satisfaction

The makings of a satisfying day.
I watched a pretty decent movie.
I did something to take charge of my health and physical well-being.
I had what I like to refer to as The Bubble Bath Extravaganza. Aromatherapy oils. Moisture mask. Exfoliating scrub. Neroli Jasmine bath foam. Green tea scrub.
I made dinner and kick ass lime juice with organically grown limes.

Don't you just love the feeling? Unfortunately, it kinda makes you want more.

breakfast

Ask yourself this - how many times have you taken that meal for granted? We all know it is "the most important meal of the day", but come on. Unless it's the weekend, breakfast for me usually takes less than five minutes and is eaten standing up/getting stuff together for work/on the way to work. On the rare occasion, I take some time to whip up a healthy breakfast smoothie.

Reading this, kinda sorta changed my mind. I so want to take breakfast more seriously. But does that mean getting up earlier? And eating - OATS?! It's not like I have unhealthy things for breakfast anyway. My smoothies are made with frozen strawberries (no added sugar), sugar-free apple juice, a handful of oats (yuck) to slow down the absorption of sugar (or so says the Jamie Oliver book), bananas and natural yogurt. I have toast (okay, fine - it's white bread. bad!) most of the time, sometimes French toast. I'm not reaaaaally fond of breakfast egg-things. I quite like croissants, to put it mildly. Sometimes, I have cereal (coated with honey - bad?)

Hmm. Might have to give this some more thought.

"When you wake up, you have an extraordinary opportunity to put something powerful inside of you that will energize, nourish and sustain your being for the whole day."

hellogoodbye

Thursday night, my dad left for Switzerland. Cousin N is getting married next weekend. I haven't figured out why I'm not there. I mean, I have reasons (mostly logistic ones), but they're not all that great, to be perfectly honest. That same night, cousin K arrived from New Zealand for a short holiday, so I decided to tag along to the airport. I saw a grand total of four people wearing masks - people don't seem to mind they could catch the dreaded flu, huh. I guess if they did, there'd be less air travel but where's the fun in that.

I. Need. A. Holiday.

I'm quite tempted to just go. But we all know the chances of that happening are pretty close to nonexistent.

"There is a land called Passive Aggressiva, and I am their Queen."

four

I've been getting up at 4 a.m. the last couple of nights. I haven't a clue why. Hopefully today's yoga session tired me out enough to sleep through the night.

I'm really inconsistent with this thing, huh. Another thing I'm really inconsistent with (other than my sleeping patterns...) is my skin care regime. It's quite haphazard. I actually went for a facial today and the lady kinda freaked me out. I am SO cleansing and toning and moisturizing every day! And scrubbing and masking twice a week! Or at least once. Yeeesh!

dig out your soul

I watched Oasis live last weekend.

question

It's Lent, which to the uninitiated, is the period of 40-odd days before Easter where people give up the things they like, typically meat and alcohol. We never do the whole 40 days, but usually just the last week. Talking to my friends who are sorta fasting had me wondering about something, cuz they didn't give up all types of meat - they're still okay with having seafood. So how come it's okay to have fish but not chicken? They're both still animals. Are sea creatures lesser animals? Is it less cruel to kill a fish than it is to kill a chicken?

pourquoi??

rewind

Since I started paying this thing a little more attention, I've been browsing through a couple of old posts. Today, I had a bit of time to spare and curiosity got the better of me - I went way back to the beginning and worked my way forward. I was quite surprised at what I found, and was very glad that I managed to capture those memories in a way that takes me back to that time. I was even telling A that I had a few deep moments here and there ;) but seriously, at the end of the day (and I've said this before...), this is more for me than anything. This thing, it's like a guide to me. Makes me wonder if should restrict access (not that I think anyone remembers this anyway...). Except maybe V. And whoever decides to Google me...

I made cupcakes today. Totally spur of the moment. Vanilla cupcakes (with real vanilla all the way from Bali - I so miss Bali!!) with frosting and chocolate sprinkles.

related and otherwise

There goes the gorgeous stretch of long weekends...

