Last Day of 2010

It is the last day of 2010. We decided very late to eat out for dinner. We made reservation at Blue Potato, Merchant Court Hotel. The girls were happy to eat out. :)


After dinner, we went home to watch the Countdown to 2011 on tv. We could hear the fireworks, "boom, boom, boom" but our apartment was facing the wrong side so couldn't see the fireworks live. At least we had surround sound for the fireworks lol. :P

Eve of New Year's Eve

It is already the eve of New Year's Eve.
In another 24 hours and 31 minutes, it will be 2011.
Time for remembrance. Time for reflection.

Sherlock

I watched all 3 90-minutes episodes of BBC's Sherlock on bluray in one go. It is absolutely BRILLIANT!
Sherlock is a modern update of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's Sherlock Holmes detective stories. The characters are the same, their personalities are the same, the only differences are modern times and modern technology and tools. I love how Sherlock blends into modern day effortlessly and seamlessly. Sherlock now uses texting, internet and GPS in his crime-solving activities and he has a blog, The Science of Deduction! I also love how Watson uses his blog to keep track of Sherlock's detective work. :)
If you love reading Sherlock Holmes, this Sherlock is worth watching if it ever comes to our shores. I can't wait to watch Sherlock series 2!

Here's the trailer for Sherlock (posted by JoeZy27)


Here's the theme song for Sherlock (posted by AledWyn91)


Clips from Sherlock accompanied by Katy Perry's Hot n Cold (posted by chavivi86) :)

Neighbour of Another Kind

I am working from home today since it is the girls' last week of holiday before they start school next week.
In the afternoon, the girls called out to me excitedly from the dining room window. I rushed over and saw our "neighbour" perched on the air-con unit. No, don't panic. Our "neighbour" is not of the human kind but of a feathered kind. The hornbill is back! :)



The hornbill staring right into my camera

For a number of years, a hornbill would fly to a particular 9th floor flat in the next block of flats in our estate and rest there for an hour. But two or three years ago, it disappeared. Now it is back. Okay, it might not be the same hornbill but we are all thrilled to see a hornbill back.

Extra Holiday

Due to Christmas falling on a Saturday, my workplace has declared today as holiday in-lieu.
I have an extra day of holiday! :)

Boxing Day

A Sunday.
A rainy day.
A perfect day.
For staying in, watching tv and sleeping. :)

Christmas Day

Merry Christmas!

We decided to try something different for Christmas dinner. We went to Imperial Treasure Steamboat Restaurant, TripleOne Somerset. The girls were excited about having steamboat. What I really like was the different soups that one could choose to cook the food in. We went for the traditional pork bone soup and healthy chicken soup. Overall, it was a very healthy dinner. :)

The different kinds of condiment we could choose to dip our food in

Christmas Lights

After dinner, we took the girls and our domestic helper for a joyride down Orchard Road to see the Christmas lights. We left around 7.30pm and the traffic was still pretty smooth but I bet it would be badly jammed later in the night after most people are finished with their dinner.

Firework by Katy Perry

The girls are currently into songs by Katy Perry. I have to admit her songs are catchy. No wonder the girls like listening to her. Here is their favourite at the moment: Firework by Katy Perry posted by KatyPerryVevo.

Prep for School

In one and a half week's time, the new school year commences. Marieann needed to get new uniforms and I needed to collect the car decals for 2011 and not wanting to leave Juliane at home, I brought both girls to SCGS with me.

After SCGS, we went to Tanglin Mall for lunch. Initially I wanted to take the girls to Nando's (which I love eating when I was in Australia) but they wanted Japanese. Sigh. Maybe try Nando's another time.

Tron: Legacy

Goodness, another trip down memory lane lol. Tron!!

The original Tron (1982) was, at least for me, considered darn radical, high-tech and futuristic. :P The new Tron: Legacy is still just as radical, high-tech and futuristic!! :) Lol. It didn't just bring back some of the original cast like Jeff Bridges and Bruce Boxleitner, I was really tickled to see the movie also incorporated things from the first movie! :) Never mind if there are loopholes in the storyline, the special effects, sound effects and music score are absolutely awesome and brilliant. Tron: Legacy definitely provides a perfect escape from our world. :)

Tron (1982) posted by FrankSchenk6


Tron: Legacy official trailer #2 posted by DisneyMovieTrailers.


