Friday 26 December 2014

Tengoku Pet Crematorium - Sendoff to the Rainbow Bridge

I know this is primarily a beauty blog but I feel there are people who would benefit from such a review though it may be rather depressing.

As some of you may know, my family has not had the best Xmas. One of our family dogs passed away on Xmas evening from what we now realise was most probably a heart attack. As you can imagine, it was very sudden and unexpected. Some Xmas.

After a few calls to 24hr crematorium services, my dad was quite upset as some of the people who answered our calls did not sound empathetic in the least. Then we called Tengoku, a 24hr standby same-day single pet cremation service located at Pasir Ris Farmway 2, just next to Mutts & Mittens.

Perry, the guy who answered our call and drove by promptly to pick up our old girl, was very professional and respectful of our grieving, explaining gently and slowly the procedures involved and what time we should come by for the cremation the next day (i.e today). He and my dad transferred Miko to a very sturdy and well-designed black (styrofoam I think) Tengoku collection box and brought her back to their facility.

The next day, we arrived at Tengoku at 8.45a.m, 15 minutes earlier than our appointed time and were pleasantly surprised that they were ready and waiting for us. Perry ushered us to a small open air space and wheeled Miko out to us for us to say our last goodbyes. They left us to ourselves for awhile, only asking that we let them know when we were ready.  Some fresh white carnations had been placed between her paws, which was really a beautiful touch and made her look asleep and at peace.

When we were ready they wheeled her round to the furnace and ushered us to the viewing area where Perry stood silently by the side while it commenced. Later we went to the office to fill out some paperwork and select Miko's urn before returning a couple of hours later to pick her up.

Tengoku has a pretty good range of urns though the ones that come free with the cremation are of a very oriental design. So we took a look at the more modern designs and topped up $38 for a round minimalistic white medium urn. Plus the $380 (the price for small breed cats & dogs) for her cremation, it was one of the most affordable rates around and the service (we met another guy at pickup and he was very nice too) was top notch. I regret that we forgot to take his name but he was just as gentle and empathetic as he explained that they don't grind the bones at Tengoku and that they had placed her skull bones at the top of the pile in the urn.


For all of us who have pets, sending them off is an unfortunate part of the package. We've had dogs in the family since the day I was born so I'm no stranger to goodbyes and it doesn't get easier. All we can do is make the best of it and it means a lot when the final steps are as dignified and nicely done as with Tengoku.

So a heartfelt thank you to Perry, Nice Guy No. 2 and Tengoku for their empathy and professionalism, your good work really helped my family with closure.

Tengoku - 24 hr hotline 6749 5039 
www.tengoku.com.sg
11 Pasir Ris Farmway 2 (By appointment only)

Thursday 18 December 2014

MIA Apologies!! And some stuff about Salicylic Acid.

Hi again! Didja miss me? (^^;;;;) Sorry I've been gone for....a little over a month now ahahaha~ Some little developments have me all in a tizzy in more ways than one really. And with all most situations, I have a very good excuse.

And here it is.

Get it? Get it?!?

Yep, 100% natural in the traditional way. LOL

I have to say it wasn't expected but I guess it's about that time in life before I get much ahem older. The Husband's a lot more excited than I am. I guess it's hard to get excited when you feel pretty bleh and slightly motion sick so often throughout the day m(=____=)m yep, that's my life now...constantly clutching a bottle (sometimes 2) of medicated oil. I tell people the kid might have a hearing problem at the rate The Husband keeps yelling into my belly button like it's the Grand Canyon lol Just joking of course, about the hearing problem, not the yelling. That part's true unfortunately XP

Looking forward to including some new topics into the blog with this development and thought I'd start with a small piece that I was checking up this week.


This is especially important if you intend to breastfeed.

In a nutshell, topical use is considered safe as long as it's within 2% (if it's near the bottom of your product's ingredients list you should be fine.). The general opinion is that toners are ok because you do a quick swipe instead of 'soaking' your skin in the stuff but it's safer if you know the concentration of your product. Peels are totally out of the question. ALWAYS check with your gynae if this is a big concern of course.

Oral forms of salicylic acid are a big no-no because the chemical in oral form gives rise to higher risks for miscarriage, heart defects, heart & lung problems for the baby as well as bleeding issues for both mother and baby. These are the same reasons for not taking aspirins during pregnancy.

Sidenote about painkillers: My gynae tells me Panadol (the regular type, not Max or Cold/Flu etc) is fine if not taken often and just 1 tab.

My DHC Salicylic Acid Acne Toner has Salicylic Acid listed fairly high up on the ingredients list, 3rd to be exact, but a check on the website (DHCCare) states 2% Salicylic Acid so I'm slightly relieved. I have just a few drops left in my current bottle so I'll probably down the usage to once a day till it finishes and hunt for a more natural toner option for my combination skin.

All in all, anything that's too concentrated is potentially harmful to your new little best friend. So if your hormones aren't doing kamikaze somersaults and creating absolute havoc on your skin, it's best to go as natural and minimalistic as possible with the skincare routine during pregnancy just to be absolutely safe. OR you can bombard your gynae with a list of products and ask their opinion~ Fortunately my skin isn't breaking out or anything so far...hopefully it'll stay nice and calm for the next 7 months!

Now to stock up on my Konjac sponges again~