The last one was spent at the beach for a day, and the next day, randomly deciding to stop by two bookshops to see if I could get my hands on the follow-up to a book I recently finished. It was extremely different from what I usually go for, but so riveting at points that I could barely stand to put it down. I found myself flipping forward a couple of pages one night, which is something I never do! The first book was completely unavailable, so I was most relieved that I got one of the two last copies!

On a somewhat related note, how awesome is getting mail the old-fashioned way?! This time around, I was the sender. But let me tell you - sending someone something and having tell you all about it, how they reacted...everything about the whole experience - is pretty, damn awesome.

On a somewhat unrelated note, I ended up going for a Bollywood Dance class last night. It's not so much a dance as it is a workout to songs from Hindi movies, but it was quite the fun ;) it was as physically intense as the top-secret dance practices before the wedding, which I just realized isn't up here at all! The wedding deserves like a website for itself, really.

This started of as me wanting to put up some more of the raw, unedited pieces I did for my Feature Writing class, but then I found it already here! This non-bloggy thing has got SO much stuff on it, seriously...

life's like an hourglass glued to the table

Know how things seem fun for a while, then you forget all about them? Or get caught up in too many other things?

Yeah.

December was...eventful. I was quite pleasantly surprised one Sunday morning, which was just the beginning of two weeks of the lowest of lows and the highest of highs, all at the same time. Christmas without Charlie, and slightly different from our usual, as dad's family were all over the place. Good, all the same. Laughs, presents, food. New Year's was memorable, to say the least. Again, different - a park (and in high heels, too...) to watch fireworks. And now, we're already a month into the new year. Today, someone else left. But on the bright side, I now have two dresses and a top, yaay!

It's all about time, though, isn't it. You're in that moment and it feels like you have so many more, that this isn't at all going to come to an end anytime soon. Until it does and you're left yearning, wondering how come it feels like forever when it's only been a few weeks, and how those moments seem now to have gone by so damn quickly.

A watch, one that stops time. A teleporter. A desert island (or maybe a log cabin in the mountains...).

These are the things I want right now. In other words, to be left alone, just us, without having to worry about the rest of the world.

To stop the sand in that hourglass. Just for a little while.

*Anna Nalick - Breathe (2 A.M.)

you.

Almost a month later, and I don't even know where to start.

The booklets looked gorgeous, as did everything else. I did eventually find shoes and clothes and accessories...and I kinda sorta rocked my Bachelorette Party badge ;)

The wedding was quite the experience, in more ways than one. Clubbing till dawn with a view of the ocean from the dance floor. Too little sleep. Cousins I haven't seen in the longest time. Performing after two months of secret dance practices. Dressing up every night. Meeting all sorts of lovely people...and the wedding itself!

Okay - confession. The only reason I'm doing this is cuz I found out that when you Google me, you get this website. Obviously, I didn't Google myself. But hello, the person (people?) who did :)

oh. my. god.

I was telling P about all the things I have to do in the next couple of days, and I freaked.

Here it is, so you can freak with me.

1. I'm printing the program booklets for my cousin's wedding (which will be in Bali in under two weeks!!). That's 400 pages.
   
2. The official opening of the place I work at is this weekend. There's SO much to do for that! We've got some deputy minister dude coming, a bunch of other VIPs...
3. Then, there's the opening itself.
   
4. Relatives are arriving one by one. Dinner tomorrow. Another on Friday.
   
5. A birthday on Thursday.
   
6. Engagement dinner on Saturday
7. I have to get my hair cut this week.
   
8. I have no shoes for the wedding.
   
9. I have to decide on accessories, bag/no bag...
10. I have to start thinking about the things I'm going to wear and packing!
11. I have to remember to bring the Bachelorette Party badges. I can sooo see myself forgetting them, and they're way too hot to not use.
    
