10 Seconds

At those last moments,
You feel nothing but emptiness,
Your mind filled with thoughts,
That sorrow;
That sadness;
That imperfection.


You feel your insignificance,
That you did not belong,
Wandering upon strands of loneliness,
You came to succumb.

Off you go to seek,
Your so called freedom.
Struggled hard though within alas,
You took that final decision.


Falling falling,
That final 10 seconds,
Each a story to tell,
And thus it unfolds each of own reasons...

One,
You see those neatly arranged flowers by your bed. How bright they were, you've never noticed. And those loving pictures by its side, those laughter of family and friends. How could you have forgotten?


Two,
You see your family and friends grieving over your passing. Might give you some thought that people actually do care, but what's the use now? You're falling...

Three,
You see a homeless little boy down the corner of a street striving hard to survive. He eats, drinks, wears and uses whatever he could find just to keep himself alive for another day. Who are you to end such a blessed life? Shame descends upon yourself...


Four,
You see a poor old lady, selling matches on a cold winter's day. Neither does she complain, nor does she blames anyone for her stricken life. She lives in shackles day by day since she was born. Who are you to end such a blessed life? Shame once again, descends upon yourself...

Five,
Those grieving family and friends have gotten lesser over time. Each a life of their own, each a story to write on. Your story ended, and it ended in a tragic manner. You've thought people might miss you forever when you're gone. Think again, they have had lives to live on.


Six,
Shed a tear you may. The only persons still grieving over you day and night are your parents. How selfish and insensitive were you to make such a decision. Their own flesh and blood, now gone in just a blink, gone just because you couldn't think, gone just in that final 10 seconds of life...

Seven,
You see your little brothers and sisters getting married. Their happiness written all over their faces. Your heart smiles but you weren't able to share the blessings. What gives?


Eight,
You see in a more distant future, on the passing of your loving parents. Family members gather once again to grieve. But not you, no. Everyone was there to give their blessings, but where were you? And with your parents gone, will their be anyone else to grieve for you?

Nine,
The rain drizzles hard that night. You see a person, who looks just like you standing over the balcony. His eyes, a gleam in which you'll notice immediately. His proceeding actions in which you'll identify distinctively. What would you do now? Would you stop him?


Ten,
You've reached the end of your final 10 seconds. Your world its coming to an end. You've regret it but it would seem all but too late. A miracle would be needed, that aside you've just only come to realize ~~ Life is all too precious...

This is written in conjunction that suicidal cases have been vastly increasing in recent times all over the world. Be it due to academics, relationships or other matters, life is just too precious to be taken lightly. Hence, it is hope that through this, it helps give readers a proper insight of how improper taking your life would be. Enjoy life to the fullest. If you meet an obstacle, stand up to it and face it head on. In every cloud, there has to be a silver lining, Believe on that!

Signing off:

Nickel Low CJ

A Great Big World ~ Say Something

  Well, I just had to write something about this song! It's simply beautiful and soothing, meaningful as it is. Nothing much to say, just listen with your heart... :)

LYRICS:


Say something I'm giving up on you
I'll be the one if you want me to
Anywhere I would have followed you
Say something I'm giving up on you

And I am feeling so small
It was over my head
I know nothing at all

And I will stumble and fall
I'm still learning love
Just starting to crawl

Say something I'm giving up on you
I'm sorry that I couldn't get to you
Anywhere I would have followed you
Say something I'm giving up on you

And I will swallow my pride
You're the one that I love
And I'm saying goodbye

Say something I'm giving up on you
I'm sorry that I couldn't get to you
Anywhere I would have followed you

Say something I'm giving up on you
Say something I'm giving up on you
Say something

  For those who would love this song on guitar, here's the chords! 

Bm                G                D        A

  Say something, I'm giving up on you.

Bm              G                  D        A

  I'll be the one, if you want me to.

Bm          G                    D         A

  Anywhere, I would've followed you.

Bm               G                D        A

  Say something, I'm giving up on you.

    D                A           

And I am feeling so small.

        G

It was over my head

                  D     A

I know nothing at all.

    D                   A 

And I will stumble and fall.

