Thots on last day of 2008

Today is the last day of 2008. I had wanted to spend some time quietly and slowly progress into the new year. Unfortunately, my social calendar has been quite packed towards the end of 2008. Perhaps, I've been unrealistic to set deadlines and plan personal tasks during the last 2 weeks of the year, ignoring the fact that most of my friends are clearing leave and wanna have gatherings or outings.

Arrgh..... in a few hours, we'll be ushering in the new year but I'm not ready for 2009 yet. With activities lined up for the next few days, it looks like I can only do my reflection and have my quiet moments next Monday. Well, better late than never.

I got something to say

I cannot comprehend why Vivian Chow wants to marry Joe Nieh. Just 2 few weeks ago, he was caught having an affair with Mifty Zhang. Then came reports of teary-eyed Vivian wanting to break up. And now, suddenly they have patched back and are 'rushing' to get married?!?! This just don't make sense to me at all.

If Vivian can hear me..... Why marry him when he's not been good to you? Even if you want to marry him, you should make things difficult for him before saying 'I do'. Are you (two) trying to prove something by getting married? Or, you think he will change after marriage? Fat hope.

And the last thing I wanna say is .... if you can be together for 19 years without getting married, why not wait a little longer to prepare a 'proper', if not lavish wedding? Why rush into getting things done for an important lifetime event? If the ceremony is insignificant since you've been together for so long, then just register your marriage will do. Why bother to even have a few tables?....

I've banned this stall

If you ever go to Banquet foodcourt at Causeway Point 7th floor, think twice before you buy the chicken rice. I was there 2 days ago and got pissed off by the seller. I ordered a plate of chicken rice and he gave me a plate of rice with chicken skin and bones. I hardly see any meat underneath the skin. If it's just one or two pieces, that's fine but almost all the 'chicken' were skin and bones. The indian guy after me got a plate of nicely chopped chicken meat laid on rice.

I asked the cashier auntie why she gave me chicken bones when I ordered chicken rice? I flipped the chicken over to show her there's nothing but bones. That's when the seller stepped in and said in a loud voice to pass him the plate n he'll replace the chickens. As if it's my fault, he went on and said 'next time, if you want more meat, tell us when you place order'. Hey, I didn't ask for more meat ok, I only ask for chicken meat. I simply couldn't stand the arrogant attitude of the seller. If he thinks I'm a small eater hence give me bones, then he should be charging me lower price. Since I paid the full price, I should get what I paid for.

Anyway, the chicken rice wasn't fantastic either. The rice was too oily and salty. If you are at Causeway Point and have craving for chicken rice, go to the foodcourt on the 5th floor. They have Carona chicken rice as well as traditional Hainanese chicken rice. Taste and attitude are certainly much better.

Firefox-ed

I finally downloaded Firefox today. Thanks to the latest security threat on IE, I finally action upon what I've procrastinated for quite some time. The download process was a breeze and all my bookmarks etc were also imported effortlessly :) My initial concern of hassles were unfounded. Firefox also seems faster than IE. Hmm... looks like I might not return to IE anytime soon.

I also went to check out Google Chrome yesterday. Looks impressive and rather different user interface compared to IE browser. Why didn't I choose Chrome instead? It looks so clean and minimalist, I'm afraid I can't find what I want :P Then again, I believe it's a matter of getting used to it. Maybe I'll download Chrome sometime later, but definitely not before end 2008.

Not sure about you but IE does hang on me every now and then. If you've encountered the same and have had enough, maybe you wanna get Firefox too? Or maybe you already have it? (I'm considered a latecomer in Firefox :P )

Rekindled

I'm drowning in an endless stream of beautiful music.... By chance, I stumbled upon Youtube videos of piano pieces played by this guy nicknamed aznliii. From korean drama to Japanese anime to classical and pop songs, I'm totally captivated by his music. His music gives me the urge to pick up piano again.

Good news within bad news

I received a bad news yesterday. My bil and his family got into a car accident on Sunday. My mom was in the car too. They got hit at the back by an Audi when their car was stationary at a traffic light along Telok Blangah. The impact sent my bil's car dashing forward hitting the cab in front. The front and back of his car were badly dented.

My sister and my youngest niece were the only ones unhurt. They had their seat belts on. Though my bil had his on too, the impact from the collision sent him jerking forward and back and his neck got strained. As for my mom and my 3 nieces who were without seat belts at the back, some got it on the head, hands or neck and back. Fortunately, there wasn't any bleeding, just bruises and strains on the neck or back. But that's considered bad enough for my mom. Hopefully, all will be ok after seeing the doctor.

Sometimes, bad things do happen when it's none of our fault. What to do.... that's life.

No news is good news

These days we're bombarded with bad news every other day. Nothing seems to be certain or secure these days. Turn on the tv, flip the papers and all we see is economic woes, global financial crisis, food tainted with melamine...etc. Even shutting out the external news won't keep my mind free from bad news.

