"I stole your MP!"

That's what my big boss said when he saw me.

Whilst not really surprised that my respectable MP has chosen to lead a team elsewhere, I can't help feeling a tinge of sadness. The guy I watched for since primary 3 is no longer the guy for my constituency. But you know what? He's still my MP, at least to me. To those lucky ones in a certain GRC, please treasure what you have. My MP really attends all funerals in the ward without fail, goes on his walkabouts when the GE is not anywhere in sight yet and deals with problems immediately when told and is always so friendly, whatever ward you are (I bumped into him near sub courts once and when I smiled, he said hi. Unlike a certain other minister who asked my dad which constituency he was from first, before ignoring my dad totally for staying in the neighbouring ward). And, for those who still do not know, Hougang residents had their lift lobby and corridor renovated, WITHOUT forking out a single cent. In fact, some blocks had the stop-at-every-floor upgrading for free too, before it was decided that all Singaporeans have to co-pay for upgrading..

So so so... if Aljunied-ians do not recognise a gem when they see one, please return my MP to me. And in the meantime, go Mr Low!!! Welcome, Mr Yaw!

Ramblings of an insignificant one

Elections are coming. You can feel it just by reading through the papers. Not only do they drone on and on about stop-bullying certain candidates and how we would be buying the wrong insurance, we even had a particular wife talking about her noble achievements. The mention of her participation in some moots certainly brought back memories of our conferences in the toilets. Bleah..

Amidst all these and after dealing with a particular "FT" again today, I certainly wonder what constitutes "T". The inability to think beyond sheer copying and changing certain facts? (Not that her ability to purely copy is perfect either.) But seriously, for someone with such salary and apparently studying for her diploma (I thought she completed last year? Wonder why she still has to take exams..hah) I wouldn't want her if I had the choice. If only.. But well, we need to be forgiving of such "T"s, they've so much to worry about, you know, for example finding herself a handsome rich guy who would ensure she would never have to work her brains again.. Or planting and protecting vegetables.. I wonder if it constitutes national service if the "FT" makes life difficult from a resident of opposition ward for the past year. Or does she need 10 years of that before she's suitable? Hmmm..

On a lighter note, I still had time to witness some hair transformation yesterday. That, in itself, made all the abovementioned statements somewhat more positive. =)

Before - Or rather, after hair cut, but at the initial stage of styling. Somehow it reminded me of one of the OGLs during RJ orientation...

Styling in progress.. Armani being flattened..

And finally...

Up up up!! *grinz*

Shoo extra air, shoo!

Please godS, please let my little brother get well soon. Ask all the unwanted extra air to go away asap, please please please?

Get well soon, uncle!

Sometimes I wonder..

Why must I support 2 mouths when they are sometimes more a hindrance than help?

Cheers to the years of friendship!

You know how much a friend means to you when, despite feeling faint and struggling to get through the day, you agree without hesitation, when your friend smses you in the day to ask for a meet up.

That was what happened on Friday. Despite fighting an almost lost battle not to concuss, an unknown number telling me that a big brother was here and would be leaving the next day made me all excited. Even if it meant another late night ahead. It's been almost 2 years since we met up, why would I miss this opportunity to meet up with da ge?

PS: Thanks for coming all the way down and giving one of my most important buddies (and his family) a lift home, dearest!

Strange Dreams

Just the other day, I dreamt that appeared before my fave DJ at CDR in something not our usual penguin attire and was admonished by my fave DJ.

I wonder if it's a sign of stress when you keep having strange dreams related to work, or wake up every few hours to check whether it's time to get up to go to work.

Auntie Cheng, get well soon! I'll probably drown under greater stress if you don't come back soon!

Do litigators make good novelists?

Or novelists make good litigators?

Whatever the case... I need a huge dose of red bull..

Sharing is caring?

It's ironic that for a person in my profession, I somehow instinctively prefer to avoid conflict with those dearest to me, rather than to share everything that's bothering me and risk conflict. Yet, after acting up yet again, me sharing what was bothering me made the pressure within me no longer as stifling, something that was slowly but surely hurting the both of us. So whilst a certain website may not have this in mind when coming up with this motto, I would think that your constant mention of this slogan is by no means a joke. Sharing is caring, that's what we, or rather I, will strive to do this year, yah?

