chuplin

2012-01-01T13:30:00.001+08:00

WICKED
Rating: ***1/2
Genre: Broadway Musical
Venue: MBS Grand Theatre

Watched on 1 Jan 2012 Matinee @ S$98/pax with Wil and Libur

...the one who probably should have read the Wizard of Oz before watching

2011-10-01T10:46:00.005+08:00

Happy Kampong Seafood
Rating: ****
Add: 81 Jalan Malu Malu, Sembawang (CLOSED DOWN)
807 Yishun Ring Rd, #01-4203 Tel: +65 6758 1018
769 Yishun Ave 3, #01-277 Tel: 6482 3228

Must try: Crispy Egg plant with French Beans

...the one who wishes the places are nearer to home

2011-09-29T22:08:00.008+08:00

Two Chefs Eating Place
Rating: ****
Add: Blk 116 Commonwealth Crescent #01-129 Singapore
Tel: +65 6472 5361, +65 9435 4197, +65 9437 9712

No reservations would be entertained. So the phone numbers would probably be to check if they are open or for takeaways :)

Must-haves: Cheese Pork Rib, Drunken Cockles

...the one who wished she could eat more of the cockles but is scared because of health reason :@

2011-09-16T20:00:00.001+08:00

Kok Sen Coffee Shop @ Keong Saik Rd (Chinatown) - Revisited
Rating: ****
Add: No 30, Keong Saik Rd
Ave Price: less than S$10/person
Tel: +65 6223 2005
Opening Hours: 11.30am-2.30pm, 6.00pm-10.30pm (Mon closed)

2011-09-15T20:00:00.003+08:00

Absinthe
Rating: ****
Add: 46 Bukit Pasoh Rd
Set Dinner: S$100/person without wine
Tel: +65 6222 9068

2011-07-16T17:52:00.012+08:00

Viki's Version

Remember I had an earlier post titled "Zach's Version"? Now that Viki is 20 months old, it's also time to compile a similar summary on how Viki pronounced her words. This is what I have gathered so far:

Hashishi - trima kasih
Ah ahh you - where are you
Ah ahh you - I love you
Nite2 - good nite
Ah choder - I want shoulder (Means she wants to be carried on the shoulder)
Ah Pao Pao - I want Pao Pao (Means she wants to be carried)
Ah Pee Kit - I want Biscuit
Ah Potter - I want water
Woster - Bolster
Ping Piang - Pong Piang (Means things have fallen on the floor)
Acheap-pee-cheap pyder - itsy bitsy spider
Winkle Winkle Yittle Star - Twinkle Twinkle Little Star
Peegle - Wiggle
Hearty2 hee hee wall- humpty dumpty sat on the wall
Far Fye - Butterfly
Ouch - Pineapple
Meh Yern = Watermelon
Nana - Banana
Qwee Yerl - Squirrel
Fish Fish - Fish
Ah Bit - Ribbit
Air Bit - Rabbit
Poh Loon - Balloon
Ah Pear Ya - Umbrella
Wee Ming = Swimming
Yah Yo = Lion
Roarrr = Crocodile
Roarrr = Dinosaur
Air Fern = Elephant
Money = Barney

...the one who is wondering which kids friendly place to go for dinner

2011-03-19T14:00:00.007+08:00

The Lion King

Rating: ****1/2
Genre: Musical
Venue: MBS Grand Theatre

Watched on 19 Mar 2011 Matinee @ S$115.60/pax with Chup, Sonia and Libur

...the one who smuggled Zach into the theatre

2010-10-16T10:16:00.000+08:00

Candy Shop in a Taxi

I was on a cab on 30 Aug 2010 and was pleasantly surprised by the assortment of candies that the taxi driver has to offer to his passengers... This basket sits between the driver and the front passenger seat. Anything from chocolate flavour to VICKS mint, to traditional White Rabbit, he has it all...

...the one who is still very amused when I look at this photograph

2010-10-13T23:16:00.004+08:00

French Food that is friendly to the wallet

Chanced upon this article "Bon Appetit! Affordable French Cuisine in Singapore" today. So I thought I shall make a note and try this when I want to have something new and special and not too expensive for dinner.

Here are the 4 recommended places:

1. Pamplemousse
7 Dempsey Rd, tel 6475 0080
S$35 for three-course set lunch and S$58 for dinner

2. Le Bon Marche
383 Bukit Timah Rd, tel 6226 3269
S$30 for four-course set lunch and S$48 for dinner

3. Cocotte
Wanderlust Hotel, 2 Dickson Rd, tel 6298 1188
S$34 for four-course set lunch and S$30-50 for three-course dinner

4. Le Bistrot
Kallang Indoor Stadium #01-03, tel 6447 0018
S$50 for two-courses and S$60 for three-courses for both lunch and dinner

...the one who'd give the above a try

2010-07-25T23:10:00.014+08:00

The Privateer - CLOSED DOWN (Oct/Nov 2011)

Rating: ***1/2

Add: 250A Pasir Panjang Road (2nd floor) Singapore 118588
Tel: +65 6779 1154

Themed like a sailing boat with friendly owner who is also the Cook and ex-lawyer.

Update on 1 Oct 2011: I saw a sign that says "Last Days"... :( So better call to make sure

...the one who loves chatting to the Chef

2010-06-29T20:32:00.000+08:00

My Pal

We used to be colleagues

We started work on the same date

We were in the same team at office

We went for many holidays together

We cruised the Mediterranean together

One day, we turned at each other and said:

"Let's apply for S'pore Citizenship together!"

And so we did

And got our S'porean Citizenship approved

Later we quit our jobs together

And joined another organization together...

We started work on the same date again

It's been over 6 years since I knew her

She is now also the Godma of my 2 kids :)

That's my Pal for you...

...the one who never had a chance to travel with my Pal anymore since the arrival of my kids

2010-06-18T12:45:00.010+08:00

Flood @ Orchard Rd (16 Jun 2010)

It was a historic moment that I have to cast in stone in my blog! I am flattered to be a part of it. But pity the shopowners... It was probably their worst nightmare!

Sharing some photos that I obtained from Yahoo Flickr. None of the photos are mine (my Hp camera is too lousy!) and credits go to the photographers that I try my best to credit.

Takashimaya
Photo credit: Jaschocolate

ION
Photo credit: Jaschocolate

Liat Towers

Photo credit: Sukianto

Paragon

Photo credit: Sukianto

Lucky Plaza

Photo credit: Sukianto

Some cars are definitely in deep trouble

Photo credit: benruane

...the one who witnessed the flood from her 6th floor Ofc window

2010-06-17T11:30:00.004+08:00

The Cheesecake Cafe @ East Coast

Rating: ***1/2

Add: 685 East Coast Road Frankel Estate

Ave Price: S$15 per person

Ate here some 2 years ago based on recommendation from a friend from the east. Just before I posted this, I was surfing on the net trying to get their address. And I was surprised to see the reviews posted online about this cafe, mostly condemning their poor service.

Apparently, there is this rule here that each customer must order a min of 1 item. Whether you are hungry or full. If you are full, in line with the policy, then order an item to go. I have heard of "No Sharing" Policy for restaurants serving Buffets, but such 1-customer-1-item rule is definitely my first.

Hhmmm... for me the experience was neither bad nor great. Like many others, I was impressed by the effort put into the decor. I can see the owner loves anything Victorian... Passionately in love!

The cheesecake was good but also not considered to-die-for. It would be fairer if I had a chance to try other flavours but east coast is a tat too far for me to be visiting them more often.

I was also stopped from taking photographs of the place nor the cakes. It puzzled me too because all I wanted to do was to introduce the place to other friends reading my blog. So I had to 'secretly' take these photos... Pardon the poor quality.

On one of the reviews, a Celia Ng recommended another Cafe near the same area. To her, it is spectacular!! You can give it a shot too:

Chezcake Bistro

328 Joo Chiat Road

#01-05

63466466

...the one who hopes to try Chezcake Bistro soon

2010-06-17T10:59:00.008+08:00

Claypot Rice @ Commonwealth

Rating: ***

Add: Commonwealth Ave Food Centre. Blk 40A, Commonwealth Ave

Ave Price: less than S$8/person

Seeing the crowd at this stall, I had to give it a try. Not great I thought. Not great enough for me to want to wait more than 40 minutes for my claypot to arrive. Mebbe I am just not a claypot fan. All said n done, I think the claypot rice lovers love it.

... the one who only ate here once

2010-06-10T14:53:00.004+08:00

Kok Sen Coffee Shop @ Keong Saik Rd (Chinatown)
Rating: ****
Add: No 30, Keong Saik Rd
Ave Price: less than S$10/person

Cheap and good! Don't go too late or many dishes would be sold out.

Must try: Sambal french/long bean

Must try: Claypot chicken with lemon zest (Actually I invent the name myself. Don't think there is official menu here. Key is, see what people order, if it looks good, then it must be good. Sorry, no photo)

Also good: 3-style-egg with vegetable

Also good: Prawn paste chicken

...the one who misses the Zesty Chicken

2010-06-10T10:47:00.003+08:00

PS Cafe

Rating: ***1/2
Add: 28b Harding Rd (Dempsey)
Tel: +65 6479 3343
Hours: 11.30am-5.00pm (Day), 6.30pm-12mn (Night)
Note: Opens earlier and closes later on weekends
Price: Around S$30+/person

I ate here over 2 years ago and have been wanting to post this for the longest time. But I think the same still stands, their Caesar Salad is TERRIFIC!!! Not cheap though, but worth it!!! It's S$18+++ at that time.

At the Harding outlet, the ambience is very atmospheric. Big shady trees, nice alfresco seating, soft wind... however, the staff service was below standard. I don't know if they have improved since then. Could it be because this outlet is frequented by celebrities that they don't give a hoot if you are not somebody?

If you discount the service, I would have given the Caesar Salad a four Star****! ;)

...the one who'd have eaten more often if not for the price

2010-06-04T15:36:00.003+08:00

Beware!!! Cupcake Dreamy (http://www.cupcake-dreamy.net/index.html)

Recently I celebrated my son's 2 year old birthday and I ordered 49 cupcakes from Cupcake Dreamy.

I was attracted by how promptly they reverted to my request and efficiency of getting back to me on my payment queries.

But unfortunately, the 'efficiency' ended after full payment was made by Internet Transfer.

My request was simple, the theme of the party would be "BALLS".

Quoted from my email:

"... The theme of the cupcake I would like would be Balls... Your decorations can have balls, flowers, boys, girls etc etc, I leave it to your expert hands My son recognizes basketball, tennis ball and football just for some ideas..."

Their reply on the same day: "Ok sure no prob. Ps Self-Collect... For Confirmation of your Order, Ps kindly Bank Transfer Total $__ to Posb Saving ***-*****-* asap. *Ps notify me via email upon trsf"

Upon collection, I was shocked to see that what I got was TOTALLY not what I requested. There was ZERO hint of the theme "BALLS"

There was nothing I could do at such last minute SURPRISE but to just make do with whatever I was given.

I sent an email feedback after the party on my disappointing experience I had with them. After receiving no response, I sent another reminder email one wk later. And of course till today (over 2.5 wks later), I still heard nothing from them.

I don't demand compensation of any sort, but a simple apology would have been the least they could. Ignoring a feedback is totally irresponsible and unprofessional.

Is it a one-time-business all they care about? To the Mommies out there, please don't suffer the same fate and disappoint your little one's party...

Oh yes, verdict on the taste of the cupcakes:

1.Too sweet with large amount of cream swirls and convenient, effortless, sprinkled-on decorations

2.Muffin looks and tastes soggy and oily

3.No effort to differentiate the 3 different flavours I have requested. All are just packed together in the box

...the disappointed Mommy

2010-05-21T10:55:00.002+08:00

Kumar: Stripped Bare & Standing
Rating: ***1/2
Cast: Kumar
Genre: Adult Stand-Up Comedy

Watched on 7 Mar 2010 @ S$66/pax with Poni and Libur

...the one who is quite a fan of Kumar

2010-04-29T15:42:00.006+08:00

Viki keeps shocking us!

