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Thursday, February 23, 2006

I had a great day guys:) I always do in your company. For a long while today I was laughing so hard I actually forgot that I was leaving again..Haha especially during the double-click joke. You are one big joke lor cindy. :) It was a last nice memory of a day spent with the both of you:)





And thank YOU. No one's ever called me inspirational before. Guess I was just at abit of a loss for words and didn't really know how to respond..but thank you..for everything. Lunch was nice:)
~me~ at 2:51 AM

Wednesday, February 22, 2006

To all my friends (especially people I've met up with in the last couple of days) -- you guys are the joy of my life:)


As requested, photos from yesterday's lunch with the rgssb girls:)







Haha and here's mandy attempting to finish her salad which she accidentally drowned in vinegar. Even after she looked as if she wanted to die after polishing off her huge plate of spagetti. Well done mandy!:)


Heh it turned out to be a surprise belated birthday lunch for me (the surprise very nearly ruined by cassandra, but thankfully I was too blur to realise what was happening) Thanks for the present girls:) you guys read my mind:)


Pigout number 2 of yesterday -- dinner courtesy of gary:)



I don't know why but I tend to feel particularly philosophical during times spent with you. Haha well I'm honoured you came all the way out to meet me although you were understandably tired from the hectic past couple of weeks...thanks for the very nice food and company:)


I'm still amazed we put away so much food -- 2 huge (& very tasty) stingrays, satay, hokkien mee & clams!(lalas/cockles??--I still can't tell them apart..haha despite your efforts to help me differentiate them.) Yep but I'm not gonna get a meal like that in sydney for sure.


And today...lunch with dear michelle:) michelle who regalled me with her endless stories on her family & school, who amused me with her quirky little habits, who was so nice to troop around town today with me:) it wasn't a very successful shopping trip but it was fun:) and just when we were too tired to move, we bumped into pips and ashley! so the 4 of us did more trooping around..haha yes and glad I got the chance to catch you one more time before I left pips:) ORD for you soon! how time flies..


I had a weird dream the other night. Can't remember who or when or where but I remember someone telling me this in the dream...
"Time flies like an arrow, fruit flies like a banana." Weird.


Time flies..Help. I don't want to leave home again.


ruth: lengthy email=happy germaine:) miss you too:) -hug-
~me~ at 12:18 AM

Sunday, February 19, 2006

It's been one year exactly since that day...














~me~ at 10:37 PM

Saturday, February 18, 2006

~me~ at 7:20 AM

Friday, February 17, 2006

Just came home..I had the most amazing fish & chips for dinner. :) cheap too. Haha remind me to bring you there michelle! yes it's even better than your current favourite fish & chips.


I don't know whether to be happy or worried for you. But things will turn out for the best:) You're a good person at heart and you're strong so I know things will work out.


I was just scolding my mom cos she got the report from her annual health check & her cholesterol level's a call for concern this year. So she bought a book on lowering cholesterol levels & to prove she read it, she spouted a quote from the book at me --


Mom: "Foods high in cholesterol have faces."
Me: er...faces?
Mom: Yeah like salmon? They have faces. And lobsters. Faces.
Me: Oooook. You mean animals.
Mom: No. Faces. Like vegetables don't have faces right? That's what the book says.


Ok mom sure. :)
~me~ at 12:27 AM

Thursday, February 16, 2006

7 days. Time to start packing again..over the hols I've accumulated a small pile of stuff in a corner of my room..all stuff I'm planning to bring to sydney..I guess now's the time to finally bring out my suitcase once again..Haha there's so much I wish I could bring with me to sydney..my bed..the pictures in my room..the stars on my ceiling..my family..Lucas..friends..


It's weird how we can find so much to talk to with an old friend whom we hardly see..and sometimes nothing to say to a person we see on a daily basis. It's so easy to lose touch if you don't see a person for a long while..yet when you see the other person again you remember how comfortable you once were talking to him or her. It's really a blessing to be able to find a confidant you're able to talk to, to connect with. Out of so many people in the world, there are many we are able to make acquaintances out of, less we are able to make friends out of, few we are able to bare our hearts to.


