collages of life

2009-12-22T16:54:00.000+08:00

new year, new beginning. I have moved!

www.coffeechocoholic.wordpress.com

2009-12-22T10:06:00.002+08:00

recently I can't help but think, seems that my cousin's passing brought the whole family closer. sometimes you really need a calamity/catastrophe to bring people together. there's news of an upcoming new yr gathering, and a Mothers' Day (see what I mean? my aunts even planned up to May, lol) buffet at a cousin's house.

On Boxing Day, my cousin is throwing a full-month celebration for his daughter, so its another opportunity to meet my aunts, cousins, nephews & nieces. I'm glad to have opportunities to catch up with all of them, becos since my grandma passed away we have no chance of meeting up on special occasions or weekends. I can't wait till my bro ORD, and we don't have to lease the room out anymore, then we can officially invite relatives & friends over. it'll be fun!

on a lighter note, I feel like shifting my blog to wordpress or livejournal. but I need to think up a name though. any suggestions feel free to tag!

looking fwd to Xmas! :D another stayover at Jer's house. totally enjoyed my last weekend with him. haven't stayover since some time and just being around each other feels gd. well, maybe except when he keeeeeps playing Winning 11 on his Xbox. HAHA.

merry christmas everyone!

2009-12-20T23:09:00.003+08:00

after looking at my wardrobe for tml's outfit, I see the same scenario all over again ): I need more work clothes - nice bottoms like skirts, nicely cut blouses/shirts & perhaps more dresses. now everytime I see a current client I kp asking myself, have I worn this to see him/her b4?

LOL. call it excuses for my shopping urge or whatever. but new year means new clothes to me.

so the top of my wishlist for christmas & new year is:

MORE $$$

($_$)

2009-12-20T11:48:00.003+08:00

did you know that Post-Its were invented by a mere 'accident' at work? some employee accidentally toppled some kinda glue over some papers. when it dried later on, he discovered that the paper had some kind of adhesive and could be stuck & removed and he had a brainwave abt what it could be used for.

I sort of stumbled on sth like that while trying to make truffles for jer's family ytd. like I said, I got ready a second batch in case there wasn't enough for the party. so while jer was away at work I thought I could make those truffles and keep for his family. turns out that because I used normal whipping cream (instead of thickened cream, becos he got some extras from the pasta ingredients) it really couldn't harden. but you know what?

It turned out even better, although it couldn't harden its became this thick creamy chocolatey mousse. Not as airy as your typical mousse, but richer, slightly thicker & very very chocolatey. we decided that next time we would add blueberries, strawberries or some ground nuts to make it an even more delightful dessert. I'm happy just to see them scooping it out and eating it all up from the spoon. mission accomplished! (:

2009-12-19T12:06:00.006+08:00

the dinner party turned out good. helped jer in the kitchen & we churned out a few rounds cod roe pasta, mushroom cream pasta & white wine mussels for his friends to take turn to eat.

I think what happened before the party was even more exhausting than preparing food for a large group. we scrubbbed, brushed, cleaned, vacuumed, mopped, & sweeped the whole house squeaky clean. I had to show these, our whole afternoon's efforts:

I'm super proud of this panel of wall becos it looked so clean after my scrubbing. you should have seen the 'before' :P and we even mopped the floor with detergent it was practically gleaming...

too busy during dinner to take pictures of the food, but here's what I took of Mika these two days.

actually Jer had to work today and I only knew about it ytd. so basically, I 'sent' (I can't drive ma... opened the door for him only la) him off to work & slept in a bit. swept the living room, made myself omelette. and later I still have truffles to make. cos I made a second batch in case there wasn't enough to go around last night. since there was, this'll be for his family then.

now I feel like I'm the housewife waiting for her husband to come back from work! hahaha. but well, its a nice, sweet feeling. come back quick, baby! I know you'll see this (:

2009-12-18T09:39:00.002+08:00

my chocolate truffle mix before I put it in the fridge to harden. chocolate truffles with baileys filling. its actually quite troublesome. becos the chocolate softens quite fast and you gotta roll them into bite size balls into cocoa powder. everytime it softens, put it back into the fridge and wait till its harden again.

will try to take pics of tonight's dinner :D cross your fingers for me in hoping that nothing will crop up at work so I can sneak & hide away in jer's house safely!

2009-12-17T12:23:00.003+08:00

had a great time catching up with my GSS exchange friends. haven't seem some of them for ages. was glad & surprised at the turnout rate. we had 9 or 10! :D dinner at shokudo & a short drinking session at the lounge of a hotel. don't ask me where, I saw something scribbled like 'Equinox' before we went in, I was just following them :P

so, handling work alone has been taxing. maybe it was becos I was trying to work from home, and juggling my personal engagements + work. tried to kick up a fuss ytd when I had to go Vivo to help Jer collect sth for the dinner on Fri. I was carrying so much stuff & I had to make an extra trip back home, then out again to meet my friends. heh. but aiya, kick up a fuss a while only la I know the limits :P

but some people don't. my blood boiled today after this stupid IT consultancy boss tested my limits for the upmteen time. I did him many favours, by going out of my way to add him on MSN (I don't add people from work to my list & I don't want to start the chain by creating new account for work) when he was in China. he had first abused it by msging me on work on a Sunday night. being up doesn't mean he can cross the line. and not once had I heard a word of thks from him for everything I had done for him b4. writing his proposals for his clients & helping reply officers' emails.

today he made me come back to the office to do him another favour. and he only told me he's not coming back cos he's stuck elsewhere. the thing is, we arranged this since ytd and it was to put his stupid 3 chairs in our office cos they are shifting office. why didn't it occur to him to tell me so I don't nd to make the trip, and when he knows I am out at a site?

what's more. he couldn't even apologise. and he kept bugging me if I'm coming back to the office so he could put the chairs there. until I was super pissed and told him straight that he should have told me and it occurred to him to say sorry. of cos I didn't tell him I'm going back. so not going to do it for him. GOD! if my boss wasn't away on holiday & I didn't want to spoil another person's day I would msg him straight.

2009-12-15T13:20:00.002+08:00

yesterday, before my meeting ended... my client asked when is our next meeting. I told him I am relatively free this week and I can meet him any day. He said, Ok Thursday then.

before I left, maybe out of guilt, he admitted to me:

'actually your boss asked me to arrange a meeting on Thursday with you'

seriously... I was like -_-

if he wanted me to meet the client twice, he could have jolly well told me that. instead of going behind my back and make it look like my client wanted it. god. its not like I have nothing to do, slacking at home. I've been working my ass off since 9am in the morning. ate breakfast while checking emails and having half hour lunch.

I dunno, maybe it won't seem like a big issue to some of you. but I feel that this reflected bad on me to the client. its like my boss doesn't trust me being alone in the office.

well, if he doesn't trust me, hire someone else to help us out then. don't make it a one-man show!

2009-12-14T21:27:00.004+08:00

attended my cousin's wedding over the weekend, and felt happy for him and for the opportunity to our whole family to gather for more joyous occasions. the past few months since my cousin's passing had been gloomy, and it doesn't help that... lately my nephew (his son) has some issues that made the whole family worried and troubled over him.

my aunt accidentally blurted out my late cousin's name during one of the conversations over the cocktail reception. a genuine slip of the tongue. I think I was the only who heard it. Seeing the sadness that momentarily glistened in her eyes, I gave her arm a squeeze in a brief hug... just to let her know I share her pain. we all do. yes... we can't help but think of him during times like this... 'there should have been one more table', 'he should have been here' and etc. but well, since it was a joyous occasions we all diverted our attention away from the topic...

naturally, I got some attention being one of the next few in line to be married. my 'poor' cousins, their own younger brother beat them to being married... so they got a bit more of 'pressure' to get hitched. anyone knows gd bf- or husband/wife- material please gimme a ring! my cousins are eligible and in their early thirties! :P

pictures are up in FB, since its a more private affair, I guess I won't upload their pics here.

today, in short, was a damn chaotic start of the week for me. I forgot my bunch of keys. and trust me, you don't want that when you are the only one left with keys and you need to run two places b4 11am. and guess what? cabs were mysteriously full for the 15 minutes I was standing at Jurong Town Hall Road. ARGH.

but the consolation I had was that my meeting was quite relaxed today and... I gave myself an early Xmas present.

splurged on Shu Uemura's cosmetics, bought over the counter :X yeah yeah. its sorta an impulse but a good investment. got some free gifts from my purchases (worthy gifts of cos, :P) and next time I'll revert to buying online. keke.

looking forward to Jer's dinner for his friends at his place this Friday! we've been planning since some time ago. Like I said b4, he's inviting some of his frens over (hello! I think some of you were given my blog url :P) and he's whipping up some simple dishes... I'm the appointed helper/dishwasher/waitress/cleaner/insert whatever 'cha pa lang' role of the night. HAHA.

and of cos my dearest GSS exchg friends... I'll see you on Wed (: can't wait!

2009-12-10T23:54:00.002+08:00

right after I finished my morning's entry, my long & dreadful day started. I had lunch way past my usual lunch time at 2+ and hopes of a nice thai lunch was dashed. the restaurant closed at 2pm and only reopens later for dinner. so my boss & I with our client had KFC for lunch.

they were commenting on how long it was since they last had KFC and they said its the age gap. when you get older, you start to eat less of this kinda unhealthy food. you know, while we were in hanoi, on one of our nights in the hotel... we were watching a documentary on stomach cancer. It was mentioned that rice and salt i.e. excessive salt intake are contributing factors to stomach cancer - which is why Asians are prone to it.

it had quite a big impact on me, cos I saw how the entire stomach was removed to stop the cancer cells from spreading. can you imagine yourself without a stomach? your diet and appetite will change drastically. I love my food, I wouldn't want that.

and this morning I had this sudden idea, maybe we can meet up every weekend to run at the stadium? you guys think its feasible? I don't wanna grow fat & unhealthy leh... need to do sth to keep fit! :P

saw many pretty dresses on ASOS online. would love to buy them but since they are priced in pounds, I don't want to risk it. risk my hard-earned money on clothes that are great-looking and expensive, but I can't wear or it only looks good on the model -_- Some of my favourites!

ASOS | ASOS Lattice Detail Fitted Waist Dress at ASOS

Killah | Killah Ruch Front Jersey Dress at ASOS

Oasis | Oasis Ruffled Sculptural Dress at ASOS

2009-12-10T10:13:00.002+08:00

once again my boss 'bang seh' me to go meet another client and asked me to go meet the client alone first.

anyway, I realised the next few weeks will be a blur of events and made a mental note to jot down a list of things I have to do. for work and for my personal life. especially since next week my boss won't be around, I'm hoping I can work from home and kill many birds with one stone.

since when did I lose my interest at work? I rem being proud to be such a consultant becos of the exposure I get and the hands-on training I got. but as time passed, my boss' promise of hiring didn't materialize. I think a main contributing factor to this is because there's no colleague with me at work. no one to bitch, no one to share weekend or holiday plans, no one to go lunch with.

then also, there's a lot of meetings he didn't involve me in, and I'm starting to think if I'm just a high paying clerk + secretary sometimes. so... I really hope jer & I can work out the business proposal, though there's a great deal to work with. client's here, gotta go!

2009-12-09T09:51:00.002+08:00

everytime I come back from a trip, no matter how near/far the destination is, I get an urge to equip my laptop with Photoshop so I can learn all the editing tools & beautify my pictures. but till now PS is still not installed on my com. So I resorted to downloading free photoediting software online to help in editing.

Found Picasca (I think that's how its spelt?) which is an application from google. I think its pretty user friendly though I took some time to familiarize with the layout and functions. I love it for its collage function and is already experimenting with different layouts.

I'm thinking... maybe I can use it as a banner for this blog? let's just find me some time to play around with HTML codes and you guys will be the first to see if it works.

on a more solemn note... went to the temple to offer joss sticks to my cousin today. its the 49th day rituals and I decided to drop by instead of participating in the rituals. mum was concerned as to the annual leave I'm taking recently since I just went to Hanoi. so my bro cleared his off to 'represent' us instead.

if my cousin was still around, he would have ran in the marathon the last weekend. his family received the chip & his number tag & they put it beside his urn. Its been almost 2 months, and each of us is still dealing with his passing. I don't think any of us will really get over it because his departure was so very sudden. these few weeks, when my mum mentioned him and the things he did/bought for her... sometimes I still feel my tears welling up.

hai! have not openly thanked him for all that he did for me, and this will be the regret of my life. next time I will tell my kids how great he was and he will be remembered in our family (:

the year is coming to a close, and inevitably I reflect on the past year and many memories surfaced - the good and the I-want-to-forget. time to pack my room and throw out things that are cluttering my room! and hopefulle usher in a fresh start.