Tron: Legacy official trailer #3 posted by DisneyMovieTrailers.

Hawaii Five-O

I finally caught the new Hawaii Five-O (2010) on tv. Oh gosh, it sure brings back childhood memories, especially the catchy theme song!! :) However the opening credit/theme song for the new Hawaii Five-O seemed very short as compared to the original one.

I managed to find this opener of H5-O posted by DS9Sisko who blended scenes from the original opening credits with the current one. Fantastic job! This is more like it, can enjoy the theme song a bit longer lol. :)



For those who want more of a good thing, here is the full version of H5-O's theme song posted by sunfilling. Enjoy! :)

Family Ties

Today is my parents' 40th wedding anniversary.

Happy Anniversary! :)

In the evening, the girls spoke to their grandparents via Skype and also to their cousins, Yeun Song and Yeun Zhen. It is really cold now in London, snowing heavily. The girls lamented that they wanted to see snow. Don't worry, I will ask your Uncle YM to take some photos of the snow and send over lol. :P

Earlier in the day, I visited my grandmother-in-law at the ICU ward at TTSH. She looked really frail. I hope she gets well soon.

Coming to Terms

I am now slowly coming to terms with my grandmother's death. It was the hardest on the day of her funeral. But I am really glad that I have really nice colleagues and friends and it has certainly helped being in their company. Thanks a lot. I really appreciated it.

Now it is time to get on with life.

ICU

The girls' father's grandmother is admitted to Tan Tock Seng Hospital this afternoon.
I was told not to visit her yet as her condition was unstable and the hospital was going to change her ward. She was initially in the normal ward and was then changed to the high dependency ward and now, she is in the Medical Intensive Care Unit. I hope she will be alright soon. I should be able to visit her over the weekend.

That Time of Year by Sick Puppies

Another Year
Has Come and Gone again
Look around
And think where have you been
Trace the Lines
On your face tonight
And don't forget
That this will pass in time

It's cold out this morning
You should be getting into bed
Can't believe its that time
Of year again

Curled up tight
A darker shade of white
Thinking Back could be here for a while

Its cold out this morning
And it's getting harder to pretend
Can't believe it's that time of year again

Can you believe the life you led?
Did you achieve the goals you set?
Did you lose your mind?
Well and then

Is there a reason you own them
It is a season that won't end
Can't believe it That time of year again

Another year
Has come and gone again
Look around
and wonder what happened

It's cold out this morning
You should be getting into bed
Can't believe it's that time
Of year again

You're fresh out of warnings
Maybe it's time you called a friend
Forget that it's that time of year again
Forget that it's that time of year again

My Grandmother's Last Journey

Today, my grandmother is setting off for her last journey and I couldn't be there to send her off. It will always be a deep regret for me. Even though I have tried my hardest to get a flight back, even though my Taiwanese relatives have said it was ok, even though my grandmother would understand, I still feel very upset.

Some have said at least I managed to see my grandmother in June and that was better than not at all. But I promised her that I would be back to see her again. Not being able to send my grandmother off, I have broken that promise. There would be no closure for me...


Ah Ma, rest in peace.

love,
your granddaughter in Singapore

End of the Journey?

I met with my supervisors today. They feel I need to do a bit more polishing and my dissertation will be ready for examination. They have set me the date for early January 2011.

I can't believe it. After working on my dissertation for so long, it feels really strange that my PhD journey is coming to an end soon. I actually feel a bit lost...

The Voyage of the Dawn Treader

I promised the girls that I would take them to the movies during the school holidays. There are a number of options but we finally settled on The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader.

The girls enjoyed the movie very much. Juliane thought it was scary at certain parts, especially the green mist scenes. I did enjoy the movie too but I would have enjoyed it even more if there was a big epic battle scene lol. :P

Here's the international trailer for the movie.


