兩種老公，兩種人生

Came across this on Facebook today and I wanted to keep this. Pretty cool, not practical much because of the actual world we live in. Lol. But one can still hope. :)

【 A 】
她：「老公。幫我接杯水唄。」
他：「石頭剪子佈。誰輸了誰去。」
她：「算了.. 我自己去吧..」

【 B 】
他們坐在一起看韓劇。她起身。
他：「幹嗎去？」
她：「去接杯水。」
他：「你坐這看吧。我去給你接。」

女人要求不高，她對男人唯一的要求就是「疼她」，
你可以什麼都沒有，只要你疼她，她就有足夠的勇氣把自己的下半輩子交給你..


【 A 】
他晚上下班。給她打電話，
他：「寶貝兒。我晚上和朋友出去吃飯。」
她：「你不是答應我陪我逛街的嗎？」
他：「改天吧！」

她默默地流淚.. 為什麼每次都是這樣？

【 B 】
他下班的時候打電話給她:
他：「親愛的，別人給我一張奧運會的票。巴西隊啊！一會兒我去看球了啊。」
她：「哦。這樣啊，好吧。」
他：「怎麼不高興了？」
她：「你忘了，上周說好今天我朋友和她男朋友請我倆吃飯啊。」

他：「哎呀，對不起親愛的.. 我忘記了.. 那我把票給別人吧，我陪你去吃飯。」
她：「不要了，吃飯可以改天，或者你先去看，我們等你。」
他：「那不行，答應你的事情必須得做到。再說你自己跟他倆在一起像電燈泡似的，你肯定不舒服啊.. 」
她：「沒事的..」

沒等她說完，他很強勢的告訴她，
他：「好了，聽我的，你收拾一下，我一會兒去接你..」

其實女人不是不懂事，只是她需要碰上一個懂事的男人，
其實情侶之間是可以互相的..


【 A 】
他：「我晚上出去吃飯了啊。」
她：「幾點回家？」
他：「九點之前肯定回家。」
九點半，
她：「你怎麼還不回來啊？」
他：「十點，肯定回家。」

十一點，十二點，一點，兩點..
後來，她不再打電話催他..
因為她知道，對於不守承諾的男人，一切「肯定」都是「未必」..

【 B 】
他：「我晚上出去吃飯。九點之前肯定結束。然後我倆去看電影。」
她：「你能那麼快就結束嗎？」
他：「放心吧。我答應你了就一定能！」
快到九點的時候。他：「收拾一下吧，我馬上就到你家了！」

信任，
是在一件一件小事中建立起來的..


【 A 】
她生理期，身體不舒服。頂著疼痛洗衣服，收拾屋子。
他坐在電腦前面玩網絡遊戲..

她幹完活，躺在床上，長出了一口氣。
他看了她一眼：「寶貝兒，辛苦了！」
然後轉過頭，繼續玩他的遊戲..

【 B 】
她生理期，很難受，起身準備洗衣服。
他拽住她：「你去床上躺著，我來！」
她：「你會做家務嗎？你自己洗過衣服嗎？」
他：「不會做可以學著做啊，以後你身體不舒服的時候，我當然得獨擋一面！」

女人需要的不只是甜言蜜語，哄她幾句，她也許會給你一個微笑..
但是實實在在的呵護，她會對你一輩子的感恩，
並且會回報給你一個溫暖的家..


【 A 】
她給他拿了一包榛子，然後她去洗衣服。
回來的時候，榛子已經被他吃得所剩無幾。

【 B 】
她拿給他一包榛子，然後自己去收拾屋子。
回來的時候，她看見電腦前面放了一堆剝好的榛子仁。

女人很感性..
她炫耀你對她的體貼，就好像炫耀克拉鑽一樣。
這麼廉價的買賣，用一點心思就能收穫無比的財富..


【 A 】
他說：「你是最好的..」
她問：「我哪好？」
他：「學歷高、能力強、長得漂亮、身材又好，對我又這麼好..」

她笑了..

【 B 】
他：「你是我所遇到最好的女孩兒..」
她：「我哪好？」
他：「你對身邊的每個人都很友善、很無私，對人對生活總是很感恩，一個人有一顆善良的心，會讓周圍的人感覺到溫暖，你是我見過最善良的女孩兒，傷害你的人都應該下地獄..！」

她哭了..


分享：

一個人，是因為你對他好，所以覺得你好..
一個人，是因為懂得你的好，所以想要對你好..

幸福的愛人，
首先應該是 一對彼此欣賞的知己..

My invitation, to you.

I've really taken a liking to Oriah Mountain Dreamer because she speaks to me when I'm at my lowest, and the things she writes about are exactly my thoughts and words I dare not utter to people who mean more than they think they do to me.

I wrote previously that "If you care for a person, tell them today."
I'm sorry, today I tell you that I am a coward.

So please, what Oriah is saying here, I am saying it. To you.

The Invitation

By Oriah

It doesn't interest me what you do for a living.
I want to know what you ache for and if you dare to dream
of meeting your heart’s longing.

It doesn't interest me how old you are.
I want to know if you will risk looking like a fool
for love
for your dream
for the adventure of being alive.

It doesn't interest me what planets are squaring your moon...
I want to know if you have touched the centre of your own sorrow
if you have been opened by life’s betrayals
or have become shriveled and closed from fear of further pain.

I want to know if you can sit with pain
mine or your own
without moving to hide it
or fade it
or fix it.

I want to know if you can be with joy
mine or your own
if you can dance with wildness
and let the ecstasy fill you
to the tips of your fingers and toes
without cautioning us
to be careful
to be realistic
to remember the limitations
of being human.

It doesn't interest me if the story you are telling me is true.
I want to know if you can disappoint another to be true to yourself.
If you can bear the accusation of betrayal and not betray your own soul.
If you can be faithless and therefore trustworthy.

I want to know if you can see Beauty even when it is not pretty every day.
And if you can source your own life from its presence.

I want to know if you can live with failure
yours and mine
and still stand at the edge of the lake
and shout to the silver of the full moon,
“Yes.”

