Wednesday 24 March 2010

Cramped Tight

Yesterday, while doing ablutions for maghrib prayers, I had this sudden mother-of-all-cramps in my right foot. I can't remember (yeah,yeah) when I last had one of  these and was wondering my head off as to the reason why.

One time, a cramp developed when someone sat on my foot while at a crowded congregational terawih, I was grimacing in pain as I felt my toes and arch contorting into a shape not unlike that of a Chinese concubine's bound feet (yes I've seen gruesome pictures of these). As you might imagine my focus level dropped to minus infinity. Immediately after the salams I hobbled off to the back and walked away the cramp. Much later on I learnt that in a crowded situation, it is acceptable for one to sit back legs tucked Japanese-style on the last tahyaat before salams instead of the usual manner.

But this time, even though the cramp had eased after some walking on carpet, it came back while doing the last tahyaat - which I completed at supersonic speed. Khusyu' was zilch but hopefully I got points for enduring the pain.

And the reason for the cramp?

Well yesterday the cleaner came for the weekly once-over (hey, I supplement that by pushing the mop too, okay? whenever I'm in the mood, that is). Anyway, she was a different girl from the one the company usually sends over. She worked fast and hard and the floor turned out so delightfully shiny and smooth with the application of her elbow grease.  I was happy to do away with my house slippers all day.

In the evening in the kitchen, I slid the kitchen rug aside and cooked barefooted - still enjoying the ungritty floor.  It was usrah night and I made cekodok pisang for Muni's buka puasa and then mihun goreng for the usrah's potluck. It was after that that my foot cramped under the tap.

Manja punya kaki. House slippers are important to ward off the "cold" from our tiled floors and I do usually wear them. My mother swears by them and she'd remind us every so often, ever since we became mothers ourselves. Hers are the ones with little spikes on the inners for the reflexology effect. Mine are cheap ordinary cushioned ones but I soon might have to get the spikeys as well.

But the cramp gave me a very good reason to have a thai massage today.

"You want man?" asked the manageress at the counter. Sheesh, just because I'm big-sized she thinks only male masseurs can handle me.

"No...... you got handsome boy?" I almost asked.

I waved my hand indicating no, and she said "Ok, I give you Mown".

And moaned and groaned I did - inaudibly though, to save face - as I relished masseuse Mown's kneading and pummeling as she contorted me, like my cramped foot, into unlikely yoga poses and wrestling holds.

She too, stood on my soles for what seemed a good long while which was indeed reminiscent of the painful experience of my foot being sat on by a heavyweight. But it was after the most satisfying roti-canai treatment of my feets' lifes that Mown administered soon after, that I forgave her.

Gosh - at the end of it I felt like I just had a very satisfying workout, although I did nothing but play, as it were, into the hands and elbows and feet of the inimitable Mown.

Sawadi karp Mown, you certainly deserved your tip.

Just for you, this thai-sounding pantun:

"High, high sun haaaiiiii,  
Son cow die taaiiiii,
Long time search Aiiii, 
New now get Aiiiii!"

Translated from:
"Tinggi-tinggi si matahari,
Anak kerbau mati tertambat
Sudah lama saya mencari
Baru sekarang saya mendapat!"


Owh, did I say workout? I started back at the gym also today.

28 comments:

mamasita said...

I've always always flouted that rule of wearing slippers on the tiles..because I tengok everyone else dalam rumah tak pakai so, not to feel I sorang jer cerewet, I opted out of that advice so long ago..now I know why I'm having regular feet and ankle cramps!

Thank you Zen..I shall chase a Mown soon..Kuantan Mown laaah..hehe

Capt's Longhouse said...

Zendra,

,,,just STOP eating tomatoes and you will never get that cramps again. Don't ask why, just stop eating tomatoes o.k.....and drink more water plus olive oil satu sudu tiap tiap hari.
,,,massage your legs with minyak gamat langkawi tiap tiap malam for next 1 x month too. Don't jog but walk or run !. Our legs were never designed for jogging actually-lah.
,,,beach walk is still the best cos. of the sandy print...tak pakai kasut yaa.

NanaDJ said...

Zendra,
Poor you but I am sure after the massage you feel better and as good as new. I am always barefooted in the house, so far no problem but I must heed your advice, prevention is better than cure. Good excuse to go shopping for 'house' slippers - branded ones???

Unknown said...

..I do not know what cramp have to do with tomatoes..but I loved da fruit..but cramps come to everyone of us..I mean those who do not have super toned bodies like that of Tiger's..hmm..have to rethink about that tomatoes...:)but I supposed super toned bodies have other sort of cramps..:) cheers..

Tommy Yewfigure said...