Here's two versions of the theme song "There's A Place for Us". :) This one is by Joe McElderry.


This version is by Carrie Underwood. I think I prefer her version. :)

Happy Birthday, YM

Hey YM/ Uncle YM,

Happy Birthday!

love,
Your sis, HM
Your nieces, Marieann and Juliane

PS We called UK to wish you a Happy Birthday but you were all out.

Disappointment

I can't send my grandmother off on her final journey on 14 December Tuesday.
I have tried to book a return flight to Taipei, departing on 13 December Monday and returning on 15 December Wednesday. However, as it is the holiday period and festive season, all flights and all classes are fully booked. For some airlines, the wait list are closed too. I managed to be placed on the wait list for SIA but the agent forewarned me that it is extremely unlikely that I would be able to get my flights confirmed.
After 24 hours of waiting and monitoring, it is confirmed that I won't be able to attend my grandmother's funeral in Taipei. :(

Touched

I am really touched by my colleagues' and friends' concerns and gestures towards me over my grandmother's passing.

Thank you, everyone. I am really appreciative of your concerns and gestures. Don't worry about me, I will be fine.

In Mourning

I received news from Taiwan that my maternal grandmother has passed on this morning. My grandmother's funeral is set for next Tuesday, 14 December at her hometown, Shen Ao. I had to relay the sad news to my mother who is currently in UK. Although I am not extremely close to my grandmother, I am still affected by her passing. I can't imagine the grief my mother is going through right now. I may fly back to Taiwan to attend my grandmother's funeral...

May my grandmother rest in peace.

Home

I am home. :) Tired but I am home. I will try to backtrack and update my blog accordingly. Thank you for bearing with me.

TRUE HOLIDAY!

My best friend, Min and her family were fantastic. They went about their usual Saturday activities while letting me sleep in! I only woke up at 12noon!! This is what a TRUE HOLIDAY should be haha. :P Sleep in and do nothing!
Well, I did wake up briefly at 7.30am. Once a mother, always a mother. You will know when there is a child in the room. Josh came to my room in the morning, trying to get dressed as Min had left with Ben for his sports activities. Without many words between us, I helped him out. He left the room and I went right back to sleep. It was only later in the day that Min and Graham found out I had helped Josh. Oops sorry. It was faster to help him than to have him take his time in dressing lol. :P

Min came home with Josh after his swimming and she made us smoked salmon with avocado sandwiches for lunch. It was so darn delicious!! I should make them when I return to Singapore. :P We also had more time to chit-chat about our lives while deciding what to do on Sunday.

Dinner was the highlight of the day!! Min bought my favourite meat - kangaroo meat and Graham barbecued them. There was marinated roo meat, roo fillet, roo bangas and there was enough roo meat for 3 persons and it was all for me, me ME!! :) I was so happy eating roo meat and was really stuffing myself FULL. :) Have to since I can't get roo meat in Singapore. Graham remarked he has never seen a small person eat so much before hahaha. :P

The uncooked roo meat!

The barbecued roo, beef and lamb together with pasta salad. Yummy home cooked food!

My Best Friend

I think everyone should have a best friend. I am very lucky I have a best friend and I get to travel too in order to see her. :) See, my best friend, Min lives in Sydney, Australia with her wonderful husband, Graham and two awesome boys, Ben and Josh. :)

I really needed a break and my best friend so I flew to Sydney today. :) Min picked me up from the airport before picking Josh up from school. While Min was whipping up dinner for us, Ben came home. Soon after, Min left for her office Xmas dinner and it was just the boys and I. I had a really relaxing first night in Sydney, just lazed around and did nothing haha. :)

It is really fantastic to see Min and her family again. It was March 2008 when I last saw everyone. I am really glad that the boys still remember me. :)

Presentation

I was a nervous wreck on this day of my presentation. I wished I have had more practice. :(
I was the first presenter. Due to my cold, my voice was really nasal and husky and it didn't sound like me at all!! :( I finished my presentation on time and there were a few questions. Thank goodness, I was able to answer the questions. After the session, one of the audience who asked me a question actually told me it was a study well done. I was really happy to receive such encouragement. :)