忙里抽闲 Relax!

周末。 傍晚。夕阳下。

河畔两旁。人群点缀。

不少钓鱼者，有的犹如“姜太公”垂钓， 有点则依栏而立，直视前方鱼竿的动静。当然也有旁观者，休闲的席坐在轻斜的草地上，与同伴闲聊家常。

也有遛狗者，踩铁马奔驰者，漫步运动者。

每个人都在自己的空间里“忙着”。

长时间居身于钢骨水泥的硬体空间，偶尔需到外面去看看葱绿的景象，纾解烦躁的心情。

忙里抽闲，让生活更精彩，是“长生”之道。

不期然的惊瞥一位小孩在草地边缘手舞足蹈的兴奋模样；它的感染力是多么的强悍！

Life is tough. Remember to slow down and savour the tranquility of nature.

You don't have to travel far, or spend a lot to indulge in the relaxation offered by our nature! But you need to make the effort, make the first move...

Relax! Just look at how happy the boy is, dancing with all his innocence, on the edge of grass patch!

孤单 Lonely

人是合群的动物；这个观点，从小便烙印在我脑海里。

但我不是个善于交际的人。

我当然不是自闭症患者。

若有选择，我宁可自个看电视，听音乐，看海，独自步行，也不想夹在人群内纳闷。

独处，难道是一种罪过？

诚然，我们生在这个社会上，难免需要别人的帮助。有几个知己固然重要，但也无需逼着自己做些违背自己意愿的事情。偶尔离群，应该也无伤大雅！

Is it a crime to keep to oneself?

It is true that having friends to share our thoughts (be it high or low) is good for a person's mental health. But, I am sure that are other ways to keep ourselves upbeat.

Some people are wired to vibrant social life, but others may not. Each one of us has our own character.

Be happy, and know when to seek help if needed!

晨运 morning exercises

已经好久没有在周末晨运。

一是懒得早起，二是工作实在有点忙。另外一个原因是另外一半往往因为早上醒床时间有点漂浮不定，唠叨不已，听得烦躁，便索性取消晨运的习惯！

上个星期原本计划到某公园去晨运，却因为突来的一场雨而取消。昨天，驾车到直落布兰亚的公园去晨运。发现公园内的天空之桥因为某项预防土崩的大工程，将会在两年后才放行。只好改道往哼德森波涛桥/花巴山的方向走去。然后再去附近的小贩中心吃早点。

It has been a long time since my wife and I last went for morning exercises on Sunday.

Resumed our old routine in recent weeks. The attempt 2 weeks ago was thwarted by heavy rain in the morning. We managed to drive to Telok Blangah Hill Park for exercises yesterday. The forest walk is closed for major renovation to prevent landslide. It will only be open in year 2026!

But don't be despair. We were still able to walk to Henderson Waves and Faber Hill!

廉价航空

廉价航空的崛起，使得很多人有机会当空中飞人。

记得小时候，往来长距离的城市，多数人会选择长途巴士或火车。因为机票着实太过昂贵，不是一般老百姓所能承受得起的。

我第一回乘搭飞机，是在大学3年级时，透过筹款，顺利购买飞往台湾的机票，到台湾去参加医学生交流会。

后来开始工作，有些经济能力乘搭飞机在新加坡与槟岛穿行。不过那时的机票还是蛮贵。

后来在2000年代，随着廉价航空公司的崛起（尤其是亚航：标榜每人都可以飞行), 刹那间，乘搭飞机已不再是有钱人家的专利。

曾几何时，来回新加坡/槟城的机票，偶尔还会比长途巴士来的便宜。不过，在经过疫情的洗礼后，令人难以置信的廉价机票，已经一去不回！

公园 Exercise Park

前几天回高渊小镇小住几日，傍晚时分在附近的公园慢步运动。

在公园绕一圈，需步行1km.

此公园有儿童游乐设施，成人运动设备，及一排排的树木。稳扎在地上的树根，偶尔会有红蚂蚁排成直线前行。

red ants

严禁在此遛狗的指示牌！

唯有美中不足的是，严禁遛狗！毕竟马来西亚是个回教国，狗被视为“不纯洁/非清真”的动物，回教徒不可触摸！（不禁联想起民国时期，日本人在公园竖起“华人与狗不可入内”的招牌）

Pleasantly surprise that there are exercise parks in residential estates in Nibong Tebal.

The park was fairly well equipped - to cater for needs of young and old.

The only regrettable issue is that dogs are forbidden in the park - to cater for the sensitivity of Muslim.

旧镇 Old Town

前几天飞回高渊为往生的母亲做后续仪式。7月8日到太平山庄义山办了“谢土”仪式，过后两天（7月10日）在家里请道士念佛经，为亡母百日庆典祷告。

间中空闲时刻，到旧区“萤火虫"码头的西餐厅吃晚餐。

西餐菜单蛮丰富，味道还不错，但有点贵。

五六十年代旧屋

西餐厅

载送游客观赏萤火虫的小船。据说每人马币15

月光下的旧屋与码头

17年前，办完先父的丧事后，我就曾经与家人在此处登上小船，往附近河畔的树林观赏萤火虫。在伸手不见五指的乌黑夜色下观赏闪闪发光，翩翩起舞的萤火虫，别有一番滋味。

说实在的，那天晚上的萤火虫是蛮多的！因为是第一次经历，印象蛮深刻！

那时还没有西餐厅的踪迹。这西餐厅应该是五六年前所建造的。

Went back to Nibong Tebal for my mother's 100th day ritual.

Went to take dinner at a western food restaurant in an old town nearby.

The restaurant is located at the jetty where excursion for firefly sightseeing departs from.

You can stay at first level (within the comfort of air-condition) or the 2nd level (open air terrace, to enjoy the breeze and smell the river).

The restaurant offers quite a number of food items. The food was not bad, but not so cheap though.

Firefly excursion runs from 7.30-9.30pm. And I overheard the boatman running the excursion mentioned that it costs RM 15 per person. (I would say it is a fairly reasonable price). Seeing fireflies dancing around in pitch dark surrounding is an experience not to be missed! I joined the excursion 17 years ago -> it was a very enchanting experience!

会有相聚的那一天吗？Will they ever meet?

前几天在阳台上闲站着，往楼下望去。不经意目睹两队人马，分别在河流两旁的运动跑道，往相反方向前进。乍看之下，以为是单人步行或健跑；细看之下才惊醒两边皆是双人行！

两方人马往相反方向前进，能碰面吗？难也，除非有一对来个180度的急转弯！

Chanced upon the above scenerio - two separate pair of individuals, moving forward in opposite direction, in parallel exercise paths separated by a river.

Will they ever meet up ? Not unless one pair decided to make a U-turn.