Grateful Diet - Day 5

I am on a business trip this week. I am grateful that my designated cab driver is on time to send me off to the airport as usual. I am grateful for the uneventful flight to the east coast.
I came across a self-improvement book - Promote Yourself by Dan Schawbel from one of the newsstands at San Jose Airport. I bought the book because there is an endorsement from Susan Cain and I would like to uncover what's the new rules for career success. By the way, Susan Cain is the best selling author for 'Quiet'. As an introvert, I appreciate the endorsement from an intellectual introvert. With the presence of  Amazon online bookstore, Kindle  and iBook,I hardly go to the book store. The only time I  would only spend time in a bookstore is when I am in the airport. I am grateful for the opportunity to scan through books and magazines.

Grateful Diet - Day 4

I am grateful to live in the bay area, home to San Francisco Giants and San Francisco 49ers. Yesterday, I witness live Niners' first victory at Levi's Stadium. I am proud that I have bragging rights for being there in person for this historic event. SWEET!

I am grateful that I have a game buddy and we have been to a few live games this year. We have been to both winning and losing home games. The atmosphere on game day is just different. Perhaps, it cultivate a sense of community and camaraderie among fans. Fans donned on their favorite jersey. It was a sea of reds and gold at the stadium. It gets the heart pumping when your team is leading. When your team is trailing behind, the faithful fans will cheer them on.

I am grateful that we could park at my work place and take the VTA to the stadium. It was very convenient and we saved $20 on parking.

Grateful Diet - Day 3

I have been in my current role for 6 years and I have made up my mind that it is time for me to seek other opportunities inside and outside of my current employment. I am not looking to move up the management ladder but to seek out activities and responsibilities that will challenge and broaden my perspectives in my professional portfolio and personal development. I am grateful for the culmination of events that has helped me to come to this conclusion. While everything from a career perspective is up in the air, from a grand scheme of things, it is not too bad and also it is all about finding out about myself.

The Roosevelts: An Intimate History by Ken Burns is featured on PBS.org. I have watched the first few of the seven part documentary series. I am grateful to learn about their history – Theodore, Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelts. Most profoundly how they individually overcame personal obstacles that are so raw and their relentless focus to positively transform the nation.  I am looking forward to watch the entire series. I am grateful to the people who created and made the documentary available to the public.

I have also came across Ernest Hemingway's quote "The world breaks everyone, and afterwards many are strong at the broken places". I am grateful to come across this quote. In my opinion the quote poignantly describes an aspect of life whether you are a public figure or just a mere individual. I want to come out strong whenever I can and whenever it makes sense.  Whenever I falter, I want to draw the lessons of life and become a happier and fulfilling individual.

I saw Kathryn Schulz TED video "Don't regret regret".  I am grateful that she shared her perspectives on regret. Despite waiting for awhile before getting her tattoo, she instantly regretted it after she walked out of the tattoo parlor. I like her tattoo - it's a compass, it has a meaningful reminder to her.  Her intent was for the tattoo to remind her to continue to explore and simultaneously not forget her true north.

Grateful Diet - Day 2

As I was getting onto I-880 S from 6th Street in Oakland, I hit the curb and had a flat tire. I parked my car snugly  at the side of the ramp and called AAA Emergency Services. My flat tire was replaced quickly and I was on the road again.

I am grateful to have good emergency services.
I am grateful that no cars hit me while I was parked at the side of the freeway.
I am grateful that I have a spare tire in my trunk otherwise my car will have to be tolled all the way back to San Jose.
I am grateful to Aaron from AAA Emergency Services for replacing the flat tire with a spare one.
I am grateful that I know a good tire repair in my area.
I am grateful that I can drive safely from Oakland to San Jose on the right most lane at 55 mph.
Driving is a necessity instead of a fun activity for me. Despite having to drive from San Jose to Oakland twice yesterday in the span of 3 hours, I am grateful that I was calm and collected throughout the situation.
I am grateful to the 21-day Grateful Diet Challenge which allows me to focus on gratitude instead of feeling lousy about the situation
I am grateful that the tire repair is open on Saturdays.
I have to change out the battery for my watch. I am grateful to the convenience in proximity between the tire report and the watch repair shop.

