I could bite my chocolate nails

And so, I am fascinated about making glossy polishes matte, because matte is just so me. I just love the matte finishing!

OPI's "You don't know Jacques" topped with Nubar's "V for men"

OK I am super jealous...

of this... because I'm dying to paint my nails a nice summer pale yellow colour and I CAN'T GET HOLD OF ONE anywhere. I'm frustrated but I think my wallet is secretly beaming with joy. The moment I wanted to get it, it was sold out everywhere and I even went to a flea market just to get it, the stupid owner did not keep the reserved bottle for me. So nah, I'm not buying from her anymore. I'd rather pay more for someone who keeps their words. Such people annoys me.

Stay with me

Today is my 6th spinning class!

I have attended classes of 4 different instructors. Today's instructor is Ron, I've heard his classes on Tuesday nights are always full. I had this impression that his sessions are very tough (derived from a video on their Facebook page). It's unusual to see him on a lunch time session, but I thought it's refreshing to have someone new. My other instructors are a Malay guy, a Chinese lady and an Indian lady. Ron's a caucasian, I can't tell his nationality. He's not very old, maybe middle-aged. He has a great clear voice, tattooes and a very amiable smile. The most memorable phrase I can quote from his instructions today is "Stay with me." It means try to be at the same rhythm/speed with him.

Strangely, I didn't exhaust myself too much today; I'm wondering if I have gotten used by the 6th time... or am I doing it (in the right way) finally. Many offered help to adjust my bike today, but I think it was stuck. LOL. Even the macho guys couldn't fix it. But I had my seat higher and it does seem to help! I'm beginning to get the hang of it, not perfect, but much better than the first 2 times. 2 more lessons to go and I am done... What shall I do next?

Tumultuous Tuesday

Today everything went wrong at work again... However, I seem to have gotten used to handling crisis and I kinda think I'm good at crisis management! LOL. We tried to resolve the issue, failed then resort to calling the emergency helpline. Afterwhich, we handled the aftermaths (enquiries about the website), and investigated the cause of the problem. I think we did really well. A pat on my back and the team involved.

Despite a disastrous morning at work, I wasn't feeling stressed. I was a little annoyed it happened again, but it was not within my control. But generally today I am feeling great, not sure why, you know that feeling you get when you woke up on the wrong side of the bed, it's just the opposite today. A really cute guy stood besides me in the train on the way to work, he accidentally brushed against my hand a couple of times while reading his book, but you know, I didn't mind it of course ;) Hope to see him again soon! On the other hand, if it's a fat sweaty uncle, I would be brushing them off or even wiping my hands with Dettol. Very funny, but isn't this so true! Somehow I have been meeting a lot more cute guys recently than the past, very weird... but I shouldn't complain! Last week, I saw one in the queue during lunch, somehow I was too shy to even smile at him, shit! On Sunday, I bought a leather card holder from a Japanese guy because he was too cute when he excitedly introduced his products (leather products he designed), I almost wanted a photo taken with him. Sometimes some things are worth paying for ;)

It's Wednesday tomorrow, so looking forward to my next spinning class and then the weekend. But nowadays I don't get much rest on my weekends which is exhausting...!

BBQ korean style

Too much to eat. So much to recommend. This is an overdue post. But better late than never :P

My buddy was craving for Korean BBQ, and so I did a little research and found a little gem along Amoy Street. Well I think it's pretty good for the first time I'm having a Korean BBQ. I read some reviews on it that its an authentic Korean restaurant owned and food prepared by Koreans. I can't remember exactly what we ate! There was a seafood pancake, a tofu soup, Red Pig meat and beef for the BBQ, with the order we also were served 6 side sides (tofu, egg, kimchi and some cold salad). We also had lettuces and sauce to wrap the BBQ meat with, now this reminds me of the Vietnamese BBQ I had!! We had to have the Red Pig meat because the restaurant is named Red Pig too, so it must be some signature dish! LOL. Anyhow, the bill came up to over $90 for 3 and we were pretty stuffed. So I guess it's not that a bad deal really...

Fwah, what a week!

I learnt "Fwah" from my good friend. LOL. It seems like a good combination of the "F word" and "wah" (which we normally used for exclamation).

This week has been horribly busy, with crisis at work the Friday before and then continuing onto Monday. Things finally got sorted but work never ceased to pile up, fortunately by Friday the major ones are done. The week crawled slowly, but I managed a movie, spinning class, changed my nails color twice, met 2 friends for lunches, helped a friend to vet his new website copy and then catching up with more friends and flea market shopping over the weekend (Okay, I admit I can never keep my words to stop buying nail polishes). It didn't do my wallet justice, poor cards, they need to be rested! I fell for the Club21 sale which started on Friday and bought myself a Marc by Marc Jacobs tote!

