A Curse?

If it happens again, I'm gonna be very convinced that Boxing Day is cursed.

I know it's probably nothing compared with fatalities...or if you are running your own business you are the one suffering the loss. Still, personally, the shitty thing is that it left us operations staff very crippled. No thanks to our company for not having a contingency plan. Kept asking me if it can be done manually. Fuck...any other choice? Of course manual can be done, afterall it's back to the drawing board so quit asking me Boss!

And so, the last working day of the year wasn't something worth blogging too much....

Retail Therapy...NOT

I had half-day off...I spent it with M, having a sumptuous but very expensive lunch at Sushi Tei (let's wise up and have steak at the Russian place next time lah).

We were like a couple of slobs, always looking forward to 'tea break' at 4pm. We really couldn't bring ourselves to enjoy shopping. I marvel at people thronging the malls, feverishly rummaging through bargains, poring themselves over apparels at branded shops. WHERE DID THEY GET THEIR ENERGY FROM? Or rather, WHERE DID MY ENERGY GO? Oh, I do have energy a'rite...just not in shopping. It's confirmed - I hate it.

It wasn't entirely fruitless though. We bought 2 sets of bedsheets. Time to change the sad ones...

Curse of the Golden Flower

No curse at all. In fact let me rephrase - I watched the movie and enjoyed it! I owe it to the fact it's a drama starring 2 of the most charismatic leads I've ever seen, regardless the era, regardless how painful watching Jay Chou's facial expression was, regardless how distracted I was by Gong Li's mammaries (very distracted).

The Motorcycle Diaries

Since I can't get the real thing, I can always find it on screen.

I've seen the DVD on the shelf for the longest time, aware that it's highly-acclaimed. But not recently when I gave up the business trip to Brazil and realising my colleagues are finally returning from the almost-2-week trip that I believed it is time.

The Motorcycle Diaries features a South American roadtrip made by 2 friends with similar aspirations. Though it doesn't include Brazil, it still shows the sights and people of other countries like Peru and Chile. And like most other foreign films, it's always the narration (quotes) that impresses me.

PS: And yes, my colleagues are back from an almost-2 week long, almost-40-hour flight journey, all in 1 piece.

Over?

I dare say "The Cold War" is quite officially over. Hohoho!!!

Boxing Day

It's simply spelt M-I-R-A-C-L-E.

It's been raining dinosaurs and gorillas since early morning but there was NO traffic jam on CTE. I reached office on time. I think this can only happen once a year.

The Birdpark

Dun forget what Singapore has - Jurong Birdpark.

We couldn't bring ourselves to stay in (home, sheltered and boring shopping centres) when the weather was so good. I dun remember how the birdpark looked like but when we arrived there, I knew 3 places to hit - penguins, birds of prey and the owls. Very sad for the big birds though. Birds are meant to be free....but they were all caged for our viewing. Sometimes I wonder if it isn't enough just watching and reading National Geographic.

Seeing the waterfall brought back memories of a photograph taken of my class of 1986....2 friggin' decades ago.

I'm glad we visited.

House-warming

It was so rushing but I'm glad we dropped by D&E's place at Bishan St 22.

This is a couple who bears no grudges, harbours no illwill towards people they know and tries their best to be the host with whatever limited means.

I'll see you again for sure.

(Not) In the Mood for Christmas

I really dislike Christmas. I may sound like a grinch if I go on .... actually it's more the (artificial) mood that is created nearing the festive season that I really dislike.

DJs sounding more perky than necessary, colleagues around me claiming excitedly they have 'no mood' to work (thank you very much - me too but I am still not well and have tons of work and a stoooopid deadline to meet for the e-project so please shut up), people talking about drinking and being merry, etc.

I was listening to this crisp angelic voice on Symphony 92.4 this morning, singing a melodious tune about returning home for Christmas....and I thought about the homeless. People having only garbage bags to use as blankets in the cold (in countries having winter now). I remembered Say once said (something like that) - having a White Christmas can be beautiful but the cold is a double-edged sword.

It's a strange sudden thought. Maybe it's just like why people dun eat meat, dun eat sharksfin. I can't rejoice because I remember the less fortunate (logical?). Are they forgotten already? Surely they must feel so much worse than me.

Thanks Phyllis, for sending that email. I kept thinking I was hitting mild depression (every year end of the year??!!)...but the answer is clear now. I am gonna do my bit, within my very limited humble means but it may mean I can finally get 'in the mood'. :)

Happy Birthday...

...to M!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Yes, do the Math yourself - you are 32 this year (how can you even ask me?). No more, no less.

"Golden Shower"

Mong is long toilet-trained (day) already.

But of course there are moments of forgetfuless. Yesterday when he was watching Hi-5 on my lap, I felt warmth...he freakin' pee-d on me! I swear that he will be the only male person in this lifetime of mine who can do the "golden shower" on me!

PS: There was a very careful choice of words up there in case anyone misconstrues and accuses me of perversion. :P

Torture

My throat feels like it's been stabbed 1,000 times. With a recently-sharpened dagger. I wonder how long and how many more lozenges I have to suck.

Talk about pain, I can think of several. Listening to "Square Rooms" over and over (anybody remembers who sang this?), going to Mambo Zouk (yes, you are getting the idea I dislike retro songs), trying to perfect my Mandarin whenever I speak to PRCs or Taiwanese (i.e. my system vendor), pretending to look interested in what O has to say and having to face her trying-to-appear-angelic face at the same time, realising I'm hitting 33 and zits are still sprouting...

**************

I brought the Taiwanese guests to Vivocity for dinner yesterday evening. We ate at Modesto's...for lack of ideas. It turned out that the service and food were good enough to make the dining experience very pleasant. We were given a table with a good view...but as usual, it was spoilt for me...with me, myself and I ended up ordering the wrong kinda pasta, cursing. They didn't have much chance to take it all in except that of course, they noticed the place was huge and crowded.

"Geek meeting" ends today! Yay!

Note: I dun fear making decisions and can be pretty confident in most of them. But when it comes to ordering Italian food, please do not get me involved.

Welcome Aboard!

Just a quick word to welcome my bro for jumping on the bandwagon finally (what what....???) - blogging.

Hope you keep it up because I've always enjoyed your views on many matters and it would be wonderful to share it online with many more people. And I'm glad that despite a vast improvement in technology whereby friends may forget how to talk to one another over the telephone or meet up face-to-face anymore, we have not completely allowed advancement to overtake our basic mode of communication and friendship.

Cheers.

The Similarity...and reading

If I knew, I wouldn't want intensity in my life within such close intervals. Luckily the drama is just fictional... *crossing fingers*

Re-watching Award-winning movie, In The Bedroom over the weekend and reading (yes, you read right - reading. me.) Jodi Picoult's The Pact draw similarity to parents experiencing the loss of their child.

Separation by death is painful as it is but to outlive your own child must probably be the MOST torturous.

I'm barely done with the book but I like Picoult's style so far. If I'm finished, I will proudly claim it to be the 2nd one since June 2004. :P I think people hardly read these days. Always on the go. Swept by the hustle and bustle of life. And so, in wading through a hectic lifestyle, one completely loses interest. Then there remains no other reason or excuse why one doesn't read anymore. Simply, NO more interest.

Hence I marvel at M's unwavering interest...that has certainly survived through time. :)

When the going gets tough...

...the tough feels like giving up (but can't)?

2 very* trying mornings (6am mind you)...and counting.

* maybe 'very' now cos I'm sick!!!!

Ramblings...

Back to the 'discussion' I mentioned yesterday. I must say I appreciated O's input. Though better known for her kpo-ness, she did have good ideas which I shall adopt and give her credit for (if/when the time comes). But as I had an inexplicable insomnious moment between 2-4am this morning, her ramblings *oops* came to my mind again...and I realised how personal she has gotten. And she even added: "It can enable one to become a better manager...." (hey, clever. The discussion was initially intended to be about YOU!)

IRRITATING!!!

Now I'm thinking - what defines a 'good manager' in the first place? We all have our own set of definition. I googled it and had so many weblinks popping up. And I thought even if one possesses all of that, if he/she has one irritating face that rubs most people the wrong face, sorry mate.......................

And so I summarize a 'good manager' in one paradoxical definition - 'male minus his ego'. I think I've just made many enemies in a split second but relax, think about it. What I'm implying is simply, it doesn't fuckin exist.

********

Currently listening. Loving it. Jack Mannequin's Dark Blue.

A saying...

I stand firm: Ignorance is bliss.

Dammit. After a 2-hour discussion which I initiated, now I have so much more work to do................

Happening Aunty

I saw this aunty with no make-up, in her 40s, hair dyed too blond, too frizzy (you get the picture)....She was wearing a tight T-shirt with words - Be Mine.

Whoa. Very bold. Very shameless. I like.

People...and their cars

It's funny how impersonal our neighbours have become. I'm not an analyzer, going into how globalization has taken most of our time working, shifting our focus on different things, usually material. Or maybe the newer flats have units more spaced out such that we don't seem to make the effort to get to know our neighbours now.

Now our neighbours aren't Mrs or Mr So-and-So with a face. They are solely identified with the cars they drive or even their carplates.

Miffy *seeing a car drive by*: Oh, EU 8111.
M: Yea...ex Mazda 6 driver, now Toyota.

OR

Miffy: Oh SBR666 changed car...to an MPV!
M: Yup, it was a Tuscani coupe.
Miffy: Likely a new addition in their family.

And I don't ever know how they look like.

