The Long Thursday

Please click the photo above to play the daily videoNot every day has the decency to start well. Thursday opened with heavy traffic and a sluggishness that seemed to have infected both the roads and my general enthusiasm. One of those mornings where the commute feels like it's making a point. But these things pass, and once I got going the day found its rhythm. Smooth enough from there, which is all you can really ask of a morning that begins with brake lights.

Lunch was a proper affair — a farewell feast for a colleague who's moving on. There's a particular atmosphere to these gatherings, part celebration, part melancholy, the food always slightly more generous than a normal working lunch deserves. You eat too much, say things you probably should have said earlier, and someone inevitably makes a speech that lands somewhere between heartfelt and slightly awkward. It's a ritual, and like most rituals, it matters more than it appears to. The food was good, the company was warm, and the person leaving seemed genuinely touched, which is really the only metric that counts.

The afternoon pushed on, and I stayed later than planned — the kind of day where tasks keep finding you just as you think you're done. By six o'clock I was in a Grab heading to Sunway Sanctuary, which sounds more exotic than it felt after a full day's work. I was chairing a talk there, one of those professional evenings where you put on your best listening face and try to keep proceedings moving at a pace that respects both the speaker and the audience's attention span. Chairing is an odd skill — part traffic management, part diplomacy, part knowing when to let a question run and when to gently steer things back. It went well enough, I think.

Afterwards, a Chinese dinner with the group. There's something restorative about sitting down to a shared table after an evening of formality — the conversation loosens, the dishes arrive in that wonderful communal procession, and you remember that these people are more than just their professional titles. The food was good, the kind of meal where you keep reaching for one more serving even though you know you'll regret it on the drive home.

And then, finally, home. Late and thoroughly spent. The house was quiet in that way it gets when everyone else has already settled into their evening and you're arriving at the tail end of it. Shoes off, bag down, the satisfying collapse into the sofa that only really hits properly when you've earned it. Anita asked how it went. I gave her the abbreviated version — the one that captures the shape of the day without requiring her to relive every hour of it. She nodded. That was enough.

Some days are simply long. Not bad, not brilliant, just full. Thursday was full.

The Parking Gods Were Not Appeased

Please click the photo above to play the daily videoAnother sunny start — the kind that makes you pause at the window and briefly consider whether you've accidentally moved somewhere Mediterranean. KL has been putting on a show this week, and I'm not about to complain.

The sun, however, came with a strategic decision. Rather than join the morning exodus and sit in traffic watching the clock tick away alongside my patience, I hung about the house a while longer. There's a certain wisdom in letting the jam clear — a cup of coffee, a slow start, the quiet satisfaction of knowing that somewhere out there, thousands of people are sitting bumper to bumper while you're still in your kitchen. Timing, in this city, is everything.

The smugness lasted precisely until I reached the hospital car park. Whatever time I'd saved on the road, the parking gods reclaimed with interest. Round and round, floor after floor, the eternal spiral of a man and his car searching for a space that may or may not exist. There's a special kind of purgatory in hospital parking — you know you're needed inside, you know there's work to be done, but first you must complete this ritual of circling and hoping and quietly swearing. Eventually, a space materialised. Whether through luck or sheer persistence, I choose not to examine too closely.

Once inside, the day found its footing. Rounds were smooth, each one connecting neatly to the next, the sort of morning where the work feels purposeful without being punishing. By noon I was running a CME session for the nurses — continuing medical education, the kind of structured teaching that keeps everyone sharp. It went well. There's something grounding about stepping into a teaching role, distilling what you know into something someone else can use. The questions were good, which is always the real measure.

The evening shifted gears entirely. Dinner at Mid Valley — one of those outings where the mall serves as both restaurant and after-dinner stroll, the two activities bleeding into each other without any clear boundary. The meal was good, unhurried, the kind of midweek dinner that feels like a small reward for a week that's been behaving itself.

Afterwards, tea at TWG. The Rwanda Express, which sounds like it should involve a sleeper carriage and a Graham Greene novel but is in fact a rather excellent single-origin brew. There's a ritual to TWG that I've come to appreciate — the presentation, the quiet theatre of it, the way it forces you to slow down whether you intended to or not. Tonight, I intended to.

A quick walk through the mall rounded things off. Nothing purposeful, just movement for its own sake, the gentle drift of two people with nowhere particular to be. The legs appreciated it. The rest of me, however, was making its case for home.

And now, home. Tired in the honest way — the kind that comes from a full day rather than a difficult one. The week is more than half done, and rest is no longer optional. Tomorrow can wait. Tonight, the pillow wins.

Father's Day Dinner

My father-in-law has not been in the greatest of health since the turn of the year. It was quite seldom that he would leave the house - which usually meant a trip to the hospital for check-ups. For a change, we took him out for dinner.

It was Father's Day after all. And he loved some western food. We brought him over to Victoria Station in Jalan Ampang and he ate a lot.

He was very happy that for his coming birthday we would be bringing him over to the same place as well ...

Bright Start

I was treated to a gorgeous sunrise this morning. And with only afternoon clinic, I decided to just sit back after shower enjoying the glorious light.

It looked to be a light day today with a quick ward round in the morning following which I planned to get back to the apartment to do some reading. This will take me to the afternoon clinic which I hope not going to be too busy.

Today will be topped off with the Oncology Team Berbuka at the hospital cafe after work. It was becoming a tradition and now just me and Matin Mellor being the patrons after the passing of Arwah Ahmad Kamal a few years back.

I could not help but picture his smiling face still every time we have such gathering. I was sure he would be remembered again this evening ...

Return to Marche

Apparently it had been opened since third quarter of last year. Marche had returned. This time, it was at Pavilion Kuala Lumpur. Right at the lower - First - floor.

We missed Marche. Since the branch at The Curve was closed nearly 5 years back, we were hoping it was a temporary closure. But there were no sign of it coming back. It used to be my late Father's favourite joint. He would love the steak there.

Irfan went for the pizzaCozy decorationsRelatively quietScoot! Scoot!This new outlet was half the size of the one at The Curve. The selection of good were also rather limited although they had a nice pizza oven and the grill selection. They don't use paper receipt anymore where we used to have it stamped at the counters when we order. Not, it was registered electronically onto a card.

When we ordered, we were also given a remote disc which would buzz when our orders were ready for collection. Clearly it had moved with the time.

The playground was still thereFresh fruit juicesNice wall panellingThe ever-popular grill counterHow was the food? Not bad. I wished that the workers there were all local. Getting the orders through could sometime be tricky. The place were also rather empty despite we were there on a Saturday evening. Maybe the location was pretty secluded, not to mention there were plenty of other outlets around the mall when it came to food.

There was an obvious price hike as well. I wouldn't call the place reasonably priced anymore. I was paying easily close to RM 100 per head on that outing. And I didn't even have a steak ...

Dessert anyone?Or maybe some crepes ....For the rosti ...Fresh bruschetta My children however loved the place. Organ loved the pizza. Idlan loved the sausages. The coffee and juices were really nice and fresh as well. We would definitely drop by again from time to time. But the limited selection of food as well as the steep price may proved to be put off once the novelty wore off ...