You don't ask, you don't get

A great life lesson I learnt from my USA vocation :)

December 2012

Is passing by in a flash.

My favourite month is passing by so quickly, I have difficulty slotting in a routine annual dental check-up into my calendar (I am able to claim for dental but the job must be done by this year, you see)! Well, I also found out it's not easy to book a dental appointment. Are dentists so busy? Anyway, I managed to book one on 31st Dec lol, practically the last day available.

Heading to KL this weekend for mangjie's wedding, gonna be celebrated by the whole extended family and I'm sure there's gonna be loads of fun and laughter and photos taken!

______________________________________

Random pic:

Handmade card :)

Me and Myself turns .... 28

'A surprise' was all I asked for, but I received many more :)

Awesome girlfriend, awesome buddies. Couldn't ask for more... no other birthdays can up this year's :)

And special credits to NZ gang for chipping in the pressie! I have never received a wrapped up bday gift this huge :D Hahaha, had fun unwrapping it corner by corner!

And to fabulous magic mom for the anticipated red eggs, year after year :)

__________________________


On this special day 1215 I happened to hop on one of my buses of bus no. 1215 and cross a fine young age of 12+15 =27. Signs of an awesome year ahead :D

I AM 27 27 27 27 27 27 27 27 27 27

Still a young 27 years old young man!

=D

I took leave tomorrow, which so happens to be a Friday and eve of my birthday. Gonna 自然醒 tomorrow, till the sun shine on my butt and I don't care~~ *hums*

Agenda for tomorrow!

-Buffet lunch at Furama with family!
-Hoping for good weather in the afternoon, gonna laze down on the greens and watch the clouds float by with the girlfriend
-Hobbiton movie in the evening!

Life should be this awesome.

Macau, Zhuhai and Hong Kong

10 hotels, 18 restaurants, 3 golf courses, 2 mega shopping malls - all in 4 days!

Once in a lifetime opportunity to head out to Macau and Zhuhai and experience overnight stay at 5 star hotel in upgraded Executive Suite. Sua ku me was so awed by the sheer size of the room! And not to mention a Nespresso coffee machine (complimentary), branded disposable toiletries including Loccitane shower lotions, Fiji mineral water, printer in the room, thick comfy bedroom slippers, a TV screen in front of the bathtub, a TV screen that greets me by my last name and a handwritten card wishing us an enjoyable stay - 宾至如归。I swear the bed is the most comfortable bed I have ever, ever laid my back on in my entire 27 years (yes, still 27!).

And the super atas amenities, complete with jacuzzi, steam sauna, heated outdoor pool, a yoga room with instructor...

If you go Macau you have to lay your taste buds on their local cuisine - 1) Portugese and 2) Mecanese (Portugese fused with Chinese). My favourite is wet seafood rice (centre pic, below) at Antonio, but be prepared to pay for the divine gastronomical experience.

And a view of the familiar scenes iconic of Macau...

_________________________________


Zhuhai is a China city that is just next to Macau and takes about 1 hour to clear the immigration. I LOVE ZHUHAI. EAT AND LIVE LIKE A KING!

THE FOOD IS LIKE HEAVENLY DAMN NICE! Definitely heading backkkkkk for more (+1 bucket list).

_________________________________________


Popped over to Hong Kong which is an 1 hour's ferry ride from Macau. Surreal feeling I had, behold the familiar sights.

Rushed to catch the laser show at 8pm. The Squash Open was playing 'live' at the harbour, unfortunately it was drizzling the whole day and the match couldn't be played without interruptions.

It was my first time travelling by myself and fortunately I was in a small country fantastically inter-connected by its world renowned MTR network. Wasn't difficult at all to locate Mongkok (lady's market), Tsim Sha Tsui (where my abode was) and Central (where I was gonna meet up with my sec school classmate!).

This classmate of mine has so admirable courage - getting out of her comfort zone and packing her luggage to locate herself in Hong Kong just to take a breather and sort out her future. Soon she found herself an successful entrepreneur, starting a customized walking tour for tourists who wish to experience outside the commercialized areas of Hong Kong, to have an understanding and taste of the rich, complicated life of the locals. You can find out more at http://www.bigfoottour.com/. I secretly envy her job. Not only does it bring you opportunities to interact with globetrotters, you also enjoy time flexibility and you have fun at the same time - now what's bad about that?? Well, she is recruiting... and I'm all qualified lest the 'in-depth' knowledge of HK. :(







Anyway, we dined at a simple restaurant serving decent local food and she introduced me to Lan Kwai Fong (LKF), the HK equivalent of Clarke Quay, only more happening and fun! There were lots of ang mohs and a liver-slaughtering "How fast can you drink 10 shots?"-challenge. Guess the record?