            G

I'm still learning to love

                 D     A

Just starting to crawl.

Bm                G                D       A

   Say something, I'm giving up on you.

Bm                G                  D     A

   I'm sorry that I couldn't get to you.

Bm           G              D      A

   Anywhere, I will follow you.

Bm                G                D        A

   Say something, I'm giving up on you.

    D                  A 

And I will swallow my pride.

            G

You're the one that I love

                   D        A

And I'm saying goodbye.

Bm               G                D        A

  Say something, I'm giving up on you.

Bm             G                  D        A

  I'll be the one, if you want me to.

Bm           G                    D         A

  Anywhere, I would've followed you.

Bm                G                D        A

  Say something, I'm giving up on you.

Say something, I'm giving up on you.

Say something

Signing off:

Nickel Low CJ

Some Random Thoughts #6 (To Coke or Not To Coke?)

  Ever wondered why you feel lethargic and tired after a glass of Coke? Ever wondered why you had the urge to pee after well, a glass of Coke? I tried to avoid Coke (basically any soft-drinks in the market) since the past one year. Hard it may be, but you'll be surprised of the contents and facts about these drinks! 

WHAT COKE DOES TO YOUR BODY:-

1) In the first 10 minutes: 10 teaspoons of sugar hit your system. (100% of your recommended daily intake.) You don’t immediately vomit from the overwhelming sweetness because phosphoric acid cuts the flavor, allowing you to keep it down.

2) 20 minutes: Your blood sugar spikes, causing an insulin burst. Your liver responds to this by turning any sugar it can get its hands on into fat. (And there’s plenty of that at this particular moment.)

3) 40 minutes: Caffeine absorption from Coke (Yes, surprisingly Coke contains some amount of caffeine) is complete. Your pupils dilate; your blood pressure rises; as a response, your liver dumps more sugar into your bloodstream. The adenosine receptors in your brain are now blocked, preventing drowsiness.

4) 45 minutes: Your body ups your dopamine production, stimulating the pleasure centers of your brain. This is physically the same way heroin works, by the way.

5) > 60 minutes: The phosphoric acid binds calcium, magnesium, and zinc in your lower intestine, providing a further boost in metabolism. This is compounded by high doses of sugar and artificial sweeteners also increasing the urinary excretion of calcium.

> 60 minutes: The caffeine’s diuretic properties come into play. (It makes you have to pee.) It is now assured that you’ll evacuate the bonded calcium, magnesium, and zinc that was headed to your bones as well as sodium, electrolytes, and water.

> 60 minutes: As the rave inside you dies down, you’ll start to have a sugar crash. You may become irritable and/or sluggish. You've also now, literally, pissed away all the water that was in the Coke. But not before infusing it with valuable nutrients your body could have used for things like hydrating your system, or building strong bones and teeth.




This will all be followed by a caffeine crash in the next few hours. Want to know what happens after that? Check out what happens to your body after you drink a coke, every day for a long time.

Coke itself isn't the enemy here. It’s the dynamic combo of massive sugar doses combined with caffeine and phosphoric acid, which are found in almost all sodas. Moderation, people !




This post was originally written by Wade Meredith Daily health tips and adapted from Drug Information Centre: https://www.facebook.com/Druginformationcenter?hc_location=stream

To know about caffeine content on Coke, do look up here: http://www.coca-cola.co.uk/health/caffeine-in-your-can.html

Signing off:

Nickel Low CJ

A Very Happy Birthday!!!

You brought sunshine,

When there was only rain;

You brought sweetness,

When all I tasted was pain;

You brought laughter,

In the midst of sadness;

You brought hope, 

When there was nothing but darkness.

Happy birthday!

I bid to you,

A wonderful person,

Of that I've known.

Happy birthday!

I bid to you,

We've just met,

Time it seemed so long.

Happy birthday!

I bid to you,

A special day indeed,

For a very special person.

Happy birthday!

You're 20 now,

Looking forward in time,

To see what's bound....

Happy birthday little Grapefruit! 

All the best! Enjoy your day.... :)

Signing off:

Nickel Low CJ 

Some Random Thoughts #5 (Grapefruit a Grape Fruit?)

