Shen Nong @ Carpenter Str

I went to Shen Nong Traditional Physiotherapy at Carpenter Street yesterday. The ambience is certainly better than their previous location at Holland village. Prices are still the same - $45 for 1 hour massage. They have 3 therapists (2 females and 1 male) and I got 琴 to massage for me (luckily it's not another 小红). She's been in this trade for 5 years but she only joined Shen Nong after they relocated to Carpenter street. I think she's really good, always spot-on on the problematic areas. I think todate, she's the best I've ever come across :) It's not easy to find a good masseuse and I actually felt a bit 'panic' when she told me she intends to return to China eventually :P

I've already booked a second appointment with her this Thurs for 1.5hr massage. Gotta loosen my stiff neck & choulders before I go for my trip ;) 琴 is off on Wednesdays if you're thinking of making appointments with her.

思

有希望就会有失望，有爱就会有痛。得不到的，无需可惜，也无需强求。得到的，同样也会失去。人生本来就是短暂的，何必这么在乎呢？

Brownee & Mel

Meet my latest collection, Brownee - a soft, huggable brown bear with sparkling black eyes. He came with a little toy bear whom I named Mel. Thanks Casper for the pressie :) He's now having sleepless nights wondering if he gets to go with me for the coming trip :P

Is your hair healthy?

A little something that I learned today...
To find out if your hair is damaged and can withstand further chemical processing, simply take a few strands of your hair and put them in a glass of water. If they sink, this means that your hair is damaged and is soaking up the moisture. If it floats, it means your hair is healthy.

I found Nemo

Spotted this cute, little clown fish at a famous fish farm in Lim Chu Kang last weekend. I managed to take a few pictures before the staff came over with the ever famous 'no photography allowed'. Don't understand what's the logic but who cares, I've already got my favourite shot ;)

Ouch Ouch

Thanks to my strained shoulder, I finally got to try out theTCM massage that Ros recommended. It's tucked away in a nice, quiet estate in Ang Mo Kio. Putting the massage aside, I think the best thing about this place is the ample parking space and the koptiam few units away from the TCM shop :) The downside? Not within walking distance from the train station.

I didn't manage to get the masseuse (Lily) that Ros recommended but got 小红 instead. I wonder why so many masseuses have this name? Maybe it's auspicious and easy to remember? :P Anyway, I suffered under 小红's powerful hands for an hour. I thought her strokes were a bit too fast for me to catch my breath and I had to tell her 轻一点 a few times. My muscles felt loosen the next day though I felt more pain, which is pretty common after massage.

I went back again 3 days later to continue part 2 of my massage. It was a 1.5hr massage and the focus was on my back. After many 轻一点 and 很痛, I felt like I've been battered all over but I know I should get better the next day. It's almost like a norm that I'll feel sleepy after a massage and this was no exception either. I went home right after that and had a nap so good it took me a while to realise what day it was when I woke up.

Meteor Shower

There's going to be a meteor shower in mid August. According to NASA, it's going to be a 'great show' as the moon is new on 12 Aug, which means no moonlight, dark skies and plenty of meteors. Wow, that sounds great to me :) The first time (one and only so far) I saw a shooting star was in Las Vegas in year 2000. I was on the overhead bridge when I spotted the bright spark that shot across the sky. It happened so unexpectedly and was such a pleasant surprise.

Come Aug 12, I'll be cruising on the Aegean sea *dreamy look*. I imagine myself lying on the deck late into the night, enjoying the sea breeze and watching the skies full of meteor shower.....so romantic, so out of this world *smiling to myself* Hopefully, the skies will be clear and the meltemi wind will take a break when I'm there. Let me witness meteor shower over the Aegean sea, even if it's just for once in my lifetime.

Dare u come again

It's 1.05am in the morning, the same time when the giant roach visited my bathroom last night. I can't help but wonder if it will come again tonight. As I open my bathroom door slowly, I saw something dark on the floor again. Grabbing my glasses quickly, I peek through the door....

Hurray!.... I won, I won :D The giant roach is dead! Kudos to WIPEOUT :))

Stop PESTering me

Why did God create lizards and cockroaches? I can understand that lizards are needed in the ecosystem but what about cockroaches?! What good do they bring to mankind? I was once asked which of these two do I detest more? Now I know the answer after my battle with them for the past few days.

I came back late one night last week only to be greeted by a roach that sneaked into my house the moment I opened the door. It was like a dark shadow, it moved so fast that my sleepy eyes almost missed it but I sensed there was an intruder and my brain was instinctively on high alert. Fortunately I just cleared the junk behind my door and there was no hiding place for it. I declared war immediately and got my baton (rolled newspaper) and Baygon ready.