News reported that people are turning to thriller fiction books and feel-good movies for escapism. This is not surprising at all. Lately I find myself watching tv more often, maybe subconsciously, I'm escaping too. There're just too many things that bring frustration when I give thought to it. The best is not to think but that won't solve the matter either. No wonder people say 'ignorance is bliss'. Perhaps, we should all pretend not to know even when we know. Maybe life would be happier this way :)

Wild sanctuary

I made an accidental discovery of a new sanctuary in the wild last Saturday. Thanks to nature's call, I thought we could use the washroom facilities at the nearby Sungei Buloh Wetland Reserve for free (just like Botanic Gardens visitor centre). Unfortunately, it was located beyond the visitor centre entrance and we had to pay $1.00 park entrance fee, even if it's just to answer nature's call. Since we've already paid 2 bucks, I thought we might as well take a walk in there.

Within the 130ha of nature reserve, there are 3 routes and a mangrove boardwalk for you to choose in exploring nature. Route 1, approximately 3km passes through the mangrove habitat and takes 1-2hours to walk. Route 2 is about 5km and is also the reserve's longest boardwalk, requiring 2-3hours to explore. Route 3 is the longest at 7km (4-5hrs walk) and brings you to the freshwater habitat. The mangrove boardwalk is a mere 500m or 30min walk.

While at the visitor centre, I spotted a huge iguana swimming in the waters next to the visitor centre. I felt so 'sua-gu' as I've not seen a swimming iguana at such close range before. We did not take any of the routes as we were not in proper attire. We entered the reserve through one of the boardwalks and were taken in by the beauty of the greenery before our eyes. Beneath the boardwalk is flowing seawater with lots of different fishes swimming against the current. To the left of the boardwalk is an endless river with trees and mangroves lining the sides. To the right, you could see Johor even as the seawater flows out to the sea.

Passing the boardwalk, we came to a bird observation hide. The view before me reminded me so much of Africa safari. I never knew such beautiful place exist in Singapore. There were no concrete buildings in sight, no sounds of modernity, only nature at its very best. Different birds sang different tunes yet they were so harmonised, it was music to my ears.

We walked a little further after the bird observation hide. There were signs warning visitors of crocodile sightings in that area. I felt vulnerable as I was wearing sandals. We did not see crocs but saw 2 iguanas. One was a baby sunbathing next to our path. The other was probably a teen. It was a bonus that we caught it in action. It had swam out of the river with a fish in its mouth. To think that I wanted so much to see hunting scene in Africa (which I never got to), yet I saw it in our very own nature reserve.

Too bad my handphone camera is unable to take zoom in video. I took this post lunch picture of the teen iguana. See if you can spot it and the baby iguana in the foreground.

The sun got a bit hot around noon time and we decided to call it a day. It was an unplanned trip in the first place and we were not in the right attire. But I'll surely go back again with my walking shoes, hat, sunblock, water, mozzie repellant, axe brand ointment, walking stick (in case of crocs or other predators).

Passion for lie

It amazes me how some companies neglect their signboards even when the message becomes something totally different. I took this picture outside one of the companies located along Neo Tiew Road. When life is gone, all that remains is a lie :P

Evening visitor (Part 2)

This is the second video of my evening visitor. You can hear my phone ringing in the background ;) See how sweet and beautiful this fellow is...

Evening visitor (Part 1)

It was 7.50pm on a Wednesday evening. Darkness has covered the sky like a blanket. I was watching tv alone at home when I heard a knocking sound from my window. Turning my head, I saw what seemed like a white hand waving at me. I froze for a second. I stay on the 14th floor, how could anyone be knocking on my window? And what is that white thing waving at me? Memories of a similar encounter that happened 10yrs ago in Edinburgh came to my mind.

I walked closer to the window... through the day curtain, I saw that the 'white hand' was actually a bird. I was relieved and puzzled at the same time what brought the bird here. I was glad that my window was closed. Can you imagine what would have happened if the bird flew into my living room?! On closer look, I realised that it was not just any pigeon or mynah bird but a parrot! It was a huge white parrot, probably about 30cm in height. Was it injured? Where did it come from? Why did it stop at my window? How did it stay at my window when there's no ledge or anything for it to grip on? Why didn't it fly away when I walked closer? It doesn't seem to be afraid of me at all.

Being a fan of fantasy and fairytales, I even thought to myself if the parrot has a message for me? Maybe it will lead me to the medieval times to save a kingdom or liberate the people? I reached for my mobile phone to video the parrot. Initally, I took the video through the day curtain as I was afraid it might fly away once I draw the curtain. Soon, I realised that the parrot is one bold and curious fellow. It was apparent that the parrot saw me and was following my movement. As I slowly and cautiously pull the day curtain from the left, the curious fellow also moved curiously in the same direction. We were like playing games - to guess who's behind the drape :P When the 'veil' between us was finally lifted, the parrot's head was seen popping out from the edge of the curtain. Our eyes met and still, it was not afraid of me. I was so amazed and pleasantly surprised by the evening visit. It brought some excitement to an otherwise boring day.

I took a second video, with close ups and full body length. Halfway through, my house phone rang, it flew off when I went to answer the call. I wonder if it will visit me again this evening...