It doesn't interest me to know where you live
or how much money you have.
I want to know if you can get up after the night of grief and despair
weary and bruised to the bone
and do what needs to be done to feed the children.

It doesn't interest me who you know or how you came to be here.
I want to know if you will stand in the centre of the fire
with me
and not shrink back.

It doesn't interest me where or what or with whom you have studied.
I want to know what sustains you from the inside when all else falls away.
I want to know if you can be alone with yourself
and if you truly like the company you keep
in the empty moments.

MOF Drama

Hello! Today I will be blogging with illustrations for the first time. I've missed drawing quite a bit and started doodling a bunch of stuff that happened today.

So I woke up way earlier than usual for a Saturday. I honestly wanted to be up at 7am to exercise, but.

My appointment was at 10am and I was considered lucky (no MRT breakdown thank goodness) to have reached Tong Building at 10:10am. In case you didn't know, the infamous "Rolex building" in Orchard Road is called Tong Building.

I'm not elaborating on my visit in this post but basically I left the building having silky hair!

And before I could revel in the glory of my mane (ha-ha), I stepped out of the building in shock.

Reality check x 3 - I was supposed to meet Kexin at 1:35pm, and it was raining bloody heavily at Orchard Road. A few things flashed through my head all at once.

• Stranded in the one isolated building in Orchard that is NOT connected to any shelters leading to the MRT station. 
• I'm gonna drown in Orchard and nobody is gonna know.
• WTF MY HAIRRRRRRRRR.

Anyway. I had an umbrella but it was really useless considering how heavy the rain was. So I calculated, if I folded my jeans up and carried my bag in front, and walked briskly to the nearest building next door, I *might* be able to make it without drowning.

Turned out I was earlier than Kexin lor please. She was held up by the rain on her side too hahahaha.

We met at AMK and even though I didn't die from drowning, I was about to collapse from hunger. Long story short, I suggested Coffee Bean and the place was under renovation. Then I suggested Pepper Lunch, AND THE PLACE WAS UNDER RENOVATION AS WELL. -_- Recently I had gone to Popular at CWP only to find that IT WAS UNDER RENOVATION. I don't even.

In the end we went to MOF. And Kexin had this really bad experience when we were there last. She had ordered a cold (I always say cold I don't know why) iced macha latte and apparently the cup was filled 3/4 with ice and she finished the latte in less than 5 sips!

After we were seated (no queue lor WHY) and ordered our food, everything else was served except Kexin's HOT macha latte (hot so she won't get cheated again!) so we checked the food list and turned out that the latte wasn't included! So we called one of the servers and asked for a hot macha latte, again.

And then we realized that Brandon's sashimi set had not arrived either. Seriously, raw leh need to take so long meh?! And by then the hot macha latte still had not arrived!

We caught hold of another server (ironically we were seated damn near the counter) and told her to check on the sashimi set and if the previous girl put in our order for the latte.

HAHAHAHAHAHA sorry the above didn't happen la!! I just -had- to draw this. It's really too funny hahahaha sorry Ah Chan! xD

Okay so when the sashimi finally arrived, Brandon commented on the prawns. One thing led to another and I showed them this sushi doodle I posted on instagram yesterday.

By popular (LOL) demand, they asked me to do a part 2 with the prawn. I really didn't know how to draw sashimi cute (and I didn't even take a good look at what they ordered!) so this is my interpretation of what they ordered.

And this is the actual photo.

Credits to Ah Chan for taking the photo and Brandon's pinky. I don't know who kiaped the shrimp lol.

I don't know if Kexin will post it up to their FB page but..MOF used to be so much better. In other news, Brandon's ocha was FOC because I have the member card (don't ask) which will expire in May 2013 yay.

Alright so. This is it. Hope you enjoy my feeble attempt at drawing. :D

I drew this yesterday as well, and they're supposed to be hamstersss. Kexin said I'm tryna plagiarize Pusheen. Boo.

Dance with me

I came across these words by Oriah Mountain Dreamer and thought I would share them with you. They speak to me in ways I cannot explain. They make me feel like drawing, again.

Alone and with an imaginary cat.

Sorry the quality is crap. I drew with a pencil and some of the strokes were too light to be captured properly by the phone camera. Tried to use an app to darken the lines but this is the best I came up with.

I hope the words that follow will inspire you to want to do better in your relationships. Coincidentally, today I was having a conversation about how actions are louder than words. If you care for a person, tell them today. Likewise if you know someone who has been trying to send you the invitation to dance, look beyond the superficial and take the first step. What you find courage in doing, will present itself as a pleasant surprise. x

The Dance

I have sent you my invitation, the note inscribed on the palm of my hand by the fire of living. Don’t jump up and shout, “Yes, this is what I want! Let’s do it!” Just stand up quietly and dance with me.

Show me how you follow your deepest desires, spiraling down into the ache within the ache. And I will show you how I reach inward and open outward to feel the kiss of the Mystery, sweet lips on my own, everyday.

Don’t tell me you want to hold the whole world in your heart. Show me how you turn away from making another wrong without abandoning yourself when you are hurt and afraid of being unloved.

Tell me a story of who you are, And see who I am in the stories I am living. And together we will remember that each of us always has a choice.

Don’t tell me how wonderful things will be… some day. Show me you can risk being completely at peace, truly okay with the way things are right now in this moment, and again in the next and the next and the next…

I have heard enough warrior stories of heroic daring. Tell me how you crumble when you hit the wall, the place you cannot go beyond by the strength of your own will. What carries you to the other side of that wall, to the fragile beauty of your own humanness?

And after we have shown each other how we have set and kept the clear, healthy boundaries that help us live side by side with each other, let us risk remembering that we never stop silently loving those we once loved out loud.

Take me to the places on the earth that teach you how to dance, the places where you can risk letting the world break your heart. And I will take you to the places where the earth beneath my feet and the stars overhead make my heart whole again and again.

