Shopping, Doctors and a Family Reunion

Sunday in Singapore was as I expected.  We woke late, had the buffet breakfast, and went to the grocery store.  Singapore is the closest approximation to Western society we can get within a few hours of travel.  Whenever we are there, we load up on the groceries we cannot find in Jakarta.  For me, that means five large bags of whole rolled oats.  Yum!

After our grocery visit, we spent the rest of the afternoon at the hotel pool.  We met a Navy pilot who had participated in the recent show of force off North Korea.  The aircraft carrier he is based on was in Singapore's port for the weekend.  He had flown his wife down for the weekend from Japan.  They had a daughter our son's age.  Being from Texas, and living in Japan and on an aircraft carrier, they missed Mexican food.  We told them about Clarke Quay.  A few hours later, as we sat at our table at the newly named, newly branded, and newly menued Octapas, we saw them walk by.  They had eaten at Muchos.

Monday was medical visit day.  The dermatologist told me one of the dots I thought was a mole was actually a wart.  He cut it off.  Tests will indicate if it is genetic or viral.  I asked how I could have received a viral wart.  As he rattled off the ways, the only one that stood out to me was massage.  He told a story of a female attorney who had visited the spa at a high-end resort in Singapore.  Two weeks later she was in his office covered head to toe in nearly 3,000 warts!  I won't be going to the spa anymore in Jakarta.

Brief tangent:  my parents both come from fairly large families.  My mom's side, in particular, has a significant gap from eldest (my mom) to youngest (my uncle).  Therefore, I have cousins the age of my children.  My mother is the same way.  She has cousins who are younger than myself.  One of them happened to be in Singapore on business on Tuesday.  He joined us for breakfast before we did the second part of our medical visits.

Tuesday was referral day.  The one mole I wanted to have removed because it hurts when I bump it is on my eyebrow.  Dermatologist said that a plastic surgeon would have to remove it because it is too near a muscle and dermatologists aren't trained for surgery near muscles.  He was concerned he could make a mistake and "it would end up looking very ugly".  So, I went to a plastic surgeon.

I leave Singapore with oats for cholesterol, sliced and diced, and more medication than free samples week at the nursing home.

I must be getting older.