Leap Year

Feb 29. Just another day?

For me, yes. Yet another day at work. Well, a few "different" things happened today too, some of which I am not at the liberty of mentioning up here yet, just in case.

It's sad to say farewell to one my closest colleagues today. But as usual, I'm truly happy for him that he's found another place where he can embark on the next phase of professional growth. Yet, the workplace will be much quieter and lacklustre without him. And I'll have one less confidante to share my grouses with. Sigh ...

After coffee with a couple of colleagues (yes, we shared our grouses), I rode the NEL home as usual. A little girl, about 4, boarded the train with her mom around Boon Keng or so. She's such a little bundle of Sunshine! Let me tell you why.

When the lady beside the little girl alighted, the girl urged another lady standing in front of her to take the seat. She was so earnest that the lady who was hesitant at first, finally had no choice but to sit down. Then, the little girl started chatting to her, leading me to think that they probably knew each other. But no! They were complete strangers! It was Little Miss Sunshine who basically brought the cheer on.

And when we all alighted at Sengkang, Sunshine said goodbye to me and an old lady next to me. She completely turned my dreary day around. There is so much optimism in her that it seems nothing could go wrong. The sad part is, as she continues this journey of life, how much and how fast will dark clouds move in to hide the bright Sunshine? Is that inevitable?

Alright ... it's not right of me to paint a bleak picture of the future at the start of the weekend :) In any case, I am still optimistically hopeful about many things. Just that I'm a little tired of playing the waiting game. Nevertheless ...

HAPPY WEEKEND! Let's MARCH on.

It's a small world!

So last Wednesday, I received an email from this person from Panasonic enquiring the work culture at my company. He had found my email googling because my company's website was down. I replied and so it seemed that he was scheduled for an interview on Friday. That was why he was trying to find out so much about the company.

Over the last few days, we corresponded a few times via office email (dangerous! I was quite relunctant in replying too truthfully) and this morning, he gave me his MSN because he wanted to ask more questions.

And that's how I found out that he's the younger brother of my ex-classmate! When he said he was from Malacca, I was already like, wah, 这么巧? Then, when he said I was same age as his sister, I asked for her name and it turned out that she's my ex-classmate! Lol ... his sis and I were not that close so I'm not sure if she remembers me.

It's just amazing how small this world can get and how big a part fate can play.

My Lovely Saturday

I promised myself not to work, or even think about work, this weekend. I had been spending the past several weekends, including the Chinese New Year one, mulling over issues at work. So my friends and I had a date for some millenia-old Greek sculptures specially flown in from Le Louvre on display at the National Museum.

After the exhibition, we had an early afternoon tea at Dome, Singapore Art Museum. Seems like an exhibition, Primary Colours, by Chinese artist Feng Zhengjie is going on. I'll probably pop by this Friday evening, when the museum is open to the public for free. Hopefully, that exhibition is too. Well, anyway, we had our dessert and drinks and chatted for about an hour as Fauzie was sleepy cuz she had been at work all morning and Karen had to return home to take care of Maia so Greg could go out.

I didn't have much to do but since it had been sunny, I didn't really feel like doing anything much either. I'd just pop into Plaza Singapura for a while and then head home. At Basement 1, I got enthralled by the fish at a new fish shop (probably not that new but I'd never stopped by previously) and spent an hour admiring them.

Unexpected Find on Facebook

Haha ... I'm really surprised to find a friend request from the most unlikeliest friend of mine whom I thought would never join Facebook. He's Chinese and is not very fluent in English so I've never thought for a moment Facebook would interest him the least bit. That is also why I've not invited him to join. But he has.

Haha ... I'm ranting but it's just that I can't help but be amused at the far-reaching fingers of this phenomenon known as Facebook.

Another fallen star ...

What happens when a star dies?

It's beginning to feel as though if I see another report on the news about the death of a celebrity, I'll just shrug and say, "That's just the way it is."

Hardly two months into the new year, a third brilliant star, and this one was truly the one most brilliant star, had her light snubbed by the invisible fingers of death. Lydia Sum, the 开心果 of Chinese entertainment, succumbed to liver cancer this morning at age 60. Unlike the other two deaths, her long battle with cancer has sort of prepared people of her eventual departure. But still, I can't help but feel sad.

