Friday, September 29, 2006
Freak Encounter
Lately, I could not blog simply because I was so knocked out by the end of the day. This week has been a hectic week as I had training 3 out of the 5 days.
Out of the 3 days, 2 days of training were with colleagues from Asia-Pacific region. Naturally, when these overseas colleagues come to Singapore, we would be expected to 'entertain'. There would usually be business dinners.
So, one of the morning at about 5 plus am, I received 2 messages from my boss to inform me of 2 likely dinner appointments. She politely asked if I could attend.
I usually sms my SO while on my way to work. So, I drafted a message which goes something like this to him:
My boss just sms me to tell me there is a dinner tonight and tommorrow. How? I don't feel like going. But my boss introvert. Always want people to accompany her.
I happily sent the message only to realise to my horror that I sent the sms to my boss instead!!!
I totally FREAKED out! It is true that I do not enjoy business dinners. Though necessary for networking, I just feel that it's a waste of time. I have always emphathised with my boss that she has to do a lot of entertaining on her own and I do not mind joining her. Its just that sometimes as humans, we need an outlet to air about something we do not enjoy doing (like household chore is another example). However, as it was a message meant for my SO, I had no reservations on how I drafted the message nor how the message was to be interpreted. After all, I was just lamenting!
Needless to say, I had to do a lot of damage control that day, and probably many days, weeks or months after, until such time my boss forgets about the hurt she received from reading my sms. If she ever forgets! Sigh!
12:00 AM
Thursday, September 28, 2006
JC days
Since the Wah blogger posted our younger days photos on her blog, I thought I would do a feature on our JC days autographs!!!
Yes, during our time, we wrote autographs for each other. I could not remember what I wrote for them... but I do have what they wrote for me!
Rae's mummy:
"The Serious-no-nonsense style"
Wah Blogger:
"The Creative-play-with-song-titles-plus-quizzes style"
My SO:
"The Your-mood-changes-faster-than-the-weather-in-Singapore style"
While others just like to make an organized mess aka graffiti out of it:
Well, some common themes mentioned by close friends are that yours truly here tend to be too stubborn (negative) or strong willed (positive) and ahem 'talented' (another positive!).
Too bad at that point in time, I still have not got to know Minty...... Otherwise, might have something funny to show you people. Haa...
11:19 PM
Monday, September 25, 2006
MEIJI II
Ok ok...... I know many of you are drooling over the Meiji stuff.
Here's the link to their webbie:
http://www.meiji.com.sg/html/contact.htm
Street directory map:
http://singapore.streetdirectory.com/asia_travel/travel/travel.php?x=14168.7455&y=34700.7525&star=1&iconlist=star1,14168.7455,34700.7525;&searchcompany=&searchunitno=&searchblock=36&searchstreetname=Quality+Road&searchbuildingname=Meiji+Seika&searchpostalcode=618806&searchmasterid=112103&searchbuildingid=5623&level=4
Not all the products you see on the web is on sale. But you should be able to find most of their popular stuff there, including the new AMINO acid drink. S.O's mum was saying that AMINO Acid does wonders for plumbing up aging skin. And since I am already over 30, better start taking as prevention is better than cure! I shall hoard a few packets back from Japan during my up and coming trip as I heard it's about 50% cheaper there! Anybody needs me to help get any?
9:31 PM
Saturday, September 23, 2006
A tribute to Ursweetlullaby
My colleague, Ursweetlullaby, has resigned from the company. She seats beside me and we often gossip about work & fashion (fashion especially!).
Actually, I think the seat beside me in the office is known as the 'hot' seat. It is a highly 'productive' seat. Anyone who wishes to conceive only needs to sit on it for a while. Persons who sat on it and successfully conceived: KT in 2003, CC in 2005 and Ursweetlullaby herself in 2005!
Anyway, I sidetracked. I wanted to share that Ursweetlullaby has been a wonderful colleague and she will be sorely missed! Being the sweet person she is, she even got the department a new coffee maker! We are so pampered! The cool coffee machine comes with a milk frother as well. We can now make our own cuppacino and latte! Hooray!
I guess the office will be very different with so many close colleagues gone. I can only pray that the new ones that come along will be as nice as those who left!I made Ursweetlullaby a parting gift (ah... one of my many past times again). Well, I am a vain person with vain passions. Let me know what you think of my handmade jewellry below:
Btw, I created the picture using Adobe Photoshop. Nothing fanciful, but it took me a long time to even figure out how to produce the above!8:56 AM
MEIJI!!!
We went to Meiji again on Friday! The place is so so crowded!