  The Grapefruit ~~ Is it from the grape family, and does it look anything like grapes? Good question. Well, one of my friends she popped out of nowhere claiming that she had mistaken the Grapefruit for grapes, while to her amazement on discovery that it's actually shaped like an orange!

  I've called her 'Grapefruit' since then to her bewilderment (she threatened that I'll suffer the consequences though), but really if one has not laid eyes on one, you would've thought the same now wouldn't you?! Seeing is believing they say. Alright, so the Grapefruit grows on an evergreen tree, in which the plant is a subtropical citrus tree and botanically belongs to the large Rutaceaefamily of citrus fruits of the genus Citrus; Scientific name: Citrus paradisi. 

  The Grapefruit however, got it's name because it grows in clusters like grapes, and in fact, is a natural hybridization of a pomelo and an orange! Believed to have evolved and originated from Indonesia and Malaysia, fresh Grapefruit from California and Arizona are available all year and come in several colors including pink, red, white and golden! Who knew Grapefruits were this fascinating...

  However it is, some people called it 'The fruit of paradise', in which claimed to be one of the healthiest fruits in the world. Tart and tangy with an underlying sweetness, grapefruit has a juiciness that rivals that of the ever popular orange and sparkles with many of the same health promoting benefits. Here are some benefits of a Grapefruit I got from an interesting website:

Health benefits of Grapefruit


1. Delicious, grapefruit is very low in calories, consists of just 42 calories per 100 g. Nonetheless; it is rich in dietary insoluble fiber pectin, which by acting as a bulk laxative helps to protect the colon mucous membrane by decreasing exposure time to toxic substances in the colon as well as binding to cancer-causing chemicals in the colon.


2. Pectin has also been shown to reduce blood cholesterol levels by decreasing re-absorption of cholesterol binding bile acids in the colon.


3. The fruit contains very good levels of vitamin-A (provides about 1150 IU per 100g), and flavonoid antioxidants such as naringenin, and naringin. Besides, it is a moderate source of lycopene, beta-carotene, xanthin and lutein. Studies suggest that these compounds have antioxidant properties and are essential for vision. The total antioxidant strength measured in terms of oxygen radical absorbance capacity (ORAC) of grapefruit is 1548 µmol TE/100 g.


4. Further, vitamin A is also required maintaining healthy mucus membranes and skin. Consumption of natural fruits rich in vitamin-A, and flavonoids helps to protect from lung and oral cavity cancers.


5. It is an excellent source of antioxidant vitamin-C; providing about 52% of DRI. Vitamin-C is a powerful natural anti-oxidant and helps the body develop resistance against infectious agents and scavenge harmful free radicals. It, furthermore, is required for the maintenance of healthy connective tissue and aids in early wound healing. It also facilitates dietary iron absorption from the intestine.


6. 100 g of fresh fruit contains about 135 mg of potassium electrolyte. Potassium is an important component of cell and body fluids, helps controlling heart rate and blood pressure through countering sodium effects.


7. Red varieties of grapefruits are especially rich in the most powerful flavonoid antioxidant, lycopene. Studies have shown that lycopene protects skin damage from UV rays, and offers protection against prostate cancer.


8. Additionally, it contains moderate levels of B-complex group of vitamins such as folates, riboflavin, pyridoxine, and thiamin in addition to some resourceful minerals such as iron, calcium, copper, and phosphorus.

  You can eat Grapefruit just like an orange by peeling it and dividing it into segments. Each medium Grapefruit has 10 to 12 sections. A Grapefruit is 75% juice. One medium Grapefruit will give you 2/3 of a cup of fresh-squeezed juice. Grapefruit juice freshly squeezed and stored covered in the refrigerator will retain 98% of its vitamin C for up to a week! 