This is the first video that I took. Notice how the parrot's head eventually emerged from the side of the curtain. I thought it was so cute :)

New parking coupon

I saw this car sporting the owner's self-made 'parking coupon' at a HDB carpark last week. It was already close to 11pm. Could anyone be doing delivery at that hour? Furthermore, it was not a delivery vehicle but a private car. Hmm... if the 'auntie' really came, do you think she will give the driver a chance?

My red 'pampers'

Alpha is up and running again, except that he's still in his red 'pampers'. That's actually his bandage, cool right? ;)

So troublesome...

There's something wrong with my handphone's data transfer. Somehow my laptop couldn't detect the external device and I can't transfer my photos and video via the USB port. For now, the only way to get my files over to my laptop is to open my handphone casing, remove the SD card and manually slot it in my laptop. So troublesome hor? Makes me feel lazy to add pictures and videos to my blog...

Young elderly

I am convinced that age spots and presbyopia need not necessary come with age. Years ago, I met a preacher who was in his 70s then but he has perfect eyesight. He is able to read the bible without reading glasses and his mind is alert as an eagle's. Looking at him gives me the confidence that it is possible to break the norm of having presbyopia after 40.

I was at Lighthouse church last Saturday and witnessed an elderly lady testifying how God has healed her of her breast cancer, which was of an aggressive type. At the end of her testimony, she mentioned her age (72yrs old) and the whole hall broke into applause (to give God the glory). If she didn't reveal her age, I would have guess she's in her 50s. She totally broke the typical image you would associate with a person past 70. Her complexion was fair with no pigmentation, no deep set wrinkles, has a natural healthy pinkish tone. Her crown of glory was thick and black (I don't know if she dyes her hair). And she walks so steadily you could tell she has strong legs. What an encouraging sight it was and I thought she really epitomizes the term "graceful aging'.

I just got reminded of another lady whom I met in a bookshop few years back. We had small talk and she told me she's in her 50s. My jaws almost dropped, for she looked like she's in her 30s. And her secret lies in yoghurt facemask. I'm not even talking about those Skinfood or Beauty Credit natural masks. I'm refering to those tubs of yoghurt that you see on supermarket shelves. I was surprised to hear that something so cheap and readily available can produce such wonders. An Israelis lady once shared the same secret with me and I actually thought she was pulling my leg. But now that I know it's true, yet I'm rather lazy to give it a try :P Let me know your results if you so decide to try it out ;)

Bye bye

The letter arrived today and confirmed the end of our relationship. I am not angry, just disappointed that our 10-year relationship seem to mean nothing at all. There was no room for making exceptions even though I chose you from the time I was eligible. Sigh... your action only goes to affirm what my friends have told me - that you are heartless.

Since you are so determined, I will also remove you from my wallet. You are not the only one that I need and I certainly won't miss you. Goodbye......UOB.

( Hee....who did you think I was talking about huh? ;P )

Alpha got bitten

Today is a sad day for all at home. I received a sms from my sister this evening that her dog, Alpha has been bitten by another dog. It happened yesterday when my mom brought Alpha downstairs for a stroll. For no apparent reason, a Jack Russell that was not leashed dashed to Alpha when he was doing his business. Poor Alpha was being attacked when he was most vulnerable (he was peeing and was leashed). The two dogs started biting each other. The jack russell's owner, an Indian guy, only came to pull his dog away when my mom wanted to hit it.

Poor Alpha suffered a deep wound on his body, near his groin. My mom did not realise the seriousness of his wound till last evening when my sisters came back. They brought Alpha to seek medical assistance but most clinics were already closed at night. The poor dog hardly move or walk... My second sister, who used to be a nurse dressed Alpha's wound last night.

Alpha's wound got worse today, it was obviously infected and had pus. My sisters managed to get him to the vet who had to sedate him to do a thorough cleaning of the wound. My mom cried when the vet told them to be prepared for the worse as Alpha is not that young. I'm sure my sisters felt sad too. Alpha has been with us for the past 7 years. He's like part of the family and my sister often calls him her 'son'.

As the wound was deep, the vet had to insert a tube into him for flushing purpose. Poor Alpha, it must be very painful :( He was discharged later this evening but had to return this weekend for review. Pls pray for Alpha that God will cause his wound to heal and close up asap. I really can't imagine if he's gone or has permanent injury.

留白

观看了优频道星期一八点档的“舞林大道”不禁让我有些许感想。眼见活力四射的参赛者卖力地使出浑身解数，我心中浮现了六个字 - “年轻不要留白”。

回首我的年轻岁月，我想我的生活也算是精彩充实的。少年时期对舞蹈的执着让我对人生有了目标，也使我比同龄的朋友成长得迅速。年轻的心常思索如何能让舞艺和技术更上一层楼，如何能当上主角等。或许有些人会认为我的年少时光因舞蹈而有缺憾。因为周末的排练，我没有多少时间享受青春。相隔十多年，我依然对那段时光回味无穷。虽然当年流过不少血泪，但也让我留下许多甜蜜的回忆。必竟有多少人能有机会在维多利亚剧院和嘉龙剧院的舞台上表演呢？

