yellow and her true colours

Home made ice cream!

2012-01-25T23:25:00.001+08:00

We bought a cuisinart ice cream maker in our last trip down under (btw it's pink!) and its been under utilized... we've made only 3 batches of ice cream so far. The hubs say I "3-minute enthusiasm"..

So partly to prove him wrong & also cos I have a ripe mango sitting in the fruit basket, I decided to make that into ice cream! Using what I have in the kitchen, I made a mango-coconut sorbet. Surprisingly good though! Here's the recipe:

1 cup water
3/4 cup sugar (I mixed half white & half brown sugar)
1 cup coconut cream
1 cup mango cubes
A pinch of salt

1. Dissolve sugar in water using low to medium heat
2. When all the sugar is dissolved, add salt & coconut cream
3. Pour mixture and mango into a blender & purée
4. Refrigerate mixture for 2 hours
5. Pour mixture into ice cream maker

Voila! All done. Note for improvement is to use less sugar, and perhaps use only white sugar. The brown sugar made my mango ice cream look oxidized. Hur.

This is how the ice cream maker looks like. Cute max!

Happy birthday to Hubs!

2012-01-05T19:58:00.001+08:00

We celebrated at marina mandarin. All thanks to the buffet lovers contest! Won us a free meal :)

The food there wasn't fantastic but I must say their service surprised me. I read their reviews and apparently everyone complained abt their poor service. I didn't experience that, in fact I was quite pleased with how quick they cleared our plates!

Food wise, I only liked their freshly shucked oysters and salmon sashimi. Everything else is mediocre. Wouldn't go there if I had to pay for it 😁 (yes we cheapo).

But overall it was a good night out :)

Happy birthday hubs! Cheers to a great 2012!

Hello 2012

2012-01-02T19:41:00.002+08:00

It's time to say goodbye to another year! (or rather already said goodbye :p ) it has been an eventful year for the world and for me. This is the year that I became missus and a proud home owner! Everytime I think back about the year that just passed, I'll feel that it passed so quickly.. But when I was going through the year, it didn't feel that fast. Interesting no?

Short recap of the year...

Wedding!

New home!

Adoption of kitties

Well these are the key events of the year. There are other interesting events but if I were to list all, think you will either fall asleep or leave the page.. Hur..

Looking ahead, 2012 looks like a year of uncertainty. Many predict that the world may come to an end in dec.. Whether we believe it or not, we shld just cherish every moment with our loved ones.

In the next few days my second nephew will say hello to this world. May God bless him with good health! I know all his immediate relatives will shower him with lots of love :) hope to make a trip down under later this year..

Looking forward to my further studies later this year. Hopefully things will go ahead as planned.

Lastly, looking forward to a trip to France! Hopefully that will work out too.

That's all from me folks. Have a good 2012!

Mobile blogging

2011-12-18T20:54:00.001+08:00

Finally downloaded the blogger app onto my iPhone. Hopefully I will blog more from now on. Technically it's made it so convenient!

Sharing my fav pic of the wkend...

:p

my new toy

2011-09-25T21:48:00.006+08:00

after much deliberation i finally decided to get the EP3.

Tadah!

been wanting to get a kick-ass camera, like so fun to play with the "settings" and like all the pics taken looks so nice... hur.

of cos the kitties were my first models. can really see the difference taken with my iphone camera and the ep3.

this pic taken with the iphone has got low ISO *haolian*

you can see this pic taken with the ep3 is less grainy :P

the super quick focus of the camera also allows me to clear pics of the kitties while they are "in action"

but maybe any normal camera can take pics better than the iphone camera. but but but... a micro 4/3 camera is like a manual car right? more control = more fun.

cannot wait to take more pics when i go traveling... maybe i will be lazy with the uploading though!

still honing my skills, this is the best i could do with xiao hei

so much easier to take pics of xiao huang!

more pics next time!

meow!

2011-08-30T16:23:00.004+08:00

pr and i adopted these 2 kitties from a fosterer from the cat welfare society.

according to the fosterer, she found a litter of 5 kitties near a wet market. the 5 kitties consisted of 2 gingers, 2 tuxedos and 1 pure black cat. within days 4 of the kitties were "booked". we were the first to chope 1 of the gingers. the only kitty that no one wanted was the pure black one. pr and i decided to adopt the last one too. then the 2 kitties will have someone to play with when we are not at home. i think we made the right decision.

so here they are - xiao huang and xiao hei... aka mango and charcoal. hurhur. not creative, but their names are intuitive!

they are a bundle of joy :) although xiao huang is very bratty and territorial, xiao hei is very tolerant of him. 1 alpha male and 1 runt. makes a good combi!

this is xiao hei. a female kitty. its very difficult to take a picture of her because she is very black! completely black, with black whiskers and black eyes! she has a mini tail stump. we suspect she has bob-cat ancestry... hur

this is xiao huang, a male ginger kitty. beautiful features, human friendly but very bratty. craves attention and is territorial! only xiao hei can tahan him...

this is xiao hei sleeping. we reckon she cannot survive in the real world... cos she sleeps like a log...

xiao huang has the potential to be a model... look at him pose!

they love shoes. in fact they go crazy when they smell/see our running shoes. dunno what is it about shoes that make them go crazy.. heh

the bad thing abt kittens is that they grow up really fast. fleeting childhood? hurhur

coke glass cans!

2011-07-15T21:25:00.003+08:00

"i'm gonna get a green, blue, lime, pink, purple, bank coca cola can glass, free with any upsized extra value meal at mcdonalds!"

yay :)

thank you class 95! now i have 1 set to keep and 1 set to use!

the taichi master is...

2011-06-27T22:45:00.003+08:00

my dad-in-law!

hurhur, the dad-in-law that i only met once! but he's nice to us lah... he wanted us to visit him in kunming to learn taichi from him and to experience living with nature... harvest vegetables in the morn and cook them for meals! sounds egg-citing! but i think the earliest we can go over is next march/april. a loonnnngggg time more to wait :(

mr yeo visited him recently and posted many pics. i koped the pics from there...

dad-in-law & mr yeo doing the balancing act!

the grand master wu tu nan i often hear about...

i think this is the batch of students who visited kun ming..pernster's bro is a taichi teacher too! he's the cool looking dude on the extreme left.

next yr's destination will be kunming!

my number 2

2011-06-04T20:59:00.003+08:00

pern is finally back from his work trip! he was away for about 10 days! like 10! :P

the last time he went away for work, it was to the US. and when he came back, he got me this:

this time he went to europe, extended a couple of days in munich. and he got me this:

yayness! totally love this! its my favourite pink colour!

the home, after make up

2011-05-30T22:52:00.004+08:00

i apologise for procrastinating :P

here are the pictures of our home, after renovation!

welcome to the living area... the black and white cupboards will flank our LED tv! the area at the forefront of the picture is the study area where we will place our computers...

one of my favourite areas of the house is the.... kitchen! totally love the floral motifs of the cupboards.

the dining area inside the kitchen. i love my dingle-dangle light.

this is the spare bed room (aka dad's room)

my favourite part of the house.... the master bathroom! love love love the rain shower and the glass panel! and the sink top :)

the other side of the bathroom...

my walk-in robe! *dance*

the master bedroom! in a mess though :P

on a totally random note...

ben! after his haircut *awwwwwww*

A day out at the.... Jurlique Day Spa

2011-05-30T17:34:00.003+08:00

people who know me will know that i'm a big jurlique fan. ever since i was introduced to their products back when i was studying in adelaide, i've been swearing by it and using nothing but their skin care products.

so when i saw the offer on groupon - $40 for a 60 min signature facial session, i just couldn't say no. the deal itself managed to convince yl to purchase 1 groupon herself and we booked ourselves a session yesterday.

tucked away at aloccassia apartments along bukit timah road, the store looked exactly like what you would see in a typical jurlique store in australia. the place oozed of 'naturalness' with all the woody furnishing.

we were soon ushered into the treatment room, and the session began with the therapist scrutinizing our pores and recommending suitable facial sessions tailored to our needs. i experienced the clarifying facial while yl was recommended the spa balls soothing facial.

throughout the session, we were treated to the full range of jurlique products, from the oat and honey exfoliaters to the herbal recovery eye gels. i totally enjoyed the eye and face massage and went to snoozeland within minutes. i especially liked the hot compress on the face, with loads of lemon grass and citrus smelling aroma oil.

yl and i were 2 very happy and satisfied customers at the end of the session :)

we treated ourselves to a few more of such sessions :P

this place is highly recommended!

my biggest purchase

2011-04-10T18:06:00.005+08:00

prior to buying our 5-rm flat, my biggest purchase was sammy. i guess sammy is now number 2!

proudly showing number 1!

before "make-up"

this is the living area

this part is connected to the living area and leads to the bedrooms

this is the kitchen (u have to tilt your head :P)

this is the study room

this is the other bedroom (again, tilt your head)

this is my massive master bedroom

and my master bedroom toilet

i will soon post pictures of after "make up" once the works are done. looks really promising!

its a brand new year!

2011-02-02T11:33:00.004+08:00

well not exactly... its been one month into the year and i only managed to find time today to update and recap the year. well... i've been busy :P

every time when we look back on the year that has passed, we always say time flies. but when we are actually going through the year, did you find that time went by really quickly? i didnt. mostly cos work has been really busy and tiring. i had so many trials last year!

looking back at 2010, i must say, it has been a pretty good year!

- baby ben is born!

- i was promoted...

- found someone who is willing to spend the rest of his life with me...

- 1/2 a home owner...

- was an invited speaker at a dietetics conference...

