ella..ella..eh..eh..eh..

I am sure that most of us have come across a song which when we first listened to it, we were not too keen on it. However, after a few listens, the song becomes awfully catchy and it keeps playing in your head and you are either humming to it or sing the chorus over and over again all day long. I can't name some of those songs which have made me that way in the past but in the past few days there is this one particular song that have got me singing the lines over and over again and the lines don't even make any sense.

The song which I am talking about is Rihanna's Umbrella, which is currently on the Number 1 spot in both the UK & US charts. When I first heard it, I wasn't too impressed with it. What is the deal with the bit where she went "ella… ella.. eh.. eh.. eh.."? I spoke too soon. For the past few days, I have been going around with that tune in my head and sometimes, I started going "ella… ella.. eh.. eh.. eh..", unaware that I was doing it out loud.

I guess this is one of those songs which can be rather catchy and starts growing on you. Some of you may beg to differ but please don't mind me if I start going "ella.. ella.. eh.. eh.. eh.." in the next couple of weeks until another song supersede it in my head.

Here is the "ella.. ella.. eh.. eh.. eh.." video:

the bitch switch is on - part 1 of infinity...

As a woman, I am entitled to bitch, whenever I want, wherever I want. It is my right since I don't seem to have much control over the hormonal activities in me.

So, what is the deal with some of these old women with their outrageously bright coloured hair? I saw a few this morning with their mahogony, red, fushia and what have you hair colour! The 70's punk era called and they want their hair back! Are you tired of your black hair and you want something different? This is not like clothes where if you have too many black, you can add some splashes of colour. For the love of God, this is your hair! Good woman, grow up! What were you thinking? Obviously you did not! Outrageous hair colouring must be banned to people who are above 25.

man, i feel like a woman...

I have always tried to be independent when I was growing up, which drove my mother crazy. I don't know what it is but I do not like to have to rely on other people, unless I have absolutely no choice and usually, I make sure that the no-choice bit is not an option. Also, in recent years, I have found myself becoming more of a feminist. There are certain things that most women can't and won't do without a man's help like moving furniture or connecting the cables of a new DVD player to the tele, replacing the huge bottle at the water dispenser when it ran out or change the light bulb on the ceiling.

Being the feminist that I am, I get very determined to do all these without any assistance from the stronger sex (hell, I am strong too, mind you!) The hard disk on my PC went kaput; I'll buy a new one and replace it myself. I'd move my own furniture when needed and assemble one of those self-assembly furniture when I bought one. Hell, I'll try to figure out everything on my own.

Having grown up in Asia, where women are generally not treated equal - it may not be so obvious here in Singapore or other parts of Asia but such gender bias do exist around these parts of the world. Come on, I am sure other Asian women agree that generally the men here can be quite chauvinist. Do you ever see them let you board the train first? Or open the heavy door at the entrance to the shopping malls for you? Give you compliments when you are looking your best? I think most of you female readers would say the answer is 'No'. And it suits me just fine. I can open my own door. I can board the train after you, no problem (I just need to shove you if the train is full and you are not moving further into the train car). I don't need compliments from men too because Asian men (or Asians in general) are very not eloquent when it comes down giving compliments and who needs to hear a bad compliment? A simple "You look very nice today" would come out from their mouths as "Why you dress so nice today?" I keep telling myself that it was just direct translation from what they are used to speaking in their dialects and translating it to English just sounded like it was a crime to dress up nicely that day. I can dwell on that but I'll save that for another blog post since this could be a whole other topic on its own.

Back to the point about being independent…… I have been told I can be too independent and that is the sort of thing that drive men away. It seems like being a woman, I need to learn to let the man help me sometimes. It seems like a man likes their women to be dependent on them, a little less smarter, not to be too strong minded, etc. In other words, be a bit of bimbo. Frankly speaking, I cannot see myself being that way. If I do, then it would not be me. It is out of character for yours truly.

