HAPPY CHILDREN's DAY!!

HAPPY CHILDREN"S DAY MY LITTLE DEARIES!!

Been so freaking busy preparing my dearies for their exams the last few wks that I can't blog! M still in the midst of examinations but have to set aside some time to pen down the recent happenings before things starts to pile up. Took so many pictures but have no time to upload. This is terrible! Can barely breathe! Managed to do a little clearing of files and unwanted paper the last couple of days. The recycling centre is sooo gonna love me! Can't wait for the sch hols to come. That's when i can do major recycling of paper and not to mention clothes! Gotto seriously make space before sweetie starts complaining again!

The feast featured today was whipped up 2 Sundays ago i think. It's been so long i can't remember! M drooling as I blog...n m seriously hungry now...wish I could have Geylang's Frog's porridge (had 10 frogs the other day with 3 other people...gosh..10!!) the Shoes...nice right? unfortunately, i've used them only once. bought it coz all those cheapo Cheena "nike" shoes i've bought gave way each time i exercise. Issit God's way of telling me i shouldn't exercise? hmmm....

Ok, let the photos do the talking..I gotto get back to work. Sigh...Next blog's coming up -- F1...Vrrrooooooom

I finally could give this recipe a try! Ever since we went to malaysia and I tried the infamous 客家炸肉, I've been meaning to replicate it. Unfortunately, though this fried pork belly wasn't too bad, it didn't taste quite the same. It's missing some secret ingredient! I wonder what issit.....i wonder wonder wonder.....

This soup is filled with power ingredients! So much so, friends couldn't stop slurping on it! Inspired by my trip to Desaru once again. This bittergourd soup is unlike those coooked previously. In fact, i've never tasted such style in Sg. It's boiled using pork, liver, bones...dried scallop, fake abalone (that big pc u are seeing in the picture) n some dried mushrooms. oooo no wonder sweetie is saying I m lavish when it comes to cooking! But it's certainly worth it!

First time trying this -- BUFFALO WINGS! even made the effort to buy a bottle of Blue cheese which is sitting pretty in my fridge after one use. The colour didn't turn out as brown, perhaps coz i din bake it long enuff...din have the time..but the taste certainly turned out good! the secret? == MACOMICK (not sure if the spelling's right, but u certainly can find it in Cold's Storage)

French beans with yummy Salted Fish! Nice combi!

Gosh, this must be my favourite! It's been such a long time since I made this...Steamed stuffed squid. Mummy dearest used to cook this. An all time favourite! The gravy is naturally sweet. Heavenly!

ok....enuff said about food. I'm seriously getting hungry. Let's rave about my latest buy! (apart from all those dresses bought over the net) This Adidas baby was a steal! at 50% discount ($89 after discount), how can one resist!? It was the last pair and in my size! How lucky can i get (wish i was lucky in other ways too.)
My very first intimates from Chalone. I never kenw CHalone sells lingerie. I've seen gals carrying the bag but always thought it was a shop selling clothes..the stuff there dont come cheap. but then again, good things dont come cheap, cheap things are often not good. I love the low cut and the many ways i can wear my new bra! (sorry, no photos for that. *WINK*)

First Night Race in Singapore -- FORMULA ONE!

Vrrrrooooooooooommmmmmmm..................

huh? what did you say? After last Sunday's race, i think my hearing must have been reduced by a wavelength! Went to Marina Square to soak in the atmosphere. Race started at about 8 and i was there only at 830. 10 laps was already completed. It's so deafening that I could not stay long. Not the mention hot! Singaporeans just have a way of squeezing n jostling their way thru! Fortunately we found a nice spot outside UOB and stood on some stones for a "bird's eye view". Aiya, as if i know who's driving past. They are so fast, you wont even know which car is Massa and which is Hamilton!

Singaporeans not very gracious ....covering all the vantage points where one can view F1 for fre. Some people simply rolled down the black cloth. Sweetie was complaining the whole time about Singapore organizers being ridiculous and not gracious about this. But i think, they have their rationale. Afterall, they have to be answerable to those who paid $168 for the tics (or more!)
U thought I was kidding u right? Check out this F1 pass! It's genuine ok!

Check out the picture of the cars I took. So sharp right? Wanna know my hp model? hehe
bird's eye view of the race track
A mini version of the merlion or what sweetie like to call it -- 大笨象

Aiyo...Singaporeans really shouldn't be monkeying around on trees during such an international event!