2009-12-06T14:34:00.005+08:00

Hanoi: one last look

let the pictures speak for themselves, some more of Hanoi

2009-12-04T10:54:00.005+08:00

hanoi: my travel companion

who is none other than jeremy! :D

honestly, we have never spent so much time together alone & overseas before. besides our JB trip with his family & his NH clique, we've never travelled together. I even wondered what if he grew tired of me after 6 straight days of seeing me 24/7? HAHA. of cos he didn't!

anyway, travelling with boyfriend is a first for me and I'm glad to say that it turned out well. we didn't discover shocking habits that changed opinions of one another. neither did any of us found ourselves mysteriously sleeping on the floor the next morning. so all is well!

as usual when he's tired, he asked for me to help him massage. and when we came back, tired and legs aching from the walking, I remembered that Veron & I had run a hot water bath to soak our legs in Paris too. which made me do the same for ourselves and we helped to massage each other's legs.

he navigated when we were lost and I was too tired and bothered (on a side note, I am able to read the map too!). I think that was the only time I got on his nerves. I kept nagging at him to ask the locals for directions in my hurry to want to get back to the hotel. but he was determined to follow the map and get us back on track. which he did! :D

I helped him to shave.

he helped to carry my luggage.

when we came back, the turbulence on the later part of the journey was quite bad. even the cool & stone-faced Caucasian sitting beside me let out a loud 'Shit!' while the plane dipped and rocked back and forth on the turbulence. I remember clutching Jer's arm with a panicked face, half thinking: is this it? He saw my reaction and just laughed it off.

but I'm serious, the plane was so small. who knew if it could take the impact. but whatever it was, I still hold on to the thought that I had at that moment I held on to his arm

At the very least, I found the person to journey with me... No regrets.

Thanks baby. Glad you enjoyed the trip as much as I do. Looking forward to our next trip together!

2009-12-04T10:41:00.011+08:00

hanoi: major attractions

we spend about a day being tourist-y and visited some of the major attractions in hanoi. actually our objective of the holiday is just to relax and enjoy the weather & slower pace of life in vietnam. which was why for our entire trip we did not have an itinerary planned at all. we only drew up a list of places-to-go and the night before we thought abt what we wanna do and add in the restaurants that is along the route. and voila!

sometimes while walking to our destination, we find sth along the way which we didn't see on the map. and we just stop for a while and explored. I really like the impromptu and no-rush feeling of this holiday. a really gd recharge for me.

some monument for a past King we discovered

many people asked, isn't 6 days in Hanoi too much? even the hotel manager said she can finish all the attractions in 1 day. yes of cos we can... we can also fly to Ho Chi Minh. but in view of our budget & we didn't want to rush ourselves here and there, we did not plan another destination besides Hanoi. if not it would beat the purpose of the aim of our holiday - to relax! (:

so here goes, some of the attractions we went:

Temple of Literature. full of Confusian's teachings by long-ago Vietnamese.

Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum - holding place of his body

war memorial

2009-12-04T09:42:00.012+08:00

hanoi: more food

before we left for Hanoi, Jer & I spent some time researching on places & restaurants to go based on other people's reviews. It was fun to find a particular restaurant, try the food for ourselves and see if it was really as good as the review said it to be.

our first two attempts didn't turned out well. Au Lac Cafe was a real pity, many reviews recommended the place for coffee & snacks. Supposedly, its a cafe with a front terrace where guests can sip coffee & have pastries and watch the world go by as it is strategically situated facing the main road. right opposite to Metropole Hotel. But when we made our way there, all we saw was a boarded up area with nothing like what we see. It has either closed down or moved ):

Bobby Chinn's
then we also tried to find Bobby Chinn's restaurant - named Bobby Chinn's - and we managed to find it about 10-15 mins away from where we live. but it has moved. argh. luckily the neighbouring shop gave us their new address. and you know what, its new location was almost, just almost... out of the map. its like at the top of the page right at the border. I guess you can say at least we got the address :P we made our way down by cab one of the evenings and also explored the region.

Bobby Chinn's now at 77 Xuan Dien St, near 2 major lakes divided by a long bridge. Its located inside a prime residential area. Much like our Bkt Timah Road with its restaurants & eateries. we were early as we didn't think of calling to reserve and wanted to avoid the traffic. but it was nice to just walk along the lake (it looked more like a sea to me), enjoy the sea breeze in take in the beautiful skyline & architecture.

the meal at Bobby Chinn's was good, but too dark for us to take pictures. and we tot we would looked 'sua gu' to take a picture of all the food. it cost us USD70+ for two. Jer say it was abt the same as local standard but for the ambience & quality - worth it! because we were early, it seemed as if we had the entire restaurant to ourselves & the waiters were very attentive.

Fanny's Ice Cream
one of our best find among the restaurants we visit. the ice cream was fantastic. made in-house naturally and every scoop was smooth and melts in your mouth nicely. Our favourite have to be the dark chocolate. I also like strawberry and chocolate coffee. the vanilla flavour with the tiny black flecks shows it was made with real vanilla and not just artifically flavoured. now you know how to tell the good ice cream from the artificial ones!

other local food we tried:

salty crepe with seafood, very yummy!

a fried version of another Vietnamese popular dish: spring rolls

restaurant style pho! its a franchise restaurant called Pho 24. we went twice. actually road side stalls taste abt the same its just that in restaurants the cut of the beef is better, and more selection.

they call our you tiao 'fried bread sticks'. not as flavourful as our local version, but taste great when dipped into pho soup

2009-12-03T21:26:00.005+08:00

hanoi: halong bay cruise

on the second day, early in the morning we set off for our luxury cruise. allow
me to say 'luxury' because we paid about USD170 each. so! it must be luxurious! hahaha. anyway, b4 we could board the cruise we had to take a 3 hour journey on the road to the pier. and at the pier there was some communication breakdown and we had wasted a bit of time: us waiting for the boat manager, and the manager likewise. not knowing each was already there.

so of cos we spent some time... cam-whoring!

the cruise was good. nice food - two buffets and one full menu lunch. the bay was beautiful & very peaceful with the rocks & caves dotting the coast line. we spent about an hour kayaking, a very good way of immersing in the tranquility of the bay. there was a moment where I almost bump face first into a gigantic rock while kayaking, because it was so dark and we couldn't see anything in the cave. phew! almost disfigured! lol.

we also climbed a lot of steps to go up a viewing point which was the highest point in halong bay to catch the bird's eye view of the beautiful scenery. 437 steps. and 100+ steps at another location. plus the kayaking. so I guess our buffet was justified? :P

more photos will be uploaded on FB. giving jer the honour of uploading the pics. so I will wait till he does then I compile my own albums, telling more about our experience. more posts to come! still a lot more to share (:

legend has it that when the Chinese invaded Vietnam long ago, the gods sent down dragons to help them. the dragons spitted jade & jewel that became the islands and islets now found along the bay. these formed a wall and a barrier against the approaching enemies and the Vietnamese were saved. The place where the Mother Dragon landed was now known as - Ha Long Bay.

While we climbed steps to one of the highest viewing point in Ha Long Bay, we also went to a cave rich in history and geology. Apparently the cave dates back to millions of years ago, and evidence were found that cavemen once lived in the very cave we went. Millions of years ago, Ha Long Bay was deep sea. evolution and erosion over time (and we mean a really long time here) created the beautiful place that it is today.

2009-12-03T15:28:00.009+08:00

hanoi: first impressions

when we first boarded our transport to our hotel, we were commenting on how slow their pace of life was, all so different from us. evidence - the car was driving abt 2/3 the speed of a local car on a highway.

then we realised maybe its not the pace of life. its likely that its due to just how vietnamese drive. the scooters/bicycles/bikes are an unruly crowd! zipping across the lanes like nobody's business. most of the times, there are basically no rules practised on the roads. the drivers mainly just avoid people crossing the roads. so you shouldn't dash across lest they cant avoid you in time. why... we used the traffic light and when the green man flashed for us to walk, guess what?

the motorbikes were zooming across the road like the green man was for them. we thought we looked damn silly standing there, looking lost and confused. lol. but of cos, in no time we got used to the traffic conditions there and crossed like pros. the trick is to cross slowly, not dashing. becos you can never out run the bikes & car with their sheer volume on the streets. cross section by section and the vehicles will avoid you as they pass.

and for a developing country like Vietnam, I was impressed that even small local restaurants have clean toilets WITH toilet paper AND proper flushing systems. of cos they are not sparkling clean like our toilets. but sometimes when I go JB the toilets are like just a bucket of water for 'flushing' and no paper. so this is much better than expected!

hanoi: street food
street food is a must. city dwellers might be skeptical of the standard of food & hygiene but from what I see - nothing much to worry about. they use gloves, chopsticks, etc when handling food and even on the streets you find the stalls providing tissue/serviettes. of cos, they clean their bowls & utensils by dunking into a pail of water (clean one of cos, check to be safe *winks). but jeremy & I came back fine so no worries! a bit of germs won't kill!

the first local dish we sampled, its seen like 90% of the time. pho - rice noodles! its a bit like a thinner version of our kuey teow

some of the street food we sampled:

vietnamese tang yuan! in ginger soup with roasted peanuts

Che - a dessert that mixes a lot of ingredients together. coconut milk is an ingredient in many desserts, used in che too!

quite a nice kebab at less than SGD2!

a simple dish that is likened to our chee cheong fun. taste very gd with spring onions and a special sauce. seems like some gland juice from an insect was also put in. let's not think so much abt it :X

2009-12-03T11:12:00.003+08:00

realised that I didn't do very detailed posts on my past trips to France and Australia. perhaps its the time to be 'different' with Vietnam. Will be updating soon on my trip with photos (:

meanwhile, my boss said he will be going away for his own holiday too. one whole week from 14-18th december. woohoo!

its like I can work from home if I want. but of cos, I din express this to him :X wahaha. there will be work for me to do, just that it won't be alot since there is no meetings with him away. so means no work added to our load.

yay! holiday mood alrdy!

2009-12-01T17:54:00.001+08:00

waiting for our cab to pick us up to the airport. its the end of our Hanoi holiday! jetting back and reaching around 12+am tonight. can't wait to see how our pics turn out :D see you guys when I'm back

2009-11-22T08:53:00.002+08:00

the good news is mika is found! apparently megan didn't give up finding her and brought her food container downstairs when her friends met her for a chat at the void deck. so she just went around the neighbourhood and shook it. the way they do at home when its feeding time. believe it or not, she really appeared.

like omg! what i heard was she smelt like rubbish and had a cut on her mouth. honestly we've all given up hope on finding mika again. or her returning on her own. so it is such a miracle that she's back :D

this morning went to the temple and gave offerings to my late cousin. I learnt that he loved ritter sport chocolate - white whole almonds. and laksa. and honestly, like I've said before... I still cannot believe that he is gone. today is exactly one month since he left us. and we're all remembering him in our own ways.

mum could not bear to use the dried food like dried scallops, mushroom & black fungus that he last bought for her when he came back from china. and just now she asked me to help her play some cassettes. which I learnt that my cousin actually took the trouble to manually record for her because he knows that she doesn't know MP3 and computer stuff.

so... one lost and found. one lost and remembered.

4 days to my trip with jer to hanoi (: trying to pack some stuff. opened my luggage up so I can throw in anything in these few days when I come across them. so looking forward to it :D let's hope it'll be gd weather all the way!

and having take part in the bridal gift thingy ytd makes me feel happy for my cousin as well. at least a wedding will brighten everyone's mood. 13 dec. carlton hotel!

2009-11-21T23:27:00.002+08:00

the first time since eons mths that jer & I stepped into town tog. besides, he was previously busy with projects, then exams. for a long time we pretty much just had dinner, watched some movies at his place, and roamed nearby. so its like a first quality day tog and it was great! :D

there is this slim chance (due to a few factors) of a business opportunity that got jer & me daydreaming for a bit. if it indeed does work out it'll be like a dream come true. but still. its too early to tell. need to keep our feet grounded & iron some stuff out. but gosh! if it really works... its going to be something totally new altogether.

it'll be something we wanna do tog. and seeing how my client quarrels with her husband (who is outstationed in vietnam permanently) every other week. I told jer that I can't stand long distance relationships. marriages are already complex enough, the long distance really strains the relationship. I rather uproot my entire life and move with him rather than weather the storms here alone & go thru all those communication problems.

and... way before marriage, the process of getting married itself is troublesome enough. helping my cousin send the bridal gifts to his fiancee's place today makes me even more determined to 'simplify' the matter. his dinner will be on 13 dec, so happy for him!