However, the other day, I decided to put the bimbotic act to the test. I was in the pantry at work to get some water. Unfortunately, the bottle at the water dispenser was empty. To replace the empty bottle wasn't hard cause the new water dispenser doesn't require the bottle to be lifted, you simply has slide the bottle to the tube and voila! I was about to slide the bottle to the dispenser when this 'hunk' of a man walked in and saw me trying to replace the bottle. I knew at the back of my head that he was going to offer to help and I told myself that I was going to let him. He did offer and I gladly accept. He was a visitor and has never seen a dispenser of this sort before. He asked for directions on how to replace it. In my head, I was saying "Man, I could have replace the bottle in less than 10 seconds but now, I have to explain and it will take a good minute!" However, I explained it to him with a smile on my face and we had a quick conversation before he left with a glass filled with water.

I had a mixed feeling about my experiment. Having a man helping me to do something which I could have done myself made me feel so incapable. On the other hand, I may have boosted his ego a bit and had a little chat with him, which was pleasant. I’d like to get experimenting again soon and perhaps this time in an environment outside of work. It will not come naturally for me but I think I will give it a try. Grins!

withdrawal mode...

I am in a total football withdrawal mode. Two Saturdays ago saw the final match of the English football season. The Spanish & Italian football season only ended over the weekend but it was wierd that there are no 'live' matches on Saturday and Sunday nights. I guess this is the life cycle that a football fan goes through each year during this time and worse, this will be the longest that we will go through without 'live' football matches considering there will be no major tournament in June i.e. either the World Cup or the European Championship. Oh well... We will be 'alive' again when August comes

Not only do I not have any 'live' football matches to look forward to on weekends, my friends changed plans this past weekend that throws my schedule out of whack. My Saturday mornings especially has to follow a certain routine- I alternate my Saturday mornings between a 10km jog followed by a 20km of cycling and a long distance run (generally aiming to reach 20km at some point). This routine will not be followed if it rains before I could start jogging but that rarely happens. Afternoons will be spent either taking a nap or meet up with friends. The evenings will be spent watching football.

This past Saturday however, not only was I suffering from football withdrawal but this was the first time that I did not wake up at my regular Saturday morning time. I did not go for my jog and my usual alternate cycling session was changed to Sunday afternoon to accomodate a friend's schedule. I don't know what it was but it just felt wierd. I know that it is good to live a litte and be spontaneous and not to follow a plan to the letter but when it comes down to my exercise, I just like to do all of that in the mornings and get it over and done with. Once the morning routine is not followed, my whole day is ruined - I don't feel energetic. I get a little moody (not too much like before. More like the energy has been sucked out of me). I lost my focus.... oh, you get my drift. Sunday mornings would be a sleep-in day and Sunday afternoons are spend not doing too much strenous stuffs considering that Monday is a workday. I like to spend Sunday afternoons drinking coffee with friends, a spot of shopping or just stay home and do some cleaning up.

Don't get me wrong. I did have a good weekend but not keeping up with my usual morning weekend routines bothered me. Now, it bothers me that this bothered me. I am supposed to be easy-going but now I have just become so anal. I don't know what it is - can't explain it. The worse part is I am so determined to get back into my normal weekend routine this coming week. Oh god! What have become of me? Pathetic!

no time for losers...

...cause we are the champions! Manchester United that is - The English Premier League Champion. This after Arsenal held Chelsea to a one all draw yesterday - Thank you Mr Wenger. So, the trophy is going back up north after 3 seasons of dominance by London clubs, with two matches left to be played before the end of the season. As a loyal Man U supporter, it is such a thrill to see your club win the league again after 3 years of a close fight to regain the title.

Apart from the FA Cup final on 19 May 2007, the next two matches will not be too much of an agony since the title has already been won by Man U. However, I expect them to be still as entertaining, what with the so-called showdown with Chelsea on Wednesday.