At 4 months (Mar 2010), Viki kept shocking us. One moment, she managed to drape herself on the railing of cot!!! How she did that, I wonder too. She can't even crawl yet. How did she go above the railing?? A naughty angel lift her up?

And as if that was not enough, she continued to shock us further. She stood up!!! If you say that was just a freak accident, how about standing upright for 4 consecutive days with photographic evidence?

But all this went away as sudden as it came.

She is a normal baby again now... Just flipping about like a baby her age should :)

2010-04-28T14:11:00.012+08:00

Art or Food: Peony-Jade @ Keppel
Rating: ****
Price: $15-20/person for Dim Sum Menu
Add: Bukit Chermin Rd, Keppel Club (Main Lobby) Singapore 109918
Tel: (65) 6333 8726

Came across this restaurant from a TV show. Was smitten with the cute animals that they serve and told myself I definitely had to try it one day.

I would say the food is not bad, not fantastic but it is not bad either. One dish you "MUST try" is the custard bun. VERY VERY Good! I would give 5***** for that! Custard filling with tinge of salted egg that oozes out when you plant your teeth onto the bun.

Perfect place to bring parents or in-laws because they always prefer chinese food over French/Italian/Japanese which they call "Strange".

Alternative branch also available at Clarke Quay

3 handsome penguins

Bumble Bee

Dumbo the Elephant

Lover Quails

Goldfish

Interesting way of serving Xiao Long Bao so that you don't lose any drop of the savoury broth.

...the one who is now hoping to eat the Custard Pao

2010-04-27T17:39:00.006+08:00

How a female brain and a male brain works

One day, a frustrated wife wrote to her husband:

I’m liasing with Tour operator, Hotel operator and Bday toy rental all at the
same time.
And on top of that gotta ans work emails and call customers.
Headache!!!
Tour operator still not getting back on me abt chge on itinerary
n price if not staying overnight at Bako National Park.

Hotel Operator
waiting for me to make payment but if pay by credit card there is extra 3.5%
charge (RM32.55 more leh!). Otherwise must transfer payment to a Maybank acct in
KL. How??

Bday Party Rental co suddenly said one of the toys now not
available. But I want that one bec that is the only one friendly for crawling
kids who can’t walk yet. How??

Not available:

Alternative:

And husband replies:

1. pick up phone and call tour operator.
2. pay credit card
3. accept alternative.

...the one who is the frustrated wife

Photo from Toys4Rent

2010-01-14T01:13:00.006+08:00

Avatar *In 3D*

Rating: *****!!!

Cast: Sigourney Weaver, Michelle Rodriguez, Stephen Lang

Genre: Action/Adventure

Watched with Chup on 8 Jan 2010, our first movie in 2010 after wasting 6 ticket vouchers because it expired before we had time to use them. And because of the 2 kiddos, we had to watch an 11.30pm show.

After reading reviews of various 3D glasses by various cinema operators, we concluded the best experience would be at Lido. So that's where we went and regret we did not.

Verdict: Worth your last dollar watching it!

Such an ingenious movie that deserves every compliment it is getting.

...the one who enjoyed every minute of the 161-minute-movie

2009-12-23T00:29:00.001+08:00

Zach's version

At 19 months, Zach can say quite a bit of words now. Some accurate, some not so. I am compiling those words that have been 'creatively' modified by him and it takes a sharp and attentive ear to understand what he is saying...

Ai Chee You = I Love You
Allll Dop Dop = All dropped
Bad Tern / Min Tern = Badminton
Boon Boon = Balloon
Cham Cham = Macam-macam (troublesome in Indonesian)
Chap Way = Subway
Corn Pleck = Corn Flakes
High Paif = High-5
Jing Jing Biaw = Jingle Bells
Kangciaaa = Syamsiah (my helper's name)
Kit Kit = Biscuit
Kong Kong Nak = Coconut
Mak Terr = Peanut Butter
Mamomo = Am Mo Mo (Dark in Hakka)
Meh Yern = Watermelon
Mi Mi Mi = Excuse Me
Ming Poo = Swimming Pool
Nana = Banana
Nani = Money
Nee Nee = Barney
Neh Ning = Raining
Pern Pern = Open
Pik Boo Boo = Peekaboo
Poon = Spoon
Power = Flower
Puk Tjen = Put Lotion
Saurrr = Dinosaur
Ter Ter = Water or Bolster
Tube Ta Ta = Tube Pasta
Wee Ming = Swimming
Yaya = Papaya

...the one who will be adding on to the list as and when there are new ones

2009-12-17T23:16:00.004+08:00

Just another woman driver?

16 Dec 2008. It was my day off. Thought I would take the car to run some errands, have a haircut or bring Zach around somewhere...

But when I reached the car that very morning, I simply couldn't start the car! The ignition is locked. Oh, this has happened before I thought. It's the safety feature. Just shake the steering wheel a little and it will be released. But no, the steering wheel is not locked this time, it is the ignition key that is locked. So why doesn't the car start?

Ah ha! How could I not have guessed. It's flat battery! What luck! It just has to happen on the day when I am on leave. Now all my plans will have to be shelved.

So I called my mechanic. Told him the battery is flat. He said maybe it's about time.

But I thought it could last 3 years? I don't think it has been that long since the last change. Well, perhaps I had left the car with interior light on for a long time in a carpark before, or perhaps I use a lot of horn. Well... he could be right. So come right here as soon as possible, would you? I will try my best, he said.

After hours he is still not here. I grew impatient. Kept SMSing him and when there was no reply, I called him again. Coming coming... very busy at the workshop today. Ya, but I need my car to work as I have a whole lot of plans today.

When the mechanic is finally here with a new battery, I was relieved but running out of patience as he had wasted so many hours of my leave. He checked the battery and said there is nothing wrong with the battery. Then what's wrong?? He rechecked the bonnet... seems alright. Came into the driver seat. Tried to start the car... Can't.

Then he looked at the gear.

And guess what??!?!??!!

The gear is engaged at "D" (Drive). I didn't put back the gear into "P" (Park) after I used the car yesterday. And the safety feature of the car is such that it won't start unless the gear is back at "P" so as to prevent the car from lurching forward suddenly.

Mechanic shifted the gear back to "P" and the car started effortlessly.

I was embarrassed beyond words. Sorries started pouring out... I bet the mechanic wanted to kill me right there and then! Please allow me to pay you for all the effort you have taken, I told him. Okay, just pay me $20 for my patrol here. OK, no problem I said. Can I write you a cheque? What??? You want to pay me $20 with cheque? Well... I thought a new battery would cost more than a hundred, so I came down with just a piece of cheque in hand.

If you can wait, I can run up, get the $20 and pass it to you. Mechanic was probably going to tear his hair out or MY hair out by then. He said, in that case, forget it, it's ok, just send your car for servicing at my workshop to support me. SURE SURE I said.

...now how can I blame people when they make fun of women driver!

2009-12-17T22:58:00.002+08:00

Greatest Invention: GPS

Bought on 24 Oct 2008, I now can't leave without my GPS.

In the past, going to places other than work or home will make me very anxious. I may have been to the place umpteen times but I simply can't remember the way there. Chup will say, but dear... we take this route everyday... I don't know, but I just can't remember! Maybe because I am never looking at the road as a passenger. I am either thinking of something else in my mind or I could be busy SMSing. Never just staring at the road.

I can't even remember the route to places I have been, what more to places I have never been! It would be totally unthinkable.

But not anymore since I purchased this magic tool.

Just give me the address or the building name and I would be game!

Definitely a must-buy for a direction-idiot like me :)

...the other half of Chuplin

2009-12-17T20:41:00.012+08:00

Gilman Seafood

Rating: ****

Add: 2 Telok Blangah Street 31 (S) 108942
Tel: +65 627 55711

Price: S$15/pax

Probably best cereal prawn in Singapore!

The other must-try is the Zhu Shen Tofu.

Satisfaction guaranteed!

...the one who is always ready for the cereal prawn

2009-11-29T16:31:00.000+08:00

Expressions
VIC (less than 1 mth old, Nov'09)

...the Mama who is very fair

2009-11-15T12:19:00.002+08:00

Goodbye Lancer, Hello WISH

It's time for another upgrade, this time purely for functional reason because soon we need to fit 2 child seats in the car. The Lancer was also getting a bit too small to accommodate visiting in-laws from both sides.

The handover day was 12 Sep 2009.

...the one who realized WISH is not that hard to manouvre after all

2009-11-13T23:42:00.015+08:00

Fish Slice Soup @ Alexandra Village

Rating: ***1/2

Note: Only open on weekdays from 7.30am till lunch time

Price: $3/person

Actually, this super famous stall is not inside the AV Hawker Centre itself. It's actually in a coffeeshop around the neighbourhood. Which block number I don't exactly know. I just know how to walk there but did not take notice of the block number. I shall make an effort to note it time the next time I visit the place again ya. For now, allow me to just leave you some photographs. Perhaps you can remember the signboard and look for it at AV vicinity :) If you notice, the stall doesn't even have a name!

The popular fish soup and yam rice

The stall is also famous for its mixed pork (Zhu tza tang) soup.

Be warned that most their items would be sold out by 1 am. If you come for late lunch, you may be dissapointed. At lunch time, the coffeeshop is usually heated like a sauna but still that doesn't deter the fans from crowding the stall. Worst of all, you can catch them for dinner or weekends... So unless you drive or have super long lunch hour or work just next to AV, catching this fish soup may be quite a challenge.

...the one who has many more overdue entries to post

2009-11-13T23:30:00.000+08:00

Sage, The Restaurant
Rating: ****1/2
Add: No. 7 Mohamed Sultan Road, Singapore 238957
Tel: (65) 6333 8726
Email: sage@sagerestaurants.com.sg
Operating Hours:
Lunch: 12noon – 2:30pm (Wednesday to Friday)
Dinner: 6:30pm – 10:30pm (Tuesday to Sunday)
Note: Closed on Mondays & Public Holidays
Price: Around S$80/person

Revisited the restaurant again on 17 Sep 09 - that's our 8th anniversary! Past the 7th year itch they say :)

The last time we went to this restaurant was almost 4 years ago. It has since moved to Mohamed Sultan Road.

Service remained top notch and the food quality did not drop a bit. If anything, it has improved! I am so happy I shall up the rating by another half star.

I was served a complimentary dessert that was so good I still crave for it till today. It was something with pineapple taste. Superb and perfect.

...the one who hope that the special dessert is available on the menu

2009-11-13T23:08:00.003+08:00

Another addition...

On 27 October 2009 at 0808 hours, weighing 2.795 kg and measuring 49 cm tall. She comes 1.5 years after Koko Zach. But Koko, I will soon catch up :)

...the one who is very thankful for everything

2009-09-08T11:54:00.001+08:00

No Off Day

I came across this Ad back in Apr 2007. Yes, it is yet another very overdue entry. It was forgotten along the way until I came across the photo recently.

It is openly advertising "NO OFF DAY" when you hire domestic helpers. At that point, it dawned upon me that this could be a rather inhumane trade. Sometimes they add words like obedient and well-trained. Are we talking about human beings or Labradors?

Now, as an employer of a domestic helper myself, I can comprehend why the need of "No Off Day". But I am glad I am not guilty of "Lowest Pay & Fee". My agency was definitely not one that charges cheapest pay and fee.

I feel, during Off Days, these helpers are exposed to other helpers and other foreign workers, some of whom may not exactly be the best of influence to them.

My conscience is clear because I don't lock my helper at home. She goes out with me every weekend, exploring Singapore's places of interest and enjoying food from restaurants spread across the island.