年轻是应该不要留白的。想做什么就去做，没有太多顾虑，反正输了还可以东山再起。年轻就是本钱。我庆幸我这一生曾有让我执着的事物。我的足迹也偏布世界的好些国家。最令我欣慰的莫过于攀爬非洲最高峰 Mount Kilimanjaro (5895m) 。虽然我无法登上顶峰，但至少我这一生曾经攀过山。我想我的年轻岁月也不算留白吧！

有些事，我们只在人生的某个阶段才会做。一旦错失岁月，就算将来还有机会，我们也未必会附诸行动。与其追求年轻不要留白，倒不如让生命不要留白。

If I have a million dollars

This song came to my mind as I end off my previous post. Sharing here with my dear friends a song that never fail to make me smile. Ha, if I have jit ba ban, I will sign up for pottery class right away ;)

Trvial stuff on a rainy day

The other day, a friend asked me to update her about my life. I simply said I'm ok, life's been about the same and she gave me that 'aiya, elaborate lah' look. It's not that I don't want to elaborate but I find that there's really nothing much to add on. I don't have any new found hobbies, office gossips or interesting encounters with the other kind. At this juncture, there just isn't much excitement or happenings except, maybe medical updates. And that is something which I don't wish to touch on when I update others about my life. It's like as if that's the only area with progressive and regular updates. Nah, I don't want to bore people with such trivial stuff.

Jas asked me yesterday if I want to join her for pottery class. Sounds good. I've always been interested in arts and craft. I thought this would be a good oppotunity to add some variety to my otherwise 'still' life. Went to check out the website, as expected, the fees are not cheap. The fees stated on the website were higher than what Jas told me. Hmm... in view of the current economy, it's quite a luxury to spend $200 on 4 sessions and I don't think I'll learn much from merely 4 sessions. To continue beyond that, on a mid to long term basis is akin to burning cash away. For practical reasons, I guess I'll have to shelf this for now.

My first Formula One

The F1 dust has settled and life is somewhat back to normal. I am not an F1 fan, nonetheless I followed the news now and then. Two days before the race kicked off, I had the opportunity to be a volunteer for one of the companies involved. In return for my service, I'll get to watch the Friday practice session for free with a grandstand ticket. Not a bad deal and I 'sent' my representative there :P Naturally, my 'representative' went for the Friday's session.

Some of my friends commented what's so good about paying so much to watch cars going in circles? I thought about it, hmm... that's quite true. But those who have seen it 'live' talked so much about the adrenalin pumping at the sound of the engines, the atmosphere etc. Even my 'representative' who is not an F1 fan was excited to show me his achievements, aka videos n photos, after Friday's practice session.

Come Saturday night, we got a call from a friend who has booked a room at Swissotel for watching F1 and invited us over. We decided to pop over on sunday night.

Sunday evening 7.30pm, Swissotel 28th floor hotel room. Standing at the balcony beholding the beautiful skyline and soaking in the sound and action of F1 race below, I now understand what people meant by good atmosphere, adrenalin pumping. I too, felt excited at the sound of roaring engines. At that height, I could not tell who's who and what car that is but it feels great to be able to see most parts of the track. From my view, I could see 3 bends. But these guys are so good, none of them crash at the visible bends *alas* :P Our friend said there were 3 crashes on Friday night. It must have been a sight from 28th floor.

The excitement that I felt when 20 engines went 'boom boom' didn't last long. After about half an hour or so, I started to feel sleepy :P Haha.... F1 fans are going to hammer me if they hear this. But I just felt tired and bored seeing cars going in circles. It was fortunate that I had the television behind me. I was busy turning my head between the television for close ups and watching the live action below. It does feel special or shiok to be able to watch live telecast on tv and have the 'live' audio transmitting from below.

We left about 15min before the race ended to beat the crowd at crazy City Hall. Well, it was a good experience. Ask me if I will get an F1 ticket next year? Well... err, let me know if you have booked a room for F1. I'll be there ;)

Sunday Thoughts

She caught my attention as I read the Sunday Times between my heavy eyelids. She is merely 28, holds a doctorate and is the inventor of the recycled spectacles. I probably wouldn't have paid much attention had I not tried the recycled spectacles at Nanyang Optical recently.

Whenever I read of such young achievers, I would often think "hey, what have I been doing all this while?". I was from a reputable school, had a decent education, yet I feel stagnated now. Looking back, I think one of the main causes of my stagnation is my lack of courage. I'm just not not daring enough. During the most colorful period of my life, I had the chance for something bigger but I pulled the brakes. Few years later, when I should have closed a chapter, yet I still held on to it. It seems that I always fall into the trap of letting go too early or holding on for too long.

A friend once said to me, it is not so much of whether you can or not but rather, you dare or not. How very true, especially when I look at the people around. Many who are doing well in life now did not come from reputable "good" schools and some did not ace academically. Conversely, some products of the "good" schools are now just a plain face in the crowd.

So what am I trying to get at? While a formal education is important, I feel that greater emphasis should be placed on character building. A person with the right attitude and good character will go far in life, regardless of his beginnings.