After 19 May, I will be in withdrawal.

the hunt for the red razr...

I am not one of those people who would pay big money i.e. not more than $500 for a desirable needs (oxymoron that last two words) like MP3 player, PDA, mobile phones, good sound systems, DVD players, etc. Well, maybe except for the tele I bought last year – that was almost a thousand dollars but that is like a few years of investment. Ha. Ha. For gadgets, I’d pay a decent figure and would normally wait for the 3rd or 4th generation model to be released before I’d buy a particular gadget. That, or I would wait for Mister D’s to grow tired of the gadgets that he has and buy it off him or borrow it for a trial before I decide if I want to own one. However, since Mister D and family are in Dubai, those “offers” don’t come in handy these days.

Anyway, I have been using a Nokia 6101 since September 2005. It was a flip phone – something I wasn’t too keen on before. But now, I am hooked. Since earlier this year, I have been looking out for a good deal on another phone. I was not a big fan of Motorola until the Razr V3 came out in the market. It was expensive when it was first released. I hung on to my good old Nokia. Early last year, I bought a used Motorola Razr V3 from a friend for a mere $50 – he had paid $1200 for it (including accessories). Ouch! It was the 1st generation Razr but I thought it was a small price to pay to see if I can get used to a Motorola phone, after all these years using Nokia (apart for a couple of years where I switched to a Siemens). My verdict – not a bad phone after all. The manoeuvring with the interface was not as difficult as I have heard from first time Motorola phone users.

So, in early April, I saw a good deal with my mobile provider – a Motorola V3 Red. Only $68 when I extend my contract. It was a small matter with the extension since I have been loyal to them since 2000. It is quite a bargain. Since it is a (red) product, I am also helping to eliminate Aids in Africa. I am not sure how much of my $68 will go to that cause but nonetheless, it is a small part to play… a very small, teeny weeny part. I doubt that Aids can be eliminated totally but at least something is being done about controlling the disease but that is another story.

I finally started using the phone this week – three weeks after I actually bought it. It took me a while to get the contact list sorted but I managed to sync my contact list from my Microsoft Outlook to my new V3. I have customised my ring tunes too. I have extracted tunes from some of my favourite songs to be my ring tunes. I have the likes of Kylie’s Love at First Sight (Remix), Mya’s My Love is Like… Wo (Remix), JT’s My Love and Nelly Furtado’s Promiscuous as my ring tunes. Okay, I know, it is a bit teeny bopper-ish but it beats having those dull ring tunes which came with the phone. A few people at work has complimented my ring tunes when they heard Mya’s My Love is Like .. Wo. They thought it was not too noisy and really cool. Hey, this phone is meant to be cool and so, it will be.

You may wonder why would I want to buy a Motorola V3 Red when I already have that 1st generation V3? Well, that one is being used for work – I was only given a corporate SIM card but not a corporate phone. Besides, the other V3 is in Silver – very serious looking phone. While this Red one appears much cooler. It will be my companion for the next couple of years. I have not thought about what my next phone will be. I just make full use of Red for now.

a letter to arsene...

Dear Mr Wenger,

As you may already know, last night, the goddamn AC Milan slashed Manchester United's hopes of a treble this season. Their tactics of closing down on the likes of Ronaldo, Rooney and Carrick didn’t make the game any exciting. Their counter attack, however, has left our defence in a bit of a shame. United's performance was less than stellar but statistics has shown that United has never done well on Italian soil. But I think you don't need me to tell you details on this - you've played Italian oppositions before and I must sure you must agree that they don’t really play exciting football.

Anyway, since United could not go for a treble, the least we, the fans, would want is to end the season with at least a treble over Chelsea i.e. beat them next Wed, 9 May, win the Premiership & beat them again during the FA Cup final on 19 May. Please do us a favour and whip Chelsea's butt this weekend. I am very sure that Arsenal would like to get maximum points out that game against the Blues. Besides, I think there is a need to let "The Special One" know that he is not so special anymore and that his touch is no longer turning everything into gold.