2009-11-21T08:59:00.003+08:00

things happened and change in such a short time. I was arranging a dinner with shuyi & soonhui because I'm flying off next week and they're the only ones free now since they don't have exams. and just one day ago we were watching movie at Vivo & passed by the pet shop, almost going in to buy a brush for dear lil' Mika.

and the next morning she was gone. nowhere to be found. she wasn't scratching & meowing at Jer's door like she does every morning. she doesn't come running furiously when the food is laid out. neither did she when we shake her food bottle. she is just gone! windows were closed & door wasn't even opened since no one left the house yet. so the only way was...

the rubbish chute.

which they did hear her playing around there the night b4 she disappeared. we tried all methods & asked everyone we could but she is still not found. in the 3 months (yes, it felt like we had her for ages) she was at jer's place, she's sorta like become a part of the family. and now... I really dunno wad to do. hope for the best or prepare for the worst.

gosh. like what jer said.

curiosity really killed the cat.

so sorry for cancelling last minute sy & kor... I'll fix another one, promise!

2009-11-16T11:34:00.003+08:00

the minshan asked me out ytd but I already had my family day planned long ago. so when she asked me out for dinner again today I felt bad to reject her again. two days in a row leh, how can?

haha. so its dinner with her at JP later! even though its at JP but I still look forward to a gal's night out. yay! maybe I can find sth for my cousin's wedding dinner. and the pair of black heels that I need since damn long ago. u have no idea, the agony of not having your staple black heels. the outfits just seem so wrong sometimes. keke. noooooo. its not my excuse to shop. my black heels worn out that time & I havent been able to fing sth suitable since. maybe minshan can bring me 'luck' later?

have a great week guys! I'm counting down to my Hanoi weekend with Jer *cheers

2009-11-15T22:57:00.003+08:00

was at Ion for most of today's afternoon with my own family. been planning this trip down to town since forever becos I know my parents seldom step into that territory. and I'm glad that they enjoy it - the food, the 'sightseeing' and the update of orchard they had.

today we were on the train bound for Marina Bay to take the west bound train back home, and just before our train reaches City Hall, someone let off a gigantic fart. and by that I meant the 'overpowering' of it and not how it sounded when it came out. God. by the look of everyone's faces in the cabin, everyone caught a whiff of it. and I swear the people who filed out of the cabin moved doubly faster. it was super smelly man! I wonder what did that person eat. gosh.

anyway, I'm like getting alot of sudden impulses lately. I have an impulse to restring my necklaces. to make earrings. to pack my room.

but making jewelry has always been sth that I wanted to do becos I rather I make sth I like than look around thru tons of shops to find sth that really catches my eye and yet, withdraw from buying becos of the price tag. making jewelry is fun but often u have to buy beads in bulk. cos when you buy it in smaller quantities, it ends up being more expensive. of cos, one may say its ok, becos its sth I like and not found in the mkt, since whatever it is I made it & I like it.

because 'cost' is often a factor to consider & I'm not buying to make and sell... I usually end up just toying with the idea and drop it. and there was a time when I bought beads that I like and kept them. but combining them is such a chore. becos they make look pretty on their own but when combined, it looks either too messy or just wrong. lol.

so my conclusion is: don't make them myself. just buy simple, classic jewelry that won't go out of style. and maybe invest in a few gd pieces next time. spare myself the trouble and my eyes the stress of poring over beads & clasps :P

2009-11-14T13:13:00.004+08:00

this week sorta flew by becos I was on course for two of the work days. some course which I will not name in case it makes me 'google-able'. but it was pretty useful and reinforces what I learnt on the job. and let's just say I met some interesting people too!

long overdue photos from the lunch meetup I had with my FYP gals - Minshan & Joyce. realised that only of food & not us :X I havent taken pictures of myself for a long time. heh.

anyway, it was a good catching up session after a gloomy week. hope we do it again soon! :D

and, now its like less than 2 weeks to our Hanoi trip. I am so so looking forward to it! hope it'll be nice cool weather, no wet spells or anything. keep your fingers crossed for me too. hehe.

entwined amongst all the meetings, course & emails... also comes yr end plans. few weeks back Jer & I sorta have sketchy plans for a cooking session at his place. invite a few frens over and carry on that Wii session or any other group games. that will be when his folks are away :P

then after rejecting his sis' godpa's invitation for a few times, I am finally able to make it for his X'mas dinner. usually catered nice food I heard. by nice it also hints 'sinful'. so there, the pressure of starting my exercise is GREATER.

and interestingly, on the same night the invitation was extended to me, another came from dear yuen teng. sorry gal, I know you're very early. but lately the timing doesn't seem to work out between me & you. maybe our 八字 crossed. lol. still... my 23rd is free for u!

which also means, to my dear nan hua frens... I may not be able to join our usual xmas eve gathering. I hope we can work sth out, I do still wanna meet u guys! maybe the new yr's weekend? :D after ur exams we can talk abt it!

hooray to the oncoming year end plans! catching up, partying, nice food, new clothes too! *winks

2009-11-10T23:03:00.003+08:00

sometime back I noticed jer keep saying he was very hungry in the mornings becos there is no breakfast. his family is like a DIY kind of environment in the morning cos everyone gotta go sch or work. so the next thought that came to mind was it would be nice if I can make breakfast for him next time, so at least... he goes to work a happy man.

and I was again reminded of the fact that Jer is a much better cook than me. but every girl would think its sweet to cook for their bf or husband. I know I don't have to cook fantastically or as gd as him (which I can never achieve that) to make him happy, but then... I also want him to eat food that he like right?

my thoughts about this 'breakfast' and 'cooking' thing came about when I was reading this Food Pornography Blog today. it wasn't as gd as I thought, I imagined a blog full of sinfully delicious pictures of food. but still, its different in its unique way too - the blog is more about familiar, homemade food (not fine, gourmet food) that warms one's heart to see it. the husband sometimes packs lunch for himself and the wife, and slips in little cards with messages for her.

so sweet right?

so... SH have to learn how to cook better (all the while been helping around doing little things, both at home and at Jer's) and doing more in the kitchen. besides baking muffins, I was never really involved in cooking at home even though my mum did 'train' me how to do simple dishes like frying vegetables, etc. All 'agar-ation'.

oops. never to late to learn right? but the question is how. I guess I can only start at my own home, during weekends. learn chinese first. then the rest can wait.

and another more impt thing is... GET SOME EXERCISE REGIME GOING GAL!

2009-11-05T15:55:00.002+08:00

got myself a kate spade wallet with the help of a kind sponsor - the boyfriend :D and my client who gave up her commission to gimme a better price. its an orange-red half-fabric half-leather wallet. yay hay!

and I have some loots from a short shopping spree while waiting for the boss. velly affordable!

2009-11-04T11:47:00.002+08:00

note to self: potential beauty products shopping spree at JP today after work

:X yes! I've looked over some reviews and found some products worth experimenting. the more affordable ones first, then when I return from vietnam I can try the big brands in the DFS. wahahaha. this is how you expand your dollar ma...

not really used to the 'new' hairstyle. 'new' because its not entirely new, just a slight different cut. i think i nd to start blowing my hair again. I am still contemplating the color job for my hair. only concern is the maintenance after that. when the color wears off it may not look as nice. and its not everyday you have the 50% promotion too. help! to color or not to color?!

2009-11-04T00:06:00.004+08:00

well... back to work these few days and gotta adjust & juggle the load of me being away + my boss taking part in the subaru challenge. it isn't alot of work. I was pretty free most of the day, its just that I have to spend some time making clear I know what's going on since I was gone.

had a gd catch up and spent quality time with jer on my monday. my few days away with my family means I didn't spend my weekend with him and it felt great to see him! :D

ever since last week I've been planning for this haircut. and I'm glad I went today. got the same hair cut but in a steeper slope and a less 'structured' fringe. so... it gives a more angular look I would say.

and I am suddenly very interested to get hair and beauty/skincare products, to splurge on pampering myself! I need... new foundation and maybe primer! anyone got gd one to suggest do lemme noe... :P

also, thks for you guys who've been asking how I am, and showing me concern since it happened. as you can see from my previous entries, the last week or so was agonizing and a emotional one at that. its never easy to lose someone so close, so as much as I like to get over the loss and look on the brighter side... I realised I am still quite emotional about him. my other cousin re-posted an album of the new yr photos they took at our house this year and said she 'loves us all people'. the happy pictures of my relatives at my place was very heartwarming and yet... when I spotted my late cousin in the pictures, my stomach just flipped.

what I want to say is, I am trying my best! maybe I will never get over the loss, but I will be trying to my best to accept the loss and remember my cousin for everything he have done. and this blog will be my outlet to vent... luckily, I am the type that once I pour out my thoughts, I'll feel better after talking about it :P

so I think I'll be coloring my hair end of this month, but I need to do it somewhere between 3-6pm to enjoy the 50% discount... I need to plan my time and go there early from work to do it. looking forward to the change!

P.S: you know what? I need pictures to brighten up this place!

2009-11-01T22:14:00.003+08:00

back in my own home since this afternoon, after the cremation/wake. it was, as expected, a very emotional morning. kept having flashbacks of everything kor did and said. and I still cannot get over the fact that I never got to thank him after getting my first job. the treat I was supposed to give him will never materialize.

it is painful to see him in the casket, not looking like the kor I respect and love... The emotions were too overwhelming. I wanted to quickly get over with the cremation so he can be laid to rest properly. but I really could not bear to see him go like that. he does not deserve this sudden departure at all...

I managed to get through the last night rituals without tearing at all. but this morning I lost it. the closing of the casket opened the floodgates. I was not part of the ceremony because only immediate families were, which means my cousins' kids and his sister's family. I couldn't bear hearing my nephew do the last ritual before we leave, calling out to his daddy and following the instructions of the priest. sometimes I wish I don't understand teochew so I can't understand what they are saying. but then again, even if you don't understand, it is not difficult to tell from my nephew's sobbing.

my xiao yi did not drop by today, and the truth is she did not even take last looks at him throughout the wake. but you can't blame her... its because she could not take it. my poor aunt was unable to even answer my other cousin's question as to who got her the nice pouch and phone. I had to tell him for her that kor kor bought it for her in china and got her the pouch too... he is this thoughtful to these aunts of mine.

but life has to go on, now that he's really really gone. I will continue to miss him and remember what he did for me and my family. and in future tell my own kids, how this great cousin of mine... took care of us since young. bought me my vitamins & cod liver oil, bought me storybooks and read with me, picked me up when I was lost...

during one of the many conversations my mum had with him about asking him not to buy so many things and spend his hard-earned money on us... my kor said to my mum that '三姨只有一个, 为什么不可以?'

kor 也只有一个, 永远不可以被取代的

2009-10-30T08:56:00.002+08:00

decided to stay at the wake tonight too, so will be there for two nights straight till sunday. over the last few days I heard stories from aunties, cousins, and my cousins' own kids.

how my 小姨, my late cousin, and two other male cousins grew up and played together. even though she was one generation senior, but their age were quite close. then my mum revealed that actually... even b4 I graduate, my cousin was asking his mum if I have found a job. he... was worried that I couldn't find one.

Mum was asking if I told him I found a job. I told her of cos... he was the first one I informed outside our family. I remember personally sending him a sms when he was in china and our last meet-up at the temple I had updated him.

last night another of my cousin went to the wake but she didn't approach the house. her family is preparing for a wedding this end of year and their dad refuse to let any of them come. seriously? I do respect traditions and customs. but if this cousin is one of your dearest and ur own family still disallow you to come? I mean come on, what year is it now?!

I would go too if I'm her. they only realised she was there when someone told my relatives that there's a lady squatting and crying beside a tree, looking at their house.

last night was overwhelming and there was no space for pp to sit down. many were standing but they did not mind at all. it only goes to show what a great father, son, friend, boss, colleague, cousin and the many roles my cousin was to the people around him.

走好哦...

2009-10-28T18:14:00.003+08:00

since last friday, before we got the call to confirm what happened. I referred to him as my cousin or kor. After we got the call, I dunno what to say. Kor? Casket?

It seems that by using 'casket' I de-personalize the death, and I relate to it like an incident rather than a person who is forever gone. Maybe being less specific helps to numb the feelings. but conscience kicks in I tell myself: 'For god's sake, that is kor we're talking about. Not just a casket'

The return flight is confirmed for tonight and we estimate the wake to commence early next morning. While I just want my cousin to be back home in Singapore again, like my relatives, I also dread the impending closure. I've been picturing my aunt, uncle, my 表嫂, my nieces and nephew cry by the casket even before the wake started. I know it will happen and its so real. yet, there's nothing anyone can do to stop the pain.

I was relieved that I could tell concerned friends, that I am handling it fine. Over the weekend I managed to pull myself better and distract myself with work. But now... now that tml is the wake. I do not have any confidence that I can be that strong again. The first and the last day is always very emotional. And I want to be able to control my emotions, to be able to help around.

its hard, but I will try my best. hold it back, gal...

2009-10-27T23:04:00.003+08:00

this is a post about the many happenings lately I wanna rant about:

1. bug bites
my mum & aunt (she lives nearby, happen to drop by this morning) deduced that the bites on my legs/thighs are from the chair I sat on. Means its either my house's or my office's. which the latter is the likely culprit becos my chair hasn't gave me any prob at hm b4 and the itch started at work.