Pink flowery artistic tote!

My latest color craze - Skull & Glassbones from OPI Pirates of the Carribean.

One more good news, one of my entries for Silkair Explorer, a contest I took part almost a year ago, has been selected to be featured on an upcoming Silkair advertorial. I didn't win the contest, but still this is exciting, and I can't wait to see it. I will have one more additional portfolio for my travel writing!

Mama, let loose!

My mum needs to let loose. She's getting all worried about my sister who has left for France. I wonder if she's able to sleep these two weeks. She's worrying if she has arrived, her safety and even started having doubts if the "teacher" who brought them there is even a "bad guy". Oh my god, mum, can you just let it go?

I left for London so long years ago, I thought she has gotten used to it. I assured her things are fine and the little girl needs to go out and see the world. But she replied,"You're different, you have 狗胆。" It means monstrously audacious, but literally when you translate it, it means courage of a dog. Thanks mum, I take it as a compliment. I think she really understands me well, doesn't she! But I am happy for the little bird to fly, because she needs to. My little sister has little courage, not adventurous and not experimental at all, she likes things the tried and tested ways. I know this trip will make her grow, make her realise there's a lot more things in life, but not enough till she sees the poorer countries too!

I shall see her in July and hear all about her new adventures ;)

Weekly movie marathon

Thanks to Joy, who has taken the trouble to go get the tickets, I watched a couple of movies with cheap tickets and good seats. I caught another one last night alone, and sometimes I just like the feeling of watching it alone. Peaceful. Undisturbed. Hassle-free.

So I just thought I would share my thoughts on the films I watched.

Pirates Of The Caribbean: On Stranger Tides
It's a whole new chapter. I still thought it was a continuation of the last series. The casts have all changed, but a few remains. I guess the most important part is to keep Johnny Depp in, as he's such a joy to watch. Seriously despite quite a few bad comments about the show, I still think it was entertaining. My friend nearly fell asleep, but I don't know how she did it because there's Johnny Depp!!! I do like the mermaid part, but my colleague was so against the idea that mermaids can be so deadly. Haha, why not? It's the surprise element!

Kungfu Panda 2
Still funny. Many loved it. I do but not as much. Plot is interesting, animation is great, panda is cute. That's all it matters, isn't it? A great movie for all, young and old. And now, find your inner peace...

Hangover 2
The first one is better, but still a good one to catch. At least, it connects to the first movie unlike a lot of other movies. The first one was more focused on Phil, Stu, Alan and Doug, but this one somehow placed more focus on Mr Chow. Mr Chow definitely made the show much funnier and oh, that little monkey too! I like the idea that it's in Bangkok, a total different setting from the Las Vegas setting. Oh Stu and Kimmy (the she-male), how gross, but that was a great laugh! I find Alan quite annoying though... can I give him a slap!!

The little bird flys!

My little sister is going to France this coming Friday and I am really excited for her. She's 25 now, but to me, still so little. I hope she has the courage to explore a lot more things outside of Singapore. She's heading over with her "teacher" and a bunch of others to do a 2 weeks French language course. Of course, that includes staying at a school and some sightseeing excursions. She will be seeing a lot of France more than I ever did (which was sadly only Paris). After that, she will extend 2 days to spend some time with her friend living in France. I wish her a safe trip and may this gives her a good head start to future Europe trip (maybe with me ;) this time round)!

WWWhooot!

After the last complaint about the train frequency, this morning I boarded a train WITHOUT AIR CON! Can you imagine with the stupid weather and the crowd at peak hours!! SMRT, what the hell are you doing...! Everyone inside was trying to fan themselves with anything they could and when it got crowded, the air was so still and humid!! It was getting so stuffy inside that I alighted a few stops after to wait for the next train. Imagine when I stepped out, the air outside (which was warm) felt even cooler than the air in the cabin, gosh, I wonder how those people survive another 20 minutes to get to town! I'd rather be late than arrived hot, sweaty and frustrated.

Freakish

I lost my memory. Is it selective memory or was I pre-occupied with something? What happened??

I was in the shop, making a purchase. I was asked to pay by NETS, the next moment, I got an approval NETS receipt but I don't remember keying in my pin. I swear I still can't recall. It almost freaked me out that the transaction went through without my authorization. Or is it that, I really lost my memory?

It is a sign that I am getting old...

Fated

"One peach, regular," I said to the Yami Yogurt auntie.

She didn't move for a few seconds and stared at me. Her eyes, large as goldfish, it then hit on me. Why are they so familiar?

"AAAaaahhh," I exclaimed. The auntie went on to fetch a cup of frozen peach yogurt, at the same time, she asked,"Do you remember me?" "Yes, yes, we used to work in the portuguese egg tarts cafe!" I suddenly recalled.