- looked after a kitty for 10 days!

but it was a good year. looking forward to 2011... the main events for this year is the wedding and the house! we will be getting our keys in the week to come and i can't wait!

meet Coco the kitty cat... i love her "puss in boots" look!

this was taken when Coco bade farewell to us... she looks kinda sad...

i have a very practical bf who refuses to get me things that i "want"... my bday present this year is something that i "need" or "good to have". ta dah! a 640 gb external hard disk! as storage device for my time machine...

the handsome that wants to marry me....

another handsome that i can't wait to see in a few days!

happy lunar new year everyone! hope you huat ah!

updates

2010-12-19T13:53:00.004+08:00

its been quite a while since the last entry... i've been busy!

november: apart from the pre-wedding shoot, i was also busy prepping for a conference in bangkok. i was given the opportunity to present the study i conducted last year at a dietetics congress. i really thank god for this golden opportunity and of cos, the free shopping trip in bkk! i was trembling on stage and my hands couldnt stop shaking, which was pretty obvious when i couldnt hold the pointer still while pointing at the screen!

at the start of the congress...

my tag! *beams*

all the gifts that i collected at the congress - usb drive galore!

i spent a lot of time alone in bkk as my roomies were "senior" members of the dietetic association and had lots of meetings to attend... traveling alone can be quite daunting, and now i can say i much prefer having company!

this was my dinner for one of the evenings - stewed pig's trotter with vege & eggs. i think the thais really know how to cook their pork! the meat was tender, not overcooked, yet very fragrant! i haven't tried anything like this in singapore before!

that's the chef with his pot of pigs' trotter!

december was spent attending quite a bit of social events :P i think i've spent the last few saturday nights at gao's playing MJ with him, ah hu, bill and pern pern... lady luck has been with us for most of the time.. hurhur... i think so far its still net positive :D

i'm happy to announce that pern & i have successfully booked a flat! yayness... thank god for providing us with a place to build our home :) but we wont be able to move in until at least 6 months later cos of all the paperwork and reno that will take place after we get the keys to the place...

i've also successfully extracted the wisdom tooth that has been bothering me for a while! i have to say that this dentist is really amazing. the whole process of consultation and extraction took less than 20 mins. and the damage? a mere $60. the recovery has been pretty good so far. just mild headaches, no major complications!

these are the goodies that yiling bought for me from her recent business trip. as she has some airline membership, she gets 15% discount at the airport duty free... which means my usually cosmetics spending is drastically reduced. yayness!

and lastly, before i end this post... i wanna congratulate my bro for having such a beautiful baby!

ben is soooooo cute!

a fruitful deepavali weekend

2010-11-07T10:33:00.005+08:00

it was a super long wkend for me :) the weekend started on wed night for me :P

we had our pre-wedding photoshoot on thurs. it was tiring but fun (for me, not so fun for the groom to be though!) special thanks to dean who took leave to help us take candid shots and to drive us around! thanks a million babe!!

some sneak peeks of our wedding pics below...

this was taken before dean arrived.. hurhur

our 80's look!

dean happily clicking away :)

outdoor shoots are extremely tiring and hot... freaking hot... that's a visibly irritated groom to be...

can you see the beads of perspiration on my forehead?

although it was very xinku... the photographer assured us that outdoor shots will be very beautiful and worth the sufferings... hurhur... so brides to be (eg. dean, xh..) must take outdoor shots hor... this shot taken by dean looks good!

our last outdoor location with the photographer... it was near sunset and i swear i had like 10 mosquito bites on my back and arms... rarr!

i think the photographer has lots of editing to do... remove double chins, sweat drops, flabby arms etc... hurhur but i can't wait to see the photos!

we spent friday and saturday afternoon checking out houses. we got a pretty decent queue number for our sale-of-balance flat. although not within the number of flats available, we still wanna be ready if we were called up to choose a flat! about 30% of the flats we saw were "ah long" units. meaning the previous owners borrowed $$ from the loansharks but couldn't pay up and hence hdb repossessed the flats. hope we don't end up picking these units. otherwise i needa invite kungfu experts to camp at my house for a while.. lol...

sneak preview

2010-11-01T09:46:00.003+08:00

photoshoot this thursday! *excited*

now thinking of the props to take along for the shoot... guitar? soft toys?

one of my 5 dresses!

koi alternative?

2010-10-31T21:27:00.004+08:00

one day while driving to pern's hse, i spotted a new bubble tea shop along yishun ave 5.

i haven't had good bubble tea for a while. the queues at the different koi branches were always too long... and when i finally queued for one (at clementi by the way), i was utterly disappointed with their lack of consistency among branches.

this new bubble tea set up is called cha dao (tea way, literally!)

the product is a pleasant surprise. the tea is fragrant enough and the tea to milk ratio isn't overwhelming. in short - not bad! their grass jelly isn't like the koi type - a big block of jelly, instead is the typical hawker centre type of grass jelly. not exciting, but acceptable.

if you're in yishun one day, do try it. its at chong pang area of yishun :)

random...

2010-09-12T20:02:00.003+08:00

i always see this doggie at my market on sundays... he/she is never on the leash but he/she sits quietly in the corner... occasionally looking up at passerbys...

that morning, his/her owner decided to let it be "cool"

so adorable! i wasn't the only one who stopped to take a picture!

playing with my camera functions... and of cos acting cool!

new pictures from joyce... of ben ben! he's grown so big... and so cute!!!!

that's ben and his mummy...

someone made ben unhappy!

ben feeling at ease...

enough for now :)

the mystery physics text book

2010-09-01T22:00:00.002+08:00

boi: i have tuition with D but i can't find the physics book!

*frantically flipping papers and books... and sweating profusely*

girl: *nonchalantly* maybe its at my place... look for it later

boi: rarrrrr *irritated*

one week later...

boi: i have tuition with D tmr and i still can't find my physics book!

girl: did you even buy the book? i thought you said you only bought bio & chem?

boi: oh yah hor... hurhur no wonder cannot find

-.-

wedding journeys #3, #4, #5

2010-09-01T21:45:00.004+08:00

wedding journey #3

the date has been decided...

you better keep that day free!

wedding journey #4

the venue has been decided...

solemnization with a sea view!

banquet with an oriental touch... fusion maybe?

wedding journey #5

the bridal studio has been decided...

their name a bit cheesy... but they have a super good reputation :)

ahhh... only left with the music!

adelaide 2010

2010-07-30T21:40:00.004+08:00

i am back!!! i hope you missed me :P

its been a good 8-day break... out in the cold country side.

the highlight of the trip is benjamin, he's the cutest baby! look at him!

i think dad enjoyed the trip most, cuddling benjy everyday, every moment :)

i enjoyed my trip too... catching up with friends, feasting (yes, i ate so much my tummy sticks out) and cuddling benjy too :P hurs

met up with lampee on my first free day. he took me to have yummy brekkie! and introduced me to the tv show chuck. its really not bad, and the girls in there are damn hottttttt

lam pretending to be camera shy...

and then hes not shy anymore....

super yums brekkie... loved the mushrooms cooked in truffle oil!

met up with the newly weds s & s... they treat me really well, like a vip :) brought me to have (the best?) chinese food in adelaide and made me my favourite shanghai-nese dumplings... yum yum...

also met up with my ex-housemate... she's the person who introduced stick date pudding to me. now my favourite dessert of all time... ahhhh sinful...

the sinful dessert...

i apologise for the limited pictures... i packed the charger & cable but i forgot to bring the camera! these were all taken from the iphone cam :S

wedding journey #2

2010-07-11T21:34:00.002+08:00

"choped" !!

eee i got short stubby fingers :P

wedding journey #1

2010-07-04T12:51:00.003+08:00

the beginning of the wedding journey/planning:

boy: where should we buy a flat? near your place or near my place?

girl: i got say i wanna marry you meh?

boy: i very bad meh?

girl: hurhur... where you prefer? mid-point more fair right?

bahhhh... so un-lomantic :P

hong kong dec 09

2010-06-11T21:54:00.004+08:00

this is a wayyyyy overdue post... its because a couple of my colleagues are heading to hong kong and i realised i didnt blog about my trip last year! ha.. whooopssss

that trip i crashed with yl. she had to be in hong kong for a work trip for 2 weeks and... who minds free lodging right? heh... its mandarin oriental afterall... its an invitation hard to resist :P

i really love the bathroom... i want a rain-shower in my home too!

hong kong is about shopping eating shopping eating... and shopping eating! heh... i was lucky to have my hk classmate to take us out for a night and he took us to this amazing dessert place at causeway bay. i had their yang zhi gan lu (mango with pomelo) and it was probably the best i've ever had! generous serving of mango and pomelo, the sauce (soup?) was thick but not overwhelming and not too sweet! yl and i went back the next night to have it again... hurhur

(i got this pic from someone's review of the place)

another food that left a deep impression on me was the gong cha bubble tea. at that time i havent tried koi in singapore. so to taste the authentic milk tea was a pleasant surprise! i gobbled one biggggg cup on my own... and of cos, i had another big cup the next day :P

singapore has this brand of bubble tea too... they have one at city square mall and another at novena square 2!

there were alot of westernised fast food version of "cha can ting" in hk... i guess that's the result of a very fast paced city!

a typical cha can ting brekky... *yum* and cheap!

because yl had to work during the day, i went sightseeing alone... i found stanley from the web and since its only a 30 min bus ride away from the hotel, i decided to check it out. i realised "traveling" alone can be quite therapeutic. i walked down the breezy beach and even sat there for a good 20 min watching the sea and just... relaxing... i was good :) there's also a street market at stanley, selling a lot of artwork and calligraphy souveneirs...

view of stanley beach...

while waiting for yl to finish work, i had lunch at her work building. i think it was the ifc. its a fancy-mansy mall with loads of shops selling branded items... i was very big from what i recall... the food there also very expensive! i was craving for dim sum and porridge and thank goodness there was an affordable restaurant on the 4th level and these were what i ordered. they were absolutely yummy!

century egg and pork porridge and chives dumpling - porridge was super duper smooth with relatively generous serve of century eggs (actually ratio was perfect!) chives dumpling's skin was thin and of cos, loads of chives :)

of cos i had to end the post with all my shopping!

my food weekend

2010-06-06T10:37:00.005+08:00

this is a delayed post actually... a couple of weeks back we took leave on friday to enjoy a long weekend... window shopping, eating and nua-ing.. heh heh

we went for a dim sum buffet at harbour front... dragon palace or something like that... obviously not worth remembering :P it was pretty affordable, except the food wasn't exactly up to standard...

this is the sweet and sour fish and some sotong balls and radish cake in in the background... the fish is dry and the sotong balls are over fried (urgh) the radish cakes are alright though...

my favourite siew mai and har gao... and dunno what nonsense dumplings... i would give it an average score of 6.5/10

this is a curry-bao... errrr its weird

that same weekend was dad's birthday... so we took him to our favourite restaurant! golden spoon at seng poh lane. we went there for pern's birthday and my birthday too :) hur hur... i really like the food there...

this is my favourite local spinach, cooked with garlic in a broth... looks yum?

my favourite favourite cereal chicken in pumpkin sauce... every part of the chicken is soooooo tender!

we ordered this fish for dad who loves fish... (i think he's like a cat... hurhur..) again, no qualms about it. fresh, steamed to perfection and cooked with yummy cai por and soy sauce... 9/10 !

okie, means i gotta exercise more now!

my nephew - benjamin keiren huang

2010-05-25T20:13:00.002+08:00

this is the new addition to my family. on 8 may 2010. he's like the cutest baby i've ever seen in my life (so far!) and its not because i'm biased.

look at him! isnt he adorable??

this is one of my favourite pictures of him... he looks so peaceful...

i think this is his favourite pose...

keke..

awwww!

benjy's proud parents :)

really... lah!