12. Sunday is our final secret meeting before the wedding.
    
13. I'm receiving an award on Friday morning. No idea what I'm going to wear for that either.
    
14. Monday I've got my final fitting for the dress and we're hosting a bridal shower/dessert party thing. For which I need to sort out chocolate fondue stuff and bake cupcakes.

I think that about covers it for now. Gahhh.

buying things without paying for them

It was my day off from work and I had a bunch of errands to do. I need shoes for the wedding, I needed to pick up my necklace and my cousin needed a margarita. We later ended up in MPH cuz I have RM300 book vouchers to spend. It felt like a task at first - I kept thinking about how much easier it would have been if I had just had that in cash. But we walked around anyway, and I came home with a Sophie Kinsella book I wanted a while back, and a cupcake set type thing. It comes with a recipe book, a silicone tray, but more importantly, a piping bag and five different nozzles...FUN! If I like you enough, you should expect cupcakes. Walking around and picking up random things is no longer a task.

of bats and buddhas

I kinda freaked when I was filling in the date on a feedback form the other day. It was the first of November. NOVEMBER!!

In other news, the Oasis CD has moved from my desk to my CD player, where it lies pretty much un-listened to. Blasphemous, I know. I need to sort that out.

The Diwali/Grad party was...a lot of things. It was the first time ever I wore a sari, so moving around was very much a controlled process (as opposed to an automatic one, as it should be). There were quite a few surprises - I had no idea what would be going on, and also in the form of people I didn't quite completely expect to be there. But it was nice, tho.

I received a letter today. Apparently, the lovely people at the University of H in England have decided to give me an award for Year 3 performance...yaay! Although it means another awards ceremony...

We had a gorgeous Thai dinner the other night. It was mum's birthday and we ended up in The Curve, deciding between Fridays (which had been decorated for Halloween) and Sutra (which has the coolest walls full of Buddhas). I miss Bangkok. I miss Bali (which will be taken care of very soon). I miss everything, really. I could go on :)

And I miss Charlie. It's awful to think it's been almost a year.

hmmm...

It's been a while (I really should stop saying that) since my Feature Writing class (which I aced, btw...). Same story, different day. But who doesn't get distracted and forget all about their non-blog blogs?

Okay, a lot of people, but I'm not a lot of people.

Things are hectic. There's work, there's the wedding and wedding-related things (the surprise, the dress...), the grad/Diwali party my parents are throwing...and there's also the shiny new Oasis CD that's sitting on my desk which I haven't even begun to listen to. That, however, is at the TOP of my list of things to do - even before Kirby Atwood ;)

Here's to starting again! *clinks glass* for me. I just realized that October is pretty much over. Where are the weeks going?!

untitled

This is the first assignment I wrote for my Feature Writing class. Writing fiction was a lot more difficult than I had expected, and I had actually written almost one whole piece before deciding on a complete re-write. We were told that titles are unnecessary, and I have to agree cuz I really don't have one and I don't quite see the need. It'll probably just influence your perception about the story, so here it is, in all its titleless glory. I still feel kinda insecure about it, but the (more than) decent grade helped :) Much thanks to my editors, P and V.

***

The tall, glass windows and steel fixtures that surrounded her made her feel as though she was on board a futuristic space shuttle, headed for a destination unknown. The cool blast of air-conditioning hit her as the automatic doors slid open. It was a welcomed relief from the stifling heat of the car park. Walking into the hall, she was immediately surrounded by throngs of people, each of them seemingly set on a personal mission. How many of them were here for the same reason she was, she wondered. The butterflies that had been flitting around in her stomach for the last couple of hours had somehow learnt to salsa. She felt her heartbeat quicken as her eyes searched the hall for a wall of displays. Spotting them, she struggled to make her way through the crowd. The place was unusually packed, she thought to herself, recalling the last time she was here. It had been a breeze then, unlike today. She finally arrived at the displays only to find that his flight had been delayed. She sighed heavily, realizing that she would be spending the next hour in this massively congested arrival hall. Yet another hour that she would not be spending with him.