Only her shows that form my childhood memories remain.

Quiet Moments

On a whim, I took leave today. Woke up not feeling like going to work. Besides, I still have one more day of 2007 leave to clear and I don't foresee many chances of my doing so before the deadline of end Feb. So I might as well continue this week-long holiday and indulge myself. R&R to the max! Hahahahaha ...

Well, now that the day's almost over, I'm happy to say that it's been very unproductive. Haha ... I'm just taking it easy ok! The weeks ahead will be super chiong I tell ya.

After I managed to drag myself out of bed at around 10 am, I cleaned our little kitchen a bit. It's really in need of some scrubbing since we hardly did any spring cleaning before the new year ... after which, I took a leisurely walk to the food court for some kopi gao (thick coffee). While sipping the delicious caffeine-rich beverage, I rewatched some video clips we'd shot during our holiday trips last year. Damn, the 九寨沟 ones made me wanna pack my bags and begin my Tibet adventure right away!

So off I went to the library to further research my trip. But there were few books on Tibet travel so I decided that an online search might be more rewarding. I'm planning for August. A friend in Chengdu tells me it's better to visit in summer, in fact it's a good time cuz that's when there'd be lots of festivities. Still, the guide book authors seem to think otherwise cuz July, Aug and much of Sep are the monsoon months. Hmm ... more research required.

Hope the trips come through though my project schedules are pretty much wobbly at this point so I'm not quite sure when I can really steal some time off to fulfil this wanderlust ... but for now, I'm enjoying my quiet moments at home.

Just me, my music and my book. This is luxury.

Hey ... Happy Year of MICKEY!

So I realise I've been very inactive on the blog front this year. Hehe ... well, that's cuz nothing much, or rather, nothing exciting to update. The first month of 2008 flew by just like that. ZIP!!!

And now, we're into the second week of Feb. WHAT?!!! Oh boy, the Lunar New Year holidays are over just like that. I'm on leave tomorrow (though I had applied for my leave way before, the office won't be open tomorrow either cuz the best henggang day for this year falls on Tue so all staff are forced to take compulsory leave tomorrow. How unfair!).

Can't say I'm exactly looking forward to starting work in this supposedly fabulous year of the Mouse. Not because I adore Mickey, but it's true by feng shui terms that Dragons enjoy great fortune in the year of the Mouse cuz the most magnificent of the zodiac animals appears to be the chummiest with the hmmm ... for most people anyway, the pest that lurks the sewers of the world (perhaps with the exception of New York City where Ninja Turtles rule the sewers instead? Hehe ... oh but not to forget that they, too, have a RAT Ninja Shifu!)

Okie ... enough of my crap blog talk.

MAY EVERYONE ENJOY A PROSPEROUS YEAR OF THE MICKEY.

MAY ALL OUR DREAMS COME TRUE.

MAY WE ALL BE HEALTHY AND HAPPY

EVERY SECOND, EVERY MINUTE, EVERY HOUR OF THE DAY.

Pagers // Tamagotchis

Had a gathering last night with my uni friends - Peiru, Meifeng and Colin - at Colin's pub - Check In (Robertson Walk). He also invited one of his dive friends, Winnie, and she's quite a funny one. We started reminiscing about uni days, how we have known each other for 12 friggin' years and all those time spent in between lectures and tutorials laughing our heads off at the dumbest jokes at our favourite spot "where there was wind" in one secluded corner of Bizad. Those were the carefree days.

So we had different classes last time and how did we communicate to make sure we gathered at our meeting spot? Remember the PAGER?! So the joke suddenly turned on Colin and how he didn't reply our beeps. Winnie said, "Remember tamagotchi? Colin didn't have a pager ... he was playing with his tamagotchi all the time while you girls thought he was replying to his messages!"

That got us all rolling with laughter. Hmm ... so we now know, huh, after 12 years that all the time we thought Colin was replying to us "Okay, I'm on my way", he was actually saying, "Are you hungry, little Dino?" Ha ha ha ha ha ... It was a really fun get-together last night.