2010-05-05T10:31:00.004+08:00

that's the name of my team! "gender-LAH!"

we took part in a tournament a couple of wks back.. it was a single gender tourney... all girls :)

it was great fun (of cos.. since when frisbee not fun?!) made a few new friends.. and got sunburnt :P

we performed out of expectation.. someone called us the underdogs! haha... cos we came in 5th, out a total of 10 teams.. yay! probably the first time we did so well!

check out the team!

err and it starts off with me :P

and me....

that's the mud we played in... yucksssss

after all the games have ended.. we decided to lie around in the mud :S

can you see that it spells GDL?

and we have the traditional jump shot...

team shot!

candid team shot!

in appreciation of our efforts, the guys gave the girl captains a rose :)

so schweeetttttt!

the lomo effect v nice hor :P

burger bench bar

2010-04-19T22:40:00.003+08:00

after lydia's highly recommended post on b-cube, ev and i decided to give this place a try...

i had the grilled mushroom burger while ev had the cheese onion burger. i must say i was quite impressed with the hearty fillings of the burger! the beef was freshly minced and the burger had so much mushrooms that they were falling off my burger! *yums*

left - mushroom burger, right cheese onion burger

instead of the usual fries on the side of the burger, this place serves homemade crisps - that really tasted homemade (otherwise how is it supposed to taste right?!) ev ordered corn with mixed herbs... i thought it tasted pretty normal, and the corn not cooked enough. ev found it okay though...

the to-die-for food on the menu is the dark chocolate soft serve ice-cream. yes, you heard right. it tasted really rich... and sinful... but so worth the calories :P

1 thing i really like about the place - the serve size, not too big, leaving you enough room for dessert

1 thing i dont like about the place - they only accept cash! which place in orchard only accepts cash?! oh well... but i guess the good food makes up for it... since... its reasonably priced.

ev looking greedy... with her soft serve ice-cream!

lomo very emo

2010-04-19T22:36:00.004+08:00

a colleague introduced this iphone app to me... its a camera effect that makes the middle of the screen brighter than the background and makes the background fuzzy...

like this...

it gives pictures an emo look... dont ya think?

it makes me look prettier than in real life :P

music for my soul

2010-04-05T19:11:00.003+08:00

bought 2 albums recently and they are constantly playing in my car stereo and my imac and my work computer :P

i really enjoy listening to the music...

one of the albums is by melody gardot. think some of you have heard this name on radio. she was heavily advertised on class95 a couple of weeks back cos she was in town for a performance. anyhow, i was so mesmerised by her one song and it was enough to get me to buy the album..

check out this song - its so soothing and relaxing... and....... ahhhhhhh

gardot has a sad but inspiring story to tell... go google about her background and you will realise what a fighter she is :)

the 2nd album i bought is by olivia ong

this album was a lil' disappointing. i've always been a fan of hers... i really enjoy listening to her chill bossanova singing style... and was especially impressed by her previous album, fall in love with olivia... it had a good mix of chillax songs and some soft rock tunes. so i was really looking forward to more of her songs.

this album however was a little too poppish for my liking. i think its because she was recently signed by another label (HIM) and they changed her style to suit the masses... sigh... there are a few good tunes in this album and her voice is still so enchanting. the video below is one of my favourite from this album. written by dick lee.

these 2 albums will be on my playlist for quite a while :)

*happy*

keke

2010-03-23T17:26:00.004+08:00

received an email from karen on monday morn... made me chuckle in my cube!

huh??

ouch!

haha... you wanna eat this?

HAHAHAHAHAHAHA

ermmmm dont think anyone wants to buy herpes...

haha, and this is my favourite!

hope you smiled :)

cny 2010

2010-02-21T21:52:00.003+08:00

3 gems sparked up my cny this year!

new gem: baby girl s!

in her "surrender" pose

baby boy j!

so cute with the oranges!

and of cos the bf :)

look how nurturing he is :P

my pink birthday

2010-02-07T17:51:00.003+08:00

the bf is finally back from his work trip in the US and along with it came my bday present! this year all the presents i received were pink.

yes pink. i like pink. its sweet. cute. girly. yum :)

i got a coach bag from the bf... its the first bday present from a bf in a very long time.. it feels different receiving it from him than receiving a present from other ppl :P

mum bought me an iphone! well, its technically white. but i zeng-ed it to become pink. metallic pink. oh so sweet!

i'm officially apple-d :P

dean & karen bought me a wallet. hurs, its pink cos i chose it. dad sponsored a bit for this wallet too....

and lastly... char & ej bought me lancome miracle! again i chose it. but later realised it was pink as well...

oh, and yl bought me a pink/black dress.... that became grey/black :(

thank you all! i love all the pressies i received this year!! yayyyyy =)

random pictures

2010-01-24T18:44:00.004+08:00

the bf and i were really amused with the photo booth function of my imac... see what we started taking pictures of?!

we started off with traveling through some light tunnel...

then he said he looks huge and hunky in this picture... haha!

i like this picture, it reminds me of those caricatures!

i took this some time back... i luv the mirror image function!

and this picture... i look so emo... hurhur

i luv my mac!!

birthday treats

2010-01-17T14:56:00.003+08:00

had 2 big meals 2 days in a row :)

means i gotta put in more effort to go jogging :P

first birthday meal is at sakuraya... was craving for (good) sashimi and sakuraya is a fail-proof place!

the bf and i both love sword fish and salmon... so those are the must haves... then of cos i love scallops and oysters!

according to ev, the seafood is shipped in every tuesdays and fridays... thankfully my birthday is on a friday :P the sashimi were so fresh i could taste the sweetness in the fish! we also had lots of makis for this girl who loves her carbs :)

saturday night dinner was at the hawker centre at smith street in chinatown... dad's friend's father-in-law's stall and according to dad, serves very good fish head.

we ordered veg, bitter gourd with pork ribs and a fish head steamed with some spicy sauce...

overall, the meal was quite a disappointment. the veg was ordinary. you can probably find veg as tasty as this in any zi-char stall...

the bitter gourd with pork ribs was slightly below average. the bitter gourd was bitter (its not supposed to be despite its name!) and the pork ribs were not flavourful enough...

dad reading newspaper behind :P

ok, the only saving grace was the fish head... but then its their signature dish, if not good then might as well close shop right!

all in all, prolly wont go back there.. unless dad insists on supporting his friend again!

best bubble tea in singapore?

2010-01-16T22:17:00.004+08:00

remember more than ten years ago there were cafes that sold nothing but bubble tea? back then one cup of bubble tea costs more than $5 each... were prepared manually by mixing the concoction in metal cups and came in nice fancy glasses...

a couple of years following that time... kiosks serving bubble tea in plastic cups started sprouting everywhere! selling bubble tea for $2 per cup and completely over threw those nice quaint bubble tea houses... then that industry got too crowded and the kiosks started disappearing again...

fast forward to today... only a few dominant bubble tea companies remain: sweet talk and happy cup just a name a couple...

and now... people are starting to rave about this particular bubble tea shop - koi @ toa payoh central

the store front had a long queue of people waiting for their drinks. i took a peek at their preparation area and was surprised! remember those metal cups? instead of manually shaking it, the shop had this machine that shakes the cups (of cos, someone had to mix the drink and put it on the machine) and following that process, the usual, someone puts it into another machine and the plastic cup gets sealed.

i tried the bubble milk tea and the bf had the swiss chocolate milk shake. what i like about it most is that you can choose your level of sweetness! unlike most other bubble tea kiosks (where the bubble milk tea is usually pre-prepared and all the person does is to fill the cup with bubbles, tea and ice and seal it), the bubble milk tea from koi is individually prepared, "shaked" in the machine and sealed... and the taste? much better than the usual of cos. the draw backs? pricely. each cup costs an average of $4 for a medium sized drink, double the price of a drink from sweet talk.

will i go back again? yes, but only for the bubble milk tea... the chocolate milk shake was wayyy to rich and after finishing it, you feel like you're gonna "pu zhua" the next day :P

oh, did i mention that the pearls were super chewy? my jaws ached after finishing the cup!

happy new year!

2010-01-10T11:09:00.003+08:00

new year new beginning... x'mas/new year is always a busy period... lots of new year and birthday celebrations :) *hint hint*

first b'day of the year was of cos the bf's.

took him to this place called the golden spoon at seng poh road in tiong bahru. read the reviews at hungrygowhere and all the reviewers said they will definitely go back there... sounds like a place not to be missed eh!

we ordered my favourite spinach with 3 eggs (salted egg, century egg & normal egg)... this one is cooked in a clear broth (unlike most places which cook it in a starchy broth). the broth is very "flavourful" and they gave pretty generous serving of eggs! *yum*

we also ordered deep fried cod in pumpkin sauce and cereal. they are famous for their pumpkin sauced foods... so how can we not try? the cod fish, partially drizzled with pumpkin sauce, were covered in cereal... which gave the fish a sweet and savoury taste, together with the fishy taste that cod has... absolutely yum!! we also ordered vermicilli (cos birthday must eat noodles :P) and the bill only came up to less than $50. i sound like i'm advertising for them hor? i think their food is really nice leh!

that's the bf waiting for his food *fierce*

the 2nd birthday of the year... mine! although not yet, the girls decided to give me an early celebration :)

we wanted to go mellben's at amk for crabs. tried to call and reserve a place, but was told "no reservations on saturday". so we rocked up at 7pm, only to find a freakingly long queue, and expected waiting time of 1.5 hours! we crossed the road to try uncle leong's crabs instead. approximately 45 mins of waiting time though... we tried their signature dish - shimmering sands crab... yummmm.. pics are with dean... as you can see from the pic below... she was busy all night taking pics and peeling crab meat for hieu :P

more bday and nonsense pics to come!!

happy birthday spr!!!!!!

melaka 2009

2009-11-22T20:14:00.006+08:00

the road trip to melaka was a good break from the hustle and bustle of the city life in sgp. the group of four (zh & yp, the bf and i) drove my mum's lancer 200km north to melaka!

i quite like melaka, it feels like sgp back in the 70s with all the shophouses, trishaws, pasar malam style street stalls... the people there are also very nice & polite! (as least the drivers give way to you when you signal!)

the highlight of the trip was jonker street...we walked up and down the street like 4 times! (up and down once in the day and another time at night) oh fyi, street peddlers line the street at night (like pasar malam) only on fridays and saturdays... its like a gigantic pasar malam... worth going :)

and of cos, the trip was EAT-WALK-EAT-WALK... we ate so much that we were constantly feeling full... i wonder how do the food hosts tahan when they introduce multiple stores/restaurants in a single day?!

anyway... let the pics do the talking :)

first stop: chicken rice balls!! (someone said, eh? how come got fishballs?) the balls weren't too impressive... all of us preferred the normal rice to the balls...

the chicken tasted yummier than the balls...

heh... the funny things we see along jonker walk...

spade shaped jew her!

