Glucose Tolerance Test

I went to have Glucose Tolerance Test done this early morning. Our white car didn't really want to take us there,  Kevin couldn't started our car so I had to call a taxi for a 2 minutes and $11 ride, praying for not being late for the appointment.

3 days before the test, I was asked to have my normal diet plus having a total of 10 serves (each day) of the following food: potato, fruit, bread, rice, pasta, soft drink, sweet, milk, and one more thing I couldn't remember. For example, 4 pieces of toast, 3 apples, 2 glasses of milk, and 1 potato are 10 serves. Also, my Glucose Tolerance Test appointment started at 9.30am this morning, fasting from 10.30pm last night was also required. I was only allowed water. Luckily, I don't normally eat late. This didn't trouble me.

It was quite a hard job for me, though I only choose food only from the above, I hardly reach the goal of 10 serves. It was too much for me, but I was proud that I achieved the requirement. I guess I will be gain more weight when I stand on the stressful scale tomorrow.

There was a patient talking with the examiner when I just arrived, so i didn't start the test until 10am. I had my first blood test, my blood sugar was 4.9 which was perfectly normal (normal human blood sugar: 4-6). Then I was asked to drink a bubbly fanta-like soft drink in 5 minutes and would have another 2 more blood test in 2 the following 2 hours.

The examiner said my long sleeve was so tight that made too much pressure that it ended up a bruised and sore left elbow (like the picture above). And because my veins were too skinning to find, I had 3 pinholes (i only need 2) on my right arm. Both arms were too sore to move and lift my hand bag. Luckily Kevin had just arrived in time to buy me a Tim Tam and carry my bag for me. Otherwise, I guess I would have fainted from the fasting and seeing too much of my blood giving away.

Make sure you have a little pack of chocolate in your hand bag when you do this test, you will crave for food right away!

2 more stitches?

We went to Mother Mather Hospital for double checking my little bean's potential of having down syndrome today. Because Morphology Scan is required to be done during 18-20 week pregnancy, with my 26 weeks now, there's no such sample we can look at for the down syndrome so our scan specialist could only check if our baby's some parts were growing equally and normally.


According to the limited morphology scan, my health conditions and background, the potential of down syndrome stays low, and lower than the risk of having Amniocentesis test. However we could still decide to have further Amniocentesis done if we insist. Kev and I were happy and believing in our faith, so we decided not to do the further test and continue our new parenting journey.


One thing that caught my eyes were our little bean's head circumference is already 24cm! Gee...i cannot imagine by the labor time's near, how much bigger her head could be and I guess maybe I will need 2 more stitches after her arrival?

Thanks for Mother Mater Hospital, I got to experience having a scan in their hospital, too. Unlike our previous scan,we are very satisfied with their team, and how they describe things throughout the whole scan without leaving us questioning. All the midwives, staffs, and doctors were very friendly and showing their passion when we saw them working. Also, Mother Mater Hospital provide a very relax and friendly environment and facilities. I don't feel any stress or fear when walking into the place and enjoy being their, too.

I see!

Now he's found someone else that is "more important" than me, so I have become useless.

Bitter not sweet

I found this picture when skimming through some photos I took in Tasmania. Since then, I still can smell the freshness of the grass along our road trip.


Port Arthur, where used to place thousands of prisoners for Australia and England in history. I would love to live here until death as a prisoner if I got to see this beautiful scenery everyday. It was a historical, slightly sad place where kind of reflects to the whole Tasmania. I like their euro like buildings with vintage look. This place has never been fully developed before it starts to wither.


This image reminds me of father sketch practice when he was at uni. I enjoy chasing the line on the papers, so I feel the purity of joy, imagining how grateful he used to be drawing with a dream. Sadly, dad is not like that any more. He has the stereotype of "artist personality" that is (I might be very wrong) overly pride, bad mood, overly insistent, lack of communication with others because he believed so much there was no one could understand him and he ridiculously trust that the only one who understand him will need to say no more. Hence, he didn't get to survive in the majority of society, he has his eyes on the top of his head so he could see no one, trust no one... As time passed, he's still holding a great dream with less and very little confidence deep in his mind, he become even more harsher to people around to hide his sense of inferiority, protecting himself from being criticized or corrected. I see him bullying himself, hiding himself in a dark cage...


The more I look at his sketch, the sadder I become, but I can only see this happening to him. Family is like this, generation is like this, isn't it?

Life pancake

On the other night before we went to bed, I lied on my pillow and asked Kevin,


"when do you think you're going to stop financially supporting our kid, to start them being independent"?


"Once they're 18, i recon they should be out and experience, rising themselves", answered Kev.


Let's say we're going to live until 80, then we die. I will be spending Maximum 20 years with my 2 kids (one is not in my tummy, waiting to land at the end of Oct this year, and we plan to have the another one before I reach my 30, in 2 years time), then they're going to move out, learning to be independent at my age of 50, and I will spend my rest of ideal 30 years with Kevin, hopefully travel around the world and enjoy.


There're only 20 years with my children...


Compare to my own life time frame, I have only spent 15 year in the family with my parents, 10 years with my younger daughter, and 3 years with my younger brother. I left home when my brother was only 3 years of age. This scares me... If my brother and I are not blood related, he wouldn't remember me at all!


I think this is easier to live in my first 15 year at home. Since then, there has been a very weird kind of emotion and homesick happened to me. I eager for parents care at the same time I avoid their caring and concern, I look for feeling the love from my parent however at the same time I am too scared to share my stories. I miss them, but I'm too scared to contact them.


Now, I'm becoming someone else's parent, there's another weird of emotion quietly formed...

24weeks

Reached my 24 weeks of pregnancy.

Baby bean's started effecting my activities a lot now, so I've wondered how many more photos I can take before labour? I don't feel like missing out beautiful and photogenic performances.

Op. feminine

Quite a lot people suggest that my photos are very feminine. I thought that is simply because most of the performance I have photographed are choreographed by female artists, and also I look into the details while photographing: a gaze of distance, a moment of eye blinking, a move of a fingertip...etc. I have started wondering if there's a work I can bring my photography to a different atmosphere, and how can a work influence my photography and post editing process.

I guess this series of photographs do brings me another different thoughts to it. Do you say this is manly v.s feminine? I'm not sure. Instead of working on the details, I was looking at the atmosphere that the audience brought to the show and how much the audience's energy changed the performance, too. Clapping, cheering, and yelling... a big fighting cage in a dusty dark room covered by black plastic material. A sense of underground and sin inspired me. I spent less time in doing the post editing that doesn't mean the quality is less. There's a different way of approaching I have felt. The photos are needed the roughness and noisy.. dirty kind of fill and that ends up of the outcome I have brought.

MakeShift

The most beautiful thing in the world is to be able to create, to breath hard. I'm amazed by MakeShift collectives.