Nadine--I'm so so glad to have gotten the chance to see you again:) Although we don't get much time together, I really thank God for a friend like you:)


I have the sudden urge to go SHOPPING. I suddenly realise that I have done very very little of it this holiday. It's kinda weird now come to think of it..I go out often but seldom shop..so what do I do with my time out? Haha I guess shopping's fun but not exactly the ideal setting for talking and catching up with a friend..oh well I've never been much of a power shopper anyway..just have a sudden urge to buy something for myself to cheer myself up. Just a silly thought.. Luckily I don't have much time left in singapore to act on it..


"wise friend": YOU rock too. :)
xinli: happy belated vday to you!lets go disturb cindy sometime next week!:)
nadine: :)
~me~ at 3:46 AM

Tuesday, February 14, 2006

Just read ollie's and glowie's blogs..suddenly the time to go back to sydney is looming & I can't say that I'm entirely upset at the thought of returning..but I'm just feeling sad at the thought of having to leave home again..


I wonder if there's ever any truth to the things people keep telling me..like "it gets easier to leave as the years go by".. and my mom keeps saying "6 years is a short time in your life" and "by the end of 6 years you won't want to be coming home"..but it's so easy to tell another person these things..whether or not you really believe them is another thing..then again my mom usually isn't the optimistic kind..so I guess for her to say things like that must mean something..


One thing I'll miss alot: babysitting Lucas!Yes although he's cranky and noisy alot of the time I'll miss him. And the sad thing is that he won't even remember me :( I definitely don't remember anything when I was a baby anyway..but I'll always have a picture in my mind of him smiling at me with his little cheeky expression:) I don't really get it..it's not exactly possible to have a conversation with a baby or dog, so why is it so easy to feel attached to them? we usually feel closer to people through lengthy conversations and laughter..but with babies and animals it's different..is it the physical closeness that makes us attached to them? or maybe simply caring for another living being makes us more receptive to love..


anyway some weird happenings in the last couple of days..
1. I nearly got smacked in the face by a fish. I was at the wet market with my mom..waiting patiently for her in front of a couple of fishtanks while she was making some purchases..suddenly there was a huge splash sound and this HUGE fish came sailing out of the tank in front of me, brushed past my shoulder (ugh. Yes I actually felt its slimy scales brushing past me) and smacked into the lift door behind me. Lucky me..it would have smashed right into my face if I had been standing just a couple more centimetres to the right. Think the person in the lift was pretty lucky too..imagine seeing a fish flying towards you but the lift doors closing just in time.
2. We were driving the car into my driveway when my mom suddenly exclaimed, "birdflu!" She had apparantly spotted a falling bird from the sky. But to give her credit there really was a dead bird lying on the driveway when we got out to investigate..ah but I seriously doubt that the cause of death was birdflu. hmm but then what else could have caused a bird to drop dead from the sky? heart attack?


cindy: Haah yeah I enjoyed myself that night too la:)
jing: jing!miss you too:) Haha I had a dream about you the other day.
nad: ONE more day!!! :)
nic: it cost $45!hmm but I think we ate alot more worth than that:) I had more than 3 helpings of sashimi & at least 5 portions of dessert:) and alot alot more!
ruth: happy vday!:) back from amsterdam? hope you had fun:) haha maybe but I'm happy enough already with the buffet now:)
~me~ at 1:09 PM

Sunday, February 12, 2006

A memorable day:) Of alot of good food & good company:)


Haven't blogged much this week cos I've been pretty busy..but today was a day I really really wanted to remember:)


Chris and jeh treated me to lunch today to thank me for my babysitting services of the past couple of months....at SHANGRI-LA! Yum:) It was a buffet lunch of foods of all natures, colours & tastes:) Haha I think Chris was more excited than me at the sight of all the food...The minute we had gotten a table and he had set down Lucas in his babyseat, he made a quick dash toward the start of the buffet table, picking up a plate and piling it high with oysters & prawns, grinning like a little kid the whole way..as for me, I took awhile to appreciate how incredible all the food looked..then lost my resolve and started making my way through the food...there was just so much of it!For starters...