Show me how you take care of business without letting business determine who you are. When the children are fed but still the voices within and around us shout that soul’s desires have too high a price, let us remind each other that it is never about the money.

Show me how you offer to your people and the world the stories and the songs you want our children’s children to remember, and I will show you how I struggle not to change the world, but to love it.

Sit beside me in long moments of shared solitude, knowing both our absolute aloneness and our undeniable belonging. Dance with me in the silence and in the sound of small daily words, holding neither against me at the end of the day.

And when the sound of all the declarations of our sincerest intentions has died away on the wind, dance with me in the infinite pause before the next great inhale of the breath that is breathing us all into being, not filling the emptiness from the outside or from within.

Don’t say, “Yes!” Just take my hand and dance with me.

~ Oriah Moun­tain Dreamer

Valentine Heartbreak

This post isn't as morbid as the title suggests. It just..came up.

I was gonna enter a twitter contest, and usually you'd just need to follow the merchant and answer whatever is required, and include the merchant's hashtag. And I wanted to enter the contest because I wanted free movie tickets hahaha <cheapo. But then one of the requirements was to mention the sweetest valentine gift you've ever received.

I honestly thought HARD about it. Lol. Damn sian, don't think I've gotten any sibeh sweet de gift. SUAN LE I BUY MY OWN TICKETS. Lolol.

So I've been inspired to blog but I don't know what about exactly. This isn't some post to niam about how miserable I've been every valentine's day. Lol no indeed, not.

The only memorable thing about valentine's day was probably back in secondary school where everyone bought/handmade stuff for everybody. It also wasn't awkward because I was in an all-girls school, and in fact the gifts were pretty competitive lol.

And then we grew up and..yup. No great memories about valentine's day, sorry. I did a cross stitch for one of the bfs and gotten a "huh where am I gonna put this?", and gave a couple keychain to another and he said "can I have a pair instead, in case uhm." <he meant in case we broke up lol. Bugger two-timed me and I didn't know.

^These are only some which I remembered, and it hurt at the point of time. But I guess these are part of what made me cold today. Or maybe lazy. Lol I don't bother with gifts anymore. Because of facebook, I realized that there ARE guys out there who plan surprises and handmake stuff for girls. And because of facebook, I realized I have been wasting my time with the wrong people fml.

I've started watching Korean dramas again, and I stopped a while ago because most are sappy love stories, one will get some terminal disease and whatever, you get the gist. This drama I'm currently watching, interesting strong-willed couple. Prolly will be together forever and forever but they're not the 死来活去 (is the term correct??) kind lol. And then I thought, this is the type of relationship I want. Of course if I get a guy like that I'd die a happy human, or wouldn't want to die, depending on your point of view. Lol.

This was the part I bawled my eyes out.

I'm not done with the drama yet, and I feel so much for the couple. My heart breaks for fictional characters, but I haven't shed a single tear for my own r/s. What have I become? Perhaps I've cried enough throughout the r/s that I've nothing left when I decided I wanted out. Food for thought.

On valentine's day this 25yo guy texted me and said he couldn't stop texting me even though he promised to leave me alone. Said he's hoping we could be friends..with benefits. Prior to that he said my future bf will be very lucky because I know what I want and not into games. Now he's saying that he wants a girl like me but hey, just for fun.

What has the world become? It's like, hey Calista, you're not good enough to be my gf, but good enough for a fuck. But hey I don't want loose women. I'm sorry that you think I am cheap and desperate, life must be horrible for you that you have to insult a girl this way. Thanks.

In other news, I received a valentine's day gift from my bestie. Lol. It's really, really appreciated. It just doesn't count because man, I gotta stop receiving gifts from girls. What does that say about me?? LOL.

Hope y'all had a great v-day though. It's really about the heart. A gift is just a thing if you don't put any thought into it.

Where did 2012 go?

So it's that time of the year again, where we all make excuses to eat and be merry and pretend fat is the new thin. :D

Xmas tree is made of a cone so it's not 100% cream. Which is not an excuse, really.

I have been..busy, to say the least. My post on Taiwan is not done, if you had noticed. And if you have been waiting, I'm sorry.

2012 has been a weird year for me. New job's taking a toll on me to be honest, and I'm at a point in my life where I'm neither here nor there. It's not good, but it's not bad either. Maybe just too much coming at me at the same time. And although I work better under pressure, I'm not one who takes stress very well. Lol.

So I'm thankful to my girlfriends, for listening to me rant whenever. Which is A LOT, I know. Bet you girls must be wondering why I meet all sorts of weirdos wherever I go. Trust me, I also want to know.

Figured I should do some thankyous. Kind of in the mood. In no particular order okay - I r no bias. Lol.

To Susan - too much to say. Yet nothing to be said. For all the years you've known me, I hope that one day I can be truly happy as you wish me to be. I think my life hasn't been kind in all the time you've known me lol. So thank you, for being there for me, and for introducing me into your life. <3

Damn red. But I like my hair here. Also, the ring in the photo broke already. So many stories in one photo.

To Ms Leow - who technically is just my jiemei in disguise. Both you and Susan combine always slap me back to reality. Lol. Yes, I can take a punch. Just as you can take a chokehold. :P Almost like an older bro I've always wished for, except you're a jiemei yes.

Super unglam, this photo. But this is going into my book of awesomeness. Lololol.

To Kexin - for letting me bounce off you all the time. I know most of the time you don't know know to react to me but it also takes a lot to listen to me curse and swear right in your face even though it's not directed to you. One of the sanest women I know, and a damn firm anchor. That is why I always doubt that you're a Leo hahaha. Regardless, although your sensibilities drive me insane, I'm grateful. <3

Don't know how it happened but I'm grateful for the random Halloween planning in 2010.

To Ms Sim - for driving me crazy sometimes because you gotta admit, talking/texting you can be quite a bang in the wall. Lol. But for all the awesome food you make, I will keep you by my side muahahaha. :D

This was the first time I met Joanne I think. Lol.

