swissroll's haven

baby, i'll be home soon

2007-01-14T17:41:00.000+11:00

i'll be home soon!!! in a month's time.
cant wait to catch up with family, friends, my baby & the FOOD!!!
OMG, tis is gonna be a long agonizing month.

see ya all soon.

yet another post without pics

2007-01-11T19:04:00.000+11:00

you kidding me OH left jus last week? it sure feels like ages ago. work has resumed for me and i'm already heavily bombarded with work up to my neck. although some investigators are still on leave and many pple are still sluggish and it seems like actual work wont start for them until after australia day or february (which marks the end of school holidays).

believe it or not, my monitoring trips are planned till april07 already.

will be in melb next week and the week after. after which, there wont be catch up sessions with ric anymore.

anyhow, the big achievements (for the car) during OH's recent escapade are:

palm beach - ~46km (took abt 1hr 30mins one way)
cabramatta - ~40km
bankstown - ~26km
watsons bay (plus national park) - ~15km

its amazing how these are some distances the locals travel to work. i wont be able to do the same. by the time i get to work, i would be so tired and would need to find a place to catch some winks. from the look of things, i wont be travelling that sort of distances for a while. in time, everywhere will be a stone's throw away.

pics have been minimum these weeks/months or so since laziness got the better of me. incredibly jaded these days. outside work, i jus wanna chill and do nothing. besides, i feel sleepy soon after a quiet dinner and a bath, jus like now.

swissroll at the art gallery

2006-12-28T21:29:00.000+11:00

side note: the royal botanic gardens has turned into a hideout for bats. meant to take a shortcut thru the garden to get to the city but the dangling bats changed my mind. u can hear the occasional squeaking at nite at where i stay but seeing so many in broad daylight is quite a horror. OH had a good laugh at my expense which i have yet to "punish" him. no prize for the correct/ obvious answer, we didnt make it thru the garden.

jolly good times

2006-12-27T17:19:00.000+11:00

life cant be any better.
i'm enjoying myself big time.
eat, drink, shop, movies, sleep.
and the cycle repeats.

kinda extreme that one sets the alarm for early morning shopping?
haha, we sure did.
it was quite a thrill to see the car boot filled with shopping bags.
shopping rules!

gonna end the anniversary with a movie at the entertainment quarter & good ol' pancakes at the rocks.

*beaming*

let's jus say with OH ard, things are great.

*beaming*

killing 2 birds with 1 stone

2006-12-16T21:32:00.000+11:00

went to do my color+perm+cut today.

tis may not be new but i tot it's an ingenious idea.
patrons get to select a movie to watch while getting their hair done.
obviously, if its a haircut, u would never finish a movie.

never notice i was there for 3 hours if not for the movies.

definitely a selling point for the salon.

now, i dont go back to the salon jus for my hairstylist (hairstylist job hop, i salon hop with her) but for a movie or two as well.

how cool is that?

last friday's cruise + premature awakening

2006-12-07T19:40:00.000+11:00

xmas cruise last fri

we were supposed to gather at 6.45pm but pple were arriving late due to fri evening traffic. some didnt even make it back to change. they came straight from the office!!! obviously, they didnt leave at 3.

travelling on fridays down under can be a pain in the behind. my monitoring visit in melb usu stretch over 3-4 days and would often end on a fri and ken (my designated cab driver in melb) always arrange to pick me up at the hospital hours way before my flight. there was tis time when we had to take all the small roads to avoid the massive jam. and man that ride cost me 70 bucks. the detour & jams aside, taxis are generally more exp in melb. jus when u think taxis are exp in syd, melb is a hundred times worse.

*gasp* that's one whole paragraph on bad traffic.

i took jus a few shots & a video file of the fireworks (sponsored by coca cola i heard) while on the boat cos i wanted to take it all in. the harbour bridge, the opera house, the harbour, the sunset, etc. u can never get enough of the harbour bridge and opera house. though i love the historical architectural, arty farty, european styled melb, syd will always remain a special place in my heart. anyhow, there was tis outline of a coathanger on one side of the bridge for the new year fireworks we all guessed. btw, coathanger is one of many nicknames of the bridge. doubt i will make it for the new year's fireworks. dont fancy the crowds.

like i said to yeo, the best thing to come out from the cruise is not the socializing/ food/ drinks but the steering of the boat. under the captain's supervision, i steered the boat from paramatta river back to the harbour....before pyrmont bridge cos traffic was too dense there & a novice like me wont handle it. its fun and not as difficult as i tot. captain complimented that i m a fast learner and if i'll take my sailing licence. ermmm, i doubt i will. all the nautical terminology and technicality....sailing with a captain next to me is fun whilst having to take sole responsibility of the entire boat and the pple onboard is a definite no fun. boils down to one thing: no interest. at least for now.

i'm so soo sooo tired. i can jus collapse on my bed now. had sucha long day.... was in melb today. got up at a quarter to 5 to catch the flight at 6.30. speaking of tis....its so funny.

premature awakening

i slept at 7++pm last nite. set the alarm on my mobile for 4.45am tis morning. at abt 9++pm last nite, my mobile went off. i tot it was my alarm and i turned if off. next thing i did was to switch on the telly (b4 going to bathe)....for channel SBS (the chinese news is on abt the time i wake up, i.e. 6am). i found out abt tis chinese news a few days ago which i like cos thats the only dose of mandarin i hear on telly or radio. anyway, i was wondering which country's news will be on at tis time (4.45am). in the meantime, i saw that the alarm signal on my mobile was still on, meaning i havent turn it off yet. huh? so what did i press jus now? jus then, i tot i saw the time to be 9++pm. for that split second, i was confused. i cant figure out what time was it exactly. i seriously think it was 4.45am. i really dont know what was going on. jus then, my mobile rang. tis time, i knew for sure it was a phonecall & not my alarm. it was OH. i tot that was so prompt and coincidental! how did he know i had jus woke up. i tot he wanted to say some encouraging words to kickstart my day. as we spoke, OH broke into laughter. he said it was 9++pm at nite for me and 6++pm for him and he had jus got home. i didnt think i slept for only 2hrs when it sure felt like hours. that was a nice feeling cos i went back to sleep knowing i have so many more hours to go. now we know, that first rang on my mobile was actually OH calling me. i ended his call (thinking it was my alarm. *bish*). gosh, i almost went to bathe at 9++ at nite to get ready for a next day's early morning workday.

a short note before turning in for the day

2006-11-27T22:33:00.000+11:00

its been a while i made appearances. been busy at work. did monitoring for 2 consecutive weeks. 1 week in melb and the other in syd. the one in syd was monitoring tied in with performance review & training (i gave training on my performance review. funny huh?!) with a lead cra from the amsterdam office. i like tis fella. he's not afraid to ask questions and that prompted me to do the same too. imagine listening in to our conversation. "WHY? why? Why? wHy? WHYYY??" muahaha.... but thats cool, we all learn from asking questions.

and there is always the monitoring visit report after every monitoring visit. i did 2 reports so far and have 5 more to go. *wail*

going on a harbour cruise tis fri as part of the company's xmas celebration. it'll be an early "dismissal" at 3pm to go home and get ready. then for all to "assemble" at cockle bay wharf at quarter to 7 (so "oldskool"). i wonder if i can keep my eyes open till 11pm. i have better catch some winks in the afternoon. the dress code is cocktail and no stilettos allowed. how not to wear stilettos with cocktail dresses? how abt a black halter neck dress with haviannas? tsk. what m i gonna wear? bugger.

SNOOPY

2006-11-09T21:23:00.000+11:00

FOR 50 YEARS, cartoonist Charles Schulz gave us pictures of ourselves wrapped in a smile. One of the last strips I clipped from our Sunday paper showed Snoopy the dog sitting on top of his doghouse with a typewriter, writing about his life. He titled his story . . .

The Dog Who Never Did Anything

Snoopy remembers it this way, “You stay home now,” they said, “and be a good dog.”

So he stayed home and was a good dog.

Then he decided to be even a better dog. So he barked at everyone who went by. And he even chased the neighbor’s cats.

“What’s happened to you?” they said. “You used to be such a good dog.”

So he stopped barking and chasing cats, and everyone said, “You’re a good dog.”

The moral, as Snoopy typed it, is “Don’t do anything and you’ll be a good dog.”

As I turned the smile around in my mind, I noticed a quirk of the English language. Snoopy and God have something in common. They are related not only by alphabet (dog and god), but by what “creatures in the middle” expect of them. The idea intrigued me enough to try another version.

The God Who Never Did Anything

“You give me what I want now,” they said, “and be a good God.”

So He gave them what they wanted and He was a good God.

Then He decided to be an even better God.

He started knocking over the furniture of other gods, and He used pain to help people in ways they could not understand.

“What’s happened to You?” they said.

“You used to be such a good God.”

So He stopped knocking over the furniture of other gods, and He stopped using pain in ways that were beyond people’s ability to understand.

And everyone said, “You’re a good God.”

The moral, as angels might see it, “Stop acting like God and people will think You’re good.”

The God We Want

Many of us imagine God as we want Him to be. To our wishes we add expectation. We expect Him to encourage us when we are afraid, to comfort us when we’re hurt, to forgive us when we fail, and to give us what we think we need when we think we need it.

Yet, along the way, we keep stumbling into the awareness that the King of Heaven is more apt to come to us in His own style, time, and mystery. He is seldom as we imagine Him to be. He is more like the God who reveals Himself in the pages of His own history.

There He comes to us in the unexpected surprises of joy, in the unwanted nights of our misery, and in the solitary sounds of our own loneliness. He comes to us in the unexpected joys of Adam, in the numbed grief of Eve, in the inconsolable tears of the childless Hannah, in the murderous anger of Moses, and in the madness of a powerful Nebuchadnezzar.

But me? Until He responds, I’d rather have it my way. In the moments of my dissatisfaction, I don’t want to have to wait for what I want. I want it now. Now. I’ll pray. I’ll pay. I’ll bargain. I’ll crawl on my knees. But I want God to prove that He is good?right now.

The God Who Has Been Good

Even in our “maturity” we can be like 2- and 3-year-olds pulling at the pant leg of heaven. Our Father isn’t surprised. He knows how to raise physical, emotional, and spiritual toddlers. He knows how to run with us in our youth, and how to walk with us at 74, 84, and 94.
And for those who go further, He is still there, hearing once again our whimpers in the night, and reaching down with the affection of an adoring mother who carefully lifts her children from their crib to herself.

No, He has not always been the kind of parent we wanted Him to be. Yes, He has been good on His terms rather than on ours. He has not answered our prayers in the way we asked. Seldom has He allowed anything to play out according to our own expectations or childish demands. Yet His determination to lead us in the paths of His own choosing is what has made Him so good.

The God Who Will Be Good

The promise of tomorrow comes with the wrinkled snapshots of yesterday. Even though our memories are not as sharp as we’d like them to be, and even though the happy times are mixed with regret, our albums contain memories of a God who keeps reminding us that He is better than our expectations. He is better than our demands. He is better than anything this life has to offer.

If He allowed a relationship to be lost, He stayed with us to remind us that we weren’t made for one another as much as we were made for Him. As our bodies give way to time, they become painful reminders that we were not made for these bodies. We were made for the One who said from the top of a thundering, burning mountain?to a people huddled in the middle of a life-threatening wilderness?“I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage. You shall have no other gods before Me.”

This is the God who, because He is good, refuses to “stay home and do nothing.”

Father, thank You for a man named Charles Schulz who brought us elements of truth amid our smiles. Thank You for being God on Your terms rather than ours. May Your name be hallowed as we wait on You. May Your kingdom be reflected in our patience. May Your will be done in our disappointments. Please, give us this day our daily bread.-- Mart De Haan

piano stories IV at the syd conservatorium of music

2006-10-14T22:03:00.000+10:00

what an unusual architecture for a music school!!! look jus like a palace with all the turrets. heard that it was one of the few surviving works of convict architect, Francis Greenway. it was originally constructed in 1821 as the government stables building and then became the current conservatorium of music in 1915. additions and alternations to the stable building began in 1913 which includes the addition of the verbrugghen hall, where piano stories was held. it was no modern grandeau like the esplanade - theatres on the bay but it has tis historical and humble feel to it. hope to go back in nov for schumann.

back to school

2006-10-09T21:25:00.000+10:00

i love it most when i'm receiving therapeutic trainings (it was onco today). CT scan, MRI, grading, staging, ECOG, REGIST....love it....love it!! it couldnt be better. seriously it feels like being back in sch. though i was thinking twice if i really love sch so much since i was getting sleepy and restless after lunch and i didnt even had a heavy meal. damn the neurotransmitters.

my bestie colleague and i went ga-ga when we saw what were in the crate of fruits tis afternoon. (we have tis weekly supply of fruits in the office...i know....we're so blessed!!)