...the one whose helper is happily eating the Cheesedale cheese and Magnolia fresh milk off the fridge. Would you allow that?

2009-09-08T11:09:00.008+08:00

The French Stall

Rating: ***1/2

Add: 544 Serangoon Road, Singapore

Tel: 6299 3544

Hours: 3pm-6pm (Desserts only), 6pm-10pm (Dinner Only)

Note: Closed on Monday

Price: Around S$15/person

Chanced upon this French food outlet whilst driving through Little India. How interesting to have such co-existence of culture. So we visited the place for a try on 1 Apr 2009. Yes, it has been 5 months, no need to remind me :) Allow me to blog it for your reference. Better late than never.

Setting and ambience of the place is quite interesting with cosy decor. I thought the decor looked rather Mexican rather than French. The place is bustling and the waiters n waitresses could hardly catch their breath. As for the verdict of the food, I think it is above average but not good enough for me to drive all the way to Little India again just to eat the food. I would rather go to La Petite anytime, which is just 5 minutes drive from home.

The 'look' of the French Stall

The location of the Resto

The resto has interesting gimmicks like these. Check out what's printed on the servers' T-Shirts

French Onion Soup

Pumpkin Soup I think... it's been 5 months after all

The bread for a French Resto was sadly disappointing. It tastes like those baguette you buy off some provision shops

Pan Fried 'Foie Gras'

...the one who is still too full from her kaya butter toast at breakfast

2009-07-28T09:37:00.006+08:00

Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen
Rating: **1/2
Cast: Shia LaBeouf, Megan Fox, Josh Duhamel
Genre: Action/ Adventure

Watched with Chup and San at Vivo City yesterday (28 Jul 09).

If I disappointed many with my rating, then it's too bad. I really didn't enjoy the movie much.

I shall summarize my view in point forms. This solely represents my personal opinion and should not be taken as the general truth about the movie. It is after all subjective.
1. I can only remember robots that keep on transforming and people that keep on running
2. Transformations occur so fast, I merely see a blur of things
3. You can take short naps throughout the movie and you won't be missing anything too important
4. The action is so continuous, when the movie ends, it felt like a switch that was abruptly turned off

...the one who will be watching Harry Potter this Saturday

2009-07-28T09:02:00.001+08:00

Pussycat Dolls - 4th June, 2009 @ Singapore Indoor Stadium

Following my 1st ever concert on 1 Sep 07, I went for the 2nd concert of my life on 4 Jun 09. This time it is to watch the PCD.

What a bang! Loved it. Wished the concert was longer. We only had 4 dolls that night as the 5th has leg injury.

At 14 weeks pregnant, I watched the concert with Chup. A Mother's Day present from him to me. Poni said, when I was 8 months pregnant with Zach, I watched "We Will Rock You" musical on 5 Apr 08. I had a boy a month later. Now that I am watching Pussy Cat Dolls, I could be expecting a baby doll... And she was right indeed. 6 weeks later, the gender was confirmed to be a baby doll indeed :)

...the one who is guilty of not putting up as many entries as before

2009-05-09T16:38:00.003+08:00

TAKEN
Rating: ****
Cast: Liam Neeson, Famke Janssen, Maggie Grace
Genre: Thriller

Watched on 8 May 2009 all the way at Tampines Mall. That's crossing half the island of Singapore. The movie has been out for some time and it was fast disappearing. It was worth all the travelling!

It has been 6 months since my last movie which was Quantum of Solace.

Taken's storyline is simple. About how a father would do anything to save his daughter. If you discount the fact that the father killed tens of people (mostly bad if that is of any consolation), crashed countless cars, caused destructions to public properties just to save 1 life, it is a great movie to catch.

The movie touches one of the 2 issues that disturb me a lot: child labour and women trafficking

...the one who hopes to catch more movies more often

2009-04-22T10:19:00.005+08:00

My Monday Night Experience

It was in Bangkok.
Me and some friends (boys and girls) visited Phat Phong! (the infamous red light district of Bangkok).

And not just to watch but for some action. We visited the Boy Show.

Somehow it was concluded it is something suitable for boys or girls.
Boys can enjoy some action through the ‘rear’
And girls can enjoy action via the normal method.

The club was designed like a letter T.
Here is a diagram to give you a better visualization of the place.

Now, audience are seated like cinema style, in rows, with their backs facing the entrance.
They can view boys on display on their left and right.
They are just literally standing and just trying to look good and attractive.
One side are boys in nothing but yellow trunks.
The other side are boys dressed like working executives. Long striped dark blue shirts with black trousers.
All these boys have round number tags on them.
Bouncers are standing around to watch the whole ‘bidding’ process.

It was my 1st time and I was observing hard.
Just like an art auction, audience will bid for their choice of boys silently.
Subtle standard hand signs are used.
Bouncers on the look out will then observe the audience’s bid.
When a boy is chosen, bouncer will then remove the numbered tags from the boys,
indicating they are ‘taken’.
The bidding was quite swift.
The cute ones are fast disappearing.
But only the blue shirt boys are taken.
What about those in yellow trunks?
They seem to be the cuter and hunkier bunch.

I quickly approached a girlfriend who has visited the club before.
She confirmed that what I observed is correct.
I asked “How much?”
USD7 for standard action.
With plus plus, usually works out to around USD10.
This will include the use of condom and a pair of silver earrings.
Silver earrings are one of the ‘toys’ I suppose? Or maybe souvenir from the Club.
She added that the yellow boys can only be picked on special arrangement.
Pricing is different too.
As we are talking, the club did one round of clearing.
In fast and orderly manner, audience headed for the boy of their choice and proceeded to the
allocated rooms that are located around the whole circumference of the T shape lounge.

The room is now only left with audience who have yet to pick their choice and boys who are yet to be picked. 2/3 of th e crowd has gone, the yellow trunk boys too.

My questioning must have caused my friend to become one of the ‘remainders’. I feel rather bad for her. No backing up allowed. Remaining audience will have to be paired up with remaining boys, whether you like it or not.

I ended up with this dark, rather stout guy with hairy chest.

Maybe similar to the above look. Not apetizing at all (No offense, just not my type). Friendly and chatty. I have already made up my mind there shall be no action.

We proceeded to one of the corner rooms near one arm of the T room. The room is quite large. One king size bed in the center and 2 super single bed at the 2 sides. I headed to the single bed at the other end of the room. Sat on the edge of the bed and started chatting with him.
He is from Viet. Not Vietnam, just Viet (dunno where the hell that is).

He drives helicopters and writes books.
He said he can send me a copy of his book.

Suddenly a housekeeping lady barged in without knocking. She is delivering bedroom slippers she said. Pink and furry type. Another toy? Then she realized the room is already provided with slippers. She left as abruptly as she has entered.

We were quite shocked by the unwelcomed intrusion.

Then suddenly there was a lot of scrambling going on under the sheets on the same bed I was sitting on. The scrambling and scurrying went on for a while. Another couple in the room?!?
We just watched in horror.

Then from under the sheets, a skinny sleepy girl about 9 years of age crept out. She seems to be the daughter of one of the housekeepers, trying to catch a nap while her mother works. She rubbed her eyes and left the room.

End of story.

And I missed something. I forgot to tell you, the above was a dream I had on Monday night

...the one who felt as if she was really there at Phat Phong that Monday night

photo credit

2009-04-22T10:00:00.002+08:00

The Patchwork Boy
(taken @ 11 months, 19 Apr 09)

2009-04-02T17:07:00.009+08:00

My Favourite Food

I am compiling photographs of my favourite food which will be added on as and when there are new entries.

Unfortunately, most of the foods are only available in Indonesia :(

Duck Herbal Bee Hoon (Ak Bihun)

Kalasan Fried Chicken

Tiong Sim Noodle

Fried kway tiau Medan style

Sate Padang

Soto Medan

Bakwa

...the one who would never say no to all of the above

2009-03-10T21:30:00.003+08:00

Outram Park Ya Hua Rou Gu Cha
Rating: *****
Add for morning: No 7, Keppel Road #01-05/07, PSA Tanjong Pagar Complex (7am - 3pm)
Add for night: 593, Havelock Rd, #01-01/02, Isetan Office Building
Tel: 6222 9610 (morning), 6235 7716 (night)
Note: Closed on Monday
Price: below S$15/person

I think this is the 1st time I ever accord a 5-star rating for any of my food reviews. But really, apart from "GOOD STUFF!" I really don't have any complaints about this place. Service is fast, food is fantastic, price is very reasonable. What can I say...

We first know about this place when one of Chup's clients treated him for breakfast here. It is very near our residence, in fact we passed the place very frequently. I was convinced this place cannot be that bad, looking at the constant crowdedness of the place.

So Chup brought me there one day to try it. And indeed I was not disappointed!

You will be even more convinced when you see all these endorsements from celebrities, one of which would be super familiar to all of us, the late Lydia Sum. I don't think you would miss her picture :)

From what is left on the table, you can be assured of the quality of the food.

For a detailed description of this marvellous place plus many other recommended eateries in Singapore, read more from here.

Photo credit: Last picture grabbed with 'thanks' from Sanctuary from the Mad World.

2009-03-10T21:00:00.003+08:00

Traditional Medical Hall. Disappearing??

This is how a typical Chinese Medical Hall looks like. This particular one located in Hougang (Singapore) is one that I frequent and trust. I have heard horror stories about how some medical halls took their own 'initiative' to exchange ingredients which they do not carry with something else. As a results, the efficacy is completely changed. We as the end users rarely understand a thing about the ingredients in the concoction. All we do is pour the whole content to boil and drink the black bitter liquid that arises from it.

With the wider exposure to TCM, I hope this trade will live on for our future generations to see.

...the one who hates the taste of the concoction but could not deny the magic TCM can do

2009-02-23T11:32:00.006+08:00

Teochew Fried Kway Teow @ Commonwealth
Rating: ***1/2
Add: Commonwealth Ave Food Centre. Blk 40A, Commonwealth Ave
Price: S$3 per person

This is a typical queue on a weekday night. So you can imagine how long it could be during weekend! Do note that if I am not wrong, the stall closes on Monday.

This humble stall on the 1st floor of the Food Centre is manned solo by this old uncle. No assistants at all. And he fries every plate individually. I wonder what happens to the queue when uncle has a call of nature.

To me, the kway teow is good but not fantastic. I have eaten from the stall 2x so far. My last visit was back in 2007! I am hence not too sure if the stall is still there. There has been numerous talks that they are going to close this FC soon, but 2 years on, they are still there. Booming in fact. So if you are there and the kway teow stall is closed or on off day, the chicken rice, claypot rice and steamboat (all on the 2nd floor) are famous too!

...the one who had the chicken rice yesterday and intends to try the steamboat soon

2009-01-21T21:00:00.001+08:00

Garuda!!!

Garuda is a Padang (a town in West Sumatra) fast-food chain in Indonesia. They serve splendid curry chicken and fried chicken.

I call them a fast-food for a reason. A typical Padang restaurant in Indonesia serves all the dishes instantaneously after you settled yourself on the seat. The dishes are served on small plates and the full range on the menu will be served to you. An experience waiter can carry all these plates (as shown on the picture) with his 2 hands! Customer can then choose whichever dish they fancy. Any untouched dishes would be returned to the kitchen and will not be charged to your bill. Dirty you may think, but that's how it is. Best of all, the Padang food is mostly enjoyed with bare hands. Fork and spoon would have spoilt the taste and total experience.

When I was young, I get a thrill of getting away pinching a small shrimp from a dish without the waiter knowing. The feeling of knowing that the shrimp came free was really satisfying. I assure you I do not commit such acts now.

