Happenings on this day of Tuesday 18th January, 2011

So I had a tuition class this morning for an hour after another struggle to get out of bed. These last few nights I've slept very comfortably and I've had to fight myself out of bed for my morning classes. Thankfully, the bed eventually lost after half-hour epic battles!

The Australian Open tennis has started and is on channel 813 all day every day, so that is a dominant force now and will be for these coming two weeks. Yesterday I watched my favourite player Roger Federer, win an easy first round match, and my favourite women's player, Justine Henin, fight out a great comeback to beat a bullish Sania Mirza. Champions always find a way to win. Today, Nadal didn't drop a single game before his opponent retired with a knee injury in the 2nd set. Ana Ivanovic suffered a setback with an epic loss in the first round, going down 8-10 in an incredible final set. I'm just getting ready to watch Lleyton Hewitt slug it out with David Nalbandian.

This morning we went to Klinik Gambut for Fie's check-up. I was most appalled by the standard of the toilets. In a place where good health and hygiene are advised, where pregnant women and newborn babies visit, the dirty, smelly toilets are an absolute disgrace. The men's toilet at the adjoining dental clinic was unclean, wet, and had a pungent smell like those public toilets one encounters on highways. Trying to help my daughter use the toilet there was a horrible moment. There was no toilet paper, I wouldn't fancy handling the hose which was wet with who knows what type of fluid all over it, and the sink was small and dirty with a filthy mirror hanging above it. My wife had to use the ladies toilet at the clinic and reported that it was dirty and the toilet wouldn't flush! Of all places, I would have never imagined this in a health centre!! I am amazed that such atrocities can exist!

I had pancakes for lunch, made by myself, with a squeeze of lemon and sprinkling of sugar. I do feel like a good bowl of pasta now though, with cream cheese sauce.

While waiting at the clinic, Fie whipped out her trendy Zenith Hotel notebook and I began teaching Lauren the alphabet. She can correctly identify almost all 26 of the letters, but finds little motivation to count numbers. 

Looks like she'll be taking on English, just like her daddy!