B A N A N A S!!!!

we never had bananas in the crate and even i havent had that for ages (and that means mths!). hurricane larry simply wiped out the entire plantation. maybe it wasnt all wiped out and there were very few left and that explained why they decided to sell whatever that was left at $14/kg. freaking expensive!!! i'm such a huge fan of bananas. banana smoothie (i miss making that for my family), banana bread, banana with weetbix, banana on its own. i hope bananas make a comeback soon. i cant do my bfast without them. :(

my love in melbourne said the sweetest thing to me jus now. "if i dont do that for u, who will?" yesh, absolutely right, which friend will go through the trouble getting me what deem impt to me but seems trivial to many?

early xmas

2006-10-08T19:58:00.000+10:00

the company partially subsidies everyone for the annual springfest at the randwick racecourse. if only they include the dress, hat and what not, u'll see me there. oh yes, it was held yesterday. it'd have been a great experience at the races mingling with colleagues sipping champagne and looking gorgeous. nevertheless, i did have a great time snooping ard the city on my own. popped by myer for their mid-season sale and got myself a few stuff. retail therapy works for me always. not a waste of money at all cos money not spent is never earned.

it was deja vu today. found myself back at the same place again. it was never enough. shopping that is. decided to get a few more of the same thing to stock up. u know, the classic or the basic that never goes out of fashion. figured that that will save me looking for them again. abstinence is a bad thing. it makes u hungry for more. i'm so glad the weekend is nearly over. well, at least the stores are closed now. haha! frankly, i'm one happy gal today. i got a good deal out of tis fabulous looking pair of shoes. real leather and in the shade i've always wanted. thank God for shoes!!! what will i be without them?

i'm getting all excited. santa OH will be in town in 2 weeks time. its all confirmed. poor santa is now stucked in china but good thing came out of that. he got me all the dvds that i couldnt bear buy. its soooo soooo much cheaper in china. dvd quality some more. and he got me pearls!!! real pearls!!! my first official jewelry from him. what is official? i mean i'm not much of a diamond, gold kinda gal. as such, jewelry was never on the cards. it was never a bday or xmas pressie. not that i 'm not an accessory or jewelry person (what i always warn him. hehe!) jus that i'm not one yet. i'm a gal and i'm pretty sure i'll like jewelry one day. :P ultimately, the first thing to do when i see him is a much needed hug. i miss and not miss him. we talk everyday, more than any LDR couple (IMO) and so i dont miss him in that aspect but i do miss having him ard. physically ard. not staring into each other's eyes sort of thing but rather like... i surf the net while he plays his ps2. its abt the presence. if u know what i mean.

before i go on my vacation, i've got to do my monitoring in melb once again. i mean whats new but it's gonna be in my last week before i go on leave and fingers crossed there wont be too many issues with the site and that i can complete my reports on time.

i cant wait but anticipation is a sweet thing too.

h & h

2006-09-23T00:06:00.000+10:00

pics from monitoring trip in melb the past week. good thing i got off work one day in time to catch the last glimpse of the sun and took the chance to explore the beautiful city on foot. several times in melb but never had the opportunity to walk ard (if u know me, i love walking).... including the time with OH & poly friends. we were then shoved to the touristy places and din really cover the city. during monitoring, most of my time is spent in hospitals and the hotel. yeah, h & h. not r & r or b & b. its not always the case i get off work early so i was glad i did. anyhow, the best thing that comes out of monitoring in melb is i get to catch up with my dearest primary school friend. i'm so blessed!

when boredom strikes u...while behind the wheel

2006-09-14T21:31:00.000+10:00

what do u do when u stop at the lights? yawn? pick your nose? adjust your hair?

i look at my rear view mirror (rvm). to be precise, i check out the driver/ car behind me. it is not unusual to look at the rvm. i believe some or most pple do that, however, it is what u see that might be unusual or interesting.

so i said, i check out the driver/ car behind me. as for some others, they decide to do something most of us would do, or at least try to do, at home.

here are some of what i witnessed:

a white collar (literally) man, like me, looked at his rvm but was wearing his tie... we were exiting a left ramp.
a lady driving into my rear bumper. yeah, i actually saw from my rvm a lady looked down at her lap or whatever she was looking at, while coming to a halt at the lights and the next thing i heard was "uh oh...." that came from me. i went down to check and fortunately, there was not a scratch. she got lucky that day.
above lady got haughty (buay kiah see) and decided to put on lipgloss or lipbalm at the next lights. dont let me bump into her again until she learnt her lesson.
a blondie yakking on her mobile. whats more, tailgating me!!! how scary was that?!?! i pray and pray and pray....pls dont hit my car. i want no trouble....jus a safe journey home.
some staring hard ahead, possibly at me through my rvm...to check if i was looking at them (they probably caught me looking at them). its funny how i look at them through my rvm, in return, they can look at me (only my eyes though).....all through my rvm. i look at u, and u look back at me. how cool is that! i'm starting to think the rvm is not jus a mirror but one that u can exchange looks. tis point is quite pointless but way before i started tis hardcore driving (hardcore driving = routine driving = driving is abt bringing me from point A to point B), the rvm in my opinion is for checking the traffic behind, i never knew or thought i'd use it to "spy" on others. hehe.
the most worth mentioning (as of now) is.....a spider!!!! abt the size of my palm. it was crawling from the edge of tis guy's windscreen to the top of his car (it was a white car which made it more obvious). i so wanted to tell him. instinct was to grab the newspaper, roll it & smack on that 8-legged monster but tis is no cockroach (even with cockroaches, i'd take ages to convince myself to kill it than putting it off and risk it sneak in to my room while i sleep and crawl all over me) and i is scaredy cat. and how on earth m i gonna tell him without getting down my car. no way i'm getting near that spidy. i hope the spidy din crawl on him when he gets off from his car. OMG *shudder* i mumbled to myself to stop looking at the rvm. i is obedient. all i did was wait for the lights to turn green and there i sped off.

sheesh, looking at the rear mirror can be such an adventure. i wonder what'd i spot next.

the bald guy did pretty good

2006-09-09T18:20:00.000+10:00

its been pouring since wednesday
thunderstorms, lightnings, gail force winds, impending hail & what not
bad weather is no doubt mood dampening
nonetheless, i did get out to get some fresh air
since its a non workday & staying home will surely bore me to tears

drove to doublebay in the rain.....OMG, what enthusiasm!
popped by max brenner for a sinful but indulgent choc treat
good stuff (cant beat godiva though) they have but noisy noisy place
u find your voice drowning in a sea of many conversations
tables on both sides are less than an inch away
couple on your left, and a bunch of friends on your right
everyone is vying to speak louder

it'd be nicer if its less noisy, with jazz music in the background,
a good book to read, and a loved one by your side
then again, it could have been worse

its time to remind myself....
count my blessings!!!

for u to know, for me to rid

2006-09-05T20:39:00.000+10:00

we say "the more u do, the more u get used to"....somewhat.... it works quite the opposite for me. apparantly, the more i fly, the more jittery i get abt landing. the drop freaks me out. last tuesday's landing at tullamarine was for once an un-noticeable one. BUT that was jus one that went okay. all other times, i had to hold tight to the arm rests, teeth clenching and my face frozen. whoever fly with me in future, pleasssse look away or DONT EVER LOOK AT ME. i look worse than i had no makeup on. ha! exaggeration. i look like tis reluctant girl who got dragged up on a pirate ship.....that scaredy cat look.....(pirate ship...as in the amusement park ride, viking...hey, wait a sec.....how on earth is it suppose to be AMUSEment??? more like amusement for the spectators u reckon?!!!). if you did travel alongside me recently, i'm sorry i looked aloof. i didnt mean it. i was jus too focused on doing my relaxing technique #14.

random pics

2006-08-31T18:39:00.000+10:00

i stole a few pics while driving to work tis morning... naughty!

came across tis duck crossing sign while walking out to lunch... how cute is that!

jus for laugh

2006-08-27T13:06:00.000+10:00

Via: VideoSift

battle between forces of nature & oneself

2006-08-27T12:13:00.000+10:00

a hearty bfast is BLISS!

the best one can do for oneself is to take care and love your own self. u eat well, sleep well, and live well. u stand by God's glory and faith. u do what u dream and have no regrets in life whatsoever. u defy nature and order, and take your life into your own hands. some day, u know the time will come when u'll surrender to nature and go with the flow. that day is here. u didnt think it'll come so soon, its premature!

the pics are finally in....

2006-08-26T18:27:00.000+10:00

....no mean feat putting these pics together....anyway, finally they're uploaded.

for a piece of vancouver, click here

my rice bowl

2006-08-26T12:20:00.000+10:00

once and for all, i tot i'll put up my job description (found it on the company's webpage, shouldnt be a prob publishing it since its on the www anyway...it doesnt seem like an updated one but heck...and for obvious reason, i've to take out my company's name) so to clear the air what i do, what monitoring means and the specs to be a CRA (clinical research associate). it wont explain monitoring per se but the gist of it is there. for the benefit of doubt:

investigational sites = hospitals
clinical studies = clinical trials
ICH-GCP = International Conference on Harmonisation-Good Clinical Practice (both are of different links)
Investigators = doctors/ specialists/ registrars/ etc
Sponsors = drug companies (for someone in my business....tis is a giveaway what company i work for)

1.PURPOSE OF THE JOB:

Identify, select, initiate and closeout appropriate investigational sites for clinical studies. To monitor those sites in order to ensure that studies are carried out according to the study protocol and in accordance with company SOPs/WPs, applicable regulations and the principles of ICH-GCP

2.JOB FUNCTIONS/RESPONSIBILITIES:

Familiarity with company SOPs/WPs, ICH-GCP and appropriate regulations.
Familiarity with company Systems
Familiarity with principles of investigator recruitment.
Co-ordinate all the necessary activities required to set up and monitor a study, including the following:

-Identify investigators.

-Help, when requested, in preparation of regulatory submissions.

-Design patient information sheets and consent forms.

-Coordinate documents translation, verification and back translations where required.

-Ensure timely submission of protocol/consent documents/safety reports for Ethics/IRB approval according to local requirements.

-Pre-study and initiation visits.

-Conduct regular monitoring visits in accordance with the company site monitoring SOP/Sponsor site monitoring SOP/WP, as appropriate

-Complete monitoring visit reports and follow-up letters in a timely manner.

-Maintain all files and documentation pertaining to studies.

-Motivate investigators in order to achieve recruitment targets.

-Complete accurate study status reports.

-Ensure the correct storage of drugs and the diligent account of all drugs in accordance with SOPs.

-Keep the project manager regularly informed.

-Process case record forms to the required quality standards and timelines.

-Deal with Sponsor generated queries in a timely manner.

-Ensure the satisfactory close-out of investigator sites.

-Ensure correct archiving of files on completion of a study.

-Co-operate with sponsor and/or company QA personnel in the conduct of QA audits.

-Participate in feasibility studies for new proposals, as required

-Maintain patient and sponsor confidentiality.

To be cost effective
To participate in mentoring of new staff up to Clinical Research Associate level as appropriate.
Assist with marketing the company if and when appropriate.

3.QUALIFICATIONS/EXPERIENCE REQUIRED:

Medical/science background and relevant experience.
Ability and willingness to travel at least 50% of the time (international and domestic: fly and drive).
Ability to review and evaluate clinical data.
Computer literacy desirable.
Foreign language skills desirable.
Current full driving license essential.
Good oral and written communication skills.

2006-08-24T18:14:00.000+10:00

When God leads the way, anything you dream, can happen.

aftermath of caffeine intoxication

2006-08-22T08:36:00.000+10:00

i should stay away from coffee. frankly, i pushed my luck too much. i was pacing myself by adding a lil coffee in my hot choc as i go along, but i went overboard yday. and today, i suffer the aftermath of coffee or caffeine overdose. its wrecking havoc in my sensitive gut and i can feel my tummy upside down. i'm still in my business outfit as i'm typing tis. got myself all ready for work....well, lack the hair do....and bam, tummyache and simultaneous visits to the bathroom.

i've achieved some grogginess after spending more than 60mins on the internet and msn. well, thats long enough time to make one sleepy, i reckon. i shld go get some shuteye to help me stop thinking of the pain.....hopefully i'll be well enough to squeeze in a brisk walk or jog later.

winter's parting gift

2006-08-19T17:01:00.000+10:00

i'm more or less settled in my new place now. its been exactly 2 weeks since we moved in. so far, its been great. other than the phone company taking a longer than usual time (as expected) to set up our phoneline and as a result, delaying the internet connection, its not that bad except that for 2 weeks, life seems to have come to a standstill. anyhow, housemate and i are enjoying the space and as of today, we should enjoy tis place more cos our fridge and washing machine have arrived. finally, we can have clean and fresh smelling clothes. we've accumulated more than 2 weeks worth of laundry!!!! its amazing how we managed to survive tis long without it (plus the fridge). and with the fridge, we can stock up truckloads of fruits and vegetables!!!! there hasnt been much greens in my diet lately. time to detox. i need a juice extractor. who wants to take the tab for me? hee.

went to westmead hospital for monitoring on tuesday and was returning home in the late afternoon when a surprised hail greeted us. everyone was in awe since winter is coming to an end and spring is on its way. it was jolly good fun though i wouldnt dare think "fun" if they were as huge as golf or tennis balls. jus imagine the damage it'd make to roofs and cars!!!!

alrighty, sit back and enjoy the pics! (not in any order)

God plans are best plans

2006-07-29T20:37:00.000+10:00

finally found time and mood to do some update but i've no idea where to start.

okay, 1 thing at a time (jus the major events).

1) numerous saturdays - been viewing places. finally, we viewed one that was close to what we were looking for. fairly good location.....lotsa buses to city, shops, restaurants. we put in an application right after the viewing but news was that we didnt get it. by then, the entire househunting affair was starting to wear us out and we were getting really disheartened and quite unmotivated. then again, i tot, if its not meant to be, it wont be. i trust that God will put us up at a place where we belong. keep the faith! keep the faith!!! take heart that we are now familiar with suburbs we arent in the first place.

2) 19th july - birthday was tragic cos i went to work and then came back home. no cake, no nothing. had dinner and went to bed early.
:(

3) 22nd july - viewed a split level appt in zetland. fantastic place. not alot of buses but will do. very chic environment with parks. again, we put in our application on the same day. and AGAIN, gotto wait till monday to hear of news. as u probably already guess, sunday is awfully long.

4) 24th july - word from real estate agent that owner was still deciding. sigh. anxious.