Unconditional Love

"The forest is a peculiar organism of unlimited kindness and benevolence, that makes no demands for sustenance and extends generously the products of its activity. It affords protection to all beings, offering shade even to the axeman who destroys it."

The profanity definitely does NOT originate from me. Just quoting from a board which M brought my attention to, yesterday, at the zoo (yes, yet again. We have renewed our FOZ membership for 2007. Ha). It was a truly beautiful message of unconditional love. I thought only parents are capable of that. I forgot about Mother Nature.

Going to the zoo on a Monday is highly recommended. FOZ members get free tram rides too. I think I need a break. Just catching the breeze while I ride on one already thrills me.

I know I have been out of Blogger for a few days in a row...it's been a tough period at work and home. I hope I get to enjoy the holiday season a little bit. I still haven't spoken to my mom yet.... :P

ATM Card

And for more than a week, I was convinced I lost it (having searched all places I could think of). Maybe my 3rd time this year.

So finally, ridden with anxiety that people may have withdrawn most of my hard-earned savings already, I finally called Customer Service to cancel it. "Ma'am, I would like to confirm it will be cancelled with this call." "Yes." *click*

Next day, a voice told me to look into the side pocket of a bag. There it was.

This is the part when I bang my head against the wall. 100 times.

The "Nightmare" is over

Very very slowly and cautiously, we gave Mong his 1st-again drink of milk. He was elated. There was no turbulence in his small tummy and neither did he regurgitate. Happy he was....happy I was too. Finally I can look forward to 1 decent night of sleep...

How much is too much?

I met QT at the museum. She stays next to Tao Nan Primary School so naturally I thought she was sending her son there next year. No, it's Catholic High. "According to the educational psychologist" she's sought to determine which environment would best suit her son, she has decided to send her son to a non-coed school. And since she stays faraway, she has bought a car to chauffeur him to and fro everyday. Well, thank God for low COE now, isn't it?

I apologize. I like QT. In fact she has given me very valuable advice in what steps I should take when I expressed my anxiety over Mong's slow speech development. But she NEVER fails to set my panic button.

Speaking of this, my congratulations to Germ. I doubt she will have the energy to read my blog for some time now that Baby Darius is born. Now you know *snicker*. Welcome aboard!

Never equal

I love my dad so much more than my mom.

Murphy's Law

"Everything that can possibly go wrong will go wrong".

I have to conduct a presentation in 2 hours' time to about 35 people, some of whom I have not met before. When I woke up this morning, I thought of the above law when there it stood, bright and cheery (bah!), a big zit on my nose. Nothing from 1 Jan to 5 Dec...only today! When I have to meet a lot of people!

Then I thought of another (or extended?) version of Murphy's Law: "Anything that can go wrong, will, and at the worst possible moment". I will only know that in 2 hours' time. And so the praying begins...

Wish me luck!

-----------------

Time check: 1730 hours. I have definitely survived the day :)

Movies (my kind)

Zihuatanejo. This is not a word you see on a regular basis. I kinda liked it when I saw it on TV. It is also uncanny that the 2 movies which I saw back-to-back the recent weekend were related to Mexico.

It was from The Shawshank Redemption. I watched it on the big screen about 16 years ago. With whom I can't remember...but I wonder if at 16 then, I could feel it as much as I did now. The narration was intelligent and moving.

The other Mexican movie was Y tu Mama Tambien (whatever the hell it means, however the hell you pronounce it). I borrowed from sis who, like me, seems to have a 'fetish' for anything non-Hollywood. The more indie the better. The more non-English the better. I appreciated its blatancy.

And the last watched and recommended one was Dorian Blues. Like any other gay movies which I've seen, I thoroughly liked.

So seriously, please don't talk to me about Korean dramas. I'm just not interested. Nothing wrong with them but just not interested. :D

Wonder Woman

I'm really referring to myself (not very modest ain't I?).

I mean it. Considering that my nights had been lousy for 2 consecutive times, having woken up at 3am this morning and being in the office looking sane and awake is one mean feat (and did I forget to mention I conducted a 2-hour system training session to the department this morning?) Yes, Mong's turn to fall ill. He vomited all the milk and plain water we fed him 30 minutes before.

So what is parenthood? I believed I mentioned once it's not for the weak-hearted. It is also defined as the role filled with the most guilt traps. But it keeps you grounded. You are reminded how strong you can be, when challenged physically, mentally and emotionally.

Having 2 troops gives me the chance to witness empathy at a young age. Mong and his sis share this silly game which I call The Bonding Game. I noticed that whenever Becks cried or was in agony (eg. when she vomited), Mong would start the game, attempting to cheer up his jie jie. Damn sweet.

PS: OK, I'm cheered. Angie my colleague just called me to say "4pm". That's code word for our pantry session. Teh tarik time!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :)

Down!

A Sunday that starts at 6am can't be wonderful....unless you are taking part in the StanChart marathon (then again, I believe that's considered LATE).

No, I was woken up by Becks who tossed and turned for an hour already. Then she vomited whatever she consumed, including plain water. It was a loooong loooong Sunday.

4some

The regular Saturday lunch (again WHAT are you thinking?)....I'm gonna miss it!

Sis is getting posted to Ho Chi Minh end Jan 07. It appears she will have large shoes to fill, after some manager in his 40s will be demoted (by her no less!). She was getting restless in Singapore, with most of her closer friends being overseas. Also, the very single her just wants change. Lucky her, some people dun get their dreams come true in the same lifetime.

About Taiwan...not really.

I lost my mood to blog about my (personal) trip to Taiwan. I was actually waiting for the pictures taken by my vendor to be sent to me but she's probably not gonna do it anytime soon....

What I really wanted to post was the dinner they took us - fine-dining. I wanted to show a picture of the steak I ordered. A steak as thick as a Harry Potter book. A steak which I struggled to finish. A steak I never saw so many tendons on. A steak so friggin expensive which I would regard as a sin just to order. Then there was soup, dessert, exotic tea and more exotic tea. By the time we were done, we were practically floored! But it was an unforgettable experience.

Taiwanese are polite. A lot of 'xie xies' in everything they do. They are also disciplined (queue to board trains, stand on the right on escalators (they stand on the right)) and mind their own business. I found myself staring/studying them a few times, perhaps out of habit. It set me thinking that people with physical and mental handicap really don't have it easy in Singapore. Maybe this is a bold statement but a look around many public places reveal that they are objects of ostracization. Luckily we are wising up, getting more sensitive towards their needs now. :)

Anyways...............SW makes great travelling company. Basically, we share the same objectives - not shopping, not eating a lot, just exploring. We really maxed out personal time, finishing the meeting by noon, taking the train to the city and then reaching hotel close to midnight, only to wake up at 7am the next morning for more walking.

Hence, as kinda promised yesterday, I complete my 'explanation' for soreness (my legs...again I say. What were you thinking?). Taiwan I like...without having to pay myself for the major expenses. I can say I'm pretty done with that country for now....unless the photos come my way soon. Now to push for a Europe business trip next year... :P

Jobs & Blog Patrol...*and I'm back*

3 days in Taiwan was a blast. Yes, it was a business trip but we don't forget that 'self' comes 1st under any circumstance, right?

Before I get there to explain how I ended up feeling so pooped and sore (my legs!) today, I would like to thank my friend, Keathan for alerting me about my blogsite (yes this one) appeared in The Straits Times on 28 Nov. His sms came in the middle of my wonderful breakfast at the hotel, something about doing 'damage control'. I was so freaked out.

But ah...I found out it's not the swearing that will land me in jail (or Xiaxue would have gotten there already and long time ago), not any insensitive remarks that will land me dissected by netizens, not any hideous pictures posted that will land me lose face....it was just a harmless and very honest personal comment I entered.

So...phew. My 15 nano-seconds of "fame". :P

And so it leads me to wonder the people behind the scenes - the ones on blog patrol. It must be a visually straining job to read through blogs after blogs, sussing out key words, key materials of the moment, sensitive and insensitive ones, etc. I think people going for movie and food reviews have it more interesting.

I visited the Zhongzhen Memorial Hall in Taiwan and there stood 2 guards, opposite each other, with a poker face to match. They don't flinch, they stare ahead and just blink their eyes - you get the picture. It's a feat to deal with the monotony! I hear that every hour they swop places (OK, there must be a more honourable way of terming this) but that should be about their only highlight of the day.

Then again, a job is a job. A toast to it for simply helping us pay our bills.

Taiwan

27-29 Nov: OoO & OoB

Eww...

There are things which make me go 'ewww'.

I'm not talking about the regular things like bloody wounds, squashed-up snails, etc.

I drink soya bean milk every morning; I'll buy a cup from this stall on my way to office. I'll usually heat it and let the wonderful warmth of the beverage flow down my throat. Today, not sure why....perhaps the temperate was really set too high but there is this thin crumply layer that lies on top of the drink. VERY disgusting to me.

For those who know me, they know I'm a little weird of sorts. I cringe when I see blood on chicken drumsticks (cannot eat anymore), I cringe when I see bubbles floating around my Milo/TT (must remove them first), I used to cringe when I see anything yellow and wobbly (think egg custard tart and egg yolk - could not eat at all), I instinctively gag (and can almost puke) when my tongue touches some food soft and which I'm not aware of existing (think fats in a kong bah...hence kong bah remains my worst nightmare as a food).

Luckily I'm a girl, not a guy who needs to be enlisted in the army (combat unit). I'd rather have periods. Thank you very much.

TGIF!

Laughter, the Best Medicine

Nothing like humour to perk up your day.