2nd stop: melaka chendol! this shop sells different variants of the traditional chendol... beware.. not all modern flavours are pleasant to the palate! the bf bought one with pineapples... he hated it!

he bought the traditional one for me... yums!

clogs are a hit in melaka... but not quite with me!

the bf says this is the cleanest place in melaka... because its constantly being washed!

dinner is satay celup... basically like our steamboat, except all your food is in skewers and your soup base is a thinner version of the satay sauce... spicy!

the group! (enjoying our food, while sweating)

A&W!!! the last time i ate this was when i was... 12? i still remember hanging out with ah hu, eunice and yiting... omg! its more than 12 years ago alr!!

i miss the root beer floats...

the full set... curly fries, connie dog and root beer!

my fav waffles of ALL time... i swear...

us!

hilarious!

halloween night @ night safari

2009-11-02T11:14:00.005+08:00

its my first time celebrating halloween in my 2 decades of life... and i spent it @ the night safari with deers and rhinos and alot of scary ppl... hurhur...

it was zh's gf's suggestion to go to the night safari... it was super duper crowded... the queue to enter the safari was at least 100m long (i swear!) and we queued for a good 2 hours to enter the safari... we took the train of terror which brought us through the safari... looking at animals and towards the end of the tram ride we were in for a scare by the halloween party... i think zh scared the "ghosts" more than the ghost scaring us :P

the train of terrorrrrrrrrr (ahhhh!)

our tram ride!

scared or not?

joker...

group shot

with the bf =)

it was unanimously agreed that we will NOT go for such events on the last day its run... not crowd lovers!

pocket biking

2009-09-20T18:52:00.003+08:00

here's how it all started:

ss: i signed us up for pocket biking

me: huh, which part of "i can only cycle in a straight line" did you not understand?

ss: lol... its next week

and so team zippy was formed.

for those who have no idea what pocket biking is.... well... basically, its adults trying to ride a fully motorised bike for a 5-year old... yes, the bike is tiny... and we're all over sized for it.

here's how my team mates look like in action...

so on the day of the competition (yes! we signed up for a competition!) each rider has to maneuver through an obstacle course (as if straight line wasn't hard enough for me!) 3x... the team with the fastest time wins... team zippy came in 2nd! we're one second faster than the 3rd... hurhur...

of cos... didn't contribute to the good timing... i was only there as a reserve... my cameo appearance on the bike brought laughter to my teammates (ev couldn't stop laughing) and fear to the organisers :P

the riders!

ss acting... i dunno.. cute?

we were each rewarded with $40 robinsons voucher for the afternoon of sweat and laughter... yay!

rosemary

2009-06-22T22:49:00.003+08:00

because of the freakingly warm weather... the aircons in my house have been working overtime... when the aircons work overtime... my poor nose also... this is because i have an ultra sensitive nose that leaks whenever its too cold... or too dusty... and the construction work just outside my door step isnt making things any easier...

anywho... i've been using this aromatherapy thingy for a while.. and it seems like whenever i burn it.. my nose doesnt leak!

check it out: source: http://health.howstuffworks.com/aromatherapy-rosemary.htm

The ancients believed that rosemary strengthened memory, and thus it became an emblem of fidelity, important at both weddings and funerals. The smoke was inhaled to protect against brain weakness and dizziness, and the herb was burned in schools and universities to inspire the pupils. Japanese researchers have preliminary evidence that rosemary does indeed improve memory. Rosemary was burned by the poor instead of frankincense; the old French name for it, incensier, came from rosemary’s celebrated history as church incense.

Until the twentieth century, the fragrant branches were burned in French hospitals, with juniper, to purify the air. Rosemary also made its impression on early cosmetics; it was the main ingredient in the famous fourteenth century “Hungary Water,” which is still available today. This Mediterranean native with tiny, pale blue flowers that bloom in late winter loves growing by the ocean -- its name rosmarinus means “dew of the sea.” It is cultivated worldwide for aromatherapy and other uses, although France, Spain, and Tunisia are the main producers of the essential oil.

Principal constituents of rosemary: Borneol, camphene, camphors, cineol, verbenone, pinenes, limonene, linalol, terpineol, and others

Scent of rosemary: The odor is herbaceous, woody, sharp, and camphorous.

Therapeutic properties of rosemary: Antiseptic, astringent, antioxidant; relieves rheumatic and muscle pain (no wonder i feel so refreshed on the next day after training!), relaxes nerves, improves digestion and appetite (that explains the weight gain!!), increases sweating (gasp! no wonder i'm sweating like a cow!)

Uses for rosemary: As an ingredient in a massage oil, compress, or bath, rosemary essential oil is excellent for increasing poor circulation and easing muscle and rheumatism pain. It is especially penetrating when used in a liniment. It is very antiseptic, so inhaling the essential oil or adding it to a vapor balm that is rubbed on the chest and throat relieves lung congestion (ah ha! that's why my nose doesnt leak?) and sore throat. It is a stimulant to the nervous system and increases energy. Cosmetically it encourages dry, mature skin to produce more of its own natural oils. It also helps get rid of canker sores. Add it to shampoos -- it is an age-old remedy for dandruff and hair loss.

Warnings about rosemary: It can be overly stimulating and may increase blood pressure.

hmm... maybe i need to find another scent that can do all the tricks, without the rise in blood pressue...

i luv my....... nine-west!

2009-06-09T22:51:00.005+08:00

since my pictures from my recent trip to australia has already been uploaded to fb... i shall not repeat and upload it here....

posting these pictures all for dean! actually some of my loyal readers have been asking why i stopped blogging... busy lah! where got so much time to do this?!?!

anyway i bought 4 pairs of shoes from australia this time... hehe... i love them! so pwetty right?!

*beams with pride*

my bro's big fat aussie wedding

2009-03-29T21:00:00.005+08:00

so my bro finally got married... it was a big family affair and my entire family (well almost) flew down south to attend the event...

its not easy to organise a wedding.. so kudos to my sis-in-law (kat) for the job well done! many thanks also to miss j for driving my mum and family around and shan for taking my dad around... thanks babes... love ya loads =)

da MAN.... i mean groom...

the 2 happiest men that day...

here comes the bride!

the loving couple...

awwwwwww.......

my dad can't wait for my turn.... zzz

one of the few women that my bro is allowed to kiss that day... :P

my little precious also flew down south!

congrats bro... really happy for you :)

hope you have kids soon! i sooooo wanna look after them for you!

the family portrait.

best man-groom-bride-bridesmaid

more updates to come... when im less busy :P

sg sightseeing

2009-02-22T20:14:00.005+08:00

thanks to shan's visit to sgp.. i finally managed to get to see our little island's attractions!

on the night she landed.. ej, char & i took her to the flyer!

group photo inside the capsule

me inside the capsule :P

night shot taken using my fuji finepix camera (4 of us had 4 different cameras... 2 canons 1 nikon and 1 fuji... of cos... my fuji won the best night shot w/o flash prize... )

the next day... sentosa! i always go there to suntan and play beach volley... the last time i toured the attractions was when i was... hmmmm 10? haha...

the first stop was the gigantic merlion! the attraction gave a short introduction of how our island was found by sang nila utama... and how the merlion came about... quite cool...

inside the merlion's mouth!

we spotted this on the way to the merlion... left over from v-day celebration.. haha

we headed to the luge next. no... i did not try the driving down part. i just took the sky ride back to siloso... yes im a wuss... i was so scared as im sitting on the sky ride... aging makes me develop fear of heights... *gulp*

us on the sky ride... i'm pretending to be cool and forcing a smile... can you tell? hehe

next up... underwater world! i went there once when i was a little kid with my parents... back then it felt like the place was huge... the travelator was never ending... but.... this time round.. it seemed so small.. dunno is it because im bigger now... the place feels proportionally smaller...

our attempt to kiss the fish...

nemo!!! and me...

shark tale?

big crab... dunno its flesh nice anot... :P

tempting me to go diving...

last stop... dolphin show! thanks to shan's excellent photography skills... we actually got some nice pics of them!

spot the dolphins!

i wanna be dolphin trainer too...

sightseeing is so fun!

Canon IXUS 80IS

2009-02-17T22:07:00.005+08:00

anyone wants to get a digital camera?

silver color. 8 mega pixels. 3x optical zoom. 2.5 inch LCD. 2gb SD memory card
Retailing at SGD 349.

my dad won it at a lucky draw.
Willing to part at SGD 250. GOOD DEAL!!
Click here to read more

my very cute valentine's date

2009-02-14T21:52:00.004+08:00

if you have no date for valentine's... then you better help your loved ones enjoy valentines.

and that's what i did.

i spent my v-day with the cutest boy on earth. ever. baby jx's parents wanted some alone time this v-day and left baby jx with my grandma... and since grandma is so old... i went down to help grandma babysit jx.

that's grandma and baby jx... he's concentrating on his tv programme...
my little darling was so happy to have visitors that he didnt take his usual afternoon nap! constantly wanting to be carried and hugged... at least i found someone who yearns for my affection.. :P

my little darling & i!

hehehe...

one of my happiest v-day ever... i love him & he loves me (or so i think!)