5) 25th july - monitoring visit in melb. bound for the first flight out of syd at 6am but was stranded for 3hrs (in syd) due to a serious fog in melb (that is, plane only took off at 9am and touched down in melb at 10.30am. it was then still very foggy and i couldnt imagine how bad it must have been earlier on). got to site (hospital) soooo soooo behind schedule. no choice but to do what's impt and leave the rest till the next visit.

- housemate called while i was waiting to board the plane back to syd. boohoo!!! boohoo!!!! boohoo!!!! we didnt get the place. lost to an aussie guy. gotto start surfing the real estate websites and viewing places on saturdays, everything all over again. sigh. i remembered a voice msg from diners card from last nite and so took the chance while waiting to call them. frankly, i'm sick and tired of talking to them already. how many times do they have to call me??? they called me while i'm in the office, while i'm at home after work, and now in melb!!!??!! and how many types of questions do they have to ask? they're like fleas!!! u know, its only abt applying for a business credit card. after hanging up the phone, i jus sat there staring blankly, with tears in my eyes. tots were back to the house, that we didnt get it. i dont know what i was feeling then, i believe i was really drained. all i want is jus a roof over my head and my own personal space.

- jus then, my phone rang and it was the real estate agent. i told him i've already heard the news from my housemate. i tot how nice of him to call me to emphasize that we didnt get the place. tsk tsk. he then cut me in and said he had good news for me. aussie guy preferred somewhere else and so the owner went for his second choice and thats us!!! wooohh, my mood lifted and i could hear myself speaking a pitch higher. haha. i thanked him and immediately texted my housemate (and other half) b4 getting on the plane. all i could think of was "what a twist of events!!!" i rested my head right next to the window, looking out as the plane taxi to the runway, took off and then climbed up into the sky amidst fluffy clouds.....nothing different from the usual but tis time i had a smile on face and felt a sense of relief. thank God!

6) 28th july - sent my car away. not an ordinary car but one that kept me company through treacherous journeys to & back from work (heavy traffic and constant changing road conditions due to building of tunnel). i dont maintain a talking (i do whine abt the rain at times for eg...if u consider that talking) relationship with her such that i'm missing her now. its really the companionship during tis (rather short) period of stepping out of comfort zone, venturing into new terrain. i will miss her and also remember her fondly. i now understand the bond between car and car owner. i wont look at a mitsubishi magna the same way again.

chill from concord

2006-07-13T18:26:00.000+10:00

i think i got a chill from tis morning (went monitoring at concord hospital). it was so cold....brrrr...the moment i stepped out of my car, my hair stood on ends & i regretted not wearing a long sleeved top underneath my jacket. what seem like trivial stuff can trigger the cold and lotsa bed rest, which i cant afford. i need lemsip!!!

will leave u guys with a pic of my wonderful brekkie in an old but warm and homely cafe (at concord hospital). cheers.

an appt with 2 bedrms, 2 bathrms & at least 1 carspace & preferrably split level urgently needed!!!

2006-07-02T18:47:00.000+10:00

i'm kinda in a stone mode today. weekends werent exactly relaxing (tis one at least). went househunting with my housemate yday and boy, it was stressful. not knowing the way and had to rely on a street directory which wasnt updated sucks. lets re-enact one scene (not exactly the same instructions but sort of. the idea is to look out for a roundabt and then to turn from there):

housemate: watch out for a roundabt and the 2nd junction from there, turn right.

me: ........ (driving till the end of the road and came to a cross junction and no sight of roundabt. yes, i didnt really ask anything....probably did ask where is the roundabt and if i shld jus go straight. basically, i was jus doing my thing and receiving instructions from my "GPS").

housemate: okay, i think we missed the roundabt.

me: huh? no roundabt what. only pedestrain crossing.

housemate: lets cross the junction and come back on tis road again.

back on that road now, but in opposite direction and seeing our destination 300m away.

housemate: damn, they converted the roundabt to a traffic light.

me: -_-"

and no way from a street directory we could tell if it's a one way road, m i right? we probably drove into those a couple of times. there werent road signs. (now i know why there're signs in the states that say "wrong way, turn back") believe me. there were taxis or cars before us which did the same thing and they were more experienced drivers than me. how could they miss the sign? anyhow, i've been too pampered. have been chauffeured ard for as long as i remember. there were a couple of times when i didnt know anymore if i shld turn left or right, reverse or to go straight and what not. i jus felt like leaving the car. haha...that bad. thank God for my "GPS" who calmed my nerves. tis GPS is much better than the electronic one cos it speaks to u when u r bored and in my case, calm me down during a traffic crisis. sigh. the fatigue and stress probably made me drift in and out of a daze today. u think my brain is trying to unwind whenever it can? tis must be it.

i was scrolling down my blog....saw that my posts are decreasing by the day and then i stopped at the bangkok monitoring trip entry. i looked intently at the pics OH took of me in the supermarket. something was wrong (or rather the sight is somewhat unfamiliar) but i cant put my finger on it. then i realised i havent wore so little for a while. these days, i'm all wrapped up. only my face and fingers are exposed (i shld be wearing gloves too but i have none. how sad!). the bit abt unfamiliar? yeah, how often do we see our backviews? i tot: "hey, thats how i look from the back! hmmm..." i told u i'm in a daze today.

"s" affinity

2006-06-30T22:38:00.000+10:00

hey peeps, 'm back! havent check back in here for ages. been travelling a fair bit. did spore-syd-san francisco-seattle-syd. i seem to have an affinity to places starting with "s". anyhow, yeah, i have been having lotsa fun. i love vancouver (oh yes, crossed the canadian border since its only a 2hr drive from seattle or everett to be precise)! i cant get stanley park out of my mind!!! and there's something abt lost lagoon that i cant explain. u wont find 1 person who dislikes stanley park and/or lost lagoon. pls find time to go to stanley park if u r in vancouver, u wont regret it. and shopping in the states is simply amazing! sephora, hollister, abercrombie & fitch, forever21, etc. and not to mention long extended shopping hours (extended that is, comparing aus obviously). i love the space, the parks and snow-capped mountains. i do hv photos to show but m too lazy to resize them and then to upload them. i'm sleepy. my eyes are holding up but not for long. they've been wanting some winks since at work tis afternoon. speaking of work, i'm happy where i m now. will talk more abt that in another post.

okay guys, my eyes cant hold up any longer. signing off now (i jus realised its only half past 8....well, cant care less, who can resist sleep?!). enjoy your weekend!

what i abide in life - no hesitation

2006-05-20T02:33:00.000+10:00

"weigh up the odds and then just get on with it. if you hang back, the opportunity will have passed. if you spend too long thinking, you'll never make a move. once we have looked at the options, we make a choice, a decision and then go for it. that's the secret. no hesitation means not waiting around for other people to help out or make up our minds for us. no hesitation means if there is a certain inevitability about a situation then just throw yourself in head first and enjoy the ride. if there is nothing to be done then waiting doesn't help."

quote from "the rules of life" by richard templar.

"rathi, only the eyebrows please."

2006-04-21T00:15:00.000+10:00

mom and i spent almost 40 bucks to have hives on our faces. so what happened, you may ask.

what was suppose to be a hair-removing session turned out to be a pain-inflicting one (think constant rubber band flicking on the skin. OUCH.- i am quite tolerant to pain. my past facialists and foot reflexologist can testify to that). and of course the hives that erupted straight after we were done. the lady who did our faces whom i thought got a little bit worried went to grab cotton balls soaked in rosewater to pat on our faces. i hope she is guilty for not suggesting another discount since she almost disfigured us (though the disfiguration was temporary. HA!).

today was my first time getting threading done over my whole face. i used to just go for my eyebrows (the last time was also donkey years ago). looks like i will just stick to eyebrow threading from now on.

despite the torture, my face looks hairless and a shade whiter. i like.

the SP trail...

2006-04-14T17:26:00.000+10:00

went to my alma mater, SP, last week. lemme share with u the pics i took with my not-so-fantastic-camera-phone the moment OH and i stepped foot into SP premises, via the gate adjoining dover mrt station.

tis is a bridge leading from the station to the campus. it is jus next to the auditorium near C4 (canteen 4 that is). there's also a convention hall and a pretty good looking CLS building nearby. not surprising that there're new buildings erected since it was so long ago that i graduated.

kitty hangout at between multi-purpose hall and clubhouse.

a spanking new canteen 3 (C3). not the usual dark and gloomy one in "those days". now that i'm uploading the pics, it reminds me of coffeebean.

one of few fountains outside C3.

such a nice learning environment!!! the kids these days are lucky. hohoho...to make such comments imply that i'm old.

i remember very clearly tis co-op shop (outside C3) was opened during my 3rd year. it used to be POSBank.

the striking-but-almost-hideous-looking yellow structure (which i have no idea if it has a name at all) that link 1 end of SP to the other.

i remember tis path that the girls and i sometimes took when the lift seems to take forever to pick us up from the basement.

walking along the yellow linkway to my department at the other end of the campus from dover mrt station.

approaching the library. new funky signage that implies only girls go to the library!!!

a peep into the library...a poor resolution one. we did go in to the library for a while but forgot to take any pics cos we were kinda engrossed with hushing each other.

one of the most frequently patronised co-op shops within the campus. 1 level down from the library entrance.

the administrative building opposite the library. principal sits in tis building. also where we pay our fees for the first few semesters until the payment counter was shifted to blk 1A (where maccas is).

popular waiting area before getting into any of the lecture theatres (mainly LT4, LT4a, etc)

continuing....after the waiting area above, tis leads to my department finally. cant remember what it was called previously. now its called CLS (chemical & life science).

nothing will erase my memories of these sheltered seats many of us used to hang out to do our group assingments or lab reports. then, there arent any shelters lah (in those days mah). pinky will remember tis one too!!! she was the mastermind of the "rain escape" during one usual group meeting session. till tis day, it still brings a smile to my face whenever i think of it.

food analysis lab...hung out alot in tis lab...doing my 3rd year project. is tis blk 1 or 2? tis lab also reminds me of mr lee kim pong. he was the lab technician who was so good to us. like a fatherly figure who often booked the lab for us. maybe he loves how the chocolate aroma fills his lab. my 3rd year project was on improving the nutritional value of chocolates.

another place that hold fond memories. ate here, did tutorials/project here, chit chat here, got bitten by mosquitoes here, celebrated our gang members' birthdays here, sometimes even napped here.

last but not least, here's presenting to u, MR LIM SWEE LING!!! our ve-ge-tay-ble guy. cos of the new CLS building at next to dover mrt station, many lecturers were busy (during the quiet sch hols) sweating out, moving the department over.

funky monk for real tis time

2006-04-13T16:10:00.000+10:00

fancy a remote control in the form of glowing beads? u can find it even if u drop it in the dark. no more switching on the lights.

doesnt it looks a tad like a religious buddhist fiddling prayer beads? like a funky monk then.

flashbag

2006-04-13T15:52:00.000+10:00

imagine a thumbdrive that blows up or down depending on the amount of data it holds.

have i told u lately that....

2006-04-10T01:38:00.000+10:00

.....B&J came up with new flavours? fossil fuel is already in town. now waiting for turtle soup, neapolitan dynamite, black & tan, vermonty python.

new york super fudge chunk is by far my fave.

i have a dream and the dream is to own a freezer packed with all B&J flavours that i can indulge at anytime i want. hehe... glutton!

site selection

2006-04-09T11:44:00.000+10:00

what's been keeping me busy lately?

site selection....that is, selecting potential specialists/ doctors to participate in a new trial. alot of ground work is to be done. reading up on the new study procotol and documents (getting these ready is no feat. several documents need translation into 2 to 3 languages - chinese, malay or tamil. spore is a multi-racial country and patients need to be able to sign on the consent form that is in the language they understand) pertaining to the new trial and then present them to the doctors. goal is to get them interested AND eventually participation in this new concept or trial. and of course comes the sensitive part of negotiating the payment terms for their services.

hope to get site selection done in a week or so before going into submission to the ethics committee. in every clinical trial, an ethics submission is mandatory. it protects the safety and rights of the patients. ethics committee of course do not comprise of all medical personnel. it has to be a committee consisting of laymen like lawyers, accountants, people independent of the medical industry, so to avoid bias.

getting a clinical trial started doesnt stop jus at ethics submission. will touch on that when i have the chance/ time.

okay, jus a short update here. gotto go now. have a nice weekend!!! (whatever that is left of it)

i've been calling my blog "the latch-key kid". will need to change that (need to find time and now with a new laptop - i call it "my lil one", that might help).

these are so cute!!!

2006-03-21T21:13:00.000+11:00

pee&poo

check out the memory game under the bits & pieces tab.

Bangkok 17-22 jan 2006 --- Part 4

2006-03-20T14:01:00.000+11:00

siriraj hospital where i did my clinical monitoring, at the paedatric as well as obstetrics dept. busy so didnt take alot of pics. and also spending time walking in circles. signages in thai, directions in thai. lost, lost, lost. even my thai colleague is lost. haha.

that statue is the king's father. heard he was a doctor. and the queen's statue is within the hospital, in the building beside tis park.

national pastime: kite-flying. in the old days, boys wear 1 or 2 buns (cant remember what is it called in thai) on their heads. its also a symbol for something i cant remember. my thai colleague was explaining to another colleague and myself then but i was getting restless and didnt quite remember it. geesh. it was quite warm then. no air con at waiting areas and corridors. only when we got into a room that we could switch on the air con. -_-

skytrain & mrt. very clean and organized. it left me a good impression.

at siam bts station going to mo chit (where chatuchak is). commuters queuing to board the skytrain. no markings or announcements at all and yet they were all so organized!!! commuters in spore have alot to learn from them.

reno hotel - more like a hostel. nearest bts station is national stadium or either that, its jus across the road from MBK centre. we stayed here for 1 nite. definitely lost out to holiday inn bangkok but its really a cheap deal. S$35 a nite for 2 persons.

street hawker lining the road downstairs the hotel.

front desk

dimly lit corridor. not advisable for girls only unless u're a big group of karate-abled girls.