When I hear that Garuda has opened it's outlets in Singapore, I was overjoyed. But not for long... The quality of the food is not as good as that of Indonesia's. Could it be that the chicken is just different in Singapore? Of course the other factor is the price. In Singapore, it probably would cost around S$15 per pax excluding dessert. This same amount would have been able to cover for 2 to 3 persons in Indonesia.

...the one who will always miss the Garuda of Indonesia

photo credit

2009-01-15T21:00:00.002+08:00

Toa Payoh Rojak @ Old Airport Road Food Centre
Add: Just ask around anyone around Old Airport Road
Rating: ***1/2
Price: Around $3

Besides the Clementi Rojak, you may also want to try the one in Old Airport Road Food Centre. Manned by grandma-grandpa-pair, customers would queue patiently for their plate of Rojak. It caught my eyes so me too decided to join the queue.

The sauce is really thick and rich. After eating this stall, I have downgraded the Clementi Rojak from ***1/2 to *** and shall bestow the ***1/2 to this stall instead. Then again, don't think I will travel all the way east just to eat the Rojak.

Rojak lovers may wanna give it a try.

...the one who only eat pineapple and you tiao in the rojak

2009-01-13T21:30:00.004+08:00

Flood at Mac Donalds

This happened quite a loooooong time ago. Back in 2007, when Mc Donalds of Plaza Sing has not moved down to the basement. I have completely forgotten about these photos that have been sitting in my Archive folder for the longest time.

It was quite a funny experience. Couldn't really believe that such thing actually happens in Singapore.

Check out the water rising from behind me

Rising and rising....

Unstoppable by now

...the one who enjoyed the breakfast at the 'floating' Mc Donalds

2009-01-13T21:00:00.003+08:00

Melben Toa Payoh

Rating: ***1/2
Add: Blk 211, Lor 8, Toa Payoh, Singapore
Tel: 91469932

You know if you refuse to queue at Melben Ang Mo Kio, why not give Melben Toa Payoh a try? I personally think they are better than the impossibly crowded Melben AMK.

Their MUST TRY is : Chilli Crab

...the one who has to ration crab dinners due to the economic downturn

2008-12-26T10:49:00.012+08:00

Comics 2008

Another entry I blogged on at the end of 2007 was the comics I enjoyed during the year. Well, these are taken from pages of comics I enjoyed in 2008... They are, from top left, "fun house" by alison bechdel, "shortcomings" by adrian tomie, alan moore's classic "v for vendetta", darwyn cooke's "the new frontier", tatsumi's "goodbye", alan moore's "the league of extraordinary gentlemen, vols 1 & 2", stories from "creepy" archives, vol. 1, "american born chinese" by gene yang and "iron man" by adi granov. Their art is extraordinary. The last 2 are almost polar opposites; Gene Yang's highly stylised panels versus Adi's naturalistic, painterly art. Judging which was the best would be silly, but for sheer gleeful pleasure; it's the compilation from "creepy".

Chup

postscript: Borders was having 45% discount yesterday (26 Dec) and I went and bought 2 more comics; Darwyn Cooke's revived "The Spirit", Book 1, and Moore/Bolland's "Batman: Killing Joke". Terrific stuff.

2008-12-25T14:57:00.004+08:00

Marriage

Today is Christmas Day, and it's the 45th wedding anniversary of my parents' wedding. The photo on the left is the most recent one I took of them, up in the hills of Pahang, in a mock-Alsace resort, just a couple of weeks ago. My mum has decided this year that she would no longer dye her hair, and they are now both compatible again down to the hair colour! They were married in Dec 1963, and I was born in Oct 1964. Pretty quick work, I'd say. Over the years they have become more alike. Perhaps my mum was once a concise person but because my dad can be hard of hearing, as most men are, she has become fond of repeating herself. And if my dad was once less communicative, he has now become more open to tell her everything he does. So they talk a lot to each other and always have topics to discuss. They almost never quarrel. I cannot imagine them without the other.

Yesterday, Lin told me someone was getting a divorce. It was due to "irreconcilable difference". Whatever happened to good old-fashioned adultery, I thought. Shouldn't that be the only justifiable cause of divorce, that a union has been "irrevocably shattered"? Isn't "difference" a given, and there are no truly compatible couples (except very dull ones where each spouse has no individuality?) And then there are couples who expect the other party to change after marriage. Hello? I'm not saying that every marriage should last forever. I'm saying one enters into a marriage with eyes wide open and the grounds of a divorce shouldn't be "irreconcilable difference" because these differences would have been evident before marriage. If you knew there were difference and you knew that people don't change, then why divorce over this?

What does it take to stay together for 45 years? From what I can see; open communication, a sense of humour, good temper, reasonableness, live and let live. I've never heard them say, "I love you" to one another. They didn't need to. Their deeds said it all.

Today, Lin gave me a wallet. As I emptied my old one, I found a photo of us taken before we were married. It was taken in one of those photo booths so popular then. You chose the template you want and the photo is printed out in sticker form. Lin chose "Love Forever". That was more than 7 years ago. Our hair was still black, and fuller-bodied. We have a long journey ahead of us....

Chup

2008-12-25T13:02:00.006+08:00

Father and Son

Let me be utterly selfish and retrace the 7 months of growing and ageing that has transpired in these photos. We never bought a video camera because Lin keeps saying no need, we'll never watch them and the video mode of the Canon Ixus is good enough. As if in compensation, we shot tons of photos. I'm being selfish here because I'm only doing like 10% of the parenting compared to Lin. And yet, I'm hogging the scene here. She'll forgive me because this is Christmas Day. It's such a guilty pleasure!

Chup

2008-12-25T10:58:00.008+08:00

Best of 2008

I've not blogged for over 6 months and I put the reasons to the arrival of Zach, the adoption of facebook, and the change of jobs in Aug. But really, they're excuses because if I really have things to say, it's the blog rather than facebook. As the year ends, I best continue what I did last Dec; sieve through the photos taken this year and select a few that will remind me of something meaningful in 2008 for the years ahead. For a change, these will all be "portrait" format, although I shoot 80% of the time in "landscape" format.

Some notes: the top photo was taken in Dubai, looking out the apartment of a posh condo next to the Burj Dubai, which is still under construction. The whole experience of living in Dubai is a fight against nature, a complete disconnect between the air-con interiors and the sweltering exteriors. My friend's apartment had a balcony like the one shown in the photo. But it isn't used. It's because of the heat in summer but whatever the time, it's the omni-present sand, fine particles that coats everything that hasn't moved for some time... A colleague of mine who had proposed to level a hilly site in the middle east was told by his Arab client he could not do so because, "this is the land that God gave you." When you bring God into an architectural discussion, all convenient ideas end and dogma begins. But if all Arabs are like that client, they shouldn't air-con their buildings and should learn to live with the land as their ancestors did; with ingenuous wind towers, dense walls and shaded, clustered communities. Dubai is today scarred by inhumane highways that caters only to the ever-growing avalanche of cars, fuelled with cheap oil. Motorbikes are virtually non-existent (especially in high summer). Developments are spaced out far from one another and neighbours across a highway have to drive kilometers to visit one another. Nobody walks if they can help it. Bus stops have to be air-conditioned and the metro system is only now under construction. Parks are few and the palms in the city are coated brown from the dust. Coming from another land with abundant rain and vegetation, it is hard to like Dubai. For a while in Sept, we thought about moving to Dubai because of the monetary rewards, but thankfully we didn't, as the financial crisis has pricked Dubai's illusionary allure.

The second photo is St Augustine church in Macau. We walked the place for 3 days and loved it. Other photos that I loved taking were of beast, birds and bugs. Sometimes Zach falls under all 3 categories. But most of the time, he's an angel. The last 4 shots are of houses I visited to write about during the year. Merry Christmas!

Chup

2008-12-18T22:30:00.001+08:00

Ironies of Life

This is something I always wonder… We often have many excuses when it comes to visiting our parents or more so, our grandparents. This is especially true for the case of my family. My grandpa has children, grandchildren and relatives almost all over the cities in the world: Jakarta, Takengon, Medan, Singapore, Ipoh, Vancouver, Qingdao, Tokyo and Dubai. Everyone has their own schedules and timetables. And the reasons we give for not being able to pay him a visit is aplenty. Can’t take leave…, Air ticket too expensive…, Work commitment…, Not enough leave…, Gotta take care of schooling children… and the list goes on and on and on.

However, funny enough, when he passed on, suddenly all are able to beat all odds and attend the funeral procession. Why so? To pay last respect? Or is it guilt of not visiting during earlier ocassions? Suddenly now they can take leave from their hectic schedule? Wouldn’t my grandpa be happier to be visited by so many when he was alive and conscious during his birthday for example, rather than on his funeral?

Who is more guilty? Someone who visits the grandparent on his birthday but unable to attend his funeral or vice versa? You tell me...

...the one who is still wondering

photo credit

2008-12-18T22:00:00.005+08:00

Tribute to my Kung Kung

I was typing this entry from my Grandpa’s funeral parlour. He had lived till a ripe old age of 95, passing away peacefully on 6 Dec 2008. He lived a full life I must say. He went through World War II, the Dutch Occupation as well as the Japanese Occupation. He studied English in school and worked with British American Tobacco since he finished school until he was 55. Hence his excellent command of English!

Grandpa had 10 children: 6 sons 4 daughters. He outlived Grandma (who passed away in April 1997) and 2 sons (who passed on in 1998 and Jul 2003 respectively). He had 22 grandchildren (9 grandsons, 13 granddaughters) and 3 great-grandchilden (2 great-granddaughters and 1 great-grandson).

During his school days, he had to help his mother at her tofu stall in Labuhan Batu (a small town in Sumatra, Indonesia). Their home-made tofu was the best in town and noone there had never heard about the famous Loh Family tofu! Grandpa helped with the making of tofu, growing vegetables and chopping wood for cooking. He had also taken up odd jobs such as newspapers delivery, picking up tennis balls and fixing tyres.

Towering over 190cm high, I will always remember my Grandpa as someone very dignified and proud. Apparently, when he sold tofu, customers were not allowed to pick and choose. “Take it or leave it” he would say as he shooed the customers off. Looking at what he had accomplished in his life, I don’t think he was exaggerating. He asked for no favours and would not oblige to any favours unless he deemed appropriate. Ask him to 'curry favour' and he would fail terribly.

He was always full of proverbs to advise his fellow children and grandchildren. “Time and tide waits for no man”, “Don’t wait until tomorrow what you can do today”, “Healthy mind has healthy body”… He had a list of all proverbs, testimonials and education certs which he had been distributing to us all.

As little children, we feared Grandpa a great deal. He talked loudly and was quick tempered. Sometimes accompanied by a quick knock on our heads or a yank of our hair if we happened to get into his way or too slow in carrying out the tasks he assigned to us. Never be noisy or be running about when he was watching his most important programme on TV – The World News. As his eyesight was fast fading, he would need all the concentration to listen attentively.

But we all know, deep inside his heart, he cares and loves in a different way.

Grandpa’s memory had been impeccable till his last days. He loves to tell his life stories of his younger days to us. I am sometimes guilty of feeling bored whenever he wanted to start one of such ‘sessions’. Now when I think back, I would be missing those moments. He would distribute shirts for sons and son-in-laws, bars of soap for his daughters, canned food for the daughter-in-laws, books for his grandchildren etc etc. Frivilous things we would think, but it was his way of showing he cared. He would pass messages and reminders to his certain son in Singapore, or certain granddaughter in Japan or another granddaughter in Dubai.

My son is now 6.5 months old and I had always wanted to have him on his great-grandpa’s lap for at least once. Grandpa told my mother, “Tell Nini to always wash the gaps of her son’s fingers and toes thoroughly. It is between those gaps that germs thrive”. I was a few days too late to let the great-grandpa and great-grandson meet each other…

Grandpa, now that you are gone and free from all life’s miseries and sufferings, we would miss you dearly. You have definitely left a mark in my memory and you would hold an important place in my heart.