I honestly don't remember this photo but this is NICE HOR. So bright! <3

To Liyana - for the silences we have between us because of inevitable work schedules. But I know I can always count on you if I need a listening ear. It's enough reading about your life and seeing how happy you are. Having said that, we really need to catch up proper - after your wedding and honeymoon!

We need to travel again!

To Amanda - craziest woman with endless energy. Thank you for showing me what I lacked when I was your age LOL. Also one of the most straight-forward people I know. Sometimes the simplest answer is all you need.

Epic photo, if you know how we took this.

To Marie - despite the distance, it's never awkward when we meet. Which is rare, admittedly. Once in 10 years is madness. Interesting sisterly bond we have, and I've never taken it for granted. Promise I will make a trip to Melbourne soon.

To Wiyah - furthest from Sg but never far from my heart. I've not been the best support for you even though (or because) so much have happened this year. I pray that life will only be better for you from now on, and one day you'll find what you truly deserve.

To Belle - nice meeting you and it has been crazy so far. Good timing too, when my MSN is back up so we can chat till wee hours. :D

This is our ONLY decent photo together. Simisai.

Lastly, to the person who has the power to drive me insane just by the sound of your name. I've not decided what to do about it. At this point in time, I honestly just wish I don't have to deal with you now. But nevertheless I will mention you because I can't keep you out of my head. Pfft.

Merry Christmas y'all. Have fun and drink responsibly. More love, less hate. <3

Adventures of Taipei - Day 1

I was supposed to go to Korea for a holiday but it's a long story, and I got pissed (like I said, long story.) and bought this deal off streetdeal.sg (the deal is no longer valid but you might wanna keep a lookout for it for they might bring it back!) to go to Taiwan with my mom instead. The deal is for 3D2N so we extended for another 2N (therefore 5D4N if you cannot count) and so including all the hidden plusplus I had to plus from the jetstar website *rolleyes*, the trip amounted to about less than S$550/pax (hotel + flight). Which, IMHO, is a pretty decent deal.

Sidenote: The travel agency, however, only emailed me the confirmation flight details like super last minute. I had to call and pester them every other week, up until the week I was supposed to travel. Nevertheless, they delivered so I'm all good. Just an FYI for people who are ganchiong spiders or whatev.

In all fairness, I did my homework (itinerary) last minute too.

So we took the 1am flight and it was a sad, rainy night. Still, I was pretty excited because honestly I was sick of travelling to Malaysia all the time lol. Unfortunately the flight really wasn't as comfortable as we would like it to be (sigh, first time with budget airline please bear with me). I drifted in and out of sleep and was fidgeting and tossing and turning (as best as I could in the space I had lol), as a result disrupted my mom's sleep. =( But the journey was smooth (flight, landing - despite the weather) so that's a big plus.

Anyway. We arrived in Taipei at about 6am and had to sort of feel our way through the airport to the bus stations. My homework says there should be buses to bring you to the nearest MRT stations/hotels from the airport. It sounded exciting to arrive so early in the morning so we wouldn't waste a day flying but we miscalculated the fitful sleep so..we were pretty darn tired and 狼狈, dragging our luggage and carrying umbrellas in search for breakfast and the hotel.

We asked around and the lady at the bus booth cheerfully handed me a map which I gleefully accepted because 1) my map was too hugeass and I don't wanna look too much like a lost tourist, and 2) information from the land itself wouldn't go wrong. I only checked the map after we boarded the bus and guess what, the map was in JAPANESE. -_____-||| #NotEnoughHokkienVulgarities

The bus brought us to (opposite) Yuanshan MRT station (NT90/S$3.80/pax, approx. 1 hour), and we were reprimanded by the bus driver that the stations are called 捷运站 and not 地铁站. hanah hanah say too fast can? I am sing ga por lang. You come Singapore and say 捷运 see who understand you? In my short holiday we've learnt that the bus drivers are not your friendliest people in Taiwan. But everyone else are super super nice. Really. (Honestly though, I wonder what MRT stands for because they're called MRT stations too. The website doesn't translate it directly so I'm guessing Metro Rapid Transit lol.)

We bought their Easy Card for the MRT rides - NT500 (S$21.30) including a fully refundable deposit of NT100, so the rides are at a 20% discount. And we fully utilized the NT400 for 5 days! :D

To continue our very sad first day (LOL), we went back and forth Jiantan and Shilin MRT stations looking for breakfast. The shops in Taiwan don't open that early! (Later on we found out that we kept alighting at the super ulu exits of both stations; there were cafes at the other exits. Their stations are so huge that different escalators from the platforms actually bring you to different exits. #MountainTortoise maxmax.)

Sorry, best view of the shop name from where I was sitting.

We found this small cosy cafe (not exactly a cafe but I don't know how else to describe it) about 2 streets from Shilin MRT station. It was the only available shop to be honest, and we were dead tired going up and down the streets, appalled that the cafes/restaurants/food shops weren't opened for breakfast (one cafe actually said "breakfast available" but it was closed up tight + there were like 3 days worth of newspapers at the door so my mom said maybe the business flopped but then we passed by later at night and it was opened LOL). We were given a menu which was in mandarin (duh) and I swear my brain turned to mush. I must have stared at the menu for too long because then the lady boss came about from behind the counter to translate explain the menu recommend their bestsellers. Hey in my defense it was in traditional chinese!

We anyhow-ed through the order and in my mushy state tried to do the math. I think my jaw dropped when I realized the entire breakfast was NT110 (S$4.70). and the fooooood - simple affair but so, so, so damn good.

Mom's club sandwich, NT45 (S$1.90 how can?!)

My pastry thing that looks like roti prata with a slice of bread and black pepper pork.

SO. DAMN. TENDER.

Okay la that's all actually lol. Our drinks not as fascinating. Hehehe.

Because we felt like homeless kids, we took a cab (finally!) and I gave the cab uncle my book where I anyhow-ed wrote the address of the hotel hahahaha. BUT I figured since he knew what I had written, I guess I must have gotten it right LOL.