If I coulld turn back the clock, I'd choose to be bolder and listen less to the "good advice" of well-wishers. Alas! I can't go back in time but I guess it's still not too late to start now. Wish me luck ;)

Unusual encounter

What is the last thing that you think you'll ever see in an air-conditioned foodcourt housed in a shopping mall? I was having my dinner at Kopitiam foodcourt in IMM last night when I had the shock of my life. Halfway through my dinner, I saw something running furiously towards my direction. I wasn't wearing my spectacles, yet I could see it so clearly. I was lucky that I didn't choke on my food but I almost dropped my cutlery. Guess what I saw?

It's a furry creature of about 20cm in length, grey in colour, has a long tail. Need I say more? It's a RAT! My first reaction was to lift up my legs. Apparently, some of the diners around me did not even know what happened. The lady at the table on my right continued eating as if nothing has happened. Oh my, if only she knew there was a rat running inches away from her slippers-clad feet. The furry creature ran under her table, then under my table and headed straight for the recycle bin a table away from me. There was a mop and some cleaning equipment next to the bin and the rat just hid in there.

Some of the cleaners saw it and they were amused. They tried to see where the rat was hiding, yet they were afraid that it might spring out suddenly. I couldn't concentrate on eating anymore. I kept looking out at that corner, just in case it ran out again and leap onto my chair. Well, I'm not exactly sure if rats have such ability but I do see cats leaping onto chairs in coffee shops. You can't blame me for my wild imagination. The impossible has already happened right under my nose.

I wouldn't be as surprised if it was a cockroach or if I were in an old market hawker centre. But how in the world did the rat get into an air-conditioned foodcourt on the second floor of IMM? Did it take the travelator, escalator or lift? Or is this somebody's naughty pet that jumped out of the bag? Unlikely, I thought.

As you probably can guess, I did not finish my food. We hurriedly left when those guys got serious in hunting it down. I had initially thought of staying to see how the drama ends but I'm afraid I might become part of the drama and make a fool of myself :P

Reunion

There are some things that I just couldn't comprehend. I spoke to an old friend today, who is now very pregnant with her second kid. She asked me that million dollar question once again - if I intend to get an office job. I told her maybe not and she said "then it'll be easier to have kids''. I almost fell off my chair. That's the last response I would expect to hear out of the conversation. I jokingly replied that it's even tougher 'cos less money to support the kids.

Perhaps what my dear friend meant was it'll be easier to look after the kids if the mom is not working full time. But her comment reminded me of the time when I tendered my resignation. Some kaypoh, good-willed auntie colleague of mine asked if I'm resigning due to pregnancy. When I said no, she went on further to ask if I'm resigning to 'try' for a kid. Faint. She's really 101% auntie, mind you, she's few years younger than me!

Why do people often stereotype when it comes to such things? One should never assume that having children is a natural progression after marriage. Not every women have maternal instinct and not every men love children. Do not judge by the surface for there are often other issues that are hidden underneath. Next time you meet a single friend, don't ask when they're getting married. When you see a married friend, don't ask when they're going to have kid (unless you want to finance the kid's expenses). When you see a friend with one kid, don't ask when the second one is coming. What has that gotta do with you?

Tonight, I'll be meeting 3 primary school friends of whom I have not met for at least 3 years. As you can guess, one of them is the very preggie lady and the other 2 are guys. I'll be braving myself for the 2 million dollar questions again - kids and job. And I bet my preggie friend is going to ask one of the guys whom just got married when he's going to have his brood. Ha, it'll probably be a session of catching up and suaning one another.

Sell?

Will you market a product which gives you good money but you did not have a 100% satisfied experience with the product?

Recently, I was given the opportunity to be an affiliate marketer of a product. The commission was attractive enough to make one want to market it. And, it doesn't seem all that difficult given the awareness of the product and its creator. However, I did not market the product. Some call it stupid, sometimes I also wonder if I'm silly not to do it. But I couldn't get pass my conscience to do it, knowing that support is crucial to the success from using the product. I personally was not impressed with the support provided by the team. I've experienced delayed reponse, no response and responses that didn't help much. To be fair, there were also times when the support given was acceptable.

So, will I or should I market the product? Hmm.....I still think it's no. The price is not cheap and I don't want buyers to feel rip off. It's just not ethical and I want to sleep in peace.

Fruit numerology

Sharing some important numbers here with all. Not 4D numbers of course but these numbers will come in handy when you next shop for fruits. If you've ever wondered what those numbers on the fruit sticker label means, here's what it means...

The numbers on the sticker labels carry information of how the fruits were grown, ie whether they were organically grown, conventionally grown with pesticides and herbicides or genetically modified. You've got to know this, for the supermarket folks won't share this with you.

Conventional Fruit Labels - consists of 4 digits and does not start with 9. Most of the conventionally grown fruits have labels starting with the digit 4. I see this very often in Fairprice supermarkets, especially with apples.

Organic Fruit Labels - consists of 5 digits and starts with the number 9.

Genetically Modified Fruits - This is a must-know for all. It starts with the digit 8.

The next time you see some extraordinary huge grapes, make sure you read the label before you buy it :)

My wish

Someone asked me few days ago what I would wish for if I'm being granted a wish. Feeling a bit down that day, I gave a reply which I subsequently thought was silly and somewhat 'impulsive'. Somehow, that question lingered in my mind that evening. I thought to myself, why wish for something which will come eventually? I might as well wish for something that I want in this life but could not or have not had yet.

