I've been feeling pretty horrible, but I think the medication I was given may be starting to take some positive effect so here I am, listening to Hiram Ring and eating Kevin's bread crust that he decided to leave on his plate.  I made fresh bread with our bread machine today and Kevin charmingly ate all the soft and warm bread on the inside and left the big thick crust on his plate.  

Pineapple and Milk

These are two things that I bought this week that convinced me that Safeway must in fact be the new Santa.  Each day for the past two weeks Safeway has had a daily deal and when I can, I jump right on them. Ironically, I had no idea what the daily deal were this week.  On Sunday night, I wanted to buy the smallest container of milk, less than 1/2 a gallon (because typically I don't drink enough and it spoils), but it must have been divine intervention for my Ovaltine story, because the one daily deal on Sunday was 1 whole gallon of milk for 99 cents!!! So of course instead of spending one dollar and some change on a liter of milk, I went for the gallon because 99 cents for milk is steal!  Kmart can't beat that. Target can't beat that. Shoot, even the dollar store can't beat it.   

Next day, I went back to Safeway and got a pineapple.  Yup, 99 cents.  A real good Christmas gift. (Kevin, I'm buying new shoes..hehe) Okay, back to Ovaltine. 

Ovaltine

As I've mentioned before, I try to do something every day to remember Yeye.  The month my grandpa passed away someone gave him Ovaltine as a gift.  Being a devoted drinker of Ensure at the time, Yeye tried to give it to me.  Most young people are really afraid to take anything from old people (mostly because they're just afraid of old people and think they're sickly). I've observed that people are afraid of taking food especially, which is sad, but I guess I understand. Ye was very adamant about giving me his Ovaltine though, and because it wasn't open, I took it.  When he gave it to me though, he laughed and told me in Chinese that it'd be good for me because I run, but that it can make you fat.  I think he was actually complimenting me and saying that I wouldn't get fat because I run, but that for anyone else aside from me, it would make them fat.=) 

Anyways, I brought it home and of course, Kevin did not want to drink it.  It's been there for about a month and just this week, I decided to peel open the container and give it a shot. That's right!  I haven't been running for the past 2 or 3 weeks so I could very well get fat I guess, but I figured Ovaltine has a lot of nutrients that I probably don't typically get from natural foods, not mention it helps me get some calcium/milk intake.  So in the beginning of the week, I drank Ovaltine for breakfast with 99 cent milk and remembered Yeye.  Maybe that's what got the tears rolling again.

"Crying may not bring the person back, but sometimes it can bring us back."

One of the bereavement (grief) counselors at my work told me this yesterday and I might have to agree. We had a 5-10 minute time of remembrance at our office for staff who wanted to remember any family or friends they lost and I went, but of course, as you might of guessed I was a basketcase. I intended maybe to shed two tears, but I couldn't hold it back and the grief counselor who also is the sweetest coworker who led this remembrance told me not to... so I listened.  It's amazing how work and life can keep you busy, yet when you sit down even just for a few minutes and remember how much you loved someone it can choke you up and just make you cry.  To let go of my tears at work yesterday was such a blessing.  It's so common to be at work in body, yet hide how we feel deep inside our soul from those around us.  While I don't cry throughout the day at work typically, it's comforting knowing that if and when I do, it is quite okay.

Since it is the Christmas season, I leave you with a picture taken many Christmas' ago. Not sure what this Christmas will be like without Yeye. My heart sinks knowing he is not here, but here's to remembering that he sure loved me.   In the picture, I'm wearing a skirt my sister Priscilla made me for Christmas, and holding a bag I had just crocheted (which I kept for myself=)). 

I'm signing off to continue multiple doses of honey lemon tea, salt gargling, warm compression on my throat, and medication. Hope to feel better soon.