World Book Release: Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows

I had initially planned to line up at Borders at 6am in the morning but then decided to go with a very good friend instead at a later time, 9:15am so that we won't be too bored waiting in the queue. At least, we would have each other to talk to, lol. However, I didn't manage to wake up until close to 9am when very good friend smsed me that he was on his way to pick me up to get Harry Potter at Borders. Ah, panic. Hahaha. Lol. But I managed to get ready in 15 minutes.

When we got to Borders, we could see that some people were already reading their Harry Potter book at the Coffee Bean cafe and many people leaving Borders with a orange coloured Harry Potter paper bag . I WANT MY HARRY POTTER TOO!! I almost half ran to the queuing line. LOL. Thank goodness, the queue wasn't too long, only up to the entrance of Wheelock Place (the side facing Shaw Lido). I waited in line while very good friend went to "scout" around for a shorter queue. Apparently, there were two other lines inside the shop but both were equally as long as the queue I was already at. Time passed quite quickly when you have company.

After half an hour, we both managed to get our Harry Potter! As I pre-ordered my book, I also received a Beanie Hedwig snowy owl. Now I have two Hedwig owls. The first one was a gift from an ex-MOE HQ colleague after I won first prize at the Best Costume competition, MOE Workplan Day 2003 . She was both tickled and impressed by my costume. I was dressed as a female student of Hogwarts - complete with the red and yellow striped tie, grey long-sleeved vest and the robe with the Gryffindor House badge! LOL. Actually, most then-colleagues said I won the competition hands-down, "No fight aready lah, see you in that". Hahaha. Yes, I was a BIG Harry Potter fan then. I still AM a BIG Harry Potter fan NOW!

We were hungry so we went to get a quick breakfast. Very good friend couldn't resist and started reading Harry Potter, from the BACK! LOL. Had to remind him to read SILENTLY as I do not want to know the details. I much prefer to read it for myself! Hahaha. So if you know what has happened in the book, DON'T TELL me! Lol.

I will update again later...

Updated 21 July 2007, 8:52pm
My family went to lunch at an old family friend, Ah Ma's place. I call her Ah Ma because she's elderly and she watched me grew up from a baby. Now my girls call her Lao Ma (meaning great grandmother). We had popiah lunch. It was really fun to make and eat your own popiah creations. Not to mention Delicious too!


After lunch, I had a long nap from 2pm+ to 6pm+. Well, the cool rainy weather was extremely nice to sleep in and I also had a purpose. I needed to sleep then because I intend to do an all-nighter to read my Harry Potter tonight! Yes, I will be up all night to read it and I hope to finish come Sunday morning. Hahaha. Then maybe I will review it on my blog. LOL. So my friends, don't be surprised if you still see me online in the wee hours of Sunday morning. Ok, I better get back to my Harry Potter, onto Chapter 3... gripping...

Tooth Fairy

Today, Marieann lost her first baby/ milk tooth - the front tooth on her lower jaw. Well, it didn't fall out on its own, instead she needed to have it extracted. Reason being, her permanent tooth erupted directly behind her milk tooth, even before her milk tooth started to loosen and fall out. Hmm... gave her too much milk, cheese and yoghurt to eat when she was younger. Too much calcium. Lol.

My mother brought her to see my dentist friend, Hoon. Both Hoon and I thought that there might be some problem extracting Marieann's tooth because she was quite resistant at her last visit to Hoon for a simple clean-up. Anyway, I talked to Marieann last night about her dental visit today and she seemed okay. We thought we shall see today.

Surprisingly, it was a breeze for Hoon to extract her tooth. Marieann didn't protest and didn't shed a single tear. Apparently, my mother psyched her up too before the dental visit. But for a 5-year old to be able to sit still in the dental chair and have her tooth extracted, it is a big deal! I think some adults have trouble doing that. I know because I have that problem. Sorry, Hoon. Hahaha :P

Well done, Marieann. I am so proud of you! You are such a brave girl. Remember to place your tooth under your pillow tonight before you sleep, tomorrow you will find a little something from the Tooth Fairy. =)

PS To read more about the Tooth Fairy, click here.

Enbloc "Panadol" - Development Charge

What a piece of good news!

On the front page of today's Strait Times (19 July 2007) is the article "Property charge hike may cool en bloc fever". Finally, an enbloc "panadol" has appeared. Our government announced yesterday that there would be a development charge for the developers who want to enhance the use and value of sites by building bigger projects. The tax payable will now be levied at 70% and this change took immediate effect as of yesterday (18 July 2007).

Although some property analysts say it might be a knee-jerk reaction and not likely to derail the property market boom which is supposedly to continue way into 2008, I think there will still be some effect on the enbloc market. Developers will now be more cautious and not rush/ badger/ harass/ pester/ hassle/ hound owners into selling their homes, especially if their homes are on super prime land, like maybe near the Botanic Gardens or something because of the higher tax they have to pay the government.