Look at our baskets! I am going to be piling on a few more kilos!
K, these are all mine! I bought 10 boxes of Macadamia Nut chocolates. Yeah, I know it sounds like alot - but most of it I gave to SO's family coz they quite like it. To the mummies out there, if you are looking for good quality tidbits to buy for kid's birthday celebration, this is a good place to start!
Look at the stash the person infront of me is hoarding! We counted, 10 cartons x 10 boxes, a total of 100 boxes of Macadamia Nut Chocolates! *FAINT*
12:17 AM
Thursday, September 21, 2006
KJ-drama & One Litre of Tears
I have many favourite past times, and one of them is watching 'fluffy' movies and dramas.
In recent years, I have watched numerous Korean and Japanese Drama. Korean titles: Da Chang Jin, Goong, Full house, My Girl, Only You, Lovers in Paris, Princess Lu Lu, Royal Prince's First Love, A Love to Kill, Sad Love Song, Sorry, I Love You, etc. Japanese: Overtime, Pride, Hana Yori Dango and a highly recommended 'One Litre of Tears'.
Although most of the time I preferred romantic comedies, I would still recommend One Litre of Tears even though it is a super super supppppeeeerrr sad drama. I don't think one can watch without tearing. Furthermore, it is based on a true story about a girl named Aya, who suffered from an incurable disease at the tender age of 15. At the end of each episode, they actually showed footage of the real girl who passed away from the disease and also snipets from her diary. It is heart wrenching (and especially so since they had a very pretty young actress to play the lead role), but also makes you appreciate the hardships and heartaches families with underprivileged/disabled children go through. It also highlights the importance of kinship during such situations.
Here's a 2 parts special on the making of the movie (in japanese language), including substantial coverage on the girl named AYA who suffered from the disease. Its quite a lengthy video clip so I suggest you download before viewing. Also, the music you are hearing comes from one of the movie soundtracks.
1:50 AM
Phone can fry an egg!
Russian journalists Lagovski and Moiseynko managed to cook several eggs with the radiation and heat emitting from their cell phones. Read about it here:
http://www.googirama.com/mobile/news/phone-radiation-cooks-eggs-153.html
I had difficulties posting photos. Anyone of you faced the same problem?
12:31 AM
Monday, September 18, 2006
Do know know the name of this plant?
My intern student gave me this when she completed her attachment last year.
It is a very cute plant, but I have no idea what type of plant it is and what it is called.
It sort of resembles a cactus but instead of needing little bit of water, it seems to thrive better if you literally 'flood' the pot!
Also, when one of its bubble-like leaf drops off from the stem, you just need to soak it in water and roots will grow and you get another clone of it! Can see the mini clones in the center? Talk about survival!
K, if any of you know what's the name of this plant, do let me know!
9:07 PM
Sunday, September 17, 2006
Blogger's block
Can't think of what to blog about......
Today is a boring day as I have to go back office to finish up some stuff. Also, forgot to ask my mum to keep dinner for me, hence, there is only soup left. As the soup is already cold, so I had to heat it up in the microwave.
Close up picture of my soup. Looks delicious right? It has raddish, carrot, tomato, chicken, red dates, wolfberries and tangkui.
Further close up...... see this piece of abalone, that's what making the soup delicious!
Next, I went to make a cup of hot chocolate, since the weather is cold. This Meiji Cocoa is low in sugar, its not sweet at all!
Got this Meiji hot cocao from the Meiji factory. Yes, there is one near Jurong Point at Quality Road and they are open to public every Friday noon. The stuff are selling at maybe 20% cheaper than supermarkets? Its a small shop space but then again, you don't need a big space to sell tidbits and chocolates! Ms Wah, if you interested to go, come pick me from office and we go together!
Next, I am going to study a tutorial on Photoshop. I hope to learn how to make my photos more beautiful and interesting! I will post them if I succeed. Wish me luck!
8:35 PM
Saturday, September 16, 2006
How much is your blog worth?
A friend told me about this site that measures how much your blog is worth. Apparently, there is more than one site that can actually do such a calculation.
One calculated mine to be $564.54, while another said $3.01. Oh course, I would like to share the more 'positive' one.
If you are interested to do a 'valuation' of your blog, check out:
http://www.business-opportunities.biz/projects/how-much-is-your-blog-worth/
12:22 AM
CHOPE!
Class 95 was giving out car decals and tissue packets a few days ago.
The tissue packet given is quite interesting and it is actually promoting singlish!
It says CHOPE! and is intended for you to reserve seats anywhere you want. Take a closer peep!