2009-02-13T22:31:00.001+08:00

the recent passing of a friend's relative made me realise how fragile life is. with parents getting older, i can't help but imagine the day when the same thing happens to my parents.. how will i react? morbid as it sounds... i can feel the day looming nearer... and that feeling disturbs me.

death is never easy to cope with. i hope g stays strong...

caught up with a friend over dinner recently... heard about the difficult times people had to endure through.. some failing exams... some failing relationships... some... like me have a lot of parent issues to deal with.. we had this conversation:

me: life sucks... but you just gotta suck it in.
j: not all of it sucks.. there are still nice things to remember
me: nice things never lasts

i'm jaded.

maybe i'm starting to believe that good things will never happen to me

yes. i'm emo.

i want a time machine... travel back to the days when life was carefree without worries...

Fish Porridge!

2009-02-11T13:13:00.003+08:00

cooked lunch for myself today...

yl's mum ignited my crave for porridge.. hehe...

looks yummy eh?

tastes yummy too!

cooking is therapeutic :P

lunar new year

2009-01-31T14:16:00.003+08:00

my new year holiday has been... interesting.

dad went vietnam & mum went taiwan... leaving me alone with my grandma and my cousins for the new year... its good cos i spent more time playing with my baby nephew and spent sometime talking to my two young cousins.

baby jx looks mischievious!

i'm loving this little precious...

we had our annual gathering at derrick's house and had wii bit of fun (hurhur.. pun intended.. even if its not funny!) its good to see friends whom i have not met in years. good to see that there're doing well and having fun =)

happy birthday to me

2009-01-19T21:27:00.005+08:00

thank you friends for your birthday wishes... all of you made me feel loved and not forgotten =)

i think i've reached an age where... you just want to keep your age a secret... and seeing friends around you getting married... having children... just makes me feel... like i'm out of track... i've veered off the main path... into some unknown territory...

i suddenly recall that when i was in my teens.. i used to think 26/27 is a good age to marry.. settle down and have children... and its heartening to see my friends moving on track... i'm happy for them.. but at the same time.. i'm thinking about my own... wondering why is my path more treacherous... more painful... more confusing... more ups & downs.. more windy roads... but i'm slowly learning... learning to be patient... learning more about life... learning to trust God... =)

no more fancy parties for my birthday.. just small dinners and catching up with friends..

dinner with gao, lam & cheryl @ some korean restaurant at esplanade bay

food!

with cheryl...

sigh...

lam's big head covering half my face...

this is better...

dinner with char, EJ & xuan @ the white rabbit

very interesting restaurant...

dinner peeps!

me with my prawn bisque.. yum...

xuan & i

my bday pressie! very pretty beer glass...

followed by drinks @ the red dot!

flinders trio...

the girls! (where's ej?)

my tower of beer! yummmmmm

last but not the least... gold class movie session complimentary of ah law =)

icube... the dock for my itouch now... lurrve it!

thank you!

dior-ed

2009-01-08T22:17:00.004+08:00

got my first bday present of the year...

my 2nd "branded" pair of sunnies... my 1st pair (guess!) was stolen when sammi was broken into... have been surviving on $5 bangkok sunnies until today!

i dont have roberts to buy me luxurious items but i got dean & karen who never forgets my bday! hehehe... thanks babes! =)

to dean: this is what you paid for :P

cool or not?

the list:

the list is not by order of preference:

1. guitar tuner
2. external hard drive (the more memory the better!)
3. running shoes
4. lacoste perfume (their very first pour femme!)
5. life application study bible
6. sunnies

gd bye 2008... hello 2009!!

2009-01-04T10:15:00.001+08:00

2008 finally came to an end... its been a really long year!

think i grew a lot in the year... there had been some painful experiences... but also happy ones... think we should learn to treasure the happy moments more ya? just to recap some of the important events of the year...

it was a bad start to the year with mum announcing that she wants to lead her own life and left... all of a sudden i had to take up the role of taking care of the house and dad... im still learning how to "jaga" the house.. to make sure that it is well stocked and clean... i think im doing a pretty decent job =)

also entered the workforce in early 08... still learning on the job and im very thankful that i had a great mentor and fantastic colleagues!

because im employed... i finally had my own car! well... mum paid the down payment for the car lah...

went for my first commercial run (shape run)... then my 2nd (AHM).. then my 3rd (nike human race)!

baby JX was born!

took up guitar lessons...

had my heart stolen, broken and returned...

found God and new meaning in life...

went for my first mission trip in timor leste...

forged deeper friendships... thank you ah hu gaoster char EJ dean karen marabelle brendon & rowie... for always listening to my ramblings... whinging and putting up with my tantrums... hehe... love ya all deep deep!

hope 2009 will be a better year... less of heart wrenching experiences.. more of happy moments... made a few resolutions/goals... hope i can stick to them!

1. spend more time with God
2. spend more time with myself
3. cook for myself at least once a week
4. complete a half-marathon by the end of the year...

doesnt seem too hard ya? =)

timor 2008

2008-12-23T15:25:00.007+08:00

i'm back! safe and sound... with lots of jest... and some virus... hehe

the timor trip has really opened my eyes and heart to God and to the reality of the world... maybe its because i've been sheltered all my life.. we're really fortunate to be able to live and grow up in such an environment and society... never seen such poverty... and it makes me sad that there are actually people.. and children having to grow up like that...

just a lil history of timor... it was a colony of portugal from the 16th century until 1975... it was subsequently invaded and occupied by indonesia until 2000... the timorese fought in a civil war and gained indepence... when the indonesians left... they destroyed everything built by them including communication lines.. power supply.. roads and buildings... even after independence.. turmoil continued to plague the country... in 2006 riots broke out to force the president then to resign...

timor is one of the poorest countries in the world (i think)...

the dili airport in timor is the only airport i've been to that allows people to take pictures freely... heh heh... check out the australian troops in timor...

check out their airport... there's only one duty-free shop... and only one belt unloading luggage.. which really isnt surprising seeing that only a few airlines fly to dili...

that's me and grace (our long-term missionary in timor) getting very excited about our 4-wheel drive with a sun roof!

the drive down to our district is about 2 hours... as the main road down is closed due to a land slide the night before.. we were forced to take the coastal route... which is great cos we managed to get a view of the beautiful coastline... clear waters!!

one of the things i can never get used to over there is the limited electricity supply... in manatuto (that's the district where we stayed) electricity only comes on at about 6pm and goes off at 11pm.. which means the fans can't be switched on overnight... the air is still... really hard to fall asleep... and there's no heater!! showering in cold water is really difficult for me ;(

restaurant cock & bull - the place where we had ALL our meals... as jess always says..."today's food menu is... rice... vege and meat... & drinks menu is... water.. coke & sprite!" yeap..that's ALL... :(

the dogs kept by the missionary there (rocky & charcoal!! not hard to guess who's who right...)

our mission in timor is to organise a christmas carnival for the families living in the village of kampong alor.. i think the work of God is truly amazing... there are many times we do not understand why God allows our plans to be disrupted... it may seem disrupted to us.. but to God... everything is under control :)

our carnival!

my booth...

other than organising the carnival.. the team also visited the families in the kampong and distributed some food for the families... the smiles and laughter of the children made me melt...

the stuff we packed!!

this is the reality...

the market place to buy food...

don't ask me what's this.. i also dunno.. its sold at the market!

our entourage...

a child carrying a child is the norm...

the children simply love taking pictures!

our favourite baby... pedro!

the youths who helped us with the carnival...

i really thank God for the opportunity to go to timor... for the experience... i hear timor calling out to me... but at this point in time i dont think its strong enough for me to drop everything and move there... but... i promise i'll be back in 2 years... till then "ate logu" timor! (see ya later!)

my bday wishlist

2008-12-08T17:26:00.002+08:00

ej wants me to put up a birthday wishlist so he'll know what to get me...

okie.. i've decided to list it... i'm shameless i know...

actually i'm doing everyone a favour right? you don't have to rack your brains... and i can get what i want/need =P

the list is not by order of preference:

1. guitar tuner
2. external hard drive (the more memory the better!)
3. running shoes
4. lacoste perfume (their very first pour femme!)
5. life application study bible
6. sunnies

hmmm at the moment that's the list! =)

chunk fest!

2008-12-08T17:13:00.003+08:00

went for the ben & jerry's chunkfest on saturday... it was a pretty gloomy and rainy day.. not the best time to visit a place like fort canning park... nonetheless ej char & i made our way there... partly for the yummy ice-cream (there're 12 flavours that are not available here!) and partly for my favourite bad jack & rai...

when we got there they were already playing... so we got to listen to a good 30 (?) mins of their songs... not too bad i say! eventhough it was a rainy day there were still hoards of people at the fest all queuing up for the ice-cream... no wonder they say singaporeans' favourite hobby is queuing! (us included :p )

jack & rai!! even with my 5x optical zoom... i still can't get a clear shot of them!

us!

someone's grouchyyyy

TWELVE new flavours!!

we finally got our icecream! i chose triple caramel chunks and char chose cinnamon bun... the greedy ej got 2 flavours by himself! peanut butter swirl and choc chunk... YUM!!

my first tune

2008-12-08T16:44:00.003+08:00

my guitar teacher recently taught me how to compose songs... well... technically you can't "teach" someone how to write songs... he gave me some suggestions on how to write them... and he said i should keep practising!

the mood just came today... and here's my first tune! its just full of na-na-nas... no lyrics to it yet...

feel free to comment... i know it's not the most melodious song you've heard... i'm open to feedback... but not too harsh okie? don't douse my interest in composing!

girls night out!

2008-11-30T20:41:00.006+08:00

was supposed to be working on saturday... but trial is canceled! which meant i actually made it for timor training... i guess its all God's will =)

met uncle ej for dinner and we headed down to haji lane for some middle eastern food... drove past orchard road on the way there... check out the lightings this year... uncle ej says its hideous this year... really meh? i thought every year also like that... no?

anyway i've always heard people talk about haji lane/arab street and the many small boutiques there that sell unique dresses... but i never knew about the vibrant night life there! the many food outlets and shops offering "shi-sha"... interesting...

we decided to try turkish food.. the restaurant is apparently a turkish family business... but the dude who served us is from china... hmmmm....

our appetizer - potato/egg/carrot salad with yogurt dressing? its... erm.. special...

uncle ej's $5 turkish coffee.. its something like bali coffee for those who have been to bali before...

me and my half eaten meal... i ordered some beef special sote (?) its like our "mui fan"... not bad!

ej's kebab meal...

a shi-sha corner...

overall... a bit pricey... but quite yummy! can't remember the address.. but its along haji lane

uncle ej and i bought these "muesli bars"... according to the little girl its from australia... and it says "a nutritious snack!" on the wrapping.. hmm... how nutritious can snickers/m&m's and peanut butter be?! its not that yummy anyway... waste money...

we ended the night at our favorite new hangout... just beer!

our "imported" beers... hurhur... i love me ales!

check out the new additions to sammy... carebears!! say hi to good luck and harmony! soooooo cuteeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee =)

busy saturday

2008-11-23T17:56:00.004+08:00

it was a hectic saturday! totally busy from morning till night...

the day started by babysitting the newest addition to our family... my baby nephew JX! he's sick... coughing really bad and everytime he coughs, his whole face turns red and he starts tearing... awwww.... our hearts ache when we see him suffering like that...

mum and i took him to see a doctor and he was given some meds... the meds made him very drowsy and sleepy as you can see from the pics that follow... so cute!

