Brisk Walking...

Further to what I blogged, I am determined to lose some weight and I did. 4 kg is not much but is an effort. I have been walking with my bro and friends 5 evening a week. Actually it started with feet dragging and panting and a 2.4km walk took me 23 minutes. My instructor cannot help but encouraged me but I am sure he knew that I am far from healthy but overweight. The regular walk is something that I looked forward to. I am trying to see whether I can lose up to 30 kg...humm.m.m...I will try!

Last week I went to check-out Changi Coastal Walk. I have been to this place so many times and I did not realized that the coastal walk was pleasant and relaxing. I timed my walk with RunKeeper which offers a GPS. It tells me the time, average speed per km, total calories burnt and the distance accomplished. My last walk was 4.85km @ 10.58/ km with a lost of 277 calories.

Walking back to health...

 

My recent medical checkup was a disaster. My doctor blah...blah...blah...at me for not taking care of my health. Actually all sinful food are so yummy and anything that is blend tasting is ''yucks''!. However I have taken all he said seriously. I realized that it is not whether you are overweight or you are slim, it is the stamina and health which matter most.

 

I count my blessings as just behind my block is a canal and a path with benches where people jog and cycle. Not far away and just around the corner is Tampines Eco Green.

 

This is the first time I visited this place by National Parks Board. I am happy that there is no place for car parking and therefore the place is peaceful and not swarmed with people. The people who jog and walk here are residence of Tampines and Pasir Ris and it keeps the Park in good condition and clean.

 

In the middle of concretes and highway, it is a hidden haven away from the hustle and bustle of a hectic day.  This Park not only provide sanctuary to the animal and reptile, it is also a sanctuary for all those who wander into the Park.  This place allows one to be near nature and be at peace with the environment.

 

The open grasslands around its vicinity allow people to walk and jog with shoes as well as bare footed. One can also sit down on the grass and smell its fragrance and to mediate or listen to the chirping of the birds and insects around. The flora and fauna around is green and healthy. This park is also a haven for biodiversity which is so crucial to our well being.

 

WOMAN'S HEART ATTACK

Heart Attack is sudden and it happened without warning. Someone sent me an article and we realized that heart attack happened to men and women are different. This is for ladies as well as men's knowledge and action. Please read on.........

NURSE'S HEART ATTACK EXPERIENCE I am an ER nurse and this is the best description of this event that I have ever heard. Please read, pay attention, and send it on! FEMALE HEART ATTACKS I was aware that female heart attacks are different, but this is the best description I've ever read. Women rarely have the same dramatic symptoms that men have ... you know, the sudden stabbing pain in the chest, the cold sweat, grabbing the chest & dropping to the floor that we see in movies. Here is the story of one woman's experience with a heart attack. I had a heart attack at about 10:30 PM with NO prior exertion, NO prior emotional trauma that one would suspect might have brought it on. I was sitting all snugly & warm on a cold evening, with my purring cat in my lap, reading an interesting story my friend had sent me, and actually thinking, 'A-A-h, this is the life, all cozy and warm in my soft, cushy Lazy Boy with my feet propped up. A moment later, I felt that awful sensation of indigestion, when you've been in a hurry and grabbed a bite of sandwich and washed it down with a dash of water, and that hurried bite seems to feel like you've swallowed a golf ball going down the esophagus in slow motion and it is most uncomfortable. You realize you shouldn't have gulped it down so fast and needed to chew it more thoroughly and this time drink a glass of water to hasten its progress down to the stomach. This was my initial sensation--the only trouble was that I hadn't taken a bite of anything since about 5:00 p.m. After it seemed to subside, the next sensation was like little squeezing motions that seemed to be racing up my SPINE (hind-sight, it was probably my aorta spasms), gaining speed as they continued racing up and under my sternum (breast bone, where one presses rhythmically when administering CPR). This fascinating process continued on into my throat and branched out into both jaws. 'AHA!! NOW I stopped puzzling about what was happening -- we all have read and/or heard about pain in the jaws being one of the signals of an MI happening, haven't we? I said aloud to myself and the cat, Dear God, I think I'm having a heart attack! I lowered the foot rest dumping the cat from my lap, started to take a step and fell on the floor instead. I thought to myself, If this is a heart attack, I shouldn't be walking into the next room where the phone is or anywhere else... but, on the other hand, if I don't, nobody will know that I need help, and if I wait any longer I may not be able to get up in a moment. I pulled myself up with the arms of the chair, walked slowly into the next room and dialed the Paramedics... I told her I thought I was having a heart attack due to the pressure building under the sternum and radiating into my jaws. I didn't feel hysterical or afraid, just stating the facts. She said she was sending the Paramedics over immediately, asked if the front door was near to me, and if so, to un-bolt the door and then lie down on the floor where they could see me when they came in. I unlocked the door and then laid down on the floor as instructed and lost consciousness, as I don't remember the medics coming in, their examination, lifting me onto a gurney or getting me into their ambulance, or hearing the call they made to St. Jude ER on the way, but I did briefly awaken when we arrived and saw that the radiologist was already there in his surgical blues and cap, helping the medics pull my stretcher out of the ambulance. He was bending over me asking questions (probably something like 'Have you taken any medications?') but I couldn't make my mind interpret what he was saying, or form an answer, and nodded off again, not waking up until the Cardiologist and partner had already threaded the teeny angiogram balloon up my femoral artery into the aorta and into my heart where they installed 2 side by side stints to hold open my right coronary artery. I know it sounds like all my thinking and actions at home must have taken at least 20-30 minutes before calling the paramedics, but actually it took perhaps 4-5 minutes before the call, and both the fire station and St Jude are only minutes away from my home, and my Cardiologist was already to go to the OR in his scrubs and get going on restarting my heart (which had stopped somewhere between my arrival and the procedure) and installing the stents. Why have I written all of this to you with so much detail? Because I want all of you who are so important in my life to know what I learned first hand. 1. Be aware that something very different is happening in your body, not the usual men's symptoms but inexplicable things happening (until my sternum and jaws got into the act). It is said that many more women than men die of their first (and last) MI because they didn't know they were having one and commonly mistake it as indigestion, take some Maalox or other anti-heartburn preparation and go to bed, hoping they'll feel better in the morning when they wake up... which doesn't happen. My female friends, your symptoms might not be exactly like mine, so I advise you to call the Paramedics if ANYTHING is unpleasantly happening that you've not felt before. It is better to have a 'false alarm' visitation than to risk your life guessing what it might be! 2. Note that I said 'Call the Paramedics.' And if you can take an aspirin. Ladies, TIME IS OF THE ESSENCE! Do NOT try to drive yourself to the ER - you are a hazard to others on the road. Do NOT have your panicked husband who will be speeding and looking anxiously at what's happening with you instead of the road. Do NOT call your doctor -- he doesn't know where you live and if it's at night you won't reach him anyway, and if it's daytime, his assistants (or answering service) will tell you to call the Paramedics. He doesn't carry the equipment in his car that you need to be saved! The Paramedics do, principally OXYGEN that you need ASAP. Your Dr. will be notified later. 3. Don't assume it couldn't be a heart attack because you have a normal cholesterol count. Research has discovered that a cholesterol elevated reading is rarely the cause of an MI (unless it's unbelievably high and/or accompanied by high blood pressure). MIs are usually caused by long-term stress and inflammation in the body, which dumps all sorts of deadly hormones into your system to sludge things up in there. Pain in the jaw can wake you from a sound sleep. Let's be careful and be aware. The more we know the better chance we could survive. A cardiologist says if everyone who gets this sends it to 10 people, you can be sure that we'll save at least one life. *Please be a true friend and send this article to all your friends (male & female) who you care about!*

People's Day Dinner forThousands

 

Sharing here are pictures of the Dinner I attended on 16 February 2013 organized by Fa Zhou Shi. 16 February 2013 or Lunar 1st month on the 7th Day is cited as People's Day.  There is a Chinese Legend of how mankind are '''made'', quite different from Adam and Eve.
 

 

It was said that Nui Wa, the Mother Creator created Rooster on the 1st Day;  Dog on the 2nd Day; Pig on the 3rd Day; Goat on the 4th Day; Cow on the 5th Day; Horse on the 6th Day and Human on the 7th Day. Therefore this day is celebrated by Chinese as creating/birthday of Mankind. This day is viewed as a reunion day and families, friends and big gathering like this is a joyous occassions.

 

 

 

  

 

 

 

The Buddha's Wisdom

 

The content is about a conversation between a layperson and Buddha and it goes like this.

I said to the Buddha : "Dear Lord please bless all my friends with forever Good Health and Happiness"

Buddha said : " Only for four times......"

I said : " Good, Let it be for Spring, Summer, Autumn and Winter"

Buddha said : " Only for three days....."

I said : " OK, let it be yesterday, today and tomorrow..."

Buddha said : " No, than it had to be two different times....."

I said : " Fine, let it be Day and Night....."

Buddha said : " If that's the case, you can have one day....."

I said : " Alright....................................."

Buddha said : " So which day......?"

I said : " Every day as long as all my friends are alive "

Buddha smiled and said : " From now on, all your friends will enjoy Good Health and Happiness everyday.

With this, may the Snake Year brings you new hopes, new aspirations and new resolutions........

Happy Lunar Snake Year 2013

 

 

In the Chinese Calendar there are 12 animals that represent each year. Every 12-year is one circle and the animals take turn to lead. Each year is also represented by the 5 Elements, so like 2013, it is the Water Snake year. There are many subdivisions and unless you are a Fortune Teller or a Feng Shui Master, all these are too complicated for you to comprehend.

 

2013 is Black Snake Year. Black here represent Water Element (if you have not already know, the 5 Elements are Metal/Gold, Wood, Water, Fire, Earth) and therefore if you falls on any of the Element that is not against Water, it will probably be a better year for you. This is in general.

 

Being a Buddhist, we accept that all are impermance and things good or bad happened for a reason. As long as you keep your heart clean, be honest and earn an honest living and be compassionate, nothing can harm a good person but like I said things happened for a reason.

 

Do not be too superstitious over all phenomenas. Millions in the world are born in the same year, maybe same day or even same time but the minutes and seconds plays a part. If you really want to check around, I am sure there are people who shared the same birthday with Bill Gates but what sets them apart? It was said that I will have a windfall in 2012 but I did not. I am not too concern as I believe health and family harmony are already the biggest windfall for me.

 

There will be predictions of the Year, good harvest, calamities and all the unexpected but stay peaceful and be at peace with the surroundings. Many of us stay alive but we did not truly live. Do not waste your life away and to those who is thinking of taking their life and are reading here, drop me a line. I am willing to listen to truth and give you empathy. Recently I have seen too many deaths happening around me and the message Buddha taught hit home - Death is surely; the time of death is not sure and the way one die is also not sure. Therefore find time to be with people you love; smile at people; forget all your grudges and give yourself a pat once awhile.

 

With this note, I wish all my readers near and far who dropped by my Blog a Happy Lunar New Year 2013. This card is specially for all of you and it comes with prayers that May you be Safe, Healthy, Peaceful and have Enough for what you need!

 

Warmest regards and Love from....Lian

Committing Suicide...

Near my apartment, a young man committed suicide by jumping down from 12th storey. I may or may not have met him but it saddens me. I felt sad for the grandparents, the parents and his siblings for this traumatic experience. I realized people are lonely and they do not know where to go for help. They do not know who to talk to and they felt they are all alone by themselves with their problems. If someone paid a little bit more attention, we probably could have save him.

I really do not understand how one get the guts to jump to such traumatic death? If one had the guts to jump - why one do not have the guts to live? I realized that one can be sick in the body but not sick in the mind. If one is sick in the mind, one can do anything to harm one self and others.

In my practice, it is said that there will be circumstances that cloud our mind and if not mindful, we will waste this life away. There will be time when we want to practice but due to our passed Karma we lost our lives, or we are sick, or we are maimed, or we become bad – there are more unfavourable conditions than favourable conditions to practice. This mean we have to have full perfect faculties to practice but many are wasting this chance to do so. I realized that human rebirth is so precious, once lost cannot be recalled.

Having perfect facilities is not enough. If one is born in the land where Buddha’s teaching is not available, people are rude and cruel, places that people do not have enough food and in constant poverty – these are not conducive environment to do so too. If one live in countries that are at wars all the time, people believe in killing lives is to please God, people who abuse and trade in human and even kidnapped children to kill them and sell their organs. In America, every now and than people went amok shooting others - do you need to be in Hell to know it? No, there are people who are already living in Hell.

Some of us do not know whether we love our self or not. Asking one to love others are even more difficult. Some of us don’t even love our parents and how do we love others. There are so many types of people, some good, some bad, some unreasonable, some passive, some arrogant, some rich and think they do not need a religion, some take on a killing profession etc. The paths to Hell are everywhere, so is the paths to Heaven. Due to our defiled thoughts, the good path even though is in front of us, we will miss it.

Unless you are fully aware of what is going on in your head, most of the time you let it influence you into believing it is true. That is why we have differences with others. It is actually our own agenda. Your thoughts will find many reasons for you not to like the situation, the taste, the remarks, the other person etc. Is it the fault of that person? NO! it is your deluded mind.

Every day I will try to recall the teachings of Buddha and reflect on what happened around me. At time I also realized that a good person will say and do negative things even though they are well respected practitioner in the eyes of others. This is the ripening of negative actions done in the past. The Law of Cause and Effect taught and emphasized by the Buddha is a Universal Law. This Law applies to all human beings, no one is spare. Don't kid yourself and tell me that you belong to a different religious group or you are so high and mighty that you are spared. You cannot bribed a Universal Law. If human beings become so low in moral, than Nature will clear up these rubbish from the surface of Earth. We have been harming the Earth, People, Animals and we are not going to be scotch-free - the punishments are happening. The End of the World is not just a talk only - it will happen when the Effect is right. Don't be too happy that we all did not die under the Mayan Calendar's.

I am not flawless and I realized the sufferings of beings. It is a suffering person who will act and said negative things, at time I am also like that - yes, because I am suffering under that circumstance and I do it to another person and caused sufferings to him/her. However I am working on this split personality in me. If you watch Lord of the Ring - that "Precious" is a split personality! Are you like that?