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The Bathroom Scale Horror

11 Feb

Horrors of all horrors! Just when I thought Newbie the new bathroom scale was more reliable than Trusty, I have been given the shock of my life! All this while, BOTH scales have been lying to me.

Over the weekend, I downloaded a health & fitness app, Yunmai to sync with Newbie. Newbie being a Yunmai Mini 2 – the same brand as the app, is a digital scale that has bluetooth ability to pair to a smart phone for data analysis. Measuring from inside out, it can calculate body mass, body fat, skeletal muscle, bone mass, right down to water and a whole lot more, not just the weight. A state of the art bathroom scale indeed.

To my aghast beyond belief, the app gave me an extra 15lbs!!!

Goodness gracious me. How is this even possible when three days earlier after returning from hubby’s hometown, I stood on Newbie, the same scale, no less and there was no increase in my weight. I couldn’t possibly have piled on so much in three days after that! Somehow something has gone awry shocking me with this horrid reading.

The next day I decided to read up on reviews for Newbie and discovered that while it’s a good scale, one should apparently take the measurements with a grain of salt because it tends to show a slightly higher reading! Wow. This is especially evident when compared with a scale of another brand for weight and fat percentage measurements.

The reviews are comforting and good to know otherwise I should just forget about stepping on a bathroom scale. Ever. Again.

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The Bathroom Scale Dilemma, Part 2

31 Jan

I’ve come to conclusion why Trusty, my old bathroom scale is behaving the way it behaves – it’s just not sensitive anymore. Newbie – the digital one, being new and far more superior with its ability to show up to one decimal point, makes the difference very glaring.

When there’s nothing to compare to begin with, it’s not an issue and sometimes, the weight shown on Trusty is even dismissed. But when there’s another to compare and there are differences, consciousness kicks in.

It was very obvious one morning when I stood on both first thing in the morning. Then after putting on my clothes, Newbie showed an increase of 1.1lbs – the jeans and shirt has some weight after all. But there was no increase on Trusty. Then on another morning, I stood on both with a full bladder to see the numbers before emptying the bladder; Newbie showed a decrease of 0.4lbs but no difference in Trusty. Hmm.

At that point, I got suspicious of the sensitivity, so I had to try with another situation to confirm. The test: standing on both first thing in the morning and then later, after a Roti Canai breakfast. Again, Trusty did not even budge while Newbie showed a 0.5lbs increment. Double hmm…

I guess I’d have to take Trusty’s reading with a dose (not a pinch) of salt. So with the bathroom scale dilemma resolved, it’s timely given that Chinese New Year is just around the corner and there’s all those gastronomic occasions coming up. Every little morsel may not show on Trusty but definitely will on Newbie.

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The Bathroom Scale Dilemma

3 Jan

It’s a constant battle with the bathroom scale. We have the trusty old one for years and I swear by it to have a constant.

Last month when I was at the hospital to do my annual medical check up, the clinic’s scale added five unbelievable kilos to my weight. Of course, when I came home, I measured that against our trusty scale to reassure myself that is not the case.

But now things have changed…

Trusty’s accuracy is questionable and does not seem to be so trustworthy after all because there’s a new bathroom scale, a Christmas gift. And this newbie, a digital one, is more accurate down to a decimal point. Because of Newbie, I discovered to my astonishment that Trusty has been ‘lying’ to me all these years!

Newbie shows that I am actually two kilos less than Trusty. I had to blink when I saw the numbers. Eh? The hospital scale showed five extra kilos, now I am two kilos less?

I know I am not good in mental calculation but I can’t be that bad in my Math when I converted the pounds to kilos and vice versa to be sure. Such conflicting numbers. Which bathroom scale should I rely on now? Hmm…

 

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Trusty and Newbie

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Goodbye 2018

31 Dec

What a year it has been! At the beginning 2018, never did it cross my mind that I would be facing many ups and downs, making it a truly eventful year. Top on the up trend has been my musings and followers, and my carvings for Gigglesville and Gnomie-wood. The cumulative number of 273 pieces carved consists of Citizens, Big Citizens, Monuments, Whales, Ocean friends, Apeach, Dinky the dinosaur, Gnomes and their homes. But there were no increase in the Superheroes count.