Now, if I can really have what I wish for, I want....

• the whole world to know Jesus so they know where their future home is.
• to be totally restored in body, spirit and soul.
• to have a fulfilling and happy life.
• to be so fit and healthy that I can conquer Mt Everest.
• to be free from all sicknesses and weakness even in my old age.
• to leave this world eventually in a painless, peaceful, dignified manner.
• to be free from all worries and burdens.
• to have financial and time freedom.
• to be able to give freely and help the people around me.
• to be able to give my loved ones everything they need and want.
• to travel the world without having to worry about money.
• to have an organized, minimalist, easy to maintain home.
• to have someone to do all the household chores.
• to have a home on high ground (or high rise) with a view to kill.
• to be able to do up my home the way I want, with no budget constraint of course.
• to be able to re-do certain decisions in my life.
• to be able to play multiple musical instruments.
• dust and pests to disappear from the face of the earth.
• my furry friends to come alive but with no maintenance required.
• all politics to vanish in every organizations, groups and societies.
• all mankind to be happy, contented, fulfilled beings.

And now, for the vanity stuff, I want...

• to have thick, soft, natural curls
• to have long, curly eyelashes
• to have sparkling eyes with no eye bags or eye rings forever.
• to have porcelain complexion, no wrinkles or pigmentation forever.
• to have more defined jawline, sharper chin and higher cheekbones.
• to have slimmer arms, smaller waist and pelvic bones.
• to have long, shapely legs.
• to have perfect skin with no scars or pigmentation.

With so many items on my wish list, perhaps I should just wish that whatever I wish for will come true. Yea, that would be truly wonderful :D

Dead

Ha, I just whacked dead an irritating fly unintentionally. I don't know how it came to my study room when I don't have food here. I was in deep concentration when it kept flying incessantly around me. Out of frustraion, I just hit on the table and guess what? It died under my palm :P Never thought I could hit it 'cos it was flying really fast. In fact, I wasn't even aiming at hitting it. Ha, it's amazing how things get done sometimes without you doing it intentionally :D

Fresh air no more

Eversince my new neighbour shifted in, I have not been able to enjoy fresh air in the morning. Gone were the days when I can have my main door open and feel the morning breeze brush against my skin. These days, I can only open my windows for ventilation (yet the cool air comes through mostly from my main door). If only my new neighbour can stop burning incense...

自娱

所谓“行行出状元”，今天我在湿巴刹见到了一位状元。 在一个极不可能有惊喜的地方，我居然遇见了一位高人。 你万万也想不到这位高人其实仅是一个菜摊的摊主。 一般人或许对这些“小市民”的言谈举止不以为然， 可是我却被她超人般的神算给吓呆了。天啊！她的脑筋怎转得那么快？ 只见她双手快速的将各种疏菜塞进纸袋里， 嘴巴象念口诀般的算着 “23.80, 2.40, 26.20 boss, 26.20, 3.90, 30.10 ah..." 那位仁兄买的东西可真多，共装满了两大袋。

在这么吵杂的环境， 这位auntie 摊主的集中力竟那么好， 还可以算到一半对我说“小姐，你等一下啊”。哎哟，没关系啦，要我等上十分钟也无所谓。哈，别以为我的耐性那么好， 其实我站在那儿暗地里心算她所念出的价钱。 呵呵，好刺激哦， 就象在玩现场游戏。 来吧，自我挑战一下， 看谁算得比较快！ 结果如何，你们猜一猜吧。

结论： 要预防老人痴呆症， 除了在咖啡店端咖啡饮料， 这大概就是另一个最好的选择了。

If only I could

For this music, I went to rent the Corpse Bride DVD this evening...



I came across this video on Youtube yesterday and instantly fell in love with the piano duet. I wanted to know what this movie is about... Now that I've watched it, I have the urge to look for the audio CD of the composer, Danny Elfman. Until now, I didn't know he's the composer behind many familiar blockbusters. A search on Youtube threw up another very beautiful piano piece - The Ice Dance, apparently from the movie 'Edward Scissorhand', also by the same composer.

Also found this on Youtube, where this guy played by ear the Corpse Bride duet. From his fingering, it seems to me that he did not have formal training. So inspiring... makes me wanna take up piano again.



Think I'll fall asleep with this piece ringing in my mind tonight... :)

Animator vs Animation

A friend sent me an animation recently and I thought it was really cute and creative. Sharing it here and hope you enjoy it too.


Animator vs. Animation by *alanbecker on deviantART

Unexpected guest

It was a hot and humid afternoon. I was fighting hard to keep my eyes open when I heard a chirp next to me. A little humming bird has found its way to my window ledge to take respite from the hot weather. I was so close to nature despite being surrounded by concrete blocks. My immediate thought was what if it decides to fly into my room but it was promptly replaced by another thought - to video it. It's a pity the birdie didn't chirp when my camera was on but you can still enjoy it up close and personal.