Mr Wenger, I know you will not let us the football fans down and provide us with at least an exciting match (if there be drama on the pitch, that would be a plus) against the Blues this Sunday and end this season with a high for all of us!

Your ardent admirer,
(Apart from my constant admiration for Sir Alex & the players at Man U, that is)
Tuesday's Child

PS : I just love it when you speak English with your French accent. I certainly enjoy your comments during the post-match interviews. Winks!

not my day – part II...

I have this really old personal digital assistant (PDA) – A Palm Pilot – it is like 6 years old. I know, such a dinosaur but it serves my purpose – well, more like did served. I have stored a lot of information in there – contacts, schedules for the past 6 years or so, birthdays, notes and even e-mails.

However, since I started this new job, I was not making use of the PDA that much. My current role is far different from what I have done in the past that the usage of the PDA has gone to almost zero. My activities are at a minimal that I can remember everything without having to note it down.

A couple of months ago, the battery went flat. Being such a procrastinator that I am sometimes, I hold off charging the battery until last night – when I finally decided that I am going to sync those data onto my computer at home. I placed it on the cradle to be charged. As soon as it was charging, I was prompted to set the date and time and some other settings. Once I have done that, I was appalled to find out that a bunch of my applications installed on the PDA and my data was all gone – the e-mail application to check my pop mail, my French-English dictionary, my contacts, my schedules, my e-mails, my games application – EVERYTHING was gone! I was very upset, still is. I didn’t realize that the data would be gone without the power. The data on my computer or notebook would still be there after I turn off the computer. How is this different? I know there is a reason for this but I am just too upset to figure out. I am kicking myself now for not charging the PDA sooner.

As with other situations, I will have to just get over this. I have spent a couple of hours today, updating contacts on my computer with the information I have on my Outlook and my mobile phone. This time, I am not taking any chances and have the data regularly synced between my computer and my mobile phone. Installing any new applications on the PDA would be useless now because I don’t think the operating system on the PDA is even compatible or supported anymore. No, I am not getting a new PDA. I think I will settle for my mobile phone to keep all my contacts information. I can survive without checking my e-mails or playing games or look up for a meaning of a French word. All that will have to wait till I get in front of a computer to have them checked out, played or looked up.

not my day – part I

Woke up this morning before the alarm went off at 5am. The sky seemed clear and quickly, I started to gear up for my run. See, I am all eager because it has been almost two weeks since I did my regular run after that 14.5km run I did two Saturdays ago. It didn’t help that much that in the last week or so, it has been pouring in the mornings, which has hindered me from doing any of my scheduled runs. My body was longing for a good workout and sweat!

After three kilometers into my running, the wind started blowing so strongly. After four kilometers, I could feel droplets of rain on my face. I persevered. Into my five kilometers, it began to pour. I continued to run, hoping that the rain would subside but no, it didn’t. I had to stop after five kilometers and head for shelter. Off all the days, I had to put on a white t-shirt instead of black. I was soaking wet by the time I head for a shelter since I have been running in the rain (it has been a while since I felt the rain on my face that way and frankly, it felt nice). Thank God, it was still early (and the fact that it was a public holiday), there were not many people who saw me all soaking wet. Otherwise, it would be like a wet t-shirt competition, with all eyes on me – I hate the thought of that. My hair, even though tied up, was in a total mess by the time I got home.

I had to wait for a while at the shelter but I was utterly uncomfortable. There I was staring out into the rain and thought about how nice it would be to snuggle in my bed. Instead, there I was, at least 3 kilometers away from home, staring out in the open where the rain had wet the roads. As the rain began to turn into drizzle, I quickly made my way back home and was still soaking wet.