2. mystery calls from unknown number
I noticed it started from the tradeshow... somehow during the show, I started receiving calls from an unknown number. and this morning I got one again. no sound, no one speaking. just silence. great.

3. IT consultant getting too friendly
this particular IT consultant which recommended us one of our clients for a grant. happened to be my boss's friend too. somehow lately becos we started following up for his case again, he started to call/sms/email more frequently. which is supposed to be natural. until for 2 days in a row, he started to call me after work for non-urgent work stuff. and he called me 'Rachy' instead of the Rachel I am known by at work.

and today he asked if I have msn, thru sms. he said thks after receiving an email from me to send him the completed form.

'do you have msn?'

'yes but I seldom use.'

'oh, you don't like chatting online? becos I log on while at work easier to communicate'

'oh... I prefer calling. It works better for me, I think it gets work done faster'

YA, LIKE REAL I DON'T USE MSN?! LOL. but ya, my intention is to just fend him off... no matter how innocent was his intention - it could really be work. but the signals he's sending is telling me nope. I don't want to open the floodgates to have clients add me on MSN. No way...

and baby, I thought of sth. The next time he calls me after work and I'm with you... help me pick up the call first. HAHAHA. 'oh, sorry... my hands weren't free, I got my BOYFRIEND to pick up first' :P

luckily out of the many clients and 'business partners' (consultants who refer us clients and vice versa), most are nice pp. only 1 out of 10 will give u prob. Be it their attitude, some weird stuff they do or... whatever pisses consultants off...

2009-10-26T22:44:00.003+08:00

i got my wish - warm hug & nice strong shoulders. hahaha.

and the best part is we achieved so much in a few hrs, and went home early. dinner and browsing around shops at IMM... I even managed to get some nail polish at face shop :D and we got another dish for Mika... and more new movie titles.

(: thks baby

P.S: I even fulfilled my MOS burger cravings. yay hay!

2009-10-25T21:57:00.006+08:00

my entries will be predictably more heavy & gloomy in topic for this period... while this is my outlet for pouring my thoughts out, I also rather not sadden other people with my experience (: so for those who rather not read abt sad stuff... avoid my blog for the week perhaps.

since it will be back to work tml, I left my cousin's place early & came home for a quiet dinner with my parents. it seems like e everyone forgotten that I have grown up. My cousin commented that she forgot I'm not a kid anymore, which was why I stayed over to help out. And another one asked me if I'm still staying over tonight, forgetting that I have work tml.

I don't know... this week will be hard for many of us I guess. but I am glad to go back to work so I do not have to be surrounded constantly by grief and heartbreaks. it hurts to see how my aunt still cries at every concerned relative/friend/ex-neighbour/blah blah who calls. and she is slping so little that she is light headed and walks unsteadily.

I hope to get the week quickly over and done with... so that we can all have a proper closure and come to terms with what have already happened.

I nd a warm hug and nice strong shoulders... till I see you baby *winks (:

2009-10-24T23:42:00.002+08:00

it feels good to have poured out everything with last night's post. today was in a much better state to help out around the house. needless to say, went over since the morning. and my 小姨 asked if i could stay over because they are worried abt how my aged uncle n auntie would be at home with the kids. they have to deal with the pouring in of calls and my aunt would cry with every call or visit. the kids are doing well, at least in front of me... and the two youngest ones would try to revise when they can.

I'm glad I stayed back cos there were alot of loose ends to take care of between the china and local undertaker. have to make sure all the information needed is sent over or vice versa. and the kids are too small to know certain details because when my uncles n grandma passed away they were too young to understand certain things.

all in all... I am coping, and so is my cousin's family. everyone is trying their best to take care of things here so they would not worry too much when they're in china.

i know it will nt be easy when the casket is transported back... everyone will have to deal with the loss again. and this time reality would fall right smack in our faces.

we'll be strong and press on.

for u!

2009-10-24T00:26:00.003+08:00

To My Dearest 雄兴Kor...

The phonecall this evening confirmed our worst fears and burst that last glimmer of hope. You have really left us and this is all too sudden for any of us to accept.

We know that your family would be the greatest worry you left behind. But that will be our responsibility now. Yun, Min, Wei & Ling have been very sensible today - they handled their emotions well and took care of each other. You had taken care of us, so now its my turn kor... I know the youngest two are having their exams, so this weekend... I will help them with their revision if they need anything from me.

Ma couldn't slp last night... As much as we have all felt heartbroken, it must have felt no better for her. I know how dear you were to each other, and I think she treated you like a son too... We will teach her how to use the handphone you got her, and put it to gd use.

I'm so glad I went to the temple and saw you the last time you were back. Saw you in your running gear and we caught up with s short chat. Even before I got my job, I told myself to give you a treat with my pay. You were the first I want to thank... Rem our Alice in Wonderland? I can't find the book on my shelf, I must have passed it on to one of our nieces. I will try my best to get it back and keep it properly.

Kor... I thought when there is a better time, I would bring my boyfriend with me to lunch or dine with you. I haven't even told you about him... did you know?

There is so much I want to tell you kor. So much, so much more. I really wish it doesn't have to end this way.

But I will control my emotions better for you kor... Have to be strong to take care of your little ones.

Rest in peace kor... I love you.

2009-10-23T11:02:00.002+08:00

because waiting is painful. especially when it is for agonizing news... let me just spill my thoughts here, and hopefully be able to get on with my work and the rest of my day...

he coached me in my English when I was awful in it.

he bought me my first handphone and paid for my phone bills for a year, when he knew... my family couldn't afford another bill.

he picked me up when I was lost in town.

he offered to support me in furthering my studies when the economy was down and I was looking for a job, even when he had 4 kids of his own to worry about.

he offered to give me mock interviews, because he has been hiring managers and have friends in the recruitment industry who can give me practice.

he was, in many ways, more than a cousin to me. and although we are still establishing the facts, my dearest cousin may have left us last night. on his usual jogging, where he was on a working trip in Beijing, he collapsed.

right now, my relatives are on a plane there... I can't imagine the agony of the plane ride for his wife, his sister and my accompanying cousin (a man has got to be there... his father has a weak heart)...

I would give anything, anything... for you to be back kor...

2009-10-21T22:57:00.004+08:00

just when i had mentioned how life is unpredictable in a very recent post, sth happened today that made me think - u really dunno wad is coming round the corner.

was knocking off and taking the lift down, and saw two tenants heading to the lobby from the opposite end of the floor( our bldg has lots of tenants housed in offices like mine). as I still do not know alot of the tenants there, I tot I shld be friendly and just smiled at the 2 gentlemen - 1 indian & 1 caucasian.

when the lift door closed, I heard the indian speak:

'so are you in consulting or IT?'

it took me split seconds to realise he was talking to me because the caucasian was obviously his colleague. and I casually replied consulting and told him wad we do.

'so if I want to apply for a grant you can help me?'

I tot he was just making small talk, but I soon realised he was serious - they were really gonna apply for a grant but dunno how to. and we exchanged namecards outside the lobby... just when I saw my boss's car drive by and long enough for me to see his puzzled face as to why I was stnading there with the 2 unfamiliar men.

so you see? a short lift ride can even lead to potential customers. gosh.

oh, at first when I haven't seen who was spking to me I tot it was the caucasian man who spoke though. the typical stereotyping. yeah... we're all an occasional culprit of tat aren't we? :X surprisingly, from the brief eye contact we exchg & his body language, the caucasian is the shyer guy there.

hmm. let's hope this really leads to sth good. prove my 'usefulness' at work.

tml is a dreadfully boring day. this time boring because of the work, not because there's none. there are a few things I have to iron out abt some proposals tat is starting to get on my nerves. just getting the information alone needed quite a lot of email exchgs because the consultant guy gave us 6 cases in one shot.

and I end up doing all the proposal & coordination shit. boo.

2009-10-20T14:49:00.003+08:00

this is an extension of my FB status today - the ironies of life... now that tradeshow is over, the workload is much lesser. because new work haven come in yet and I'm pretty idle in the office.

today I'm basically going over old work to find new things to do. reading the news. chatting. playing bejeweled :X oops. and after lunch my boss even suggested we have coffee. which is weird. because my boss DOESN'T drink coffee. he only drinks tea.

an obervation I've made in the recent months:

sometimes when I don't go to Jer's house or during random hrs of the day... I'm chatting more often with his first younger sister. the one closest to age in me. at first I tot we had the least to talk abt. maybe becos she was usually not home. but it could be due to our similarity in age and that we're both working... that actually I have the most to talk abt with her than any of her sisters. well of cos, we are very different in personality. but still, we can go on n on chatting sometimes. but if I were to say hi to the other two sisters on msn, it'll just go on a while and stop. heh.

so... its funny the way things happen sometimes. you click with the person you least expect to. well... this is life!

P.S to Jer: so you probably know who's the little bird now :P

2009-10-20T00:21:00.002+08:00

my monday was never simpler. but I wouldn't ask for more (:

becos the boyfriend is having an exam soon, I tot I shld do sth to make him feel motivated. or maybe I shld say, give him the time to study. cos I don't think he's motivated. haha!

anyway, I didn't call to make plans like we usually do but the bf offered to send me home from work. and when I got on his car guess what he said?

'so where are we going?'

lol. like my 'sacrifice' was wasted cos I noe his heart doesn't lies in revision. haha. anyway... we went to get our mr bean ice cream fix and took a short walk around Jurong Safra to explore the facilities. all in all it was like less than 2 hrs. but still... its one of those quality times spent where u feel gd even though it was a short meet-up?

baby, I know you'll see this... so I hope my 'sacrifice' will be worth it eventually, get u in the mood for studying. jia you! you can do it! (:

2009-10-19T20:55:00.003+08:00

after a long week of pre-preparations and attending the tradeshow, I was planning for a good long post for reflections. although the crowd wasn't as much as expected, overall it was still a good event to participate, in terms of the brand exposure our clients got and some solid follow ups for of our own that will hopefully materialise.

well, this tradeshow has definitely been a great learning experience for me. I knew our clients better, understood their system (& in turn, franchising) more... and I think I sorta built up the confidence they have in me. becos many realised that I was just with my boss for a few months, and freshly graduated. they seem impressed and told me that they could not tell. I think it was mainly becos of the way I tried to be calm even though I may be like panicking when people ask me things I don't understand. how shld I put it... its like the way I carry myself, they didn't think I was so young and 'fresh' (in the workplace that is, don't let ur thoughts run wild eh!) because I seem mature for my age.

and yeah, luckily I am not those type who is very secretive and concerned abt age. so I take it as a compliment when they say 'oh you are so young, I couldn't tell!'. let's just say I was also eager to prove to my boss that I can do work fine... and my clients told him that he's fortunate to have hired me and I am seriously glad that someone said it to him. but let's hope he'll appreciate it.

ever since the appraisal I've been like filtering my thoughts and second-guessing what he says. its so tiring. and I've said this more than once so maybe even as u read u're getting tired of me saying this too.

I mean for a small company you need to have more trust between colleagues and u have no choice but to open up more... becos its just u! even if u don like it, u are very much tog most of the times. which is why I am hesitating to commit to this job now becos of all these. gosh. its bothering me so much sometimes...

anyway, let's not talk abt my job... kinda give me conflicting emotions whenever I think abt it. here's some types of people that I got visiting our booth.

the lucky chaps/ladies
many Indonesians come over to look for businesses to introduce back to their country. there are also some like middle eastern businessmen who are even richer... and a few lucky young men & ladies like around our age... whose parents brought them to the tradeshow to look for businesses to invest in. god, its like how other parents bring kids out for shopping but they are buying franchises not toys or clothes.

the retired businessmen/bosses
retired, going to retire... they come in the weekdays, like in the afternoon, which only goes to show they hold high positions in their companies and are looking for sth to invest so they can retire comfortably. some also bring their secretary (male & females) who help them drop their cards into trays & bowls...

the snoopy competitors
be it ours or our clients'... u're bound to have some people sniffing round ur booth to see if they can pick up anything interesting or juicy... hmm.

the trying-to-be-funny
there was this guy who asked me a question I would have like to walk away from. 'so which one of ur franchise will require the least commitment from me?'

damn. he is every franchisor's nightmare. those who just buy the franchise and hope to make money from it. come on, its not a stock or fixed deposit... if u can't be responsible to at least oversee ur franchise, there is no such good deal in the world that will let u sit back & wait for the fruits to drop.

then another came to our booth and just said, 'is this (insert my company name)? I am looking for rachel!' (I go by rachel at work, easier to remember/pronounce than chinese name)

guess what, I've never seen him b4. if I spoke to him I would know becos even know I'm not gd with remembering names, I do rem faces I've seen pretty well (fyi: the previous guy came to our booth the next day and I recognised him). I HAVE NOT talked to him b4 and he must have been like snooping around & following me to see my tag for my name. becos the whole day I was shuttling around to be around & support our clients as they were giving talks abt their concepts.

god! wad an interesting world...