Project 2010

I had a thought recently, a desire to realise a partially-fulfilled dream. Back in 2000, I climbed my first mountain - Mount Kilimanjaro in Tanzania, Africa. It was an exhilatering and unforgettable experience. Although I did not make it to the summit despite 3 months of intensive training prior to the expedition, I did not regret the sweat and tears we put in. The memories of the breath-taking views are still as fresh in my mind as the morning dew.

I often wonder, what if I had tried a little harder. My physical body may be stronger back then but I think my will power did not match up to it. If I were to repeat the feat again, it may be tougher physically but I'm certain my mental power is definitely much stronger. When there's a will, there's a way. Perhaps, I can make it against all odds :)

I thought it would be good to do it again in 2010. That should give me sufficient time to build up my health and train up my body. I'll have greater reasons to eat and live healthily. And I'll be motivated to get myself to exercise on days I feel lazy.

What better way to mark the 10th anniversary of my maiden climb? Going back to Mount Kilimanjaro in 2010 will be like a dream come true for me.

Of wants and needs

"When you can't afford it, you want to have it. Now that you can afford it, you feel that you don't need it."

This statement was not made by a famous personality or journalist but it caught my eye and set me thinking when I came across it over the weekend. In our younger days, haven't we envy those with credit cards and we strive to earn one? The good feeling we get when we signed our first charge slip made us feel like 'we have arrived'. When our income increase over the years, we started to apply for the exclusive, higher end cards. From gold to platinum to titanium...we were inundated with the plethora of choices. We buy bigger, longer wallets to carry many cards that we don't even use. We often ponder which card we should use when we were presented with the bill at restaurants. Come month end, we have mountains of statements to check and file, simply because we use multiple cards. All these seem endless and suck up our precious time. Finally, the time came when we feel we have had enough and we terminate the unused cards. Now, it's the banks that run after us and no longer we chasing after the cards.

This phenomenon seems to hold true regardless of the generation. We see it replaying in today's younger generation and we smile to ourselves. It is pointless to tell them that it's not a big deal. They will just retort that you said that because you have 'been there, done that'.

Why do we always want things that we cannot afford? Is it because we really want it, need it? I think our desire is largely influenced by our peers and the media. We may not really want it but we thought we want it, simply because it looks good to have it. Forbidden fruit always taste better. The more unattainable an object is, the greater the sense of satisfaction when we achieved it.

We have different wants and expectations at different stages of our life. Although we have grown out of the credit card chase, there will always be something for us to 'want to have it'. I think it is not so much of the object that we are after but the knowledge and feel-good factor that we can finally afford it. Otherwise, why would millionaires eat at hawker centres, hunt for bargains, stay in modest housing when they can afford something much better? Don't you think it's because they know within that they can afford it, hence it no longer bothers them how others see or think of them?

My latest experiment

I just tried a new shampoo and conditioner today. This new kid on the block promises hair darkening and strengthening. I overheard the promoter telling an auntie at FairPrice last week but I didn't want to appear interested as I don't like pressure selling. Just 2 days ago, we were at AMK Hub FairPrice and were being introduced to this product again. The promoter wasn't pushy and she sounded convincing as she (her daughter too) has personally tried the product. She also mentioned that a lady fedback to her that her white hair turned black after using 2 bottles. Hmm...that sounds like good news to me :)

Doomsday descended recently when I discovered a few strands of white hair. I deliberately refrain from dyeing my hair as I want to see if I can reverse it with changes in lifestyle. This could also be a good opportunity for me to see the effectiveness of this product. You know, it's not easy for I have the tendency to 'inspect' every morning to see if my wisdom factor has gone up. But I think I should really kick off this habit 'cos it's not good to visualise something undesirable on a regular basis. I'm a believer of the power of visualisation - what you see will be what you get eventually.

Back to the product, I will give it some time to prove its effectiveness. And, if it lives up to its claims, I will reveal the brand name here :)

Claypot Rice

I've got a newly discovered makan place to recommend you folks. If you like claypot rice, head down to Clementi Ave 5, block 345 and look for the coffee shop 'Clementi 881 Coffee Station'. I was told most of the food there are nice. I went for the claypot rice by Traditional Kim Poh Claypot Rice. It comes in 2 sizes - $8 for big, $4 for small. They also sell the typical home-cooked soup and it costs only $2. My verdict for the claypot rice: rice texture and taste is good, not too salty. Chicken is tender and did not have a lot of bones. Overall, it was so delicious that I did not even touch the chillie that came with it.

If you are a claypot rice fan, you probably know there's another famous claypot rice stall in Clementi, near 2 fish aquarium shops. Well, if you ask me, the 881 Coffee Station's claypot rice not only taste better but it's cheaper and best of all, the waiting time is only 10 mins (compared to the other which is usually 30mins).

Wonder why I didn't attach a picture? Hee, the rice smells so good I only remembered to take picture after I've finished scrapping the pot. I don't think you'll be interested to see an empty pot and a saucer of untouched chillie, right? ;)

Enjoyable pain

I'm having a bit of muscle pain on my thighs today but I'm enjoying it ;) Ha, you wonder how could pain be enjoyable? Hee... this tiny bit of muscle pain is the result of my 'achievement' yesterday. I went to the gym. Yes, I finally went to the gym after almost 8 months! I thought I could make do with brisk walking but when I felt alright even after 8 minutes, I decided to try running and I completed 2.6km :D

I felt so good after the run, it feels so liberating and refreshing. As I ran, I imagined...
...Fats are screaming 'hot... hot...'
...Cells are bouncing in jubilation
...Skin is rejuvenating
...Dark eye rings are diminishing
...And wrinkles are disappearing !