Rest in peace, Kung…

2008-12-17T22:00:00.003+08:00

On Nuts and Beans...

It is interesting to know that in Bahasa Indonesia, there is actually no distinction between nuts and beans. This only comes to my realization recently. Parents are not advised to feed their babies who are just starting on solid food with any type of nuts. This is done to avoid any allergic reaction to nuts.

Apparently, the later you start them on nuts the better. Best if you only introduce nuts to them after they are 2 years old or older.

Another point is, nuts are difficult to digest. Hence babies who are just starting to develop their digestive system may not be taking it too well.

Here are a few examples:

Nuts Family:

Ground nuts = Kacang Tanah

Cashew nuts = Kacang Monyet/Mente

Beans Family:

Soya beans = Kacang kedelai

Red beans = Kacang merah

Long beans = Kacang panjang

Whilst all beans family are generally safe even nutritious for babies, the nuts family are to be avoided for the time being.

This post probably makes no sense to those who don't speak Indonesian. But just for my record :)

...the one who wonders how then does an Indonesian-speaking mother who cannot speak English know when is a particular kacang safe for her baby...

Photo credits: Nuts, Beans

2008-11-13T22:00:00.004+08:00

Is it ever good enough?

Mother's milk ("MM") is the best for baby. Of course there is no denying on this fact. It gives the right nutrition and antibodies. Besides being served at the right temperature without the hassle of sterilizing bottles, when given direct, MM also provides bonding between mother and baby. Best of all, it is FREE.

Studies have shown that when a baby is fed on MM for first 6 months, the parents would have saved a total of S$710. That is quite a lot of savings considering the already high expenses you have to spend on diapers, pediatrician, immunisations, clothes etc etc.

Speaking from experience, the feeling of your baby suckling from you is surreal and totally magical. So touching was the experience, a tear rolled down my cheek when I felt it for the first time.

Now, with all that said and done, I feel there is a bit of over publicity / over-hyping when it comes to the subject. So much so it causes tremendous mental pressure to the mothers. If you don't give MM to your baby, you would be labelled "Bad Mother" "Irresponsible" "Selfish". Already the whole process of breastfeeding is no easy task, such accusations are not making motherhood any easier.

First, your life schedule would be heavily affected (Refer to my previous article on 4-hourly BLOCKS). I remember when my baby was 2 months old, my sister once commented "Your life seems to be revolving around nothing but breastfeeding".

Next, there is the frustration of getting your newborn to latch on. He is so hungry and you are so eager to feed but the 'connection' is just not established. Tried the lying down position, american football syle and the conventional style. Still it will take many long minutes before the 'link' is attained. Then not to mention all the engorgement pain that many mothers suffer, blockage of milk ducts, infections, sore nipples, suffering from interrupted sleep to feed the baby at night... Really, noone can relate all these stress, not even your own husband. Yes, they emphatize, but they would never understand the psychological chaos going on in a new mother's mind. It is no wonder that many mothers suffer from postnatal blues after giving birth to their babies.

Still I persevered. I had one problem. Low milkflow. So call it blessing in disguise if you like, I never suffer from engorgement pain. Several occasions of block ducts, yes, but fortunately not severe enough to cause engorgement woes. But I did experience engorgement once. It was Day 4 after delivery. The pain was so excruciating, I just laid on bed helplessly and burst into tears. Thomson Medical Centre, where I delivered, provides 24-hour hotline for mothers. Friendly and very understanding nurses on duty would help to provide advice and soothing words to the stressed out mothers. Apparently the pain is due to the onset of milk production in the body. I shudder when I recall the pain. No amount of cold cabbage compress could alleviate the pain. It was so painful I could not even prop myself up from lying down position. That night, I popped 2 painkillers (as advised by the nurse from the hotline), wrote 'death note', gave my last words to Chup and cried myself to sleep. Nurse said that all will be fine tomorrow. I thought she was just patronizing but she was right. All was well the next day.

Of course it was with advice from my many friends who had gone through the same that I manage to push on. 2 months and all would be better, many of them said. True indeed... Things got better after 2 months. Both mother and baby had got more used to the breastfeeding process. It was still stressful nevertheless. There was a lot going through in my mind about why am I not producing enough milk for my hungry baby. I heeded all the tips that I came across.

Drinking lots of papaya and fish soup, drinking milk for lactating mothers, consuming plenty of liquid, taking Fenugreek supplements, feeding one side and pumping the other side, thinking of baby when pumping milk... you said it, I have done it. But it has only increased the volume by a teeny weeny bit. I told Chup, breastfeeding is more painful and stressful than labour itself.

Despite the barrels of papaya soup I had consumed, the milk production started to drop consistently at the 3rd and 4th month. Particularly after I returned to work when my baby is about 3 months old. I had to drop the midnight (3-4am) pump because it was simply too tiring. I also stopped letting my baby latch on directly at 2nd month. He was addicted to breasts and was refusing bottles. As the milkflow was insufficient, he would rather go hungry than to drink formula milk from bottle. That got me worried as I would have to go back to work the following month. I believe all those that was done have contributed in one way or another in the reduction of milk flow.

I started by expressing 2x at office, once in the morning and one in the afternoon. The session would take me an average of 40 minutes and would often be interrupted by meetings, customer visits and phonecalls. The volume continued to drop and I cut down expressing at office to just once. As days and weeks passed, it became too much of a hassle for the miserable amount of milk I was collecting. My production was probably only enough to feed 20% of my baby's total consumption. Lactating mothers use breast pads to absorb the excess milk. For me, the pads were more to prevent staining of my bra from the nipple butter I was using to prevent sore nipples. There was once I thought I even saw a faint trace of blood when I was expressing! In the end, I took the difficult decision to wean off my baby. Starting with 8x a day, I cut down to 4x a day after I returned to work, then I started to reduce the expressing sessions one at a time. Until I was finally reduced to 1 and eventually zero.

So I breastfed until my baby was 4 months old. I felt I have given all I could provide and I have no regrets. I wish I could breastfeed longer but there was simply no more... I even visited the lactation specialist at Thomson. No block ducts. No engorgement. I ended up paying S$50 for the consultation.

Finally, my parting words for future mothers are, do not take into heart all the pressure from people around you... accusing you of being a bad mother for not breastfeeding or not breastfeeding long enough. Or when your mother accuse you of depriving your baby of food when you try to let him latch on instead of giving formula milk to increase milk production. It won't be easy but just try your best. What is the use of giving your baby the supposed BEST milk when you end up so unhappy and drained emotionally. You may even ended up venting your anger on the helpless baby who is just trying to fill up his hungry stomach. Are you saying breastfed babies do not fall sick? Are you saying babies who drink only formula milk get sick easily?

Just remember, happy mothers will naturally lead to happy babies. As long as you have tried your best, i don't think your little precious would blame you for not doing otherwise.

Here is Zach during a recent holiday in Macau. He is 5.5 months old here and is on 100% formula milk and occasional baby food.

...the one who is enjoying every moment with Zach

2008-11-12T21:00:00.000+08:00

Quantum of Solace
Rating: ***1/2
Cast: Daniel Craig, Olga Kurylenko, Mathieu Amalric
Genre: Action/Adventure

Wah, finally after a long long wait, I got a chance to watch a movie. And even better, FREE !! Sponsored by my company.

Watched the movie on 5 Nov 08 with Lillian at Plaza Singapura. The last time I watched a movie on 10 May. So it has been almost 6 months since I last saw a movie in the cinema!

Except missing out a bit of the conversation, I enjoyed the movie. Good balance of action and romance. No saucy bed scenes if that is what you are looking for. It gives a sense of maturity I thought. It shows that a James Bond movie doesn't need to have sexy bed scenes to be good.

...the one who would like to re-watch the movie again on Code 1 DVD with English subtitles

2008-10-19T22:00:00.009+08:00

Yummy Crab

Rating: ****
Add: No 351 Changi Road (Simpang Lorong Marzuki)
Tel: 6749 2925
Price: below S$20 per pax (provided there are at least 8 pax sharing the tab)

My last review on an eating place was 6 months ago and incidentally it was also on crab. I am on the search of looking for a place that serves good salted egg crab. The best I have eaten so far was this coffee shop in Kuala Lumpur. For now, I am trying to find a nearer, Singapore alternatives.

Then came this recommendation from my Uncle's friend. And without delay, we went to check it out. One word of warning before I proceed, it is very difficult to find parking at this place. The setting is very similar to that of Geylang food and 'something else' haven. And if you are lucky enough to find one, the parking will be parallel parking. Although the address says Changi Road, it is not exactly Changi. It is actually very near Eunos and Geylang. So before it puts you off, the place is nowhere near Changi village or Changi Airport.

This is how the coffee shop looks like. It is decorated with crab shells and dagger-looking-objects which are actually shark's skull!!! Yes, the coffeeshop serves steamed shark's head!! It is never on our "To Try" List. But rather than leaving the sharks to die at the bottom of the seabed after severing their fins, perhaps this is doing a little more justice to the poor sharks?

Verdict, the salted egg crab is the best I have eaten in S'pore so far. It still loses to the one in KL but until I find a better alternative, this will be THE place for salted egg crab so far. I will continue my commentary as I show you the photographs.

Somehow the butter crab here is not spectacular. It is a little too floury and the gravy turned watery after a while. Hence this dish is just OKAY... Uncle Leong serves better butter crab.

Chili crab is yummy! Spicy enough, fragrant enough and sweet enough.

Gleaming mini mantou to be dipped into the butter or chili crab gravy

Thai Style Fritter - must have! Fried to perfection with sweet and sour Thai sauce

Crab meat fried rice. A must while waiting for the
other dishes to be served.

Prawn Roll. Also yummy!

3-style-eggs with spinach. Well, every meal needs vegetable. This will be a good and not exactly healthy (referring to the cholestrol level after all the crabs and salted eggs) choice.

The place is always full, so reservations is definitely recommended.

...the one who continues to search for better salted-egg crab

2008-10-13T16:05:00.004+08:00

The story of an SIA girl

2 years before she is due for her O Level exams, her Dad told Lilee*, I will be supporting you until your O Level. I can't afford anymore. And that was it. She was only 15. It was very unfortunate. She is a science stream student and her school results have always been commendable.

To prepare for that day, Lilee had 1 objective in mind. She had to be a stewardess. Be it for SIA or for MAS. She got to know from her neighbour & friends that air stewardess earns a pretty good income. Call it bare boldness or pure desperation, she just had to be a stewardess, and nothing in the world can stop her from achieving that.

From then on, Lilee is always looking out for recruitment advertisements and articles of these 2 airlines. Every newspaper and magazine cuttings are compiled and filed. Diligently she did these for 2 whole years.

Her journey was no easy task. Looking like a plain Jane with glasses (not with super thick lenses but nevertheless still a no-no for SIA stewardess), she is the last person anyone can expect to become an SIA stewardess. Lilee ignored any discouraging stares or comments. Immediately on her to-do-list was to get her crooked teeth fixed. Having perfect teeth and smile would be very important if she wants to increase her small chance of becoming a stewardess. And to her horror, her research shows that the cost of braces at that time was a whopping RM5000. It was definitely out of the question. Her family, let alone herself, would never be able to afford that kind of money.

Giving up was not in Lilee's vocabulary. She asked around and researched further. A classmate told her there is this government-aided-dentist facility that she can apply for. This however, is very limited in number and each Malaysian city has an allocated quota. Ipoh's quota has been long exceeded and the waitlist queue could probably be years. Time is not on Lilee's side. Upon further research, Lilee found that there is available slot in Taiping - 2 hour busride north of Ipoh.