This is indeed good news for some of us who have been tormented by the thoughts that we might lose our homes because of human greed. Now with this "panadol" (development charge) , the feverish and rampant enbloc market will at last be "cured" (kept in check). I sound too hopeful? Well, hope springs eternal in the human breast.

Sorry, if today's post seems a bit too serious, no-nonsense, prim and proper. Just have to get this off my chest. Tomorrow's post will be in a lighter mood, I promise. =)

Friend, Dinner, Ramen

I met up with a good friend, whom I used to work with, for dinner. Since we wanted something not too heavy, we decided to go for ramen. Friend recommended going to Ken Japanese Noodle House. Why not? I haven't been there before. Off we went.

We managed to get a table before the dinner crowd started streaming in. We both ordered Char Siew Ramen and shared a plate of gyoza. The Char Siew Ramen was really good. The soup was really fragrant and tasty and best of all, no MSG! Heard the soup was double-boiled for hours. No wonder, it's so tasty. Accompanying the ramen, were three huge pieces of char siew, seaweed, some spinach and bamboo shoots.

By the time I was three-quarters through my ramen, I was quite full. But because the ramen and the soup were so good, I finished it all. There goes my "I don't want something too heavy" plan. Lol. I think we were both very full by the time we finished dinner. Lol.

Hey, Good Friend, it was great that we met up for dinner. Let's do it again soon. =)

It is definitely double the joy when one is spending time with a good friend over a good meal.

Black Order by James Rollins

I think this is the longest I ever took to read a Rollins book. Not because it is uninteresting, NO, it definitely is not that. Just happened I kept having things cropped up so I couldn't finish reading Black Order at one go which I usually like to do.

Black Order is Rollins' third book featuring the Sigma Force so there are familiar characters such as Gray Pierce, Painter Crowe and Lisa Cumming is a character from another of Rollins' book. Because I am already familiar with the characters, it is a very nice feeling when I was reading Black Order. It was like being with family and friends. I actually feel a lot more for the characters now in Black Order than when in Sandstorm or Map of Bone (the 1st & 2nd books respectively featuring the Sigma Force).
(NB: Not to worry, it is not necessary that you have to read the Sigma Force books in that order. Rollins has done a good job of allowing the books to be stand alone too.)

There is again non-stop action in Black Order. What do you expect from Rollins?! =) You have two stories running parallel to each other at the start of it. This means you have double the action from Gray and Painter. Black Order takes you places: from Poland to Himalayas to Nepal to Copenhagen to South Africa. Mysterious events surround both Gray and Painter at their respective locations and before long, pieces start to fall into place for you. You will find yourself getting more and more intrigued, trying to discover what is the century-old plot that threatens to destroy the current world order... I can't say too much without containing spoilers. That will spoil the fun of reading Black Order for those of you who are interested to read it.

Rollins combines historical facts, scientific technology, the occult, the runes, and the scientific theory on quantum mechanics seamlessly together to create a heart-stopping, gripping, and intriguing novel. I really like the twist in the novel. The Quantum Evolution that is instrumental to the novel is most thought-provoking! (Hey, Rollins managed to make me become interested in physics. That is an achievement lol.) Rollins managed to use science (quantum theory) in his novel without it being too heavy-going, instead it gave an edge to his novel. I personally think this is one of his best books to date. =) Now I can't wait to read his latest novel, The Judas Strain, another Sigma Force book. LOL.

Updated 18 July 2007, 8:37am
The Judas Strain is out in the shops, at least, at Borders it is. Not sure about the NLB, might want to check before you head down to the library to borrow it.

A New Day

I have an early morning meeting at 9am so I thought I would come into office earlier. I left for work at 7am. Yes, I got here on time. In fact, I was a whole hour early. But it is okay, I am the only one in the office. I like it this way, quiet and peaceful. I like the solitude.

On my way to work, I saw the sun rising. The sun shining, with its morning glory, from behind buildings, trees, ... Since picking up photography again, I found myself looking at things differently. What I would normally pass by without a glance, would now earn a 2nd or sometimes, even a 3rd glance from me. I start to see the play of colours and light in things... The beauty in life...

I was msn-ing with a good friend late last night, actually it was past midnight. (So considered a new day already lol.) It has been fun catching with good friend. We haven't had the time to chat as we did since quite a while back as we are both busy with work. It is most important to keep in touch with friends. To me, friendship is the source of the greatest pleasures, and without friends even the most agreeable pursuits become tedious (St Thomas Aquinas).