And worthy to mention also is my chase on Candy Crush Soda to reach 1000 Days on my iPad. To me, the daily launch just to get the Daily Bonus is an up trend to achieve that number. I just hope the device don’t die on me as I inch closer to my target.

On the home front, my two girls are all grown up with M1 in her Senior year at University and M2 ready for the next exciting chapter in her life, college-bound having completed high school. Time goes by so fast. Too fast I feel sometimes.

On the down trend, there were notable events too that could almost rival the good ones. These are mostly health-related issues and I must say are pretty life changing.

I was diagnosed with Infectious Colitis in February after a Colonoscopy and Endometriosis in April after a Laparoscopic surgery. Not good so I had to change my diet and lifestyle to deal with these issues. I gave up coffee, eggs, cheese and avoid certain food groups but alcohol and chocolate are still hard to resist. I lost weight as a result from this change which was good until recently, I added some back. Oh well…

However my physical problems didn’t end there…

My sports injury exacerbated and the diagnosis turned out to be a Wrist Tendonitis problem due to my constant carving besides golf. When you think about it, subjecting the wrist to the constant swinging of the clubs and hitting the ball is actually too much to bear upon impact with a weakened wrist. And golf is a non-stop 4.5 hours or thereabouts, thus aggravating the problem acutely. Whereas for carving, the time spent on it can be controlled. I can carve for less than an hour or sometimes three to six hours at a pace without pain that can aggravate the wrist.

So I stopped playing golf for ten weeks to rest the wrist, and did treatment and therapy which helped. Carving continued though but only as and when I have time.

An even bigger down trend is my iPhone5S. It is dying. I thought it would at least last until my birthday next year but the situation does not look good at all. The battery drain issue is just so bad, I find myself using the phone lesser and lesser. One charge can only last a quarter of a day if I even use it a little bit. Perhaps in retrospect, this is a good thing to be less device-dependent? Then again, I suspect this less device-dependency will change once I get a new phone. We shall see.

But I should not focus on the down trends to say life was not good in 2018. There were many up trends as well which I should be thankful for. And I have my friends to make me laugh and be happy, my carving to keep me occupied and contented, and my health is actually much better after those two main episodes.

So as I bid 2018 goodbye, I brace myself for 2019 to be an even more exciting year as there will be major changes, positive ones to look forward to. Thank you 2018, another year to remember by and to 2019, I welcome you with open arms.

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Sooner Than Later

28 Dec

I thought I would go back to playing golf only by the new year but I thought wrong. Two days ago, I played because my golf buddies missed me, I do too them, hence I agreed to the game. Initially I felt trepidation as I wasn’t sure if the Wrist Tendonitis would act up. The feeling was almost bordering on fear and that’s not good, having a negative outlook for something I once enjoyed and love.

So I changed my grip, adjusted things a little bit here and there, and it turned out to be an enjoyable pain-free outing which was nice. Only the rain prevented us from finishing 18-holes when it came down fast and hard with three holes to go.

I must say the adjustments helped tremendously as it quelled the negative feelings and the enjoyment returned. I even managed to score three pars, on a Par 3, Par 4 and amazingly on a Par 5. The company was great as always. And I used hubby’s Never Compromise Stubby Putter (yes, it’s conforming) instead of my usual Scotty Cameron Squareback. I figured if I have to relearn how to play again, I’d better use equipment that is even more forgiving.

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The cute sturdy Stubby is a sure one-putt putter!

I think the mental state of mind over the situation played a role and I am glad I played sooner than later to sign off 2018 with a positive as far as my golf is concerned. And I now look forward to 2019 for my next game with confidence and hopefully, pain-free as well.

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The Last Session

18 Dec

Last week, I had my last therapy session for the Wrist Tendonitis and there’s good news and bad news. The good news is the tendon area has recovered well. I just need to continue with the strengthening exercises to ensure it’s strong enough for me to go back to playing golf next year.