And here's other trivia you can learn from a local in 1 hour:

• The patrons at LKF drink until 6am. Now that's hardcore
• HK girls are easy to pick up girls - just declare you're either a lawyer/doctor/banker and buy them 3 shots - or if you prefer to extend the game, get them a long island
• Their mobile plan comes with limited data but there are plenty of free Wifi spots designated by your telco
• How do you get a waiter's attention at a eatery? It's easy to tell apart the locals from the tourists - the locals will call out "seh ye" (写也), or "louk dan" (落单) that is more formal; whereas you see the tourists desperately raising their hands. And the Singaporeans? Hilarious as my fren's bf put it, they are even more polite - they will say "excuse me"! HAHAHAHA!
• Thirsty and you step into a Cha Chaan Teng... the small cup of tea given to you:

...... IS NOT FOR YOUR DRINKING!

It is actually meant for washing of chopsticks!!! Not that's what I call a cup half-empty...

But well, my friend explained the practice was derived from the old roadside stalls that did not heed much attention to hygiene. Nowadays at Cha Chaan Teng the tea can be consumed. Phew!~.

• Wanchai is the HK equivalent of Geylang but one notch better
• Tsim Sha Tsui is where locals go bar drinking
• Head to Sham Shui Po for cheap, warehouse-kinda shopping
• Halloween comes alive at LKF! The patrons dress up. Like, really really dress up. They don Ironman suits, huge panda heads, Chinese vampires, exaggerated make up and all and party like mad (+1 bucket list). Google and you'll know what I mean.
• I personally realised the locals don't really jaywalk? I mean, there were loads of people waiting at a junction and I was wondering why they were not attempting to get across when the traffic was sparse. I stepped onto the road and instantaneously felt like an alien
• Their working population have minimal work life, partly because they do not feel like going home for their houses are so cramped
• The starting salary for Uni grades is HKD10,000.
• HK is populated with Filipinos who form a huge majority of their domestic maids - out of HK's total headcount of 7 million, 200,000 come from Philippines. And we're complaining?

________________________________________________
I hope I'll be back pretty soon ... :)



Back to December

In a twinkling of an eye, it's back to December again.

December has always been my favourite month, and I think many can relate to why:

• If you're a student, you probably have looked forward to chillaxing the school holidays away
• If you're working, this is the period of time you clear your leave! And your bosses will be away too!
• Most cooling weather in the year. We all need that, right
• December is slow paced and less stressful
• Malls are decked in Christmas decorations and playing merry Xmasy music!
• It's the season of giving!
• Surprises surprises surprises - Xmas gift exchanges, year end bonus, check out what Santa left in your socks...
• and.... my birthday!

I haven't basked in the December mood yet and it's already into the fifth day already!

I don't know why, but December seems like a good time for some soul searching, reflections... and just doing nothing but lay down on the grass and gaze at the clouds swim across the sunny sky.

Interesting Facts of Macau

Picked these up from a few locals:

1) Locals do not know names of the streets well. When required to give directions, the locals will mention landmarks or some generic directions - they will eventually locate it themselves.

2) The government restricts their local to foreign labour ratio to 1:1. Yes, 1:1 regardless of industry. To every foreign worker you hire, you need to employ a Macau citizen first.

3) Their local cuisine is called Mecanese. It is a fusion of Portugese and Chinese.

4) The number of foreigners stands at 20% of their total population. Which is very similar to Singapore.

5) The entire Cotai area is reclaimed. Cotai Strip is where you find the newer developments such as the mega hotel-casinos like Venetian, City of Dreams, Galaxy.

6) It can drop as low as 5 deg C during winter, but the temperature mostly hovers around 10-ish.

7) You can earn more with a 'O' level cert as compared to a Uni grad - if you work as a croupier, that is. It has thus caused a societal problem amongst the youths, who will be motivated to study hard?

Live by this

Above: Seen, somewhere at Imbiah Lookout, Sentosa.

And here's how I do it:

Below: Lake Opuha, NZ.



Random pic

Fox Glacier, NZ.