Computers & Money -- Two major vices in a child's life

I'm blogging today with a terribly heavy heart. It hadnt been an easy month. With the little boy throwing tantrums over wanting to play his PSP and Warcraft, till two smses received yesterday. Things just aint going well.

SMS number one: "I've decided to stop all help for XXX. pls let me know how much i've owed u so far."(which inevitably means tuition). The msg sent me wondering why. Was it becoz I'm incompetent? It takes two hands to clap and often when the kid doesn't want to clap, the tutor gets the blame. I do my best, but i understand what parents want too -- Results. which comes only when all parties cooperates. just the wk before, i was chatting merrily with the parent and she was all smiles. Apparently, I learnt from the younger child today that it's all a mask. Son doesn't want to obey mom, carried on playing computer games till wee hours. Mom was devastated and distraughted. Finally made the painful decision that since he doesnt want to help himself, she's not gonna help him too. The son doesn't even know i wont be coming this Thursday. It's such a sudden departure. Then one thing led to another. I sent a concerned sms to parent who later revealed that she's going through a tough patch with the hubby too regarding finances. hubby not giving her financial support. SEe what i Mean? Computer + Money -- Two major vices in one's life! How many times have i heard from a woman that she has financial probs with hubby. In fact, that has always been the root of my quarrels with my hubby. We are otherwise a very loving couple if not for the occasional arguments about expenses. Mainly because I'm a more prudent person whilst he is a more spendthrift person. N I'm a planner, whilst he thinks that money is something u can't bring into the coffin. But if you dont plan, when will u ever retire? Who's gonna look after parents nxt time...n more importantly, will we ever be ready for kids if money is not enuff? All these have been bugging me for the longest time, which is why when the parent told me her woes, I suddenly felt the pain. But yet, there's this nasty thought in me which I havent been able to get rid off. The younger child also revealed that daddy has bought a condo which should be ready in 2 yrs time. bought a condo? Financial problems? it just didn't make sense to me. Was it all just an excuse? sigh. i try to think positively, but it's hard.

SMS number two: Kena backstabbed by an old lady! No wonder they say the older the ginger, the hotter it is. This fiesty old woman is terrible! She's so frenly with me. gives me food when she knows i never eat. Always interupts my lesson by bitching about her daughter-in-law. Hurling vulgarities in front of my poor kid too. What will the boy grow up to be? Anyway, the gist of the whole story was -- She complained to boy's mom that i've been occasionally leaving before time was up. Hmmm....firstly, I've got a witness. The boy. Who is constantly fearing that i'd be late for my next lesson and always calculating what time i should be leaving. Secondly, the clock in their living room is 5 mins fast, thus i'm also staying a tit longer. But of coz occasionally i dont deny that I'm late (come on! Have some mercy, Singapore's traffic is crazy!) and might have to leave on the dot else I wont be able to beat the next traffic and will result in a domino effect. but my motto has always been to try to pay back the next time. Seriously, these people dont see the good stuff like when i stay 10 -15mins longer just to make sure the kid understands or finishes up his work. Why are Singaporeans so unkind and pick a bone in an egg? Gosh. Despite the support from the parent, i still feel heavy-hearted over it. It's not a nice feeling that behind that kind old lady who often portray herself as a nice lady who dont say bad about others; and who always boasts about being fabulous to others whilst others do shit to her, is a person who is actually damn ugly. I really feel like cursing n swearing at this moment.

Life. Filled with unpredictable stuff. Last thing which filled my heart with stones was the realisation that my friend's precious dog has bone cancer. Why must life be so cruel and take away a life like that. especially since the dog doesn't have the chance to choose what's good or bad for it. Worse still, it can't talk to us and tell us if it's happy or sad. Chemo? Amputation? The poor owner has a painful decision to make.

I think i'll take a while to sort out my thoughts. Suddenly i feel so lost on what's my next step. Should I do as planned? Going for a run now. Hopefully I'll be in the reborn-stage soon. Wish me luck!

Why the lack of fanfare?

Look at them fly!
Step aside man, Zhang Yi Ning!
How they "see' the ball, i seriously dont know!
The hits and the misses..Awwwww
True friendship. Doing things hand in hand.
It must be such a painful experience emotionally to fall at such a big event. but the courage and determination is worth more than a medal!