12:15 AM
Thursday, September 14, 2006
I will be here
The first time I heard this song by Steven Curtis Chapman, was in a wedding express highlights of a good friend - the Wah blogger. That time, I did not know who was the singer, just that I liked the song very much and the title has to be 'I will be here', because it was repeated so many times in the song. I just find this song so touching and meaningful.
In the end, after several searches on the internet, I managed to find out who's the artiste behind the song and searched for his album high and low. Finally, I found it in HMV. So crazy I was over that one single that I bought two albums, one with the original version and the other with an updated version of the song. Furthermore, I remembered it was quite expensive as both albums were imported.
I must say I absoluted loved the updated version. I quote Marybeth Chapman (wife of Steven Curtis Chapman) on her feelings towards the updated version:
"A very special song played for me
for the first time on Mother's Day many years ago. I cried many tears listening
over and over again to this incredible oath of commitment. Born out of the
painful divorce of Steven's parents, "I will be here" is a pledge of Steven's
unwavering commitment to our marriage. I didnt think this song could be updated,
you don't mess with a classic! I was wrong! This version is unbelievable. I love
everything about it......"
And here's the lyrics to the song:
Tomorrow morning if you wake up
And the sun does not appear
I, I will be here
If in the dark we lose sight of love
Hold my hand and have no fear
Cause I, I will be here
I will be here
When you feel like being quiet
When you need to speak your mind
I will listen and i will be here
When the laughter turns to crying
Through the winning, losing and trying
We'll be together
Cause I will be here
Tomorrow morning if you wake up
And the future is unclear
I, I will be here
As sure as seasons were made for change
our lifetimes were made for these years
So I, I will be here
I will here
So you can cry on my shoulder
when the mirror tells us we're older
I will hold you
And I will be here
To watch you grow in beauty
And tell you all the things you mean to me
I will be here
I will be true to the promise I have made
To you and to the one
Who gave you to me
Just as sure as seasons were made for change
our lifetimes were made for these years
so I, I will be here
We'll be together
Cause I will be here
I will be here
11:00 PM
Hello Kitty Dispenser
I have a very cute 8-cups Hello Kitty Dispenser on my office desk and it looks like this:
I would refill the water every 1-2 days. Recently, I have been troubled by uninvited guests who seem to like my water dispenser as much as me. My guess is that they did not like the hot weather much.
I swear they are swimming on the surface of the water. And they keep each other afloat by piggy-backing on each other for support. No, they don't die after spending several days in the water. Hence, they MUST be just enjoying a swim. Seriously, I have absolutely NO IDEA how they managed to get in. Each time after I washed the dispenser, I checked thoroughly that there are none of them left. But within the hour......they just apparate onto the surface of the water AGAIN!
7:00 AM
Wednesday, September 13, 2006
P Test - Result
Here's the result to the P Test.
First, let me explain what does P in P Test stands for. It's actually Psychopathic, not Personality.
I was told that when the Psychopaths get caught and were given the question, they almost always gave similar answers.
To recap, this is the question:
A mother of 2 daughters died. They held a wake and many people came to pay their last respect. Amongst the people who came to pay their respect, the elder daughter noticed a very handsome man. She actually took a fancy towards him. Two weeks later, the younger daughter died. Why?
The answer given by the Psychos:
The elder daughter did not managed to get down the man's name or contact. She has no means to contact the man. Hence, she killed her own sister so that her family can have another wake, of which she is certain that the same man will turn up again!
Shiver......shiver......
Aren't you glad you have given a different answer?
9:00 AM
Tuesday, September 12, 2006
The anxious mother
Just want to share a funny incident that I heard from my SO's mum. My SO's sister has a very decent and sweet boyfriend. He has a pleasant personality and is quite well-mannered. He is also filial and like me - simple minded.
He was born as part of a pair of twins. Unfortunately, his sister didn't survive at birth, hence, he became very precious to the family, being the only son and only child. His dad, sadly, passed away a year back due to multiple health problems. His mum, also a simple-no-frills person, worries about genetic inheritance for the child and therefore becomes very careful over their diet, making sure that unnecessary sugar, salt and oil are omitted from their meals.
One of the items that he is banned from eating is durian, because of its high sugar content. However, this boy loves durian very much. One day, he walked past a durian stall and could no longer resists the temptation. So he actually bought some home. Now, we know how pungent durian can be and there is absolutely NO WAY to hide the smell. He knew his mum would disapprove and hence in order not to upset his mum, his "brilliant" plan was to sneak the durians into his room and quickly finish it up behind closed door.