Here I am in my seat, looking stoned from reading boring work emails when I decided to check out Kenny Sia. Kenny is one blogger whom I dunno personally but whose blog I enjoy reading. I read my friends' to keep myself updated on their lives, to be familiar with what they feel and think, to spot their grammar and vocabulary mistakes (haha! KIDDING), etc. I dun read strangers'. I mean they can be self-indulgent (they'll use the same defence line - "hey, it's my blog. I can post whatever I like and keep going on about me, myself and I.........") but irritatingly self-indulgent. If not, the more serious ones will be ranting about the GST increase. I mean, forget it lah. It's gonna happen. That bowl of bar chor mee is going to cost from $3 to $3.50 soon. Nothing we say, do, rant, complain, blog, sing, rap will change this impending doom.

I dunno what this entry is for anyways. Maybe it's just a message to remind all that laughter is indeed the best medicine. Heck the laughing lines...dun forget to stop and smell the roses.

A Bond

I'm upset when we have disagreements.
I cried when I knew what you are going through.
I'm definitely bringing the secret to my grave.

Dear friend, we are tighter than I thought.
I'll be there for you.

Lip Service?

I risk posting this because she knows my blogsite. But because of her insanely busy life and that she's overseas (she's practically selling her soul to the company!), whatever little time she has left, she will devote it to her other half, eating, sleeping, pee-ing and shitting.

But if she really does read my blog and chance upon this, she may confront me.

I finally saw her online yesterday...very excited since it's been months we chatted.

(1) AL: Hey..........just the other day, I've been thinking about how long we haven't chatted.
*THEN WHY DON'T YOU EMAIL INSTEAD? YOU NEED MSN TO MAINTAIN A FRIENDSHIP OR JUSTIFY YOUR EXISTENCE WITH ANOTHER FRIEND?????*
Miffy: Oh, yea, I definitely have been...in fact, I sent you a birthday greeting but no reply.

(2) AL: You didn't get my reply? I thought I sent you...
*WELL YOU THOUGHT WRONG.*
Miffy: No, I didn't receive any. No matter.

(3) Miffy: Let me know when you gals come to Singapore....it'll be fun.
AL: Dun be pissed when you hear this............
Miffy: What? You will never come to Singapore again?
AL: We've just gone...2 weeks ago. I tried to call you at your cell but it didn't reach you.
Please dun get mad.
Miffy: Till another time I guess.
* YAH RIGHT. MY CELL DIDN'T REGISTER ANY MISSED CALLS. NEITHER DID IT HAVE ANY PRIVATE NUMBERS COMING IN IN THE LAST 2 WEEKS. AND EVEN WHEN IT DID DROP INTO THE TOILET BOWL, I HAD A REPLACEMENT IMMEDIATELY (readers, dun look for loopholes, OK?)*

Why do this? I mean, say things which I want to hear (read)? I dun buy it anymore. I'm fuckin 32, not 18. I just need some honesty and sincerity. I like AL but I hate to think she's falling into the category of the above.........sigh.

Beauty with no Beast

We all know the classical Disney story of Beauty and The Beast which was also made into a movie many years ago. I wonder how it originated - art imitating life or life imitating art? Today we think Beyonce & Jay-Z and Julia Roberts & Lyle Lovett (thankfully this is past).

What I want to share is this morning, I saw a couple - 2 beauties, side by side with no beast in sight. 2 beauties sleek as hell, purring softly as the traffic light stood red.

2 dark maroon Peugeot Coupe 406.

:D~~~~~~~~~~~~

Un-organic...YUM!

Why go organic when there's still ham chin peng (with red bean paste) on the surface of this earth?

And that was what I ate right after lunch...after many moons. I can't remember it can delight my palate so much. Thinking about sweet foods, I'm reminded that it's been very long since I last ate cold tau huay. It was usually enjoyed with :B when she was working just a stone's throw away.

Passion in food can only be ignited with the right company. Guess I can only find it during weekends now...with M. :)

VivoCity

We finally checked out VivoCity. Considering it was quite early and its massive space, we didn't develop any claustrophobia. The biggest mistake though, was having the play area built smack in the middle where the hot scorching sun would shine. HDB estates do it so well - playgrounds are sheltered at the peak of noon, hence children (and teachers) from childcare centres get to enjoy them.

DUH.

And I am in love....with Natalie Portman. For those seeking subtle humour, friendship ties and romance, please watch Garden State. Finally I rented one right movie in weeks. :)

Lunch with "Nanny"

Remarkably impromptu. Remarkably nice. Remarkably we-must-do-it-again-soon.

PS: I'll see you, David Lee Choon Hoe in my next life...
PPS: I wanted to say more nasty things about this David (cos mainly he doesn't know my blog. Haha) but I shall stop in case you readers think I'm so warped and critical these days. Yes, PMS!!! :D

The Cold War

I really mean The "Cold War"....and not the Soviet-American struggle that emerged after WWII.

I hate to think of myself as one of those many petty women but well, it is still ongoing. I didn't blog that it started, when it started, how it started...with my Corporate Planning-cum-HR Manager, infamously known for her nickname - CF (Cauliflower (hairstyle)...or maybe it's just a bunch of pubes up there) - and her hunger for power.

Because she interfered excessively in my Division's recruitment (I heard she is doing the same in others) and in the event passed a harsh, totally IRrelevant and personal criticism, I had let her know it wasn't tolerated. And so we stopped talking, stopped being the pals we were before, going for lunches, going home together, exchanging friendly teases.

I guess she reigns in areas (simply put, cock-sucking) where most of us can't and won't. The 'power' that she's been entrusted has gone to her head....and so it swells to a proportion that I (and the rest of us) can no longer find socially and professionally acceptable.

And so it rages on.....

PS: I was kidding about the "Make love, not war" entry a few days ago. Pui....

End of one milestone...

Today marks the last day of school for Becks. It is another strange feeling again....When school reopens next year, she is going to be in Kindergarten. I cannot believe how time flies, how quickly she is growing (yea yea, and how quickly we are ageing...).

Travelling (part 2)

Speaking of travelling, I know I mentioned about letting the photos speak for themselves when I visited our neighbour last week. There were a lot more. I particularly like one where all 4 of us squeezed ourselves to death while Michelin's cam was on auto mode but alas, that one wasn't up yet. Anyways, I love these too, for different reasons.

Top: Unbelievable Photo1 (me in k'ok?!), Unbelievable Photo2 (:B served us rice!)
Bottom: The Dearies, Us 3

Travelling

The Brazil trip is finally confirmed, with 2 people in my Division going.

It's going to be one loooooong trip given the travelling and transit time (10-21 Dec). And due to being such good sports *duh*, they will be having time off at Amsterdam on the pretext of viewing our Europe Distribution Centre (this would probably take only about an hour...hence, it's all BS but why not).

Yes, I have consciously given up the chance. And just like how my friends had prepared me for any regrettable feeling for not attending my own convocation many moons ago, again, I'm sure I'll have none this time. :)

SGH...again

I just made another appointment at SGH next week. I dun care how it's gonna be done, whether the pain would be worse than before. JUST GET IT OUT FROM ME.

Smelly~~~

NEVER EVER consume onion for lunch. I mean not as the main meal lah. The bloody thing wasn't visible in the food I ordered....but when I discovered it, it was too late. Now no Mentos mint can save me. Not even the super strong one.

Lunch was with YC. It's been a year since we met. I knew her 8 years ago. She was a bar hostess before and was with a divorcee (or was he married?) even before she turned 21. Today, she's doing well in her job but still trying to shake off her ex-husband who refuses to stop stalking her. Few years ago when he was still in Singapore, he was given a restraining order and was even detained for domestic violence. He jumped bail, left the country and hasn't been back since. But he has not stopped hounding her at her cell, home and worse of all, office number. Hence, most reluctantly she's on an active search for 'the next ideal' job so that once she leaves, she can change all her other contact numbers.

I am just thankful I dun have detestable people in my life whom I'm desperate to shake off....for now. :P

Make love, not war.

Strangeness

It is a strange feeling. For lack of vocabularly, I would say it's like missing something.

The last time I experienced such strangeness was 4 years ago. When I just gave birth to Becks. An addition in my life. Talking about her was surreal.

Like any other thing, I hope I get used to this soon...

:(

There's just supposed to be one big news...about :B's departure tonight. She leaves for Japan to work for 3 years.

But before I get there, I got another one this morning.
GST hike: 5% to 7%!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Perhaps just like the last time, consumers will scramble to buy things before the hike. I'm trying to think of a list for myself, for the kids, for the house, for anything and anyone around me. I have been looking at the dreary curtains in the rooms. They do a pretty good job blocking out the sunlight...but the blue. A sad sad blue.

Anyways! Yes, today marks :B's departure. Michelin and I would not be sending her off, hence we popped a surprise visit at her place last night. Not forgetting the farewell gift, not forgetting the TT which I tabao-ed.

We spent time going on a 'house tour', looking through her childhood photos (I was expecting her to look fat and pimply...but alas, it was all anti-climatic. You really didn't look too bad, :B!) and laughing at the usual silly jokes.

I have had many friends who's left Singapore to work but I think this time it's pretty different in that the friendship is still 'at a high' when this friend of mine leaves. It's strange how things do seem sweeter.

I know I ain't the sort who would chat at home regularly, get a webcam (just tell me if you have grown fat, changed your hairstyle, pierced your nipple, grown a mole, more pimples, etc) but I can be damn darn sure that we will not be out of touch.

Heard of the ole (tacky) saying during primary school days? Friendships Remain And Never Can End.

ALL THE BEST buddy!!!!