The Olympics just ended and here comes a more meaning event -- The paralympics. It's an event that would show even greater perserverence and mental strength. An event which salutes true atheletes. Yet, very little media coverage is given. At least in sunny Singapore that is. Not even when that babe won the nation's first ever bronze paralympics medal in Equestrian. The celebration given to her was in pale contrast from what was given to Jiawei, Aunty Yue Gu and my idol Feng Tienwei! More significantly, the prize money given to the bronze lady was pathetic compared to our heros from table tennis. A mere $25,000. THese not so able-bodied people have worked extremely hard mentally and physically. I feel that they deserve far more than anyone else. I'm not trying to say that we should pity them and throw them the money, but rather, it's a clear reflection that people these days judge a book by its cover. Sad.

Mooncakes, Lanterns and a very full tummy!

What I whipped up with overnight clams. Cabonarra Spagetti. The clammy tasted too fishy, killed the taste. a Spider meal. (失败 meal)Moonies from CONRAD, Eater Palace (Yam cum pumpkin mooncakes) and Swensen's Ice-cream mooncakes (which everyone thought was ex!)

It's the end of the wk. time just flies doesn't it?
The past few days had been very hectic. Waking up hell early (for me at least). Especially today, had to wake up at 730am and was working all the way till 4+. Camotose instantly the moment i came home. At night, whilst the gibbous moon was hanging brilliantly in the deep dark sky, sweetie and I went next door to join his family in a mooncake feast. Clever me bought Swensen's Ice-cream mooncake n it was a hit (since everybody else's moonies were the boring traditional ones)! it was snapped the moment we cut! Bought Chewy Chocolate, rockmelon, Hazelnut chocolate and durian. think the favourite was Durian. I didn't manage to taste all, but the smiles on their faces sufficed. SCORED POINTS! yeah!

Talking about moonies, I was a little irritated that sweetie, knowing that the festival was this sunday, did not pre-empt me and opened a blank cheque that he'd go Four Seasons to buy durian mooncakes for my mom. Well, it was Wednesday then, n the whole wk, he was so into sports -- tennis today, golf tmw, tennis the next day again. Suddenly he thinks he is Nadal or Federal. so poor wifey had to rush around like a mad dog and buy three boxes of different mooncakes for the festival. One for MIL, another for my dearest mommy and last was the swensen's moonies for granny in law. wanted to go back Parkway to buy the Yam cum pumkin mooncakes today, but it was all sold out liao! even those at Crystal jade -- some western Oreo cookies n cream mooncakes were sold out. I was so disappointed la. Gotto wait next yr liao! Told sweetie to go get them today since he doesnt have to work, but he failed to carry out the task. Bought some other lame cakehouse's moonies instead. with Yolk somemore! YUCKS la. i hate yolks! Grrrrrr...but ok, the fact that he bothered to go down n get it for me was just a wee bit touching.

came back home, Friends were all at our place watching soccer. It's as if it's their house. Not that we mind la..haha. took out our Secondary year book and was reminicsing the past. ooo, i was complimented. Someone said i looked much prettier now! I must admit, I WAS SUCH AN UGLY DUCKLING then! with that big specs and that ugly mushroom head. wah lau! Embarrassing!
*Growl* all the tea and mooncakes have gotten my tummy queesy.

Happy Mid Autumn Festival!!!

PS: Do you know how did this festival come about? I'm sure Julius can tell us. He did the history of the festival last yr during show and tell. So adorable, he still can remember!

Back to life, Back to reality!

I absolutely suck @ putting in text on my pictures. It always turns out tiny! Grrr. Anyway, this is my latest buy from F21. Gorgeous isn't it? It's a tunic, not a dress. But coz I'm shorter than our caucasion counterparts, I guess I can buy this at a fraction of the price and pass it off as a dress! Yeepee (Let's hope it doesn't shrink though)

Just look at the horrendous Jam! Even at second link where we have to pay so much for the toll!

Cam-whoring

This was the ulu ulu place we had our lunch.
YUM! The soup was delicious. NOw i know why my baby loves it. Must learn how to cook it! The pork was heavenly too. that one might need more skill. Give me time ok!

Here we are, at the scenic Pulai Desaru Resort! Selemat Datang?

An absolute display of their lack in artistic talents. Worst of all, they didn't prepare as told before my arrival! In addition, they sent someone from housekeeping to lay these "fresh petals" (probably from their garden) AFTER i've settled down in the room. Guess what? The stupid housekeeping didn't knocked before entering! Talk about service! Luckily I was decent!