"Thank You Friend I never came to you, my friend, and went away without some new enrichment of the heart; More faith and less of doubt, more courage in the days ahead. And often in great need coming to you, I went away comforted indeed. How can I find the shining word, the glowing phrase that tells all that your love has meant to me, all that your friendship spells? There is no word, no phrase for you on whom I so depend. All I can say to you is this, God bless you precious friend." (Author: Grace Noll Crowell)

A new day has come.

Updated 17 July 2007, 3:26pm
Taking a break now from my transcribing. After a long while, your ears start to go, can't hear the words properly lol. NO lah, not sign of old age! LOL. You try transcribing for say, a stretch of 2 hours, tell me if you can still hear the distinct words, then we talk. Maybe I can let you take over my transcribing work. Hahaha. Hmm... I do know someone who is supposedly the expert in transcribing. Maybe I can try to do a 1-for-1 exchange with him, I go to his school visit while he does my transcribing lol. Think it would work? Lol.

I will be updating this post throughout the day as and when I need a break :) ...

Updated 17 July 2007, 9:40pm
Could have finished reading my Black Order last night but I was in no mood to read after being handed a letter by the 2nd sales team from my estate. I managed to finish reading it tonight. Will give my review of it in the next post. Here are the photos I took this morning of the sun breaking through the cloud cover. I experimented with the different lighting when taking the photos.

Writing, Die Hard 4.0, Enbloc

I managed to do some writing today. I think I am pretty happy with my chapter 2. I have added in new articles, polished up my theoretical framework, presently all to my satisfaction. Was working hard on my writing last night until 3:30am this morning. But I didn't sleep immediately as I thought I would read Black Order to relax. I was wrong, the book was really gripping until I had to force myself to drop the book and sleep at 5am. When I woke up at 8am, I continued my writing. Strike the iron while it is hot, while the ideas are still in my mind lol.

***
Decided to reward myself after my hard work as well as take a break. Went to see a movie in the afternoon. I saw "Die Hard 4.0". Hmm... it is an okay film if you just want a time-filler. It has all the usual stuff or rather the same formula that comes with all the "Die Hard" series - one really macho man-hero that saves USA/ the day from an evil group who didn't know what they were getting into when they faced off with him and when they held his family hostage. It has become very predictable and repetitive lol.
One saving grace of the movie was the aircraft, F-35. Really cool! =) Yes, there are really F-35s out there, it is not just a creation of the movie. F-35 can do what was depicted in the movie. I think that one is most likely a F-35B which is the STOVL (Short Take Off, Vertical Landing) variant. Ok, to be fair, another saving grace of the movie, the action was quite good. Lol.

***
Two men came round to each household about 8pm+ giving out a letter. They are the 2nd sales team for my estate. WHAT?! They really know how to pick a time/topic to spoil my otherwise happy and perfect day. Hmm... it seems these people have gone ahead to form another sales team and they are proposing one-for-one exchange versus the other sales team's enbloc collective sales. They said there will be a meeting this Friday, "It's just a survey, you can ask questions", they said. They went on to say they also have a buyer. HANG ON!!! WHAT?! A BUYER?? I rebuked them what rot is that about having a meeting on Friday to do a survey when they already have a buyer on the side, actually 2 buyers when I "interrogated" them further. I hate the lack of transparency, what do they take us, the residents for?? These people are not going to get it easy from me... I HATE ENBLOC.

Sunday Japanese Dinner

Since my mother is back and she likes Japanese food, we decided to go out for dinner tonight at Minori Dining & Sake Bar, UE Square. Again, we had the A La Carte buffet. Between the five of us (3 adults and 3 children), we managed to sample 21 different dishes: sushi, sashimi, temaki, teppanyaki, yakimono, agemono, nimono, itamemono, etc. Didn't take any photos of the food because it is standard Japanese fare.

For dessert, my mother had a Sesame ice cream, Juliane a Vanilla ice cream, Marieann and I both had Yuzu Sorbet. The sesame ice cream was fragrant but I still prefer my Yuzu sorbet which was refreshing with its sweet and sour taste. I also ordered a Green Tea Cheese Cake to try. It was good! It wasn't cheesy like the usual Western cheese cake. This one was really smooth and light. The top layer was like tofu cheese mousse, very light; the second layer was red bean, just right in its sweetness; the third layer was green tea (cheese) mousse with its taste of matcha just right (not too bitter and overpowering and not cheesy too) and the fourth layer was a very thin slice of sponge cake. Together, the four layers created the perfect combination of taste! The Green Tea Cheese Cake is well worth a try if you ever go to Minori, as well as the Yuzu Sorbet.

Happy faces after desserts.

Look, "Harry Potter"!

That was what Juliane shouted excitedly this evening while pointing out the window. NO WAY, it can't be Harry Potter! He's just a fictional character. As I walked towards the window, there was a noise in the air. Ah, I understood. She had meant "Helicopter". Hahaha.

