Heavenly Paradise@AdelineAng.com

It was an extreme weather this year compared to last year’s green Christmas in Malaysia; 30+ degrees Celsius weather. Today, on Christmas Eve, it’s -20 degrees Celsius. It had snowed pretty much all day yesterday, light and consistent, just enough to have the thin coat of snow for us to enjoy a white Christmas.

I’ll have to say, taking photos in the -20 C weather, started from cold, very cold, freezing cold, numbing cold, burning cold… very painful “thawing” process to get my hands warm up to room temperature again after staying out for just a mere 10 minutes. Oh well, that’s not the point.

Wishing everyone a very Merry Christmas!!

First Christmas tree ever!

There is no free lunch in this world, is there? How about providing free lunch instead? What’s unique about this special donation is that, instead of monetary donation, you’ve to get the correct answers for a few questions online in order for the organization to provide free rice to the needy. Isn’t that cool?

I’ve come to learn that FreeRice is a non-profit organization run by the United Nations World Food Programme. Their main goals are to give out free rice to help end world hunger and provide free education to everyone.

“Who then are donating the free rice?” You may ask. It turns out that the sponsors who place their advertisements on the website are generously donating the rice. Answer some questions, opting from wide span of subjects, such as English, Math, Geography, Chemistry, Humanities etc. Difficulty levels range from easy to hard. Visit FreeRice today and help donating rice to those in need!

Winter blues will soon be gone; snow is melting and ice is cracking. Wouldn’t it be nice if the four seasons spread out equally throughout the year? Spring from March till May; summer from June till August; autumn from September till November; winter from December till February. In reality, winter lasts up to six months in most parts of Canada.

This year, however, it hasn’t been too bad of a winter, considering major snow fall didn’t take place till January. It started raining last week with the fluctuating temperatures hovering around freezing point. Rain or snow? Be prepared, because you can never tell till the day comes.

Rivers are found frozen in New Brunswick during the winter months, covered by a smooth layer of ice. The depth of ice varies according to weather. The cracking and breaking of ice layer results in ice pans that slide past and collide against each other in the slow moving water, until smaller ice chunks are formed. They will further be melted away by the “warmer” river flow and disappear.

The formation of ice pans.

Three days later…Ice pans were broken down into ice chunks.

The unbelievable “shrieking” sound from the collision with ice pans. It’s an analogy of earthquake, doesn’t it?

The snow condition as of last weekend outside my apartment building.

The thick snow was observed one month ago, in mid-February!

I was anticipating the appearance of  “Supermoon” last Saturday, on March 19th. The moon was said to be significantly larger and brighter due to a closer (than usual) proximity from the earth. There was prediction from an astrologer that it might trigger natural disasters such as earthquakes, storms etc. There were numerous heart-breaking disasters that happened around the world these few weeks, was “Supermoon” the one to be blamed for, or was it just a mere coincidence?

I always wonder how does the surface of moon look like…

An unedited picture of the moon taken to show its surface (click to enlarge). Doesn’t it look like a melon?

Cool breeze, red and yellow fallen leaves… These are certainly signs of an early arrival of fall! Believe it or not, this was speculated in late July. I was thinking: if the season is shifting at this rate, we’d see snow in the fall!

The weather has gone whacky this year. Just as I was hoping for a longer summer days, the heat wave hitted Fredericton on the first week of September! On the night of September 1st, the heat was unbearable in my room (for someone like me who grew up in the hot climate to say “hot,” it means really hot). After a few minutes of toss and turn, I fianlly got up from bed and decided to find out my room temperature with a fridge thermometer.

I was right… I was reading it right… 36.5 degrees Celsius in my room! Trying to fall asleep in the body temperature-like “sauna” room was driving me nuts! How I wished I had an air-conditioning unit at that very instant! I convinced myself that it was a “warm-up” for my next visit to Malaysia. Thank God I didn’t get up till the alarm went off in the morning as soon as I fell asleep.

I was truly blessed by the dry summer; biking almost every day all summer long! Having said that, the water level was at an alarming stage where people can literally walk across the river.

The heavy rainfall from last weekend, partially affected by Hurricane Earl has helped with the drastic transition from summer to fall, once again…

What do I miss from Malaysia? Tons! The place, culture, people, food, and the list goes on… In terms of food, sweet buns are some of the food I’m missing so much. They bring back nostalgic memories from my childhood and teenage years. I remembered the wonderful aroma when I stepped into the bakery shop in Malaysia, and the mouth-watering that my eyes feasted on. That was why, I won’t complain to go shopping at the bakery, picking up my favourite buns for breakfast and snacks.

In Canada, however, there’s no fresh Asian baked goods in small cities. In order to satisfy and taste buds and fulfill my cravings, I have to do something….I have to make buns on my own from scratch! Sausage buns, sweet buns with red bean paste, Polo buns, Mexican buns etc., I love them all :)

Moving is a tiring and tedious process. I’ve to admit that I’m fortunate in a way, since this is only my third move in six and a half years. I don’t understand how some people could tolerate the hassle of moving from place to place every year, or worse still, every school term!

Boxes are very useful when it comes to moving. Nonetheless, I’ve to say that it really is a waste of time packing and unpacking. Needless to say, transporting time can take up a big chunk of the day.

One of my biggest dream is to own a house; no more worries about the lease and moving issues (unless I really have to for some reason). I’m not a big fan of spring cleaning. If given a choice, I’ll choose spring cleaning over moving, anytime.

The positive side of moving that I can see, is to get rid of junks! Besides, it gives us a good idea of our “assets”; what we already own and what we don’t. So that we won’t be walking into the store and purchase the same thing over and over again. Sounds familiar?