Feeling bored at the lounge, thus cam-whoring with my feet. haha

Loads of kids playing games like table-tennis, pool and dart. it's a playground. Or should i say a Zoo. Take about an Escapade. Sigh
Chilling out

Time to say bye bye

HELLO SPOA RESTAURANT! Kelong style! been a long time since i've been here. It's still the same rustic feel. no change. Surprised?
Aiyo..look at those cheeks again. sigh. Lipo on cheeks perhaps?
The next few pictures are probably gonna shock u. It's the meal my sweetie and I had. Yes. this meal is for two and we actually FINISHED IT to the very last drop!
Gong gong was Sedup with their belachan! The steam crab was heavenly too! The meal cost us a whoppin 134.80 (RM OF COURSE!)
However, this place is not a place for the weak hearted. (aka hygiene conscious)

Spa Escapade.

Well sort of. That was what I was trying to arrange for sweetie and me. Unfortunately, things didn't turn out the way they were. I booked Pulai Desaru Beach Resort for the wkend (coz it's the only time in the whole freaking week where I have some time for myself!). After making sure that the relevant "authorities" like ppl i m doing work for, n parents, were informed, sweetie and I headed off at 1030am. Reached Tuas Causeway at around 11am and it wasn't till 12+ that we entered malaysia! We were soooo galvanished with boredom in the car that we started reading the Straits Times! The traffic was simply still at times!

Finally after entering the foreign land, we headed to this ulu ulu place near Palm Resort where sweetie often play golf with cousin. Gosh, I don't know how these people know of such place..SO ULU! but the food is delicious! There were two shops selling exactly the same thing by the road, but one of them had four times as many customers as the other. Strange isn't it? Fengshui? hmmm

After a 1.5 hour drive via Kota Tingi, we arrived at Desaru. My baby is sooo smart when it comes to roads in Malaysia...but somehow, he's an absolute tourist in Singapore. He claims in Singapore, there's always me around. *GRrrr* Was disappointed upon checking in. Upon entering room 230, we found 3 single beds in a big big room! WHY DO I NEED 3 FREAKING BEDS when there's two of us! moreover, when confirming, I've written to the resort to have my room nicely decorated with flower petals as I wanted it as a surprise for my darling..(hmm, such things should be done by the man, but what the hell)..guess what? no PETALS! n best of all, when we went back to the reception to request for a room with King size bed, without checking, the lady claims there's no more rooms with such beds!! I was pissed! U think I've never worked in a resort before! If such a service came from a 5 star hotel, the GM would have to bow down to me! A veteren then came and handled my case and "upgraded" me to some other room. Claimed there's no more garden view rooms. Sweetie was so pissed he said just give us any room, whatever view. No view also ok! once she has cut the keys for us, she informed that since it was a last minute "upgrade" her housekreping did not arrange for petals. YAH RITE! as if they've arranged for it BEFORE my arrival! LAME. plus i arrived jus after check-in time! it's not like i was early! The whole place was pretty disappointing. The beach was disgusting. Sand was course (ok, most sand ARE course) but there were leaves and twigs all over. N huge boulders in the sea covered with algae. Yucks right? The pool was alright. Plagued with screaming children. talk about having a spa escapade.

The spa part now -- our appt was at 5pm. we arrived 10 min before n the therapists were still bz. Fine, we waited. Were served with ginger tea with a chipped cup. Thanks. Finally after a long wait (at about 515), the therapists arrived n led us to a room. yes. literally a room, not a spa-rish room, but their guest room. there was a balcony outside and apparently there were two customers from previous treatment who were still there enjoying their juices and chit-chatting!!they were so loud and the therapists simply switched on the radio to a higher volume! Grrrrr again. the whole massage of 60 mins was so so only. the fellow had no strength. maybe too tired. Pity them too, but hey, I'm also a paying customer k! After the massage, they woke me up, left the room and NEVER CAME BACK! talk about service. I guess there's none. I'm so gonna save up and book myself a decent Spa package somewhere else the next time. This time too rush, just had to go cheap (ie. RM484 for a night's stay, 60 min massage for two, breakfast...hmm, i guess we shouldn't be complaining too much la huh) BUTtt, this place is still getting the thumbs down from me.

