In My Hands Today…

 

The Flea Palace – Elif Shafak

8322746Set within a once-stately apartment block in Istanbul, The Flea Palace tells the story of Bonbon Palace, built by Russian noble émigré Pavel Antipov for his wife Agripina at the end of the Tsarist reign. It is now sadly dilapidated, flea-infested, and home to ten very different individuals and their families.

There’s a womanizing, hard-drinking academic with a penchant for philosophy; a ‘clean freak’ and her lice-ridden daughter; a lapsed Jew in search of true love; and a charmingly naïve mistress whose shadowy past lurks in the building. When the trash at Bonbon Palace is stolen, a mysterious sequence of events unfolds that result in a soul-searching quest for truth. By turns comic and tragic, this is an outstandingly original novel driven by an overriding sense of social justice.

Elif Shafak gives us a bird’s-eye insight into each apartment, and we see their comic and tragic lives

 

 

2017 Week 6 Update

Another week went by and nothing really to update. My days flow by one after the other and the days blur into each other. I started the week in a funk where I just didn’t feel like doing anything. Luckily I managed to get out of it by mid-week and the rest of the week was ok.

I also went to see a primary care nurse from a major hospital as part of their GP outreach diabetes programme. This included a foot and eye test and then counselling with the nurse practitioner.  I was quite ok with the talk with the nurse because, according to her, compared to the others she saw, I have more knowledge about my condition compared to others. Anyway, as suspected, I have to lose weight as my BMI is really high!

I also realised one more thing – I rarely left the house last week and should do something about it. I realise that I am slipping into depression and should do things that make me not go into it. I realise that our sense of worth is tied to our occupation and since becoming a SAHM, I feel that I am starting to feel, perhaps worthless?

Anyway, on to better thoughts and ideas – let this be a better week for everyone

2017 Secondary 2 Week 6 Update

This was the usual week for the children, with school, CCA and some studies. 

GG’s school has had the Sec 3 streaming talk with them and she is not very happy with the subject choices that are offered to her stream. I need to wait until the parents talk next month before I sit with her to discuss what subjects will be best for her. I also need to speak to her form teacher about this. 

I also attended a parent support group meeting in her school where the principal was present and shared with him some of the things that GG has been telling about her class. Apparently her class is already quite notorious and some children are very disruptive in class with the end result being the whole class gets penalised. 

Next week is the parent support group meeting in BB’s school and the week after the tea session with his principal. 

Happy Sunday everyone!

In My Hands Today…

The Good Muslim – Tahmima Anam

11331177From prizewinning Bangladeshi novelist Tahmima Anam comes her deeply moving second novel about the rise of Islamic radicalism in Bangladesh, seen through the intimate lens of a family.

In the dying days of a brutal civil war, Sohail Haque stumbles upon an abandoned building. Inside he finds a young woman whose story will haunt him for a lifetime to come. . . .

Almost a decade later, Sohail’s sister, Maya, returns home after a long absence to find her beloved brother transformed. While Maya has stuck to her revolutionary ideals, Sohail has shunned his old life to become a charismatic religious leader. And when Sohail decides to send his son to a madrasa, the conflict between brother and sister comes to a devastating climax. Set in Bangladesh at a time when religious fundamentalism is on the rise, The Good Muslim is an epic story about faith, family, and the long shadow of war.

Instagram Interludes

Over the long Chinese New Year weekend, I decided to take the children to Chinatown to soak in the New Year atmosphere. Here are some pictures from that visit!

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The pretty umbrella-like flowers strung on the road

 

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A new year decorative tassel strung on the wall of a building

 

 

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Chinese decorative paper cutting in one of the shops in a side street

 

 

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Another view of the main street in Chinatown, all beautifully decorated

 

 

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Beautiful lanterns

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The giant Rooster which welcomes people into Chinatown, this being the year of the Fire Rooster