After much persuasion, Lilee managed to convince her mom to accompany her to Taiping to check out the Taiping dentist. Lilee also had to do much convincing to the Taiping dentist. And to cut the long story shot, she got the deal! RM500 by instalment. Her mom would then give Lilee RM25 for every dentist visit. This gets her a 2-way bus ticket plus dentist fee. All subsequent dentist trips were done solo. Mom could not afford 2-way ticket for 2 persons.

The other item on her agenda was to register herself for swimming lessons.

Time flies and 2 years was soon over. Lilee completed her O Levels, with flying colours of course. By then her braces had also been removed.

She then waits eagerly for the next advertisement. To her horror, there was no adverts!! Days grew to weeks which grew to months... Her anxiety grows as months pass by.

To her great relieve, an advert from SIA appeared exactly 3 months later. Lilee promptly applied and the rest was history. All her mom could afford was bus tickets for her rounds of interview, one pair of contact lenses and one hard-rock-cafe cap for her to hide her messy hair after the swimming test. And because the pair of contact lenses was all that she had, Lilee could not affort the risk of swiming with them, so she went through her swimming test in blurry vision!

Lilee started flying when she was barely 18. She has beaten all odds to achieve what she wanted to achieve. While flying, she saved up everything she could (with occasionally retail therapies during sales). She studied partime to attain Diploma and eventually her Bachelor Degree. During her stopovers at different cities, instead of only shopping or sightseeing like the rest of the crew, she would also be busy revising and studying.

She lamented about how her Dad was willing to use his retirement savings to fund her younger brother for his University education. There was no hard feelings though. She accepted it and took it in good stride. Perhaps in a rather conservative town like Ipoh, education is more important for boys. Girls are just expected to get themselves simple jobs such as supermarket cashier or librarian, get a husband and eventually becoming a stay-home mom.

With her savings from her flying days, she also helped her family with their house renovation, her dad's medical fees, her brother's car instalment and even an Omega watch for her brother as a present on his graduation.

Now, Lilee is no longer flying. She is now a well-groomed lady with perfect make up and perfect eyesight (thanks to advancement of Lasik). She is also blessed with a good husband and a can't-complain-banking-job.

So the next time you see an SIA girl, don't stereotype her just yet... there are in fact many girls like Lilee in the airlines

...the one who is presenting this article as a special gift for Lilee

*name has been changed to protect identity
photo credit

2008-10-13T15:24:00.001+08:00

Ironman

Rating: ***1/2

Cast: Robert Downey Jr., Gwyneth Paltrow, Terrence Howard

Genre: Action/ Adventure

Oh my gosh!! Didn't realize this article has been in my "Draft" box all this while. So I guess even the DVDs are out by now. Watched the movie on 10 May 2008.

That is 9 days before Zach was born and more importantly, the LAST movie I watched to-date. It has been more than 5 months without movie!!! I wonder when will my next one be.

One thing for sure, I bought myself tickets for Cinderella - the Musicals for January 2009. It is 3 months from now.

... the one who is leaving the headache of who shall babysit for Zach (when I watch Cinderella) till the time comes.

2008-10-13T15:00:00.004+08:00

No more LG from now on!

Referring to my previous article on our LG Plasma TV Purchase, I would now officially like to diarize a note about this darn TV!

Less than 2 years old and it is already giving us lots of problems!! It is always switching on and off by itself. The problem is, it doesn't just switch off and end of story. It will switch off and on and off and on and of and on and off and on..... Ok, I know you know what I mean by now. When this happens, the remote becomes useless and the only way to stop the problem is to switch off the main switch altogether.

... the one who will never buy LG brand ever EVER EVER again.

2008-09-17T18:05:00.001+08:00

Zach ^-^ enjoying a head massage

2008-09-17T17:54:00.003+08:00

Like Mama or like Papa?

2008-08-26T14:56:00.003+08:00

Lizard Invasion

I cannot stand it anymore!!! My house is invaded by lizards!!!!!!! No, don't tell me they are good coz they eat mossies in the house. I don't think that's what they do. They share our food, that's what they do!

Besides having to put up with lizard shit all over the place (on every window ledge, on bathroom walls, in kitchen cabinets, even on my LV bag!!!), I will have lizards welcoming me when I enter the bathroom. Snuggling in my towel or taking shelter inside the toilet roll.

That's not all, there was once I found a lizard soundly sleeping in a KNOTTED carrier full of Breadtalk buns! How it got inside, only Heaven knows. When Chup tried to shoo it away, it jumped out and stuck to his pants before it scurried off and disappeared in mere fraction of a second.

When I opened an overhead cabinet in the kitchen, I seemed to feel something cold dropping on my feet. It was a toddler lizard!!! Their favourite escape is always into one of the kitchen cabinets where there are plenty of crevices to hide. Behind the bowl, beneath the plates, under the salt, beside the floor cleaner... the list is endless.

Now what else...

Oh I recall another encounter. I nagged Chup for eating messily causing a piece of Chinese sausage to drop under the dining table. He said it's not him, it's the lizard cos he too just picked up another piece of Chinese sausage from the floor on the other end of the dining table.

So these lizards are not consuming mossies. They eat our food, drink our water and probably slurp our soup too!! My Auntie and me will spray Baygon on them if the lizard is still there by the time we scramble back with the can of Baygon. "Spray them till they are totally wet and immobile", said my Auntie. Still they escaped very fast. To where? You are right, one of the kitchen cabinets of course! Or into the bathroom or out to the window. They must have in-built GPS system!

I know there is nothing we can do about the "Attack of the Mushroom" but surely there is something that can be done about this Lizard Invasion???

...the one who needs some sound & URGENT advice

2008-08-07T10:40:00.008+08:00

4-hourly BLOCKS

My life now revolves around 4-hourly blocks. The golden hours right now are 4,8,12. I am talking about my expressing of BM time. Throwing in preparation and washing up time, I actually have less than 3 hours in between those stipulated timing.

It will be like, do I have time to go grocery shopping between 4pm tp 8pm? Or is it enough time to go for a facial between 12nn to 4pm? Will I be back from the paediatrician to be in time for 12noon? Can I go to relative's place? Then where am I going to express?

I am sure this will be worsened when I return to work come Monday. I will adjust the golden hours to 3, 7 and 11. What if my boss call for a meeting? What if my customers would like to meet me? What if... What if...

It may sound trivial to many, but to me it somehow stresses me a lot. My sis commented, my life seems to revolve solely around expressing BM.

Well well well... I guess I won't be so stressed if my BM is voluminous.

...the stressed out one

Photo from http://www.flickr.com/photos/phraseling/482447478/

2008-07-27T21:28:00.016+08:00

eBay success

I am proud to announce that I made my first successful e-Bay transaction yesterday!! Yes, the e-Bay professionals can laugh their heads off but for me, it was really quite exciting. It's the first time I actually use e-Bay despite its long existence (Yes... you can continue to laugh all you want again).

So I need to cast the event in stone so that I could remenisce about it later :)

It wasn't free. I had to pay I think around S$0.75 (which was nothing, really) for an ad which will be posted for 10 days. And just when I was about to give up, I found a buyer on the 10th day.

Actually, this wasn't my first time selling something online. I sold a Nikon camera on hardwarezone.com many years back. But somehow this transaction was much more exciting for me. Perhaps it's the product. Camera is something you can sell easily. Anyone may need it. On the other hand, a breastfeeding pillow may only interest a very small market but I still manage to find a buyer.

Bought on 4 June, I sold the pillow on 27 July. I love e-Bay!! :)

O ya, with the 3 photos above, this is what my add on e-Bay says:

Used for less than 10 times. Retailing at Thomson Medical Centre for S$81.50.
Selling for S$50.
Very useful especially for 1st time moms to avoid backache and wristache.
Reason for selling: My baby was getting addicted to breast and refusing bottle.
Interested kindly email xxxxxx@yahoo.com.
Payment by cash & carry.
Can meet at Buona Vista MRT

...the proud first time e-Bay user

2008-07-21T22:14:00.006+08:00

Is it okay?

I have been wondering, now that my status has been upgraded to Mama, is it okay for a Mama not to know how to chop a chicken?

What I mean is... I don't know how to chop a chicken from this...

to this...

I am sure I am not alone in this matter, right? Could it be, by the time my generation has all become mothers, only less than 20% of the population knows how to chop a chick? Well, for sure I know a friend who would surely belong to this 20% :) She commented I seem to have started to get domesticated!

What if one day I want to cook hainanese chicken for the family?

Sounds like an unfounded worry but it's definitely a crucial matter.

Perhaps I should get my Mom or Aunt to urgently teach me the skill.

...the one who will keep readers updated once I master the skill

2008-07-19T17:08:00.005+08:00

My first cheesecake attempt

After a long absence, a pumping session and before a feeding session, allow me to quickly diarize this event.

Made my first cheesecake in May 2008 (Yes, 2 months has passed and I finally have the time to tell you about it). These 2 photos have been on my desktop for the longest time. Now I can finally delete them.

One was strawberry topping while the other was marmalade. Somehow, the one with marmalade tasted better because it was slightly sweeter. Recipee was courtesy of Pei2. The cheesecake were a tat too watery. Not enough flour I think. That's because Pei's instructions were all by estimation. So I guess I under-estimated the flour.

Also back in May, I bought 2nd round of ingredients, hoping to improve on the first attempt. Well, I am afraid the sour cream has gone sour before I had the chance and energy to make it.

...the one who could be out of here anytime from now

2008-06-15T20:02:00.008+08:00

Father's Day

Today is my first Father's day. The baby is a day short of 4 weeks old today. Being a father is quite different from being a mother, of course. There was nothing much the father could do about parenting until the baby was born. And then it's the list of chores that everyone warned me about; sleepless nights, changing diapers, burping baby, running errands, etc... Still, this is nothing compared to what the mother has to do! Lin is breastfeeding and that means answering to the baby's call every 2 to 3 hours, round the clock, and catching what sleep she can in between. Thankfully, we have the help of Lin's mum and aunt. Otherwise, it was learn as we go along. It's like a never-ending getting-to-know you session. How to hold, soothe, talk, anticipate, understand the baby's needs. Because a baby does communicate. He frowns, for example, before he cries. And when he does cry there is always a reason; wet diaper, hunger, wants to be cuddled, hunger, and so on. About 20% of babies are what is known as colicky; they cry for no reason, usually starting from about the 3rd week. So far we have been spared this condition. It's just as well that I'm in the middle of a holiday now. It can get very exhausting.

But these are all secondary, really. These are things that one does. When I do these things, I do not think, oh, this is rewarding, exhilarating, frustrating, etc, the kind of things most baby books talk about. I don't think, hey, I'm missing out on my social life, the movies, etc. Nope, that's not much on my mind these days. Venny asked me what's the experience like. Well, so far, I've used the word baby, and that's misleading. That's so far as all the chores are concerned. But the real experience, deep inside, is the feeling, the still-sinking-in notion, the certainty, that this is my son. I can find babies everywhere. But I only have one son. For him, I can practically endure anything. He was 49cm in length when he was born. He's now 55.5cm. And he's now shredding his baby hair. However imperceptibly, it's a joy watching him grow. And that is just about all there is to it... umm, aside from the burping, sleepness nights, changing diapers, etc...

Chup

2008-06-04T13:28:00.003+08:00

Expressions
ZAC (less than 1 mth old, May'08)

2008-05-30T22:46:00.004+08:00

Zach Anugrah Chu

Born on 19 May 2008. These shots were taken on 30 May 2008...

Chup

2008-05-07T21:00:00.001+08:00

Exercise Regime

This is what the dear husband drafted out for a friend of mine who is recently pregnant.

How sweet of him.

Monday: Stretching

Tuesday: Weights & Brisk Walk

Wednesday: Stretching

Thursday: Weights & Cycle

Friday: Rest (Yipeee!!!)