Anyway, I’ll be relieved for a little while after this move. The next one is coming up in 4 months’ time, as anticipated….

Moments of joy we share
Tears of sorrow we shed
Love and laughter we cherish
Moments of comfort we embrace

With you walking by my side
Printing footsteps with each stride
Explore the love lane with my dear
Happy moments are right here

The broken ice chunks on the Nashwaak River, Fredericton North about two weeks ago.

Very abnormal winter indeed! I remembered there were times where Fredericton was visited by snowflakes in mid-April. This year, however, there were some relatively warmer days (above the freezing point) in January that bike enthusiasts were out riding their bicycles!

This past weekend, it was a record-high temperature of 15 degrees Celsius in the winter month! People were out in t-shirts and shorts, and started outdoor barbecuing! As of last Saturday, Fredericton area received about 135 cm of snow, as compared to the norm being 225 cm. The same time last year, there had been 275 cm snow accumulated in this capital city. In other words, the amount of snow we received thus far was only half of what we got in the last winter!

Cooler nights (below freezing) and warmer days (above freezing) for the past two weeks turned out to be good news for maple syrup harvest! The tappers couldn’t ask for better weather condition. Once the night temperature rises above freezing point, the maple saps will divert into new buds and leaves, which then ends the harvest season.

Let it snow…let it snow….let it snow… The white and fluffy snow is not only pretty to look at, but also fun to play with!

We had joy
We had fun
We had seasons in the snow
But the snow that we played
was just never last too long

* Modified from “Season In The Sun” by Westlife.

The womanized “Winnie the Pooh.”

The cute snowman blushed as being kissed on both cheeks.

One year after another, and twenty four hours a day never seems enough; each minute passes by even before we realize it.

Canada, or Fredericton to be precise; a place that I called my second home, for more than a quarter of the chapter of my life thus far. I couldn’t be grateful enough for all the blessings that’ve been showered upon me, in this foreign land that I used to know no one and no one knew me.

Live the life to the fullest, and cherish every moment in life. Welcome to the year 2010! May this year be a fruitful and a blessing one to you and me!

It’s hard to believe that the calendar is slowing easing its way into the last month of the year. It’s only less than a month away from Christmas! Christmas carols, Christmas decorations, Christmas sales…

Snow has finally arrived, on the last day of November. Despite a few freezing cold days in September and October, we’ve been blessed with a mild November weather (yes, after Miles and I stopped biking to work).

Days are shorter and nights are longer, as we gradually approach the end of December (Dec. 21st has the shortest daylight hours). Going to work in the dark and returning home from work in the dark. The bright sunshine can only be admired from afar when I’m at work.

While everyone is hustling to Christmas shopping and trying to have it squeezed into their busy schedule, Miles and I have already accomplished most of the shopping needed to be done. Believe it or not, we started Christmas shopping early September!

No major plans. No major trips. This is one of the very few years that I’m not visiting any new places during Christmas/New Year’s Day.

Here is a glimpse of what I’ve done in previous years:

2003 – Stayed in Fredericton and celebration Christmas in the residence.
2004 – Spent “Boxing Day” shopping in Moncton.
2005 – Participated in International Christmas in Nova Scotia.
2006 - At Urbana Student Mission Conference in St. Louise, Missouri.
2007 – Travelled to Ottawa, Montreal, and Quebec City for Christmas; New York and Boston for New Year’s.
2008 – Visited Calgary and Edmonton for Christmas and New Year’s.

This year, I’ll be in Fredericton/Grand Bay/Saint John for most, if not all of my Christmas/New Year’s vacation. Hopefully, there will be skiing opportunities should the weather be favourable, and also chances to go skating during the holidays.

It’s going to be a quiet, joyful Christmas this year, for the seventh year in a row celebrating the festive season without family around. Next year, hopefully, Christmas will be different, a good different.

Tide in and tide out,
Tidal cycle repeats itself.
You said to fear not,
‘Cause I’m not by myself.

Holding my hand, I said in prayer;
Hoping this moment will last forever.
Holding your hand, you said to separate never;
Hoping we’ll be happily together.

Some say love is…

like a rose; beautiful but hurtful
like a meteor shower; gorgeous yet momentary

I’d like to think of love like…

a rainbow that appears after a stormy day
the sun that rises after each sunset

Be it with family, friends, or our significant other, love does its miracle by joining hearts together. It’s our hope and dream. Because of love, we embrace today, anticipate for tomorrow, and strive for the future.

“Curiosity killed the cat.” When I first suggested to Miles that I wanted to find out the allergen that caused hives on me, his first respond was, “do you want to get yourself sick?”

When the allergic reaction happened, I was curious about the allergen. Food allergy is something new to me. I’d like to find out the root of the problem, so that I can better prevent it from happening in the future. Having to doubt before taking each bite of food isn’t fun at all. I rather know what I shouldn’t have eaten; just like the saying “satisfaction brought him back.”

Here is the test. Since the potential allergen could have been from the raspberry pie, I’d take some raspberries and sour cream as a measure of allergy test. What would I do if allergy reaction occurs? Of course, I had a bottle of liquid Benadryl handy to take of that.

First of all, I had some raspberries. Nothing happened… I waited for about 30 minutes and came to a conclusion that I’m safe to consume raspberries!

Now… sour cream… I’ve had sour cream in the past, usually with nacho chips. Although I don’t have it very often, it’s something I’ve just had a few weeks ago. Nonetheless, I’d give it a try… One heaping teaspoon of sour cream. 5 minutes, 10 minutes, 15 minutes… have passed. I was still completely fine.

Hence, the experiment shows that the allergen is not raspberries, not sour cream, and not the combination of both. I’m puzzled… what else could it be?!