A double hungry ghost month (apparently due to a lunar leap-year - it happens each 13th year) has been replaced by the Mid Autumn festival month with its moon cakes and lantern festivals.

It is actually very festive here in Singapore these days, as lanterns decorate most of Singapore, Little India is lit up to celebrate Deepavali (hindu festival), and Geylang and Malay Village is swarming with people breaking fast after sunset (Hari Raya, or Ramadan, is currently celebrated in the muslim community).

 

And I am stuck inside studying.

Yes, I have again become a student. I will again sweat over books trying to understand what it all means, while the enclosing deadlines for essays and reports are looming ever closer and the stress level increases every day.

Why and What, I hear you ask.

Well, for the What first; I have started a BSc (Hons) in Applied Psychology with Derby University. It is through something called eLearning, and as the name suggests it is 100% online study (some of the exams has to be sat, but can be done at a British Council, and I do have to visit Derby once during the course, but I recon that can be done without too much suffering..).

Then for the Why; Well, I've been travelling and living around the world and I find myself more and more curious about why people act the way they do and think the way they do. I've also found myself with a lot of spare time on my hands here, so I thought I'd give it a go.

It's a part-time program, and I can decide how many courses I want to take each semester. I also pay only for the courses I take, so I reconed I'd might as well give it a go.

And aquired knowledge is never a bad thing, even if I decide it is not for me and quit after a while.

 

I must admit to being very nervous and having some problems getting back into the whole studying thing again, though.. Keep your fingers crossed for me!

 

There is nothing else new, really. Which is why I haven't posted much here lately. We're living very relaxed, normal lives.. I don't suppose you're at all interested that we bought an extra carton of juice yesterday, or the fact that my bread baking has been less successful lately (I'm suspect it might be because I keep the flour in the freezer now).

 

A few things of interest perhaps:

 

Went for a weekend to Kuala Lumpur a few weeks back. Walked around a little, saw the Petronas Towers, went up the telecommunication tower.. But mainly we stayed in a very nice hotel and spent a lot of time just relaxing and enjoying it.

 

Erik found out that his cholesterol is very high, so his diet has had to change a little. Also, he's stopped smoking (ghasp!, I hear.. Yes, it's true! He's been completely cigarette free since Monday (5 days!)!). We've also started taking Omega 3 and antioxidants.

Hopefully it's because of his chemo last year, and they will check it again in a few months to see how it's going.

 

That's about it. Now I'd better get back to my books.. I've got a 700+ page in Social Psychology waiting for me.

 

Have a great autumn (yeah, right!) and don't forget my birthday ;-)