MBK centre - saw alot of toiletries selling here. jus like people's park in spore. even my fave face of australia sunscreen is available here but at a steeper price. saw my mom's fave la mer but dont know if its authentic or not. the rather famous nan sing bird nest is here.

walking from reno hotel to siam.

a weighing scale by the road. in creating awareness of AIDS or HIV. yep, weight loss is a common symptom.

siam bts skytrain station

siam paragon - the talk of the town. lotsa high end shopping, a food mall and a huge supermarket (food gourmet). somewhat like ngee ann city.

outdoor pics were slanted cos it was sooooo glaring we cant see what we were taking.

JIMMY CHOO!!!! shoes. i liiiiiikeeee....

food hall within siam paragon

tis works like marche. jus present the card to the stall for your food and u pay up at the end, after your meal. very crowded and i didnt like what i had, tom yum ramen. very small portion. or i was too hungry. it was after half a day of walking at chatuchak. remember, all we had was a coconut ice shaving.

alot of food stalls here. exactly like takashimaya food hall. got cyrstal jade and breadtalk too.

gourmet market within siam paragon

i was like a girl let loose in a candy bar. its like doing a free and easy tour of the giantic supermarket with powerful air con (when u r in bangkok, in fact same here in spore, u love anywhere that has air con. even if u dont like the clothes or food selling in that shop, u'll be drawn to step in. hahaa... the magic of air con). tis OH has got nothing better to do but to follow me and secretively took pics of me. thank god he wasnt caught by the security for stalking me.

siam centre - shopping shopping shopping but OH and i were more into eating. i bought a toni&guy volumiser spray at Boots pharmacy here. not sure abt the volumising effect but it at least keep my hair smelling good thru out the humid weather here in spore.

coca steamboat!!!! buffet for 1 hour. they'll give u a receipt with the time that u clocked in. from there, u keep track. u've one whole steamboat to yourself. with juice, its only abt S$6 each!!! only setback: no prawns. -_-

if u havent been to bangkok, go! not jus for shopping, food is good and CHEAP!!! with so many low cost carriers flying to bangkok, what are u waiting for? okay, maybe after the thaksin saga. "-_-

Bangkok 17-22 jan 2006 --- Part 3

2006-03-19T17:38:00.000+11:00

chatuchak market

really cheap food but no guts to try. :P

mobile papaya salad seller who goes from shop to shop. we're fans of papaya salad but... we almost bought it but chicken out last minute.

shao yok (roasted pork) that looked like cakes from afar.

cold ice bars...a relief from the warm weather. again, we didnt dare try it.

only thing we ate at chatuchak... coconut ice shavings with peanuts... the stall looked clean and so we gave in. so pathetic isnt it? alas, thats the con travelling in thailand. we only dare eat at restaurant and hotels.

owner who gave up the fan for his poodle. awwww....so sweet.

pets for sale

snoozy kitten

squirrels are cute lil things in cartoons and fairy tales...definitely not so when u come so close to so many of them.

there're more pics of iguanas, baby komodo dragons (believed so...looks like it), snakes taken by OH (i had already escaped from the scene) that i didnt put them up. creepy, scaly reptiles!!!!

since its a wholesale place with tons and tons of cheap and affordable homewares, cutleries, furniture, lightings, its no wonder that fedex, TNT and courier companies are a common sight in chatuchak.

LOST season 2 sneak preview

2006-03-14T15:00:00.000+11:00

I WON A PAIR OF TIX TO CATCH THE PREVIEW SCREENING OF LOST SEASON 2 AT CATHAY CINELEISURE TIS EVENING!!!!! I'M SO HAPPIE!!!! LA LALALA LA LA LA LA LA LALA LA LA LA LA LA....

i need a beta-2 agonist

2006-03-13T02:34:00.000+11:00

i struggled with an asthmatic attack for a couple of hours in the wee hours of tis morning before conceeding to seeing a doctor. for asthmatics like myself, one will guess as much that i shld carry with me an inhaler at all times. i do carry one but it has since expired and i hadnt gone to the doc to get a new one. tis is not like in australia where ventolin or salbutamol or the inhaler is available at the chemist over the counter. in singapore, we need the doc's prescription to get hold of one. and tis availability is bound by the opening hours of your GP or clinic you visit. alternatively, i can get my GP to write me a script and then i buy it from the pharmacy. anyhow, after a whole lot of explanations or excuses (if u think that is :P), i did go to see tis doc whom i see only during emergency or after normal clinic opening hours. the thing is, i was at OH's place in the south (he claims that. i tot its more like the west) and there arent alot of 24hour clinics in the south or west. the nearest is in clementi and upon calling them, we found out that they charge $78 for consultation excluding medications. thats merely $2 shy of SGH's A&E's admission fee at $80. i could have gone to SGH but since i dont consider myself that serious (well, pple do die of asthma. think constriction of airway) and also not to hold up the usually long queue at the A&E. so i said i went to my usual 24hour clinic in the east where i stay (at my parents' place). and we didnt go back to my parents' place after i got myself fixed. i didnt want to alert my parents. and thank God, OH's parents are away on holiday. consultation is $37 (the bill came up to $63 including medications) at tis clinic which is like half of that at clementi. i know we did pay for the cab across the island to the one in the east but i gladly do that. knowing that i'm only paying half jus made me feel better and i know the doc too. i made a mental calculation and it seems that if we've gone to clementi, it wouldnt be that much savings too.

~outside clinic after consultation~

*puff* *puff* wooooh, i almost felt well immediately. seems like someone had lifted a slab of concrete off my chest. on the way in the cab back to OH's place, i could talk normally without grasping air in intervals. and most importantly, i could lie down in bed, catching the last few hours of the morning sleeping before dawn breaks. it was a relief for me. jus imagine holding your full bladder on your bus trip back home and that relief u felt when u emptied it when u got home. perhaps thats a bad example.

if u search under the MOH website, there're only 11 of these clinics scattered ard singapore. there're 4 in the west: pasir panjang ring road, clementi, bukit batok and chua chu kang. can we have one in the south? unless we're expected to go to the A&E dept at SGH? okay, how abt a non-serious 24hr clinic at SGH then?

a better solution for asthmatics like myself is to implement a more flexible but controlled prescribing practice. for the first time at the clinic for your asthma attack, docs could prescribe u your first inhaler and also issue u a card. tis card will have your name and I/C number and the date of tis first inhaler that u were prescribed. subsequently, when u run out of your inhaler (there're 200 sprays in 1 inhaler. with 2 puffs each time, 1 inhaler can last u 100 asthma attacks so to speak), u jus need to present tis card & your I/C (to prove that u're the person on the card since it has no photo on it) to the pharmacist at any guardian (for example), u can get your new inhaler. of course, the pharmacist gotto sign on the card. the purpose of tis card is to identify u as a geniune asthma sufferer and to make things convenient (instead of going to the clinic). i suppose it takes alot more asthma patients and also their voices heard before such a similar system is in place.

now, i need my 2 puffs before retiring to bed. pray that someone comes up with a cure for asthma one day.

disturbing pic

2006-03-09T20:05:00.000+11:00

"PULITZER PRIZE" winning photo taken in 1994 during the Sudan famine. The picture depicts a famine stricken child crawling towards an United Nations food camp, located a kilometer away. The vulture is waiting for the child to die so that it can eat it. This picture shocked the whole world. No one knows what happened to the child, including the photographer Kevin Carter who left the place as soon as the photograph was taken. Three months later he committed suicide due to depression.

shoe fetish

2006-03-07T19:54:00.000+11:00

i finished it all!!! OH is so gonna kill me!!!!

2006-03-07T18:03:00.000+11:00

all that warm weather's fault!!!

transamerica

2006-03-05T22:26:00.000+11:00

out of the blue on a typical sunday, OH and i decided to hit the theatre. cathay cineleisure that is. okay, the truth is i dragged him to watch a movie with me. oh well, not that the movies are passe for us old farts. the thing is, we dont usually catch a movie on a sunday afternoon/ late morning cos we are always lethargic and sleepy post church service.

so, we caught transamerica starring felicity huffman,

better known as lynette in desperate housewives.
winner of best actress award at tis year's golden globes.
nominated for best actress for the 78th academy award (tomorrow, 6 mar 2006, 9am local time)
the 2nd & 3rd point - i knew only after buying the tix.

she is good boy. i know now why she won the golden globe award. and i hope she wins the best actress award tomorrow too. btw, considering i'm a medically trained person, i was quite squimish at some scenes in the show (yes, its rated R21). i confess, i havent seen the real fresh male genital in class except for sugically cut ones for patho-anatomy classes and of course the pictorial versions. jus be prepared lah...if it is your first time seeing it. okay, i dont know why i'm talking abt tis. lets jus talk abt something else. it occurred to me that there are pple who wont be sneered at when their mobiles or pagers go off at occasions (i'm specifically referring to conferences, seminars and movies too if the audiences knew their professions). and these pple are none other than doctors. u see, a few weeks ago, i attended tis symposium at one of the hospitals in the western part of singapore. during tis 1 hour session, countless of mobiles and also pagers went ringing/beeping away. the distinguished speaker from an overseas prestigious university cum medical institution didnt battle an eyelid. she was nonchalent abt it. so was the rest of the audience who were doctors and surgeons. well, it jus felt different for a while, for me, who is so used to pagers (who still carry one these days???) and mobiles switched off in an audience-based sitting. one of these days, when i'm in a symposium, please feel free to call me, so i can play doctor for a moment. *giggle*

the not so rosy side of foie gras

2006-03-03T14:41:00.000+11:00

The methods used to turn duck and goose livers into the "delicacy" known as paté de foie gras are anything but delicate. Foie gras is a French term meaning "fatty liver" and it is produced by force-feeding birds.

The ducks and geese force-fed for foie gras are compelled to consume much more high-energy food-mostly corn-than they would eat voluntarily. This damages their liver and often kills them.

The Scientific Committee on Animal Health and Welfare for the European Union found many examples of abuse as a result of force-feeding, including:

- Birds are routinely confined to small cages or crowded pens.

- Birds are force-fed tremendous amounts of feed via a 12- to 16-inch plastic or metal tube, which is shoved down their throats and attached to a pressurized pump.

- The force-feeding may be performed twice daily for up to two weeks for ducks and three to four times daily, for up to 28 days for geese.

- Force-feeding causes the liver to increase in size about 6-10 times compared to the normal size for a bird.

- Increased liver size forces the abdomen to expand, which makes moving difficult and painful. An enlarged abdomen increases the risk of damage to the stretched tissue of the lower part of the esophagus.

- Force-feeding results in accumulated scar tissue in the esophagus.

- The liver can be easily damaged by even minor trauma.

Ducks and geese are social animals who suffer when confined in individual cages. The confinement also can lead to lesions of the sternum and bone fractures, as well as foot injuries from the cage floors. Ducks and geese also suffer when they're not allowed enough water to swim and preen, which they do naturally in the wild.

Originally, all foie gras came from France, but now the United States has gotten into this cruel niche industry. Next time you go into a store or restaurant that sells foie gras, please let them know that a product that comes from force-feeding ducks and geese is more than you can stomach.

article taken from the humane society of the united states

Bangkok 17-22 jan 2006 --- Part 2

2006-03-03T13:19:00.000+11:00

french cuisine

the french cuisine i raved abt....the pics are finally here. the restaurant's name is c'est bon! at ground floor of intercontinental bangkok hotel. they have a branch in hong kong also. in new territory, maritime square. previously i think i mentioned its a 9 course meal. i'm wrong, it shld be 6 course instead. pardon the lack of knowledge of the dishes. the menu was outside the restaurant and i forgot to take a pic of it.

first dish. some salmon thingy. the jelly thing...i dont know if it was supposed to be eaten or for decor...i ate it and pui... i wanted to spit it out but since its quite rude, i swallowed it.

foie gras with peaches beneath it. too much of it can be quite overwhelming. esp the fowl smell or taste (dont even mention the calories). cant imagine it without the peaches. BUT strangely, there's tis thing abt it that makes u wanna eat it. anyway, tis is probably the last time i'm eating it. i'll tell u why in a separate entry.

lemon sorbet to get rid of the overpowering taste of foie gras in the mouth.

green tea pasta? no? what's with the green color? mint? it tasted like liquorice to me. the telltale sign is with the black long stringy thingy. but liquorice in pasta? anyway, after the foie gras, i could hardly eat tis. it was left almost untouched.

my main dish: beef tenderloin that looked like a crab with his grasshopper snowpea/ french bean friend. dont tell me crab feeds on grasshopper. tis cow was not done my usual medium well but rather a cross between raw and medium rare. still nice though.

my colleague's main dish: seafood platter of some sort, scallop, prawn, fish.... looks good too.

the last dish and also my fave. warm dark bittersweet choco cake with oozing warm choco gravy and cold vanilla ice-cream. what an alternating warm-cold sensation!!! i was on the verge of licking the runny choco gravy and melted vanilla ice-cream off the plate!!! it was that good. i wanted to go back the next day jus for tis dessert.

now, the place... not many pics taken cos its quite dark and with flashes going off, its quite attention seeking. with the above pics on the food....i didnt dare take too many pics anyway.

italian cuisine - forgot to add that tis is also at intercontinental hotel (jus next to holiday inn bangkok so its convenient. after work, go back to hotel to drop off the files & docs and dinner is served within a 5mins walk. the japanese restaurant at intercontinental hotel is good too. very cheap).

light, crispy and warm. very nice...my colleague and i love tis to pieces.

how did tis dish fall under appetitizer? it was so huge. our eyes almost popped out when it arrived.

black fettucine. we asked if it was made out of black ink (squid ink), they said they dont know. the staff jus cant be bothered to find out (IMO).

thats all for part 2. i'll talk abt chatuchak market & miscellaneous in part 3. sorry that i'm taking a long time to post them. look out for the foie gras article too. be sure to read it.