Before we left for Taiwan (and actually after I bought the deal), I looked up the hotel on the internet and the reviews ranged from like bad to quite-okay. I was a little bit more optimistic and decided that it should be comparable to Hotel 81 and that is fine. (And before you ask, I know about Hotel 81 because we booked it once as our makeup stop for Halloween. We managed about 7 people with props and costumes and makeup in a small room but that's another story.) The headache part was actually locating the hotel because someone wrote that even cabbies may not know the road and that worried me.

It turned out that Simply Life Taipei was located at an alley and we would not have found it no matter how good one is with the map, Japanese or otherwise lol. Anyway I didn't take photos of the hotel but if you're really interested you can check it out here. I gotta give it to their photographer; the place looks more spacious on the site lol.

A little bit on the hotel though, the staff are friendly and they try their best to help you, like how to get about to the general tourist attractions. I say general only because I tried to ask for directions to Pingxi and they told me to take the MRT to Taipei Main Station then ask around. (Lol I guess people who want to get to Pingxi won't be staying around Shilin?) Also, the hotel has no lifts so guess who stayed on the top (4th) floor? LOL. The airconditioning is centralized so we "regulated" the temperature by closing/opening the toilet door. You can imagine most times the door would be opened lol.

Check-ins are at 4pm and we were there at 10:30am. They wanted us to leave our luggage at the lobby and go back at 4pm but we were dead beat so we paid for another day's worth at NT480 (S$21) to SLEEEEP. I was running on adrenaline I think, because I was still transferring my itinerary from pieces of A4 papers to a trusty black notebook hahaha. My mom knocked out for an hour before I was done and then I think I blacked out LOL.

We were fresh and out of the room by 2:30pm. Not too shabby. But being Sep/Oct, the sunset in Taipei is about 5:30pm so we decided to check out Ximending and the Shilin Night Market. We had to take a bus to the nearest MRT (about 3 stops, NT15/pax) Shilin Station; that was when we found out about the other amazing, more happening exit lol.

Ximending, still a popular shopping district despite the poor weather.

It rained the whole day like some whacky cycle of drizzle and downpour. We were whipping our umbrellas in and out; really quite the holiday spoiler. It was also very difficult to shop because most shops were stretched to the streets and the weather was just sad la.

Some No.1 Ramen place. But then almost every other restaurant is No.1 there.

Our dinner was at a ramen place, and I had another heart attack moment with the menu lol. Asked the server about one of the flavors and he simply read it off the menu without explaining it. I had to resist rolling my eyes lest he spit in my food.

Super crowded bakery at Shilin Night Market.

Went back to Shilin Night Market and we were quite moody and tired, really. But we also KIV-ed some stuff to check out on Day 2 at Wufenpu so it wasn't that bad. It was very, very windy that night and we didn't want to risk falling sick (what with the wet weather) so we made our way back. We tried to find the bus stop to take the same buses back to our hotel but again, we walked up and down the streets a few times between Jiantan and Shilin MRT station and although we found the bus numbers, they didn't go back the district our hotel was located at! We gave up (for the night) and took a cab. *insert 不甘愿 face*

On hindsight, I think we were more prepared for Day 2 because we already knew what to expect with the public transports and which direction to take at the MRT stations. :D

Next up - Wufenpu Commercial Zone and Raohe Night Market!

for the Leos today =)

September 20, 2012. Thursday.

Leo: This next month will be a rather positive time for your love life. The Venus and Mars cycles follow each other so your love life has every chance to be passionate and fulfilling. The nostalgia you felt last week or so will manifest today as you made a date with someone from your past. You have not have seen the person for quite some time and your mind is running with a million what if’s. Whether you hope something will come out of this (which is entirely possible), don’t let any fears or worries spoil what will turn out to be a great occasion regardless. If this person is unattached, be prepared for the sparks to fly as the energy is working in your favor. If he or she is attached, you will leave them with a strong impression of what might have been.
(source: http://dailylovescopes.com/september-20-thursday/)

Chin up, Leos. Your time will come. ;)

Time is a great teacher.

a lot of things were going on in my head yesterday despite my sneezing frenzy (average 6 sneezes per minute, for the ENTIRE day). i've learnt that, 1) sneezing is VERY tiring, and 2) i need to (somehow) compartmentalize my brain. even if i came up with the invention it'd probably be chucked as a chindogu.

my hands were shaking while drawing this, and i sneezed about 382 times.

anyway. today i want to rant about Being On Time. (was gonna term it as Being Late but i have to start thinking Positive so.)

personally, i don't think anyone can actually be on time. you will either be too early, or slightly later. or even if you managed to reach on the dot, that would be "on the dot" by your own clock. my watch could be 5 minutes earlier for all you know. (which, by the way, it is.)

at the risk of being really bitchy, i've just about had enough of latecomers. having said (typed) that though, i think i have the patience more than Job (the bible dude, not the apple dude). my record is waiting for someone for 4 hours.

this is the amount of patience i have vs latecomers.

don't get me wrong, i am perpetually late myself. but i make sure i let the other party know so they can go shopping or pee or get something to eat instead of waiting for me like a bloody fool at the mrt station for example. and i won't make them wait for hours for crying out loud. so, what the hell did i do to deserve waiting for 4 hours? (warning: grandmother story enfolding.)

T lives in serangoon and we decided to meet. he said, let's meet somewhere in between. so we made plans to meet at bishan (how is that in between, i also don't know) at 2pm. i was actually late - it takes me about 30 minutes to travel to bishan and i left my house at about 1:45pm. dude texted me at 2pm to say he'll reach at 2:30pm. fine by me, i knew he was gonna be late anyway.

time check, 4pm. no texts, no calls. and i was done shopping at the mall. so i called him and guess what, he said he was at BEDOK. told me he was on the way, only 10 minutes more. how is bedok 10 minutes away from bishan, i also don't know. maybe he travels by helicopter.

long story short, T made an appearance at almost 6pm, slightly apologetic, but that's about it. went on and on telling me about things inconsequential. now that i'm thinking about it, if his purpose was to diffuse or distract my anger, it sure as hell didn't work. i think i never met him thereafter, at least not alone anymore.

this is just one of the many stories i've had to wait for people. the ex-bf used to tell me how much he missed me but i always had to wait for him for at least an hour every date. and each time it makes me feel small and unimportant.