Her stomach rumbled, interrupting her thoughts. She had skipped breakfast, having not slept well the night before. Thoughts and plans for the weekend had consumed her and made a good night’s rest an elusive desire. By the time she finally fell asleep, it was almost time to leave for the airport. She had decided to trade breakfast for a few more minutes in bed. Now, she thought to herself, I really need some food.

Her eyes searched the hall again, this time for a different reason. There was a fast food restaurant filled with families and queues that stretched its length. Harried parents were trying to feed their children and themselves, and the noise emanating from that corner of the hall was enough to send her scurrying in the opposite direction. Glimpsing a café a little farther away from the madness, she headed towards it. It was crowded as well, but decidedly less noisy as its patrons were mostly people her own age. Stepping into its cozy warmth, she breathed in the aroma of coffee that permeated the air and glanced around. There was a woman in a long, printed skirt, sitting by herself and flipping through a tattered copy of a travel guide. There was a man with dreadlocks, looking at his laptop screen with a male friend. Then, she caught sight of an empty armchair tucked away in the corner of the shop. She hurried to the counter to place her order, hoping that no one else would get to it before she did.

The queue had only three people in front of her, and by the time she scanned the rather extensive menu, it was her turn.

“Good morning, how can I help you?” asked the floppy-haired teenager behind the counter.

Momentarily distracted by large, metallic ball beneath his lower lip, she paused, trying to remember what she had decided on having.

“I’ll have a…chocolate croissant and a caramel hot chocolate, please,” she told him while rummaging through her bag for her purse. He tapped her order onto the computer screen in front of him. After paying him, she hurried to the armchair only to find that it was now occupied. The man had his back towards her, but she could see that the armchair opposite his was empty. Deciding to find out if that was taken as well, she walked over to him and tapped him on the shoulder. He turned around and she felt her breath catch in her throat. Behind his wire-rimmed glasses, he had deep, green eyes. His dark hair was swept off his forehead with a casualness that suggested just the opposite. He raised his eyebrows questioningly at her.

“Excuse me, is this seat taken?” she asked, pointing to the empty armchair, hoping that the words she had uttered were audible and more importantly, in coherent English.

He glanced briefly at the chair before shaking his head and motioning for her to join him. She placed her bag on the table between them, next to his mug of steaming black coffee. Sinking into the purple velvet of the chair, she took a deep breath and snuck a peek at the young man in front of her. He was wearing a white, pin-striped shirt and reading a thick novel with yellowed pages. As she was trying to read its title, a waiter arrived at their table with her order, causing the man to look up. Once the waiter had left, he flashed a dazzling smile at her and introduced himself.

“Hi, I’m Damien," he said, extending his hand.

“Mia,” she replied, shaking his hand. She hoped that he didn’t notice her slightly sweaty palms.

The butterflies in her stomach had begun their salsa dance again. She smiled at Damien, trying to figure out the attraction she felt to this stranger.

“What brings you here?” he asked, slipping a colorful bookmark between the pages of his novel.

She hesitated, trying to resist the urge to tell him the entire story. For reasons she couldn’t explain, she felt a connection to this person who mere minutes ago, knew nothing of her existence. She felt like she could tell him anything.


“I’m picking my fiancé up,” she began.

His intent gaze didn’t waver. He nodded slightly, not saying a word but somehow compelling her to say more. She suddenly found herself describing the long-distance relationship she had been in for the last four years. The toll it had taken on her, but also how she lived for whatever time they were able to spend together. She told him about the vacations they had taken. The weekend trips to Bangkok and Bali. Skiing in the Swiss Alps. Shopping in Milan. She also expressed the emotional anguish she felt every time they said goodbye. Damien just sat there, occasionally sipping his coffee, listening to every word she said. It was an intense experience for her – she was animated, gesturing and talking ever so quickly. He, on the other hand, was the complete opposite – sitting absolutely still except for the occasional nod.