Beach

Sunday

M and I just wanted to be good parents, fulfilling a little girl's wish to go to the beach. When we set off at 10ish, it never occurred to us how ill-prepared we were.

I am being kind. I meant how lunatic we were.

With no cap/hat, no sun glasses and no sunscreen, we were out in the middle of the beach, feeling the sand and waves with our feet. Becks seemed to be enjoying herself scooping sand, pouring more water, scooping more sand and making shapes with the toys. Then the heat became really unbearable...and I looked around and saw NOBODY doing the same as what we did.

Well, it was an effort. We believe Changi Beach would be better. I remembered more matured trees with wider canopies = more shade. Till next week... :D

R.I.P.

*plop...!*

There goes my handphone, into the toilet bowl.
I was cutting my nails over the sink on Friday night, believing that Mong would be completely occupied with the videos on my handphone. No. He had to walk right into the toilet, stand next to me and conduct his Science experiment on density.

I scooped up the handphone *thank God no poo nor pee then* and tried ways to salvage it.

I believe it is officially dead...

Lizards

My biggest personal fear factor.

I heard on the radio the other day that lizards have personalities. I was totally amused. Some have mood swings, some are sociable, some are scheming....what?

Miffy sees lizard on the wall of living room.
Miffy (at a distance): Hello, I see you around often.
Lizard: Beat it. No mood to talk.
Miffy: *ok, unfriendly one*

Sleep

I just dun get it. Sleep...sometimes it comes easily, sometimes not. Ceteris paribus. Why???

People would generally advise: "Dun think so much lah. Just close your eyes, relax, count ....."

Thing is, I can't sleep and hence I think! Not the other way round! And so last night, sleep eluded me after 4am. I was wide-eyed, thinking about what to do in the next few hours. Where my mom will be bringing the troops today (since Becks has no school), what time I am meeting :B for TT, which I should watch first - Sex, Lies and Videotape or The Hills Have Eyes (thanks to :B) this weekend, time to call up the aircon place to service the aircon (when?), when I'm sinking my teeth into a juicy steak, etc. You get the picture. An assortment of things. Chaos.

And so, after 2 hours later, I slept again....an hour before the alarm rang. I dun feel so bad now...maybe not yet. And luckily I brought my spectacles. No more blurry images today! :)

TGIF!

PS: M is taking part in The Bull Run this evening. Heh. Ganbate!

Help...

I am giddy, I am nauseous, I am tired and I am tearing....

No, I am not pregnant! I forgot to bring my spectacles today. With 3 pairs at home, I brought none of them out when I left for work this morning. None. So much for lack of "optimum management"...

Pissy Pissed

Rude people vs Hypocrites: Which do I detest more?

At least hypocrites don't give it to you in your face...your anger may not be fuelled.
*actually can I not choose? I hate them fucking both*

OK, I'm done with the venting. Any good news to blog about, you ask early in the morning? Well..................................................

1. MM Lee made it to the Top 60 Asian Heroes' List (I believe it's TIMES)
2. Singapore is reviewing the penal code after more than 20 years. They are going to de-criminalize anal sex between 2 consenting hetereosexual adults *wink*
3. I haven't chewed on my nails for the past 2 days (I think I've discovered the trick).
4. Boss is still out of office, making today my 2nd official day of zen.

"Mission" Accomplished!

We finally did it. We took a bus into JB.

It may seem lame and a daily affair to some but trust me, to arrive at this date for all 4 of us to get to the point (actually especially the 3 of us) wasn't easy. In between, many unexpected events had arisen which I must admit dampened my enthusiam and faith in materializing the idea.

I would just like to say it was time well-spent with close friends. I love JB's KFC chicken (no blood!), I love the space without the crowd (think VivoCity...what a putoff), I love the wide variety of DVDs *oops* (I actually found Jackie Brown after 9 years!), I love the comfort of the karaoke room which didn't smell like a chimney and had seemingly new leather seats (and it's confirmed I am not tone-deaf).

And so, I shall let the photos speak for themselves (soon...).

Conversation of the Month

Miffy: Mummy loves you.
Becks: I love you too.
Miffy: Thank you for sharing this with me.
Becks: So now we can get married?
Miffy: *????!!!!!!!!!!*

Bus Rides

My advice is - if you have a car, dun forget to learn how to take the bus. Or rather, dun forget how joyful a bus ride can be.

I know some of you may think I'm crazy or if I'm paid by the government to go 'green' in my blog. I jump to my own defence - I mean this applies to buses which travel along the expressway, hence have few stops yet long enough to enjoy the ride, preferably with close friends and family.

One of such buses is 161. I take it from the bus stop right across my block and it goes via TPE/SLE to Woodlands' Causeway Point. Seated at the upper deck, it gave the troops a very good view of a river, thick undergrowth and different kinds of building.

It helps that I love the library there too, with a much greater variety of Adult and Children's books and a huge area for them to roam. We will definitely do it again. :)

"Independence Day"

Remember, remember, the 5th of November
The Gunpowder Treason and plot;
I know of no reason why Gunpowder Treason
Should ever be forgot.

Thanks to JC for the history lesson. When I watched V for Vendetta, I did not realise it was based on Guy Fawkes, brilliantly played by Hugo Weaving. It isn't my usual kind of entertainment but it's still recommended. Very cleverly written by the brothers who created The Matrix cult.

Talking about movies, this weekend fell rather flat. I was watching all the movies which I went x2/x4/x8 (fast forward at different pace) and hence, probably killed the essence. No offence :B. Maybe I wasn't in the mood. Or maybe it's really not easy getting the kinda movie I fancy. I couldn't imagine watching Audition at the original pace the movie was shot. GOSH! I had been so patient and forgiving?????

It was a 'feat' though, to have had this much personal space to watch the movies. 'Cos Sunday marked the 1st day of my maid's day off after being with us for 7 month. It has also been a long time for us considering my previous one was not granted one for a whole 2 years. So in a more significant manner, it marked the 1st day of our independence, of my independence.

It ended up with M cooking for Becks' lunch *haha!* and me feeding Mong - I dunno which is more difficult for me. Anyways, it went well and we managed to squeeze in time to bring the troops to the pool.

TGIF

'Twas a nice nice lunch with :B and her boyfriend (who is also my colleague). Good ole oily prawn mee and consistently-milky-and-hence-tasty-TT.

Thanks :B, for lending me Audition. I can't remember the details of the show, just that it was soooo sick. I think I can have a mini-film fest at home this weekend.

Also, the suaku me is feeling excited about the JB trip already. Not having been there for almost 5 years, my adrenalin rushes just the thought of spending time at a different place with good friends, spending some Ringgit (i.e. half price for the same product..or manicure?!), eating some chilli frogs (if we can find the place!), going for karaoke (if we can book the slot + please do not FORCE me to sing more than 1 Chinese song!), etc.

I am attending Becks' first-ever formal school graduation concert this evening. The letter states we have to put make-up on her. Er, her mummy doesn't even have a complete make-up set...maybe her Popo can lend hers. :P

TGIF it is!

Quote of the Month

"What eeeeeemo...izzat?" (What animal is that?)

- from Mong (surprise surprise)

Moving on...

Not that I wasn't. I am living life the only way I know how.

While I was at SGH staring at the number counter, waiting for my queue number to appear, it felt like I was waiting for my life sentence. Surprisingly, my heart did not pump extra hard. I wonder whether Took Leng How feels the same - nothing.

Anyways, with the results out already, I can finally say - yay, I'm at peace once again ... for now... :) I look forward to the JB trip with :B and Say next Tuesday.

What is my next therapy?

This has been my heaven for more than 5 years. Then one day, in a very cruel manner, ALL supermarkets in Singapore suddenly stopped selling it. No notice. No apology.

Henceforth, I ask: WHAT is my next therapy? For those who know me well, I deviate from the norm - I do not believe in retail therapy. Nothing which requires me to move my ass (once again).

Staff Movement

Gosh, it's gonna be major next year. I'm having a headache cos of this.

Anyway I read in URBAN last week that one sure way to stop nail-biting is to go for regular manicures. Sure it's gonna cost but it will be effective. Now the next big step is HOW to convince myself to move my fat ass to do it...no, THEM!

FRIENDS

Perhaps I'm exaggerating...but Say is like God-send. Heh. He made me realise what we really should focus on when the unexpected arises.

He also said something which I knew all along but kept buried deep inside me - that only through incidents do we realise who the real friends are.

Thank you all.

Wedding@SAM

29 Oct

It was the first wedding ceremony I attended at SAM. I'm glad we made it - all of us, The Tans. :)

Ivan did his usual PR thing..but he was lookin smart. I saw sis' pretty friend there, a few familiar faces (same college) and Vikki. Nice to see her again after more than 2 years.

And as expected, my face broke out in small zits. Time to change make-up.

Done with...for now

It was not easy, just seconds before the procedure. The what-sounded-like-drilling, the loooong and sharp needle, being helpless, feeling helpless....

It's over for now. The waiting game begins till 2 Nov. And again I say, let's hope I can move on with a definite direction then.

Early morning, 1 sms from :B and few minutes later (literally!), we met downstairs my block, heading for breakfast. And it was a nice teh-si prepared by same ole Uncle. :)

Problems

We all have them...

But do our problems always seem bigger than the ones others have? Or are there really some things in life we can't really sweat over. As Say has said it - let's not be myopic.

We pray for good health...and sufficient insurance cover.

I see you for lunch tomorrow, matey!