Time is making fools of us again. ~ J.K. Rowling

well, thank you. in a different context, i'm done being a fool. my time will only be for people who can respect it. (still learning to adopt Ms Leow's pov on this. but i'm a girl, i take things more seriouslyyy.)

on a somewhat related topic, i'm abruptly sharing this Backstreet Boys song because it was constantly playing in my head while typing this. =D

When 140 Characters Are Not Enough

i get these intense feelings lately. it's like something built up overtime and is literally waiting to blow up. each time i feel this way, i'd pray nothing happens and hope i survive till the end of the time. but noooo. something always happens and i'd curse the day with swollen eyes which will swell for the next 2 days at least. true story.

so this time i'm just gonna rant blindly and maybe shit will not happen today.

then again. today is a little different. i woke up before my alarm and waited for it. and when it went off i didn't go back to sleep. instead followed up on tweets about peeling a banana from the bottom. (please remind me to do that. i really wanna try.)

and then i left the house early and strolled to the station, a luxury i never had. and was 2 trains earlier than usual! this is madness. with things going so well you'd think shit won't happen.

so. damn. paranoid. nao.

decided to dissolve some frustration into words. are you still with me? because i'm almost sure i'm not making sense dsfdsfdsfjkl.

had some ideas during my luxurious stroll and suddenly i had a budget for my party which i bounced off Susan but i have a leetle problem with the venue. okay sorry the previous sentence is too long to digest and i can't be arsed to edit it.

long story short, there are a few things i would like to do.

1) catch madagascar 3 alone. because i'm emo that way.
2) please don't make me catch prometheus alone. #foreveralone
3) finish up The Secret so i will stop being bloody emo. very tired of drawing circles in the corner.
4) somebody date me to USS please. i would actually like to go with a fun crowd this time and perhaps at least one who is handy with the camera.
5) I WANT A STEAK. okay la this one cannot help. gotta wait till the metal is off, which is kind of a depressing thought because then it'd be close to valentine's day. lol. see! however i think it'd make a round and bite me in the ass.
6) clean up my act before july because there are just so many things to do! big day on august 1 and i'm (mostly) determined to make it work.
7) lose another 5kgs. lol. i've lost 5kgs so far, and it wouldn't hurt to lose another 5 because some fat aunty yesterday from LWM approached me yesterday wtf. 我比你瘦好不好 -.-
8) i decided to make a point 8 because i'm pantang (superstitious) that way. lol. if you're still reading up to this point, you must love me very much. :P

the list is not too much is it? gonna jot it down somewhere so i actually stick to it. even if i have to eat tofu and fish. lol gosh. but really, it's not that much of a chore because i love tofu and fish. it just gets a little boring because i can only make like 2 variations of said dishes. sorry future husband. if you love me you would know how to cook. hahahahaha.

okay this should be enough. i've just about reaching my destination. frustration not entirely spent and some things not off my chest but this is therapeutic somewhat. (hi uncle behind me, want my blog address? don't peek lydat very rude hor.)

HAPPY TUESDAY EVERYONE!

Calistalised.

my version of being Calistalised is something like 成仙. LOL.

i guess if you've been following me on twitter, you'd see the drastic change of a dramatic lamenting bitch to that of a still-dramatic but more positive...girl. lol. okay i lol-ed because hey, i don't care what you say i'm still a girl. *cue Britney's ♪i'm not a girl~ not yet a woman~♪* hahaha okay nolink.

i decided to blog about this because i want to share what has been happening in my life and how it may be able to help you, too. if you're a massive fan of our local bloggers like Xiaxue and Qiuqiu, you'd prolly come across them talking about The Secret. well, it's not like a secret code amongst them, for i've heard of it before i followed them on twitter. (which was like, a few months ago nia. lol. *late bloomer*)

okay let's start from the beginning. i got to know of The Secret from Peiyi (thank you), who kind of told me about the book over dinner. i don't remember what our topic was at that time, but she brought it up, and offered to email me the pdf of it. i said sure, and true to her word she emailed me the file. as you all might already know, my lao kok kok laptop could not open the pdf file so i tried to view it on my work computer. little did i know that it contained too many pages for me to finish it within 15 minutes. (i really thought it was just a longer-than-usual article lol) so i forwarded the mail to Susan and asked if she could print it out for me. which she did, and even had it bound into a huge book. lol. for this alone i am grateful.

then now i'm gonna tell you something which will prolly give Susan a seizure. lol. i did NOT read a single page, and i promptly forgotten about it. sorry!! xD

it was not until a few months ago that i started following Qiuqiu on twitter because i was quite fascinated by her positivity, and amongst her tweets The Secret would come up a few times. it occurred to me that i have the book somewhere which i half-stashed into a drawer while spring cleaning for CNY lolwtf.

and then one fine day i walked into Popular Bookstore to look for my J D Robb book but instead, stumbled upon - what else - The Secret. i was drawn to it because, being all superficial, the cover looks really vintage and nice! lol. i examined the cover, the spine, touched the pages, and still, i didn't read a single line. such a stubborn bitch i am lol.

again, it was not until a couple of weeks ago that i decided, that's it, i want that book. for two reasons. one, because the book is gorgeous lol. two, and the more important reason, because i was facing a lot of trials and somehow at the back of my head i must have been holding on to this glimmer of hope. i must have subconsciously registered a few lines from the book to have been so drawn to it. also coupled with a few factors like Qiuqiu and her talking about it.

funny how i made a huge detour before finally getting The Secret.

and to be honest, when i bought it i didn't even read it right away. it took me a few days (and a few more trials) before i turned the first page and marveled at the pages of the book. (okay, i'm quite a sucker when it comes to books.) and read.

so far i've only covered 2 chapters and i'm telling you now, it works. i can't explain to you exactly how or what happened. but The Secret is simple: it talks about how your thoughts are your future and you are in control of your thoughts, therefore your future. in short, whatever you think of, will come true.

now of course there are those fine prints that we humans are so skeptically fond of. it's not like if i keep thinking of money, it's just gonna magically appear. it's about how to change your thoughts to something more positive so that things will work out in a way that you may not expect, but achieve the same end result.

it is about the law of attraction. whatever you think of, you attract. and because it's a neutral law, it doesn't separate positive or negative. for example, if you keep thinking "i don't want to be late", you'll prolly end up being late. because the law of attraction works such that its focus will be on the word "late" and not if you want or don't want to be. so instead you should be thinking "i will be early" or even already envisioned yourself being early.