2006-03-01T14:11:00.000+11:00

i've yet to write abt the remaining of my bangkok trip, the asian aerospace and what not...

and there're some posts which were saved as draft....

when will i find the mood to do it or post them?

351 upper bukit timah road

2006-02-21T04:05:00.000+11:00

when u see the surname "pitt", it may not necessary be brad pitt okay. chinese also got tis surname. he is pitt kuan wah, the director of the national archives of singapore.

he was introducing the "memories at old ford factory" at 351 upper bukit timah road. so what is tis "memories" we're talking abt and where abt is tis "old ford factory"?

old ford factory is a former car assembly plant located at bukit timah. and it was where the british surrendered to the japanese in 1942 (yes, during WWII).

an excerpt from TODAY, 20-Feb-06, pg 27.

tis former car plant comprises of 10 thematic sections and a 70-seat audio-visual theatre that screens documentaries, the restored monument gives insight into the heroic struggle of singapore's forefathers and their lives during the japanese occupation.

pitt said "these accounts collected from close to 300 war survivors are as authentic as it gets. the emotion conveyed is most real."

to enhance the experience, a garden plot behind the building has been planted with wartime crops such as tapioca and sugarcane to serve as a remembrance of the resourceful survival skills of those who lived through the harsh times.

what drew me to tis article was the title that read "memories of eating rats to survive the japanese occupation". it was said that the rat meat smelled horrible. yeah, i'd think so. bleargh!!!

pitt also mentioned that the younger generation will better appreciate what they have now after the visit.

other than its free admission, its also getting to know more abt what our predecessors have gone through during the wartimes. only downside is, its opened mon-fri 9am-5.30pm and sat 9am-~~5.30~~ 1.30pm. how are the much younger generations suppose to go? sats are reserved for ECAs right? or are they called CCAs now? or are CCAs carried out on weekdays afternoons already? anyway, try to find time to go, whether u belong to the younger or much younger generation.

morning affair at wisma

2006-02-20T23:44:00.000+11:00

the lift at wisma opened up to level 3.

ki-kok, ki-kok, ki-kok, ki-kok......

i'm drowned in a sea of heels ki-koking ki-koking.....
(a few us ladies heading for our respective shuttle services at the taxi stand)

it then occured to me that I'M WORKING, doing the rat race.

is life all abt ki-kok ki-koking to work, spending 8hrs in the office, then ki-kok ki-koking home?

i love my job but there is more than love for the job, there're other loves in life too.

a different portrait

2006-02-14T14:24:00.000+11:00

wah ha ha.... done it so many times in the lab.... but never once crossed my mind that tis can be turned into a business idea.

a canada based studio, dna11, adopts a science approach to producing works of art. they basically take a sample off you (saliva is the most convenient) and then use a method called gel electrophoresis to produce a portrait, your portrait.

layman description of gel electrophoresis
your sample of saliva will go through many many steps of chemical manipulation so that its "small" enough to be "run" on a gel. yes, jus like a piece of gel/agar agar. slightly cloudy whitish in color.

see the gel? on the left end of the gel are wells.

after chemicals and what not, your saliva (which contains DNA) will break down into small enough molecules to travel within the "pores" of the gel. at one end of the gel are wells where your small enough saliva sample + a blue dye will be added. this gel is then placed in a buffer solution (i think so...cant remember :P) and attached to a simple apparatus where there're electrodes. and jus like that, after abt 1hour or so, u can see on the gel different bands of blue. it uses the basis of size and electric charges. this piece of gel is taken to a special machine where its being captured/ photographed and a printout being generated. so how do our DNA show up on photographs? well, thats the reason we added the dye earlier on. the blue dye with our DNA fluorescent under the UV light within the special machine.

here's a paper printout of the gel. the white bands are DNA. in the lab, we'll have to analyse the size of the DNA.

u can see here if u wanna know more abt how we run gel electrophoresis in the lab.

i can feel that i miss school alot....i miss lab work too. no PR needed. no faking at all. jus being the usual me. not that i need to fake alot at work but working in a lab is like being in your own world. who doesnt like that? i guess we all might like a lil of both. own time + interaction times. a balance. when u dont feel like yakking or not in one of those moods, u retreat into your lab. no obligation to talk at all. how great.

okay... i applaud dna11. they have a wonderful cool idea embracing science and art.

for the those who are interested, they ship internationally.

u can order your DNA portrait in any of the 3 sizes.

18"x24" - US$390
24"x36" - US$490
36"x54" - US$790

there is also the couple portrait. what a good idea as v-day or wedding anniversary gift. cool isnt it?

24"x36" - US$640

36"x54" - US$940

for a piece of yourself, i think its all worth it.

dotty dotty

2006-02-13T00:05:00.000+11:00

i'm back to my first blogskin. dots...and more dots.

did u grow up with A&W?

2006-02-11T13:45:00.000+11:00

remember the nostalgic times tucking into their root beer floats, curly fries, coney dogs, waffles topped with ice-cream?

remember when it comes to doing social studies, science, geography or history projects with classmates... we surely arrange to meet at A&W?!?! and we definitely order a rootbeer float each and share a packet of curly fries?!?

the girls out there. remember sharing a waffle topped with ice-cream cos u cant finish 1 whole waffle by yourself?

remember looking forward to tuesdays? cos tuesdays were coney days!!! coney dog selling at $1.50 and we can finally afford it with our meager pocket money without asking mom for that extra 1 or 2 bucks to top it up.

enough said. i'm drooling.

click here to bring A&W back.

life into life

2006-02-10T17:34:00.000+11:00

a radio toaster

media destroyer/ shredder for cds, credit cards

garlic peelers

10inch apple LCD tv

salad knife

frosted glasswares.... i love these tumblers (in 12- & 8-ounce)

bird lamp

featured in "O at home" magazine. O for oprah.

Bangkok 17-22 jan 2006 --- Part 1

2006-02-07T17:20:00.000+11:00

finally, photos from my bangkok monitoring cum barely shopping trip. too many photos in one entry so i'll be splitting them into a few batches. so now, photos of my arrival and the hotel i called home for 5.5 days.

departure SIN & arrival bbk

onboard the plane at changi airport. the control tower is practically right on top of terminal 1.

flight was quite bumpy and i was SCARED. my palms were wet and were clenching the armrests during every bumpiness and turbulence. luckily there was no one sitting next to me and so no one saw. :P

leather seats.... color jus like my travelling companion.

doh, my travelling companion.... in my handcarry bag.

check out the air stewardess... all of them decked in polo tees, beige casual pants and trackshoes/ sneakers.

arrival at bangkok international airport. humble decor.

queuing to clear customs. got camera taking pic of u when u present your passport at the counter. is tis new? cos i dont remember tis when i came the last time which was 8yrs ago. ancient time lah i know :P

on the cab to the hotel. cost me abt 260Bht.

holiday inn bangkok

on level 6. my room number: 666. so spooky. but all was well.

view from my room. cant remember the name of the shopping mall opposite. the famous buddha temple was abt 2-3mins walk away. and that was the skytrain track. chit lom station is a mere stone's throw away.

~ the gorgeous room ~

the bathroom.... the most impt room in the entire house or anywhere else. didnt take a shot of the tub but its very clean. no blackish spots or dirts in tub. met my standards.

red earth toiletries. ermmm.... the fragrance was quite overpowering though its better than some ulu brands. still, i stuck to my biotherm. i really love biosense body. too bad, its not for sale in spore.

~ cafe G ~

where i have my buffet breakfast every morning. my faves: juices, danishes, viet pho.

~ hotel lobby and surroundings ~

the front desk.

cant remember if tis is in north or south wing.

aromatherapy burners at some corners of the hotel lobby, corridors and one at every level's lift lobby.

a wall feature at the entrance to the pool.

viola. part 1 all done.

next round (part 2) will be on food!!!!! yum!

monitoring visits

2006-01-28T13:28:00.000+11:00

hey peeps

i'm back!!! there hasnt been any update from me for i was too busy with work. 1 week monitoring in bangkok (at siriraj hospital) and the other week, also monitoring, but in singapore (at NUH). more of a closeout visit for the latter though.

bangkok monitoring was tiring for we needed translation most of the time. the doc was pretty fluent in english but not the study coordinators/ nurses. worse case scenario is that the patient case records are all in thai!!! and the dates are according to the buddha calender (for example, 2006 is 2549). the doc or what we call "investigator", is not always there when we do monitoring (will touch more on what monitoring is, in another entry. in the meanwhile, jus treat it like an audit), other than running clinical trials with us, he's still gotto run his daily activities (seeing his patients, doing the rounds, more research and what not). so we rely alot on the study coordinators who do the work (the paperwork) for the investigator most of the time anyway. however, the investigator is still overall responsible for the entire trial. i'll post some pics of my trip when i have more time. on the whole, the site (or hospital) personnels are very friendly and helpful and obliging and warm. well, that's signature of thais, isnt it? those evenings after work were gastronomically the best. my HK colleague and i went for thai food to jap to french to italian. i love the french the best. the food was good (prepared by real frenchmen) and cheap (comparing spore) and the ambience was good and cosy. for the weekend, OH flew over and we had sweaty fun. the weather was humid and hot (as if spore is not)! i didnt feel the heat until then for i was in the aircon place all the time and also becos we went to chatuchak market. the conditions at chatuchak definitely magnified the heat. we spent half a day there suppose to be shopping (heard so much raves abt it) but were sweating away instead. when we stumbled upon tis aircon shop, we practically stayed in there for abt 30mins (taking our time choosing OH's tees :P). we ~~saw~~ heard a few singaporean couples too. :P chatuchak is HUGE. loads to see but the place is really dirty. u wont really know until u leave the place. we both found our shins and feet totally black, all covered with dirt when we were going back. pollution is really bad in bangkok. when we were on our way to the airport on my last day there, we saw the sky above the city gloomy and dull. at first we thought it was the grey clouds and the rain is coming. then we saw the sky above the gloomy patch to be clear and blue. so it was really the polluted air like our housemate in syd told us before.

NUH closeout visit was more tiring than the bangkok one since it is a closeout. to give u an idea of the amount of workload for tis site.... on the last day which was yesterday, we packed all the docs (documents not doctors) and xrays and anything relevant to the study/trial into 30 boxes (think fedex boxes).... all for archiving. all for 100 over patients of a 7-8 year old trial. oohh... there is alot of stuff. make a guess how long the 30 boxes gonna be archived for? 2yrs? 4yrs? 5yrs? 8yrs? no no no no. ITS 15 YEARS!!!! yes, its so freaking long. a regulation stipulated by the FDA.

what meant to be a short update before i go do my last minute cny shopping, turned into a full entry. okay, need to go shit, bathe, eat and shop (clothes not enough. i only managed to buy 1 top, 1 skirt, 1 capri pants, 3 pair of shoes and 2 bags for myself in bangkok. all for S$75. cheap deal! thats not alot of stuff comparing to alot of girls. i expected more clothes, more shoes, more bags. so bimbotic. haha).

GONG XI FA CAI, Happy Lunar New Year! my most hated holiday is here.

what i miss most....

2006-01-11T13:43:00.000+11:00

pitter patter... pitter patter...

2006-01-09T01:03:00.000+11:00

had lunch for brekkie and brekkie for lunch.

today's weather in singapore (at least in town)....pictures say it all.

i cant believe i'm missing the apprentice, season 4 (as i write). too tired to be staying up for an hour. i'm so gonna go to bed now. i hope everyone enjoyed the weekend. its another day off on tuesday after one day at work tomorrow. how many holidays have we got so far?? plus the weekends and holiday-in-lieu. not forgetting the cny holidays are on the way. its really an added bonus working in singapore. :)

supper at geylang lorong 9

2006-01-08T02:40:00.000+11:00

sidenote: it surprised me that there's a watsons in geylang. and tis lady practically stop all oncoming cars to cross the road. so dangerous!!! what a sigh of relief for her after she got across safely.

to summarise chronologically

2006-01-07T19:32:00.000+11:00

1 jan 2006, sunday - 1st day of the new year. family lunch at din tai fung tampines. it was my treat. now broke. :P

2 jan 2006, monday - dad wanted to eat crab bee hoon, so together with mom, we went to one of hong kong street franchise coffeeshop for lunch. spent 39 bucks there. costly meal for 3 at a coffeeshop but it was all worth it. the meat were white and fresh and the soup really good. slurp. dad's treat so it was exceptionally tasty. haha.... what a cheapo!

saw a boy with his sister spraying the xmas white foam on a harmless cat lazing, not in a corner but in the middle of a amphitheatre and sort of was in the way, but definitely do not deserve the scare and spray. i was damn angry then and i cant reprimand the boy. can i? not my son so how m i suppose to do it. i kept complaining to my dad as we walked to the nearby shops to buy whatever they had to buy. electrical stuff i think. i really cannot tolerate animal bullies. WTH!!! i feel that kids and even some adults are not educated or taught to treat animals in the most humane way possible. even if they're not taught, isnt it in our nature to treat all living creatures with grace and respect???? my blood seems to be still boiling after all these days. many many years ago, alot of people will wonder how did a cat phobic like me get tis sense of righteousness for cats? honestly, even though i may be scared of cats, i wouldnt do anything like scaring or spitting at them. okay, so tis rant resulted from a spray can of foam. i miss meow meow!!! the first ever feline that got rid of my phobia. where art thou, meow meow? hope some kind soul took him in eversince.

bye bye poly notes!!!!! after all these years, its really time to go. mom is nagging anyway that they took up so much space in the store room. i know her next (or rather, as always) target is my smelly pillow.

recent obsession....