Now the bad news. There was some tightness on the joint of the thumb! A new and unsuspecting development, stemmed from carving which I was doing extensively prior to going off to Penang. Sigh… I have to figure out the best balance and solution to this. Otherwise, horrors of all horrors, the carving has to stopped.

With Christmas around the corner, perhaps the carving can slow down or cease until the end of the year. We’ll see how it goes.

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Getting Organized

11 Dec

Two months ago, hubby had a big package delivered to the office. The package, wrapped in newspaper and clear plastic, was a racking system for his plants. And it has been set up at the side garden.

It took some time to get things organized and when it did, the garden is now looking much better with less potted plants everywhere. It’s a good thing too because with the constant rain, the garden floods due to the excessive water as the drainage is not fast enough to clear the onslaught.

And the display? I must say it’s looking very organized with all the pots sitting on all three tiers of both racks. He even had shades put up to protect the leaves of the bromeliads from the direct afternoon sun. But now with the rainy season, the shades shelter the leaves from rain.

Although I don’t look at the plants daily, I am appreciative of the neat garden.

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Setback for the Frangipani

10 Dec

The frangipani tree has sprouted new leaves. Initially the new leaves looked fine but it was too early to tell. But now that the leaves are more and bigger, the situation has not improved even with treatment some time back.

In fact, the rust fungus seems to be even more! Yikes. It’s a setback for the tree. So this time, hubby trimmed off all the leaves by himself without waiting for the gardener and his team to come and do it.

And it’s a good thing the netting that he placed over and on the branches was not removed. So it’s still functional to shade all his collection of air plants and bromeliads from the sun now that the tree is bald again.

The tree itself is fine, standing tall and sturdy; it’s only the leaves that are problematic. I guess this problem will not go away nor be cured. Sigh.

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I Ain’t Heavy, I’m Just Obese!

4 Dec

Yesterday, I was at a new hospital for my annual checkup. The doctor whom I see annually has relocated to this new establishment and as such, being a new patient there, I had to register. He’s a good friend as well as being our doctor, hubby and I would consult him on health matter wherever he practices.

To get my record started up, my vitals had to be taken. And as I stood on the weighing scale, the reading showed an additional five kilos, I was horrified!!! I’m like, “Whh-aaattt?!” Not only I am heavy, I am obese! Just earlier in the morning, I stood on our bathroom scale and the reading was definitely five kilos less.

How could I have put on five kilos when I fasted the night before and during the hour-long journey to the hospital with a rumbling tummy, obviously empty and hungry? A discrepancy of a kilo or two may be possible but five? Unbelievable. Or has my bathroom scale been lying to me all these years? Hmm.

I’d like to believe the clothes are the culprit here. But then again, are my clothes that heavy? They’re Uniqlo jeans and a Liz Claiborne shirt, both light material and comfy wear. I did not remove my shoes though but the light weight Skechers can’t be that heavy too. Maybe I shouldn’t be too upset about the whole thing because I know I certainly ain’t heavy nor obese.

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Does It Work?

3 Dec

Sometimes the itch to buy something from online is very strong, I’d just do it. Nothing exorbitant but satisfying to indulge.

Several weeks ago, I bought a mini drill tool set which has been totally awesome to use; and I also bought two types of nose clips–supposedly capable to reduce or even eliminate snoring–to try. Who might it be for? The person in bed who snores of course!

The first package, five pieces of silica gel anti-snore clips, came in a little container, and I must say, it does work! The nightly loud snoring is now a thing of the past and sleep can be achieved peacefully after several trials and error.

The user would just have to get used to having something up their nostrils on a nightly basis and the person sleeping next to this person will and do appreciate their willingness to use it. The sleeping position is important to have the maximum noise reduction because at certain angles it loses its effectiveness.

The second package was of a more elaborate and bigger contraption because it also acts as a filter but looking less comfortable. Then again, it may be okay for others. However, it remains unused for now, so we will never quite know its effectiveness.

But I don’t think it’s a waste of money buying both clips for if we don’t try, we’d never know which works and which does not. And still have to deal with the nightly loud snores.

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Tiny nose clips and big nose filter to suppress the snores!

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