That, is The Secret. or at least in my own words la. get the book if you want more details okay. =D

so how has it worked for me? it made me more conscious of my thoughts and feelings, therefore more controlled over what i feel and what i want to feel.

the most drastic change that i've experienced would be the happenings at work. i've never been happy at my work place ever since i started shift work because this aunty supervisor kept picking on me. so the last straw was when she managed to find trouble for me all the way to the manager. i was this close to giving up and just quitting the job already.

then somehow i decided to start reading the book, and after the initial disbelief, i told myself there's really no harm in trying. after all, i've always wanted to put a leash on my temper and the more recent increasing negativity. it's taken a toll on me and i really needed a change.

so for the first time in a long while, i took control of what i was feeling and confronted it. i deliberately planted positive thoughts by almost chanting to myself. if i want change, i must change.

i took a different approach at work. i started talking to my other colleagues, even though i still think of them as stuck-up actors. but of course i made an effort to keep those negative thoughts away so it was actually not a torture talking to them. ultimately i have one goal, and that is to put an end to my misery at work. i need to be happy and not allow people to trample over me.

the end results? well, first i can tell you that the bitchy supervisor is NOT happy that i'm actually fully capable of communicating with the rest of my colleagues. guess i ruined her plans there. i am happy and am nearly contented with my team mates where work is concerned. my direct supervisor is still an idiot, but he treats me with a little bit more respect, finally ditching the attitude.

it may seem nothing to you, but i can feel it happening because i changed the way i think and see things. i feel grateful to the little things that happen in my life everyday. they say that once you learn to be grateful, you learn to appreciate.

i'm learning so many things everyday, and i'm only at the second chapter. there is only one thing i want right now, and that is to be a better person so that everything else will fall in place. i can do it, because i'm surrounded by my family, friends and good people. :)

special thanks to Susan for helping me print the book (lol sorry, please don't kill me for not reading the initial "book").

also to Ah Chan, who is currently reading The Power. together we can be very positive!! :D must make that Bali trip come true okay. ahem ahem.

oh and and and. i guess because i want to be better and so i did, and in the process became happier. and because i'm happier i tell myself 我是美的! lololol. so i suppose things sort of fell into place in its own way - i made the decision to straighten my hair so it's easier to maintain and therefore i feel less irritated; i made the appointment with the dentist which i was supposed to make years ago; don't know where i found the courage to have my braces done (again) but all these things, i did because i want to look better and feel healthier. all these years i've been saying but did nothing. suddenly it's like i WANT to do it. i have to. and because my teeth have shifted too much over the last 4 years, this time my having braces on is actually more tedious than the first. but on the other hand, i lost the weight i've been trying to lose despite my healthy dieting and almost-exercise. lol.

SEE, 美美 lor! because i say so. lolol. =D

did i mention that i've been encountering Eye Candy more than usual even though by right we are totally 不相干的 department/shift? heh. because i say so la! hahahaha.

(insert weird photo of me but i still am not used to the braces again so i won't show you. lol.)

so again, the book is called The Secret, by Rhonda Byrne. the film version is at http://www.thesecret.tv/. she has 2 others, The Power and The Magic.

i'm working my way to being Calistalised. ;)

How To Deal With Stupid People

i've been toying with this subject for a while now. thought i should put together some no-nonsense practical ways to deal with them stupid humans.

so. the fact that you landed here reading this post is either you're my #1 fan, or you need some serious voodoo against dumb fucks. i have this to say to you: unfortunately my dear, you ain't seen nothing yet.

as much as i am embarrassed to admit, i've bummed around a few companies before landing in my current one, where, in my entire life, i encounter some of the most classic stupid people. now i'm actually afraid of death by stupidity than death by old age or accident. if i die now, believe me it won't be an accident. i would have been angered to my death because some people are just so appallingly..yes, stupid.

but i digress. let's dive into the three ways i've devised.

number one.
when a person does/says anything in the stupidest way possible, most of our reflex responses would be sarcasm. now, this is me telling you to suppress your sarcasm as much as possible. in fact, bury it and don't let it surface in front of said stupid person.

why? because my dear, that person so stupid you think will understand sarcasm meh? don't waste your wits and brain juice and energy. when they tell you something so explicitly stupid, ask them a stupid question. for example:

me: i was supposed to be on leave yesterday but i was sick and went to the doctor's, and he gave me an mc. so i need to cancel my leave in the system and you need to approve so i can apply for sick leave instead.
dumbo: but annual leave overrides mc.
me: no, mc overrides annual leave.
dumbo: i'm sure annual leave overrides mc. i need to check with hr.
me: fine. you do that.

what i should have said was, "do you think hr will know?" or, "need me to check for you?" ah, but that is not sarcasm, since stupids are unable to process that. you are trying to come across as an innocent imbecile. having said that, sometimes it's hard to think of "innocent" comebacks when you are so appalled by their deftness. so this brings me to..

number two.
keep asking "why". this can act as a guideline. whatever you do, do not give in to arguing with a stupid person. because at the end of the day, you become the bigger stupid, and the person you deemed stupid would go home happy because he/she just recruited a new member. that is, you.

so when you ask a stupid person "why", one of two things will happen. one, he/she will end up realizing how hollow they've been and (hopefully) start making intelligent conversations. or two, you will start to realize and admit defeat that you will never be as stupid or even more stupid than they are, or will ever be. either way, it's a win-win situation.

using the above scenario, here are some why-questions to ask:

why does annual leave override mc?
why are you so sure annual leave overrides mc?
why do you need to ask hr?
why do you not know about these leave applications?
why are you breathing? why am i talking to you?
why are you so bloody stupid?

okay, only use the last question when you're desperate or when your hair catches fire and said dumbo aims a hair spray at your head.

