Grateful 7 Apr: Misadventures - Not

Tbh, today felt like a day of misadventures. And indeed, it was - but nonetheless, there are many things that I can still be grateful for. Let me share the details here: 

• Sungei Buloh Wetlands - Not. I woke up early, feeling all enthusiastic about going to Sungei Buloh Wetlands. After all, I had wanted to go there last week but ended up going to Jurong instead. I left home early after a quick meditation, went to Simei for my kopi o kosong, and then took the MRT to Tampines and happily boarded service 168. The bus was supposed to take me to Woodlands, where I would change to another bus, and the whole journey would be some 2 hours long. 45 min into the journey, the skies turned dark - ominously dark… I checked the weather app and, horrors… huge thunderstorm ahoy! And looking at the size of the clouds and the forecast, the impending storm would last till afternoon. I decided to abandon my plans, alighted and made a u-turn back. It looked like there were no outdoor options for me. So I headed to Bedok, took an early lunch, and bought the famous Teochew soon kueh (traditional bamboo shoot snack) before heading back home. Not quite what I had planned, but looking back, I did get a small “excursion” out of it - and a good snack too. Perhaps that was enough for the morning, and I am thankful for it.

• MacRitchie Reservoir & Cuties - Not. Back home, I ate the soon kueh and as I waited for the rain to ease. I weighed some options for my outdoor walk: Tanah Merah Beach, MacRitchie Reservoir (MR)… The rain didn’t look like it was about to stop, so Tanah Merah Beach was out. Not wanting to spend the whole afternoon at home, I decided to take the MRT to Chinatown for tea instead. Hopefully, the rain would clear and I could still make my way to MR and maybe spot some cute young fit guys running. As I had another round of kopi o kosong, I was quite pleased to see the rain clouds clearing on the app. Feeling hopeful, I headed towards MR - a 45-min journey on the bus. And guess what - when I reached, there was still a light drizzle, just enough to make walking pointless. And instead of young cute guys, the place was filled with teenage canoeists - all young enough to be my grandkids. Darned! I decide to leave. Still, the trip wasn’t entirely wasted. The tea break in Chinatown was rather nice - unhurried, and a good pause. 

• Smooth Journey - Not. I boarded another bus towards town, thinking I might do some window shopping. The bus journey itself was uneventful, apart from an irritating fellow watching a show on his mobile at full volume. By the time I reached the fringe of town, it was already quite late, and I decided to just head home instead. And so I changed bus, but the one I intended to take was crowded and I took the one behind, planning to switch to one that would take me home further down the road. Alas, I forgot the bus service number I was on, and ended going around 2 - 3 housing estates before ending at an interchange nowhere near my place. Thankfully, there was a coffee shop nearby, and I ended up having a very nice dinner - caifan with stir-fried stingray. It has been a while since I had that, and I enjoyed it.

So yeah, that was how my day went. I travelled across half the island, u-turned to Bedok, went back home, then to town, to MR, back to town, around a few housing estates, and finally home - objectively, not achieving very much. But along the way, there were pockets of enjoyment: good kopi o kosong, soon kueh, a quiet afternoon tea, and a comforting dinner... The day totally didn’t go according to plan. Things didn’t line up, plans kept shifting, not by design, and yet nothing really went wrong either. And maybe that is something worth noting - that even on a day that felt slightly off, there were still enough small, good moments to carry it through. I am grateful for these good moments.