By the way, Check In sometime to my friend's pub okie? It's a very cosy place where you can actually talk. Heart-to-heart if you'd like.

缘之烩

New drama - 缘之烩 Taste of Love - premieres on Channel 8 come 22 Jan. Think it should be the 9 PM slot after 黄金路 Path of Gold since Kinship II is a marathon series. What a breath of fresh air! Path of Gold is getting unbearable ... hmph ... I seldom watch it but today, a glimpse of Kaida's situation made me cry.

Taste of Love makes me tear a little too because it's MC King's final drama. The show's available on Mobtv. If I'm not wrong, anyone who signs up (not to subscribe, just sign up) can watch the first three preview episodes for free. There's only one episode currently available but alas, 帅哥 has not appeared yet! To find out who, go watch la! Haha ... I'm watching for sure cuz now, I'm also in love with the theme song :)

我是你的天空
主唱：欧得样

用一颗心来感觉你的爱
只希望你能明白
我的心中也只有你
我也只想要保护你

从第一天起我就爱上你
因为你真的很贴心
你的笑容在我心里
我现在唱这一首歌给你

我要和你手牵手 永远不回头
一起勇敢向前走
如果有什么波折 有我的胸口
紧紧贴在你左右

一直握着你的手 永远不回头
因为你是我的梦
永不放弃因为爱你
若你是星星 我是你的天空

(click below to listen to the song!)

MC King

Strange to be reading someone's blog after his demise.

MC's last blog entry was just last week, which was just before the new year, which was just before his untimely departure on 4 Jan. Like all of us, he had wishes and dreams for the new year which were most immediately cut short. They took it all away from him just like that.

His funeral was yesterday, I think. had the chance to peek at an extensive coverage in somebody's Wanbao on the train earlier.

Life is so unpredictable. The only certainty in life is uncertainty.

HAPPY G8 08!!

May all our dreams come true in this g8 new year of 2008! :)

上海-黄山 20 - 27 Dec 07

I'm back in hot, humid, boring Singapore! :( Oh well, I've had some good times during the trip so there're pictures to share! There were more hiccups this time round compared to the 九寨沟 trip in June ... apparently there was some itinerary mix-up ... what we had been given when we booked the trip was not the one faxed over to the Chinese agency.

Also, the tour guide this time was not as conscientious ... she didn't even know what's supposed to be on the itinerary when we were in other cities! See, we stopped by 苏州 and 无锡 on the way and each had their own local guide. Apparently, one of the spots in 无锡 was missed and our miss tour guide didn't even know! Our group members made a lot of noise throughout the trip to gain back what we had been promised so in the end, it's not so bad ... we were compensated somehow ... for me, that's not too important as long as we all had fun.

As it was a small group of 14, we got to know each other pretty well, and hopefully we'll be in touch as friends so that's cool. Especially the 3 lovely Indonesian girls who remind me of what youth means ... haha ... speaking like an old woman :)

At Chenghuang Miao in Shanghai, where one can find the famous Nanxiang xiaolongbao ... we didn't though :(

It was 冬至 on 22 December so there's this giant bowl of 汤圆 at Chenghuang Miao.

Old Chinese architecture chracterises Chenghuang Miao.

People here air pork like they do laundry ...

Money offered in exchange for good luck at the 雷峰塔 (Leifeng Pagoda) in 杭州 (Hangzhou). 雷峰塔 is the pagoda that trapped a 1000-year-old snake spirit, Madam White Snake in the Legend of Madam White Snake. It is now in ruins after collapsing in 1924 because the people of Hangzhou stole bricks from the pagoda. Why steal bricks? Buddhist scriptures - 经 (pronounced as jing) - were kept inside the bricks. Because it sounds much like gold - 金 (pronounced as jin) - people stole the bricks hoping to find gold in them. Besides, people thought that since the pagoda could suppress a snake spirit, the bricks could at least fend off snakes which could destroy crops and silkworms which were pivotal to their livelihood.

The remains of the collapsed pagoda.

The West Lake (西湖)

Bells hanging from the roof of 雷峰塔

Gotta look dainty when surrounded by great natural beauty ... hehe ...