WHEN ALL ELSE FAILS.

number three.

be meek and stupid. be the most stupid person in the world. when you can't beat 'em, don't join 'em. let them have a taste of their own medicine.

"i'm sorry, i'm not sure of the whole leave application procedure. in fact, will you show me to do it? also, do you know what is this from the doctor's? this small piece of paper has my name and so many numbers on it. is it important? do you need my doctor's number to check with him?"

as i'm typing this, i realize, you know what. i'm wrong. you should be sarcastic. but be the nice sarcastic, not the bitchy sarcastic. you have to be nice to a fault. remember, you're a ditzy little bimbo with a brain size of a micro mini particle.

all scenarios and characters seemingly familiar are definitely purely coincidental. unless, you're my colleague, then you know there are no such things as coincidence.

p.s. please share with me some of your experiences and/or how you dealt with dumb fucks. i would Love to know!

FullHouse Lifestyle Cafe Singapore!

i came across this deal from FullHouse Lifestyle Cafe last week and i thought, wow what is this a deal from Malaysia? but lo and behold, they opened one in Singapore! :D so i forwarded the deal to Susan and said we HAVE to go check it out. we missed the deal (because she FORGOT to reply -.-) but we checked it out anyway. i said it's for our 40th monthsary celebration lol.

she sent me this on twitter while i was battling at work and it really made my day when i finally took a breather to check my phone. :'D

so we made plans on a fine day, no less!

i had to take a photo of the sun because it was a gorgeous day! :)

even superman melted lol.

we headed to Rendezvous Hotel from City Hall and it is a short walk, really. plus the weather was a godsend. i had no idea which part of the hotel to go to, but Susan checked and said it's on the second floor. we were about to head in when i saw this around the corner:

*GASP* i recognise the car! FullHouse has this signature car of different colors at different outlets. if you click on the interactive website they have the photo collection of the various cars. okay sidetrack, this was the one at Sunway Paramid:

okay to be honest i'm a car noob but i recognise that they're all topless hahahaha.

these are photos of the lower level, at the entrance where it appears to look like a beautiful quaint yard. FullHouse has this homely ambience with different interior sections arranged with a Victorian flair! i've always thought that they based the concept on the Korean drama Full House with a tinge of their own version. AND i never knew this restaurant is from Malaysia! yay because i went to one of the outlets there already. :D

if you were to walk to Rendezvous Hotel from The Cathay, you will see this area just after you cross the road. kinda like a cosy corner if you will.

while we went crazy snapping photos of the area, TWO staff came to tell us that the bistro is upstairs. LOL. they were really nice and even offered to show us up! but i declined because Susan was on the phone tryna psycho her laogong to join us and i wanted to take more photossssss.

this greeted us when we went to the second floor! like wow the entire walkway leading to the restaurant itself. :O

we had a cosy little corner and the restaurant was practically empty at 5pm. lol. so we went around taking photos like it was our own house. haha!

so this was my view from the nice corner. FullHouse usually have a boutique area where they sell actual merchandise. it's like the "bedroom" part of the house!

then i tried out one of my phone apps for sport lol. my phone is very under-utilized please!

 the balcony! there are doves evvvvverywhere.

the front area of the second floor. such a dainty fountain and there were coins in there too. lol people find it hard to resist making wishes whenever possible. ;)

HELLO! :D

i LOVE this corner! imma copy this for my future home lol. *mentally file it away*

framed pictures on the wall, just like a real home! :)

okay now, THE FOOD. haha wait very long already right! imma present, the menu:

so ke ai~~ it's like a magazine and there is even a comics section at the end.

this was my order. it's called The Wrap from Rome, S$12.90. and i really expected a wrap, not a salad. lol. so anyway, it's like caesar salad with smoked salmon. :)

this was Susan's Pineapple Chicken Salad, S$8.90.

i got distracted by the cai because it looks like those cai people use to welcome the lion dance troupe lololol.

our drinks! mine was Iced Korean Jujube Tea (left) and hers was Honey Green Tea, S$3.90 and S$5.90 respectively.

the spoons are damn CUTE.

Susan ordered a Rosella Spaghetti, S$16.90. unique tomato sauce based!

Kenny ordered a Club Sandwich, S$13.90. it came with fries and the infamous lion dance cai. lololol.

also, this Calamari Ring and Onion Ring Combo to share, S$10.90. it came with wasabi mayo sauce!

i ordered a hi-tea set, which comprised of a pie/cake and coffee/tea/iced lemon tea for S$5.90. i got the apple pie and gave the iced tea to Kenny.

our 40th monthsary turned out to be..a Lady and the Tramp moment. LOL.

more photos of the other parts of the restaurant. apparently the other "rooms" are separated as VIP rooms, so there are minimum spendings if you wanna dine in any of them. just check them out, Susan went around taking photos but i couldn't because by the time i went snooping, the Vasantham Central crew were in there filming. T^T

i was really quite bummed that i didn't get to explore. oh well, next time!

so. my verdict: i'm super biased because i already LOVE the ambience of the place, having had the experience in KL before. i'm quite liking the one in Singapore because it's located in a less crowded area but by no way means unpopular. you can totally enjoy affordable and delicious food in a homely setting. and you don't have to do the dishes after. :P the staff seemed pretty new but they're friendly so i'm definitely going back again!

FullHouse is located at 9 Bras Basah Road #01-04 Rendezvous Gallery (Tel: 63366328). check out their facebook page too!

photo credits to deal.com.sg and Susan and yours truly. :)