Detoxifying Deepavali

Diarrhoea-ed, burped, ate medicine, fevered.

Still diarrhoea-ing, burping.

When everyone was celebrating Monday night like a TGIF! night, this pretty much sums up how I spent mine...

-

Wrapped up in a wooly Old Navy
Is how I spent eve of Deepavali

-

On the bright side, I think I needed this detox. Tummy feels smaller now hahahhaa.

2013 Tokyo!

2011 @ Phuket:

2013 @ Tokyo!!!!

P/S: I discovered you can do background removal on MSPowerPoint!! =O

The death of a derby

The death of a derby -

By John Brewin:




















http://soccernet.espn.go.com/blog/_/name/espnfcunited/id/1459?cc=4716

Thank you, for resonating deeply with my thoughts.

And my honest opinion? Arsene needs to go.

Extracted from above article:

"That fault lies with supposed custodians who sold their club to an absentee owner for whom fourth place and Champions League revenue will do just fine. Wenger must share blame too. His teams have never evolved from the point at which an initial French revolution in English football was caught up and then overtaken."

A Few Good Men

Didn't watch the movie "A Few Good Men", never heard of it, but in it was probably one of the most impressionable speeches and realistic acting. I first saw the dialogue while attending a course, and the second was in Season 4 of "How I Met Your Mother" (episode 17 or 18?). Now that's a woahhhhhhhhhh....

Didn't realise how famous this speech was! Watch it here:

A lil' step of chance

Sometimes, it just takes a lil' chance, a lil' step of fate, you'll be surprised how much they lead you to...

To Tokyo, Tokyo, Tokyo...?

Have discussed with my buddies and decided on April 2013 to embark on a 'only guys' trip. It would be a milestone, a very significant one, probably the last one before any of us commits to marriage - or the decision which Barney Stinson (from How I Met Your Mother) deems as the end of one's life... haha.

So I was checking out affordable air tix and zoomed in on Scoot, double confirmed by skyscanner.com (just discovered how awesome the website is, thanks to facebook and Titus!). More spacious than budget airlines and less pricey at less than S$600 than a full fledged flight, I think we're comfortable forking out that amount for an awesome trip.

What's stopping us is only a confirmation from Busy Roys! I hope this trip will materialize. Why I'm looking forward is because I have minimal idea of what to do in Tokyo, how the city looks like, the places to visit etc. That means low expectations, greater surprises.

What would possibly go wrong with awesome company, heavenly food (sashimiiiiiiii) and a vibrant night scene (or at least that's my impression is from the movie Tokyo Drift haha)?

I miss playing Maplestory

The all-so familiar scenes:

For the latter pic, I remember I was battling in the wee hours of the morning with half-closing eyes and suddenly I came across a super duper rare drop - Steely! Could go for $18M at that time, if I still recall correctly?

____

Do they still have Maplestory in LAN shops? I miss bashing around like how a real DK stamps his authority and makes his presence known in a map.

Had a really good weekend

Had a really great one, spending quality time with people who mattered :)

____

Started my Saturday usual at the street soccer court. Great work out but haven't been able to find my form in recent weeks. Hmm. Think I need a cooler head and greater stamina, haha.

After a refreshing shower, I convinced my parents to walk to the nearby neighbourhood shops for lunch and grocery shopping. I also purchased an affordable utility plastic-framed spectacles for exercising, sports, and maybe for the odd change of accessory. The afternoon was a great time spent with them as we chatted about everything from cheap 佛手瓜 and how cockles should be cooked, to reminiscing the gorgeous food at Ipoh (just realised the topics all revolve around food o_O). Whilst on our way back, it started to pour cats and dogs and we laughed at our helpless selves, as my parents did their best to shuffle their feet 50m to the nearest shelter. Later, I attempted to frighten my mom by hiding behind a corner but ended up outwitted by her! Haha so funny. :)

Got woken up groggily at about 6.20pm, urged by mom to head out for dinner. This time, my brother joined us to the nearby zi char place my mom recommends. The food much exceeded expectations, the fried sambal tapioca leaves was tasty, curry fish head yummy, japanese marinated ribs mouth-watering and fried french beans with small shrimps fragrant. Many other patrons ordered san lou hor fun and fried rice that kept our eyes busy. Definitely heading back there again! Took a slow stroll home and told my mom it's being a long time since we did so, reminded me of when we were younger and we would walk back to old abode from Simei using that darned winding overhead bridge...