Saturday: Swimming

Sunday: Cycle, Brisk Walk, Weights

...the one who would love Friday the most :)

2008-05-06T21:30:00.000+08:00

A night of Mahjong

A scene of my night of mahjong at a friend's place. The plate of disgusting, communal looking cheesecake at the centre of the table doesn't bother us :) And by the way, the cheesecakes are actually very yummy!

...the one who is itching for more mahjong

2008-05-06T21:00:00.003+08:00

7-day-Breakfast

Eversince my mom is back in town, our daily breakfast has never been less than colourful. Prior to her arrival, breakfast will either be bread with nutella or butter or strawberry jam or peanut butter accompanied by either 3-in-1 cereal drink or 3-in-1 milo.

Dinners are of course even more sumptuous but let's not go into details. Here I'd be sharing with you and also for my own record the typical food I now get for breakfast... :)

Monday: Horfun with chicken bits

Tuesday: Fried bee hoon with eggs

Wednesday: Rice with bitter gourd and pork & pork with black sauce

Thursday: Dunno how to describe this, but the brown one is basically steamed beef juice (painstakingly extracted from minced beef) and the black one is seaweed soup. These two dishes are supposedly very nutritious

Friday: Porridge with Preserved Vege and Pork & Pork Floss

The following week.

Monday: Thick beehoon with minced pork and wanton

Tuesday: Nyonya Bakcang (this one is bought, not cooked)

And here's presenting the Master Chef at her recent birthday celebration at Bukit Timah Pasta Fresca on 26 Apr 2008. She is seen here with Bro Sharx.

...the one who no longer envy the good smelling home-cooked food coming from the neighbours

2008-05-05T21:30:00.000+08:00

Marsian has arrived!

A typical look when I wake up in the morning. How come? How come??

...the Marsian herself

2008-05-05T21:00:00.000+08:00

Simple Dinner

Brand: Tiger Fondue
Rating: ****
Price: below S$15 per box

For a change, my review this time is not about an eating place but the food product itself. It's this cheese fondue I found on the shelf of many supermarkets. Since I have a set of fondue accessories handy at home, and I am not too keen on chocolate fondue, I decided to give this cheese fondue a try.

Very good indeed it was.
As good as restaurant's standard in fact :)

All you need is the fondue set, baguette and a clove of garlic. And voala (how do I spell this word, huh?)..... Dinner is served!

Try it!

...the one who has bought another standby box of the same fondue

2008-05-04T11:43:00.006+08:00

Recent shots

I went to Borders last week and found 5 copies of the Field Guide to South East Asian Birds on the shelves, but thought I'll wait for discounts coupons before buying 1. Yesterday, armed with 30% discount coupons, I went back to get it. And what did I find? It was all gone! Sigh...

These are some recent shots. The heron from Botanic Gardens on 12 Apr, and the sunbird, the top photo, taken on May Day holiday, a Thursday, when I went for a walk in the 'backyard' after typing a resignation letter. It's time for me to fly again.

Chup

2008-04-29T22:00:00.000+08:00

Melben vs Uncle Leong @ Ang Mo Kio

Rating for Melben: ***1/2
Rating for Uncle Leong: ****
Price: below S$30 per pax

Add for Uncle Leong: Ang Mo Kio Ave 3 St 22, Blk 233

Add for Melben: Across the carpark from Uncle Leong's

Telp for Uncle Leong: 65543453 (U'll succeed most of the time)

Telp for Melben: 62856762 (Good luck to you if you try to make reservation!)

Many of you would probably have heard of these familiar names in the crab industry. Let me give my 2 cents worth. Both are famous for their Butter Crab, Chili Crab, Golden Sand Crab and also XO Crab Bee Hoon.

All along I have always eaten at Uncle Leong. There is some queue but never unbearable. Across the car park, the queue is always a scene of madness.

One day, I arrived early and decided to give up my reservation at Uncle Leong to try the much talked-about Melben. Apparently owners are brothers who went their own ways. I was warned, "Miss, queuing time is 1.5 hours and waiting time for food to come is another 1 hour ya!". I bravely said "Yes".

While queueing, I took the chance to 'interview' some customers who are in the same queue. "Is the food here really much better than Uncle Leong's". The answer: "Don't know. We only eat here. Never even tried Uncle Leong before".

1.5 hours and 2 curry puffs later, it's finally our turn to be seated. We ordered our food and as warned, 2.5 hours later, we were finally able to tuck in. I am sorry to disappoint but in my opinion, I really feel that Melben is over-hyped. I honestly do not think that their standard far surpasses that of Uncle Leong's. They are equivalent but one comes with much much longer wait. In fact, I thought some dishes from Uncle Leong taste better. One suggestion I would like to give to Uncle Leong is, put some chili padi into the Butter Crab dish.

So if you ask me, just go for Uncle Leong!

But if you die-die must have Melben, they do have other outlets you can try. They are located at Blk 211 Lor 8 Toa Payoh and also at Pasir Ris.

Good luck and happy trying!

...the one who hasn't had crab for more than half a year now!

2008-04-29T21:30:00.003+08:00

Crazy Queue @ OG

One morning at 9.30am, my colleagues and I were walking in the direction of OG @ Orchard to buy breakfast.

Guess what we saw!

A snake-like queue of aunties and housewives with colourful umbrellas right in front of OG. Apparently there is a private preview of the OG Sale for the OG members before the Sale is opened for public. I bet some aunties took leave from the work to join this honourable affair!

Could it 80% storewide??

Not really. It was only around 20% sale. So what's the big deal braving the rain and storm?

Sigh...

...the one who shouldn't sigh too early. Who knows 10 years later, you spot me at the same Queue with child in one arm and umbrella on the other

2008-04-29T21:00:00.005+08:00

Rojak at Clementi Interchange

Rating: ***

Price: S$3-S$5

There is this Rojak stall at Clementi Central which is always very very crowded with patient patrons waiting in a line.

Chup and I have always been put off by the Queue and has never bothered to try it. Time after time we see the long queues, we wonder, is it really that big a deal?

One night when the queue appears to be shorter, Chup decided to give it a try. After all, Rojak is one of his favourite food.

Verdict? Well, it'd be something we won't brave the queue for again... It's nice but not fantastic. Definitely not worth all the queueing.

Just next to the Rojak stall is a Popiah Stall that has perpetually long queue too. How delicious can a popiah get?? We didn't attempt to try the Popiah.

Just in case you are there, the Sop Kambing from the Indian Stall is quite good. But the standard seems to have dropped over time.

...the one who hasn't frequented the above coffee shop for a while now

2008-04-14T21:00:00.003+08:00

1-metre hotdog

Kembang Goela
Rating: ***1/2
Add: Plaza Central, Jln Sudirman, Jakarta
Price: below S$25

Introduced by a Jakarta friend to this cool restaurant. The deco and ambience is cosy with very pleasant setting. The food may be so so, but I give very high rating for their food presentation.

Don't believe?

Just check out this 1 metre long hotdog!

...the one who kinda miss the hotdog

2008-04-14T18:13:00.004+08:00

Greater Racket-tailed Drongo

I was caught out in the rain while walking through Kent Ridge Park just now, and suddenly the leaves of an undergrowth moved. I peered in and out came a greater racket-tailed drongo. I was thrilled. It's rare to find this bird outside of primary forest area. It stayed on the branch for a while before flying off. It has tremendous singing ability, or shall I say sound-making ability. I wasn't carrying my camera, but this shot was taken at Bukit Timah Nature Reserve on 26 Mar, where it was making the mechanical noises of an ambulance! It's the same bird, glossy black with 2 elongated tail feathers (though not clear in my photo). That brings to 28 the number of species I've seen at Kent Ridge Park.

Chup

2008-04-14T09:10:00.004+08:00

Sex Is Zero 2

Rating: **1/2

Cast: Song Ji-Hyo, Im Chang-Jung, Choi Sung-Kook

Genre: Sex Comedy

Watched on 12 Apr 08 at Plaza Sing with Pei, CH and Chup.

A movie you should only watch when you want a good laugh and are looking for something brainless.

2008-04-13T21:00:00.004+08:00

Bakwa on fire

Something very interesting happened in office somewhere near CNY period.

A colleague was heating up her bakwa. Nothing extraordinary?

Well, the extraordinary thing is, this colleague placed a layer of white paper underneath her bakwa, followed by another layer of newspaper and finally a layer of aluminium foil.

And what resulted from this combination was a burning smell and lots of smoke! The newspaper caught fire!!! It created a pandemonium in the office.

Just in case you had the same idea when it comes to heating up your bakwa, DON'T DO IT !!

...the one who still can't believe why her colleague did what she did

2008-04-13T20:30:00.007+08:00

Pretty Coffee from TCC

Rating: ***

Price: below S$8

I am not usually a coffee drinker, but I won't reject this particular one called "Perfect Match" from TCC.

I don't think to a coffee master this coffee will taste particularly fantastic. I drink it purely for its very pleasing appearance. With 3 beautiful colours, I feel it such a waste to have to stir them together. And once stirred, the least I could do is to drink it :)

... the shallow one

2008-04-08T21:00:00.002+08:00

We Will Rock You

Rating: ***

Watched on 5th Apr 08 with Von, Maru, Bur and Chup at Esplanade. Probably the loudest, noisiest musical I have ever watched. The band is powerful and sound effect was great, not muffled like some musicals.

Certain parts got me yawning away eventhough the volume was deafening both for my ears and my tummy...

Someone who is familiar with Queen's songs will probably enjoy the musical very much. A grandfather sitting in front of us was sleeping very soundly amidst the deafening rock musical while the wife and grandson were cheering away.

2008-04-08T20:48:00.003+08:00

Vantage Point

Rating: ***1/2

Cast: Dennis Quaid, Matthew Fox, Forest Whitaker

Genre: Action/Adventure

Watched on 6 Apr 08 with Chup and Bur at Great World City. Imagine watching what happened at 11.59am five times!! The idea is something new but the storyline seems rather exaggerated.

...the one who's listening to Soundtrack of Phantom of the Opera

2008-04-02T17:41:00.014+08:00

Jurong Bird Park

On 30 Mar, Lin, KC and I revisited the Jurong Bird Park. We were there from noon to 4.30pm, on a sunless, drizzly day. True birdwatchers who observe the birds in the wild may sniff at this but there are advantages the Bird Park offers which are elusive in the wild. For one, you can get really close to the birds. Take the white-rumped shama (bottom photo). It was as close as 1.5m and it treated me with 3 different songs. In Kent Ridge Park, it scooted off as soon as I approach within 15m of it. I had only read that it sings beautifully, and is often kept as a song bird. But to finally hear it for myself... Then there were the exotic species. I took close to 800 photos, and still wish to visit the place again.

At home, I'm going through David Attenborough's "Life of Birds" on DVDs now, and have borrowed a stack of books on birds from the school library. Lin asked when this madness will end. Unfortunately, it'll have to end when school reopens in a week or so.

Chup

2008-04-01T21:55:00.020+08:00

Kent Ridge Park

What's a home? Over the past week, the days have become hotter. The winds have died and the windows do not so much as flicker. We need the air-con at night now, and during the day, the floors get dusty much quicker. Last week, I swept, wiped and mopped the floor multiple times in succession, and the floor still felt dirty afterwards. If a home is the carcass of an apartment heated by the evening sun, then there's not much to like about this place. But thankfully, there's the larger picture...

Kent Ridge Park is 46.5 Ha (1 Ha is 100m by 100m) in size. By comparison, Bukit Timah Nature Reserve is 162.6 Ha, the Singapore Botanic Gardens is 52.3 Ha, East Coast Park is 185.5 Ha, and Sungei Buloh Wetland Reserve is 131.4 Ha. We've lived beside Kent Ridge Park for years, but it's only the last month that I've the time to spare to explore its avifauna. The above is to complete the photo record of birds sighted in this park within the month of March. Discounting mynas, sparrows, doves and pigeons, there is a total of 23 species of birds sighted from casual, by-chance encounters. These are not good photos. They're just for the sake of recording the head count. 9 species have been posted previously. Here are the remaining 14, taken over the last 2 weeks. Their names can be seen when you scroll the cursor over the individual photo.