It is the 2nd NE show today. Two CH-47 SD Chinook helicopters, which were bearing the Singapore flags, flew past where we live and each Chinook was flanked by two AS 332 Super Puma. I managed to get a few snapshots of the aircrafts. There were also F-16s which flew past but those were mighty fast and too far to get a good close up photo. The girls were pretty excited to see the aircrafts. Maybe they can catch a glimpse of the aircrafts again as the 3rd NE show is on 21 July. :)

Writing, Blogging and Reading

Present time: 14:39pm
While supervising the girls on their writing of Chinese characters, I am also blogging away. Thought I might as well make use of the time to blog. But of course, I keep an eye on them, just in case they make mistakes, I can correct them in time.

3 Hours Ago: 11:35am
I bought some pre-school Chinese Write and Learn books for the girls as well as for my nephews in UK just today before lunch. My elder nephew, Abel will be starting his Chinese lessons soon so my brother asked me to get some Chinese writing books and send them over to UK. I might go look for more Chinese books for the boys since it is difficult to get such books in UK. Hey, YM, when will Abel be starting his lessons? I will try to send the books over soon.

2 Hours Ago: 12:30pm
After I bought the books at Popular Orchard, I met hubby back at Wheelock Place and we had lunch at Big O Cafe & Restaurant. Since it is vegetarian day today, we ordered a Side Salad with house dressing, Roasted Mushrooms with Herbs and a Crispy Fried Tofu & Portobello Mushroom Burger. The Crispy Fried Tofu & Portobello Mushroom Burger, which came with a side salad and a light sour yoghurt sauce/dip, was fantastic! The "buns" were two huge Portobello mushrooms and the "meat" was the crispy fried tofu. It was light, tasty and not oily. It was, surprisingly, full of flavour and it was very refreshing. You get your potassium and protein too. Good for those on diet, lol.



Hubby ordered a Spike D for dessert - it is a durian mousse-cake coated with a layer of chocolate. He said it was really good. Sorry, no photo to show as I do NOT fancy durian at all. As the durian smell was too strong for me to take, I left the cafe first. Instead, I went to Haato for my dessert fix - a double cup of Milk Tea and Tiramisu ice cream. Heavenly. =)

Present time: 15:01pm
I am going to log off now. I have to get back to my Black Order. It is calling me. Coming, dear. Sorry, folks. Talk to you later.

Friday the 13th II

Just realised that it is Friday the 13th again, the 2nd and last one for this year.

Nothing unusual happened, nothing unlucky happened. As I have mentioned in my earlier "Friday the 13th" post (April), it is just like any other ordinary day. It is your perception that will shape the way the day will go. Not just for Friday the 13th, for any other day too. If you want a happy and lucky day, perceive it as such and you will have one happy and lucky day!

Believe me. It works. Today has been one happy and lucky Friday the 13th for me. :)

***
Rollins' Black Order has been most gripping. As usual, it is fast-paced and action-packed! No, I have not finished reading it yet. Rest assure, if I finish the book, you will know. I will be writing a review on it. =) I shall continue my reading of Black Order after I put up this post. So I should be up quite late. Lol. Friends who want to chat with me online, you know what to do. Lol.

By the way, Rollins' latest book, The Judas Strain is out. I saw it at Borders when I was there yesterday night. So those of you who are Rollins' fans, you have a new book for your reading pleasure!

PS. Hmm...just wondering if SA knows about The Judas Strain being out in Borders. Wonder if SA would borrow from the library or buy it. Lol.

Updated 14 July 2007, 1:33am
Ok, going to let my laptop rest. I will continue to read my Rollins from the comfort of my bed. lol. Good night. Talk to you later.

Joys in Life

A good colleague, D and I decided to visit Sharmila, our colleague who gave birth yesterday at Gleneagles. We went to visit Sharm and her bundle of joy at lunch time. Coincidentally, another group of our colleagues decided to visit her too. I guess, great minds think alike, lol, everyone had the same idea of using lunch time to visit Sharm and her baby. So there were a total of 12 people in the ward. It was really lively.

Sharm's baby is really adorable. She has the most gorgeous smile, with a little dimple on her right cheek. She also has such lovely double eyelids which some of us would be most envious of. Sharm wanted us to have a turn at carrying her baby and she was happy snapping our photos. Some of us were a natural carrying a newborn while some needed serious coaxing to carry the baby. LOL. Despite being a mother of 2, I needed major coaxing, actually, I was "forced" to carry the baby. Boy, was I scared. Newborns are so frail. I am really fearful of breaking something. Lol. Ok, glad to say I wasn't the only one who was scared about carrying a newborn. Hahaha.

Once again, Sharm, congrats with the arrival of your new bundle of joy!