Oh my lord... that's almost 10 years ago. She still recognises me. This is fate, we meet again. I was having a hunger pang at 5pm, and decided to head out to Mr Bean nearby. I was craving for Yami Yogurt but I knew there wasn't any around. But I was so wrong. I stood in front of Mr Bean, and there was nothing I fancied on the menu. So I swang my head around. That instant, I thought God must have read my wishes, suddenly there is YAMI YOGURT! (I learnt that it just opened last week, so whose reading my mind!!) I was thrilled and I went up to have my usual favourite. That is how I bumped into her.

We had a short conversation and I am sure it won't be the last time I am seeing her. Yami Yogurt, here I come :)

Life indeed is a spin, sometimes it takes you round and round.

A storm tonight

Floods have visited Singapore again. Singapore seriously has to look into flood prevention and prepare for stormy weather for the future. It never used to be this rainy during May or June.

As I pulled in the window pane, I felt the stillness outside, the trees were barely swaying. But the breeze brushed against my skin and knocked on my bamboo chimes. I looked up, the sky was red... almost dark red. It was as if it was bruised and awaiting revenge. I could feel it coming.

I lay in bed. Minutes ago, I read about a tsunami from the sky in the west of Singapore from a friend. I'm also getting live updates about it hitting Sengkang, the north-east side. I hear the chimes from my kitchen, the sky moaning softly... and I know it will all be here very soon.

Hotcakes

My second attempt and the shapes get better each time. This is done with buttermilk pancake mix :)  I didn't make these this morning as the rain kept me in bed till late!! I miss making banana pancakes, maybe next weekend ya!

Tip: Use butter/margarine to grease pan.

生日快乐Carrie

I designed a birthday postcard for a friend in Taiwan. I hope the bits didn't fall off by the time it gets to her! She was a great help during my trip there and is a joy to have as a friend :) And I am so jealous of her natural curly hair that's as Q as the maggie mee... I think I will give it a try one day!

Made with love, packed with belated birthday wishes.

Paint it

Recently, something caught my attention and definitely got a hook on my wallet. I was never too keen on painting nails until something just hit me hard. I started to look at swatches on blogs and after getting hold of a few online shops, it began my crazy spree for nail polishes. It's a phase, but the kind that will revisit from time to time. At one point, I would change the colors every few days once it started to chip... but sometimes I am just too lazy, and I'd give them a matte look with a coat of base coat.

Below are some of my moments.

Orly Lollipop with China Glaze Sea Spray. They go well with the rings, doesn't it?

Similar to OPI shatter, this is China Glaze Crackle.

OPI Suede Russian Navy. Taken after a few days... so kinda coming off by then.

OPI Suede Suzi Skis in the Pyrenees. Taken after a few days too.

Nail colors can be such a good fashion accessory too, don't you think?

Simple things in life

This morning, the security guard uncle echoed my morning greetings. He made my day and I hope I made his.

In the train today, I witnessed acts of kindness and it touched me. An middle aged auntie was losing her balance whilst the train was moving. And the person besides her suddenly held her gently by her arm, and she managed to break the fall. Then it happened another time as the train was moving fast underground, the other person on the other side of her helpfully gave her another handgrip. As we were packed tightly in the middle of the cabin, she had nothing to hold on to. I was pleasantly surprised the people around her offered help. Another lady offered to swap places with her so she could hold on to the nearest pole. I looked on and suddenly wish the world is filled with more considerate people like them :)

I also watched on when I saw a few backpackers alighting the train. My heart yearns for another backpacking trip, one that I can rest my mind, put technology and the rat society behind... But as I grow older, less taxing activities seem to appeal to me more, such as going on a yoga retreat, a beach holiday, a foodie trip... Trekking or water sports are the last things on my mind.

Recently, I have cravings. Sometimes, I like to have a cake, marzipan chocolate, some pineapple tarts, bubble tea or a little chewy cream puff. I didn't resist, I went ahead to have it. It's such simple things that make my life happy!

I noticed someone carrying exactly the same bag I am carrying today... How embarassing! But at least we're not wearing the same things!!!

Be grateful

This evening, I paid a visit to little Charmaine and my friend, Cyn (you can check out her blog by clicking the banner on the right hand side). It's good to see them again, especially that Char is recovering well from the operation on Friday. Now she can move her legs!

Whenever I see them, I often think those whom have complained about all the smallest things in life should get to know them. They should feel for those whom are struggling to survive, those whom are starving in the poor countries, those whom cannot afford a roof over their heads... Those people whom are unhappy, you have a choice to be happy, do something. Some people are left with no other choices, they are terminally ill, they are borned in a country with poverty, they are borned handicapped. But the rest of you, you're not... So get a life! Be happy you have a job, be happy you have enough money to survive, be happy you have limbs to use, be happy you always have food to eat.