2009-10-14T13:57:00.004+08:00

as the boyfriend has pointed out (in a much nicer way of course), I seem to be retarded in interpreting my bosses' words. since its not the first time. lol which is indeed very strange, because under normal circumstances I would have retorted back.

'my personal life is none of your business!'

oh of cos, in a much nicer way too.

now, there are a few options for after-work plans today and I am still contemplating each over & over again in my head. I guess it depends on when I'm knocking off and how tired I am.

I thought I can report direct to Suntec tml, and slp later in the morning. but my boss said come back to the office to meet & he'll drop me there. dang. perhaps recently, due to my boss dabbling in my personal life. alright, poking his nose rather.

2009-10-13T22:24:00.003+08:00

my boss said sth during work today, which again I didn't think much about it until later when I had the time to 'digest' it. Because I misinterpreted it. trust me, this is not because I am thinking too much. If you read my past posts, there is a 'history' to this.

'these few days, because of the tradeshow... rest after you finish your work'

at first... I understood it as my boss meaning I can knock off early if I finish my work, because tradeshows will be long days. but no... afterwards it struck me by what he truly meant.

again... my personal life. ever since the appraisal I constantly reminded myself not to reveal anything about my plans after 6pm. which I successfully did until yesterday. I was kept outside the office for most of the day because of 3 meetings and he called when we were about to go back to the office. Usually calls that come in when we're outside, not in meetings... I'll pick them up.

Baby was calling to ask if I have any plans, our usual routine if he has no classes. its like a habit to see if we have anything on after work and if not... are we planning anything? 90% of the time ends up in sth planned. lol. so... I had a hard time talking to him because I want to avoid my boss knowing my after-work plans. And in trying to be natural and continue proper conversations with Jer, I had to reveal reluctantly that I am meeting him for dinner or movie.

and see... just ytd he found out I was doing sth after work... he commented on it today. what he truly means is he's hinting to me to go home and rest after work because our tradeshow is coming. damn. I do regret not saying anything then. feel like kicking myself. next time I should count to ten, rehearse what I want to say in my head and just spit it out immediately or I'll have to endure nonsense like this.

2009-10-11T21:59:00.004+08:00

at the end of this utterly short sunday, I'm totally exhausted by the weekend's activities. but still... its fulfilling.

saturday was sorta last minute plan. Jer awoke from his long slumber (and I really mean looooong) and we decided to have a quiet dinner with his parents (the sisters went out for a birthday party). so SH went to the market and bought some stuff for cooking dinner and bought some of the yummy poh piahs from the 400+ market.

and then came the impromptu bowling session. I am proud to say I have improved my score! but certainly need more practice cos the 'feel' isn't there yet. inconsistent leh!

now today was the auction thingy my ex-colleague asked me to help. I was actually quite unwilling to help out cos I know this period will be busy, since next week is the tradeshow week. even if I have no work to do, I will be tired from the week's work. indeed... I had some work to complete. but since I already said I would help out and she can't find anymore people... a promise is a promise...

met some nice gals from today's auction. one was a hospitality poly student and another was an auditor who worked in one of the big 4 and she can speak dutch cos she's born there ok! so cool!

so basically it means hours of standing (this time the pay is lower, to my disappointment - bt still 10 bucks an hour) and I was again irritated by one of the Indonesian guys. who keep pestering me to take photos and wanna be 'friendly'.

in the end, he didn't give me the shock of the day. some other guy did. during lunch, our sit-down-to-rest session... one of the guys moving the paintings came up to me and say:

'are you the gal who was reading 8 days on the train?'

at first I didn't quite get wad he's saying. becos I haven spoke to him at all, neither have I seen him before. even though I know I had 8 days in the bag, I still didn't really get wad he meant by the qn. after asking him did I realise that this guy was trying to say he saw me on the train in the morning reading 8 days and he tot I was familiar.

ok...

then, even though I tot this guy was weird, I still attempted to make some small talk so I won't appear rude... and he dropped the next bombshell on me...

'are you going back boon lay later? cos my friend is driving and giving us a lift to outram. we can give u a lift to the station too.'

I was like WTH!!! how did he know I live in boon lay?!?!

I dunno wad was the guy's intention... maybe he really was trying to be nice. but I doubtso and was seriously creeped out. he said he saw me on the train, tt's how he knew I live in boon lay. but come on... when you take the train, do you scrutinize every face in the cabin, remember what they are doing and where they board?!?!

give me a break from weird guys.

I only want Jer :D

2009-10-10T11:56:00.006+08:00

I guess I should have put a disclaimer on my previous entry recommending the taxidiary? :P I was told it is an addictive read and distracted someone very seriously at work. keke.

fri evening was spent with Jer in the Clementi neighbourhood. he went for his 推拿 while I just hung round the neighbourhood. dinner wasn't much of a choice there since its a neighbourhood? haha. anyway, we went for the sushi at Ramen Ten - yeah, the .99 per plate sushi. this was how jer transformed his ebi sushi when he was trying to get it all with his chopsticks without them dropping... and I tot it was cute. the prawns were like hanging by their tails. ha!

thurs was megan's birthday, and we sorta went to the intercontinental buffet that I've been telling you guys about... I would say it is a good bargain for 1-for-1, but not at the original price. because their food wasn't really like a whole big spread kinda buffet. but the quality kind. which I must say I love the oysters & fresh prawns...

some of my fave food & pictures of the night:

parma ham with rock melon

forgot the name of this salad, it was quite a mouthful... its mushroom tossed with wild rocket & cheese *yummy!

roma tomatoes - the juicy sweetness just bursts in ur mouth. eat it in one mouth! don't bite and waste the juices!

the would-have-been nice shot if melanie hadn't been 'stunned' by the sudden opening lift doors ):

2009-10-07T20:27:00.003+08:00

found an interesting blog of a local taxi driver with a PhD, how's that? his stories of what he sees and experiences during his driving days are very enjoyable reads. here you go:

http://taxidiary.blogspot.com

hope you enjoy them as much as I do!

this is a fantastic shellfish my mum recently found at Sheng Shiong. its a type of bigger lala from Philippines. and its so damn good. very fleshy and sweet. just steam with soya sauce & voila~!

2009-10-04T23:46:00.003+08:00

been asked about my recent lack of posts, and I guess I can attribute it to the string of bad luck I had previously with uploading photos. so, me is back to 'freshen up' my blog!

hmm, first up... few photos which I missed uploading:

was from our previous trip to hanabi, this japanese restaurant in bkt timah. yummy japanese food buffet!

I dunno since when did I develop less interest for my job. how shld I put it... I like wad I'm learning but I don't like wad I'm doing. I'm hoping its cos for now, we are short handed and the situation will improve. becos right now I feel that I spend more time doing proposals, write ups and random stuff around or outside the office that I feel I am not learning enough. as in, I think I will forget the 'practical' part of consulting after doing so much of the theory stuff. and I'm not trained enough.

its like a vicious cycle. you wanna do more, but you're not trained enough. you're not trained enough, that's why you can't do more.

and it really really worries me sometimes about wad I can do after this? hmmmmm. well... my mindset now is, just see what opportunities this company will give me after the tradeshow (which is in 2 wks time). boss is sending me to training after that. i know i must have blogged abt this more than once... heh. its becos its bothering me. i hope i'm not thinking too much!

*~*~*~*

on a lighter note... my bro and I had an interesting communication ytd. we msned to each other while we were both at home. and my door was open and he was using his com just outside the room. hehe. it had to do with the secret we both are keeping. each of us has a trip planned and our parents are not informed yet. we decided that we will tell them tog when his is confirmed.

i seriously don't think mine will be a 'problem' to tell. becos I'm working and earning and stuff. but my bro... he is a NSmen without much savings and recently back from TW. he... will have more to deal with. wahahaha. yeah it is in times like that we are more 'united' sometimes :P

alright... its 12mn now. I would love to finish one episode of True Blood from Season 2 but on second thoughts... maybe not. have a long way to go tml!

2009-10-02T22:55:00.002+08:00

i need to exercise man... working really made my diet unhealthy. cos sometimes I have to settle things quickly, lunch in a restaurant is the fastest way - since its more exp, the crowd is lesser.

so it often means i either eat a much bigger meal, or much unhealthier meal. cos at least in food courts i can still choose soups and lighter food.

so, so..! SH you need to exercise! jog! climb the stairs! don't be so lazy la...

and guess wad... more rich food coming our way. gosh... intercontinental hotel buffet! 1 for 1 promo guys! :D :D

2009-10-01T10:54:00.003+08:00

trying to act busy in the office. the morning meeting i tot we had wasn't on. and there isn't much stuff for me to do. spent my morning missing my weekly Spinelli coffee fix, reading news online and sending the occasional email.

as my various nick on MSN and FB mentioned this week, I had snow crab and sashimi... and it was gd! very fresh and I can't imagine if the frozen snow crab tasted this gd, what would the fresh one be like? *salivates

this week, as jer noted, is full of sinful food... burgers with wagyu/angus beef patty. and from the minced beef leftover we made pasta the next day. then was the snow crab, sashimi and we shared a Superdog meal before our movie. but they were all damn good!

oh, we had our sashimi fix at this japanese 'fish market' opposite the Giant Supermarket in Vivo's basement. u choose ur salmon n they slice on the spot for u! :D

2009-09-22T15:35:00.002+08:00

this is a post hastily done, before my boss steps in after his hours-long meeting :X

the long weekend made me extremely nua and reluctant to come back to work. especially since fri afternoon I was on MC for my persistent runny nose. I decided that since it did not worsen or improve (its getting on my nerves, sneezing every morning) I shall get it cured b4 it becomes a big flu.

nothing much this week, except for a possible marina barrage pinic. and i think we have a gathering this friday, but haven heard any confirmation yet?

in any case... I've finally baked to my heart's content, and found the right bananas, right tweaks and everything that makes my muffins yummy. yay! I am running low on muffin cups and I need a proper mixing bowl. I've been using this big ceramic bowl which is damn heavy and not big enuff when I double my ingredients for a bigger batch.

oh, another random note before I go... so happy all my CSIs and crime dramas are back for season premiere this week! and I heard Heroes 4 is back too. yay hay!

2009-09-19T23:31:00.003+08:00

jer's best fren is back in sg for some sort of a surprise visit to us. cos he forgotten to mention to jer he'll be back in town for his brother's wedding. so all of a sudden jer got a call from him to say he's back. lol.

we had the famous black pepper crabs at Eng Seng Coffeeshop tt's at the junction of Still Road and Joo Chiat Place. its crazy how the people flock there for the crabs. I think its quite good. but I'm more a fan of chilli crabs than black pepper. the crabs are damn fresh but I think black pepper overpowers the freshness of the crab you know? still, its yummy!

if you've noticed there's not much food pics, or any pics lately. cos my bro gone to taipei for a trip with his army frens. he called us to say he's extending his trip yesterday. so he's coming back two days later on tues, instead of sun. according to him, I would shop till i drop. which i have no doubts too.

jer's fren & gf will be staying for slightly over a week. sorta clicked with the gf the last time... but we didn't get to know each other better cos there wasn't enuff time. but she's a real sweet gal, like typical korean ladies - demure & charming. and I realised many koreans been popping up around me lately. ha!

we're planning stuff to do tog since they're in town. like a pinic at marina barrage! think they have tennis in mind but I can only watch, and maybe wait for dinner at ikea :P so, its gonna be a fun & busy week!

p.s: I look forward to jer graduating and we go visit them in brisbane... it'll be so cool!

2009-09-15T23:19:00.002+08:00

heard & seen so much stuff from clients that I feel I am learning sth invaluable, besides the knowledge abt franchises... but also learning about life.

how not to neglect little details about your loved ones, that could save their lives. how to trust the spouse who is outstationed and have faith in your relationship/marriage. how to take things in your stride and not bother yourself with little details so you are a happier person without fussing over unimportant details...

so many things learnt and heard. would love to share... but I guess hearing it from the people themselves and from a third party makes a difference. hope you guys are enjoying life as much as I do.

learning, growing, loving.