Saturdays are never complete without glueing our eyes to the football matches at night! Went over to Busy Roy's and joined by my girlfriend and Huiwen, we gathered in the cosy living room, savouring Busy Roy's new attempt at 'longan beer' but which probably turned out to taste more like dark brew, but still a thumbs up! Keep the concoctions going bro! Arsenal came back from behind to win 3-1 with West Ham, good win against a tricky opponent.

_______

For Sunday lunch I brought my dad and siblings to The Vines at Novena, was just here last week with NZ peeps and the food was so good and affordable I think my family would love it! Besides, the restaurant is closing end of the month (due to some lease ending/en-bloc thingy) and if not now, then when? I love the ribeye steak I had last week, the meat is imported from NZ and done exactly medium rare, the way I requested, not any bit under or over done. This time, my dad feasted on the prime rib, my sis tenderloin steak and my bro the humble fish and chips, and we shared half dozen of escargot in tasty olive oil and oxtail stew which was done to perfection. AWEEESOME they were, happily satisfied and full we were, we decided we should return soon to try the other 101 items in their menu!

Sent my sis to Serangoon for her violin lessons and I hurried down to Tampines East CC for blood donation. I was the last donor for the day (they said I don't get a prize for being the last). Hastily filled in the form and proceeded to have my left arm poked. For a moment I was worried I'll suffer from blood pressure loss and faint due to the heavy meal I just had (recall: medical examination after heavy buffet lunch) but henggggg ah this time the process went smooth.

Rushed home to shower and all before heading out to MBS for dress-up date with girlfriend! We're going to AVENUE Q! :D

Grabbed dinner at MBS food court (wah piang has to be the most extravagant hawker food in Singapore) before heading into the Grand Theatre, excited and looking forward to an entertaining musical! We got prime seats and were just metres away from the stage!

The set was lovely, reminscent of a recognisable NYC street and subway entrance. The show started on a high with 'The Avenue Q Theme' and catchy tune 'It Sucks To Be Me'. The singers actually matched their puppets' movements and the lyrics with appropriately exaggerated facial expressions and bodily stances, brilliant! Some parts were funny and I admit there were a few which I think subtitles would have helped haha. Love 'Everyone's A Little Bit Racist' and 'Special' by Lucy (the slut), the latter mesmerizing the audience with her powerful and raspy vocals! My other favourites are 'Purpose', 'For Now' and 'The Money Song'. There was a part in the latter during which the singers dashed down and engaged with the audience, haha entertaining! Overall, I'd say I enjoyed the musical for the songs and acting, but the story was abit too BGR for my liking haha.

____

Monday blues kicked in late Sunday but glad Monday went by well.... having audit the rest of the week, hope it goes all well! *fingers crossed.

Key takeaways

Had the privilege to attend a really inspiring talk this afternoon, by a very confident, assuring and far-sighted individual who delivered his speech simple, well-paced and in a calming manner. His ideas were straightforward, easy to remember and apply and most importantly, they were impactful and inspirational. Many were awed and bought over by his calm and steady delivery, his key messages seemed to ingrain in our hearts instantaneously. With a clear vision and bright future envisioned, I sincerely hope this will forge a stronger team striving towards greater achievements because "only with a crisis do we learn - there is no better way to create a better opportunity".

And my key takeaways:

The 3 levels of sure-ness:

Be Sure - for self
Ensure - for the organization
Assure - for customers and public perception

How to achieve our goals:

• Service
• Unity
• Responsibility
• Excellence

____________

Random pic:

Magical

Think I just added one item into my expanding bucket list.

A short September getaway

After numerous times of coming home to finish up the leftovers and rice left till cold...

Received a whatsapp from my mom one fine evening:

That was it!

I decided I owed my family some quality time.

___________________


And off we headed!!

To cooling weather, fresh oxygen and welcoming fragrance of tea and scones.


To be continued....

Looking forward to....

I was browsing through my photos and I realised it's less than 2 months since I returned from the land of beautiful scenery and endless discoveries.

I miss sitting in a car and gazing into picturesque views like these, I would wind down and lean out of the window, the chilly winter winds drowning my screams of sheer emancipation.

Yeah I know my posts been very emo and keep bringing up about New Zealand yada yada, but it is really THAT supercalifragilisticexpealidocious-ly awesome.