Haha forgive me cos the photos don't do justice to the actual spread..there was just every kind of food available!I'm not usually a big fan of shelled foods (ie oysters, scallops etc) but everything tasted so colourful and tasty:) And that was just the beginning..I made my way through the appetisers, japanese, italian, chinese & indian foods..it was just amazing..haha I realise I sound like a real pig but I don't care:) There were even mini plates of yu sheng plus pastas came in the weirdest flavours! anyone tried squid flavoured pasta? or cocoa-flavoured pasta? We started lunch at 1215 and ate steadily all the way till 3..



But the best was yet to come...


Dessert!4 shelves high of cakes, tarts, ice-cream & mousses..plus a crepe-making station and a 5-tiered chocolate fountain:) My sister & I did a good sampling of the yummiest-looking desserts and decided that the following were among the best..



This hazelnut-based/crunchy peanut/chocolate mousse wins handsdown:) and that cranberry jellylike dish wins the prize for prettiest-looking dessert:) Was seriously stuffed after that..but also incredibly satisfied:) Lucas was pretty guai through most of lunch..playing quietly in his babyseat all through the appetisers and main courses..only letting out a few peeps and gurgles toward dessert:) We took turns walking him through the lush gardens of shangri-la surrounding the pool area..giving us a chance to rest & then come back prepared to attack the buffet table once more:) shangri-la's changed quite alot since the last time I was there..RJC prom:) I still remember taking photos in the same garden in our prom outfits 2 years ago:)



Anyway the afternoon flew by..went home, had to babysit for awhile, then I borrowed my mom's car to go pickup xinli to go for cindy's hall performance:) After a good deal of time spent roaming the streets of chinatown/clark quay we finally found DBS building, only to realise that her performance was at DBS arts centre (an entirely different building from DBS building). grrr. Thanks cindy for the wonderful directions. So we had to make a huge round past orchard...and we were sorely tempted to skip the performance and spend our money on a nice dinner at orchard instead..we even passed the thaipusam festival marching through town!Haha poor xinli was so excited at being able to see the thaipusam festival..but unfortunately being the wonderful friends we are, (are you reading this cindy??!) we decided to forego the festival and dinner and instead go for cindy's show :) so instead of congratulating ourselves on getting there early as planned, we ended up half an hour late..but no harm done since the performance started late anyway:)


The performance wasn't too bad:) And yes good lighting cindy. Well done:) Me and xinli spent awhile talking and taking some nice shots around the clark quay area while waiting for cindy to wrap things up..then we took off for newton for supper!:) I was still pretty stuffed from lunch but ate anyway:) I was pretty tired by the time we finished our leisurely supper and I sent the both of them home..tired but happy:)


And so now I sit here waiting for my hair to dry, thinking over the day's events and thanking God for my family and friends:)
~me~ at 6:30 AM

Wednesday, February 08, 2006

Because meiling asked me to do this... :)


SE7EN things/people that make me smile:
1. Lucas
2. Xinli
3. Cindy
4. ruth
5. old photos
6. Handmade gifts
7. Long emails/notes/letters


SE7EN ways to win my heart:
1. Be sensitive
2. Be responsible
3. Act on your promises
4. Enjoy doing simple things
5. Don't hesistate to tell me anything
6. Gifts from the heart
7. Make me laugh


SE7EN things I believe in:
1. God
2. Things always turn out for the best
3. Music heals the soul
4. Don't regret anything you do
5. Different people show love in different ways
6. Communication
7. There's a reason for everything that happens


SE7EN things I'm afraid of:
1. Becoming deaf
2. Growing up
3. Becoming a doctor
4. Having someone know the real me
5. Horror movies
6. Seeing my loved ones die
7. Having clinical depression


SE7EN things I do everyday:
1. Listen to music
2. Sing to myself
3. Think
4. Smile
5. Make my bed
6. Push all my stuffed toys on my bed to the floor before bed
7. Thank God for my life


SE7EN things/people I want to see right now:
1. ruth
2. Jing
3. Nicole
4. Nadine
5. I don't know if you're reading this.
6. My own steinway piano
7. My old black drumset from RGS


SE7EN people who should also do this:
1. Xinli
2. Olivia
3. Gloria
4. Lin Min
5. Nicole
6. Nadine
7. Mandy


Haha well it's been a good start to the week so far..time's flying by..That leaves 2 more weeks....