3 jan 2006, tuesday - hmmm....what did i do/go? i shld be doing my online training at home.

4 jan 2006, wednesday - went back to work with holiday withdrawal syndrome. too long a break is bad.

5 jan 2006, thursday - at SIR building settling a new passport.

6 jan 2006, friday - spent the entire day at work (it was supposed to be half a day for me). then to the airport for dinner. perhaps i was really hungry, the hokkien mee seems the best i've tried so far. u can try it if u're at the airport. lemme know if u think its nice too. T2 staff canteen, level 6 i think. u take the escalator up from maccas and then keep left. go up the ramp (used to be steps) to the carpark area. take the steps on the left of the lift lobby, up one level. btw, u cant take the lift for its downriding only.

7 jan 2006, saturday, (today) - the weather forecast says 24-29oC. wow, singapore is hardly within the 30s. nice weather. but rain is keeping us away from country manager's bbq. i dont feel like going anyway. i had enough of work & colleagues yday, now i jus wanna unwind and relax and zho-bo.

jus for fun

2005-12-30T22:47:00.000+11:00

You Should Get a PhD in Science (like chemistry, math, or engineering)

You're both smart and innovative when it comes to ideas.
Maybe you'll find a cure for cancer - or develop the latest underground drug.

What Advanced Degree Should You Get?

our 7th year anniversary

2005-12-29T14:48:00.000+11:00

it has been a long and good christmas break. so much so that i didnt wanna go back to work yesterday. haha... grew lazy over the long break.

OH and i crossed 1 more milestone over tis christmas season. we celebrated our 7th year together. on 27 dec 2005. time flies. 9 years ago, we were mere aquaintances. 2 years into our friendship, some things changed and here we are. really must admit time flies. now, we're on the lookout for a love nest together. hopefully, that will come true soon.

yesterday gotto be the busiest day in december or in months....more so than christmas or OH's sis' wedding. i've engagements filled in my schedule the whole day. work is not all.... from 8ish to 7pm. i slapped on lunch and dinner appointments. well....birthday celebrations for my lao dou from quintiles and future mother-in-law. though it was hectic and pretty rush (being a working day, u've time restrictions), its always nice spending time with family and friends whose company u enjoy. the only complaint is time not enough.

as u all already know, crystal jade is nice (went there for dinner). if u havent try tcc (for lunch), go for it. its nice. the servings arent big though. probably cos there were 5 of us. those who go for aesthetics will love their desserts. like baker's inn's.... very pretty. we were supposed to decide what main course and starters to order but we were constantly at the desserts page. tis put to show that the pics were very well taken. hehee. anyway, my personal faves are: orange dory blah blah (under starters), potato munchies (also a starter. i'm not a fan of potatoes.... i'm quite weird though. there're still some types of potatoes that i eat. it all depends on the way its cooked. so tis one is nice), a pasta dish (not lasagna. the one with macaroni) and mango tangy blah blah (a dessert).

speaking of food.... i'm so starved now. and bored too. i need to find food to do and things to eat. haha... shld be food to eat and things to do. ciao!

grey's anatomy

2005-12-26T00:38:00.000+11:00

grey's anatomy is gonna debut tomorrow 26 dec, 11pm, channel 5!!!! it is as if mediacorp heard my plea. *grin*

it was advertised in last week's issue of 8days. the cover where fiona xie, jacelyn tay & ann kok were on. then, i realised its grey's anatomy, not gray's anatomy. i've been associating it with henry gray's anatomy of the human body textbook which we often call it gray's anatomy in short. every medical or science student who study anatomy will know gray's anatomy. its like the bible in the field of anatomy.

OMG, i've mentioned anatomy 9 times in a short entry like tis. in fact, 10 to be exact.

2005-12-25T03:41:00.000+11:00

MERRY CHRISTMAS FOLKS!!!!!

telly hogger

2005-12-22T15:38:00.000+11:00

jus had my daily dose of cooking shows (never trust a skinny cook aka huey's cooking adventures in australia and made to order) in months and now....surprise surprise for me, medical investigation is on star world.

the rain has jus stopped and now the band in the school across my place is starting.... arrrghhhh!!!! the telly volume is up at 26 and still i've problem hearing. i cant blame the band, can i? or m i the one with bad hearing? HA!

my latest xmas pressie

2005-12-21T15:13:00.000+11:00

NOW, the more i want my "gray's anatomy"!!!! will have to get OH to source it for me in the states. *chuckle*

hmmm.....i still cant bear to sell off my first generation ipod.

other than the hype/ joy of receiving such an expensive gift, there's also guilt that i feel. xmas is not all abt pressies afterall if u ask me. there's more meaning to it. i dont want to start. perhaps not now.

*yawn* one late night is all it takes. *yawn *tearing *sniff *yawn*

yawning frenzy!!! how m i suppose to start going through my work stuff?? sigh. *sniff*

Filling An Empty Heart

2005-12-18T11:59:00.000+11:00

Read: Romans 10:1-13

God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. --John 3:16

-----------------------------------------------------------

"A more vocal man-hater I had never met," said missionary Sophie Jenista. She was describing Erika, a woman she sat next to on a flight from Australia to Singapore. The woman hated men because of an abusive husband.

As they talked, Sophie told her seatmate that God could replace her hard heart with a soft one.

"I don't have a hard heart," Erika replied. "I have an empty heart."

After Sophie shared John 3:16 with her, using her name in the verse: "For God so loved Erika . . . ," she told Erika that God wanted to fill her empty heart with His love.

Just before the plane touched down in Singapore, Erika prayed and asked Jesus to be her Savior. "I feel better already," she told Sophie as they prepared to get off the plane. "What a miracle that we met!"

Do you ever feel that your heart is empty? Do you find yourself bitter about life, feeling helpless to make things work out? Do you try to fill the emptiness in your life with possessions, activities, entertainment, or relationships? Read John 3:16 and put your name in it. Then accept Jesus' offer of forgiveness and eternal life. He'll fill your heart with a joy that is nothing short of miraculous. --JDB

Christ is the answer to heartache,
Christ is the answer to pain;
Though by all others forsaken,
He at your side will remain. --Elwell

Nothing can fill the emptiness in your heart-- except God.

wednesday, 14 dec 2005: i liiiiiike!!!

2005-12-18T01:34:00.000+11:00

went with mom to town to shop. we were at tangs beauty hall... yes, with mom and at tangs beauty hall, it has to be la mer we are there for. she wanted to try her luck again for a sample of their eye balm which cost more expensive than their already costly creme de la mer. 200++ bucks for a teeny weeny (if u compare that with other brands) quantity of eye cream. the jar is so tiny that its like a minature perfume (if we compare it to a bottle of perfume). and yes, once again, there's no sample. try better luck next time, mom. not surprising at all. i do know of some brands which dont practise giving away samples for sake of preserving quality. before i paint the pic that mom is such a horrid extravagant tai tai, the stuff (which is la mer i'm talking abt here) really works wonders. her wrinkled nose is almost no more. her nose is still there for christ's sake. and for girlies out there, pls dont start staring at mom's nose when u bump into her. :P

before we made our way out of tangs, we made a detour to shu uemura. i was contemplating of switching to haba cleansing oil after so many years of using shu. should i? anyone uses haba cleansing oil before, own up and lemme know if its good (and cheap too?).

the ecstatic part is abt to start. some of my friends might know tis. that is, i'm a great fan of jurlique and that its not available in singapore. exactly next to shu, where dr. hauschka used to be, (to my delight), i saw white, clinical, stark, not forgetting, familiar looking tubes and bottles. OMG!!!! my mood heightened. i was almost hysterical. i was smiling from ear to ear. i wish the sales promoter would leave me alone for a moment so that i can go to a corner to jump up & down. jurlique is organic and doesnt irritate the most sensitive skin (but pls dont quote me on that. do use your own discretion when it comes to slapping things on your skin, face or body, esp if u've sensitive skin). i like their best seller, herbal recovery gel, and everything rose from them. on impulse or out of excitement, i bought a rose hand care cream. its a lil pricey here but i liiiiiiike them so much that the price is secondary. they always say women are the best pple to earn money from. how true!!!! *sigh*

saturday, 10 dec 2005: a chopard christmas with the sso

2005-12-16T22:08:00.000+11:00

there were singalong, balloons, peppermint candycane, mugs, t-shirts. the latter 2 were not freebies though. :P

the christmas spirit.... simply love it love it love it.

".....its the most wonderful time of the year....."

thursday, 8 dec 2005: a quiet but salivating bday dinner

2005-12-11T12:26:00.000+11:00

a peek into some of the stuff we ate.

last but not least... where we had our salivating meal. i lurve how tis pic turned out nicer than it actually looks. reminds me of crop circles.

pot, cyndax & me

2005-12-07T13:28:00.000+11:00

going out to meet pot and CinC for lunch now. meeting them at 11:30.

pot is a fellow singaporean friend from UNSW cum neighbour at one of 4 places i stayed or lived in syd (aussies dont know what's "stayed". whenever i asked them where they stay, they'd give me the blur look. perhaps i shld say they dont ask pple "where do u stay?" but rather "where do u live?").

CinC is better known as cyndax or some know her as 1 of my many ex-housemates. she's also a fellow singaporean student at UNSW. she's back for a vacation (she has already finished her studies. she's working in syd right now) and so we're meeting for lunch.

say we're having lunch is an excuse. we cant wait to meet up with the usual gang (unfortunately lacking CC or mr talented CC who is working & cant meet us. to jog your memory, CC is the guy who drew a sketch of the few of us cramming for the exams at the biomed library) to reminescent the good old times.

what should we have for lunch? i dont want maccas. i dont want pepperlunch. anything else, i'm fine.

i'm eyeing these but borders sells none of it!!! now turning to kinokuniya...

2005-12-06T20:20:00.000+11:00

The two-headed boy and other medical marvels by Jan Bondeson

Mutants: On the Form, Varieties and Errors of the Human Body by Armand Marie Leroi

bad air

2005-12-02T17:56:00.000+11:00

i really shld get out of the house. i suspect there's bad air at home. it might or might not make me feel better. we'll see.

i hope to take some pics... its been quite a while since i posted any. will try to take some later.... if i still know how to use my digital cam. hahaha.... so exaggerating. well, i'll take some nice pics if only no one stops me or demand me to delete the pics. words of sarcasm. *chuckle*

too many rules...

2005-12-02T15:41:00.000+11:00

go here and read "Cannot Take Photos Inside MRT Stations"

lets not go into more details or label more descriptive names but i agree totally with kenny sia. in fact, more than what he has encountered at our mrt station. in my opinion (we're all entitled to our own opinions arent we?), there has been a tad too much unnecessary panic in the community lately. prevention is better than cure. how much i wanna agree with that statement, we're losing our freedom in life.

if terrorism is the root of it all....

to all terrorists out there, please go get a life. bombing is not the way, perhaps starting a blog is a better way to make a statement. look at sarongpartygirl, xiaxue, dawn yang. so, give us back what we deserve. deal?

PM

2005-12-02T01:30:00.000+11:00

had my first performance management (PM) with my medical director tis morning. it was a nerve wrecking experience. well, the fact that i'm barely 2 mths into the job and here i m going for the annual performance management assessment. what to assess??!!! anyway, tis is only a preliminary PM. i've till 31 jan 06 to get the final PM done. okay, i gave one reason for the frayed nerves. the other reason gotto be cos tis is only the second time i'm seeing him (he's based in bangkok). the first time was during my second interview with the company. i was so sleepy but had to force myself out of bed to get to the office by 8am. i was being kiasu lah, PM is at 9am.... i wanted to get all my materials ready for the PM u see, at the eleventh hour though.

PM went well... very promising, i'm pleased. and then after settling some safety issues with the hospital and what not, i finally left the office at 4pm (added on 2 dec 05), 3 hours more than what i'm supposed to work today. i'm beat, more so than tis morning but i still cant sleep. so here i'm, updating my blog.

tamarama beach... if u remember.

2005-11-28T22:26:00.001+11:00

taken from "the new paper", tuesday, 15 nov 2005

take it with a pinch of salt

2005-11-26T23:03:00.000+11:00

[do we live our lives taking for granted that our loved ones will always be by our sides or that things will remain status quo? its a scary thought when we take a moment to ponder abt life and death. next to life, there it is, death. no in between whatsoever. all that we have will be taken away from us. eternal life we are promised is to be with God. it doesnt mean if u're an unfilial son now, u can do your bit for filial piety when u go to heaven. or that if u let that someone down, u'll always have the time or chance to redeem yourself. time is not on our side forever.

the current or rather on-going fad in spore or ard the world maybe, is abt keeping up with the latest mobile phone or undergoing diets or signing up slimming program to look like the poster girl we see so often (we may not agree that thats the reason we wanna go on a diet. the truth is, sub-consiously, we all do. we've become clones of one another, in a certain way) and what not; but truly, what is life all abt? what is the meaning of it all? do u think the current society we live in has clouded our meaning of life? or the current civilisation has stopped to think abt what we really want in life or have we stopped asking if tis is the way we wanna live our life? ]

two thumbs up for noel. or perhaps its jus me, i dig christmas movies.

coping with change

2005-11-25T13:17:00.000+11:00

i'm back...twice in a day. *chuckle*

gonna go out for my appointment soon but wanna jus type tis article that might come in handy for some of us some day.

the straits time, recruit section,

thursday, 24 november 2005
"your mind at work" series

COPING WITH CHANGE - dealing with the unfamiliar is challenging, but you can approach it positively by leong phei phei

have you jus welcomed a new colleague at work? or are you coping with added responsibilities that came with a job promotion? perhaps your office has relocated, and you are finding it difficult to deal with the unfamiliar environment?

well, these are just examples of changes you may encounter every day in your workplace. whether they come one at a time or all at the same time, changes are bound to trigger a reaction.

dr adrian wang, consultant psychiatrist at gleneagles medical centre, said, "we are all creatures of habit. change involves moving out of our comfort zone into the unknown. we feel a loss of security and we may feel unsure of our abilities to cope.

