Just My Rambling

*sniff sniff* *cough cough* There goes my 3rd box of tissue!!! Is it me or does anyone else notice that the flu nowadays seems more severe than ever and takes forever to get over!

Speaking of severe sickness,there is a major dengue outbreak in my hometown. As quoted in the Star last week,

SERI MANJUNG: The dengue situation in the Manjung district in Perak is very serious with four deaths reported to date, Health Minister Datuk Liow Tiong Lai said.

He said patients turning acute and dying suddenly from the disease was abnormal.

He further commented that the rise of dengue haemorrhagic fever to up to 50% of total cases was also unseen before this.

“It is very serious. We need to raise the alarm on this and take action,” he said at the Seri Manjung Hospital here during a special visit to assess the dengue situation in the district.

He said that between Aug 18 and Oct 5 alone, 314 people had been suspected of dengue and admitted into the hospital here and the Raja Permaisuri Bainun Hospital in Ipoh.

These dengue cases are more severe than the regular dengue fever as it causes internal bleeding. The last I heard, it’s up to 6 death already. Many have speculated the cause to the swiftlet hotels but nobody really knows. I hope they can find the cause & cure for this illness soon.

For Christmas this year, I am still debating whether we should stay at home or go somewhere. I would love to go somewhere nearby like Las Vegas. It would be fun to explore the las vegas strip and see all its new fancy architecture. I am sure that it is very different from my last visit 20 years ago. Unfortunately the ever-plunging dismal stock market is not a big help in fulfilling my travel plans. I think we might just have to tighten our belts and spend Christmas at home instead.

I can’t believe it’s the middle of October already! Time sure flies when you are busy, doesn’t it? Anyway, year-ends usually end up a little crazier than usual for us because there are just so many activities. Besides Thanksgiving and Christmas, there are also lots of birthdays including Lil’ C’s. Somehow Lil’ C’s closest friends all have birthdays in October, November and December!! So there will be lots of birthday parties to attend.

To preserve my sanity, I have decided to start preparations early this year. I have already started looking at Thanksgiving recipes to decide my Thanksgiving menu for this year. Since Lil’ C’s birthday is the week before Thanksgiving, I know that I am going to be so busy with all her party stuff. So it will help if I can get all my Thanksgiving preparations ready by the end of the month. That way I can concentrate on her party preparations. Wish me luck!!

It has been a long and tiring week. So this weekend I am looking forward to having a LAZY weekend. Just relaxing and doing nothing like them . . . . .

AND take long naps like them . . .

AND enjoy good food like them . . . . .

Hehe…. Hope you enjoy this post and these cute animals! Thanks for visiting my PhotoHunt. Have a great weekend , everyone.

It’s pumpkin season and pumpkins are everywhere! They were even at a birthday party we attended last week. Give a couple of bottles of glitter glue to a couple of preschooler and you’ll end up with pumpkin masterpiece!!

Birthday boy got even more creative and decided to take off the cap and just pour the whole bottle of glitter glue on the pumpkin and himself.

It has been a very active hurricane season this year. There were a couple of big ones that caused a lot of damage like Gustav and Ike. Every time these disasters happen, I always wonder if my term life insurance will be gone. Why? Because when these disasters happen, a lot of insurance companies could go belly-up. That was exactly what happened in Florida 4 years ago when there was an onslaught of hurricanes. Many insurance companies were overwhelmed with claims till they had to close because they could not afford to pay off all the claims. This hurricane season is almost ending, so I really hope that it will just go away quietly without causing any trouble and causing me worrries.

The Dow is now below 10K mark, the first time in nearly 4 years. As of now, it has dropped yet another 550 points and the market is not even closed yet! Looks like the passing of the bailout bill is not easing any anxieties. This is so depressing. Personally I am not seeing the light at the end of the tunnel yet. Do you? Sigh.. when will we ever get out of this mess?

Do you know what is at the top of my to-buy list? A hybrid car!! Even though the gas prices have gone down a little, it is still too high for my liking. My gas bill has been very high ever since my daughter started preschool which is quite far from my house. I think a hybrid car will be great for me. A free hybrid car will be even better, don’t you think? That is the reason I am checking out Charter.

Charter is giving away a 2009 Civic Hybrid with its Save Green Go Green Giveaway! Wow, I just read that the gas mileage on the Civic Hybrid goes up to 45 mpg on the highway. That is almost double of my current car. That is reason enough for me to enter this giveaway. To enter this giveaway, all I have to do is register with Charter and also maybe use one of their services. Charter is currently offering High-Speed Internet, Cable TV and Telephone at a great rate. So not only do I get to enjoy a savings on Charter services, I will have that chance to win a Civic Hybrid.

What about you? Is your current car a gas-guzzler? Wouldn’t you like to have a lower gas bill and save the environment? If you said yes, what are you waiting for? Go check out the Charter giveaway immediately and you might just win a Civic Hybrid. Good Luck!

This weekend is the Salmon Festival which celebrates the return of the salmon to their birthplace. There is always a big celebration here with 2 days of festivities. We went early this year and caught the parade. Lil’ C love the parade especially the floats. The weather was a little gloomy but it did stay dry throughout the hourlong parade.

Unfortunately after the parade, it started pouring! Our plans of visiting the fair and indulging in all the yummy fair food were kinda crushed. After buying some kettle corn, we headed home drenched! Hopefully the weather will be better tomorrow, then we might just drop by the festival again especially the salmon hatchery.

Even though my little girl is almost 4, I have to go to the bathroom with her whenever she needs to wash her hands. It’s not that she is not capable of washing her own hands but she always has trouble turning on the faucet. My current faucet handle is very tight and hard to turn. Maybe I should look into those automatic sensor faucets like the ones in her preschool. If I have that in the house, I won’t have to make that many bathroom runs with her anymore.