Living in Kota Kinabalu

It is a blessing to live in Kota Kinabalu. My life is casual and relaxing.

My house is located at a convenient spot. I can buy groceries and daily needs just about any direction near my house. My office is 10 min within walking distance. My children's school is 6km away from my house, and most of the time I can avoid traffic jam at different hours using different routes. I love jogging at Taman Tun Fuad Stephen early in the morning especially after rainy nights. The fresh air and the sound of stream flowing down from the slope is simply refreshing. Sometimes I choose to jog round the man-made lake at Likas Sport Complex. When time is a bit rush, I jog at Taman Tropicana.

A cup of hot chocolate

I read this in a Chinese magazine, which speaks to me what is really important in life. How we now live, is really the choice made by us.

A group of graduates, well established in their careers, were talking at a reunion and decided to go visit their old university professor, now retired. During their visit, the conversation turned to complaints about stress in their work and lives. Offering his guests hot chocolate, the professor went into the kitchen and returned with a large pot of hot chocolate and an assortment of cups – porcelain, glass, crystal, some plain looking, some expensive, some exquisite – telling them to help themselves to the hot chocolate.

When they all had a cup of hot chocolate in hand, the professor said: “Notice that all the nice looking, expensive cups were taken, leaving behind the plain and cheap ones. While it is normal for you to want only the best for yourselves, that is the source of your problems and stress. The cup that you’re drinking from adds nothing to the quality of the hot chocolate. In most cases it is just more expensive and in some cases even hides what we drink. What all of you really wanted was hot chocolate, not the cup; but you consciously went for the best cups… And then you began eyeing each other’s cups.

Now consider this: Life is the hot chocolate; your job, money and position in society are the cups. They are just tools to hold and contain life. The cup you have does not define, nor change the quality of life you have. Sometimes, by concentrating only on the cup, we fail to enjoy the hot chocolate God has provided us. God makes the hot chocolate, man chooses the cups. The happiest people don’t have the best of everything. They just make the best of everything that they have. Live simply. Love generously. Care deeply. Speak kindly. And enjoy your hot chocolate.

Protecting my mangoes

In the previous mango season last year, bats came to enjoy my ripe mangoes at night leaving behind the mango skin with the flesh gone. This year I wrap the fruits about to ripe with plastic bags. This way keep the mangoes away from the bats. The birds like to poke on the fruits as well. I just couldn't wrap every fruit so let the birds enjoy the fruits together with me.

Mango Tree

It is now mango season. I have an apple mango tree just in front of my house. The flesh is smooth and sweet and juicy. Yummy! I eat at least 2 to 3 fruits everyday. This is also the season I find myself a few kilos heavier.

Mangoes are usually given to my family members and guests. Everyone loves my mangoes.......