This was a huge roach, and an intelligent one. Sensing that it has no place to hide, it went to the top of my door to play hide n seek with me. I felt so disgusted when I saw it peeping down from the top of my door with 2 of its antennas waving at me as if it's challenging me (grr....). I could almost hear it singing 'you cannot catch me...' I thought to myself either you get lost now or I'll make sure you die a terrible death. In the end, I chased it out but I think it didn't die though I gave it a dose of Baygon.

The next day, I updated my ammunition - WipeOut roach bait, Baygon with nozzel specially for crawling pests. I replaced all the WipeOuts at home and added new ones. It's funny how this little WipeOuts actually made me feel more secure. I was able to sleep in peace but that didn't last long...

Before I turned in last night, I spotted a lizard in my yard. Oh man...why can't you stop pestering me?? I got my weapons out and was ready to fight it out but heaven was not on my side. The strong winds meant that if I were to spray Baygon, I might be the one gone as the wind was blowing in my direction. I used a bamboo to chase it away but it was another military-trained lizard who knows who to dodge my moves. To make things worse, my opposite neighbour saw me at the yard in that embarrassing situation. Well, my hair was bun up and I certainly wasn't looking my best with so many barangs in my hands. He was quick enough to offer me a tip - get boiling water ready and pour it over the lizard once it drops down. Gosh, this is the first time I hear of such strategy! Did I try that? No. Why? Because I couldn't even get it down to the floor. I gave up in the end. I reasoned that it must have stayed put to seek shelter from the rain. Ok, I shall be benevolent for a night as long as you leave when the rain stops.

An hour later, I had another undesired visitor in my bathroom - gigantic roach again!! I got up to answer nature's call but the call was off the moment I saw the roach. My immediate reaction was to switch off the lights and shut the bi-fold door. I was contemplating if I should charge in with my weapons again or pray hard that my newly replaced WipeOut will do the job. I chose the latter as I don't want to risk having it escape into my room. I slept for a good 5hours but not without dreams of fighting roaches :s

Thank God when I woke up this morning, both the roach and lizard are gone. I've since added more WipeOuts and napthalene balls near the drainage areas, not forgeting to spray JIF near their hangouts. Will this suffice? I'm crossing my fingers and toes. Maybe I should upgrade my ammunition later again.

And yes, I conclude that roaches are more detestable than lizards. They are also seemingly smarter and oh oh......they can fly :s

Bus Lounge

Call me 'sua gu' or mountain tortise, I was pleasantly surprised with the bus interior when I took SBS service number 54 from Bishan last week. The entire bus interior was transformed into a lounge-like environment. The usual boring rows of seats were replaced by white PVC sofas and 2 high chairs near the entrance. Even the walls were lined with red velvety fabric. Though there were fewer seats but I guess no one will complain since the bus runs a loop service. Moreover the interior looks so refreshing, it gives one a relaxed feeling after a long day in the office. I wasn't the only one snapping picture, a little girl also striked a pose on the high chair for her mama to take picture. Wish I could stay in the bus longer but alas, I gotta get down after a few stops.

Oh, did I mention that this was actually a Nokia advertisment to promote a particular phone model? It wasn't just the conventional bus ad but they had it all over the interior. Unfortunately, the interior got me so distracted that I failed to recall which model it was :P

Pirates of the Caribbean

I can't believe I'm snapping pictures of tortises but these 2 fellows are really cute right? I spotted them at an aquarium shop in Bukit Batok.

Toys for adoption

I was being put in a difficult position when my sister called me today and asked if I want to adopt her children's stuffed toys. They (stuffed toys) have multiplied too fast and her kids have also grown tired of them. Gosh...this is one of the hardest thing for me. If I say no, they'll probably end up at the Salvation Army. If I say yes, well....the population in my home is already growing faster than the population of Singapore.

My close friends know that I have a soft spot for stuffed toys. They're like real pets to me. I get them clothes, caps, toys, beds etc. I bring them for car rides and I even bring them on vacations. All of them have names, and I mean unique names, no repetition ;) I even keep their original tags. Going by the number of tags, I think I probably have close to a thousand stuffed toys now. Yet, all of them are special to me :)

Some of my ex-colleagues have also asked me if I could adopt their stuffed toys when they springclean their cubicles. They probably know that their toys will be in good hands once they're with me. Sometimes, I have no choice but to harden my heart and reject them if I know I can't 'provide' for them or love them as much.

So, what's going to happen to my nieces' stuffed toys? Well, I didn't have the heart to reject them (the toys) outright so my sister said she will put them aside for my 'inspection'. Oh, poor little fellows.... if they have feelings, they must be so fearful now. Can they sleep tonite? Are they hugging one another bidding farewell? Are they rehearsing their sweetest smile so I might adopt them? Oh......