Just came back from dinner with phin peng..I had a nice time, reminiscing about the past and also talking about the future..and he never fails to make me laugh:) I wonder if one day in the future we'll look back on times now & realise how childish we are.. :)





~me~ at 3:57 AM

Tuesday, February 07, 2006

Sleeepy.


Had a late night at gloria's last night and only got home near to 2am..heh thanks to ollie for the ride home:) Haha your mom's car is cute! And I think we're all hopeless with directions. Yawn wanted to sleep abit more but the construction behind my place is NOISY. Yep anyway dinner at gloria's was nice:) her granddad's a really good cook (learn to cook from him gloria!you promised me & LM home-cooked dinners :) )..and so nice! Haha after dinner he joined us in mahjong and according to gloria 'cheated' us of our money. But I think he's just a nice old man who was happy to have company for mahjong and I was glad to oblige:) I wish I were closer to my grandma..but think the main problem is the language barrier..my sister laughs at me everytime I attempt to carry out a conversation in cantonese with her..I'm a lost cause..I think cantonese sounds really nice:) but not the way I speak it of course :P


Anyway gotta go babysit soon..haha xinli mentioned that it's like I have job now..I guess I sorta do since I have to babysit everytime my sister has to work..haha but it's fun work:) most of the time anyway:) when Lucas isn't in his cranky moods..Chris is in India this week..was just talking to him online & he offered to bring back buffalo milk for me. And he said he had yogurt with spagetti for lunch. Hmm. Indian foods sound weird. It must be nice being able to see the world while you work..everything paid for..but I guess it's not like you would be able to tour much of the place while you're there since you'd hafta spend most of the time working..plus you wouldn't have family or good friends to have fun with..but at least it's a change in working environment:)


I guess thats a good reason for studying in sydney:) The change in environment gives a break from the typical monotonous singaporean life. Haha or maybe I'm just trying to come up with reasons to make myself feel better about returning to sydney soon:)
~me~ at 12:38 PM

Monday, February 06, 2006

It's been a weekend of mahjong, good food & random thoughts.


I spent quality time with certain special people & found time to catch up with old friends I haven't had the chance to talk to in awhile:) There's something about meeting up with old friends that makes you feel happy. It's easier to stay close to someone if you see that someone everyday, & if that person is very involved in your everyday current phase of life; but keeping in touch with somebody you don't see often means taking the extra effort to talk to somebody to stay close. It's so easy to feel distant from another person; even after marriage, it takes effort to maintain that relationship. Alot of people take for granted that after marriage everything's easier, but somehow I think that's not true. It's hard enough finding that special someone whom you think you can and want to spend the rest of your life with, but after marriage you can't take for granted that things will just always work out the way you want them to. God gives us challenges in life but it's through these challenges that we learn more about ourselves and we build bonds with others:) Anyway sorry if I seem to be blithering on alot about a whole lot of nothing but I think it's just a result of many philosophical discussions with certain people.




Yes I'm definitely going to miss home when I leave, but sometimes I think it's good to get a break from life back home as well. Alot of people say I seem happy with my life in sydney and I seem to be coping well..but sometimes I wonder if it's just a front I put up for the sake of others, or maybe a front to convince myself. I do know I miss the sydney weather though:)




Chris: (carrying Lucas) Ay help me look after him for awhile.
Me: Sure. Er why's he naked?
Chris: Heh heh.
Me: What if he pees?
Chris: No la he just did. He's tanked out already.
Me: You really never know.
Chris places Lucas on the diaper-changing table.
My elder sister comes out from her room.
My sis: Chris! Why's he naked?
Chris: Think he likes it this way.
My sis: Haha no I think he feels insecu- AHHHH. (Yes Lucas peeed right at my sister)
Chris: Haha oh man!
My sister: Chris! And oh no buster! don't drink-


Haha well I shan't go into details but it was pretty chaotic. Anyway this wasn't the first time this happened. Haha and yes buster did lap up quite abit of the mess on the floor and he ended up leaving little wet paw prints all over but we cleaned it all up before my mom found out so all was fine:) And the whole time Lucas was just lying there obliviously, unaware of all the chaos & trouble he had created through one innocent action. Ignorance really is bliss at times.