"grrrr... when is it my turn to see the doctor...."

"don't steal my milk!"

"i want to sleeeeeppppppp..."

gd night sweetie =)

my entire afternoon was then spent in church.. for those who dunno.. i've decided to go to timor this december for a short mission trip. it's my first time doing something like this and i'm really excited and looking forward to it... experiencing a new culture and of cos, spreading God's love :)

the church organised training sessions for us to teach us some basic language and to give us some insight to the country, in case its too much of a culture shock to us.. heh... we the overly pampered generation...

evening and late into the night was spent with the flying pig and king kong as we battled it out in a few games of war craft... since its been a while since i last saw them, we decided to "catch up" while playing lan games... wow.. i think its been years since i last played dota... eh gao and friends.. when are we dota-ing again? let's reminiscence the good ol' days leh! hehehe....

dota leh!!!

funny-ah...

2008-11-18T22:21:00.003+08:00

dom was in my cubicle this afternoon and we couldn't control our laughter... giggling uncontrollably all because of the photos that follow... i know i shouldn't be making fun of their english...

but but but... sorry... entertainment right???

fresh vs. suspicious...

i think many guys need this...

oh my!

erm... i dont want to know how u feed the fish!

my fav!!

transformed!

2008-11-16T12:56:00.004+08:00

yes... i did silly stuff to my hair AGAIN...

tired of my long tresses... i've decided to snip it off! and NO... its not a recurrent issue... when hair is long, you cut!

before...

step 1: cut the hair..

step 2: colour the hair...

tadah!!!!

the picture doesn't do justice to my purple hair...

i love the purple streaks... its like peek-a-boo... one minute you see it, the next you don't!

this hairstyle reminds me of my jc days... ahh those innocent and carefree days... my head feels light.. hurhur

videos of j

2008-10-28T22:00:00.002+08:00

falling in love with jay chou's latest album... the main song of the album dao xiang (literally rice fragrant) talks about how we should embrace life and live it to the fullest.. meaningful... its heartening that he's using songs to encourage people... rather than just sing lovey dovey songs to increase sales... not showing his mtv... think you can easily youtube it... sharing the song, but sung by another dude... luo wen yu...think he's quite popular in the live band scene in taiwan... check out his version of daoxiang... he's pretty cool too =)

another jay song... my itouch chose it for me while running today... the song suddenly spoke to me again... sometimes i feel songs convey so much emotions and messages... nuff of talk.. listen!

oosters!

2008-10-27T20:08:00.003+08:00

ms j was complaining to me that i don't blog often enough... she's says she's a fan of my blog cos it has "entertainment" value... ooooh! *cheap thrill!* its always good to know that people enjoy reading my blabberings... =)

so... a post on oosters! its a bar/restaurant @ suntec city that sells belgium beers and mussels... the mussels were served in a broth concocted with beer... it was a unique dish and its pretty good! the place is a lil pricey thou!

char, mr ed and i ordered one beer each.. the beers came in really queer (erm... unique!) serving glasses.. check them out...

three diff bottles!

mr ed and i...

and finally.... me... looking greedily at my beer!

cats vs dogs

2008-10-21T22:08:00.003+08:00

i envy the cats... they do nothing but sleep all day... they don't have to search for food cos they look so cute people just feed them... did i already mention that they do nothing but sleep all day? they sleep on top of car bonnets... they sleep under the cars... they sleep on the pavement... they look at you and yawn and go "blink blink"

dogs are different... they gotta fight and "earn" their food... they gotta look after the house... perform tricks... pull sleds... hunt... you name it...

a dog's life sucks!

i want to be a cat....

meow!

so long... my luckless romance

2008-10-17T22:06:00.002+08:00

Your fingertips across my skin
The palm trees swaying in the wind
Images.
You sang me Spanish lullabies
The sweetest sadness in your eyes
Clever trick.

Well, I never want to see you unhappy
I thought you'd want the same for me

Goodbye, my almost lover
Goodbye, my hopeless dream
I'm trying not to think about you
Can't you just let me be?
So long, my luckless romance
My back is turned on you
Should've known you'd bring me heartache
Almost lovers always do

We walked along a crowded street
You took my hand and danced with me
Images
And when you left, you kissed my lips
You told me you would never, never forget
These images

No

Well, I'd never want to see you unhappy
I thought you'd want the same for me

Goodbye, my almost lover
Goodbye, my hopeless dream
I'm trying not to think about you
Can't you just let me be?
So long, my luckless romance
My back is turned on you
Should've known you'd bring me heartache
Almost lovers always do

I cannot go to the ocean
I cannot drive the streets at night
I cannot wake up in the morning
Without you on my mind
So you're gone and I'm haunted
And I bet you are just fine

Did I make it that
Easy to walk right in and out
Of my life?

ej bday - chako

2008-10-13T22:15:00.004+08:00

celebrated ej's bday last week... not knowing what kinda present to get ej (since he already has most of the things he wanted!) we decided to treat him to a good meal =)

dinner was at a traditional japanese restaurant at hong leong gardens called chako. i call it traditional because... the deco of the place is traditional (apologies for the limited vocab) and the menu is written on paper that had already turned yellow... the words were written with calligraphy brush (mao bi) and there were no pictures on the menu... the owner had to describe the dish to us! but... lets not judge a book by its cover... the food is really superb... however its like a chinese banquet... we had our dinner over a course of 2 hours....

dish 1: sashimi

we did not know that we had to pre-order the sashimi. according to auntie chako... her sashimi is ultra fresh because she not put it on ice. she takes them out straight from the fridge and thaws them when its needed. its the first time i've eaten room-temperature sashimi... but.... its reallyyy very very yummy!

we didn't pre-order... but luckily there was a couple who were there and they pre-ordered the sashimi... so according to auntie chako... there was some left overs for us to scavenge on...

dish 2: stir fried squid (or issit octopus) with butter and garlic...

one word - YUM!

dish 3: grilled saba

we saw auntie chako grill the fish over charcoal... that's how traditional the food are cooked.

dish 4: yaki soba

with a very generous serving of bonito flakes... i like...

dish 5: okonomiyaki (pancake)

not the best that we've had... but its still good... too much mayo & sauce for my liking though.

overall, auntie chako serves really good food... realised that hong leong gardens have about 4 japanese restaurants! will check the the rest next time!

after dinner we headed off for some dessert at cold rock @ HV... nuff said!

a very happy looking char & ej... i wonder why...

i'm back!

2008-10-06T20:39:00.005+08:00

many apologies for the hiatus... bro and kat came back for a 2-week holiday and all my available time is spent with them :)

i never used to appreciate going home to a family... once upon a time i used to think bro was such an annoying pig (althou' he still is today!) and that he's constantly hogging my computer, tv, etc... but now i kinda miss that feeling. i guess i never realised how close we were when we fought all the time while growing up... i remember him kicking my arse and giving me black eyes when we were young... all the memories!

bro and kat at sentosa

went to bali with dad, bro and kat during their stay here. think bali is a great place... the beaches are beautiful... many cultural/historical sites to visit and we had lots of fun haggling over prices =) yes, auntie behavior. the not-so-fun parts were the constant complaints of bro who was suffering from knee pain... and so we were constantly stopping and having a cuppa along the streets... its sometimes fun to people watch... most imptly, we know where the good cafes are now.. hehehe... the bad side thou, was that we stopped and snacked so much that we never really had a stomach for good meals. i was told by many that bali had several pretty good restaurants (eg. ku-de-ta), but sadly i didnt get to try them! will try them the next time i visit!

a brief overview of my itinery there: arrived on thursday midnight and checked into a splendid serviced-villa @ Seri Suites...

private pool!

day 1: Ubud hired a cab to take us to ubud, the art centre of bali which was a 45-min drive from our villa... settled for a reasonable price with the driver and he agreed to take us there and back and be our tour-guide for the day as well... he brought us to a batik factory, which sold extremely expensive batik... and eye opener thou!

women working on batik...

then he took us to an art gallery... on the way there we saw many many (& many!) shops with paintings hung all-over but he advised against buying from there as most of the paintings did not have certificates and may be "copies"... he took us to this gallery that was HUGE and showcased artwork of many different genres, contemporary, abstract, traditional, nature and many more which i dont know how to describe :P

artists working hard at the gallery

in the end bro and kat bought 2 paintings and i bought one...

my "million" dollar painting... serenity...

then the driver took us to some place that sold very yummy fried duck... apparently a bali delicacy (for tourists of cos... i dont think i ever saw balinese in any restaurants...) up next was shopping in ubud district itself! lots of sundresses and little ornaments... branded clothes were available too... although i really doubt their authencity :P

day 2: sight see-ing! hired a day-driver i found from the internet.. very pleased with their services cos they give good introductions to the place and walk with you through the attraction!

first item on list: batubalan dance - barong & keris dance. basically it talks about the good fighting the evil and of cos, good triumphing over evil... good to watch this cultural dance although i thought it was a little pricey...

cultural dance!

next was goa gajah (aka elephant cave) according to the guide, its a cave where royalty will go to meditate (in the past of cos, bali is now ruled by government)...

view from the top of the area ard the cave

Menstruating women are not allowed to enter... hmmm...

entrance to the elephant cave

then kintamani village, a village built around a dormant volcano... its pretty high up so its a little chilly, good escape from the heat! had a buffet meal in a restaurant overlooking the volcano... pretty!

volcano view from the restaurant

last stop was tirta empul (holy spring temple), according to the guide the spring water can do wonders (wasn't paying attention to what he's saying! :P)

kat and i in front of some shrine

day 3: shopping! walked all day today... from seminyak to legian to kuta... i think we walked for at least 10km... but it was good... experiencing all of bali city on foot!

memories of the bali bombing...

took a night flight back and met a jap guy at the airport... he thought i was japanese and spoke to me in a string of japanese, heh... obviously i wouldnt understand!

the "huang" family as kat described...

and eversince i came back from bali... its been good meals all the way until bro and kat left... i think i put on alot of weight during their stay here!

so artistic!