Chup

2008-03-30T10:07:00.003+08:00

What happens when you have long and short-sighted at the same time?

This would be the most economical and practical method :)

...the one who jus let out yet another loud burp :p

2008-03-23T21:30:00.000+08:00

Horton

Rating: ***1/2

Cast: Jim Carrey, Steve Carell

Genre: Animation

Watched on 21 Mar 08 at Tiong Bahru with Chup. Light and entertaining without much boring moments. The storyline is something new and refreshing.

2008-03-23T21:00:00.007+08:00

Attack of the mushroom!

There's a problem with the new house! Some people complain their house is too stuffy and lacks of ventilation. For mine, it's totally the opposite. My house is TOO WINDY. The wind is so strong you can hear it howling like the revving engine of a motorcycle . So loud that the sliding window makes loud continuous rattling noise! Even bedroom doors rattle and make "Knocking" noises. It's the truth! People turn on their air-conditioners when their room is too hot. For me, I turn it on because the room is too windy. When I turn on the aircon and shut the windows completely, the rattling noise will be reduced substantially. Luckily we found a solution to the rattling window. We stuffed thick pieces of paper from 8-days magazine. Why 8-days? Chup claims the paper is thick enough and is off good quality. Whatever...! As long as it stops the rattling. And we stuck long strips of cardboard on the door frame to stop the knocking noise.

2 problems gone. What's next?

As the title warns, it has something to do with mushroom. They are mould and mild-dew. Same family, aren't they?

This next problem that we have no solution to is the extreme humidity and dampness in our bedroom. Again, this must be highly contributed by the lush amount of greenery from the Kent Ridge Park behind the house.

Check out the dressing table of my room.

Nothing unusual, except my bed is not made? Look closer...

Are you getting a better idea now?
Zoom in closer and you can see the mold and milddew growing on the chair!!! Help!!! What can I do about it??? They are spawning and growing uncontrollably! I attempted to wipe them and had to throw away the cloth I used. The cloth turned rusty green in colour. Subsequently, I put a container of Thirsty Hippo Dehumidifier under the dressing table. It doesn't seem to be helping too much. After all, the instructions say that Thirsty Hippo is to be positioned in an enclosed or small space. Don't think that space is considered enclosed at all...

And that's not all. Check out the tragic end to Chup's jacket too!

...the one who is at lost on what to do

2008-03-21T13:41:00.004+08:00

Latest Pics

Some recent photos taken within Kent Ridge and the estate. The 3rd photo is a Collared Kingfisher.

Chup

2008-03-19T17:04:00.006+08:00

Big Bird

One morning Chup looked at me and commented that I look like Sesame Street's Big Bird nowadays. All he needs to do is paint me yellow. I've been doing a lot of thinking after that, thinking and thinking..., imagining the protruding tummy and posterior. I do look like Big Bird!

And just like magic, when we were at Plaza Singapura on that same day, a poster of Big Bird appeared like magic right before our eyes when we came out of the lift.

And to convince myself further, I sought some help from Photoshop and my suspicion was confirmed. I do look like BIG BIRD!!! Help!!!!!!

...the Big Bird of course

2008-03-18T11:35:00.004+08:00

Too much?

Had an hour to kill yesterday, before picking Lin, and I went to the Botanic Gardens. Then after we got home, the daylight was still pretty good, so Lin and I went to feed the turtles. The top 2 shots are from the Botanic Gardens, and the bottom one of the squirrel is from Kent Ridge Park. Lin has complained that our blog is veering too much into nature photography. I also think I ought to spend more time on my 'real' work. I've been having too much fun! Think I'll cool off with these photos for a while...

Chup

2008-03-16T17:07:00.012+08:00

Greek Masterpieces from the Louvre

Today was the last day of this mega-exhibition at the National Museum and it was a Sunday. The gallery was packed. At $8/entry, it wasn't cheap, and the collection was small. Lin and I went with Vony and Maru after lunch. Most of the exhibits are marble sculptures from the 3rd century BC, or Roman copies of the Greek originals. These are my personal favourites, all roughly life-size. They are magnificent specimens of beauty and grace. I mean that hand, holding what I suppose is an apple, has got to be the epitome of Grace, if something as abstract as grace can be made physical, and you easily forget that you are staring at a man-made rock from 1,900 years ago. Were they actually painted over in their original condition? Probably not, but they would look quite different from the black-haired, black-brow models in real life. 14 centuries before Michelangalo, unknown, under-appreciated artisans were shaping marble with skills unrivalled until the Renaissance.

Chup

2008-03-16T10:51:00.005+08:00

Essential Essentials

These photos were taken a long time back when my ex-colleagues and I went for karaoke followed by an ice cream session at Serangoon Gardens after work. I commented why some of them can survive with teeny handbags while others bring a luggage to office. Aren't we all ladies? Don't we have quite similar essentials?

Inspired by V's blog, I decided I too shall unveil the secret that Men has always been wondering about. What the hell do their girlfriends/wives carry in their handbags??

So my ex-colleagues gamely surrender their handbags for my yet another weird survey. After being colleagues for 3 years, they are quite used to my eccentricities by now. Just to digress a bit, I've conducted surveys on them asking questions like:
1. Do they shower in the morning?
2. Are they still a "V"?
3. How often do they change their undies?
4. Do their man place their "brother" in upward or downward position under normal circumstances... and etc etc.
Those were the days... How I miss these colleagues of mine. It is very difficult to establish true friendship in an office setting. But in that ex-office I managed to. Amazing but true. Till now, eventhough I have moved on, we still catch up and talk like old friends whenever we see each other.

Like I said, I digressed.

Alright, I have 6 specimens altogether. For their privacy, I don't question the owners what are the items inside their bags. I just put everything out and take a photograph. So anything unknown to me shall be labelled "Unidentified" :) Of course if you happen to be the owner and would like me to label these "Unidentified" objects correctly or if I have labelled anything incorrectly, you are free to let me know discreetly. I would then make necessary amendments.

Now, sit back and enjoy... and tell me: Which type of handbag are you?

PS: You can click on each photograph to have a clearer view.

1. Prayer book
2. 3 cheque books
3. Takashimaya vouchers
4. Unidentified zip lock
5. Rosary
6. Handphone
7. Tissue paper
8. Sanitary pad (Don't say yucks! We are women who bore you your children)
9. Coin pouch
10. Mickey mouse notebook
11. Key pouch
12. Pen
13. Another pouch
14. Bunch of keys

This bag belongs to someone who is travelling overseas. This probably explains the numerous pouches for different currencies coins and the other 'extras'. It probably doesn't represent her 'daily handbag' when she is not travelling.
1. Hand fan
2. Medicated Oil
3. Pouch of money and pieces of paper
4. Cotton buds
5. Used boarding pass
6. Inflatable pillow
7. Comb
8. Unidentified
9. Shower Cap
10. Pouch
11. Rosary
12. Another pouch
13. Unidentified
14. Pouch no 3
15. Pouch no 4
16. Plastic bag of medication

1. Umbrella
2. Tissue paper
3. Pouch of makeup
4. Namecard
5. Handphone pouch
6. Coin pouch
7. Comb
8. Wallet
9. Notebook
10. Unidentified

1. Wallet
2. PDA
3. Notebook
4. Sweets (essential for bad breath, hunger and fainting spells)
5. MP3 player
6. Hand and body moisturizer
7. Compact powder
8. Tissue paper
9. Makeup pouch
10. Namecard holder
11. Pens

1. Phamplets and discount coupons
2. Newspapers
3. Diary
4. 3 packets of tissue paper
5. Wallet
6. Makeup pouch
7. Unidentified pink object
8. Water bottle
9. Sweets
10. Another pouch
11. Bunch of keys
12. Handphone

1. Novel
2. Unidentified
3. Pouch
4. Scribbled notes
5. Bunch of keys
6. iPod
7. Wallet
8. Sweets

That's all for now. Hope you enjoyed our exhibits. Please come again. Goodbye...

...the one who's going to the National Museum to view the Greek Masterpiece soon. Last day today

2008-03-16T10:35:00.002+08:00

House guests

Lin is particular of who comes into our home and these 2 were on the unwelcomed list... They were gently let out after their obligatory ID shots...

Chup

2008-03-15T22:28:00.004+08:00

What is this?

I mentioned that I saw 3 new species of birds today. But I'm not sure about this one. It looks like it belongs to the Bulbul family but my limited book doesn't have something like this. It's got this Mohican feather that it can raise at will. In fact, now I'm not even sure if the bird I named as Yellow Bittern is in fact a Heron... I've got to get a more complete book!

PS; I came across 5 of these while jogging at Kent Ridge today (19 Mar). I've found the name of this bird: it's a White-crested Laughingthrush.

Chup

2008-03-15T17:51:00.008+08:00

Addiction

Exactly a year ago, I was holed up in the Hyatt hotel in Jakarta, trying my hand at comic strips. This holiday, the new hobby is bird photography. Except it's turning into a bit of an obsession. These were taken on the way to the tennis court at my old place this morning (15 Mar). Caught the Yellow-vented Bulbul stooping and clutching the spider. Spotted 3 new species that I could find the names to today. At the marshes was the shy White-breasted Waterhen. It has this smiley face. The few of them made a racket behind the trees. Then there was the Common Iora, the yellow-breasted hyper-active bird. This one (2nd last photo) is a female. The male has a black-top head. The last one is the Paddyfield Pipit. No including common birds like the Javan Myna and crows, that is 8 species of birds I've seen around Kent Ridge Park so far during the last 2 weeks.

Chup

2008-03-14T13:57:00.011+08:00

The lure of the park

The sun was out in full force today (14 Mar), after days of gloomy weather. The birds were chirping outside and as I hung the laundry, I had to fight an urge to go to the park again. You've got books to read and articles to write, one side said. You're on holiday, the other half argued. Besides, you missed the Yellow Bittern yesterday, and it's out there waiting for you. Remember the Canon ad on TV, where everyone was waiting for the school bell to ring and then they all dash out with their cameras to take photos? That was how I felt. What's half an hour in the park? Well, it turned out to be an hour in the park and another hour downloading and photo imaging. Was it worth it? You bet. Maybe it was dumb-ass luck, but I was waiting by the pondweed where I saw the Bittern once, and suddenly its beak came out and grabbed a dragonfly. Gave me a shock but this time the autofocus didn't fail me! It's my fav shot of the day. Took another shot of the bird further down the lake. And found the Golden Web Spider here too.

Postscript: Being a bit more read up now, I wish to correct the names of the species of the birds posted in this entry. It's a Little Heron or Striated Heron in the first photo, and the Chinese Pond Heron in the second photo. I was mistaken, there was no Bittern. (1 Apr 2008)

Chup

2008-03-13T21:00:00.005+08:00

Furniture for old and new house

Just for our own record. We tried to spend minimally because we are only leasing the new place for 2 years. Ideally the new furniture just need to last us 2 years :)

Total cost $3,053.50. It was quite substantial after all, huh... Of course nothing if you compare to houseowners who spend like $6,000 for a set of leather sofa.

These are meant for our old house so that we can rent out the place as "Fully Furnished"
The tenant is very lucky to have many new furniture.
So far all the units that we have viewed have worn down and dirty furniture.

One mattress for old place one for the guest room in our new place. We left this storage bed in the old house because it was too heavy & difficult to dismantle. We then bought the exact same bed for our new place.

And the following are for the new place

1+4 Dining Set $168+$20=$188

...the one who'd be spending some Taka Vouchers tonight