***
After dinner, we decided to have dessert at Tong Shui Cafe, Zion Road (opposite Great World City) since we have a $10 voucher. Hubby was still hungry so he ordered a Thick Toast with Baked Beans, Ham & Egg and a Iced Combi Coffee & HK Milk Tea. Marieann decided to follow her father and ordered a Thick Toast with Butter and Honey. I ordered a Hot Honey & Lemon and a Mango Pomelo Snowy Mountain for dessert. The girls both ordered a Strawberry Tutti Fruitti. Hubby's Thick Toast was not too bad, quite tasty while Marieann's was pretty normal. But quite disappointing was today's desserts :( , nothing spectacular in taste. Definitely not getting these two desserts again.

Life's Surprises: Farewell & Welcome

Farewell

Today, I rushed back to office after my counselling for a colleague, Poh Hoon's farewell lunch.

I have known Poh Hoon since I started work at the research centre in 2004. I remembered how she managed to get me to do a book review of a really thick book on my 3rd day of work! Lol. Of course, I wrote the book review for her. I am such a nice person. Hahaha.
Poh Hoon is an easy-going person. She is really easy to talk to and easy to get along with. She doesn't seem to have any temper. I have yet to see her blow her top. =) I think she would have been a great person to work with. Unfortunately, we have been in different projects.

Poh Hoon, May happiness, good fortune and success be yours in life's continuing journey. You'll be missed. Keep in touch!

***
Welcome

A colleague of ours, Sharmila who is expecting, went to Gleneagles today for her weekly check-up. She was asked to stay for observations. Her delivery date is supposed to be end of July. Looks like she might deliver her baby early. Usually, 2nd babies come early. They can't wait to see the world! Lol. My Juliane came a whole month early!

Just got news that Sharmila has given birth to a little princess at 6:30pm! Her little bundle of joy weighs 4.27kg and measures 52cm in length.

Sharmila, Congratulations on your latest addition to the family!

Current Favourite Songs (some)

Here are some of my current favourite songs from the movies: Transformers, Spiderman3, Lord of the Rings, etc. There are more songs/ themes but they are 30 sec reviews so I thought it's not shiok to share with all of you if you can't hear the entire song/ theme. Right?! Lol. Enjoy.

Counselling

At different times today, different colleagues happened to ask me about counselling. A coincidence perhaps.

What is counselling? – noun Psychology. (Source: Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1))
- professional guidance in resolving personal conflicts and emotional problems.

I have met people who have the impression that counselling is an easy job. Well, sorry, it is not! Counselling is a lot more than just talking. It also involves listening. Counselling is not an easy job. It is both mentally and emotionally draining because I have to consciously detach myself emotionally from my client's problems. That's why I can't counsel or see more than 8 clients in one day. As much as I want to take on more clients, I can't as it would be too much for me to take. I have to detach myself from my client's problems and emotions so that I can maintain my objectivity in order to give the appropriate guidance, help and support to my clients.

Although it takes a longer time to see the effects of counselling, I enjoy my counselling work very much. It gives me a sense of achievement and fulfilment when the clients trust me, when they finally open up and share their problems with me, when they finally take the steps to help themselves, when they no longer need to see me.

Counselling is not just a job. Counselling is a great responsibility. Counselling is a calling.

Transformers the Movie - Music Video

I really like this song, What I've Done by Linkin Park in the Transformers movie. Here is the music video of the song. It is a clever mix of clips from the cartoon and the new movie. Sure brings back fond memories. =) Enjoy.

Transformers 2007 - More than Meets the Eye

I couldn't take it anymore. I just had to see it, the 80s cartoon of my childhood, now being remade into a motion picture. Regret it, I did not! Only why I didn't see it earlier. Lol. Yes, I am a Transformers fan. (Used to watch other robot/ mecha kind of anime too, like Macross, Patlabor, Gundam, Neon Genesis Evangelion, etc. Yes, I know I have very different tastes from the typical girls lol.)

Caution: May contain Spoilers.
Transformers is about Earth being the battleground for the heroic Autobots (led by Optimus Prime) and evil Decepticons (led by Megatron), after their planet - Cybertron has been destroyed, for the control of the Cube - the Allspark (a talisman that grants unlimited power). Sam, a high school boy, is embroiled in the battle between the good and evil robots when he bought his car, Bumblebee which is actually an Autobot... I shall not say anymore.

