Have you had one of those days where you are so brain dead that you just know you should not do anything important in case you make a mistake? Well, that was my Monday. I felt so brain dead that I couldn’t even bring myself to write about it until now.

Fortunately (or unfortunately?), I had a lecture to attend that day. Just sit there, focus on not falling asleep and do some idle chit chat about the weather and what everyone thinks they do while munching on scallops, shrimp satay and mille feuille. Not too bad really. Except being the zombie that I was, I’d completely forgotten about the event that morning and wore my new heels. They were killing me (I can hear my mom in my head telling me I told you so)! Of course, afterwards I had to get  onto the train going in the opposite direction. To top it off, I bumped into someone I work with on the train who was also getting off the next stop. And so, in order not to appear completely stupid, I pretended to get out and exit there too… before ‘blending’ into the crowd and getting back onto the right train.

That evening, thinking to be  efficient, I placed an order for  take out 15 minutes ahead, thinking I can go, pick it up and leave immediately . When I got there, they denied getting any order calls. Turns out, I’d dialed the wrong number and placed the order at the wrong branch…. Definitely one of those days.

I totally understand and am for the whole concept of thematic decorating. It makes all the difference between a party/celebration and a regular get together  dinner. I can totally see why Easter egg and Easter bunny shaped chocolates are selling like hot cakes around this time. I can even see why people would buy plastic green grass table mats and decorative Easter bunny’s for that extra thematic touch (plus you can always use it again next year!). What I am curious about is who would buy those giant chocolate Easter bunnys, like the ones they’re selling for $800HKD (~US$100) at the Mandarin Oriental cake shop. They look absolutely gorgeous and delicious, but they won’t exactly last until next year in your cupboard if you know what I mean.  Towards the end of the party, do people pretend it is a pinata, and smash it to pieces so that everyone gets a bite? Or do they melt it and make double chocolate cookies for the next party? Now that is a neat idea!

My dad is having surgery today. A very regular and non-invasive procedure I’ve been told. Instead of dwelling on the potential dangers of general surgery a la Grey’s Anatomy and the fragility of life, my mind keeps taking me back to the time when I picked up my friend A from his knee surgery. “I’d go home myself, but it is all part of the procedure. They won’t let me check out unless I have someone else to sign me out and take me home. It won’t take you more than half an hour” he said.

Being the good Samaritan that I am, I said “Fine. I’ll sneak out of work for half an hour to sign you out”. I ended up sneaking out for much longer than that. Good thing I didn’t really have any “real” work to do anyway. After waiting at the reception for over half an hour waiting for his name to show up on the screen ( like waiting for your number at the bank), we were finally allowed to see him. I expected him to be packed and ready to go. I did not expect to see him helplessly lying down, looking as pale and green as anyone I’ve ever seen. As soon as the nurse left, I started giggling and fishing for my phone to take a picture. He was literally green (like a pale green troll! Yes, I take joy in other people’s pain and laugh at inopportune times). I don’t remember if I actually took the picture or not (Did I snap the picture worth a million dollars or did I actually have a heart and respected his privacy? Note to self: go back and check photos on Nokia). But I definitely remember the childish burst of laughter as if it was yesterday. I can almost FEEL the moment just thinking about it.

The rest of the “pick-up” is more of a blur. We brought him home, we went to buy ice because A remembered to buy food but not ice, and over the weekend we brought him Japanese take out to relief him from the monotony of his microwaveable diet. This is almost completely irrelevant to my dad’s surgery. But maybe this feeling of comic relief is just what I need right now.