~me~ at 3:14 AM

Sunday, February 05, 2006

The past few days have seen an invasion of my house by my dear friends...on thursday ollie, lin min & gloria came over for mahjong!Haha for the first time we were actually playing on a square table. The last semester in sydney saw us playing mahjong on gloria's long rectangular dining table..which was abit awkward for people sitting at the ends but better than nothing:) Haha we were saying that we would have to get a square dining table this year for our new place:)





Then yesterday the cn5a gang came to bai nian. haha and for mahjong & karaoke of course:) Thanks for coming guys..I really had a good time today:) Haha and also thanks for clearing my house of pineapple tarts, love letters, bak kwa and soft drinks! Your appetites never cease to amaze me:) Anyway we made full use of my mom's karaoke machine..and I finally got to hear yx, qy & jon sing! Heh I've heard raving comments about their singing from the rest of the class for awhile now but never got to hear them sing till today:) They are GOOD. Haha but I guess the important thing for ktv is not whether or not you can sing, but whether or not you have fun:)



Dinner was canadian pizza!Which we still managed to completely down despite eating all the cny junk in the afternoon. And I think Buster had fun as well:) He was pretty spoilt, what with all the attention and patting and company of the past couple of days. It really felt nice playing host to all the people in my house this week:)


Spent some quality time with my mom today:) Sometimes I feel so old talking to her. I realise it's now officially the meeting-up-with-people-before-I-return-to-sydney phase once again. Anyway, no use dwelling on it. Just gotta enjoy the time I have back home now:)


Haha and oh man. I was just chatting with ling online and she told me a bit of shocking news - mythili shaved her head. As in she's bald now. Good going girl. Yeah you talked to me about it but I didn't realise you were really gonna do it. But I guess I've always known you had the guts to do it:) Haha can't wait to see you again. 19 days left! Happy ren2 ri4 everyone:)
~me~ at 1:35 AM

Thursday, February 02, 2006

Why is it so easy to hurt someone's feelings? A single sentence or phrase, no matter how insignificant you may think it to be, can hurt another in indescribable ways. Yet most of the time people do it unknowingly..but sometimes that's why it hurts the most; people don't mean to do it and there's no reason we can find to justify them saying certain things, other than their words being a part of their personality and who they are. Sometimes it's one party being too sensitive; sometimes the other may be too insensitive. Either way it's hard for each side to see things from the other's point of view. But from an outsider's point of view, neither side is in the wrong. Sometimes it's just about give or take, and about taking the effort to try to understand why certain things are said. And it's also about expectations. If we expect a person to behave a certain way because of our relationship to them, we feel hurt when expectations aren't met. Like I said, it's ironic that the people most close to us have the potential to hurt us the most.


As a wise friend said, "I need a magic wand. so that whenever the people i love feel sucky, i can use it to wave all the suckiness away, and make everything good again." :)


Anyway it's felt like a long long day..my longest day of babysitting yet..and the annoying construction site behind my house was in full force today, banging and hammering away and resulting in a very cranky Lucas because he couldn't fall asleep :P But I shouldn't complain; mothers have to deal with a lifetime of mothering, I can handle a couple months of babysitting:)


Just returned from dinner at patrick's place..he's back from london for cny..nice to see everyone again:) Haha auntie Liming was so nice!she's in a korean drama phase now..she was appalled when I told her I didn't watch them at all and she practically forced me to borrow a couple to occupy me for the next 3 weeks..Haha her husband was complaining that he would have to endure watching teary korean dramas every night because of her hogging the television set. His basic rules of korean drama:


1. There's always a hospital involved.
2. The poor innocent main character always bottles things up and refuses to tell the truth for fear of hurting another character's feelings.
3. Very very very slow-moving storyline.





~me~ at 4:22 AM