Just to refresh our memories of who is who (I think two or three of them are not in the original cartoon but I may be wrong too, saw it long time ago):
Autobots - Optimus Prime, Jazz, Ironhide, Ratchet, and Bumblebee
Decepticons - Megatron, Starscream, Barricade, Bonecrusher, Blackout and Devastator

I really love the visual effects - the transformation of cars, truck, tank, aircrafts, etc into robots - AWESOME!! The CGI and live action just fit so seamlessly into each other, you would think the robots are actually real and interacting with the actors. The sound effects are FANTASTIC too, complement the actions very well, making them even more exciting. (I think I was at the edge of my seat most of the time.). There is lots of fast-paced action and I am NOT complaining. Lol. Humour is present too in the movie. Bonus. Although Bumblebee and Optimus Prime look different from the original cartoon, I could live with the changes. Just took a bit of time getting used to their new looks. I also really like the song by Linkin Park, What I've Done in the movie. It is the only one not too "screamy" and hard rock. Lol.

Transformers 2007 definitely did not disappoint me. In fact, it blew my mind, it was beyond my expectations. Really GLAD that I watched it. Can't wait for the 2nd and 3rd movie of Transformers to be out!

For those of you (Transformers fans) who are going to watch it, make sure you stay right until the END of the credits, there is something to see...(that's what I heard after I saw the movie). I left too early... so going back again to see it and for the action. LOL. Definitely need to see Transformers again just for the action. For those of you (non-fans), just go watch it with an open mind. Who knows, you may be the next generation of Transformers fans =)

Here is the trailer for Transformers 2007:

Transformers movie trailer (final)

Arrival at Terminal 2

My mother came back tonight from Taiwan on SQ871, 6:45pm. She was away for a month to visit her family and friends. We thought we might as well have dinner at the airport and maybe let the children view the airplanes from the viewing gallery. However, we went to the airport late, arriving only about 6pm, so we only had time for dinner.

Hubby chose to have dinner at Tong Shui Cafe because it is so HK, his most beloved place on planet Earth. We shared a Gold Fish Dumpling Soup, Nissin Noodles (Dry) with Sunset Egg and Luncheon Meat, and a Baked Spaghetti with Chicken Chop in Red and White Sauce. For dessert, hubby had a Steamed Egg with Gingko Nut; I, Bukor Hitam Mango topped with Ice Cream; Juliane, Mango Tutti Fruitti Pudding and Marieann, Ice Cream with Mango.










Since we were still having our dessert, hubby went to pick my mother up from the arrival hall to join us for a hot drink at TSC. The children were really happy to see their grandmother! Me too. Got good food to eat from now on. Hahaha.

Saturday Performance

Marieann has a performance at Tanjong Pagar GRC Fiesta, Ngee Ann City for GOH, MM Lee, at 6 pm. She has to report to her kindergarten by 4:30pm for make-up and stuff. So we decided to go for an early lunch and let her rest a bit at home before bringing her to kindergarten.

We went to a Japanese place, Minori Dining & Sake Bar at UE Square. We had the A la Carte Japanese buffet. The buffet concept is a good one. You can get to taste different dishes and the portions are small so you won't get too full with just a few dishes. Between the four of us, we managed to sample 16 different dishes and we also had Sorbet Yuzu for dessert. If you like Japanese food, this is a good place to go. If you are feeling a sense of deja vu about this place, that's because the owners of Minori used to be from Hanabi Japanese Restaurant, thus the same buffet concept.

We brought Marieann to her kindergarten at 4:30pm and we adjourned to Ngee Ann City. Since we had to pick her up at 7pm, we might as well wait around the same area. My plan was to do work at a cafe while hubby goes shopping at Best Denki with Juliane. Unfortunately, the little one fell asleep. So I took her with me to Coffee Bean. She slept on my lap while I tried to do work. Work didn't get very far as it was too noisy. I ended up reading a graphic novel which a good friend passed to me, Revelations. Lol. It was pretty intriguing, along the line of Dan Brown's Angels and Demons. I managed to finish reading it in time to return it to Library@Orchard along with J. Butcher's Dresden book before we went to pick Marieann up at 7pm, after her dance performance.

My Moroccan Mint Tea

Marieann (in her costume) & Juliane

Since we were still quite full (from lunch), we decided to call it a night and went home.

School Blessing

I was invited by CHIJ, where I am a counsellor, as a guest to attend its school blessing and dedication ceremony on 6 July 2007. CHIJ has just moved back to its present site, into a new school building after a 2-years absence. CHIJ is finally home again.

The blessing and dedication ceremony, with its hymns, prayers, readings, and communion, lasted about 1.5 hours, from 9am to 10.30am. It was a beautiful and solemn ceremony. The choir was magnificent! I think VIPs (Principals, V-Ps, MOE officers), guests and parents alike were all enthralled by the girls' angelic singing. My favourite hymn was "On Eagle's Wings". (It sure brought back memories of my church-going days when I was a kid.) I think we have found our own "Haley Westenra"s in the 3 girls who led the choir. Great job, girls!!

Instead of going for the reception, I went round the school snapping photos. I love the bright colours, great contrast. Here are some photos of the various corners...

Congrats, CHIJ. May you continue to educate girls for many, many years to come in your new school building.

