my six weeks at the Medicine Shoppe has come to a close. i'm so gonna miss everyone. it's been so enjoyable. thank God.



so there's bob, smiley charles and i in one picture, and lisa, kristen and i in the other. :)

i really hope somehow i get the chance to go back there again someday.

hah. this song grew on me. it's one of charles'(one of my colleagues) favourites..

we went to visit 2 festivals today, "the works", an art festival and the edmonton international jazz festival. there was this street stage at the works, which was at winston churchill square.

so we bought buffalo fries and a drink each and sat down to watch this country song performance by a few young people. it was pretty good, now i understand why american idol/canadian idol standards are so much higher than that of those back home. i uploaded a video of my favourite performer on my multiply site. she has a very good voice and pretty good stage skills as well. too bad the video quality on my camera wasn't that good.. could hear the wind blowing away. i wanted to upload a video of my favourite dancer too, but figured it wouldn't be very edifying. heh.

the jazz performance was abit of a disappointment, maybe cos we were stingy enough just to take a look at the free one. it was like sitting at any hotel lounge listeinng to the pianist play. and we had to order expensive food from the hotel. grrr.. so sarah and i got err.. hot wings! here are some pictures...

hmmm...

By order of Ms Sarah Tang, I have been tasked to report my glaring mistake at Kingsway Mall today. Sigh. Read on if you are interested:

Today, we set out after lunch, first to visit Sarah's patient at Rosedale Manor. We spent about 1 hour plus with her and then walked down to Kingsway.

So we walked past this One dollar shop. And because both of us had this Singaporean mentality, the immediate reaction was, "Let's go in." So in we went. There were really alot of great deals and I bought many things. So both of us chanced upon this box of fabric softeners for $1 per box! Yah, like a typical singaporean.. I started to think "cheap cheap cheap".... SO I got one box without hesitation. Sarah was commenting that she could bring the extras home to Singapore and I concurred I could do the same. Besides, it smelt pretty nice and the thought of my clothes smelling like Lavendar was quite welcoming.

After about 2 hours of shopping, we headed back. Walking back to Lister Hall from the LRT, we were chatting away. Suddenly, I stopped in my tracks and asked Sarah whether she had a dryer at home in Singapore, because FABRIC SOFTENERS were used ONLY in dryers! Well, turns out she did.. and well, I didn't. So there.

When we got back to my room, Sarah had one extra box of fabric softeners to bring home to use. -grin- ain't I generous!

Every Wednesday at the pharmacy, I would help prepare syringes for this lady in her late thirties who is suffering from cancer. Because she cannot swallow properly, she needs to be tube-fed. Sometimes, we would need to prepare syringes on Friday as well. And occasionally, her husband would come by personally to collect them.

Yesterday, as usual, I prepared those syringes. As I struggled to stick the labels nicely on them, Bob was telling me it didnt' make much of a difference since her husband had been tube-feeding her for ages and he didn't really need to look at labels anymore. I asked whether her husband had to work, cos tube-feeding a cancer patient four times a day was really no joke. He said he did, and he'd do it three times a day, the only time he didn't do it was at noon, when he was at work. During that time, a homecare nurse would take over. Then he added, "pretty dedicated man, i must say".

Boy do i have to agree. "in sickness and in health.... till death do us part." That phrase came to me as I worked on those syringes. Living out those vows he made back at the altar. His wife probably wasn't looking her best now, but nonetheless, the kind of dedication and love he has for her is truly commendable.

some pictures of jasper. the rest are on my multiply site.

"When through the woods, and forest glades I wander,
And hear the birds sing sweetly in the trees.
When I look down, from lofty mountain grandeur
And see the brook, and feel the gentle breeze.
Then sings my soul, My Saviour God, to Thee,
How great Thou art, How great Thou art.
Then sings my soul, My Saviour God, to Thee,
How great Thou art, How great Thou art!"

This verse really stood out at me this weekend as i spent it at Jasper, the Canadian Rockies. I really loved it there. In fact, i was pretty depressed when I headed back to Edmonton.

Yeah, the mountains and the lakes are soooo splendid. They were really very majestic. Driving down the highways, listening to various hymns and contemporaries, it was amazing. I could identify with the Psalmist who wrote Psalms 148 then.

We had our own fair share of adventure too. Walking thru the forest towards buck lake, fearing black bears! (at least I was) Our hike up to the Valley of Five Lakes was memorable too. We were just across the lake from our destination when three hikers came towards us to tell us there were black bears along that particular trail, about 10-15 minutes away. heh. and boy, I was scared. OK, maybe a mix of fear and curiosity. I wanted to venture further, but something else inside me said "no" and "it'd be better to see a bear from the car than on a hike without bear spray" haha.. and those guys were so animated, it was hilarious really.

This past weekend was like a mini-retreat with God. At some points, it felt like I was in heaven. Sitting in front of a quiet, peaceful lake with a view of the mountains and hearing the sound of the trees rustling, simply awesome. Away from the computer, tv, etc. The only tv shows i remember watching in Jasper Town were uh.. Bugs Bunny and Shrek. Heh.

I definitely wanna go back there again. Maybe on my honeymoon. Me, my future partner and God! Heh.. 2 weeks in the Rocky Mountains, and it won't just be Jasper the next time! :)

"The lights go out all around me
One last candle to keep out the night
And then the darkness surrounds me
I know I'm alive
But I feel like I've died

And all that's left is to accept that it's over
My dreams ran like sand through the fists that I made
I try to keep warm but I just grow colder
I feel like I'm slipping away

After all this has passed
I still will remain
After I've cried my last
There'll be beauty from pain
Though it won't be today
Someday I'll hope again
And there'll be beauty from pain
You will bring beauty from my pain

My whole world is the pain inside me
The best I can do is just get through the day
When life before is only a memory
I wonder why God let me walk through this place

And though I can't understand why this happened
I know that I will when I look back someday
And see how You've brought beauty from ashes
And made me as gold purified through these flames

Here and I am at the end of me (at the end of me)
Trying to hold to what I can't see
I forgot how to hope
This night's been so long
I cling to Your promise there will be a dawn"

-Beauty from Pain, Superchick

heh.. i passed up the chance to go on an MEP pilgrimage. but it's alright, there'll always be another time.

up to jasper tomorrow, so i'll be missing for a few days.. will post up pictures when im back on multiply.

"You are God alone
From before time began
You were on Your throne
You are God alone
And right now
In the good times and bad
You are on Your throne
You are God alone"

-You are God alone,
Philips, Craig and Dean

"There's a cry in my heart
For Your glory to fall
For Your presence to fill up my senses
There's a yearning again
A thirst for discipline
A hunger for things that are deeper

Could You take me beyond?
Could You carry me through?
If I open my heart
Could I go there with You?
(For I've been here before
But I know there's still more
Oh, Lord, I need to know You)

For what do I have
If I don't have You, Jesus?
What in this life
Could mean any more?
You are my rock
You are my glory
You are the lifter
Of my head"

-Cry in my heart, Starfield

"There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven:

a time to be born and a time to die,
a time to plant and a time to uproot,
a time to kill and a time to heal,
a time to tear down and a time to build,
a time to weep and a time to laugh,
a time to mourn and a time to dance,
a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them,
a time to embrace and a time to refrain,
a time to search and a time to give up,
a time to keep and a time to throw away,
a time to tear and a time to mend,
a time to be silent and a time to speak,
a time to love and a time to hate,
a time for war and a time for peace.

He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the hearts of men; yet they cannot fathom what God has done from beginning to end."

Ecc 3: 1-8, 11