Posing in front of 雷峰塔.

It is said that 西湖 in the moonlight is more beautiful than when it is covered in snow, which is more beautiful than when it is shrouded in fog, which is more beautiful than when rain falls on its tranquil waters, which is more beautifiul than when its mirror surface glistens in bright sunlight. It was very misty the morning we took a boat ride on the West Lake.

This is the entrance to an old Chinese village in the province of 安徽 (Anhui) called 宏村 (Hong Cun)

Didn't realise until I looked back at my pictures - the 2 men look funny. Haha ...

The bridge where a scene from Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon was filmed.

Old style homeroom in the village, which is not in use anymore. How fitting of these 2 school teachers to be seated here.

A couple of villagers practising the art of Chinese calligraphy.

Cute little boy!

The hike up 黄山 (Huangshan) in light drizzle (or maybe it's just fog?)

The brownie and the toadstool. Haha ...

连心锁 (interlocking hearts) - couples who make it to the top of the mountain will intertwine two padlocks to seal their commitment to the relationship which will hopefully be as solid as the mountain they have just climbed.

The thick mist rendered our trip up 黄山 virtually worthless cuz we couldn't see anything! This must be the best shot I've got of what little of the mountain's famed beauty that peeked through the thick fog for a few sheer seconds ...

A stone craftsman at work.

At a bonsai garden which reminds me of the topiary in Edward Scissorhands.

Er ... that's no bodhi tree though ...

The eye of 黄山 (Huangshan)!

This ancient boulder brought from the bed of 太湖 (Tai Hu) resembles a dragon, my zodiac sign. Or it's all in the mind?

The shopping street in 苏州 (Suzhou).

That's the Suzhou Industrial Park behind us.

The bus and its brief moment of strike. Hehe ...

2 x Miss Malaysia.

Squaring off with e=mc2.

View from the outer Bund on a clear night.

View of the Oriental Pearl Tower on a foggy night, from the top of a boat cruising along 黄浦江 (Huangpu River).

The new friends we made on this trip!

Elvin in the Top 10!

Yeah! Elvin's one of the 红星大奖 2007 十大男艺人. I'm happy for him although I didn't contribute a cent to that V ... hehe. The short speech he gave touched me. Having just seen the preview of Kinship II yesterday, I must say he has a lot of work to do as an actor. The good thing is he knows it, and he's taking criticism in good stride, and he knows that there's light at the end of the tunnel (well, he said something about intense darkness before the first light of dawn). Gambatte Elvin!

Personally, I think he should look to Ivy Lee as a role model. Her acting was terrible when she first started but with many years of hard work, she's now a brilliant actress. She doesn't win this year but she is in the Top 10 Female Artistes list (hehe ... I'm mean, but it's heartening to see that only 3 of the 7 Princesses make it to the Top 10 - Rui En, Felicia and Jesseca - all of whom I like!). The Best Actress award went to Yvonne Lim. She truly deserves it because although I didn't follow the show, the few times I caught it, I watched in awe of Yvonne's performance. Coincidentally, that show - Metamorphosis - is drama of the year (I was rooting for Like Father, Like Daughter although The Peak was also one of the nominees).

Thought Fann's little onstage reunion with all her 'husbands' was comical. Very entertaining (and that Luo Zhixiang is freaking cute too la ... haha) But as usual, I'm quite turned off by Christopher Lee's act-cute-cool-whatever antics. Michelle Chia and Shaun Chen are a cute couple (too bad Shaun's not in the Top 10!), I'm really quite envious she's hooked up with the second best-looking guy in Singapore! You go, girl!

About the best-looking one, he turned up for the Kinship II promo yesterday in a yellow checked shirt, and his hair was back to black. Absolutely sexy, I like :) Sorry, the picture quality sucks cuz I went really late and was seated high up there near the door (Row N) :(

(L-R) : Brandon Wong, Elvin Ng, Chen Tianwen, San Yow (Wen Long), Alan Tern, Eelyn Kok, Carrie Yeo, Hong Huifang, Xiang Yun, 97.2 FM DJ.