Updated 7 July 2007, 12:59am
Yesterday morning was just fantastic. I have enjoyed myself very much. Still can't help thinking about it.

Work, writing

Have been busy working on transcribing my interviews. Quite happy with my progress today. Managed to transcribe 2 interviews within 4 hours. Getting faster in transcribing. :) Tomorrow should be able to do another 2 interviews. After that, I can proceed with the tagging of the artifacts that I have collected from school. I also managed to contact my teachers too about them implementing their tasks and rubrics. Happy that things are on track.

Am thinking about writing a paper, actually, co-writing a paper for an international conference next year. Have to get my articles ready and start writing real soon. I have only presented at international conferences twice, once in Netherlands (2005) and once in Singapore (2007). Hahaha. Actually, there was another conference in 2003 but I couldn't make it and my MA supervisor kindly presented on my behalf. He said my paper was very well-received, especially by MOE personnel. Lol. I would think so since I haven't been called by them to have a chat about my results. Hahaha :P Actually, maybe I should write another paper on my Phd topic. Do you think possible? Lol. =) See how lah.

Images around Singapore

Some photos that I have snapped around Singapore with my new camera. Still learning to deal with the contrast, the light... so bear with me. =)

Taking a Break - Deathproof

Was writing away in the morning. I have more or less nailed my literature review portion. Decided to take a break from my writing. Food? Nay. Have been eating so much at tcc where I have parked myself to do my writing. Hmm... decided to watch a movie. Heard that Deathproof is pretty good. Let's go for it. I watched the 1pm show.

Deathproof is a thriller/ slasher movie where a killer stalks and pursues his victims with a car. Deathproof is really something! Quentin Tarantino is no doubt a great director. Deathproof is made like a B-grade movie in the style of the 70s, 80s. It is just very different from the usual movies and I would say, it is very hip, and very retro. LOL. I really loved it - the script, the music, the actors, the plot. A very simple plot but nonetheless, it is thrilling, quite hilarious at times and a little scary at times. I think I was laughing my head off at those funny moments, which seemed to have quite a few around.

Deathproof is just refreshing and hilarious with its dialogue, violence and gore. I guess it is a movie that you either love it or hate it, you either understand it or don't understand it. I would suggest you go see it with an open mind. That way you would enjoy Deathproof.

PS. Deathproof is actually the 2nd movie under Grindhouse. "Planet Terror" (directed by Robert Rodriguez) is supposed to be the 1st movie in Grindhouse, followed by some fake trailers which connect the two movies. Unfortunately, they broke Grindhouse up into two separate movies. I do hope they will show "Planet Terror" and the fake trailers soon.

Transcribing

Today, I was busy transcribing one of the interviews that I conducted with my teachers. Transcribing is "hard" on my ears because I had to use earphones so that I didn't disturb my colleagues. I think I would proceed faster with the transcribing if I didn't have to use earphones as I had to rest my ears every now and then. Lol.

By the way, I don't think transcibing is very difficult as I used to do it for my lecture notes during my undergrad years in UQ, Brisbane and during my MA years. At first, when I taped my lectures during my undergrad years, it was out of fear that I might not understand the lecturers' Aussie accents. However, as I got used to the accents, I also got used to transcribing my lecture notes. (Since I was staying by myself in uni, I didn't have to use earphones.) So the habit got stuck - I taped my lectures, I transcribed them, I revised at the same time by adding in my own understanding and notes.

At the height of my transcribing skill/ ability, I was able to transcribe an hour's lecture within 2 to 3 hours. Oh, I think my own version of shorthand in note-taking helped as well. When I cross-compared my initial lecture notes with that of the transcribed ones, I realised I was almost taking verbatim notes. Yar, I was ONCE that good in note-taking and transcribing. HAHAHA. My transcribing skill/ ability is abit, actually quite rusty now. Lol. Maybe need time to warm up to transcribing again ;)

PS. Shhh... don't tell people that I can transcribe... in case I get landed with more transcribing work! LOL.

Random Thoughts

Was watching "Be Strong, Guem-Soon!" with the girls this evening. Saw a scene where Guem-Soon was being wheeled into OT and saying it was strange watching the lights passing by overhead. I recalled my own experience with my emergency operation last year. It was a truly weird feeling, being wheeled from your ward into OT. I could only lie there, watching and counting the lights as they passed overhead. I remembered shivering badly which I put it down to me being scared. Of course, it was that and plus the fact that I was actually going into septic shock then which I didn't know. Or else I would have been even more terrified knowing that there was a possibility that I might die. *Shudders*
So I must really thank my lucky stars, keep healthy and live life to its fullest!