2009-09-14T09:16:00.002+08:00

been to Ion for about 4-5 times, and I still haven't cover anything above the ground! mainly dwelling around the basement areas cos the food hall is full of yummy treats. I think most of the shops within our budget are in the basement floors too. its also cos everytime I'm there I only can stay a short while, couple hrs at most.

after our yoga class we went back to Ion to shop, main thing was going to Uniqlo cos we both heard so much about it. the clothes were not bad... I think jeans are pretty decent there. And if you like quality basic tees like crew neck, v-neck, tank top, spag tops etc... you can get 'em there. And guys have some very nice polo tees and business shirts there at what I think are reasonable prices. 30 for a polo tee (:

my bro's flying off to Taipei with his army friends in a couple of hrs, a personal trip. I was so tempted to blurt my Vietnam trip out last week when they were all talking abt travelling & stuff. But I decided that just in case I give my mum more reason to nag... shut my mouth for the time being :X

somehow or rather, communication's been especially bad between us ever since I went to work. I mean, not that its been gd all the while... we're those traditional families that children & parents somehow got this barrier between them, not to mention our age gap. i guess maybe cos I'm home for lesser hrs, I expected quality communication. but whenever we do get to talk, alot of times she either

a) reminds me of the minute, irritating details like housework first thing when I reach home from work or wake up in the morning & is going to work (come on la, its like the last thing we wanna hear right? and what can I do when I have 1/2 hr to prepare for work?!)
b) watches how I spend like an eagle; if I buy some stuff she deems too expensive she'll nag. but sometimes when I told her sth is nice I tried somewhere then she'll say 'then why you nv buy back for us to try?'

I dunno why must she make things difficult for us. When we suggest going out they'll say don't go too far la... travel

ya, she's been so sensitive abt $$$ matters that I dunno what to do abt it sometimes. so. this explains my short fuse nowadays when I'm at home... oh well. hope I can kp a chk on my temper. ENDURE even when she is at her most unreasonable.

damn!

2009-09-13T00:57:00.002+08:00

Mika's much bigger than she was in this photo now. and sometimes I can't help but wonder if I did wrong by giving her to jer's family. I know how much they like a kitten... but I didn't expect their mum to be so scared of it. she really screams sometimes when Mika suddenly jumps or comes near her. I didn't know she'll get so paranoid!

Jer also said Mika can be quite aggressive sometimes. I like to think that its cos she is still a baby, and she still doesn't know what can be done/not done, what are the limits to playing (no scratching or biting of hands, legs etc).

I hope its just that she needs training...

2009-09-07T21:34:00.000+08:00

went to some shophouse on Niven St and imagine my surprise when I came to the door, there was a sign that read 'closed' and the decor and the guy walking over to the door was covered in tattooes.

LOL.

dont worry, my boss was behind me and it turned out the namecard designer coy was renting the unit ABOVE the tattoo parlour. cool huh?

they even asked if we gt a scare. haha.

Hot Yoga tml with Jer! :D Hope it'll be alot fun without much of the sales pitch talk, woots~

2009-09-06T22:43:00.000+08:00

weekend passed by in a whiz, again! JB trip was so-so. I guess I had too much expectations for it? more people other than Jer's family this time. and his family's car happen to break down so we had to ride in his uncle's car, and his sisters & mum in another. hmm. a bit of time wasted in the day cos the first shopping center wasn't as gd to shop as expected. Moved on to Jusco at bukit Indah... alot of shops, which didn't really have time to explore... didn't get shoes like I want. but got a few tops for work. nevertheless, it was fun gg back to shop in JB and exploring new grounds (:

recently, a friend's been msging abt his gf. how he finally got the girl, after convincing her that he really is serious abt her and their r/s. maybe... he wasn't serious abt the relationships b4... or like he said, he just seem to have 'short attention span' - when he sees another nice girl his affections for the gf will 动摇.

but this time... I could see that he was. serious. and this gal was the one who, on the 2nd day told him she wasn't v sure she could accept his past. and she was feeling insecure. and now they're over.

hai. just feel sad for my friend that when he wants to commit, the gal doesn't trust and love him enuff to give him the chance. her insecurities are not unfounded but still... I think since she had initially committed she should have at least stuck by her decision and gave everyone a chance? hope it will turn out well for them... maybe give each other more time to prove my friend is sincere.

on a lighter note... enjoyed a nice japanese dinner with Jer's family... Unagi don, some sort. haha. jap rice and grilled unagi with omelette. gonna try hot yoga with Jer at a free trial in True Spa on Tues. Looking forward to it. Cos I wanna do sth to make me feel less fat... and less guilty? :P

2009-09-03T23:50:00.002+08:00

week started hectic, with a series of unfortunate events...

monday - full day meeting at client's

tuesday - and guess wad, it rained cats & dogs when I had to leave for a meeting and a stupid bus happily splashed like a few litres of rain water onto me. morning of prepartion then meeting all the way till dinner time (in case you're wondering, same client :S) and he treated us to nice 'zhi car'!

the lucky thing? I was wearing skirt... if not my whole pant legs would be drenched like dunno wad. god!

wednesday - my phone conked out on me, warranty over and I walked over to Singtel right opposite the Samsung Service Center to buy a replacement straight. can't do without a phone cos I have no spare ones! NUS networking event... met ex-colleagues for dinner with boss. there were certain times my boss and I felt left out cos the two gals kept talking abt their own stuff. Didn't really include us... so... hmm.

today... finally got jer to try the ramen I was raving about. I tried it in the Big Splash outlet... but there's a nearer one in Holland V. Its called Yoshimaru Ramen Bar. Do try it guys... besides the Marutama @ The Central (which I was alw recommending to others too :P), this is the next best and reasonably priced. no pictures though... just trust our recommendation! *winks

This Saturday is a long-awaited JB trip! hopping to get more food for Mika and maybe some accessories like a what-do-you-call-it to carry her around if we need to bring her out? and I hope... clothes n shoes for me pls?

2009-08-31T00:43:00.004+08:00

weekends just seems to pass much faster now. after meeting ups with friends, classmates... we all realised sth - topics changed and so do our habits. after we work! no more pon-ning, no off days... we all slp earlier, as much as we can. and weekends are even more precious now I guess?

ytd met up with my JC classmates and saw some of them since after X amt of time. hearing them talk abt sch is... weird. Somehow its only 3 mths since I graduated but sch life seems so much more distant.

finally able to upload pictures, and at what a good time. people... if you are hungry, and there's no food available like in the next 1/2 hr, pls skip the rest of this post. Don't say I didn't warn you! *winks

2009-08-27T20:24:00.000+08:00

potential short trip coming up this November! :D woots. I'm so excited about it. Most likely Chiangmai cos its cheaper and more worthwhile the 'short' weekend. its really short, just 4 days. so cant go too far anyway, and chiangmai fits the bill for a laidback... relaxed place. and the weather is nice too! not to mention thai baht is so affordable. wahaha!

recently Jer & I got this chicken wing craze. We kp trying chicken wings that look nice when we see them at any stall. I just had my 4th chicken wing this week :X let's hope it wont add up to my waistline that fast eh?

oh. oh. my boss is going to Cambodia for a business trip, but I wont be tagging along. I'm hoping when he is gone (Fri-Sun somewhere in Sept) I wont have to report to work for the friday. WAHAHAHA.

yeah I know, totally random updates... :P am trying to make the best out of my worklife balance.

2009-08-22T18:02:00.000+08:00

booooring weekend! but it also means i have some quiet time to myself and my books. slacking. resting. and hopefully doing something gd for my body like jogging?

(but its sat evening and I haven't done any jogging yet)

this week has been rather slack at work and I welcomed it cos the last few weeks were awfully busy. in fact, i got off early on thurs n fri becos there was nothing much for me. wahahaha.

but SH cant be happy for too long, the work is coming in the next few weeks... 2 franchising projects, 2 grants, and trade show at suntec...

2009-08-19T21:49:00.000+08:00

讲钱伤感情

2009-08-15T12:30:00.000+08:00

god, i really do wonder what's wrong with my blogger... damn. I cant post pictures here! so its all gonna be text for now guys. cos I'm reluctant to give up this blog, there's always errors loading the page ):

anyway... work has been rather busy for me. Lots of cabbing around to meetings etc cos boss & I have to work separately for quite a few occasions. I spent almost 200 bucks on cab fares already. Luckily I can claim, if not, imagine the large hole it'll burn in my pocket? :P

because of my recent cabbing experience, I came across some friendly taxi uncles whom were real nice to me. Most of them chat with you during the ride, and when knowing I'm a recent grad, they wished me luck to my first job etc. There was even an uncle who charged me $13 for a $13.80 ride and said 'take the money to buy a coffee ya?' even though I told him earlier I could claim the cab fare. he refused to take the rest of the cab fare from me even though i have exact change.

and yesterday... was an adventurous day. I found a ginger kitten downstairs. and since I know how much Jer and his sisters want a kitten (they had tried to adopt once and almost got it) I called Jer to dble chk, and quickly caught the kitten and ran up to my place. hahaha. I was on my way to work ok! had a fun time settling it down at my place, then his... playing and observing it.

being a kitten, Mika (tt's her name), is naturally VERY curious and playful. In the short few hours I let her out of the box, she found many things and papers to play with, and she even charmed the socks off my parents (they kp playing with her even though they kp saying its troublesome to have a kitten at home). Her fave slping spot was under my coffee table. where she broke out of the box and crawled back to slp when I tried to put her inside to meet Jer. and her fave playing corner was my brother's computer table, where there was a jungle of wires (it caught tangled while playing and I let her struggle for a while b4 letting her out :P) and a corner for her play with the papers and everything.

her favourite 'toy' is papers... any piece, any size. someday I'll record a video of her. but! jer's parents are not v keen about it, so we don't really know how long it will stay with them, like is it permanent...

2009-08-05T16:34:00.002+08:00

life is definitely much more 'fulfilling' this week given that I was practically up to my neck since last week. and now that the interns are officially gone, SH is alooooooone in the office. I don't mind that actually. more quiet. 'me' time. I just dont like lunch time now, cos its hard to eat alone - how to get seats?

and guess what, somehow i think its my IE at home having prob with loading pics cos I can see the pretty little icon sitting at the top of the panel. so I wonder wad's wrong. hmm.

am looking fwd to my WEEKENDS. I need this break. I hope I do not have to bring back any work. Friday is dinner with minshan, and prolly hanging out with Jer during the weekend. and Monday no work. woohoo!

I do have some work to clear b4 I leave the office. but I feel like just slacking. stop procrastinating if you wanna enjoy ur Wed evening work-free gal!

2009-08-02T11:00:00.000+08:00

I MIGHT chg to this address: but the url was giving me a headache, dunno what to put...

http://bluehavens87.livejournal.com/

2009-07-31T23:21:00.000+08:00

i think my IE is having prob. Blogger & FB are appearing weird to me and I'm the only one facing the prob. this week at work has been... hectic.

first came the part abt the unfair expectations. I think my boss, being busier this period, came to expect too much from me. and when I can't give what he expects, he sorta expressed it thru one email and one sms that were enuff to make me damn upset & disappointed. which explains my previous post. He has all the while been a nice boss, so I think he was too impatient. come on... somethings can't come to me as simply as 'putting on my thinking cap' because of the fact that I am undertrained and inexperienced...

but well, havent really got the chance to talk to him. I expect we may do it next week, since all the interns are gone and there's only me left. got praised today by the client for my writing... so even though I was dead beat from working late last night and waking up damn early in the morning... I was happy. somehow it managed to make up a little bit for all the negativity this earlier in the week (:

2009-07-28T15:05:00.001+08:00

委屈

2009-07-27T20:16:00.001+08:00

not sure if you would say this is a much-awaited day. but offically convocated today! (: mum and brother came and didn't got my dad to take leave for this. many photos with my dear uncle paul who volunteered, months ago, to take pictures for me at my convocation. only today did I know that he dotes on me becos he didn't have a daughter. two sons. I always tot it was because I happen to be spending alot of time at the shop with him and my uncle.

and guess what, he's not even my blood-related uncle. so it makes it even more significant for me that he takes time out of his busy schedule to help me. and today he said he wants to come down to my place again to take a full family portrait.... awww. I am seriously touched by his kind gestures.

and... there was one person I would loooove to see at the ceremony but he wasn't there. cos again, leave. haha. jer's leave is very precious cos he needs it to study for his exam. its ok! I will go to his convocation :D

*unable to post pics due to some blogger error. will post again!

2009-07-19T11:33:00.002+08:00

the boyfriend is away in KL and will be back today! he is missed! (:

2009-07-18T12:14:00.003+08:00

the accident prone me is back to experiencing a serious of knocks and falls. or if you wanna call it a streak of bad luck.

for some unknown reason, i mysteriously fell quite badly outside the clinic across JP. while accompanying him there. and to remind myself how silly and careless I was. I took pics of my injuries. please don't fall again like that. the inconvenience and possible scars are not welcomed!

and if you noticed, the pictures of the two hands... are actually one hand - my right. jer & i still cant figure out how I managed to hurt both sides in ONE fall. lol. honestly... I sometimes nd to limp around cos certain angles make my wound damn alot. and the big bruise on my left leg is damn ugly. it doesn't help that my right knee's injury hasn't harden yet... so I am fragile now!

I said series right? cos I just hit my head hard on the kitchen cabinet. my mum opened to make tea for us. and usually i lower my head to avoid it. today?

I walked right into it without knowing.

I dunno why~!