"i have come across patients who do not cope well with change. sometimes, it is the nature of the change - for example, being told to do a job one is not comfortable with, or suddenly being overwhelmed by an increased workload.

"other times it is the way it is done - for example, being demoted to a lower profile job. or, it might be the timing - if one is already burdened by other stressors, even a small change can trigger a negative reaction," he added.

for some people, a small change can send them into a panic mode. for others, they adopt the attitude that "change is the only constant in life" and try to cope with these unforeseeable circumstances.

"people who are obsessive, controlling and inflexible are more resistant to change. in other words, these are people who like being in control of situations. change involves them giving up some of this power and facing the unknown. they find this very unsettling," said dr wang.

most of us feel better after talking to someone, normally our superiors at work or a trusted co-worker when it comes to dealing with changes at work. "however, if the change triggers emotional reactions severe enough to interfere with your work, social or home life, you might need to seek professional help.

for example, if you start getting anxiety attacks, insomnia, appetite loss, crying spell or a depressed mood, then it is time to see a doctor," advised dr wang.

here are some tips to cope with change:

do not rush it

as change involves a transition from one set of circumstances to another, give yourself time to adjust and settle down.

do not take it personally

change happens to everyone. if you find it difficult to cope with new circumstances, chances are, another person will find it difficult, too.

do not focus on the negative

if you look only on the bad side of things, you are missing out the good.

learn from it

each new experience is an opportunity for you to grow wiser and stronger.

it all will end

no matter what the magnitude of the change is, all changes will come to an end when the circumstances are in place and become familiar. normality will definitely return.

its been a while...

2005-11-25T11:06:00.000+11:00

...since i updated my blog. finally, i've some time today to do it. i've been working quite hard eversince i started on tis job. was so busy that i had to do my training during my free days. lucky thing is i dont have to step into the office for that but rather to do it in the comfort of my home. though i seriously dont mind making a trip to the office. its so convenient anyway. shuttle buses dedicated for the office tenants at different locations in spore. if u read 8 nov's entry, i was complaining of getting to hate tuesdays and thursdays. saw that one? the reason being i was confined at home doing the training. ermmm, not that i hate doing the training but i was growing to hate the staying home bit. mom expects me to acknowledge her presence in the midst of my training. by not doing so, she gets a lil cranky. she doesnt understand that when i start on a training, i wanna devote that 1 or 2 hours on that particular training, if i dont, i would never finish one. i dont have the numbers with me now, but i've a list of 3 pages long worth of training assigned to me. one after another, i've gotto quickly get it done. for the record, a quarter of these trainings are due 30 nov.

then again, if i write, it would be the usuals like i was busy at work, where i went and who i saw. i'm not too sure if u wanna hear that? pretty dull and gossipy dont u reckon? anyway, i saw wong li-lin with allan wu and daughter and i tot she looked preggy, true enough, if u read tis week's 8days, she indeed is. as for where i went, my hangout places are mainly (but not limited to) the coffeebean, sketches, the asian kitchen, borders, apple store, gwc, home, OH's home. let's see if we will bump into each other at one of these places. *chuckle*

had a hair cut again. my 3rd or 4th haircut since i'm back. i've got myself a new hairstylist. gone with with hairstylist J (edited to avoid being charged for sedition) who did my hair b4 i went to syd. eversince i came back, i havent been pleased with his service. he's too into churning out quantity that he neglected quality. sigh. okay, so i'm spotting a new haircut. some sort like the wayward unconventional style in syd though the weather here does make styling not quite the same. even the best product wouldnt achieve the effect u want (i mean doing it at home). whats more, i'm missing my fave "sexy hair concept" untamed whipped wax!!!!! shout: "WHY IS IT NOT SELLING IN SPORE?????"

before i go, one word of advice for those who loves the greenish chlorophyll looking vegetable and fruit drink (also edited to avoid the above mentioned offence). it stains clothes mind u. not even stain remover would rid of it. i havent tried dynamo though. or it could be the material of my blouse (i dont know if there's sucha thing)? whatever the reason is, be careful with the drink. if possible, stay naked while u drink that stuff. hehe. or change into your rags at home b4 drinking, all for the fact if u risk spilling. now, i shall go mourn the loss of my blouse!!!!

dropping by...

2005-11-16T21:08:00.000+11:00

no great news to deliver except that work has been keeping me extremely busy and that i'm ill.

one word: MUNDANE!!!

2005-11-08T15:15:00.000+11:00

i'm beginning to hate tuesdays and thursdays.

i need to get a life!!!

all i want for christmas is....

2005-11-02T23:41:00.000+11:00

a hamster

OR a dwarf rabbit (only black eyes)

OR a domestic short hair cat

OR a labrador or golden retriever or a cross

however, before santa claus drops the pressie in my sock, i gotto first convince mom.

weight issue

2005-10-28T17:47:00.000+10:00

i jus got back from work. stayed back a couple more hours today for last minute issues. i'm feeling so tired now. lugged back tis really heavy lappy that i was assigned temporarily, from the start of my employment till next monday or so, after which i'll get a P4. its soo soo sooo heavy. i'm not exaggerating, OH can attest to that (i brought back once before and he ended up carrying it for me throughout the journey home). well, for the sake of reading through my tons and tons of emails, i've gotto lug it back (so much so that its against my wish). i dont know if the next lappy will be as heavy, i really hope not. fingers and toes crossed.

before i even got home, trouble came knocking on my door. mom called and threatened to throw away my smelly pillow. i screamed no. now, we're still battling to throw or to keep. i should consider locking it away from her every morning before i go to work.

i wanna take tis opportunity to apologise to my dear friend, WL, for backing out last minute yesterday. instead of meeting her, i spent some alone time looking at earth from above from outside borders all the way to forum. it wasnt ready when OH and i saw it over the weekend. then, it was only a couple of photos. now, there're at least a hundred, rough estimation. go have a look if u have the time. its worth every second of your time. read more abt it here.

and yes, pinky, i got your postcard from gibraltar!!!! thanks for the short update. hope u're enjoying the weather and most importantly the company of your OH. see u when u get back. i want my papaya body butter!!!! :P

the christmas spirit has arrived at ck tang and ngee ann city. christmas carols in the former and the gigantic christmas tree in the latter. woohoo, my fave holiday of the year is coming!!!!

retro baju & boxes

2005-10-25T14:01:00.000+10:00

look what i found while packing my WARdrobe? my baby clothes!!! i havent worn once before, both still in their original boxes.

days of reservation

2005-10-18T01:41:00.000+10:00

i've been feeling rather reserved lately. lets see how things go next week or so.

Mood Lifters

2005-10-16T21:41:00.000+10:00

Not feeling your usual positive self? Try these pick-me-ups.

Re-wire what you say and think. Instead of saying things like, ��This day is shot�� or ��I��m not good at this,�� or thinking things like, ��This is really a downer�� or ��I feel terrible,�� make a conscious effort to talk and think positively. I can get over this. I can do this, and I feel great. Things are going to work out just fine. It��s amazing how just a few words can make such a big difference.

Play your winners. Winners are things that almost always make you feel good or lift your spirits. At work, keep a photo from a recent vacation or of the car you��re rebuilding or display a craft project or one of your child��s drawings. Other winners include a favorite CD or a book or video that always makes you laugh.

Help others. To help someone else is probably the last thing on our minds when we feel we need help ourselves. But reaching out to someone in need has so many positive emotional benefits. The good feeling that comes from volunteering at a soup kitchen, youth clinic, shelter or other venue can naturally lift sagging spirits.

Step into the light. More people seek help for depression in the winter than in the summer. Many researchers believe it��s because there are fewer daylight hours in the winter. The condition is called Seasonal Affective Disorder. Look for ways to work sunlight into your day just as you would exercise or any other healthy behavior.

Exercise. Exercise releases a chemical in the brain that naturally elevates mood. Athletes sometimes refer to this effect as a ��physical high.�� Take a brisk walk, shoot some baskets or whatever else you enjoy that your doctor recommends as appropriate for your state of health.

Stay away from alcohol or other drugs. Relying on chemicals to feel better is a common practice. But it doesn��t work. Alcohol or other drugs only cover up painful feelings that may need to be addressed before lasting, positive change can take place.

Ask for help. It isn��t always possible to easily rebound from an emotional down like a relationship breakup or job change. In such cases, try what hundreds of thousands of people do each year: Reach out for help. Your employee assistance program where you work can be of help. You might also contact your health insurance plan for advice and referral.

extracted from a webby, the addy i forgot already.

life is...

2005-10-14T16:47:00.000+10:00

life, from start to finish, should not be jus a straight road.

its very tempting to take a straight road to get to our destination but what do we learn from it? life isnt jus abt getting by and getting there; and the more it isnt jus abt pursuing material possessions.

problems, obstacles, venturing into uncertainty, taking risks, being in a different environment, following your interests rather than sticking to a well-paying job, etc, be it the journey a smooth or a rocky one, the outcome a happy or sad one, are all valuable lessons to enrich us. i dont mean to go look for problems or to put oneself in hardship, but rather, not to resist them. outcome good or bad, often perceived differently from pple to pple, is important (cos its a gauge of how well u've done and how much better u can do it the next time), but it is what we've learnt during the journey that is more important. learn and enjoy the process or journey. when we leave tis world, we want to say that we've really lived it.

how do u agree? at least tis is what i think.

alternative to lasik?

2005-10-12T06:37:00.000+10:00

assuming the ~~weddy~~ webby (edited) is legitimate and the fact that the product is sold at all guardian pharmacy (not forgetting the convincing testimonies); for approximately 40 bucks, its definitely worth a try. what m i rambling abt? check tis out: vision therapy eyewear - a non-invasive holistic approach to improving eyesight.

so u may think why m i up at tis early hour of the day? i woke up to go piss and then could not go back to sleep anymore so made brekkie for my bro and myself and now writing something for my blog. hmmm... i really should go back to snooze before working life robs me of such luxury. *chuckle*

singapore on foot

2005-10-10T15:37:00.000+10:00

the best way to see and experience singapore is to do what the locals do, isnt it? as the saying goes, when u're in rome, do what the romans do. so the weekends were spent eating, drinking (water that is) and ~~be merry~~ shopping. perhaps not so much of the latter since we're talking abt showing a guy ard.

snapshots of singapore, saturday 08/10/05
i didnt bring my digicam so no pics here. we only had half a day cos WT arrived at 3pm. we covered little india, suntec city, millenia walk and new asia bar at swissotel hotel. service at the latter badly needs improvement. with 20 bucks cover charge per pax, they can do something with service.

snapshots of singapore, sunday 09/10/05
my digicam served as the spare camera so there arent alot of pics either.

met up with WT at borders. we were crossing over to scotts when we stumbled upon WT's fave ferrari.

to let WT experience the way we commute here, we brought him to take the bus. from orchard to chinatown.

chinatown's raw fish porridge. the braised tofu is really delicious - for 2 bucks, its really value for money. the moment tis hello kitty bus drove past, the touristy behaviour in us appeared. *snap* *snap* *snap* *snap*

took him to far east square or china square for the flea mart and then we bashed through raffles place to get to fullerton hotel and one fullerton.

looked a tad like balfour road meow meow. how much i miss him!!!!!

these are the cats at cavenagh bridge.

crossing over to one fullerton for the merlion.

after serious perspiration, we settled under the bridge for very expensive ice treatment: ice-kacang, chendol and ice soursop jelly. total damage: 12 bucks!!!! the stall owner suspecting OH to be a local, warned him that its 4 bucks each. HA! conscience pricked?!!

responsible for the cleanliness of singapore's water.

the esplanade.... aka the durians. see, WT must stand so far away from me. >:(

the back of esplanade....facing the waterfront.

a disappointing chocolate experience. nosiy establishment, slow service and burnt chocolate.

the night is not over till we gorge ourselves with seafood. famous bbq seafood stall at alexandra village. satays and yew cha kueh with cuttlefish stuffings were missing from the pic.