2008-09-16T23:17:00.002+08:00

不在乎天长地久，只在乎曾经拥有。。。

that's my omnia...

its... GONE... SOLD... no more...

its a phone that has got everything, of which i use nothing...

i'm not tech-savvy... i'm back to using my trustee lil red phone!

iwant an itouch... should be easier to use right?

2008-09-11T22:16:00.002+08:00

it's been a while since i felt like this... peace...

running is exhilarating, liberating, peaceful... just me, myself and my music... the wind blowing against my face, the setting sun in front of my eyes... the mind free of all worries... nothing else matters, just immersing myself in music, letting it take away all the emotions...

i love it... never felt so peaceful before, thank you God!
.
.
.
.
.
met karen today for lunch, the moment she saw me she said that i'm 很瘦! this is good and bad at the same time... good because i'm losing weight without even trying... bad because... i think this means i'm stressed, hence the poor sleep quality and the occassional loss of appetite...

i need a holiday :p

enough of getting drunk, time to pick myself up!

thank you dear friends for your words of encouragement :)

I'm gonna be okay :)

on growing up...

2008-09-08T21:18:00.002+08:00

when i was young, i always wished i would grow up faster.
the adult world seemed so alluring, freedom to do what i want, financial stability, and even working seemed like fun, looking good in corporate wear and doing my part to help the world... and of cos, a little girl's dream of having a family... a knight in shining armour...

now that i'm grown up... i wished i never grew up.
is this what they call the irony of life?

i never knew that growing up means realizing that my family isn't as complete as i thought it was.
i never knew that growing up means they expect you to understand their situations.
i never knew that growing up means the realizing that dreams of a knight in shining armour is not going to come true.
i never knew that growing up means i gotta deal with people who lie and cheat.
i never knew that growing up means finding out that working life isnt what i imagined it to be...
i never knew that growing up is so difficult...

who can i trust when both of you are not honest with me?

i just want you to be honest... why is it so hard?

i feel like i'm nobody's child... :(

sports wkend

2008-09-01T10:07:00.004+08:00

its been a physically draining wkend and i'm so glad that i survived it. almost every inch of my muscle is aching and the many blisters on my toes are adding to the pain. but... its all worth it!

the first bout of exercise started on friday at our team building session - rock climbing. i know rock climbing uses alot of muscles, i just didnt realise they use the muscles that we (or rather i) seldom use... hence, i'm aching at the weirdest places where i never used to ache. not v helpful for my frisbee games the next day. the day ended with the department practicing volleyball for our inter-company games on wednesday. haven't played vball for years and it really showed cos my arms were bruised! the pain continued till sunday... feels as if i have rheumatism... pictures on rock climbing to be uploaded shortly!

saturday and sunday was the singapore open 2008! teams from all over south-east asia came to join us. i think i remember seeing teams from philippines, vietnam, thailand, hongkong, japan, taiwan, malaysia, indonesia (?) and even australia! my team played a total of 6 games (only) and won 3. a little disappointing seeing that we didn't quite rise to the occasion and play to our potential... but oh well... we had lots of fun :)

shwu, ping & i

my teammates!

after the tournament i headed off to the 10k nike human race... more like 10k human queue... it was a poorly organised run... the routes were so narrow... most of the time it was just human jam... doesn't help that we're running through crowded places and people staring at you isn't fun.. i even had a pre-run before i started the run.. chose to cab down to esplanade cos i thought parking would be a killer.. turned out there was a massive traffic jam along the rocher exit along ecp... cab driver told me "xiao jie, think you get off here and run there faster... otherwise you'd be late for your run"... and so i did... got off the cab in the middle of the highway and ran to esplanade... what an adventure!

the human jam...

us, before the run...

us, after the run... please ignore the couple making out behind us...

met jaja after the run! she still looks fresh... 10k is NOTHING to her... i met ah hu too.. while running... she ran so fast she left me eating her dust!

and of cos, EJ & christina...

thank goodness jack & rai ended the night with great songs :)

now that my fantasy wkend is over... its time to get my ass back to work...

Answer from God

2008-08-25T12:09:00.000+08:00

From Our Daily Bread...

August 24, 2008

God’s Restraint

READ: Psalm 76

Surely the wrath of man shall praise You; with the remainder of wrath You shall gird Yourself. —Psalm 76:10

Augustine said that God “judged it better to bring good out of evil, than not to permit any evil to exist.” Thus God takes the worst evil that men and women can do to us and turns it into good. Even the wrath of ungodly men brings praise to Him (Ps. 76:10).

God has not promised that your life will be easy—indeed it may not be. But He has promised to sustain you in your struggle and uphold you with His mighty arm. If you trust Him, He will empower you to make your way bravely through extraordinary difficulty with faith, hope, and love. The trials God permits in your life will lead to His praise and glory, if only you will abide in Him.

Furthermore, there will be a restraint and a respite. The Hebrew text is somewhat obscure in Psalm 76:10. Literally it reads, “Surely the wrath of man will praise You; the remnant of wrath [God] will bind.” God will use men’s wrath to bring glory and praise to Himself, but when that purpose is fulfilled He will then restrain it.

God will not allow you to be pressed beyond endurance. That is His sure promise. When the lesson has been learned, when the revelation of God’s glory is complete and your soul has been tried and proven—then God will raise His hand and save you. He will say, “No more.” — David H. Roper

When He leads through some valley of trouble,
His omnipotent hand we trace;
For the trials and sorrows He sends us
Are part of His lessons in grace. —Anon.

In every desert of trial, God has an oasis of comfort.

gdbye olympics...

2008-08-24T21:03:00.003+08:00

sadness... no more olympics to watch.. no more being couch potato...

but... no fear! US open is starting tmr! yayness! who will win leh?

i'm rooting for: mens:
1. roger federer - come on! get back your throne!
2. novak djokovic - v entertaining to watch..

womens:
1. ana ivanovic - so cute!
2. alize cornet - also v cute :P

lets see how the matches will turn out...

went for ahm today... ran 10km.. i felt like i nearly died :p hehe totally lack training... but as usual, the highlight of the event was... photo taking!

cam whores number 1,2,3!!

cam whores number 1,2,3 AND 4...

with our coolio cyclist who decided to run for once! her motto: because walking sucks... :p

me with my medal and number tag... alamak! forgot to take picture with dean!

...sibu...

2008-08-17T21:34:00.005+08:00

i realised waiting for char to send me pics is not going to happen anytime soon.. i'll just blog with the pictures that i have at the moment...

the trip started off with an ultra long traffic (human) jam at the customs. it wasn't so bad because we were joking and laughing the whole time :) the exciting part of the journey there was the boat ride. we reached the jetty at about 1am in the morning and were greeted by a speed boat... without any "head lights". the boat driver navigated his way using.... a torch light.... the bumpy ride was quite a thrill! *picture of char & i looking visibly shocked will be uploaded at a later date*

when we reached the island we were directed to our own chalets and ended the night with a cocktail each! *yum!*

the next day we were greeted by the warm sunshine of our very own private beach! no lah.. the chalets face the sea and our chalets have pretty good views of it!

our private beach!

activities for the day include: eating, sleeping on the beach and tanning at the same time, throwing some frisbee, snorkeling, drinking and card games! oh and alot of photo taking...

the gang of four...

sunset!

erm... cam-whores...

artistic shot... (or so i think)

food glorious food!

freaking big bon-fire..

on the 2nd day we went "trekking" along the beach, on the stones that line the shore... pretty cool to enjoy the sea breeze and have a bird's eye view of the sea & the island :)

clear blue sea behind us!

emo...

no... i wasn't trying to commit suicide...

i heard this is a smu pose...

solo jumper...

i'm a rockstar!

goodbye sibu!

all in all.. it was a great trip... thanks guys!

swimming!

2008-08-13T23:13:00.002+08:00

i don't know what is it about the swimming events. its just 8 men/women who swim side by side trying to come in first. but... its damn exciting. i also don't know why swimming in straight lines can get me so excited... haha... just watched the race 200m butterfly with phelps coming in first (as usual!) and even though its a replay (and i already knew he'd won) i still got up to my feet and jumped up and down as he was approaching the finishing line...

i know.. i'm crazy! haha...

apologies for not updating on my sibu trip, still waiting for char to upload the pics!

on another note, i had another liyan boo boo today... am currently on a phlebotomy course (google the word if u don't know what it means! its synonymous to 'poke-poke' course among my colleagues now!) and i was supposed to practise drawing blood from a dummy hand... BUT! i removed the cover of the needle and poked myself instead... duh!

now.. don't laugh so hard that u fall off your seat!

Personality quiz again!

2008-08-10T23:25:00.000+08:00

*weekly update to come soon!

Reliable Realists are down-to-earth and responsible-minded. They are precise, reserved and demanding. Their most prominent quality is reliability and they will always make every effort to keep any promise given. Reliable Realists are more quiet and serious persons, they do not talk a lot but they are good listeners. They sometimes seem reserved and distant to outsiders although they often have a great deal of wit and esprit. Their strong points are thoroughness, a marked sense of justice, doggedness bordering on pigheadedness and a pragmatic, vigorous and purposeful manner. Reliable Realists do not dither about if something has to be done. They do what is necessary without wasting words.

This personality type not only expects a lot of himself but also of others. Once Reliable Realists have set their mind on something, it is difficult to persuade them otherwise. They do not like to leave anything to chance. Planning means safety to Reliable Realists, as well as order and discipline. They have no problem respecting authorities and hierarchies but do not like to delegate tasks. They are certain that others would not deal with them as conscientiously as they do. In management positions, they are very task-oriented - they make sure that things are well done; however, they do not have a great deal of interest in personal contacts at work.

In relationships too, Reliable Realists are reliability itself. As partners, they are faithful and consistent, well-balanced and sensible. Security and stability are very important to them. They have little time for extravagances and flightiness. Whoever has them as friend or partner can rely on them for a lifetime. However, it takes quite a while for Reliable Realists to enter into a relationship or friendship. They have little need for social contacts; they therefore take great care when choosing partners and friends and limit themselves to a small but exclusive circle which meets their high demands. They tend to show their closeness to people who are important to them by deeds - their partner should rather not expect romantic declarations of love.

try it!