Long-time/lost Friend

Hey, I'm glad we finally met. After 7 long years. And the encounter 7 years ago wasn't even a gathering. We just bumped into each other at the bus-stop, didn't we?

I hope we dun wait for another 7 more years to have another meal.

Blood-Shot!

Of all things, Mong must never follow my sleeping pattern! He kept me up for 2-3 hours on Sunday and last night. I've woken up with blood-shot eyes, dragging myself to work.

I dunno why he's such. Another area for this worry-wart me to be concerned again.... :(

I watched The Departed yesterday. I found myself consciously and continuously trying to remember who was playing which role equivalent to the HK version of Infernal Affairs 4 years ago. I loved that version....but slowly as the movie progressed, the Hollywood one grew on me. Jack Nicholson did really well. Can you imagine that guy is an old foggie (but not acting like one), all of 69 years old??!!! Most of us would probably be struggling with our physical and mental health while he can still carry a screen presence and remember acting lines. Kudos to the old man.

More photos (Vietnam)

Life goes on...

The consultation on 18th didn't give me the direction I had hoped for. Instead, it threw me completely off-guard. It's true again - EXPECT THE UNEXPECTED.

So this Friday, I'm off for a day surgery.

Friends asked if I am afraid. I tell them as long as it can potentially save my life, expenses covered 100% by company's insurance (haha) and pain not as intense as that of labour, no, I am NOT afraid. And whatever the result is, it's destined.

And so life went on. I had a wild time with the troops at the pool again. I managed to watch 2 DVDs during the weekend and managed to survive the short (and very tiring) business trip in Vietnam.

Let me talk about Vietnam. To sum it up, it is Singapore in its 60s-70s. I LOVE the place. I didn't have the chance to walk on the streets because of our tight schedule but I did a lot of sight-seeing from the car. My only regret was not to have taken a picture of a petrol kiosk because that was a really classic setting.

Food was good of course. We were brought to this super brightly-lit Vietnamnese restaurant where we had lobster sashimi among their cuisine. This chap, reminding me of an eunuch (now how does a castrated man look like??) and bearing a most sadistic expression, pierced a sharp and long needle right in the middle of the lobster from bottom up. They served us its 'juice', its raw meat and finally also a sweet-tasting porridge with its cooked meat.

Vietnamnese also seems to like playing Emil Chau's songs cos I heard his songs re-done 3 times on the same day. Who cares about Emil Chau anymore when we have Jay Chou right? Well, the Vietnamnese.

I would like to visit the country again...(business of course, not pleasure. :P)

Rainforest

That's where we went in the morning. To a section of the zoo we've never been before despite several trips.

And I must say I enjoyed it tremendously...giving Becks an education about vertebrates and invertebrates (though Uncle Say would be a better teacher at this. Ha). We saw many many cockroaches. Those damned things which M said Fear Factor participants needed to crunch and munch. All for US$50K. I shudder!

Oh! And up an excitement notch - there was celebrity sighting. Heh. Jacelyn Tay with an unidentifiable guy friend. She was casual, very lanky and very fair. Can give Snow White a run for her money (woohoo!). Rather nice-looking.

Away...

Hanoi, Vietnam...here I come. 19 & 20 Oct: OoO and OoB.



OoO: Out of Office
OoB: Out of Blogger

3rd Appointment

Today. At 1430 hours at SGH.

'Tis the day for me to find out which direction in my life I will be heading.

Trivia - What's in a name?

I realise that black women possess very nice and unique names. Omarosa (The Apprentice I), Solange & Beyonce (the famous Knowles sisters), Fantasia (American Idol 3), Condoleezza (the influential Ms Rice...need I type more?), etc.

Definitely beat the ones which Singaporean Chinese girls use to call themselves - "Erisline", "Xaverie" (my company), "Chantel" (posers who die die wanna be Ford models) and many more which my clogged mind can't think of now.

OK, end of trivia for now. Time to get ready for the serious stuff at work ("Geek Meeting" starts in 10)....and let's hope Indonesia signs the anti-haze contract and North Korean stops nuclear testing.

:DDDDD

Flu Condition

My sneezing and mucus flow have not abated one bit...this plus just 3 hours of sleep....I am ready to bite anybody who gets too near me. I better like your face.

Weekend

It was a nice weekend. I call it the Becky-turns-4 Weekend.

13 Oct
Becks got a very nice DIY card from school. She sprinkled all the glitter in the alphabets "HAPPY BIRTHDAY" and produced a nice piece of 'artwork' with her gong gong in the evening. :)

I keep telling myself I want to frame all these works and her photos...but been procrastinating to shop for nice but simple photoframes.

14 Oct
Though it was so unfortunate that Mong was down with fever with no known reason (no spots/blisters too!), it didn't stop us from visiting Sentosa's Underwater World on Saturday morning.

The last time we went there was exactly 2 years ago....only with Becks, when the monorail was facing its last days. This time, we drove straight there, busted $51.50 to experience the cool dark world to see the fishies, jelly fish, dugongs, sharks and many others. And this time, Becks can remember what she saw and relate to her por por and gong gong. :)

Frankly, Sentosa is just a boring place. Still. Decades ago Mom already joked about "Sian-tou-sei" ("boring to death" in Cantonese). Now with so much construction going on, the heat + haze, with buildings called Artist Village but only have workers lying around catching a shut-eye, what is there to do and see there????

Yes, you're right. I'm not a beachy person. The IR better be up and about fast.

Anyways, we swung by Beach Road Prawn Mee along East Coast Road for lunch. We parked outside 52 Telok Kurau Lorong N and took a reminiscent walk to the eating place.

The prawn mee sucked. A few years ago, I would ask for a 2nd bowl of soup. That day I couldn't even finish the 1st one. It was diluted! Bye bye prawn mee stall. You ain't getting this repeated customer anymore!

15 Oct
Becky turns 4! At 6:50pm, I think...4 years ago.

Now she's a girl who memorizes my cell phone number, dials them herself and has a decent conversation with me.

Survival

Survival tip for today: Panadol Cold pills.

4 of them. 2 after breakfast and 2 after lunch...before I head home.

*aaaachoo....!!!*

"Wretched Place"

As Keathan has aptly called it, I found the name and ADDRESS of the place (refer to my entry on 5 Oct)!

Il Fiore Ristorante Italiano
50 Raffles Place
#B1-01 Shell Tower

Yes, the place (Italian?) which sells small plates of hor fun and small-of-everything-else-I-bet at an average of S$15. Siao.

FOLKS, STAY CLEAR!

Rain!

It's raining, it's pouring,
the old man is snoring......

What I basically want to say is - finally it's raining! Yay! I think since the haze started, we haven't felt a drop from the skies above. I hope the air will clear a lot more and stop giving me 'em itches around my eyes and nose.

Lunch was with my Financial Planner, Susan. I haven't seen her for a while so catching up was good. She brought me to Keong Saik Street to have some hor fun and chicken in some dark sweet sauce and lots of garlic. Very yummy. Very 'my kind'. Oh, and while we were chatting, when I should be looking at Susan (because it is only polite!), I was looking out at the streets and saw Glenn Goei (the local chap who gave us Forever Fever) walk past. He looks young and nice in person.

Whatever.

It's raining!!!

Achievement

Significant words/sentences Mong has been saying more than once since the last therapy session: push, open door, on TV, watch TV, help, walk, run, pass urine, hide, found it, what animal is this?, touch the owl (there's his current favourite book from the library), kiss kiss the owl.

I'm very proud of him. :) Ganbate-ne!

I didn't mention that M and I finally brought him to view the school at Punggol. It's a really nice place. Spacious with smiley teachers speaking good English. The only scary part is the fees would cost S$1,280 for 10 weeks, excluding the fare for the daily 2-way bus trips.

But I saw the practical learning materials and the non-classroom concept and I know at age 3, it would suit Mong tremendously, sustain his interest which only has a span of 5-10minutes. He cannot be confined to a small chair, seated by the table doing worksheets and colouring for 40 minutes (this was the time-table I saw when I visited the other centre opposite my flat. Of course the fees was also 3 times lower lah...)...so only Mommy knows, or rather wants the best for him.

Increasing Preference

I am beginning to love creamy peanut butter with plain milk bread...(make the creamy peanut butter very thick, please)

News (I hope not!)

The next 3 days will be crucial. I am hoping I will not get that call.

It's true why they say - no news is good news.

Wedding Dinners

Congratulations to D & E...their big day is next Monday, 9 Oct.

I won't be attending though.

Wedding dinners are NOT for re-connection, not as a gathering with other people whom I know or used to know well and definitely not with the couple (hello, would I be able to get past 2 sentences with you???).

There was an ex-colleague who emailed me out of the blue, inviting me to her wedding on 14 Oct. I barely talked to her during the days she was here, then a few MSN exchanges, courteous ones. I think she didn't not dislike me. When I told her I couldn't make it *yah rrrrright!*, she replied: "What a pity. I thought I would be able to catch up with you." ("replied" cos the whole communciation exchange was done via email. We dun even have each other's cell numbers. OK OK, I know point taken).

Bottomline is: Be sensitive to your guests. I know it's your big day but you want your guests to celebrate this big day with you...SO! Your guests are as important, if not, more important than you.

This is just me speaking...and I'm not asking for concensus.

But I am sincerely eagerly waiting to attend a few more wedding dinners of some real good friends...and my sister :P

Lunch (with Debs)

I dunno what to put as header. I wanna put an obscenity but it won't justify my meeting with lovely Debs, my dear friend whom I haven't met for the longest time. And I thought I won't be blogging for the day anymore but hell, I won't. I can't!