On a side point, this year's Chinese New Year felt more happening. Instead of the usual visit to my grandparents' place only, we even had a visit to my kindergarten teacher's place after that. How time flies when she produced some photographs we took at the now defunct Ponggol seafood place. Yesterday too, my aunt called us to go up for a visit and then off I went rushing to Mr Chai's place. The visit may not have been long, but it was nice to meet up with one of my closest buddies in jc and meet up with his wife and their absolutely cute son. Yes, even if it meant travelling to the other end of Singapore 2 out of 3 days. I wouldn't mind visiting Mr Chai each year though, but I wonder if he'd mind instead. Haha..

Happy Bit-bit Year!

Yes, Mr Lek, that was the 3D rabbit I was trying to make that night..

Xin Nian Kuai Le! It's once again the time of the year to wave goodbye to one animal and wave hi to another.

Looking back, the tiger year was supposed to be a trying year for one and all. Still, the true grit and willpower of the tiger ensured that I moved forward in the past lunar year, and even when things were down, there were always people around to drag me on to face the challenges headon. In fact, even as the tiger year threatened to end on a black note, the dark skies soon cleared for the sunny skies again, well, at least for now. One thing I've learnt better last year, speaking your mind makes you feel a lot better.. and when you thrash things out, be sure to thrash out all and not leave a part hanging, particularly so if the last part is really the crux of it all. Things may or may not be resolved to your satisfaction, but at least, it prevents that last part from lingering and haunting you every now and then until it blows out of proportion. And yes, too many cooks spoil the broth too. Whilst you may mean well, any form of relationship, be it between friends, couples etc, is really between the people involved. What you think may be for the good of that person, you may in fact, be hurting the person you call friend instead. So in this rabbit year, may I humbly request that those I care for and love do leave me to be my own gardener of my life, to care for and grow the buds myself. When I said nay, do take my word for it and not add more water/fertilisers. For a bud may not blossom in face of too much water and fertilisers as well.

That said, it's time for us to enjoy the start of the rabbit year! To my dearest dearest friends, I hope the bouncy rabbit brings along all your fulfilled wishes in this year. And as the rabbit hops away, that it'll bring away from you all the bad health and unwanted unhappiness.

* * * * * *

First day..

Tell me, how rare is it that there's no one in the MRT cabin these days?

Surrounding our homemade yusheng..

Second day.. We watched "It's a great great world". I must say, it was a really not bad movie. Rather than being pure silly (imho) like what certain others, this movie kind of tugged at the heartstrings a little (or is it just me?)... And after that, we took a stroll somewhere nearby...

Green light = You may walk

Look! The bird park has moved to the Istana.. for a day!

Xin Nian Kuai Le, everyone! :)

2 bak zhangs... almost

Thankfully not.. *cross fingers*

But the (probable) bak zhangs always make me end up treasuring my guardian angels even more.. Thank you =)

Tatty Teddy!!! =)

Something in my mail brought that wide grin onto my face once again. Another tatty teddy card! And 2 wrapped packages =)

Thank you so so so much, Mr Tay! Tatty Teddy cards for birthdays, encouragements, cheering ups. They're really so you, and they never fail to make me grin like some mad woman. =) Thanks for remembering my request for toy vehicles too! From now on, each time I do my langar files, I'll be reminded of you!! (Though it means I cannot do chain collisions involving more than 3 vehicles hor? *grinz*) And of course, I love the owl too!! Thank you, Mr Tay! Whatever will I do without you? =)

When a Heavenly King descends upon Plaza Sing..

Guess who I saw when I went to Plaza Sing to get something yesterday?

And nope, I'm not a fan of his. Just that my mum didn't believe I saw him at Plaza Sing. So what other better way than photos to prove that the real person was there?

Unfortunately though, my mum still thought those on stage were not real people.. Grrr

Happy 30th Birthday, Mr Chan!