NDP preview

2008-08-03T21:08:00.004+08:00

Went for the NDP preview on sat with ah hu, gao, nic mo, keen and lydia. it was quite an experience... haha... it was a super warm day, and being someone who perspires quite a lot, i was grumpy. not a good way to start!

well then it was super crowded... so many people makes me shy :P but the fun pack got me all excited, it was quite fun to rummage through the pack seeing what kinds of goodies they put in there. its quite cool, they gave us a white cap that has got led lights at the front, an inflatable "hand" (for waving) that was very good to hug, a poncho in case it rains, a whole booklet of vouchers... and food! lotsa food! haha...

i realised it is really quite different watching the parade on tv compared to "live". watching the parachuters land... watching the fighter jets zoom in the air and of cos.. the fireworks that light up the dark sky... woweee... some pictures to prove my point!

the singapore flag flying across the sky...

the trails left behind by the jet planes...

the trail of dust forming a heart! signifying compassion of singaporeans...

that's the big inflatable hand that i was refering too... and that's gao & nic mo

oh there was temporary tattoo in the pack too!

ah hu and i

day view of the parade...

night view of the parade.. (that's a fake merlion by the way)

the gang who went!

me!

activities filled wkend

2008-07-27T20:56:00.004+08:00

yup... another activities filled weekend... =)

exhausting... but totally worth it!

the wkend started off with JH's surprise bday + going away party, organised by his gf. so very sweet of her, too bad JH didn't appear too surprised, which we all kinda expected since he's such a sharp dude.

it was quite a good party i must say. the place served pretty good food, plus the girl put in so much effort to decorate the place... well done! she invited so many hwachong ppl... its like inter-class jc gathering all over again... haha... good to catch up with them after so long!

saturday started really early (for my standards of cos!) reported at seletar reservoir at 8am in the morning for some jtc dboat race. no, i'm not rowing. i know nuts about dragonboat... i'm there as..... a drummer! haha... was trying ultra hard not to fall off the boat... the team i was rowing for didn't make it for the finals, but the other team did... the came in 4th. good effort!

i think i had so much more fun taking (silly) pictures with ja, nio & linda... heh heh... check out our damn cool saucony top.. its so comfy its like wearing nothing!

the hair band trio...

self-taken pic!

the dmeri db girls!

in the arvo/evening was karen & andy's rom party, at a beach cafe at pasir ris park. its my first time attending a wedding party, so its quite an eye opener... plus karen & andy put in so much effort to organise and decorate the place... very pwetty, and i'm sure they'll never forget that special day!

picture for the guestbook...

inside the guestbook...

me with the beautiful bride =)

dean with karen...

me with huey lee!

the few of us who stayed behind...

the rest of this segment is specially for EJ. this fella claims that he doesn't know jason mraz, and he wonders whats the hype over this singer... i wasn't able to sing any of his songs for EJ to prove my point... so this part is for you!! i told you once you hear the songs you'll know who is jason mraz...

his most popular song at the moment...

older songs which many people also know...

you and i both

wordplay

the remedy

see! how can you not know/like him?!?!

if you wander off too far...

2008-07-25T13:35:00.002+08:00

heard this song on some tv drama... kinda like the soothing tone, the voice and most of all, the story depicted in the drama...

cried buckets watching this drama... u should watch it too!

haha.. i'm becoming an auntie :P

my run

2008-07-20T21:04:00.004+08:00

despite sleeping in the whole of saturday, i'm still not well rested for work tmr... reason being... the run today...

shape run... its freaking crowded. my first time taking part in large scale running (contest?) thingy... (my other time was some singhealth thingy back when i was still on my research intern) i must repeat... its really very crowded. its no fun trying to squeeze through the crowd and literally come to a stop at places where the road is pretty narrow... grrr... totally breaks the momentum! i can't imagine running in other larger scale runs... like AHM, nike human race... both of which i already signed up for... argh!

well... on a good note... the goodie bag was pretty good... the girls were complaining about the weird shade of green of the t-shirt.. but i thought it was okay leh... check out the colour on the girls!

char and i trying to take photo by ourselves...

okay.. its easier with ej taking the pic for us...

with christina... this picture makes me look like a twig... its a good angle... haha

oh and i tried out this "recovery drink" that was supposed to replenish depleted glycogen stores so that the athlete can perform just as well in a second bout of exercise... not much effect on me leh.. my legs still weigh a ton in the afternoon :P

my special recovery concoction!

exhausted... bedtime!

Durian galore

2008-07-19T17:06:00.003+08:00

went for durian feast on wed night, don't get me wrong, i'm not the one who is eating! haha... did i mention that i hate durians?

look at them go! haha... i was trying not the cringe at the sight of the durians...
haha... but i'm happy watching them indulge in the durians!

this is all that's left....

i had to sit in front of this and endure the smell...

nope! they're not apologetic! =P

kidding lah...haha...

i think the durian seller's service has improved heaps. if the durian served wasn't up to expectation, they willingly changed one for them... wow... talk about money back gurantee! haha...

Nutritionist's comment: limit intake of durians to 2 seeds per sitting. durians are exceptionally high in sugar and saturated fat! 2 seeds of durians contain the same amount of calories (energy) as 1 apple/1 orange/1 pear...

sooo don't over-indulge in this durian season!!

Little things

2008-07-19T00:58:00.001+08:00

A careless word may kindle strife,
A cruel word may wreck a life,
A timely word may lessen stress,
A loving word may heal and bless. —Anon.

It is better to bite your tongue than to let it bite someone else.

sometimes we don't realise how our words impact others... think before we speak!

2008-07-17T00:30:00.002+08:00

Yet another personality test...

Your view on yourself:

Other people find you very interesting, but you are really hiding your true self. Your friends love you because you are a good listener. They'll probably still love you if you learn to be yourself with them.

The type of girlfriend/boyfriend you are looking for:

You like serious, smart and determined people. You don't judge a book by its cover, so good-looking people aren't necessarily your style. This makes you an attractive person in many people's eyes.

Your readiness to commit to a relationship:

You prefer to get to know a person very well before deciding whether you will commit to the relationship.

The seriousness of your love:

Your have very sensible tactics when approaching the opposite sex. In many ways people find your straightforwardness attractive, so you will find yourself with plenty of dates.

Your views on education

Education is very important in life. You want to study hard and learn as much as you can.

The right job for you:

You're a practical person and will choose a secure job with a steady income. Knowing what you like to do is important. Find a regular job doing just that and you'll be set for life.

How do you view success:

You are confident that you will be successful in your chosen career and nothing will stop you from trying.

What are you most afraid of:

You are afraid of things that you cannot control. Sometimes you show your anger to cover up how you feel.

Who is your true self:

You are mature, reasonable, honest and give good advice. People ask for your comments on all sorts of different issues. Sometimes you might find yourself in a dilemma when trapped with a problem, which your heart rather than your head needs to solve.

hmmm.. seems like i'm very different from ah hu..... you can take the quiz here if you want.

housemaid

2008-07-14T20:39:00.003+08:00

spent my entire saturday cleaning the house. sometimes i wonder why am i cleaning the toilets, mopping the floor, doing all the domestic work when my peers are out having fun, watching movies, tv, or even just slacking around...

i guess its all part of His plan to help me learn to manage the household, perhaps next time when i have a household of my own, i wont have to learn everything from scratch. looking at it from the bright side, i'm actually having a head start compared to my peers! haha... but this doesn't mean i don't miss the hanging out with friends time!

On a good note, i went jogging today. covered 4.5km today and i wasn't too breathless! i feel really good! i think i regained 80% of my cardio power... hehe... shape run here i come!

me - house maid

Luck? or not?

2008-07-11T16:47:00.002+08:00

Got this in a mail from Diana...

Is it luck or what?

Today's Verse: Psalm 37:23
"If the LORD delights in a man's way, he makes his steps firm." -NIV

"The steps of a [good] man are directed and established by the Lord when He delights in his way [and He busies Himself with his every step]." -AMP

"If you do what the LORD wants, he will make certain each step you take is sure." -CEV

Today's Message
You might have known some of these families. It seems like every single day there's some kind of "fatality" in their home. Two weeks ago their youngest child broke his right leg. Last week their oldest daughter was involved in an accident. This week they are all sick. Tomorrow?? Again, it may seem as if families like these are "destined" to live with bad luck. Is this true?

The Bible clearly declares that God ordains the steps of the righteous --those who have made Him the center of their lives. For the plain truth is that God's Spirit --not luck-- acts every single second as our Guidance and Wisdom, working on our behalf and helping us make the right choices. And making right decisions while living with a positive attitude will surely keep any family member out of trouble. Guaranteed!

Don't rely on luck any longer. Trust God, and allow the Holy Spirit to guide your everyday steps. Only then will you experience a blessed day every single day!

Today's Prayer
Dear Heavenly Father, thank You for making me righteous before You through Jesus. Help me to maintain a positive attitude at all times while I allow Your Spirit to guide my steps. I thank You for making me a blessing to the world. In Jesus' precious name, amen.

A timely reminder to stop blaming it all on bad luck!

Thank you!

stop the sale!

2008-07-06T21:29:00.002+08:00

Ninewest (aust) is having sale like AGAIN... this time its 50% off... oh mannnnn its tempting me... check them out.. they're sooooo pretty! i want...

Gasp... this one looks like a perfect one for dinners and when u have nothing much to put inside...

Super sweet ballet pumps...

Patented heels...

i want... but... they are all sold out!!! (not sure if thats a good or bad thing.. hmmm)

i should stop whining huh!

started to exercise again after my bronchitic episode.. i think my lungs are damaged. i get breathless after a bit of exercise (is this normal?!) and i need to recover asap! before my shape run... urgh...

cheap thrill: my new frisbee team-mate thinks i'm only 19!! that made my day :P

Pedi Sunday

2008-07-01T22:05:00.003+08:00

went for my monthly pedicure with dean & dillian on sunday. although i said monthly, its been a while since i last went to pamper myself. reason being... i cracked all my toenails sometime back during a full day frisbee tourney... but its all grown back (90% lah...)

i must say i'm a bit disappointed with the pedicure place that i go to... all the colours i chose were out of stock... in the end i had to settle for 3rd choice... zzz this is bad service...

who's who!!

dillian dean liyan

there was some borders sale thingy going on there and dean and i (mostly dean) wanted to take some stupid pics... guess wat... i'm rollar skating...

erm... us.... bleah!

i kinda prefer us looking pretty!