Locally transmitted COVID cases in the country have crossed the 1000 mark as of Saturday.
Case numbers now stand at 1004.
It is a little boggling, I have to admit, particularly since most of us have been vaccinated, most of us have kept to the masking and social distancing rules, and furthermore we have had two Heightened Alerts (HA) this year.
It's funny but I actually remember the first HA more than I remember the second.
Even though the second took place in August- just over a month ago.
I guess time blurs out when you don't put much thought into what's going on where the days just roll at their own pace (thank God- I'm done with excitement).
There was, of course, a significant change in lifestyle.
Like how instead of keeping to the regular routine, we found ourselves planning our day's schedule around the meals we were going to have.
Those were days where we asked ourselves if we were going to order in our meal, if we were going to go there, do a takeaway and bring it back to the officetel, or if we were going to make it such that we'd do a takeaway and then find a public place to enjoy our meal?
Let's just say that I don't think I've had as many picnics as I've ever had in my life.
It was pretty fun, all of it.
There was once we did a basil rice and pad thai takeaway from this Thai eatery in Chinatown and had it whilst seated on the benches in Hong Lim Park.
There was once we bought burgers and fries and munched them sitting under a plant at the open area between Millennia Walk and Marina Square.
Then there was once where we had our wagyu burger, ebi rice burger and iced milk tea sitting on the wooden platform of the Sentosa Boardwalk facing the waters of the Sentosa/Mainland 'pond'.
And neither will I forget the day we had our hawker meal of ban mian and chicken rice at the void deck under a block of flats near the hawker center. I remember this well- because although I was hungry, I had been rather happy to see tables at residents' corners being occupied by diners happily having their meals there.
Amongst some of the most memorable meals I had this HAHA included salted egg chicken with rice from this newly opened stall at a coffee shop down the road, a whole deep-fried chicken from this fast food place at the Wisma building in Geylang Serai, and some of our self-prepared brunches.
It's funny; looking at these pictures now I realize I don't know if they're from HA 1 or HAHA.
Some of them look like they might be from the first one...
Doesn't matter- I really enjoyed them all.
And, frankly?
I wouldn't mind eating some of them picnic style again. :)