Hey Zen, watch it!!, My great granny got bound feet too & that was meant to be sexy (meant she’d got a good life too, no need to do any hard work or chores all her life)….hehehe I can imagine Great grandpa sucking her toes like that Fergie case :))

Aiyaaa Lost of memory again; try oysters, they helps to increase your mental functioning by supplying the much needed zinc. But then again, wait until RA return first b4 taking oysters, else the side effect can be quite ‘frustrating’…..wink2.

Cramps, maybe u did not warm-up b4 heavy exercise like poco2. Wearing slipper/foot warmer is good to prevent ‘Fong Sup’ / masuk angin from the cold floor tiles. Aches & pain in the joint will give u cramps too. Maybe it’s arthritis, let’s face it, u r no longer young…oops soli horr…young at heart doesn’t count lah.

Cheers,
Tommy

P/S – If all else fail, try acupuncture.

kay_leeda said...

I am one of those who MUST wear house slippers. Err...I think it's in the genes coz my Mom has them on all the time. Bila tak pakai rasa so pelik...

I'm gonna go look for Mown, and I bet I will M-O-A-N. Unlike your polite ones, mine would probably be heard all across town!!

Zendra-Maria said...

Time to start wearing a pair mamasita and pamper those dainty datin feet :D
Each time before a thai massage session, you get your feet rubbed with some soothing salts in warm water. Verrry nice. You can do that at home too before bed - your feet feel soft and smooth. You never where they might take you after that *winks*

Zendra-Maria said...

TOMATOS Capt! Those were exactly what I HAD NOT put into my tumisan for mihun goreng. Otherwise I could put the blame on them cos I usually munch on my (edible) raw materials while i cook. No wonder the mihun didn't taste the same but then again it might have been my brain "forgetting" on purpose knowing there's a cramp coming?
Water, olive oil, minyak gamat, no tomatoes, walk on sand - yes sir! And do not JOG but I can RUN? Any difference?

Zendra-Maria said...

Yes NanaDJ, you might as well go for the branded ones, they last ages cos you only use them in the house kan?

I feel a lot better thanks but one thing I noticed with thai massage is that you feel the real effect not immediately but after a day or so, when you realise the discomfort is gone.

Zendra-Maria said...

Pakmat, re the tomatoes, mine is not to reason why....

I think for Tiger's kind of cramps, a good salve of tiger balm where it matters should send him running and yelling "fore" into the lake just before the green :D

Zendra-Maria said...

Hey Tommy whassup? Fong Sup? I pity your great grandmummy - having to wrap her feet in cloth soaked in horse's urine. She must have suffered permanent cramp lah. How to play footsie like that?

RA loves oysters, he can wallop a few dozen of them in one sitting, whereas I'd just have 3 or 4 maybe. Don't want to sound like 2 cats on a hot zinc roof later maa :)

Sure everyone's getting old by the minute, only Benjamin Button's the odd one out hehe. But acupuncture's very interesting - can it treat my memory too?

Zendra-Maria said...

Kay, you're OK! Will sure awet muda and your tapak kaki like a baby's Hehe

Yes get Mown and you'll get mowned but you'll enjoy it - like me, as I'm a masochist!

Take care now.

Capt's Longhouse said...

Zendra,

,,,some natural chemicals in tomatoes apparently is not healthy for muscles and joints. its also the cause of 'cramps' accordingly to some very old indian teaching. perhaps why so as in karma sutra - no tomatoes before the 1001 act. hahaha !
,,,jogging will over stress your leg muscles but not running after a warm up session. the constant pounding by jogging will cause muscle cramps when you are at rest !. Walk faster as an exercise and you even go further than jogging around. With short runs in between ?. so walk & run but no to jogging ! jogging was invented by lazy runners. hehehe

Capt's Longhouse said...

ladies,

,,,no dairy products no cancer ! but if have cancer eat serai banyak banyak plus zero dairy products i.e. cheese/milk etc and no meat too.

Tommy Yewfigure said...

Hey Zen, I heard Bi is selling her full 32 volumes of Encyclopaedia Britannica collection, still in their pristine state, hardly used. I ask her why? She said she don’t need them, ‘Hubby knows everything oreadi mah!”…kakaka.

Each time I see Capt, Pakmat & myself in the same blog, ‘The Good, the Bad & the Ugly” comes to mind coz Capt looks like Eli Wallach (Tuco), Pakmat like Lee Van Cleef (Angel Eyes) & needless to say Tommy looks like Clint Eastwood (Blondie…kekeke), true or not?

Zen, if u r a masochist as admitted, I suggest u seek helps asap, don’t play2 it can be fatal;

M disorder

Cheers,
Tommy

P/S – Hi Kay, I like screamers ;)

DrSam said...