2009-07-11T17:09:00.002+08:00

happy happy
been playing around with photoscape and my webcam at work... so far so gd for my job :D thks u guys for ur concern!

the bouquet for our first (:

2009-07-01T23:20:00.003+08:00

muffins!

had a sudden urge to make sth this afternn. was just browsing online while waiting for boss to come back (yeah, this week is a bit boring) and I ran out of things to satisfy my 'online window shopping'. so I was flipping thru old mails, deleting, re-reading... when I saw an old recipe an ex-colleague sent me.

hey... why not look at recipes?

that triggered sth.

felt this sudden urge to make a non-bake cake, or muffins! decided to make choc chip banana muffin cos (wanna guess?) this is one of jer's favourite combi. and I felt like making sth to 'reciprocate' his yummy potato salad.

after work I immediately went to JP to get all my ingredients. and voila... after dinner, I baked two rounds to finish my batch of muffins. they were easy to make and tasted great (: I'm hoping to improve the recipe by adding more bananas.

woots. hope there are many more baking like this to come!

2009-06-29T22:44:00.005+08:00

its been a year

the last weekend was a special one and it started on friday evening... jer's mum picked him up at work cos they were using the car that day and also came to pick me at my office as well, since it was on the way.

he said he want to get sth at the market and was acting all weird when we ask him what did he want to buy.

'nothing la'

usually I accompany him out of the car to get the stuff, but that day he say I don't have to come.

okayyyyyy.

actually I guessed. and I was right about it (:

I'm having problems uploading the photo, but yes... he bought me another bouquet. the silly boy asked me if I tot he forgot.

all in all... the weekend together was great. gd food, mahjong, movies and we slacked away most of our sunday together. right now Jer is making his potato salad, and he said he will still send it over even though I told him not to, since its late.

I can imagine him scrubbing the potatoes, boiling, cutting, mixing & conjuring up that potato salad.

its so fast that it's been a year, and I am proud to say we are rock solid. and this is a different feeling from b4.

so ya... every little thing we do together. every date I return home from, feeling happy from the evening... I am thankful for all the twists & turns that led us to be together.

yep. I've been going on and on, about how it wasn't easy for us to start. and it's true! but everything is worth it

thank you, for everything (:

2009-06-23T11:21:00.002+08:00

Lessons learnt from my 1st day as a consultant

Like I told some of you:

Breakfast is the most important meal of the day, especially if I was to be out with my boss to meet client. Due to 'unforeseen circumstances', I only had my lunch at 2pm. I was damn hungry by then. lol. lucky my breakfast was filling and lasted me longer.

but then, also expect the unexpected. there can be last minute meetings added to ur agenda cos e.g. the client is leaving town tml and won't be back until 2 mths later (this is a real case, lol) :S

I am expecting myself to be running about like my boss when I am to meet them myself. gosh. cabs cabs & cabs?

and yes, I'm working now. boss is away and I am only joining in a meeting in the afternoon. right now? reading up for me!

*cheers

2009-06-16T17:39:00.000+08:00

是不是拥有了就不会珍惜?

2009-06-15T19:34:00.002+08:00

met my boss and colleagues today for lunch and the signing of our agreements. in a hurry we forgot to sign it, lol. cos my boss was rushing elsewhere to meet a client. its a smaller co than I expected it to be, like abt 6, 7 employees? but nevertheless, they seemed nice to work with. I think my boss is quite approachable and friendly. Throughout the entire lunch he poured tea, scooped the porridge, initiated conversations, etc. Left a gd impression on me - the kind of boss I want to work for!

they bought a laptop for me at the IT fair last wkend and I love it to bits. its an acer aspire 4810T. having used my fujitsu since I bought it in yr 1, I've never updated myself on the kind of laptops available in the market. It claims to have 8hrs+ battery life (we shall see) and an eco-friendly product. You know what, I'm totally amazed by the eco-friendliness of the product. I expect a long charge on the battery, like all new electronic gadgets. but this one took less than 1/2 hour ok! haha. cool.

boss told me to report to work at 9.30am next mon, and not the stipulated 9am, yay! :P

2009-06-15T10:15:00.002+08:00

shopping in town was much better than expected. Melanie & me had half expected ourselves to go back empty handed and we were quite disappointed. shoe-shopping at Far East was VERY unsuccessful. both of us wanted the same thing actually, but in different height. simple black heels. mine for work and hers for a ball.

but gosh, either there were no sizes for her or its too pointy/tall etc for me. we even went to Charles & Keith at Wisma to try our luck. and guess what, there's a crazy sale and it was jam packed with alot of people. naturally, you would expect regular sizes like ours to be -> out of stock.

sooooo... after much painstaking efforts, we made our way to Heerens and we finally got our stuff there. woo! And I even for myself a simple black shirt to match with my bottoms.

we met Jer for dinner at Chinatown... and I must say its a damn sinful dinner man. No pics for ytd cos my bro took the cam for his zoo trip. But we had raw fish slices, porridge, yam cake, bak chor mee for dinner. and dessert was the 杨枝甘露 at temple st. WOO. we shared everything tog, but its still... sinful :P

2009-06-13T20:23:00.003+08:00

been super engrossed in online shopping. at US and Taiwan spree sites. Gosh... Singapore isn't as fashionable or updated in trends. by now we all know Bugis, Far East etc... whatever you find there, most likely you can find similar stuff like maybe few shops down the row... or maybe its from some HK or TW spree. I guess I can't expect too much cos we are too small huh.

I got some stuff for work at this site called 東京著衣. mainly for work. but I gotta wait patiently for them! so I just spend alot alot of time online, browsing... choosing... shortlisting... and since I'm limited by budget now. even if I can't buy, I'm happy just to see. hahaha. so when I get my pay I know what kind of stuff I can get or go for... woo~ here's a look at my buys!

bought the top only... had a hard time deciding between the colours!

plan for tml: the girlfriend is shopping with the sister. haha. Jer's whole family except him & his eldest sis (by that I mean, the 'eldest, younger sis') cos they both are quite occupied with work now. Melanie was trying to psycho me to stayover so we can all watch movie & cook sth nice tog. I thought of that too, weeks ago! but then jer is like working these two days, and got stuff back in camp. so no pt if its just us gals... but still! tml is a day to look fwd to... woo~!

2009-06-03T14:41:00.003+08:00

回来啦?

during my work at the hotel on Saturday I received a call from Jer's sis. it was weird 'cos we usually only sms each other (: she wanted me to go over for dinner... and when I finally made my way there after work, their aunt (their aunt & uncle came over for dinner) greeted me and said:

'回来啦?'

I just smiled and can't help feeling warm & fuzzy all over. yeah, in some ways it did feel like so.

2009-06-01T16:38:00.008+08:00

Australia: the places I like

2009-06-01T11:38:00.012+08:00

Australia: the food

well... to cut things short, I shall update summary posts on Aussie :P lazy bum, S.H!
warning: please skip this post if u havent eaten! wahaha.

some of my fave food, I guess its easy to see what they are by now... bacon, cheese, eggs!

seafood... my all time fave too, and Australia offers some of the best around :D

often indulge in hot choc, mocha or coffee to kp myself warm

the fave fish & chips I had was in St Kilda... 8.90 only for such a big share

very oily chinese food at Blue Mountains, but surprisingly nice. the chilli was quite authentic too

Gelato at Lygon street - the Italian precinct in Melbourne. heard this stall is quite popular with international students there

met up with jamie and she brought me to this nice restaurant for my first try at Greek food :D

chocolateeeeeeeeees. well, its a food post! of cos I had all the yummy food I like :P

2009-05-25T10:10:00.004+08:00

I'm back! from Australia & a great wkend

haven't been updating since I came back, because I was busy with many other things & events! shall leave the Australia posts till when I'm more free, photos are in fact already up in FB. so yep, for the time being I'll leave it aside for a while.

anyway, this weekend has been, I think I can say... sweet! been hanging out with Jer & his friends... actually I can say my friends too, its almost a year! Bing proposed to Jo at WCP and he involved the whole gang. its the first time I'm part of sth like this and yeah, its sweet. but the bride-to-be didn't cry leh, hahaha.

and of cos she said 'I do' (: they've been together since poly, sweet!

and last night we watched night at the museum 2 with the same gang after dinner at Jer's place. his parents are real nice... I had actually turned down the invitation for dinner cos already made plans with my family. But I learnt that it seems they wanted to cook a nice Korean meal cos I havent eaten at their place for some time (due to my grad trip). so yeah, I turned up and Jer's frens called us for the movie. So I guess it's fated that I spend Sunday evening with him. haha.

talk abt fate... on sat after the proposal, we made our way to West Coast Plaza for dinner at Sushi Tei. we had a big grp and were waiting for our orders to come, so I was just looking around the restaurant. there was this little boy right opposite our long table playing around, jumping up and down. he was cute, and when he looked at me I waved. haha, he was so friendly and smiled & waved back.

this continued for a few times while he was having a great time jumping up & down. until... I saw the guy seated in the same cubicle as them. it was my cousin's husband. then did I realise the 3 little boys were my nephew and my dear cousin was there. you might ask how come I couldn't recognise my own nephews. It's cos this cousin had lived very far from us in SengKang all these yrs, and I only knew the eldest boy. it was only recently that she moved to Clementi. and I recognised my cousin from the knitted cap she was wearing over her head. yeah, the cousin I blogged abt previously who was getting treatment for cancer? this is the one... seeing her with the boys, eating dinner like a happy family makes me feel relieved for her. I wish her a speedy recovery...

and guys? time for a long time due gathering, man... even if its at JP I wouldn't mind, haha!

2009-05-03T23:54:00.003+08:00

full house at Jer's. Labour Day wkend

spent my Labour Day weekend with Jer's family. His youngest sis asked me to stayover a few times and yeah, frankly speaking we would appreciate the time together b4 I was to fly.

this whole weekend was a very enjoyable one, though it was dampened by the fact that my period came on Saturday (my first day there). Yes, of cos I rather it spoil my wkend trip than my grad trip. But was like so tired and cramping that his sisters said 'oh... no wonder you look like that', and she hunched her back and gave a very 'sian' look. HAHAHA. they're funny in a cute way. sometimes they meant to make you laugh, sometimes they don't and they still do.

I think this was one of the times I really felt that 'hey... this feels like home'. After dinner Megan commented 'Mummy got 6 children, kor'. She was refering to all the kids in the family and their gf/bf. And Aunt Lynn was really sweet to offer me to lend me her jacket after I said it'll be cold in Melbourne. Before I left for home just now, she gave me a red packet and wished me a happy birthday & a safe trip to Aussie. How nice is that! I was really touched at her little gestures... I know Jer will say silly gal... its been almost a year since we were tog and I know they treat us like family. But yeah, its the first time I've really interacted with my boyfriend's family to this extent... so it can be a lil' overwhelming at times.

their sisters pestered us to tell them how we started. I decided it was a gd time to let them know anyway... so they heard of how it started from the day we spoke at the guardhse and the rest is history... you guys know already (: so yeah, he got teased of cos! hahaha. we both did... and they ask me

'SH... then you got regret breaking up with your ex-bf?'

No prize for guessing my answer!

嬷嬷 even told Jer that they are very surprised that I can click so well with his cousins... and that I was even willing to play with them. hahaha, apparently they thought I'm like the older child, more matured... won't know hw to play with kids maybe?

2009-04-30T08:59:00.002+08:00

watched X Men Origins: Wolverine yesterday with who else but Jeremy... haha. I can't help that he's appearing in almost every post, or mentioned frequently in my conversation. Its just that we spend alot of time together and many things I relate back to what we have done together or said... :P

anyway, the movie is a damn good one! worth every cent of my $8.50 ticket. you guys shld go watch it after the exams! (: oh and i already guessed what is my bday surprise! whoooo~ but I'll be 'enjoying' it after my trip 'cos of some scheduling problem. yay!

been quite worried about the current swine flu situation. I'm seriously hoping that it won't affect our trip. I am worried about 2 situations:

1. Between now and next week there are confirmed cases of swine flu in aussie, but it is nt so serious as to warrant Qantas to cxl our flight. We will not be able to get our refund. And to delay trip we have to top up a fee, but after we work it is not as 'cost effective' to take a 11 days holiday as it will deplete our AL.

2. What if within the 11 days the swine flu take a turn for the worse while we are in aussie? they cxl all outbound flights to contain the virus and we are STUCK there?

hahaha, you can see I'm thinking alot about our grad trip. I can't get masks for us, no stock. also heard that its gonna be quite cold, as cold as it was in Paris last time... maybe even colder since now its their autumn. So let's be prepared for cold weather!

2009-04-28T12:23:00.003+08:00

hit the gym for the 3rd time this week. could feel my bones creaking from all the exercises. Although I didn't do very strenuous ones except for running on the treadmills. The rest were weights & stuff. end of the 7-day trial so no more gyming for now!