Unfortunately, his mum caught whiffs of the king of fruits. The smell brought her to the door of his room and she knocked the door aggressively and shouted;" Are you eating durians? Open the door!". The boy panicked and responded that it's not him but the neighbours. He then quickly wrapped up and hid the remaining fruits and sprayed his room generously with his EDT before opening up the door to his mum. Lucky for him, his mum did not managed to spot the remaining durians. She could only frown suspiciously at the mixture of EDT & durian smell.
She left the room and walked towards the kitchen. Meanwhile, the boy continued to spray his EDT generously in his room hoping that the smell can be camouflaged by the fragrance. However, his mum continued to catch whiffs of the durians and decided that it can't be the neighbours. She stomped back towards his room and knocked on his door again, demanding that he open up once more.
Once the door was opened, this time she detected an even stronger blend of EDT + durian. To that, she finally resignedly said:" Please boy, next time do not buy this EDT with the durian smell. It really smells very bad!"
Oh, by the way, you cannot blame her for her ignorance because she has never used a bottle of perfume before. She must have thought that some innovative companies thought that durian EDT might sell. Anyway, just for the sake of humour, here's how a bottle of durian EDT might look like and its called 'Contradictions'. Hahaha......
7:00 AM
Monday, September 11, 2006
My 3G Mobile Phone
I traded in my Nokia N80 3G phone after owning it for less than 6 months. The reason is that the software sucks big time! I had upgraded the software once already because it takes more than 10 seconds to send out an sms (yes, its totally unacceptable to me!). After spending a whole afternoon at the Nokia Care Center to queue for the software upgrade and then queue again to pick up the handset, it only solved some of the problems but at the same time created other problems. Not only that, a month after the upgrade, my N80 is back to taking more than 10 seconds to send out an sms! Absolutely frustrating!
It's time to bid farewell to the phone while I can still trade-in for some value in exchange for a better alternative. Plus, I do not have the patient to go through that whole Nokia Care Center shit again.
In case you have never seen an N80 before, here's how it looks like. Maybe I just happen to have bought a particular problematic set......those of you who are considering to buy one, buy at your own risk!
On a lighter note, I am very happy to get my new handphone - a Sony Ericsson K800i. It is a much better phone than my previous N80 in several ways: better software - no hanging or slow smsing, more fun games, 3.2 mega pixel cyber-shot with auto-focus and it wins Nokia hands down on 'Human Technology' in many aspects. I used to be a loyal Nokia fan as I am impressed with their user-friendliness. However, I guess their competitors have really caught up or even surpassed them!
Now, me and my SO are pleased with our current phones. See how sweet our phones look side by side each other! Hee...... And of course, the phone with lots of 'Ang Gong' belongs to me......my favourite sanrio characters, Melody and Kuromi.
1:45 AM
Sunday, September 10, 2006
A RAY of hope
I have many bad habits and among them is one involving me falling asleep without switching off the lights.
Well, I never intentionally don't switch off the lights! What happens usually is that I would be reading a book or a magazine, then the zzZZZ bug strike. I would be so sleepy (& lazy) to get up and switch off the lights, so I thought catching a light snooze first might help. That few minutes of precious sleep might just make me wake up refreshed, or accumulate some more energy sufficient to drag myself out of bed to switch off the damn lights.
But it almost always never happen as expected. So its either my mum or dad who off the lights and then grumbles to me the next morning.
SO, I wished and wished very hard for a technology that would allow me to switch off the lights without having to crawl out of my bed. Something like you clap your hands and the on/off of lights get activated. Something like this:
That would be the best, isnt it!
Well, I must say this thing is actually available in the market, because my beloved dad just fixed one for me! You are not looking at my handphone. It IS the remote control to my room light!
I have a fun time switching on and off my lights like an idiot when I first got it. I just cannot believe that my simple wish came true! Haha......
11:25 AM
Saturday, September 09, 2006
Striking Lottery
Yes, its the first prize!
Can't wait to redeem my prize money!
Here's what I plan to do with the winnings:
- Replace my current LV wallet with a new one! Incidentally, my LV wallet was bought 4 years ago when I won the 4D for the very first time. It's time to change a new one as its rather worn out by now.
- Set aside some money for spending in my coming Tokyo trip in October.
- Give the elder folks some money to spend as they are also travelling in October to China.
- Get a present for my SO.
- Donate a little to the charity - meaning if I see any school kids flagging out there, I will donate more generously then I normally do (Hee!).
- Save the balance (if any!)