Happy 30th birthday, dearest Mr Chan! I'm really glad to have met up with you today, even if I had to endure both of your suanings and the scary stories. In spite of your occasional annoying-ness, you'll always be a really dear friend to me. And that's why I'm glad to say once again, Happy 30th birthday, Gary!

To a dearest friend who needs some energy lately..

Frankly, I was both surprised and not surprised by your decision last night. Not surprised because it has been wearing you down more these days. Surprised because it felt as though we were both trudging on for the sake of it.

But you know what? I agree with what you said. Happiness vs material wealth (not that our pay's really that high in the first place). Things will gradually become more bearable as the end becomes in sight. Even if there are people who may make things difficult in the process.

Jia you, WL!!!

Happy birthday, Mr Lek!

Happy birthday, dearest! May every single one of your birthday wishes every year come true!

Did you grow a year older or did you grow up by a year?

A Today columnist pondered aloud in his column some time last week. Once again, another year has drawn to a close, what better time to look back and reflect on the year that had passed..

If there was something that I took along from 2010, it'll probably be the realisation that the best present I can give anyone important enough is really my time. Instead of spending a majority of time slaving away at work, 2010 was a year when I took leave more liberally, eg. zoo with Koon or simply lunch with my favourite Mr Tan.. And this, I have to thank another very important person in my life.. For letting me know first hand how devastating it is to watch you down, and the possibility that you would no longer be there to laugh with me, suan me, make mean remarks about me or to show concern to me. Yes, if there was one incident that left the deepest imprint, it would have been that particular 1+ week..

You would have thought that with the lesson learnt, I would have been more liberal with my time. Unfortunately though, there were still instances when I could have done a lot better. I could have dumped everything aside and bugged Mr Tan for lunch on his birthday itself instead of having a belated birthday celebration. Or spent more time with people who mattered.

In any event, a new year, a new beginning. And so, for this year, I resolve to:

(1) have more disposable time to spend with people who matter;
(2) Work harder (unfortunately I think my standard of work is no longer near to that when I was at GLC);
(3) Be healthier (ie. more exercise.. right Mr Lek?);
(4) Be happier.

So what's your resolution?

Chapter 27

Over lunch at the clan association yesterday afternoon, one successful elder made this comment:

你知道人老了哪三个老最重要?
1. 老伴
2. 老钱
3. 老朋友

And at the close of this chapter, it is time again to look back and list the things I'm grateful for for the past year...

Gary: Mr Chan, even if I am disappointed in you, I am really really grateful that you've pulled through and still remain around to annoy the hell out of me. So even if I won't get to see you,I'm just happy to know that you are still you somewhere in some parts of Singapore. Thanks for staying alive, that, to me, is the best birthday present ever from you..

Honghui:

My Japanese movie watching partner! Despite never figuring out how we grew closer only after NJC, I'm super impressed how you know me (err... or am I too easy to read?).. Just a simple "Nodame is coming out on 11 March?" and you concluded that I wanted to watch the movie. Not forgetting the crazy thing of watching 2 seasons of a drama so that I could watch another movie with you.. It doesn't matter how/when we grew closer, but I'm glad we did, Mr Ho!

[21/12/2010: I really didn't expect Mr Ho to get me the two things I wanted from last year (a mug from Chicago somemore!) and this year (the car). It's always an extremely nice feeling to be remembered by an important friend. By the way, what I wanted was those cheap toy cars for me to re-enact my accident matters. Obviously I can't bear to try it on this one! Still.. thank you!!!]

Koon:

2 crabs for 2 persons. I'm beginning to think that you've the impression that I can really eat, and therefore you should feed me as much as possible. Haha.. It's been 11 years since we were first classmates and I seriously seriously have no idea how you could have tolerated all my strange behaviour throughout the years. But you know what? Even when things are down, I'll always be able to stand up again because you are always there to lend a hand, or a listening ear. Mr Tay.. thank you ever ever so much, k?

LiJia:
Through adversity, we somehow grew closer over the past one year. No, that is not to say that I'm glad that things happened the way it did, but at least it's over and it brought along good things too. Thank you for being ever so protective over this year, including my birthday cake and balloon =) And not forgetting your friendly sms to Jiahan (Eh.. that's cheating!! Haha.. still, thanks!)