That nite, we had BBQ buffet dinner., The spread wasn't great to be honest, except for the flower crabs which I had lots of. Wanted to have some chicken satay badly, but each time i went to the station, There was only Mutton. Guess why? There were loads of Singaporeans at that place too! they were displaying their Kiasu-ism by standing in front of the BBQ pit for the chef to cook the satays! grrrr..it's ok, the kopitiam right at my house has great satays too. once for 50cents! HRMPH. that dinner cost us RM $55 each. Not cheap for their standards. Slept extremely early that night. 1030pm. SHIOK! Wish everyday can be like that, then I wont have so many breakouts! but damn it, i woke up at 314am to pee. grrr

Sunday came. after breakie, we went for a swim. I swam 10 laps whilst baby basked in the sun. afterwhich, we lazed around till check-out time. SHIOK. time to head back Singapore. I suggested that we have lunch at Pasir Gudang, Tanjong Puteri Resort. It's been a long time since we've visited that place for seafood. Thus sweetie was gamed too. only problem, we didn't know how to go from Desaru! being the adventurous us, we followed the signs and guess what? WE MADE IT! (didn't even get lost!) The amount of food we ate was shocking! *BURP* At 340pm, we headed towards Johor. Bad jam. As usual. Singaporeans simply dont have courtesy. If only they take their positions and occasionally allow a car or two into their lanes instead of tail-gating, thing wont be so bad. There was even a minor accident with two cars along the way. Really disgusted by how Kiasu Singaporeans are. Even when it comes to getting through customs. SO what if they are there a car before me? Is there gonna be a prize waiting for them? Come on! we took about 1 hour before we cleared both customs. As usual, the Singapore side was the slow mo.

Finally, I'm hm now, blogging. :-). This trip, despite the few hiccups, has its plus points. I totally did not switch on my phone for a day! great move! coz the fellow whom i've informed I'll be away, called me on Sunday. Good lor, continue taking me for granted and always askin me to pick things up at the last minute. Some people are simply irresponsbile! Thinking I'll always be available. best of all, I DID inform....but did u listen? Well i have proof that u did. Your Sms. How to do business like that? sell to me la. haha

ok. To wrap things up, baby and I felt semi-rejuvanated after this short trip. hope that we'll be charged up for the coming wk. :-)

Take a break guys. Don't always work work work.

Ramblings on Teacher's Day

Totally melts the heart. Thanks Sarah!
Really wish you'd do me proud by pullin thru your difficult subjects Marcus!

It was teacher's day on mOnday. Happy Teacher's Day to all teachers and TUTORS out there!

It's a day with mixed feelings for me. On the one hand, the young and innocent little children showered me with loads of gifts (some of which i think I'm a little too old to use..nevertheless, i'm young at heart!), but on the other hand, sad that some of my students did not even wish me. I even had to listen to how some of them celebrated the day at school. Thanks lor :-(. Especially those whom I've been teaching for eons. 3 in particular who always gave me gifts (on mommy's instructions of coz) made my heart ache. In their eyes I'm like a big sister, but this year, nothing. not even a greeting. Heart-shattering right? think that I've been thru thick and thin with them for years. Ok fine, i did not see them on the actual day, but hey, there are some who wished me and made little hearts for me like a wk before. yet on the day itself, i din get shit from anyone. :-(

It'd makan time again!!

LET THE PICTURES DO THE TALKING

Guess who made this Big breakfast set for me? What a pleasant surprise to see breakfast on the table when u get out of bed. Thanks 老公！
In case u can't tell what's this (which i certainly dont blame u since it's soo artistically presented), it's Cod fish with some sauce made up of dark soya sauce, oyster sauce sugar etc etc.... Finally my cod's not shattered after frying! Thanks for Kristie's Ah ma's secret recipe!
Felt like having some meat that night, so here we have it -- Cajun chicken!
This was the spread I whipped up in errrr half an hour or so? Not bad ok!! hUGE improvement! Ended lessons at 630pm, went to GIANT to buy the raw materials, bia go home, on the way, rained cats and dogs. Couldn't see where i was going, had to go on snail's pace. Finally reach home and it was close to 8pm! Darling had a conference, so asked me to cook, so here's my report card! Not bad right? I'm so so so proud of myself! *pat pat*

Feeling Gothic

Quite chio right? Dont be decieved with the 4th finger, it's not that I did a really bad french mani, but I kpo, added some gems under it. Stupid me, added black thinking it'd illuminate the whole thing. Unfortunately, those cheapo gems loses its shine once the topcoat is added.

With the hype over that problematic kid on the rocks, I decided to pamper myself a little with manicure. Not that I've got loads of time to spare, just feeling a little vain. Can't indulge in such things too often. The rubber stick on nail arts are freaking ex!