Salam kanda. Sorry to hear your predicament. I don't think any tiger balm would sooth your muscle pain - just have to wait for your tiger to come back with the remedy :)

my Thai pantun for you:

madai madai tenai
kahp kun kap prai
handsome boy mai chai
abang RA chai, jer gan mai

Zendra-Maria said...

Capt, at the supermarket sometimes I see matbanglas load up their trolleys with tomatoes, like it's their staple food. Wonder if they an antidote as part of their diet. I don't think tomatoes have succeeded in suppressing their performance judging by the population density of the sub-continent, hehe. Plus they drink pure susu lembu, and yogurt and cheese. Must be the curries lah :)

Aiyo walk-run, walk-run. More fun to rock-n-roll and cha-cha-cha!

Zendra-Maria said...

Tommy, you referring to B's hubby's latest blog entry, I presume ;)

Waah, didn't know masochism is a mental disorder! I only read about it in the alternative encylopaedia lah hahahaa!

Aiyah I don't know about these resemblances lah. You always perasan lah - and that, bro, is also another disorder in the category of DRAMATIC called NARCISSISM

Have a good look in the mirror hehe

Zendra-Maria said...

Wassalam dinda, we'll see when abang RA comes back whether he can remedy or provoke more cramps hahaha

Do translate the thai for me cos i know very little of it eg tomyam, praadpriit, patong :D

Tommy Yewfigure said...

Sorry Mem, I beg to differ, where got like that one, maybe a little bit 'syiok sendiri'I can accept what. Like I told u b4 u gotta love yourself first b4 u can love others, true or not?

OK, I'll send u my cyber NARCISSUS :)

Tommy

P/S - I fear the Capt is a wee bit upset with me. Silent Treatment :)) I love!

Capt's Longhouse said...

Zendra,

,,,eerrmm watching matbangla already nowadays !. nanti eyes cramp hahaha.

tommy,(my jap. is getting better by the day)
.. katakluchi kata tataki kawaii kayui tokoro ni te ga todoku.?. Keiretsu Gaisha kemu ni Maku ! Ki wo Tsukau.
Sayo nara,

Capt Kokoro Zukai.

Zendra-Maria said...

Tommy, how tragic this myth about Narcissus:

Narcissus is another example among several of a beautiful young man who spurned sex and died as a result (kakaka). As such, his myth has much in common with those of Adonis and Hippolytus. In the Roman poet Ovid's retelling of the myth, Narcissus is the son of the river god Cephissus and the nymph Liriope. Tiresias, the seer, told his parents that the child "would live to an old age if it did not look at itself." Many nymphs and girls fell in love with him but he rejected them. One of these nymphs, Echo, was so distraught over this rejection that she withdrew into a lonely spot and faded until all that was left was a plaintive whisper. The goddess Nemesis heard the rejected girls prayers for vengeance and arranged for Narcissus to fall in love with his own reflection. He stayed watching his reflection and let himself die.

So Leng Chai har, narcissism also fatal ok?

what weird twins - one masochist, the other narcissist (sigh...)

Zendra-Maria said...

Capt, these matbanglas, i'm just curious why they go overboard with them tomatoes... serious

Capt's Longhouse said...

Zendra,

,,,matbanglas are younger and their body can take the tomatoes in their curry, in fact it makes the curry taste better !. Indeed, try putting tomato paste into your curry dish, it taste a thousand times better !.
,,,its the acid in raw tomatoes that you and i must stay away from. Penyakit warga tua-lah hehehe. Budak muda tak apa apa..yaa.
,,,massage kaki tiap tiap malam dgn minyak gamat, bagus sekali..suruh anak bila RA tiada.

tireless mom said...

Hi Zendra

I hope you are feeling much better after the Thai massage. Ask him to give a bit more pressure at the critical points, I am sure he doesnt mind.

Also I am sure too that God give you 99% for enduring the pain in the solat albeit at the expense of khusyu.

Zendra-Maria said...

TM, tq for reassuring me about the pain-points and the pressure-points as well :)


Capt, minyak gamat langkawi - OK. Donno where to start looking for it, though. Anyone going to Langkawi?

Capt's Longhouse said...

Zendra,
,,,minyak gamat langkawi (NUSANTARA)rm5/- byk di-jual kat pasar malam and kedai ubat/runcit nowadays mah !!.
,,,by the way, cooked tomatoes o.k. but not the raw ones lah. Silap tak habak awal awal.

Zendra-Maria said...

Capt, makaseh gnaw haba' pasai tomato nu dan gamat langkawi. Cek tehutaang sungguh :)

Hope my utagha can be understood hehe