Grateful Diet - Day 1

I am grateful to have the opportunity to work and live in different countries.
I am grateful that I can call California my home.
I am grateful that my childhood life in Malaysia introduced me to living in a multiracial society
I am grateful that I can appreciate different cultures and enjoy some of them every much
I am grateful for my good health and that weight is not an issue for me
I am grateful that I am surrounded by inspiring people that motivate me, energize me and pick me up when I am down
I am grateful that I started the journey of being a first time home owner
I am grateful to have siblings that are sensible and independent
I am grateful to have people that I can pour my heart and soul to - Mila, Paige and LeeAnn
I am grateful to have an understanding boyfriend

Perfection Is Overrated

The first time I colored my hair was during my varsity days in Australia. I was convinced by a roommate. She said "It is really easy" and it was really easy but a little messy. I had a lot to clean up after coloring my hair. I left a trail from the dining room all the way to the bathroom. Despite the clean up effort, she did a great job with my hair. I was showered with compliments about my new red hair. It was a one time deal and most importantly it was a hassle to clean up after the fact.

Fast forward a few years, when my grey started to bother me especially at the sides, that signified the beginning of my hair coloring journey. I was frugal at the beginning so I colored on my own. Also, it was not cheap to get it done in the saloon. I became quite efficient and I don't have a lot of clean up when I colored on my own.  

I started coloring my whole head every 4 months then every 3 months then every 2 months and then every month. Today, I suspect 80% to 85% of my hair is gray. I get overly conscious if someone taller is standing behind me at the grocery checkout when my grey is visible from the crown of my head. I worked in a tech company and it is not uncommon for me to be the only female in the meeting room. I remembered one time when I glanced at the attendees in the room where everyone had salt and pepper colored hair. I thought to myself I could join the guys if I hadn't colored my hair. 

The annoyance of seeing my grey got the better of me. My grey is well distributed all over my head. When I colored on my own, either I can't reach some of the grey at the back of my head or I have shimmering strains of red hair all over. Clearly, my ability to color my own hair has deteriorated as more grey gradually dominated my head.

Fortunately, a friend introduced me to a great hairdresser and I have been going to her every month for the last 5 years or so. I thought I am all set in the hair department. Again, my grey got the better of me and the sight of grey approximately a centimeter long at the hairline split got under my skin every fortnight.  

While I am determined not to go to the hairdresser every 2 weeks to conceal my grey, I had to do something as the sight of the grey is irksome to me. I have a plan. I will continue to go to my hairdresser on a monthly basis and in between visits, I will color my own hair. I started to touch up my entire head.  A few iterations of my own coloring,  I came to the realization that the grey along my hairline split and the peripheral of my forehead are the most annoying to me. 

I tweaked my plan. Instead of coloring my entire head between visits, I just color the hair on the top of the crown. It worked. Let's face it , I am my own worst critique.  I was pretty elated to realize that I was perfectly fine just concealing the grey on the top of the crown.  

When it comes to hair and perhaps many things in life, I will strive for practically over perfection. Seriously, perfection is overrated.  

   

Smell It, please

I feel bad.While some people are staving, I am throwing away perfectly unspoiled food because of my over-reliant on expiry labels. Since young, I was taught to determine by myself whether my food is still edible.  I was taught to smell my food. If the milk smells sour, then it is spoiled. If the egg smells funny, it is probably bad. If the rice has a sour taste, then it is spoiled too. If the house is redolent with burnt smell from the oven while the cake is still baking away, the cake is probably burnt and the oven temperature needs calibration. Recent years, I have ceded control to the expiry dates on food labels. I have learned to rely on the expiry date on labels and boycotted the power of smell.The moment has come for me to restore the sniff test  and trust the sense of smell that had served me well while I was a kid.