My weekend (Sep 1-2)

A worry-free weekend is so cherished because you do things you love and which makes you happy, carefree and yearning for another one just like it.

Started my Saturday late but on a good note because mom made delicious chicken porridge with fried beehoon. Flipped the papers and managed to squeeze in a power snooze on the cool marble tiles of the dining area (yes, I love lying on the floor) before departing for Maju Camp for a yearly affair - half of Singaporean men's feared IPPT.

This year, I had delayed my training due to the NZ trip, and it wasn't as strict a maintenance regime as previous years as due to frequent coming home late, I couldn't quite find the time to run twice weekly. To add on, I wasn't cutting down on my diet. Surprisingly, I found that I recovered my fitness quickly but despite that, I still entered Maju Camp with a stomach-ful of butterflies. It happens everytime, equivalent to stepping into an exam hall. Sheesh, I hate this feeling.

4 static stations cleared with quite the ease but the final 2.4km run was my Archilles' heel. 6 rounds in the multi-storey carpark but on my 3rd I started to get bored and unmotivated, haha. But I pushed on and distracted myself by thinking about anything that flashed into my mind. Soon I was in my final lap and came in a good time to qualify for a Silver! Happy :D

Went over to my girlfriend's and rested my exerted body watching footy and Ip Man 2.

I set my alarm to 9.25am for Sunday, planned to wake up early, get a Singaporean breakfast like wanton noodles with kopi but lazybones me decided to snooze and only woke up 3 hours later :( ahhhh kinda disappointed to have wasted the good hours away, but I hope to be able to accomplish that next week. Had lunch outside with mom and bro and went to 3 different supermarkets to grab groceries - YES, Prime, then NTUC. Haha, mom knows best where to get what kind of ingredients because the freshness, price and variety differs.

Had a great family dinner then gathered at the couch with girlfriend, Jx and his girlfriend to watch Arsenal beat Liverpool at Anfield 2-0. Both sides played well but it was Arsenal's two big signings, Podolski and Carzorla whose deft touches and decisive shooting that made the difference.

It's now 1.42am with work beckoning in no more than 7 hours but I'm still not eager to go to bed, wanting the weekend to last a bit longer, any minute helps. The weekend has been brilliant and I hope to extend it but the reality is a 5 day work week and only 2 days off. Though I must count my blessings mine is not a 5.5 work week and this weekend has been peaceful (thanks thanks thanks!), humans are innately greedy and never contented, aren't we?

Looking forward to my next (short) trip, Cameron Highlands two weeks later. 9-hours drive is gonna be a bore and torture but I hope to be able to cherish every moment of it, it's a rare opportunity to spend real quality time with my parents and girlfriend.

-

How do you know you're not liking what you do? When you have to drag your feet to go to work. Have a great week ahead, people.

Cheers.

Motivational factors

Examples that push you to do something faster:

• Stress / excessive nagging from parents
• Peer pressure
• Monetary / intangible benefits
• Pressure from upper management
• Not liking what you are currently doing

Work should be as fun.

(picture dated Apr 2010)

Freedom is...

Freedom is...

immersing in the outdoors
feeling the sun and wind on your face
living everyday the way you want it, to the fullest.

Dad advised not to work till so late.

So I can either choose to bring my work home, or....

When I signed myself up for skydiving, I thought that it would be a once in a lifetime experience. Bucket list and that's it, I believed.

16,000 ft into the clouds and 60 seconds of free fall made me think otherwise.

I think I want to do it again. I love skydiving, for the extreme ecstacy, adrenaline pumping and unbelievable feel of freedom and exhilaration confirm that you're very much alive and kicking. And this feeling, which invigorates your every senses and every nerve, is the best feeling in the world.

Sweet as.

 

Our own BBQ skewer

Carved from a tree branch!

So as Dave our dear farmer host educated, you got to find fresh and young branches. How do you tell that they are? Find those that look green and alive. Their bark should be soft and thin and when sliced off, a pale green branch should reveal.

The greedy ducks thought the cravings were food scraps! Haaa so cute.

And you can even achieve twice the result with half the effort haha, with a forked branch! 

So proud of our own skewers! BBQ will never taste the same again!



First time eating hare meat! Dave took out his stash and fried them on a pan. He kept the meat in 3 separate containers - of different parts of the hare! We tried the back, leg and the miscellaneous. Hare meat actually tastes like deer, but more gamey and tougher.