Pen Spinning Craze

Son picked up a new craze, pen spinning. He and friends modify still good pens with additional parts from here and there to make the pens more spinnable at high speed.

Son is hooked and twirls the pen anywhere and everywhere. He's adamant to better his friends in several complicated tricks.

When he first managed to spin a pen, he proudly showed off to Daughter and me. Then he shoved the pen in our direction and cockily challenged us to just-give-it-a- try. Without missing a beat, I grabbed the pen and spun it right in his face! His jaw dropped. He didn't know it was my boredom killer favourite in school.........

A pen spinning club in Thailand

Thin Teen

'Burn fat, build muscle' - this is Son's concocted mantra since his initial obsession with calories, dieting, BMI and exercise begun. He dreads the 3-letter word, F.A.T and has this intense drive for thinness, especially his abdomen area.

He was about 12 when he started restricting his food intake, that's when Mr Puberty hit him and he was more aware of the changes in his body. The amount of food that he allows himself gradually decreased to quarter his regular portion - from a mountainful to now a thin, flat plateau portion!

He often laments that he has too much tummy fats, and unless my eyes are deceiving me, what I see is an acceptable amount of midsection! He religiously keeps track on calculating his body mass, an activity which has eased its way spontaneously into his lifestyle.

The amazing thing is, his bountiful energy didn't dissipate inspite of his small meals and he uses that as an excuse of not needing much food.

Am I worried?  50-50, and this is one battle I chose to fight, albeit slowly and gently........

Hot Fitness Workout

Yesterday noon, Son surprised me by asking for permission to go for a run around the neighbourhood. This indeed caught me off guard as he has never done it before as his workout has always been confined to gym. I was hesitant as it was rather sunny and we have a lunch appointment later.

I tried to talk him out of this sudden fitness craze, expressing my concern in alarming words like dehydrating, scorching heat, headache, cancer, amongst others. Alas, as I foreknew, all my caution fell on deaf ear.

Nevertheless, it was his eagerness which won me over. 'Ok, 15 minutes,' I said. Not that I doubted his stamina but my concern was the hot weather and knowing well Son despises glaring heat. '30 minutes,' he bargained, '15 minutes is too short an exercise.'  I relented, albeit reluctantly.

No sooner had I warmed my seat, Son returned from his brief exercise, all hot and sweaty and red faced. 'So hot', he grumbled. 'I'll go back to gym!'

It was barely 5 minutes........

Silence Of The House

There is a sense of calm serenity in the house. No commotion, no rackets, no stress, no anxieties. I only have Daughter with me as Son is out of town with friends for 3 days.

With a lone teen at home, several NOs triumphed (Daughter's opinion):

• no fighting over the bathroom,
• no name calling before, during and after breakfast,
• no teasing remarks
• no quarrelling over who's to lock up the house,
• no squabbling as to who sits in the front seat of the car, 
• no argument in the car over radio stations, etc

Tranquility reigned in the house albeit too surreal. I am left with an uneasy stillness, a hush surrounding - the silence is deafening!  

Ironic, but I already miss the hullabaloo a.k.a Son..........
           

Big Inspiration In Small Size

Son, like most teens, does encounter setbacks and failures. At his age where teen ego and self esteem take center stage, many blows prove to be catastrophic. He tends to magnify trivialities to the point that a seemingly puny problem, is to him, earth-shattering and he will be beside himself with despair and a plummeted self esteem.

I usually leave him to calm down and when he's more approachable, I'll remind him of the small man who is a HUGE motivation to many.

Watch and be inspired, then move on with life.........

Shaving Agony

This article caught my attention - 'Some boys may be uncomfortable asking to shave and others may feel awkward talking about it'.


Thank God Son embraced this coming of age change instinctively. He had been given sufficient information and adequate sharings to prepare him for this transition to adulthood naturally.


However, when Son detected a little fuzzy patch over his upper lip, he was upset, not with the facial hair but the thought of having to shave looms heavily over him. He had caught sight of his friends with razor cuts, in their maiden shaving attempt, and he was horrified. 

He tells me he is never going to shave and I told myself  that I am not going to make hair an issue and it will not be a battle I'd pick to fight with him. 

I vow to patiently let the hair issue work itself out but should he flaunts his long unkempt moustache and if my patience runs thin , I'll sneak into his room at night to do the needful, then feign innocence the next morning.........

Sugary Coffee

I was pleasantly surprised to find my cup with steaming coffee at my work table.  Son remarked, 'That's for you mom'. Hey, that indeed is a surprise! It has always been the other way round, me making drinks for my teens and rarely, they me.

Still, a blessing is a blessing, though not Starbucks material.  I took a sniff at the aromatic drink, then a huge gulp. Yucks! Instantly I spat the mouthful back into the cup. It was sickeningly sweet. I took a quick glance at Son. Am I glad he was fixated on Facebook to pay any attention to me.

Trying to sound as casual as possible, I asked, 'How did you make this coffee?' Without taking his eyes off the screen, he answered, 'I used a 3in1 coffee sachet and added 2 teaspoons sugar, nice?'

Barista, he is not........