We bought ourselves some Marimo recently:

Marimo (毬藻, literally “ball seaweed”), also known as Cladophora ball, Lake ball, or Moss Balls in English, is a species of filamentous green algae (Chlorophyta) found in a number of lakes in the northern hemisphere. A marimo is a rare growth form of the species where the algae grow into large green balls with a velvety appearance. Colonies of such balls are only known to form in Iceland, Scotland, Japan and Estonia. (source)

Did you know there’s a legend behind it too? Apparently, in a tribe near Lake Akan in Hokkaido, the daughter of the chief of an elite tribe fell in love with a warrior from a rival tribe. Their tribes forbade their love, so they decided to give up their possessions and flee from the land where their love was forbidden. Although their new life was harsh, they survived because of the deep love they had for one other. Legend has it that the lovers’ spirits metamorphosed into Marimo, a plant of love at the deepest reach of the Lake Akan where they lived happily ever after. Marimo has become a symbol of determination in overcoming adversities in search of true love and happiness.

I don’t exactly believe in legends, and that’s certainly not the reason why I bought the Marimo. I just think that it’s interesting, and doesn’t require too much care. And since it’s small, it can be kept on the table or somewhere where the dog can’t get at it. I just wonder how long before they grow noticeably bigger…

I bought mine from Giveaplant, but Marimo can be bought online and from some fish shops as well.

“When I was little, I didn’t understand why ferris wheels existed. They were just sluggish and went up high. I got bored with it after only one ride. The roller coaster and the loop slider… I only paid attention to the thrilling rides. But… I kind of understand now. Ferris wheels are for slowly cutting across the sky with the person you like and maybe saying things like, “Isn’t this a little scary?”
― Umino Chica

Met up with old friends last week after out last gathering, which was… during my wedding? We seen each other through from secondary school, from the time when some of us started dating, till now, when we’re starting to get married. Can’t wit to fly to Australia for Linda’s wedding this December!

Today was my post-LASIK checkup. One week after my procedure everything looks fine. My eyes are healing normally, and my light sensitivity is getting better. My eyes still get dry easily (especially in shopping malls!), but the dryness is improving as well, and I last longer in the lab before having to put eye drops. I was a little concerned that the vision in my left eye is slightly blurrier that my right, but it seems like the culprit is the slight residual astigmatism (I technically have no myopia now). I doubt it’ll ever get better or go away with time, but I can gladly live with this! My vision is so much better than what it used to be, and peripheral vision is wonderful

My next checkup is in 3 weeks, and hopefully things will continue to look good then! One thing LASIK really made me appreciate is the gift of sight. I never really bothered to take care of my eyes during my younger days, but I certainly will from now on!

My eyesight is terrible, and I’ve been wanting to go for LASIK, after seeing how a few of my friends went for the procedure without any problems. Multiple people have told me that the procedure was quick and painless, and they didn’t have any problems during the recovery period after that, which gave me a further sense of reassurance.

The husband booked a consultation for me last Saturday, as a belated birthday present. The eye check took some time, as there were many machines I had to go through. Lots of scans looking at objects, getting light shined into my eye and instruments touching it to get measurements such as my ocular pressure… it wasn’t too bad though, even with all the touching, since anesthetic eye drops were instilled.

Fast forward to the Monday after, and I got my surgery done. The whole process took about 2 hours – I was first brought into a resting area, where I was given a pill to relax, and had eye drops instilled to prevent busing during the procedure (even with the eye drops, half the people will get some busing while the other half will not… it’ll go away with time though, so no harm done). The nurse came in the explain the procedure to me, and soon after, I was led to the surgery area. Anesthetic eye drops were instilled and I was asked to keep my eyes closed while the nurse disinfected my eyelids. After another short rest, the doctor came and checked my eyes, and I was brought to the first room after that.

The first room is where the first part of the surgery is carried out – the creation of a flap over the cornea. Since I’m doing the Intralase method, it involved the doctor using a round, hollow equipment to hold the eye in place, and then applying laser to create bubbles in the eye. Pressure is applied at the same time. This was probably the most uncomfortable part of the whole procedure, since I could feel the pressure being applied. But it didn’t hurt though, since the anesthetic eye drops had already kicked into effect. I had to take a rest after that, and keep blinking so that the bubbles could settle and the next step – the actual correction of my vision – could be carried out.

During the process of correction, the doctor has to lift up the corneal flap made in the first part of the procedure. I’m not sure how he does this, and even though I was aware that he was doing something to my eye, I wasn’t sure what exactly was he doing (since he didn’t say what), and I could barely feel anything on my eye anyway. All I had to do was simple – open or close my eyes when I was told to, and follow the light when my eyes were opened. After the laser was applied, the corneal flap was put back into its original position, and it was done! I was asked to rest for a while, and the nurse came by to explain the procedures for post-operative care, and I was ready to go home!

By the end of the procedure, my vision was still blur, but I could already see better than how it was without my glasses before the surgery. The whole process took about 2 hours, but the actual time spent doing the operation was short – the creation of the flap and the actual correction took only about 20 seconds per procedure for each eye – the rest is just resting and waiting.

My vision is more or less clear now, though my left eye doesn’t see as clearly as the right. The doctor says I’ll still have to wait for some time to see full improvement, but even with how my vision currently is, seeing without glasses is not a problem at all. I’m really glad about this, and while I still have to use eye drops constantly for the next few months, I think the money spent is really worth it, for all the convenience and benefits that it brings. And going through this really made be further appreciate being able to see, and reminds me to take better care of my eyes in the future. Yay to good eyesight!

After experiencing the atmosphere at Chinatown, the husband and I went to River Hongbao at Marina Bay the next day (last night). I go to River Hongbao almost every year – not because I love it, but because there’s no where else to go on CNY eve or the first day of the Lunar New Year anyway. I remember enjoying River Hongbao more during my younger days, perhaps because there seemed to be more things to see and do, or maybe because as I get older, things like this don’t interest me that much anymore. These days, things are pretty much the same at River Hongbao each year – a food section (which is always crowded), an area with a funfair, and the main area where there are displays of the Chinese zodiac and the God of Fortune.