Before she knew it, she found herself telling him the doubts she had about her impending nuptials. How she wasn’t sure if she was willing to uproot herself from her familiar surroundings, her friends and family – to live in a foreign country, jet-setting around the world whenever necessary. She talked about how intense their relationship was and how much they cared about each other, but how she didn’t know if that was enough. Her eyes welled up as she told him of her fears. He picked up a serviette from the table and offered it to her, her croissant and hot chocolate long forgotten. She took it from him and their fingertips grazed. All of a sudden, the butterflies were now moving to a faster, more intense rhythm. Warning bells sounded in her mind. She took a deep breath and excused herself to go to the washroom.

Standing at the sink, she splashed cold water onto her face. As she picked up a paper napkin, she thought about what had just happened. I can’t believe I told him all that, she thought to herself.

“What was I thinking?” she asked her reflection, drawing curious glances from the other women.

By the time she had brushed her hair and reapplied her make-up, she had devised a plan. She was going to tell him that she had to leave immediately, not wanting to spend another minute under the scrutiny of his attentive gaze.
She arrived back at their table at the exact moment a waiter did. Damien had thoughtfully asked for her croissant and hot chocolate to be reheated. Realizing that she was still hungry, she sank once more into the soft, velvet-covered chair. I’m just going to get this over with, she told herself. She reluctantly looked up to thank him. He flashed her that smile again as she took a bite of the warm, buttery croissant. His eyes never left her, and this was now beginning to unnerve her. She quickly finished the croissant and set the plate down.

“Look,” she began, sitting up. “I haven’t the slightest clue why I told you all those things. I love him. I really do. And we’re getting married in two weeks,” she continued.

He regarded her for a moment before leaning forward, closing the physical distance between them.

“Are you trying to convince me, or are you trying to convince yourself?” he asked.

She cursed silently at how her body welcomed his intrusion of her personal space. I’m going to murder those pesky butterflies, she thought to herself as she felt them start to flutter again. Sighing, she looked away, torn between wanting to defend herself and getting up and leaving. Why should I have to explain myself to this stranger, she asked herself, knowing full well that it was because she actually cared what he thought of her. The attraction she felt towards him unsettled her. She decided to leave before she did anything else that she might later regret. She looked back at him, finding that he hadn’t moved. Shaking her head, she picked up her mug, downing its lukewarm contents.

“Thank you for listening, but I have to go now,” she said as she got up and turned around to leave, not really meeting his eyes.

Suddenly, she felt his fingers around her wrist. She stopped and turned to face him. He was standing up now, towering above her.

“I know you felt everything I felt,” he said softly, his deep voice competing with the surrounding sounds of cutlery and conversation. He stroked the inside of her wrist with his thumb.

She stood there, not quite sure what she should do. Her heart was racing. She was drawn towards him – to his intensity and the way he made her feel she could say anything. At the same time, thoughts of her fiancé fought for her attention. His flight would be arriving at any minute, she reminded herself, desperate for a solution to the dilemma she found herself in.

“Excuse me, is this table taken?” A young woman was standing in front of them, gesturing to their table. She had shattered the connection Damien and Mia had shared only moments before.

Damien looked at Mia, expectantly. She glanced back at him, shook her head and said to the woman, “It’s all yours,” before walking away.

“Wait!” she heard him call out. Ignoring him, she walked faster and disappeared into the crowd.

Back in the arrival hall, she wandered through the hordes of people, looking for a place to sit and wait. She walked past a group of drivers holding up placards with names on them, waiting for their guests. Past banks of seats until she finally spotted an empty one. She settled down in between an old man clutching his walking stick and a young boy clutching a PSP. She glanced at the dials of the diamond-encrusted watch on her wrist, a gift from her fiancé whom she would be seeing very soon. That realization suddenly filled her with a sense of guilt.

Wait.