So I should be blogging about happy thoughts, happy meet-up session, happy meal, right? NO, again I can't.

I was just led into a BIG SWINDLE. With stairs spiralling down to an European eatery (can't even remember its name...maybe it's Le What-The-Fuck. Whatever!), it starts interestingly enough. Debs said her friend told her local food was actually served as well but there was none on the menu. The waitress clad in a low-waisted denim skirt (gee, I think they all were! A different version of Hooters?), seemingly more interested in looking at herself than serving others (I saw her glance a few times at herself in the big mirror behind me) took our orders.

Debs: I heard you serve local food.
Waitress (with a whatever facial expression, whatever body language): Yes.
Debs: But I dun see them on the menu!
Waitress: You can just order.
Debs(ever so patient still): How would I know what you have?
Waitress: Hor fun, fried rice,....
Debs: Oh OK, what do you put in them? Like seafood.....?*probing on*
Waitress: Anything.
Me: *very amused now*
Debs: So it's like one's own concoction. Interesting. I'll have...........

So anyway, our 2 small plates of hor fun came, with 1 plate of otah (6 small pieces) ...which they recommended.

1.5 hours later, the bill came. $46.23. I AM FUCKING REELING FROM SHOCK OK! I gave my credit card to the waitress with aplomb (perhaps cos Debs was 4 months pregnant, looking oh-so-cute-and-sweet-and-serene in her current working attire and condition)...but the minute we parted, I think I must have cursed 10,000 times consecutively.

So here I am, immersed with regret and anger. Anger cos it marred the otherwise-memorable meet-up with Debs. :( Till Dec when she returns to Singapore for good....

A Xeno for You...

Thanks to JC, apparently always loving serious shite, for introducing XenoboySG to me. Though most of the time, I find myself lost in his cheem analysis and choice of words (but can pick up good vocabularly to impress the socks outta the Japs eh! Yea! *Heehee*), the latest entry on 4 Oct is a must-share.

http://xenoboysg.blogspot.com/

What a Pest!

I mean it literally. I killed 2 rather big cockroaches this week applying the same method - whacked 'em flat with newspaper, scooped with a piece of tissue and crushed between my thumb and index finger.

I dunno why I'm not freaked by them but extremely by even a small lizard. Perhaps 'bravery' also emerged cos thank God they weren't the flying sort. :P

Good news...1st

Debs dropped me an email informing that she's back in Singapore (for a while) and that she's 4 months into her pregnancy, oblivious to her condition during the entire 1st trimester! Lucky her!

I'm meeting this close long-lost (or not? Only I can answer this...) friend of mine tomorrow. To see how she looks like now, to catch up and most of all, to ease her anxiety of what's ahead. We were tight 15 years ago. That's how long we've known each other now.

I lost my voice. Could be the dinner yesterday...chicken? Penne? But it was oodles of fun. "Fun"...To bitch without guilt. Took lots of pics which I believe most would end up censored. Thanks to the 2 (again) for understanding that I had a 'curfew'. As ridiculous as it sounds, I had to stick to the timing to get home. It's a way of saving me from the guilt trip; to maintain whatever social life I have left and not feeling bad not spending time with my family, especially the troops.

Till the next girls' outing....(JB??????????)

Appointment@SGH

It is fixed. 2:30pm tomorrow.

Am I too late?
I hope...and I pray.

Friendship

What is most volatile?

Not turpentine. To me, it is friendship. How many of them have come and gone? How many have been your best companions at one time only to fade away the next? How many of them have sounded so convincingly sincere only to 'fly you aeroplane' many times?

I'm glad some of you have really stuck around for a long time (you know who you are *smiles). These 2 mates of mine - Michelin and :B, hit the top spot last night though.

Michelin has discovered this online baking shop and ordered some cupcakes for her love. She didn't forget about her 2 friends. Advised to be taken within 3 days from the day of preparation, yesterday was the 'last day'. Mondays are lousy for me to meet friends so having understood that, these 2 came right to my doorstep for the 'special delivery'. Yes and may I add they loitered around CP so as to give time for my troops to finish their dinner properly.

Shamelessly, I've stolen this pic of the cupcake from Michelin's blog to show you how cute it is (it is yummy!).

Tonight is our long-awaited dinner and catchin up+bitchin aka Bitch Fest. Hope :B didn't forget to bring the digital camera. As her departure is approaching, I'm hoping to seal these moments more.

Quotable Quotes

#1

Becks in a toilet cubicle, just finished urinating. Another woman in the next cubicle doing it...and loudly (come to think of it, why was it so loud? Distance between hole and bowl was great???)

B(very audibly): Wow, that person has a lot of urine.
Me: Yes, she drank a lot of water...and that's good. It's good for our system.
B: Oh.

#2

Becks and I were playing bubbles in an open space.

B: Why do the bubbles burst?
Me: *pause...cos I didn't know the answer!*(sounding confident before I found my voice) Because they are light.

#3

We were in the car with Life House playing in the radio.

B: My favourite song, where?!!
Me: You forgot your mannerssss...
B: *clears throat* Please Papa, play my favourite song.
M: *switches from Life House to Hall & Oates, Track 1*.

ps: Yes, Becks has very good taste.

#4

Mong rushing to grab my legs: Hug hug Mommy!

Prawn Mee

Enough of bad food. If I had my hands on a camera, I'd take and post a pic of the big bowl of prawn mee I had with DDD just now. Especially that dark murky prawn soup.

Or maybe I'm just a true blue local gal at heart.

They sucked!

Silent Hill and Billy Bombers.

OK, to be fair, for starters Silent Hill isn't my kind of movie...but I was made curious by its cover and its reviews on imdb.com and M. Some images were pretty disturbing and I found them flashing across my mind at night, when I was brushing my teeth. Dunno whether the sick part of me wants to prove I'm an imsomniac deep down.

It's been many years since the last trip to Billy Bombers. With the beef patty no longer appealing and costing a total of S$50 for 2 people, I'll just skip the main meal next time and have the malt shake (I speak for only the chocolate one!). Satisfaction guaranteed. Enough.

Jealousy

Becks hasn't been herself lately. Not smiling as much, more snappy, more glum. I notice it gets worse when Mong goes "hug hug Mommy!". Now he's even more cute, having progressed to "kiss kiss Mommy!" I see the effects of the 'extra verbal stimulation' on Mong. It's really a lot of hard work though.

I should know jealousy being the 1st child. It never struck me as that when I was younger why I LOVED torturing my younger sister. That seeing her cry was my biggest achievement. I think my mom made it worse by being convinced that I was born with a 'black heart' (direct translation from Cantonese).

Anyway it's gonna get tougher. To NOT focus on one child. How do couples have more than 2? Speaking of this, I'm reminded to visit the Lims. 3rd child, Matthias was recently born.

PS: For those who know me well, my relationship with my sis is actually pretty good now. :)

Zoo...again!

Airport or....zoo?

We let Becks make a decision and she chose the latter so we found ourselves going back there sooner than expected. Heh. This time we took a different route - to the Children's Zoo. The whole trip was about 2 hours or less. It was cut short by the heavy rain.

Nonetheless it was pretty nice cos again we saw something new. The entrance was much improved and there was a new addition (or more?) - mountain goats. The landscape was beautifully done.

I suggested to :B that she ought to visit it one more time - understand it's been 4 years for her - before her job stint in Japan. She isn't expected to return till at least 2 years...

Kids Experimental

I woke up at 4:30am to go to the loo and couldn't fall back to sleep afterward. I found my mind spiralling to find some reason, some excuse NOT to go for long-distance business trips, mainly the upcoming one to Brazil. My heart was even beating with anxiety.

I finally got a 'taste' of it. If I were to seek for any new job, regardless of better pay and position, if I'm required to travel, I'll definitely be VERY miserable. So I really cannot compromise on this part.

The day didn't start well with Becks screaming that she didn't want to go to school for her Children's Day celebration. I literally had to drag (with coaxing of cos) her up the bus. When I fetched her back in the noon, she was all smiles again.

We had our usual time together, having lunch and tea at CP with her favourite coin-pieces of barbeque pork. I swear being with her will make me fat. The food...and the wonderful company.

How nice it will be to have a long weekend regularly...but 'twas the last company holiday for the year. Sigh.

Anyway what I saw on the way to CP was appalling. Maybe I've been too good a kid *heh* or it's been so long for me that I can't remember how adolescents can be. 2 secondary schoolboys, walking along the street shouted at 2 secondary schoolgirls whom they know apparently. They turned back and one of the boys flung an half-empty mineral waterbottle at them. The bottle smashed at the impact of cos, water spilling and they left it there, on the ground. Damn them LITTERBUGS! Then my judgement was cut short when one of the girls screamed back: "You! Chao Ch** B**!" (THAT top-notch obscenity) And the boys laughed, both couples walking in opposite directions.

I think Becks was too busy looking at something else cos she didn't comment on the scene. Luckily. I was just too stunned for words.

Then further up, I saw a group of restless students seated on the floor, passing a ciggie around.

I wonder if I'm prepared for parenthood. It's definitely not for the weak-hearted.

Brazil...do I really need to???

Agenda drawn out, dates fixed, Thai counterpart has agreed to go, Boss has given green light....now to check with the customer.

Here's the flight route and schedule from Singapore to Brazil.

Connection: SIN- Frankfart - Paulo - Manaus
SIN Frankfrat : 1350- 0830hrs
Frankfart - Paulo: 1035 - 1715hrs
Paulo - Manaus: 0900 - 1150hrs

Upon arrival, it'll be a 11-hour time difference. I'm gonna be so jet-lagged. It would definitely take more than 100 cups of Brazilian coffee for me to survive.