Weiguang:

You know, selfish me still holds this view that the actual birthday without you is just simply incomplete. Thank you so ever much for your presence every 20 December for the past many years. In spite of the umpteenth "Sorry, we've ran out of your order", lunch was still perfect because it was spent with you.. Not forgetting, I really really really love the bracelet. It's the thought that counts, and you know what? I'm so going to put it on for you to see the next time we meet. So that you'll know that the bracelet's simply lovely!

Xlei: The year hasn't been as wonderful as it should have been for you this year, and I doubt I've been as good a friend as I should have been. Nevertheless, thank you for still being there, through our ups and downs at work and in our personal lives. May both of us get prettier, stronger and even more powerful in the coming year. And I hope your prince turns up soon in the coming year!! You are, and do deserve to be loved wholeheartedly for being the wonderful person you are beneath your seemingly strong shell

Last but not least...

My prince charming: I should just put a full stop right after the phrase. Because that in itself says it all. From bundling me into your car, to staying up with me (even through the nights) when I'm working late, to my late night porridges, to the never ending array of yummy food at all times of the day, to coming to work (or rather, in your case, to read papers) on weekends, to boing boing, to the hike to my office in the hot sun just to deliver a Happy Meal, to the absolutely pretty tulips, to our nature walks, to the all the time massages, to playing bubbles, to my apple crumble, to my watch...See, just a preview of some of the things you've done and it's already one huge paragraph. Thanks for anything, everything and most importantly, for being you! (Err.. and for doubting my race *grinz*)

And with that, I close this colourful Chapter 27.

A chance encounter

Despite the disappointment from yesterday, something else rounded up today in a much better note...

Well done, Guohui! It was nice to chance upon you at the train station. In fact, I must say you've done remarkably well to bounce back from your stroke. =)

The Pleasant-est Surprise

Just when the day in the office couldn't seem to get any better. Seriously, which secretary talks back when their bosses tell them that they are careless and they ought to be more careful. "But it's only a DRAFT! You're supposed to check a draft!" If secretaries are entitled to be as careless as possible in their drafts, I might as well draft the things myself. That'll save me loads of time. Oh well, there are reasons why she'll always remain a secretary. Aside from having a Masters in word and grammar creation, she also has an absolutely impeccable sense of professionalism (Who else emails their clients "Pls let us have your instructions when you get up from your whiskey hangover" or quarrels with the opponents secretary over a mistake made by her?)

Anyway, I've digressed..

During lunch with Eddie, Mel called me and started rattling "I don't care. You are getting me 12 stalks of tulips. I don't care." Huh?? Come to think of it, my 1st reaction was hilarious. "Are you sure there's no bomb in the flowers? Or poison? You sure it's not from the mad woman?"

In any case, Mel was dead right about the sender. More importantly, the sweet smelling beautiful surprise more than made up for the angsty morning and brought a ear-to-ear grin on Ms Wong's face. (Although I must say, it made Ms think-she's-the-prettiest secretary even more grouchy..)

Whatever it is, THANK YOU, HAN!! I may not have sounded as excited, but trust me, I'm really super duper touched and well, super duper truly love the flowers loads!!! They're really really pretty, and they've really made my day. Thank you!!! =)

PS: Yes, this is an ultra bimbotic post but well, in view that I had an equally dramatic afternoon today, bear with me whilst I indulge myself for once? In any case, this entry's meant to thank the absolutely wonderful sender of the flowers too =)

Something that riled Reveriez

Saw something on facebook that got my blood boiling (just ask my secretary how strong my reaction was) but cured me of my headache..

Who cares if you're a secondary school teacher? In my humble opinion,you are, but a stupid and shallow fool who thinks you're on a moral high ground. For the sake of punishing people you think ought to be punished, you are effectively punishing the innocent as well.. think babies and wives. *rolls eyes* Wait till you kena something innocently and we shall hope you have no cure for whatever either.

Poor kids. Another not-very-smart "role model".. I know this doesn't sound very ladylike or proper (since when was I anyway?).. but just go and die lah, fool!