the coffee and I

The daily mantra over Skype/YM between my two colleagues and I almost daily, post lunch would be.

"Ngantuk. I need coffee."

or even

"Aku rasa macam nak kopi mahal" ( as opposed to Kak K's Nescafe murahan at the pantry)

The latter statement would result in us frantically finding other coffeeholics so that our SF Coffee order would total to RM50 (minimum order for delivery). We used to have one SF Coffee at our office but since the whole building is undergoing a major facelift, there are absolutely NO eateries or retail shops here. Major bummer.

When I was nineteen I was still allergic to it. I remember once during my first year in college I had a bad bout of coffee allergy. I was playing tour guide to some friends who were visiting Boston for the first time. We were at Harvard Square and it was summer and they all wanted to go to Au Bon Pain. And dammit the smell of coffee was just so overpowering and hypnotic. And I went okay, I am ADULT enough to drink this thing. So I had, for the first time ever, a whole plastic cup of Iced Cappuccino all to myself. And drank the whole thing as it was scorching hot at the moment and I was thirsty as hell.

As we were leaving Au Bon Pain, heading for some shops at Harvard Square, I felt slightly nauseated, following by a throbbing headache which became worse. Then, I started seeing spots. And it got so bad I had to apologize to my friends and told them that I had to go home :(

From that day forth, I stayed off coffee completely.

Adulthood came (read; I started working) and inadvertently someone would serve you coffee at certain points of time. I would take a small sip, and (im)politely leave the rest of the portion. And as I grew older (old ke??) and after I had quit smoking (in July 2008) I became more accustomed to drinking coffee. I did not realize when it happened, but it happened. I could finish half a cup of coffee without any detrimental side effects, accept for maybe once or twice (The Diver would argue this observation).

The worse came when I joined this GLC. I was quite a junkie. Well there's no such term as "quite" a junkie, it's either you are or you are not. Hell, I WAS a junkie. And I totally blame it on this company. For some weird reason, they didn't employ a proper tea lady, and for some reason, they would order flasks and flasks of SF Black Coffee and Latte at every freaking meeting!!!! Jgn cerita la pasal how much the company had to bear on the costs...

I was downing coffee like air sirap limau. Like there's no tomorrow. Until I realized, no it did not give me any headaches but I was belching like a 70-year old pakcik in a kain pelikat. Not cool, huh?

When I quit the GLC, I didn't completely quit coffee. I couldn't. The Diver will always tell me how bad coffee is, and to take it in moderation. Which I adhered to. I slowly weaned myself off it, but not completely.

Today, I don't take it daily. I try not to, at least. And if you ask me why I'm writing this, it's that I'm craving for it right this very minute!

I will ignore everyone when I'm having my cuppa :)
Pic courtesy of Fizri

bienvenue 2010, au revoir 2009!

In spite of the almost week-long holiday that I took, the final week of the year is always hectic, and this year, probably even more.

To sum it all up 2009 was a wonderful year, with a lot of changes in my life. And change is good, most of the times.

This was the year I got married to my BFF who's also the world's most wonderful lover. I try as much to be a good wife to The Diver, and so far things have been going great. Though we have our down times as well :) But in marriage, the more you give, the more you get. So I just hope the longer we're together the more we understand each other.

We also moved out of the Kg Warisan apartment to Bukit Setiawangsa. The main reason for the move is that not only are my kids getting bigger but also we want room when my stepchildren visit and it would be more conducive for them to sleep over. And oh, we receive a lot of guests too so the house is a better bet that the apartment obviously. I have to admit that having stayed in Kg Warisan for more than a DECADE, moving to a landed property has been fun but super-tiring!

And in 2009 too I took up scuba diving and got my Open Water Diver license, in Perhentian! Been hooked on it ever since and its such a great stress reliever! I'm so waiting for the Monsoon season to be over!!!!!

Finally, 2009 was also the year that my parents took me seriously. Hahahah! It's probably the year when they finally realize that I am adult enough to make my own decisions and also adult enough to advise them. I did gave both of them my piece of mind (albeit on paper) and I suppose I made sense. 2009 has seen a lot of shockers in our family and extended family so hopefully these shockers will not shock us again this year.

Well there are a lot of other things that happened in our lives in 2009 but I suppose those are the significant ones.

My wish for 2010?

For me to be a better person, to be more patient in handling issues, to be more eloquent in speaking, to be a better writer and a better wife, mother and friend.

For The Diver to get a humongous pay hike so that he can belanja me more! HAHAHAHA!! Just kidding, baby. Ok ok ... for The Diver to be happier when he's with me, and for him to be in the best of health so we can enjoy more years together.

To have more dive trips and overseas trip this year! Ok , this is a bit impossible to reconcile but I'll just give it a shot anyway. And maybe for my sister to join us in one of those overseas trip!!

Here's to 2010!!!