Tapestry of 3 Kids, 1 Grandma and 1 Dog

I know I'm probably one step behind but am only now starting to learn about Photoshop.

:)

Family Day

Spent the day with my parents and my sis and family.

First went to Pasir Ris Park in the morning, was strongly reminded of Patch.

Headed home after lunch, where TJ got acquainted with one of our monkeys.

Ended the day with dinner near my sis' place, where TJ was in his element.

If You Can't Bring Mohamed to the Mountain ...

Ma and Pa are coming to Singapore this weekend. Yippee!!!

:D

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Only wished Patch were coming too.

:(

Lousy Food Critic

Ed and I went to the food court for dinner tonight (rather anti-climatic after two consecutive nights' of fancy dining nonetheless highly necessary in light of our tight budget).

Although most Malaysians find Singaporean food "tasteless" and "bland", I actually like the food here, in particular the food courts. In fact, I daresay that there is not one food court that has disappointed me (thus far, anyways). Admittedly, some food courts are better than others but all food courts have something to offer. Ed agrees with me, by the way.

So, either it's simply a common misconception amongst Malaysians that Singaporean food is not good or I'm a lousy food critic. Anton Ego (Ratatouille) would be disgusted with me.

;)

Happy Birthday to Me

Can't believe I'm finally 29. Maybe it's too early to judge but, so far, I kinda like being 29 better than 28.

My big day turned out to be quite small after all. I went to work as usual, told none of my colleagues that it was my birthday, finished my work as fast as I could and came straight home. Ed and I went out for dinner to celebrate my birthday. I had wanted Thai or Vietnamese but we ended up having Peranakan cuisine. The food was really quite good, sadly the pics we took don't do the food justice (we were so hungry that we didn't get around to taking pictures until after we had finished).

I love my birthday pressie from Ed. :)

Early Birthday Celebration

Tomorrow's my birthday! Had an early birthday celebration tonight with my sis and family. We went to Stewhaus for German cuisine.

Afer dinner, we headed home for dessert: my birthday cake. :)

Saturday Spring-Clean

Ed and I spent today cleaning up the house. Ordinarily, I'd be worried that we're turning into one of those old and boring couples who have nothing better to do with their weekends. But hey, we're on a very tight budget (see entry below) and we're planning to go out tomorrow and Monday to celebrate my birthday.

So.

;)

Tight Budget

Thanks to our upcoming trip to Phuket (end November), Ed and I are on a tight budget. Combine that with a fancy dinner at Al Forno's (Italian) yesterday and we're now on a very tight budget.

;p

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Was looking forward to playing tennis tomorrow. A friend had already booked the courts at his place and we had planned to go over for tennis in the night. But alas, it was not meant to be. The same friend and his wife had a big falling out so tennis night has been called off.

:(

Wednesday Blues

I'm starting to notice a pattern. On Mondays, I go to work full of energy and enthusiasm. On Tuesday, I'm still energetic but slightly less enthusiastic. On Wednesday, I'm starting to feel a little tired but am still somewhat enthusiastic. On Thursday, I'm very tired and look forward to the weekend. On Friday, I'm brain dead and can only count down the hours to Saturday.

I honestly believe we should all work 4 days and rest 3 days. Sigh.

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Just realised that I won't be able to go for my company trip because it coincides with my trip to Phuket. Not sure whether that's good or bad.

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Ratatouille

Went to see Ratatouille today. I loved it! You know how good Pixar is when they can make a rat look charming and adorable. I've made up my mind to go get myself a rat now.

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Stopped by the petrol station for a car cash on our way home after the movie. The guy washing our car musta been easily 70 years old!?! Ed and I felt so awkward sitting in our car with the air-cond and radio on while he washed our car. Never mind that he finished washing our car much faster than the guy in front. Never mind that the guy in front started before him. Never mind that he didn't put enough soap on the left side of the car. I mean, how do you tell a 70-year-old man that you're not happy with his work?

... ...

Ed and I tried going to MY park today. More accurately, we had planned to go for some exercise but, as usual, we overslept. ;p

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Monday Blues

It's Monday and it's raining ...

:(

Country Managers Forum

I attended my first Country Managers Forum today at the Oriental Hotel.

I wasn't entirely looking forward to it because I'd thought I'd feel left out and bored for the most part of it. Surprisingly, I felt neither. As it turned out, I already know most of the Country Managers and they, in turn, remember me from my three-and-a-half-year tenure with the Malaysia office. As for the forum content itself, I found myself genuinely interested and actually able to follow the flow of discussion.

Not bad considering I was the youngest attendee and I'm NOT a Country Manager. ;)

I Feel Good

I feel sooooo good.

I've been working on a problem since Monday and I finally solved it today. I almost gave up several times but I didn't, and I finally did it.

Nothing beats this feeling.

:)

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I've started to look forward to Wednesday nights because of "Ugly Betty".

A New Discovery

Am quite excited. Yesterday evening, after having dinner out, Ed and I took a detour while walking home. We came across a sign that says "Siglap Park Connector" and decided to be adventurous and follow the path. We came across lots and lots of people jogging, strolling, walking their dog, or cycling.

About 200m down the path, we saw it: a small, lovely, neighbourhood park. We later learned that the park's name is Teluk Kurau Park. It's not as big or famous or happening as East Coast Park, but it's a park nonetheless. A park we can go to exericse, a park we can go to have picnics, a park we can go just to hang out.

In short, it's MY park. :)

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First Week

I survived my first week back at work. Am now sick, down with the flu.

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Although it's too early to judge, I've come to realise some pros and cons about my new job.

Pros:

• Better job scope --- more thinking, less doing


• Better job title --- more senior, sounds more impressive


• Better pay --- higher (duh)


• Better notebook --- new, smaller, lighter, faster

Cons:

• Longer hours --- no more flexi hours, no more working from home (sob)


• No online chatting --- company blocks access to all messenger software


• Lousy seat location --- right in front of MD and HR Director (boss), so no slacking


• More lonely --- no colleagues as I'm the only person in the "department". On the flip side, this also means no one really knows what I'm doing so I'm pretty much independent (read: flexi hours!)

So far, the pros seem to outweigh the cons, but for how long?

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By the way, Happy Belated Birthday, Malaysia!

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