Yoohoo......... !!!

One voice

I don't like to visit the doctors. They often benefit much from me and tell me things that are not very uplifting to my spirit. Each time I pay them a visit, I have to detox my mind and not let their words take root in my heart. It's a constant battle of the mind. I only want to listen to one voice - the voice of God. God says nothing is impossible with Him (Luke 1:37) and this is it !

Thoughts on a journey

Some days it comes like an avalanche, fast and furious, totally unexpected and beyond my wildest imagination. Some days, it crawls even slower than an old grumpy snail. Have I taken a wrong route? Sometimes I ask myself if I am living in delusion. But I still believe this is not a dream about building castles in the air.

I have learnt from past experience that things somehow usually get better after I call it quits. Will it be the same this time? I don't know. Perhaps, like what the experts say, the key lies in perserverance. I've told myself I will press in all the way but I don't deny that sometimes I do have a tinge of envy when I hear of friends going back to the rat race. I know this sounds silly. I don't even know if this is more of envy or fear. Fear because I may be wasting my time and not getting the expected result at the end of the day.

Taking the road less travelled can be lonely and fearful at times but I don't think I will give it up yet. I think I can do better than this. I don't want to look back someday only to say to myself, I should have tried a little harder, a little longer.

A journey of a thousand miles begins with the first step. I have made the first step and I must remind myself not to look back.

De-stress

Who is more chatty - Kopi or Bread ?

More about the dancers

Just found out more about the dancers from an interview video on Youtube.com. If you are keen, go to YouTube and enter "Interview with Ma Li and Zhai Xiaowei" in the search box and you'll see the 3-part video.

Hand in hand

I stumbled upon this video accidentally this evening and I felt so touched as I watched the dancers. It reminded me of those days when we were dancing. And I know it must have been difficult in their training to be able to dance like this. My heart goes out to them, my heart melts as I watch their graceful movements.

Were they dancers who lost their limbs but determined not to let that stop them from dancing? Or did they learn dancing only after they have lost their limbs? These were the thoughts that went through my mind. Either case, I know it is not easy. It is very cruel for a dancer to be unable to dance when that is the love of her life. To pick up dancing after losing limbs is just as difficult. Just think about the balancing, the muscle cramps etc. Some able-bodied people can't even balance themselves or coordinate body movements well and here we see two handicapped dancers dancing gracefully as if their handicap didn't exist.

This is simply wonderful. I am inspired and reminded once again that nothing is impossible. You can only go as far as you think you could. Self-imposed limitations will only hinder you from discovering your potential, your limits.

Time to say good night

Hey, you people must see this. It's sooooooo cute! I was laughing away when I watched it. You'll probably appreciate more if you've heard the original "Time to say goodbye". Enjoy!

千言万语

在王菲唱"千言万语"之前，我从没留意这首歌，也不认为它特别好听。不过，听了王菲的版本倒还觉得蛮动听的 :) 让我有股冲动想去唱 karaoke :P

Angelic voice

I thought of Faye Wong today, kind of miss her song, her voice. It's such a waste that she quit from the show biz. There aren't many singers nowadays who has substance like her, not to mention her 'cool' (of course there are some who thinks she's aloof). Hmm... why do people want to quit doing what they do best?....

New Year Delicacy

I just heard something very gross today....

My mom was boiling a pot of sea cucumbers when my sister decided to cook tom yam noodles. When she opened the kitchen cabinet door above the stove, her eyes met that of an equally shocked lizard. She screamed so loud that the window panes almost shattered and the lizard lept for its life. Unfortunately, the lizard did not look before it leap and landed right into the pot of boiling sea cucumbers! Needless to say, it was cooked immediately. Imagine the frenzy in the kitchen this morning...

CNY mood

On the 4th day of Chinese New Year, I found myself doing what I normally wouldn't do. I watched a lion dance performance and I actually felt kinda excited :P Maybe it's because of CNY or maybe it's the location where the lion dance took place. I couldn't remember when was the last time I stop by to watch lion dance. And most of the time, it happens in a shop or some shopping centre. So, when I saw the lion dancing in a foodcourt among the hungry faces, it was kind of refreshing. It's like having live entertainment as I eat my lunch.

The climax came when the lion came dancing just a table away from me. I simply couldn't continue sitting, I had to video it. For once, after a long time, I felt the CNY mood :D And the lion dance brought back sweet childhood memories of those days when I would cover my ears whenever the lions come dancing at my grandfather's shop. I would cry when the big head doll came too close to me. I used to think the doll's face looks scary.

The video came in handy on Sunday night when my niece kept asking for my handphone to snap pictures. I showed her the lion dance video and that kept her busy for a couple of minutes while I had some peace :P


Happy New Year and enjoy the video!