Why should I feel guilty, she asked herself, staring at the shiny, marble floor. It’s not like anything happened. We just talked! Her attempts at rationalizing her uncharacteristic behavior failed to relieve the sinking feeling she had in her stomach. She looked around, trying to distract herself. It seemed like a group of people had just entered the hall. Wheeling trolleys laden with bags, they searched for familiar faces among the masses. There were tearful reunions, so unlike the tearful farewells taking place in the departure hall. She smiled as she watched a woman about her age jump into the arms of a young man, wrapping her arms around him tightly. The sight warmed her, and she got up, walking towards the entrance of the hall.

She stood on her tiptoes, trying to see past the people gathered there. Another group of weary travelers were making their way into the hall. Her eyes parted the crowd, searching for that familiar tumble of unruly curls. The butterflies started to dance again. This, she thought to herself, is real. She tried to push images of those piercing, green eyes out of her mind. Everything that had happened with Damien was nothing but cold feet and perfectly understandable, she told herself. She glanced down at her watch again, wondering what was taking him so long. All of a sudden, there he was, standing in front of her with the largest bouquet of purple orchids she had ever seen.

His charcoal suit, unbuttoned to reveal a light blue shirt, looked immaculate even after a long-haul flight. With a heart-warming smile, he enveloped her in a hug that literally took her breath away.

“I’ve missed you,” he said, holding her close.

Before she could reply, she saw Damien over her fiancé’s shoulder, watching them from across the hall. That intense, unwavering gaze sent a chill down her spine. Hurriedly pulling away from her fiancé, she explained that she had been waiting in the crowded hall for a long time and just wanted to get out of there. His puzzled expression softened. He took her hand in his, leading her towards the elevators. She cast a glance over her shoulder to where she had seen Damien, looking again for those green eyes. He wasn’t there, and she breathed a sigh of relief. The wretched butterflies finally settled down.

The next evening, she accompanied her fiancé to a dinner he had organized to welcome his new colleague to the city. The past day had been utter bliss, spent relishing the pleasure of each other’s company and sorting out a few last minute wedding details. They walked up to the bar, where a tall man was standing with a drink in one hand. He had his back towards them, and turned around when he was tapped on the shoulder.

“Mia, I’d like you to meet Damien,” said her fiancé.

Her mouth went dry, her heart started to pound. The butterflies had begun to dance again, this time to an unbridled, almost ferocious beat.

domesticated...NOT

Exactly a week ago was the first day of my self-imposed hiatus from all things academic. Last Wednesday, I had my last final. It was around then that I decided to go vegetarian three times a week for a month. I had momentarily entertained the idea of doing it for a whole month, but that would be unrealistic (I'd run out of things to eat before you can say 'vegetarian'). Now that I have pretty much, absolutely nothing to do until I decide otherwise, I have been spending some time in the kitchen. I made a vegetable curry the other day, and today was asparagus with vegetarian sambal belacan and a stir-fry (broccoli, tofu, corn and cauliflower with vegetarian oyster sauce).

On Tuesday, I went over to H's to make konnyaku jelly for a dinner she was going to. Somehow, we didn't feel satisfied so we came back to my house and made cupcakes. Since I had a pot of Swiss chocolate leftover from an impromptu chocolate fondue/Taboo party I decided to throw, we stuffed bits of chocolate into the cupcake batter just before they went into the oven. The result? Pure deliciousness. Pictures courtesy of H.

And as I have said before, I'm not domestic :)

for granted

Early yesterday morning, a pipe decided to burst somewhere in SS2. THe result? We had no water all day. At first they said the water will be back by noon. Noon became 3, which became 6, which became 7, which became 9...and then, they stopped answering the phone.

I was washing up before bed after coming home from a place called KTZ with the friends (they have some pretty strange things). I had left the water running for a bit, and then I had a moment. When was the last time I turned on a tap and not expected clean water to come gushing out? We're such fools.

tunnel vision

**Edited Version**

this time, the assignment was to look out a window for ten minutes, then write about what you remember seeing for the next ten. critique.

***

In stillness, movement captivates.