11:55 PM
Friday, September 08, 2006
A weekend luncheon: SO's the chef
Last sunday, my SO (significant other) decided that he shall play Chef for the day. For someone who does not cook at all, that was indeed no mean feat!
The dishes prepared comprised of the following:
- 2 types of fried fish (pardon me, but I have no idea what type of fish!)
- Chap Cai
- Ang Zao Chicken
- Chef specialty - Fried omelette with mince meat
The 2 really complicated dishes to prepare, of course, are Chap Cai and Ang Zao Chicken. Ang Zao refers to fermented glutinous rice. It is from a Hockchew origin and is dyed red in colour. I understand that it is a dish often prepared for confinement consumption. Hence, this dish is HEATY. You can buy this dish at some foodcourt in Singapore but it is not common.
Well, I shall be generous and share with you the recipes for these 2 dishes. Hee, its not exactly THE recipe as I do not have the specific measurements (hey I am not the one cooking)! But you do get a general idea. Let the pictures do the talking......
Ang Zao Chicken
After heating up some oil in the pan, fry ginger strips until fragrant before adding chopped garlic. I was told garlic has to be added later as they get burnt easily!
Once you get sufficient aroma coming both ginger and garlic, put in the Ang Zao paste and fry for around 10-15mins in small to medium fire. This is the most important step! If the Ang Zao paste is not stir-fried slowly and steadily, the dish will taste absolutely bitter and horrible! If you prefer a stronger tasting dish, fry more Ang Zao paste.
You will know the paste is ready when it turns a few shades darker in colour. The oil seems to separate from the paste as well.
Once the paste is ready, add in cut-up chicken pieces that were already marinated the night before. The chicken pieces were marinated using your usual salt, pepper, soya sauce & sesame oil.
Stir fry the chicken pieces until they are well covered with Ang Zao paste and are about half-cooked.
In another pot, bring about 1/3 water to boil. Once the water have boiled, transfer the chicken pieces into the big pot and bring to boil again. Add salt/soya to taste.
If you preferred the thicker gravy version, then use lesser water. It is also said that the dish will taste better and better as it age (meaning you heat up a few times more).
Chap Cai
Stir fry lots of finely chopped garlic in oil. Next, add in black fungus and mushrooms. You need to fry black fungus and mushrooms first as they need the oil to bring out their flavours.
Next, add in some fatty meat (or lean meat if you prefer healthier choices) and fry everything together.
Here comes the all important secret. To have a tasty Chap Cai dish, you need to add in fermented bean curd!! I didn't know this! Just add the bean curd to the pan and continue to stir fry everything together.
You dont need to add in a lot. For the portion that we prepared, we added about 3 cubes. You will be able to see from the next picture below, our portion seems fit for an army!
To continue illustrating, boil a little water with ikan bilis and ginger in a pot to create some stock. Once the stock is boiling, put all your cabbage into the pot. You do not need a lot of water to create the stock as cooked cabbage will produce water. Otherwise, the dish may turn out to be too watery.
As you can see, our pot is hardly big enough for all the cabbage that we had prepared! Throw in the dried bean stick (is that what it is called? I only know its Dao Ki in hokkien), we cannot stir anymore and therefore had to transfer half of the portion to another pot. Also, we had not added in the mushroom, black fungus and meat mixture!
Once you have mix everything together in the pot (remember to use a BIG one), bring it to boil and add salt/soya to taste.
This is the finished product. We brought out a bigger pot so that we can combine everything into one.
By the way, the above meal was prepared for 5 persons for lunch and dinner. The Chap Cai was completely wiped out by the end of the day!
9:00 PM
P Test
Aiyo, some many people reading my blog? Serious? I feel so nervous and obligated to post something! Where's my site meter?
Hee...... so here I am, sharing a P-test a colleague tested on me. The story goes like this:
A mother of 2 daughters died. They held a wake and many people came to pay their last respect. Amongst the people who came to pay their respect, the elder daughter noticed a very handsome man. She actually took a fancy towards him. Two weeks later, the younger daughter died. Why?
Why don't you guys post your answers in your comments page before I announce the answer? There's actually no right answers......only one very wrong one!
5:17 PM
Tuesday, September 05, 2006
My first blog!
So inspired I am by friends and a one-month-old baby who's also happily blogging away, I have decided to brace myself for the complexity (remember, I am simple minded) of technology and the internet world to start blogging as well.
Brief intro to myself: a non-complicated, boring but restless person who enjoys trying out new stuff without knowing what to expect. Its just so oddly simple, isn't it?
10:42 PM
I am The Emperor