*Cross my fingers (that the trip will not materialise!)*

The (Wo)Men Just Dun Get It Too...

I understand why people go for Botox, I understand why people go from Cup A to B, or B to C, etc. I dun understand this!

Thanks to :B on her Social Studies education, I only learnt about ganguro yesterday. I swear the Japanese amaze me more and more by the day.

With :B's approaching departure for Japan (to work), I've requested for her to source for the sick and twisted horror Japanese movies which I've seen in the past and dearly missed now.

Therapy Session...again

I am on half-day leave this afternoon. Finally the day has arrived for Mong to see another speech therapist. It is just behind my office building and this therapist apparently offer weekend sessions. Whatever the outcome, thanks to DDD for helping.

He has been showing signs of improvement, however, maybe being his mother, I am not satisfied and believe he is still behind his milestone curve. I only hope sending him to a playgroup next year can accelerate his progress. This becomes my mission on top of my list - to source for a suitable (big key word) playgroup. It may involve busting some buckeroos. :P

I need to make a conscious effort not to get lost in the whirlwind of events and neglect Becks. She is growing up fast. While I cleared the drawers, I found some digital photos of the troops 2 years ago. They have grown so much. I really miss them A LOT, being babies, being toddlers...but then that was a really very tiring part of my life so most of all, I'm just glad it's moved on.

Nesting Instinct

It's been a long long time since both troops slept by 10pm. Last night, with so much time on hand (and a firm believer that I shouldn't watch TV after 9pm for fear of 'visual stimulation' which can lead to insomnia), my nesting instinct naturally kicked in.

I opened up all 3 burstin drawers and started clearing them. Very very satisfied.

Next stop: wardrobe and troops' toys.

Senseless

Does it make sense? 2 people in a section. 2 of them "Assistant Managers".

1 of them is already seated here for 2.5 years. The other was here for an interview. We have been having difficulty finding the 'right candidate'. Maybe like the 'right man', it doesn't exist but Boss is not convinced.

So after 1 hour of arduous questioning and another few (draggy) minutes of discussion, Boss' decision was not to hire. YAWN! What is new????? Actually is there really a need for another one? Or are we just going through the motion...for the past 9 months?

Do you work for a boss whose vision you do not believe in or worse, cannot see?

xoxoxoxo

Lunch was with Jennifer who had her usual truckload of interesting theories to share.

I have been lunching with friends from 'outside'. Since my 2 kakis left the Shenton Way/Tanjong Pagar scene, I haven't found a regular colleague to lunch with who would not stop talking about work or other colleagues. Shallow conversational topics tire me.

Innovative Mooncakes

I found out today that TT without the right company is not as sweet.

I had the craving right after lunch so I ordered one for myself. I was alone....
I found myself hurrying through it, cursing that it cooled so slowly and gulping down to make my 60c worth. NOT the way to savour a cup of heaven.




'Tis the lantern festival soon. The Division has been receiving many boxes of mooncakes from vendors. The latest comes from Raffles Hotel. Snowskin with chocolate-and-wine filling. Colleagues swear it's expensive, it's good. I just tried one...my skin crawled. GROSS. Call me boring - I seriously still prefer the brown skin with lotus paste (with or without yolk).

*Feel like puking now...*

Spam!

Monday mornings are worsened with 50+ spam mails in your office account. The IT GM once commented to prevent it is "very difficult". Bah...! Simply incompetent.

So going through the usual routine of deleting senders whose names are not close to familiar, I read the remaining official ones. I dealt with a Brazilian customer by the name of Letitia a few times so I didn't expect this when I opened the email.

If the mountain won't come to Muhammad, Muhammad must go to the mountain.. There's always a deep breath before a plunge. If three people tell you that you are drunk, you better lie down. Politics makes strange bedfellows. Pain is only weakness leaving the body. U.S. Marines proverb Law is the solemn expression of legislative will. CODE NAPOLEON Purely bluster and no substance. Don't take any wooden nickels. Possible Interpretation: Accomplishing two things with a single action. Interpretation: If you are going to do something, do it right. Two's company, three's a crowd. See also Dorothy Parker: You can lead a horticulture, but you cannot make her think. Don't remove winter vests (undergarments) until summer arrives. A woman's work is never done. Sticks and stones may break my bones but words will never hurt me. The head and feet keep warm, the rest will take no harm. Meaner than a junk-yard dog. Clothes make(th) the man. Christian New Testament All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy. Honesty is the best policy. Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me.

Funny as it is, yes, it did not have paragraphing. Argh.

Promise fulfilled

M and I didn't forget to bring extra clothes....so we did spend quality time with the troops in the pool :)

Sunday evening after dinner was spent as usual at MPH, at Becks' (or mine?) favourite section - Dr Seuss. So you figured, I didn't get to watch Singapore Idol Finals. Heh. So how ah, who's gonna win?

Saturday - let's recap.

Breakfast was with Ichiro and Dad at MacD's. The kids had a wild time playing with bubbles.

Exhausted and 2 hours later, we met up with sis and Say for lunch. It's been a long time. Good ole company I can always count on. It almost didn't materialize cos the minute sis picked us up from our place, some light came on. Not the engine light, not the fuel light. Some light...which was shining bright and WARNING that you'd better do something.

So luckily, there was a petrol kiosk nearby with an Autoserv. The gracious mechanic, despite many many cars awaiting for service, came over and checked for us. He said it was basically OK to drive 'not long distances'. Tampines seemed fine...luckily Say didn't have to take another bus to meet us at CP (still Say, thanks for not minding if you had to).

And yes Say, CONGRATS for finding a new job in a completely different line. For better or worse, at least it's a shot at a brand new beginning. Good luck!

Mentos

I forget how addictive Mentos , the fruity flavoured one, can be.

I bought a tube, knowing that Becks love them but succumbing to temptation...and boredom, I ripped it and ate 5 dragees in less than 5 minutes. Dun blame me, the top 5 happened to be in my favourite colour/flavour - yellow.

*5...and counting...*

Black Coffee

I wish Boss will quit drinking his black coffee.

At about 10am every single working day, you will hear him sorting coins from his wallet, putting them in his pocket and heading out. To Starbucks downstairs.

These Japanese must really be highly paid. They cannot seem to bring themselves to consume the 3-in-1 or 2-in-1 available in the pantry. They must have this atas coffee costing an insane $5 per cup.

OK, I've digressed. Anyway, my concern is, his breath freakin STINKS! I swear I hold my breath each time he comes over and talks to me. It is a stunt - doing that, smiling and nodding all at the same time, trying to look like I am understanding every single thing he says when all I can think of is - wahlau, it really smells.

Obligations

I fulfilled 2 today.

I am clad in a considered-very-formal-by-my-and-this-office-standard formal long-sleeved shirt to meet and greet some big shot from Japan. I also sat through an hour-long presentation in JAPANESE without looking bored and stifling yawns in-between.

Talk about 1st class EMOTE. :P

And so the story goes....

No, I'm not blogging from the airport. I'm back in my (shit?)hole...in the office.

Early in the morning, I missed 3 calls from Boss. I knew it must be urgent so I returned it and was told to cancel my flight because NO, I DID NOT KNOW that Thailand has been declared a 'state of emergency' under martial law at 3am!!! Trying not to sound stupid/ignorant (can they be mutually exclusive?), I thanked him and said I would report to office as usual.

Personally, I'm glad. Becks has 'ordered' me to come home every night yesterday. I told her to please speak with my boss. Now, I dun have to disappoint a soon-to-be-4-year-old. :)

Professionally, I'm anxious. Cos there is a truckload of issues to discuss and settle with the Thai counterparts! Whatever they are not doing is creating this negative and intolerable spill-over effect on us. Looks like we have to grit our teeth and endure it a while more.

To places I (don't want to) go?!

I used to love travelling...with my family. Then I started working and the yearly holidaying stopped completely with them. I miss my dad's spirit of adventure, superb planning skills and generiosity.

Now, travelling is all about business trips. I just ended a discussion with Boss. He told me to 'travel more soon' as the Travel Budget for 2006 is under-utilized! Suggested customers in Vietnam, Indonesia, Taiwan, India...and Brazil!

Rewind 6 years, I would have jumped at the chance. To see the world which I would otherwise not have been willing to part my own money with to see, to escape from the monotony of daily operations...BUT.

No thank you. Simply bad timing.

PS: To Bangkok I go tomorrow! Till Friday...

That 'Dreaded Dinner'

Oh, I didn't mention about the dinner I had on Friday. It wasn't so bad. :P We went to Hot Stones at Clarke Quay. Wonderful food except that I was smelling like barbecued beef (or how do you call it on hot stove - grilled?) all over in a matter of few minutes. My hair and skin got really oily and I was trying to shift my focus on the 2 nihon-jin in front of me (guest and Boss).

Luckily the guest didn't look and sound like she came from the mountains. She had her own sense of humour and could speak decent amount of English. And Boss, surprise surprise, was all charming and was striking up interesting enough conversational topics.

Still......let's not do it again lah. Not so soon.

Paranoia

I could really use more of impromptu lunches. Just now, I had another one with RJ again (we met last Monday).

She should be much busier than her current situation except that her partners are absolutely paranoid with her spreading the disease to them (and their babies) so she's 'isolated' from the new shop and can only run errands. You see, her 2 sons just contracted HFMD.