The leaves on a neighbor’s tree wave gently in the soft breeze. An ant makes its way across the porch tiles. Another ant, a little further away, heads in the opposite direction. The wind picks up – branches sway, a dead leaf glides gently to the ground. Outside, a red and white taxi passes by. The curtain waves, and the scene is momentarily viewed from behind a haze of gold. A butterfly with black and yellow wings flits from a plant to another, its wings fluttering steadily. Outside now, a blue car. Sunlight is dimmed by a passing cloud and everything turns a shade darker. There is another butterfly. A woman with large, black sunglasses and a fuchsia-colored headscarf walks by. The palm tree casts a shadow on the grass beneath it. The passing cloud is gone, and everything is bright again.

In movement, stillness captivates. Vibrant colors are everywhere. The light green of the blades of grass. The pink of a hibiscus. The deep purple of large leaves. The white of small flowers. The grey of stepping stones.

Sounds are everywhere. The drone of football news that almost drowns out the trickling water from an indoor fountain. The chirping of a bird. A phone rings. One-sided conversation.

inked

It's done. Three weeks passed by so quickly. I walked into the shop, told them how I wanted things, came back 15 minutes later, made some changes and I was good to go. Half an hour later, I walked out with a butterfly on my left ankle. When the needle first touched my skin, I asked myself - is that it? And seriously, it didn't hurt nearly as much as I expected it to. Don't get me wrong, there were bad moments. But cuz the whole thing was over pretty quickly, it wasn't so bad. Now comes the fun part - healing.

of self-imposed silence

In yesterday's Feature Writing class, we were given a little assignment. Here's the piece I wrote on it. Comment away, s'il vous plaît.

***

I glanced at what was written in the notebook in front of me: “No verbal communication from 6 p.m. to 12 a.m.”. There was no way that this was going to happen, I thought to myself. I put my things away and left the lecture hall.

It had been a long day – back-to-back classes, defending a thesis I had been working on for almost a year, and then, attempting to tutor a preadolescent in the nuances of the Malay language – a feat far more challenging than it appeared. But I was finally back home and looking forward to a long, hot shower when I remembered this little assignment. Before I could talk myself out of doing it, I decided to give it a shot. With much reluctance, I informed my mother that I would not be communicating verbally for the next five hours. Her reaction? “How ridiculous!” It was 7 p.m.

While in the shower, it appeared that my mind was attempting to make up for the silence I would be subjecting myself to. Thoughts raced through my mind. How would I say the things I needed to say? Paper and pencil? Charades? Can I actually do this for five whole hours? Would my other senses be heightened now? I paused momentarily – did my papaya-scented shower gel smell any stronger? Did the water on my skin feel any hotter? It was only then that I realized that talking wasn’t even one of our five senses, although I know many people who would argue otherwise. I must have been a lot more tired than I thought.

7.25 p.m.
I was making copies of some legal documents when a name on the page caught my eye. Wanting to know why the man I call ‘Uncle Mike’ had Maria listed as his first name, I had to resort to gesticulating wildly to get my mother’s attention from across the room, and then try to explain what I wanted to know. This whole self-imposed silence was beginning to annoy me. I had questions and comments that I didn’t want to have to write down to get across. Her one line explanation didn’t really explain anything, and ‘Uncle Maria’ didn’t sound nearly as amusing in my head as it might have out loud.

7.32 p.m.
Into the room sauntered my brother, who reacted to my mother’s explanation of my strange behavior with puzzled glances that soon turned into sarcastic sniggers perfected by many an adolescent. I then had to fend off his attempts to do everything he possibly could to make me give up. I persevered, but my patience was wearing thin.

7.48 p.m.
I was in my room, contemplating throwing in the proverbial towel. Although I had no plans on being extremely verbose for the next couple of hours, I liked that it was an option. The gestures and the miming were fun for a little while, but I could see my frustration levels increasing steadily as the night wore on. It was taking more energy to not say something than to actually say it. This was the last thing I wanted at the end of a strenuous day. My mind made up, I left my room and announced loudly – I. Give. Up. It was 8 p.m.