2 days of touring singapore... its hell lot of a sweating experience.... esp for WT. seeing him sweat is seeing myself 1.5mths ago. other than the severe perspiration and walking under singapore's humid weather, we all enjoyed ourselves. nothing beats a good catch up session with pple u're comfortable with.

play-doh

2005-10-05T19:14:00.000+10:00

heard complaints abt the erratic weather in sydney. i went on to the weather channel yesterday and true enough, i saw that it was 14-30oC. holy crap! what a big difference in temperature all in a day's work. what happen to the gradual change in temperature from winter to spring, from spring to summer? oh dear, sydney better not catch on melbourne's fickle weather.

mom asked if i miss sydney. i didnt give her an answer cos she was distracted by a phonecall or something and so the conversation ended there.

as for dad, i think he's getting worried at the sight of his nearly 30 year old daughter meddling with happy meal toys and play-doh. speaking of play-doh, i know its non-toxic but it crumbles. is that safe or not? parents better watch their kids and make sure these kids do not have any crumble on their hands. dont u think its a good idea for parents to have a go at their kids' toys before introducing it to them? then again, they should know better. :P

byeeeee-byeeee-byeeee-byeeeee

2005-10-04T18:43:00.000+10:00

on certain or most days, at tis time, abt a quarter to 6, my neighbours' kids (or neighbours' friends' kids) will go "byeeeee-byeeee-byeeee-byeeeee-byeeeee-byeeeeeee" at roughly 110 decibels. they will start when getting down the steps till they're outside my place. sometimes, they can be so loud that i 'm tempted to pop my head out to give them a piece of my mind. on one thursday when pinky was here at my place, coincidentally at my doorstep, she experienced first hand the potentially deafening infinity BYE. OMG, their parents sure are blessed with a pair of unbreakable tympanic membranes. but hey, seriously speaking, tis is not bothering me much. they're kids afterall. i'm jus puzzled why these kids are so hyper at bidding farewell.

like i mentioned, both parents are wishing for 4 oct and yes, its here finally. in jus 1 month, i've attended what seem like 5 weddings when it turned out to be 3 weddings to be exact. OH's sis' wedding alone had 3 meal receptions. like every drug that cures a disease, there're side effects from overdoses. now, i'm suffering the side effects from the overdose of seeing his relatives. u know how often singaporeans meet up with relatives right? only over the chinese new year period. i guess i've seen them enough to skip chinese new year visiting for the next consecutive 3 years. HA! but its good too, i've grown closer to them as a result.

tis is the only group photo i have in my digicam. tis one was taken on the church wedding day itself (on sat). whoever says i'm thin? STOP!!!! look at my arms will u?

was flipping through TODAY when i saw tis master of hospitality management course offered by the macau university of science & technology. nothing unusual huh? so i thought. until i saw specialising in casino management. "wow, very special. never knew there's such a course". slowly, the word "sentosa" started floating in my mind. i briefly remember my mom mentioned it some time ago. hmmm, for whatever reason the government has for the building of the casino, i'm totally against it, BUT i'm no seditionist here.

a bowl of gold

2005-09-30T12:40:00.000+10:00

i'm eating laksa while typing tis. was spooning into my mouth and staring into the soup when i remembered how tis bowl of laksa would be like a ~~pot~~ bowl of gold in sydney despite the fact that its very oily (which i dont know why. always thought katong laksa are less oily than the other type of laksa) and somewhat not very tasty (today). while we're in a place where we seem to have everything, we'll up our expectations and pick on what we percieved as bad but yet is being treated as gold in another place. same thing, (probably) same person, but different experience.

blur queen

2005-09-29T12:06:00.000+10:00

someone: hello, can i speak to swissroll?

me: yes speaking.

someone: i'm calling from AIA. you have been selected for a special promotion.

me: ..... .... (kinda stoned. took me a few secs to respond)

me: huh? again, what special promotion? (thinking hard if i've a policy with AIA)

someone: heheheee..... eh, its me lah. you cannot recognise my voice ah?

me: huh... oh, its u, pot.

really ah, my reaction damn slow leh?!?! when can i stop taking my flu medication??????!!!!!!!!!!

church wedding rehearsal

2005-09-28T13:39:00.000+10:00

attended OH's sis' church wedding rehearsal yesterday evening. didnt do much, basically spent my/our time cooling down, (we were perspiring like niagara falls - tis is 1 of the many wonders i wanna visit. i once watched an omnimax movie on niagara falls and was so in awe with the sheer size of it. the loud splashes of water probably drown voices of anyone who attempt to speak upon reaching BRMC wearing what we were wearing) and then, all is done!!! in less than 30mins after we got there. we questioned the purpose of us turning up. then we thought, to give moral support that is.

by 8pm, we've arrived at OH's brother-in-law-to-be, P's place (a short walk from BRMC) for a buffet dinner. there was so much food that it allowed us to give away (to the security guards) & to tabao. i was too shy to tabao for myself for it was my first time meeting P's parents. :P they were very nice and hospitable. they even know my name without having me to introduce myself. wow, i was impressed and at the same time touched. they really made me feel welcomed. i dont know if i'm being rude to say tis but i suppose there's no harm done. P's dad is a jolly fun man (m i not showing respect for saying tis?). he's always making us laugh. whereas P's mom is a soft-spoken yet approachable lady. very helpful and humble. no airs abt her. i like them. they're those who will make their future daughter-in-laws (P has a younger brother. very tall and not too bad looking. any takers?) feel at home on first time meet-the-parents kinda pple.

the parents are hoping for 4 oct to come. yeah, thats the day both church wedding and the dinner will be over. sigh, wedding preparations are jus so tiring.

*ah-choo*ah-choo*ah-choo*ah-choo*ah-choo*ah-choo*ah-choo*

oh no, one of my sneezing frenzy once again. excuse me, i'll take my leave now.

18/06/2005 2:26:47pm

2005-09-25T01:17:00.000+10:00

for some reason, ok, fine, OH's sis was using the printer in his room and so we both went to the hall to watch some telly. we then grew bored and so started reading the messages in OH's phone. most were from me. among the few we went through, one particular text tickled us and it reads:

dar,our house has been invaded by laughing thais & they seem to be enjoying themselves.i'm trapped in our room.they're feasting on japanese food.i've already drooled.now thinking of repelling down 7 floors.

click here to see what we had for dinner that evening.

to quote tan ah teck, the morale of the story is....

oh, how we miss those good old days!

music soothes the heart

2005-09-23T17:21:00.000+10:00

been lying low lately.
attempting to make a comeback.
then, went out with mom on wednesday.
heard unnecessary nasty remarks made at her.
i was more puzzled than mad.
no customer service never mind.
no humanity left at all.
realised to live life is to live it with many pinches of salt,
for cruelty of the society is everywhere.

*stare blankly*

uploaded a new tune on my blog.
not any new fantastic tune,
jus one random tune in my winamp playlist.
i'm one boring person loving songs without words.

eyes closed,

listening intently,

i'm seeing how the pianist moves his fingers,

putting together tis beautiful (though pretty tragic) piece.

music indeed soothes the heart.

random thoughts

2005-09-20T13:19:00.000+10:00

i swear some of u were bored but became more bored after visiting my blog. my entries have been seriously unentertaining lately. tis is what u'd expect from someone who's been staying home most of the time for the past 1 month. breakfast, lunch and dinner, (almost) all were settled at home. first was the fact that i was sick and so was stranded at home. then it was mom who forced me to stay home for her cooking. she somehow has a way to make me feel guilty if i decided that i'm bored staying at home and wish to dine out.

i doubt tis entry is anywhere near entertaining, in fact, i've jus demonstrated the new theme for swissroll's haven --- B O R E. worse still, tis blog has been perceived as B O R I N G eversince its birth. frankly speaking, i'm not at all bothered. i dont write to please or write what pple like yourself wants to hear. i write for myself, better still if tis blog can survive generations, then it'd be like a memoir for them, my descendants that is (many times, i wish my great or great-great or great-great-great grandparents or grand-somebody leave behind a diary that we can have a peek into their lives then, in that era that they were in).

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

jus last week alone, i attended 2 family weddings. both in a span of 1 week. sheesh. how did i survive that?!?! (i hate family gatherings, so to speak. not because i'm such an extreme introvert that i hate being ard pple. family gatherings in spore arent family gatherings. u geddit?) gonna attend a church wedding and a dinner on separate days next week. on both days, i'd be in charge of reception. i feel like i'm such a responsible/ gan-cheong person who take my job seriously that i thought of requesting in advance the guest attendance list or sitting arrangement to familarise myself with the names. obviously, if the list is in alphabetical order, then there wouldnt be such a need already.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

in the past week, i also spoke to some friends. 2 in particular i was really touched by. david, my only physiology lab partner time after time and ric, my buddy i known since primary school. eversince i was back, i never had such a heart-to-heart talk with anyone except them (other than OH). they opened my heart so i can be myself and rant out my inner thoughts/ concerns/ complaints. also, they listened with such open, non-stereotypical, non-judging mindset that i have no qualms revealing myself. i'm so grateful for their tremendous support, moral and emotional. other than saying i thank god for them, i cant think of what else.

david: a new car and a new course, and tis is jus the beginning of the ride, so it'll take a while before u get the hang of it. but, since u're an experienced driver, u surely have no problem adjusting to the changes.

ric: thanks for the support u've been providing me all these while. i'm sorry i wasnt there for u in sydney tis time round. in time, i will.

freight fright

2005-09-15T11:14:00.000+10:00

i really hope not to fall prey to more sneezing, sniffing and nose-blowing, especially now that i'm recovering even though i still rely heavily on my tissue box. i practically carry it with me everywhere in the house. when i'm at my "office" (that is, the imaginary partition ard the coffee table including the telly(!) who's so lucky to have a telly at their workplace? within their cubicle some more. HA!), on my bed next to my pillow, dining table when i have my dinner (if i decide to have my dinner at the dining table cos i normally have it at my office. :P). hope my heavy usage of paper can be atoned by my good recycling deeds in sydney. i'm still trying hard to do recycling here but singapore doesnt seem to encourage recycling much. at least i know all we were given is an undersized rubbish chute in the kitchen.

our parcels from sydney are finally here. good and bad. good cos i can stop living out of my suitcase. bad cos i've to find ways to squeeze a house worth of stuffs into my room plus the expected sneezing and sniffing from unpacking and the dust. not forgetting we'll be dead broke after the payment. in all, we spent close to 1K (after converting to S$) on tis freight. O..O'' what an exorbitant amt!

was told delivery is ~~scheduled~~ either today or tomorrow [edited 15/09/05]. i ~~almost~~ told the guy off. put my concern aside, how could they not know if its today or tomorrow. if u say u cant tell the exact time of the delivery, say 10am on the dot, i'm fine with it. usually its a range like 12-4pm. thats the norm i know. i can accept that. but to tell me to wait at home for 2 whole days, thats not justifiable. hey, dont tell me its the norm now to wait 2 days for goods/ furniture delivery? i have committments too. i need to run errands, need to be out of the house. especially now that i'm well enough to be out. anyway, i've informed the guy to arrange for his delivery man to call me when they're nearing my place so that i can rush back for them. sheesh.

the three voices

2005-09-14T15:03:00.000+10:00

i'm slowly losing my inner voice. first, i chose to ignore it and now, like muscles atrophy, tis lil voice is diminishing.

now, i'm gonna talk abt another form of voice. we often hear complains that our government do not allow freedom of speech or airing of opinions. in a way, i agree with that statement, at least, i suppose the right to speak is not wholly ours and is exposed to political scrutiny. take the white elephants placards at buangkok mrt station for example. i thought that was an ingenious humourous piece of speech. why did it require the investigation involving our efficient law enforcers?

for the third type of voice, i volunteer to sit on the fence and shut my gap. finger pointing, criticise, ridicule. hell no.... pls count me out. frankly, tis is ~~only~~ not human, that is, to tongue wag or to talk behind the back of others. more hatred towards those who pretend to be exceptionally nice to their targets and then stab them in their backs. tis is for real, not a scene gathered from the movies. i witnessed it so so many times in the past, when i was still working at tis grapevine. though i may not be the victim, i hate being involved. as much as i dislike backstabbers and malicious rumourmongers, i've to learn, learn to listen to them with a pinch of salt. afterall, office polictics are inevitable.

beads of perspiration

2005-09-12T18:16:00.000+10:00

instead of venturing out in tis treacherous weather, i much prefer to stay home with a cuppa tea listening to tunes of bossa nova. call it an excuse to skip an extended family member's wedding dinner, the lightning is shooting in all directions that even the daredevil in me is convinced to switch off all electrical appliances and shun using the phone. the intervallic surprising thunderous claps are also scaring beads of perspiration out of me. jus like how someone scare u from the back. shudder!

okay, before my mom starts nagging, i better go find a decent bag and get ready before she does. argggh!

a fainting episode

2005-09-09T13:26:00.000+10:00

if u see a girl in office attire staggering out of the train at aljunied to the stone seat on the platform on tuesday at abt 2ish in the afternoon, highly possibly pale faced, then i bet u've seen me.

i was in a body of sweat, vision blurring by the second, the porridge i had for brunch seems to be travelling up my alimentary tract making its way out of my mouth. without having to think twice, i walked to the door of the train, praying that the train would come to a stop at aljunied station asap, before my brain switches off and my body collapse to the ground. seconds turned into minutes and minutes into hours. moments like these so so familiar. thank god, no puking and no collasping. i jus sat there for abt 10mins with my eyes shut, drank some water (despite the ban), made sure i felt alright before setting off on my journey again.

cause of episode: unknown! probably heatstroke or/and hunger or/and still sick from flu.

aftermath: been staying home since then. tomorrow will be the real test.

i had enough

2005-09-05T18:50:00.000+10:00

tis flu bug that plagued me for more than a week left me

sneezing almost non-stop. and my eyes teary.
with a nose that is so tattered from blowing and blowing which in turn accumulated a basket full of waste tissue paper and of course 2 boxes of tissue paper to start with.
a deepset voice or maybe not. perhaps i should say somewhat a voice different from my usual.
very blocked ears... i would call it partially deaf. i ignored OH a couple of times cos i didnt hear him. that bad huh?!
with a limp body that shed a kg during tis ordeal.
stranded at home with not much social life to boast abt.
confined to the bed (drowsiness from the med) and several visits to the loo (from flooding my system with lotsa water).
tis flu bug is slapping me with something new, that is, COUGH when i thought i'm on the road to recovery.
VERY SICK!!! i cant wait to be well and waltzing the streets.

today is the EDT of yeo's baby girl. i wonder how things went. cant visit them lest i pass my virus to the newborn. sigh!! i hate tis stupid virus, restricting my life. i've never been down with flu for so long. i'm so much healthier in syd. or i should say i get well sooner in syd if i'm ever sick. i give myself till friday to be completely well cos of impt engagements over the weekend. i NEED to be well. i cant afford to put off meetings anymore.