Here's some cool websites on Grapefruits:

http://www.sunkist.com/kids/experiments/

http://www.nutrition-and-you.com/grapefruit.html

Signing off:

Nickel Low CJ

Special thx to 'Grapefruit Rin' for the article idea~~ :)

The Doctor's Chair

  Finally, I've got some time-off just for myself. With a cup of warm coffee and a peaceful atmosphere to add, I'm busy hammering away at my keyboard once again. Well, just so you all know my dear readers, at this point of time, I am in a General Practitioner Posting, and hence I chose my hometown as my elective venue. (To mii, it's a holiday though, shhhhhh~~~)

  Anyway, to the point now, I was attached to this clinic, one that is well-known throughout Alor Star for the past, like 30+ years or so? With no names mentioned, I then started my attachment in aim to bolster my knowledge, well, a least that's what I hoped for.

 The doctor, (now that he's my GP teacher) was a great one. He teaches with so much care and dedication, not to forget the injection of a few medical jokes during normal conversations. His skills were incomparable to any doctor I've met so far, and his experience in the medical world was invaluable. Imagine almost 50 years in medical practice, 50 years! He was fluent in English as well, hence language wasn't a barrier to mii, communication was easy, except a blip or two when he started to converse in mandarin ('My mandarin is terrible' he would tell mii. Shouldn't I be saying the same as well?). So, there we were attending patients to their needs, with myself mostly the observer by his side. And like any other normal businesses, the clinic was quite at times. And these were the times, where the doctor's chair made mii indulge into a sea of thoughts, a world of my own...

  Here's why~~ At the clinic, I was usually standing. From morning to noon; from evening to night, I stood rooted, listening to every patient's complaint, the doctor's guidance and advice as well. And when it comes the time where everything seems to have quieten down, the doctor would raise from his chair to take a walk around the lovely garden just outside his clinic. Right before that, he would turn to mii and say, 'The clinic's quiet  now, you should take a rest. Here's my chair, sit and take a rest'. And he said the same exact words everyday at that same exact time when patients find the clinic a bore.

  I stared at the chair. The same chair that doctor used to sit in 30 years ago up till now in this very clinic; the same chair I used to see it as a child whenever I visited his clinic for a certain sickness; the same chair that stood as time passed by, it's frames the proud conquerer of the unforgiving time. I rejected, politely. I would rather stand on, or have a sit on the patient's chair than to meddle with the history of that chair.

 To mii, this doctor was one of the most respectable ones I'll put my hat down and crawl on my knees for. His reputation remains a legacy, one that could give an injection in a just a few seconds without the patient feeling any pain whatsoever. His skill-work is admirable and he is so down to earth. He doesn't even charge consultation fees, and he goes easy on medication prices for his patients. His care and love for his patients is more any one could ever ask for, none of that you could find in the attitude of young doctors nowadays.

  Hence, for mii to sit in THAT chair, would require mii to at least work harder to earn my stripes, to deem myself useful to the medical world. I would have felt guilty if I were to sit on it, and with my current level, I am no where near him. Still, that chair has given mii inspiration, given mii hope that some day, I may return to him, and accept his offer of that chair. For now, that doctor's chair, in which I shall refer to, shall be a test of my competency, a test of my mentality to keep up on this route. For shall I be one day just like him, remains a grasp of faith in my very hands of today. Till then, the doctor's chair, a legacy to be continued....

Signing off:

Nickel Low CJ

 

 

Delicious @ One Utama

  Hi readers!!!! It's been a while, but being back once again at One Utama, this time mii and ma aunt had decided to crash ourselves onto this lovely little outlet, Delicious! As clear as its name states, this is something you guys wanna feast your taste-buds on then.

A wide variety!

  Well, having passed by this outlet many times, my aunt soon decided it was the time to give this shop a verdict. Hence in we walked, greeted by a rather friendly service and seated comfortably in the middle of a heart-warming ambiance. As music was played, I scanned my eyes on the wide range of lovely little cakes on display. And when the menu came, it was a moment of being spoilt-of-choices, hence I was deeply indulged in the wide variety of foods available then. Most of it were western cuisines, but the desserts and cakes were the centre of attraction.

  Anyway, I called for the chef-recommended 'The Delicious Club Sandwich' while my aunt went for the 'Duck Confit Spaghettini'. We also decided on the 'Coconut Cake' as our dessert. Soon after, our orders arrived, and it was then taste-testing time!

The Delicious Club Sandwich!

