alarmed and armed, 3.19.25

i was reading an older national geographic on dogs when i heard a loud beep followed by a voice. i thought i was hearing things because who could be in the house at unannounced at this time of night? i opened my door, turned the lights on, and walked to check the living room. my heart was racing. i heard the beep again and another voice. it was coming from ta’s room. i opened the door and waited. it was the fire alarm. it wouldn’t stop beeping because of low batteries, so i took them out. still, it was beeping. i was tired so i tried to unscrew it as a temporary fix but was unsuccessful. when i went to observe the alarm closer, it had a button that said ‘push to silence’. when i pushed it, it scared bagel and i because it began beeping louder. then it said carbon monoxide detected, which alarmed the rest of the alarms in the house. after the carbon monoxide warning, it said there was a fire. i was so stuck, i kept pushing the button to silence the alarms, but it actually did the opposite. bagel was scared so i took him out. when he came back in, he refused to go upstairs as the beeps were still there. i scoured the house for 2 aa batteries and had to find the right way to orient them. safe to say after 15 minutes, everything was back to normal with the exception of my heart rate. bagel ended up sleeping on the couch and i fell asleep about 30 minutes or so after. i’m glad i wasn’t already asleep because the voice and beep combination would’ve given me a heart attack. it’s 8:04am and i’m waiting to give my auntie some dried shrimp my mom ordered for her before heading work. i’m definitely feeling the lack of sleep, but at least i know the alarms are working.

which is peace of mind and although that should help me sleep easier, it didn’t last night whatsoever.

-ratha, 8:07am, 3.19.25

let the madness commence, 3.18.25

i was cooking dinner after work when money texts me about the first ncca tourney game. i completely forgot, but when i turned it on, it was an instant classic. at least from the last 34 seconds i saw lol. this is the best time of the year and i’m hoping unc loses in their 9pm game slot here in about half an hour but since they kept up with us this past weekend, i don’t have high hopes they’ll be bounced early.

still, you never now.

-ratha, 8:56pm, 3.18.25

waking to rain, 3.17.25

before i went to bed, i let bagel out. it was barely drizzling. after he came in, i took a shower and went to bed. i fell asleep only to wake to the wind booming on my windows along with heavy rain. once i gained full consciousness, i turned to bagel who was still sleeping soundly. currently, i’m staring into the abyss that is my ceiling thinking of how peaceful things are right now. if only life could feel like this more often.

if only i didn’t have work in a few hours, smh.

-ratha, 3:21am, 3.17.25

slow sundays, 3.16.25

i didn’t do much today. it was gloomy out, though it was in the 60’s. bagel and i went on two walks, then i ran my mile. afterwards, i went to chipotle to try their new honey chicken. it was quite good, even better paired with the red agua fresca. i hit walmart on saugus to buy a few groceries then came home to do some writing. depending on how the voice feels, i’ll record tonight if i can.

slow sundays are the best, but no matter how slow they feel, monday always comes quicker than i’d want it to.

-ratha, 9:14pm, 3.16.25

1 to go, 3.15.25

duke was the acc regular champions and tonight, they became the acc tournament champions. #7 at the podium said ‘2 down, 1 to go’ and that’s the mindset that’ll get us to the promiseland. we need to win 6 more games for our 6th championship and with this team i can see it happening.

march madness is my favorite sporting event and nothing comes close.

-ratha, 10:55pm, 3.15.25

more sequoia fixes, 3.14.25

after purchasing the remote start yesterday, i caught the bug for upgrading/fixing up the sequoia. today was 55, which is warm compared to what we’ve been experiencing the past 4/5 months so i went ahead and put the back panel of the sequoia back together. the cd player and the cassette player stopped working back in october (or was it november), so i removed the cassette and bought a bluetooth fm transmitter. that’ll have to do until i upgrade the audio system, but i do like oem module as it has a lot of buttons and a lot of buttons make me feel like i’m in a cockpit, which i like. plus, i prefer knobs over touchscreen so maybe i’ll just upgrade the speakers when the time comes. i need to get the back brake pads done, too. it all sounds like a lot for a 21-year-old car, but it’s worth it to me.

although i have the lexus, the sequoia is my baby.

-ratha, 4:26pm, 3.14.25

sequoia upgrades, 3.13.25

i have my main email, then an email for spam such as deals, newsletters, coupons, etc. i had time today so i checked my spam email. best buy was having a sale on a product i had viewed previously, which was a remote starter for the sequoia. the sequoia came with a remote lock/unlock, but the plastic broke so i haven’t been using it since 2018. i don’t mind having to walk up to the car to unlock it because my thinking is you have to walk up to the car to get in and drive, so what’s an extra key insertion lol. the thing that would be convenient though is a remote start so the car can warm up in the winter. though winter is coming to an end, i’ll be prepared for next year as i bought the remote starter.

it was like 40% off plus free installation, how could i resist??

-ratha, 2:42pm, 3.13.25

balancing triangles, 3.12.25

i always feel like there’s too much to do and not enough time. it sounds cliche, but that’s been my life for the past few years. maintaining emotional wellbeing, spiritual wellbeing, and physical wellbeing is more than a full-time job in itself. i’m always in the middle of two instead of all three. i think if i didn’t have bigger aspirations than to work for the man and die then i wouldn’t struggle with this so much. they say hard decisions lead to any easy life, and lately i’ve been in-between a rock and a hard place.

still, i know what awaits me on the other side of consistent effort is worth more than what comfort could ever bring.

-ratha, 4:24pm, 3.12.25

175, 3.11.25

i’ve been in bed in and out of sleep all day. i caught a bug, but by the time the evening came, i thought of what old folks used to say when i was growing up. they say if you’re under the weather, to try to heat your body up. so go for a walk, workout, etc. cambodians will tell you to stand over a pot of boiling water or to take a hot shower. heeding this advice, i said fuck it i’ll go to the yym for a light and short workout. when i got there, i was texing t. she was telling me about benching and how i should see what my 1 rep max was. i’m the type of lifter who likes to lift alone, so i rarely weight-up. i usually end up adding reps to my sets instead. tonight though, i put on a plate and it felt good. it was heavy the last couple times because i hadn’t been lifting due to my thumb. then i put on 10s and it felt alright. t told me i should add on another 10 and though i was nervous, i did. i ended up getting it up for 1 rep with a pinch in my right shoulder lmaoo. long story short, that’s the most i’ve ever benched and it’s thanks to her. i figured if i could add 5 to 10 lbs a month that i could hit two plates by the end of the year.

we’ll see, but i’m sure if t pushes me, i’ll be there.

-ratha, 10:24pm, 3.11.25

reunited, 3.10.25

i had a dental cleaning today. when i went in, i thought i noticed a familiar face in the back, but i didn’t make too much of it. i was sat and did an x-ray. then when it was time to get the cleaning done, the familiar face i had seen earlier stepped in. it was who i thought it was. i was excited to see her because it’s been about 2-something years. her and i are around the same age, and since my first cleaning with her, we’ve developed a great rapport. it was so good to catch up with her. when i last saw her, she was pregnant, so of course she has a baby boy now. she’s still running and we exchanged travel stories. she remembered me working in biotech and gave me a connection to a friend of hers. she’s always been very warm, welcoming, and kind.

i have to go back in a few weeks to get another nightguard, so it’ll be good to see her again.

-ratha, 4:24pm, 3.10.25