***
Part of my keeping healthy is eating a balanced diet. After dinner, I would try to take fruits. Tonight, it was cherries. While eating them, I suddenly recalled that a good friend could tie a knot in a cherry stalk in his mouth. I decided to give it a go. I succeeded the second time. Hahaha. I realised the length of the stalk does make a difference. It was easier to tie a knot with a longer stalk and of course, a flexible tongue helps too. LOL.

***
Working out is good for health too, which I try to do regularly (like once a month?!). Hahaha. You know you have really worked out when your legs and arms ache as you move them. No pain, no gain, right?! LOL. Those are good aches! Hahaha. Looking forward to my monthly work outs. LOL.

Cafe, writing away II

I am back at tcc now. LOL. I just had lunch with Juliane's god family about 40 minutes ago. While waiting for my brain to warm up, I thought I might as well put up my previous post (Juliane's Kai Ma and Malcolm Gor Gor) and this one. Hahaha. Writing on my blog helps to start up my brain. Hahaha.

A little crowded but still ok. I am very lucky that I managed to get the same corner seat again. =) A few of the waiters recognised me from yesterday and they are very friendly. Good, I suppose. Maybe I will get even better service? Hahaha.

Ok, I think my brain is warmed up enough. My Raspberry Tea Freeze is here too. Going to start writing. Talk later. Should be here for quite a while, a long while until night fall.

Updated 1 July 2007, 5:27pm
Taking a break now to clear my mind cos of a harrowing experience. Finished the new sub-section. Adding in more articles. Was going well until a couple sat at the next table to me, about an hour ago.

Oh, it is fine if they were just there to have lunch/ snack/ drinks. But no, they were breaking up! The gal was breaking up with the guy. I have never seen/ heard anyone break up in real life before (not counting my own experiences, different lah)! I was so uncomfortable and stressed. I could feel the tension and negative feelings coming in waves and threatening to roll me over! Then the ultimate happened: the guy started to cry. WHY ME?! I became ULTRA STRESSED! I tried to squeeze myself as close as possible to the wall and try to blend into it as best as I could. But it was a bit difficult cos I was dressed in dark colours and the wall was white. I didn't even dare to breathe. Yes, I was that stressed! I didn't dare to look up and could only stare intently at my laptop screen. I think I have hurt my eyes now lol. They have finally left. I never felt so relieved and so drained! Gosh, I hope I don't witness something like that again. LOL. I think I need some food now to replenish my lost energy.

Updated 1 July 2007, 7:27pm
Just had my dinner, Pizza Baguette (which came with green salad and papadum) very filling with all that cheese. Well, needed it to restore my nerves after my harrowing experience. Hahaha. I ordered a Moroccan Mint Green Tea as my after dinner drink. Needed something to wash down all the hearty food. Ahh... the tea is simply refreshing and energising. =)

This is very nice, having a cup of mint tea while blogging. Yes, I am enjoying myself very much. Actually, this reminds me of my uni days in Brisbane, when I was single, when I would sit at cafes drinking tea/ ice chocolate, people watching and/ or reading a book. That was life. :) Yar, I kinda miss being single. :P

Ok, dinner break over. Back to my writing. Will update again later when I need a break. So stay tuned. :)

Updated 1 July 2007, 9:13pm

Ok, I think my brain is feeling saturated already, it is slowing down. Lol. I should break now and maybe continue tonight at home when the girls are asleep. Just hope I can remember all that I want to write lol.

I think my writing has been pretty productive today, all except for that frightening one hour. Well, it was an experience definitely. LOL. Finishing the last dregs of my cold mint tea, hmmm... nice when cold, even mintier and it is refreshing. Waking up my sluggish brain. Lol.

Ok, Friends. I am calling it a night at tcc. Going home for a nice hot shower and then continue with my writing. yes, I am feeling very hardworking. Hahaha. Will update my post again later. Bye. Talk to you later.

Juliane's Kai Ma and Malcolm Gor Gor

Juliane’s Kai Ma (Godmother) and Malcolm Gor Gor (Godbrother) arrived in Singapore this morning from UK. We met them for Dim Sum lunch, together with Kuan Ling, a close mutual friend of ours. Where again but East Ocean Teochew Restaurant for our dim sum. Hahaha. No, seriously, none of us own any shares there!

Juliane was initially a little shy about meeting her Kai Ma after a long while. They last met in January. After some food, she was warmed up. Lol. We took some photos. Not easy taking photos with children in them – they would suddenly decide to test your photography skills by moving at the exact same moment you click, etc. Hahaha. Here are some of the nicer photos, without anyone of them moving, making faces, or unsmiling. =)

Kai Ma and Malcolm Gor Gor

Juliane with Kai Ma and Malcolm Gor Gor

The Children

We parted company about half an hour ago. Juliane's Kai Ma and Gor Gor need to catch up on their sleep. Maybe we will meet them for lunch again next weekend. No prize for guessing where again. LOL.