  'The Delicious Club Sandwich' was served with chopped salad and potato wedges, making it a hearty meal. And it wasn't called a club sandwich for no reason. Having layers made up of grilled chicken, pesto, egg and tomatoes on toasted Brioche and some turkey bacon to add, one bite into it and you'll be lost for words. It was amazingly flavorful! I'm not really a fan of sandwiches anyway as I always thought they were too dry and hard to bite in. This however was a star-graduate of it class, a burst of flavours; its sauce tantalizing your taste-buds in whichever way it wants and the chicken, grilled to perfection. A must-try whenever you pay a visit here. And yes it was filling, very good-for-value portion, certainly one of the best sandwiches I've tasted in a very long time.

Layers of goodness!!!

A taste of heaven

  Next on was the 'Duck Confit Spaghetti'. Well we all know how tough duck meat could be. But this however were slices of tender, juicy duck meat mixed with flavorful sun-dried tomatoes and coriander, it was really worth the value paid for. I could only describe it in two words: Amazingly awesome! With olive oil too add, I thought that with was cooked with pure passion and heart. Unlike many other spaghetti sold in many other outlets, this was cooked to the extent that you couldn't find any reason to criticize it. The spaghetti itself was not too soft, nor too hard, the whole dish doesn't give you that 'ughh, so oily' feeling and with the duck meat and spices added to, this is something you SHOULD go for whenever you pay a visit here.

Duck Confit Spaghetti

Tantalizing!

   After all that, we soon treated ourselves to the dessert we picked, le 'Coconut Cake'. Alright, I had to admit I'm very particular in cakes, because:

1: I hate cakes to have the over-buttery taste;
2: I hate cakes that are too dry;
3: I can't take cakes (actually I can't take any foods) that are too sweet as it will then cause a bad ache to the site of my newly operated wisdom teeth.

Fluffy white angle!!! :)

  I was very afraid this cake would not be able to satisfy my taste, but how wrong I was. This was amazing! Moist, not too sweet and filled with yummy coconut, with some fresh cream within to add to the impressing appearance of the cake itself, this was DELICIOUS! Ok, now I know where the name of this outlet comes from...

Coconut Cake

  Well, there were other cakes as well, and we got to know that the cakes were changed everyday for freshness. There were daily specials on the cakes too, a new cake everyday hence you won't get bored with the same-old same-old. But I would highly recommend the Coconut Cake, though there are lots more of delicious cakes yet to be tested. Never mind, soon! (I told myself that).

  Overall, I loved the service at One Utama Delicious outlet. Fast and friendly. These little things certainly make up to a wonderful dining experience, and I assure you'll find the same whenever you pay a visit here. Till then, see ya!!! :)

Daily Specials!

** For further info, please have a look through this site: http://www.thedeliciousgroup.com/





Signing off:

Nickel Low CJ

Real Life 'Hannah Montana' !!!

Oh my~~~~

  Miley Cyrus came up the stage during the 2013 MTV VMA Awards, her looks all hot and sexy. Then, it sparked controversy from then on, putting up her most daring performance yet on stage, LIVE! Gone with those childhood fantasies, Hannah Montana to be exact where she made her name. Welcome kids to the real world; this ain't no ballroom dancing, it a total porn-like-make-out-on-stage!

Once upon a time~~~

  Out she walked from a giant Teddy, an eye-opener outfit, singing her hit song 'We Can't Stop'. Then she stripped down to a PVC two-lined, boob-revealing hot-suit and pants ~~ her skin blending into it, nude I would say! And with Robin Thicke to add his hit song 'Blurred Lines' to the stunning performance, the outcome was inevitable. 

Is that you, Miley?

Eye opener!!!

  Well, there were opinions from both sides of the corner. Some say she was hot and she could do whatever she liked, others disgusted at the fact how Miley had changed from, well, an adorable Disney star to this! There was one comment quoting 'I would really show my girls this, to teach them a lesson on how one crazy moment could change one's life'. 

This to that~~~

  You be the judge on this. Till then, see ya!

Miley Cyrus and Robin Thicke 

Well, you all know Thicke right? Blurred lines~~~~ Hmmmmm.....

Signing off,

Nickel Low CJ