110, wasn't actually to beat the time. But rather an anger that had built up that morning. Having lunch with Momma C changed my mood. Thanks to you :):)

Girlfriends are rather unique. They may not be related. But somehow, they're connected.

I find it rather offensive and of poor taste that people do the following on facebooks and blogs:

1. are very specific on the dates they missed their periods
2. take photos of their pregnancy test kits and display it on their blogs. I'm sure you know where the test kits have gone to, before the result is displayed on the little window, the hygiene factor
3. people who post themselves with their spouses on their beds looking dazed as though the photo was taken right after their bed workout
4. photos of spouses snuggled together on their beds
5. employees who slam their colleagues on facebook, whereby the slammed colleague is also on the facebook. Ahem...where's the integrity here? Is that person worth being a friend on the facebook? And a whole bunch of other friends commenting on the same post
6. office politics
7. people who swear that their friends will diminish from the face of the earth

Hmm...i mean, those are very personal stuffs, personal opinions, personal beliefs. I strongly stand by the fact that these social marketing tools are meant for social use. Not office, not in bedrooms, not in politics (where ever that applies).

It is after all SOCIAL, remember?