I brought a pair of extra slippers along as I was afraid my Nike will give up on me after 3 gym sessions. Little was I to know... it was the slippers which gave way first. LOL. luckily it was when we were reaching Jer's hse for dinner. And so when he was sending me back, he carried me to the lift even though his body were sore from the exercise too :D I always joke about him carrying me when my legs are tired from walking, and yeah, he really did. haha!

so! this weekend he said will have a surprise for me b4 my birthday since I'll already be in Australia. Am dying to know what is it!

2009-04-26T10:45:00.006+08:00

unfortunately, been rejected by the one job I was really interested in. good pay & prospects... so now, moving on & applying to more jobs online!

had a busy week. visited the gym 2 times & saw Joanne Peh there :D woots. I love the steambath after the gym session. makes me feel much lighter, haha! and when you see all the sweat 'forced out' by the extreme heat, it felt as if I had a gd detox too.

ytd we celebrated Jer's grandma birthday at the Fisherman Wharf. Alot more pics with his cousins, these are some that I have, and some went thru minor editing :P

2009-04-24T01:32:00.002+08:00

been hanging out with Jer... and the tudou videos I'm watching (: lately I've some exchanges with his cousins cos they wanted to get the photos I taken at one of their gatherings. So I added them on MSN & eventually chanced upon their blogs. Its cute to see how the teenagers blog... reminds me of myself last time. haha! and the things I/we did when we were in sec sch!

Its funny to see what they wrote about me... haha, that they didn't expect someone 'wen rou & mature' to play with them. lol. so I look like that huh? and somehow they feel that I look like the female lead in Jay's first movie. NO LA. hahaha I had such a gd laugh. but megan & myra always insist that I look like her.

Well, its almost a year... I'm glad I could get along with his cousins & relatives... to be honest I was a bit afraid we can't click cos I don't have cousins their age... and my nieces and nephews? we drifted apart while growing up... afterall, we don't get to meet often & stuff. so... this weekend they are going to celebrate their Mama's (grandma) birthday and I think more pictures are coming up! :D

2009-04-19T01:39:00.002+08:00

busy busy weekend. but its nice to go out without a care (maybe not, there's the occasional call from the naggy mum and thoughts about job hunting) for sch tml or whatever.

more pics coming up!

2009-04-17T21:02:00.002+08:00

been watching old seasons of Amazing Race and I've particularly like this old couple Meredith & Gretchen. They were the first couple their age to make it furthest in the show - up till Leg 10 of the race. They didn't make it to the finale.

They are a real sweet couple. And being on Amazing Race at the age of 60+... its quite a disadvantage. You run slower and there are certain tasks that require certain amt of strength which are really... harder for them. But even though sometimes they were at the end of the pack, they pushed on and persevered. And they rarely quarrel nor lose their temper at each other under the pressure of the game. which happened quite alot to other pairs on the race.

What amazed me even more was googling them on the Internet and finding out that... they were only married for slightly less than 5 yrs when they were on the show! Not the decades old of marriage I thought them to share. which is incredible... the chemistry and love that they have for each other..!

that would be sth I like when I grow old... wouldn't you? (:

2009-04-17T18:26:00.002+08:00

let's just say my adventure this week began on Tues. Which is the night after I finish my first paper, BEFORE my exams finish. heh heh.

baby was sweet to offer a ride back home after my 1st paper. he forgot when my paper start and I received quite a few missed calls from him aft I off it. Actually it was faster for me to hop on 199 home, cos I was already at the bus stop. but yeah... I was feeling bad abt him eating dinner by himself. I don't like it myself, haha!

so when we finally met in the car and we were cruising down Jalan Bahar (less than 10 mins to home) and he asked me:

'So where are we going?'

I stared at him incredulously becos we have counted down tog to my end of papers like a zillion times. he knows that I have one more paper which I had not studied for. And guess what, we ended up going to JP for a stroll, while I actually still had my dinner at home. haha!

but its ok, 'cos I SU-ed my last paper, and I still rem the stuff I studied for midterm. so yeah... we ended up walking round JP till like 10 and I actually reached home later than minshan, who was the one finishing her exam that day.

Final Exam. Last Day.
So yeah, despite reaching home later than expected, I manage to run thru everything a few times. Paper was fine, a bit rushed, but shld be able to make it 'satisfactory'! :D

and u know wad, things just got better... I was going to spend a quiet evening in the library browsing thru books. get a nice dinner to pack n eat home. but Jer called to say his class was cancelled. like how coincidental?

so we began a crazy nite of last-minute mahjong. and by crazy... it is crazily late. and crazily long. *chuckles we start like ard 9? and we finish at 1+ that's like 2x the usual time needed for a complete round of MJ. woots~!

no more a student. first free day
yep! had to miss a brunch with Minshan & co 'cos already promised mum to have brunch tog. not nice to miss it since I alrdy had it rescheduled time and again. nice little walk around JP and yep... another chg of plan made me unable to go library again.

but well, was looking forward to this Adam Khoo's talk in the evening, where we were going with Jer's sis & her bf. To sum it up, its like a personal finance management cum motivational talk cum sales pitch cum whatever-you-call-it.

I pretty much went becos I was free anyway, and yeah... it doesn't hurt to learn more. especially since I'm so illiterate in financial stuff. I think the talk was quite inspiring, Adam use various stories and examples of his students to show how they used what they learn to earn themselves the financial freedom they want. Some people really went from zero to hero. Being a bankrupt and working ur way up is no mean feat!

So I really do take my hat off to these people! But I think I am those kind who seek security and stability in my life. At some point of time I will dabble in stocks to like have some extra cash to spend and stuff. To use that as a means of increasing my source of income?

I don't really think so... maybe my mentality will chg. but for nw, let me enjoy my freedom & hope I can get a job soon!

2009-04-14T10:39:00.001+08:00

one

two

.
.
.
.
.

two more papers and 1.5 days to go. 7 hrs to paper. still NOT feeling the sense of urgency. hmm.

2009-04-11T13:14:00.003+08:00

had a gd time last two evenings with Jer... basically the last time I can really have fun before I settle down to serious studying this weekend. Thurs was spent in IMM, dinner (Coffee Club has 1-for-1 offer on wkdays for UOB cardholders), window shopping and fish spa! haha... first time I tried it and it was quite fun (: was a bit intimidated by the bigger fishes in my pool, but after that it was pretty ok. They are like the size of your little pinkie finger!

Can't wait to finish my papers, there are so many things waiting for me to do!

And... I'm harbouring a secret. hehe. shhh.

2009-04-08T19:44:00.003+08:00

went to Little India with Jer and his dad on Mon. Their car were having prob and he took a day off work. its like a prelude to how life would be like... after exams, before work. Very relaxed day... oh and of cos we went around places... To this Cold Storage at Jelita, somewhere... near Bkt Timah? Nice quiet place... no crowds, lots of Caucasian toddlers, cute babies... I like!

anyway... had a great time at Mustafa. Exploring through the rows & rows of stuff they sell. Gosh. Its like an eye-opener to the Indian culture. And somehow Jer love Indian food, and sorta convinced his Dad to buy stuff to fix it for dinner. as well. We had Indian food for lunch. So Monday was 'Indian food day'... haha!

well! pictures are up on FB. and things are not exactly looking good for my laptop... it seems as if even after 3 complete scans picked up almost 180 'critical objects' my com is still under a virus attack. god.

2009-04-08T15:00:00.001+08:00

a very, very touching video recommended to me by Eric... I hope that one day you will find that life partner, who is beautifully imperfect too.

I did (:

2009-04-08T12:50:00.002+08:00

had my first ever assessment center experience yesterday. And I think overall, it was quite a good experience. The 4 other candidates who were with me were quite easy to get along with. We worked rather well tog! Maybe they might just let all of us pass this round cos of this, hahaha. 'Cos the assessors told us previous 2 rds, the candidates were like fighting to talk. But we heard each other and had quite equal opportunities to talk abt what we wanna say. Nice~!

yeah, started the day feeling quite overwhelmed 'cos I didn't slp very well the night b4... luckily I met Jer's friend on the train to Woodlands and had a nice chat with her, eased my nerves a bit. hehe.

well, I felt gd but my performance at the AC. Let's just hope its gd enuff for the assessors... I think after the AC and hearing more about the company, I really think its a gd place to work at.... if not, I think I still learnt alot from it :D which will hopefully help me in future job search (*touch wood... keke)?

its like 7 more days to end of exams, and 6 more to my 1st paper... I nd to start working on my revision soon!

2009-03-30T09:48:00.005+08:00

忙里偷闲

first hotel stay in singapore over the weekend. overall experience was very enjoyable though I wished the stay could have been longer so we could explore the hotel.

anyway, sunday was the fun part. We went all over town to eat our brunch, shop for Zhigang's present, buy groceries... and sample food. hahaha. gosh, I have to elaborate on this. yesterday late afternoon, we were about to leave orchard to head back to jer's place when his dad called for him to buy some stuff for dinner. so we went to the Isetan supermarket at Lido.

Bustling with people of all sorts. Japanese, Singaporean, Caucasians... At first we were just looking for our stuff, but we noticed some stalls starting to give out samples of their food and they looked quite good. There was this seaweed thingy like a seaweed puree that was mixed with the japanese rice and tasted fantastic. It was just seaweed and rice but the seaweed tasted so gd on its own that you don't need other stuff to go with it. and we could smell the seaweed metres away... But its damn expensive, a small box for $20?

Another 'highlight' was blue fin tuna... like OMG!!! I just learnt from watching CSI (See... its not all just about forensics :P) that blue fin tuna is one rare and very expensive delicacy... different parts of the tuna fetch different prices, most expensive being the fatty meat - $48.50 per 100g. Fishing boats just need to catch one blue fin tuna and it'll fetch them enough bucks to feed the whole fishing crew well. but of 'cos... its a protected species.

So we were damn lucky that the first time we walked past they cut out tiny morsels of the blue fin tuna and put it on a tray for us to try. although its a small piece, but the tuna was fantastic..! almost wanted to get the sushi or sashimi, but it was too exp. maybe next time (: and so we just went around the supermarket, and tasted alot of yummy Jap food. of cos we went back the blue fin tuna stall a few more times, but no more samples... boo.

all this jap food makes me wanna go japan! hokkaido!

2009-03-26T23:55:00.003+08:00

Would strongly recommend you all this website refered to me by Jer:

http://www.personalitypage.com/portraits.html

to check out ur personality type. There's no test here, just the profiles. So you would need to know your personality type. And after going through my own and Jer's... its quite accurate! I am a ESFP - The Caregiver

I desire security & stability
yeah, I really do. Uncertainty sometimes intimidate me. I guess because I like to be sure of the things & people around me. It also said that I like routines and things scheduled. But actually no, I welcome surprises and 'ad-hoc' plans as I think life will be too boring if everything is so predictable...

I need affirmation
In a way... I think this is true too. I think it stems from the fact that I lack confidence. So I need some form of reinforcement once in a while for me to know like 'hey its not as bad as you think' or things like that. I think relationships wise I need affirmation too... Not that I don't get any... what I mean is although I don't do silly stuff to get attention (like throwing tantrums & whatever crazy stuff some girls do) but yeah, I do like it once in a while. haha! girls and girlfriends like to feel remembered & appreciated!

The S-Sensing and F-Feeling dimension may cloud my ability to see the big picture
I hate to admit this, but I can see some truth to it. 'Cos I am indeed quite guided by my emotions sometimes that I may just forget the whole situation. so yeah, potential pitfall... haha.

well, hope you guys find it useful. I think it gives very good pointers to raise your 'self-awareness' and stuff for personal growth!

2009-03-26T18:38:00.003+08:00

my 'addiction' to my weekly crime dramas is getting a bit hmm... overboard? I get frustrated if I know that show is already aired and its not on Tudou.com. Then I go on a frenzy search online to try and stream it elsewhere. Or I check the official websites to see if its REALLY aired. oh my god! I think this is getting too much! hahaha. but don't worry, I don't break into cold sweat or experience [Insert withdrawal symptoms] if I don't get it.

I just delve into the many CSI episodes archived in tudou.com which I haven't watched and load them.

sounds bad huh? :P

2009-03-22T11:30:00.008+08:00

I usually try to avoid judging people based on my first impression of them or the first contact we had. but it seems like recently, certain people have been quite eager to prove me wrong. *starts to tick off at least 3 people on her fingers

In any case, in my recent two yrs in HRC, I've made many friends whom I know I can trust! This is to you all... my many thks for making HRC and classes so much more enjoyable (even though they might not have been :P)

Right, other than my dearest Minshan & Joyce... let's see some new faces? hehe.

the sweet gal, vivian!

some of my fave people in NTU - Eric, Lincoln & Daphne

and with H for Huifen... hahaha... if you guys read FB updates you might know this joke.

and here's Lilin with the rest...

Thanks for being such great pals during these 2 yrs... meetings and projects were so much livelier with you guys... Let's hope the remaining 1 mth or so will be spent more meaningfully? (: