Getting in sync

This post is a day late, but dNYel went on our annual retreat. While we're planning for the coming year, we're also taking the opportunity to bond as a department with a coordinated activity. 

This year, we're learning to synchronize with each other through percussive rhythms. Our instructors are from ExtraOrdinary Horizons, a group of hearing-impaired musicians who put our own sense of rhythm to shame. dNYel comprises many different characters with many different styles of self-expression, so getting us to move to the same beat would be quite an achievement.

You can see how well we did in the vid below:

Still all there

F-i-L made it through the night, which is a relief. His blood pressure returned to normal. Mentally, he's still all there, quite aware of his surroundings, able to process who has come to visit him and behave accordingly. He may not be up to conversing much, but his thoughts are still coherent and responsive. That's good.

We'll continue to take each day as it comes.

At the departure gate once again

Having experienced quite a few departures already this year, I was hoping I would ride out the rest of the year in peace. But the trend continues its inevitable, inexorable path through the remainder of the year. F-i-L's losing his battle with cancer. Initially, radiotherapy seemed to have it beaten back, but all of a sudden in the last few weeks, it came back with a vengeance.

F-i-L's physical deterioration has been rapid and alarming. From the jolly, portly, happy-go-lucky gentleman that he was, the disease has wasted him down to... shall we say, his most basic structure? His once healthy appetite reduced to taking sips of fruit juice periodically over the day to sustain him. Now as he rests in the hospice, the doctor reports a significant drop in blood pressure...

I think back to last Saturday, when he was still lucid and made a bit of a show in presenting his grandsons a souvenir each to remember him by. At first, I thought it went somewhat over-the-top, in full view of the other hospice patients and all. But now I believe his timing was just right. Things moved so very quickly immediately after that, so if not then, there wouldn't have been another opportunity to make them promise to study hard and make him proud.

His closest kin are keeping vigil overnight. This night in particular might just be the longest night for the family.

At the Cornerstone

Exploring more dog-friendly eateries with Tasha. Here, we're brunching al fresco  at Cornerstone, in Bishan Park. The service is very good: prompt and polite. Even the gardener ambled over, swiped Tasha's water dish most unexpectedly, emptied it into the bushes and walked away with it. While we were still blinking in amazement, he returned it with a fresh refill of water. A nice, if dramatic, flair for service in that guy.

Maybe it was still early and the crowd hadn't built up yet, but food arrived within five minutes of our order. The sup du jour was this sweet, creamy pumpkin soup. Mmm... smooth.

Our side order of onion rings was fresh and crispy, though a little bit oily. Nice if you have someone to share them with, but probably too much if you're dining alone. The dog can't help. Dogs don't eat onions. No matter how hard they beg.

This full rack of BBQ pork ribs is also meant for sharing. Very tender, the meat falls right off the bone and makes for clean eating. BBQ sauce was sweet and tangy. For best results, ditch cutlery, engage fingertips. Gave a bone to Tasha to gnaw on, but she just kept tossing it around instead, like she didn't know what else to do with it. Silly girl.