I know 1 of her partners had great difficulty conceiving and carrying the baby for 9 months...but to strap yourself with paranoia for the rest of your life, it's not gonna be an easy ride...for herself and those around her. Then my imagination started wandering to the cutlery we use in hawker centres, seats (ANY seats) our asses lay on, the poles our hands cling on for support (bus, MRT), THE HANDS WE SHAKE WHEN WE MEET NEW PEOPLE AT WORK, etc.

We can run but we cannot hide.

Water!

We accompanied the kids to play with water at the in-laws'....yes, 'accompanied'...cos we weren't playing the main role (actually M & I bumped into them at the lift landing)...and yes again, 'play with water' cos the troops weren't exactly swimming; we adults were not clad appropriately and did not even bring extra clothes to change!

So they had fun, all in about 20 minutes...only. I promise I will play a more active role next Sunday. :P

Of course my weekends aren't completed without 'my personal time', i.e. DVD Time. Rented The Descent for lack of new releases.

Did you know I absolutely cannot watch horror? Yes, I will be scared chicken shit. After The Ring (please....the Japanese version one) which left me traumatized for months, I no longer long for the thrill from watching horror movies. I had to ask M many times for assurance that the movie would leave me with no nightmares and also sms the opinion from my '2 crazy galfriends'. OK, nothing horrifying so I proceeded to watch. It turned out to be entertaining. Phew.

A Dreaded Dinner...tonight

I can't bear the thought of spending an additional minute with the company. Friends who know me know I live very hard by the "OTD* Policy".

My boss has to squash my TGIF mood by requesting (and assuming I am free. I RESENT THIS SO MUCH!) that I join dinner with a guest from Japan tonight.

Luckily Nat is joining too. She is one of the very few in my team whom I like and believe whose company I can enjoy.

*OTD=On the dot

Singapore Idol Result

Another confession...need I elaborate?

Singapore Idol

I have a confession....no....two.

I finally caught more than 5 minutes of it last night.
And I agree with DDD, that Jonathon Leong may just succeed Taufik.

Snacking

I may have an idea what is giving my idle-ness away. I've been snacking on a huge pack of strawberry plums while working (or not) which is lasting me more than a week (I'm getting so addicted to them!). It doesn't help that I snack openly with ease.

For those who understand Japs well, they are not crazy about staff eating at their desk. I'm not talking about a packet of chicken rice. Dun let them catch sight of any kind of miniscule matter you put in your mouth and chew. They can be that uptight.

Anyway, I have a bad habit of snacking. I do it to relive boredom mainly. Anything works...maybe except gua zi. Too much work. I remember I would spend most of my allowance in primary school on packets of Twisties, Calbee, Cheezels and...Kaka! 20c for a piece of crappy toy! There are a lot more images flashing through my head now but I can't remember their names. Chocolates work best to reduce stress. I know of some friends (yes WL, you are one of them) who do not snack at all. How can one be so disciplined???

My life would have been so boring......

Biz trip again

I am scheduled to leave for Bangkok next Wednesday with SW again. The meeting should be an easy one to tackle without any Japanese Managers (read: very ineffective) present.

But what is dreadful is it would be another round of spoon-feeding. Boss wanted to let them come onboard the project 2nd phase....I'm beginning to suspect he can tell I am getting restless...and idle. :P

Growth

1. The troops

They are growing so fast...physically and mentally. They are beginning to play with each other more. Recently, they would put their hands on top of their heads at the same time, go "Mmmmm" for the longest time and then go "POP!" as loudly as they can, lifting up their arms in a V above their heads also at the same time. Then they'll break up in giggles. Sometimes hugging while giggling.

It takes away the cute-ness using so many words to describe the 'game' to you...but if you ever get to see it, it's really another Kodak moment. OK, maybe just for me, the mummy. :)

2. Zits

I thought zits mostly sprout on one's T-zone area (on the face). Well, not for me, not this time. 1 below my left eye that's been most stubborn, 1 at my left temple that seems to have a 'life' of its own. Red, throbbing, glaring, irritating...HIDEOUS.

Last night while I was playing rough with Mong, he accidently hit it. I was in pain! Thanks for the reminder, boy...

Pregnancy was the best thing that happened to me. Besides bearing the 'gift from God', blah blah, my complexion was never better! But then who would really notice me while I had put on 23 kg at the peak of the pregnancy.

I hope this is just a phase. Sigh, at this age I'd think I have passed puberty stage and be done with these 'monsters'.

PLEASE LET THE HEALING BEGIN!

A.A.Milne's LINES AND SQUARES

This is what I got from RJ. I had an impromptu lunch with her. It was overdue too. I haven't seen her for a while especially with her new (and bigger) shop-moving. Oh hey, and because I like this gal a lot, let me do this for her. Check out her shop here.

So what is "Lines and Squares"? It came in the form of paper strips, ones with grids, bound together. Each strip, because of its size, holds only a 2-line stanza.

Whenever I walk in a London street,
I'm ever so careful to watch my feet;
And I keep in the squares,
And the masses of bears,
Who wait at the corners all ready to eat
The sillies who tread on the lines of the street,
Go back to their lairs,
And I say to them, "Bears,
Just look how I'm walking in all the squares!"
And the little bears growl to each other,
"He's mine,
As soon as he's silly and steps on a line."
And some of the bigger bears try to pretend
That they came round the corner to look for a friend;
And they try to pretend that nobody cares
Whether you walk on the lines or squares.
But only the sillies believe their talk;
It's ever so important how you walk.
And it's ever so jolly to call out, "Bears,
Just watch me walking in all the squares!"

Produced on a manual Olivetti LETTERA 82 typewriter
Copyright. Milne A.A.

/ we are BooksActually

It's so cute! And thanks to her, I found out that Milne is the guy behind Winnie the Pooh. I dun fancy Pooh but I appreciate the history and background. :P

Insomnia

No, it was so NOT WORTH IT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I only managed to fall asleep at 6:30am....and had to wake up at about 8am.
I am not sure if it was related directly to the big cuppa TT I had but I swear it was the last time. Well, at least till the next decade.

My 15-minute nap saved my sanity.

Anyway, I also went for my much-belated eyebrow tweezing session at East Point. I am now convinced only Anita can do it. I wanted her but she wasn't free and considering it was so last minute, I decided to let this young gal, pretty and obviously a fashionista with very very bad teeth, do it. And now, I'm officially bald. The end of my left eyebrow that is.

Huuuuuge TT

Lunch was at my mom's. It's been so long since we went there cos it's usually drop-and-go.

I was craving for a TT; haven't had it (at Amoy) since my kakis left.
I wasn't expecting a 'dinosaur' size. $1.50...it was worth it.

To the zoo we go!

What's a leave application during the school holiday? Asking Becks for her choice on where to go, the answer is always the same. Well, most of the time.

The weather was darn fine. Also because of good pacing, I did not develop a headache. :)

FOZ membership expires in Nov 06. Time for renewal. Ha.

Garden City

Thanks to IMF, I haven't seen so many potted plants and flowers on my way to work for a long time.

Nice...

"Project"....NOT.

Sigh...and so my "project" has failed. :B and I will forever have 2 differing views which can never be supported by statistics.

I conclude:
1. My blog has no readers (those who have left their comments are actually fictitious).
2. My blog has no male readers.
3. My blog has no real and/or human male readers (only dog/s trained miraculously to recognize words but not type).
4. My male blog readers are shy.
5. My male blog readers cannot be honest.

ps: Yes I'm bored again. Hey, I caught this very nice song on radio this morning. Listened on for the DJ's intro though I already reached the office. By Backstreet Boys. Dun judge me.

Chocolate...no more?!

McD's has phased out the chocolate-flavoured ice cream for their waffle cones. The 95c ones. I found this out 2 days ago when I stood in line to buy one.

I CAN'T BELIEVE IT. Really????? Singaporeans prefer vanilla to chocolate ice cream??????

Many years ago, I already couldn't believe it that McD's stopped selling their milkshakes. Cheap and good. Maybe then I was the only one who loved it. But hey, it's been revived.

Once bitten, twice not shy?

Mood

Have you seen the big ads in Metro lately? I'm-in-a-I-feel-like-shopping-mood-today, blah blah.

So I'm inspired. I'm in a I-dun-want-to-talk-about-it mood now.

Just kidding. I'm just tickled by the picture. Actually I found it while looking through shots posted as tribute to the late Steve Irwin.

"Project"

I'm doing a l'le project here. It's just a simple question that requires an honest answer, preferably from males.

Are all males (straight, non-straight, handsome, ugly, young (hopefully above 12), old (to infinity and beyond),...wait...let me rephrase - male HUMAN BEINGS) into porn?

Troops' Day

How lovely if Monday is an off-day every week.

I dunno if I am getting verb-obssessive with Mong. I am really trying. I have also started toilet-training with him. Once every 1-1.5 hour. It was successful 4 times (out of 6-7 I think). I tell you, one can never imagine my thrill out of seeing urine sprout and him smiling back at me while looking at the 'fountain'. Pretty special moment. :P

It has also been a very looooong time since I had lunch with Becks. Just mother and daughter. We took the bus and had lunch & tea.

I had my own usual time in the noon. Rented a French comedy - The Secret Adventures of Gustav Klopp. I am amazed I can even remember the full title and get drawn by it. Turns out French humour is really tops... I am also lucky to find the lead played by the very cute dude in Love Me if You Dare, Guillaume Canet.

The evening was spent playing bubbles. Did not succeed in encouraging Mong to say 'more' or 'again' though. Damn. I will try again (read: obssessive).

Working resumes tomorrow...and I was just getting used to be a full-time mother (oh?).:P