Despite the fact that I managed to run for about 8 kilometers, it didn’t feel like a good workout either. It really upsets me but I keep telling myself that at least I manage to get some running done. I wish the weather would look-up in the next week. Isn’t it supposed to be a non-rainy season at this time of the year? What’s going on? Freaky weather these last couple of weeks - as far as Singaporeans like me are concerned.

silence of the romans...

I thought of so many titles for this post today:

Demolition of Roma
The Roman's defense blown apart
The Annihilation of the Romans
The Romans Subdued

Oh, I could go on but the fact remains that Manchester United has slaughtered Roma 7-1 at the Theatre of Dreams in the Champions League second leg quarter-Finals. It was probably a nightmare for Roma. Man U went through the semi-final with an aggregate score of 8-3 with what truly be their finest performance on a European night this season or ever!

When Man U lost their last two matches (against Roma last Wed and Portsmouth in the League on Saturday), critics was quick to say that Man U’s season may be over and that they could be in jeopardy of not advancing in the champion’s league or even winning the title. As a Man U supporter, I have to admit that it made me pretty nervous. It was like 1999 all over again where every match I have followed was a nail-biting moment. But after seeing the team performed earlier this morning and some of them are not even the first choice players, you know that Man U really want to bring the silverwares back to Old Trafford. The game was simply exhilarating!

The interrupted sleep and forgoing my run this morning (I had to sleep after the watching the match, else I will be all cranky at work) was totally worth it! I could not believe my eyes when Man U was scoring goals like it was a shooting practice. I thought I was dreaming. The goals were coming from all over the park. You can barely blink because you just might miss a goal being scored. The score line is truly unbelievable: Man U 7 – Roman 1. I still could not get over it. I have to watch the repeat telecast tonight to be sure.

With six games left in the Premiership, I think Man U is back to their winning ways. Those losses at Rome and Fratton Park are setbacks. Although I am not looking forward to the end of the season but I am looking forward to watching all the remaining matches that Man U will be playing, even if I will be biting my nails each time.

rejuvenation...

Long days at work and tight deadlines have left me and LET (a former colleague, now drinking buddy) mentally incapacitated… well so to speak. We were just tired of our daily routine. Long holidays were not an option at the moment. Hence, we decided that a few days away from work and not do much during that few days would do us good. So to Krabi in South Thailand we went - LET has never been there and I have never been to any other parts of Thailand except Bangkok – we might as well check it out.

Time didn’t seem to be moving at all while we were there, which is the way we wanted it. The most important objective was to get out of bed later than our usual routine, which was met. We spent one of those days island hopping, where the sun was shining, blue skies, white sandy beaches and crystal clear waters. A day out in the sun was followed by a day of pampering – we treated ourselves with a 3-hour spa after spending the entire morning by the pool: enjoying the sun again, some light reading, napping, some splashing in the pool and sipping cocktails. The day went by so slowly, which we didn’t mind it. Which would you rather have? A day that goes on so slowly at work doing something you don’t quite enjoy or a day that goes on so slowly while you sip cocktails by the pool or the beach? I rest my case.

In the evenings, good conversations were had over a nice dinner. A getaway is not complete without intoxication of oneself with some alcohol – well, not so much but still, a few rounds in a day was in order.

Back in Singapore with a fabulous tan (I had a bit of a burn on my back but nice tan nevertheless) and all energized. We don’t think we are ready to get back to work but hey, we have 2 working days to go before the weekend. No complaints there.

As usual, I am crap at uploading my photos - they will come later. However, this photo here was taken by yours truly on Bamboo Island - one of the stops during our day out island hopping. The little girl in the photo is Sonia, whose family was on the same island hopping group with us.

never gonna give you up...

On Sunday, I redeveloped my schoolgirl crush on Rick Astley.

I have always love Rick Astley after I heard his first number 1 UK hit, Never Gonna Give You Up in 1987. In the early 90’s, he went missing and I have always wondered what happened to him. He had a couple of albums, which he produced himself but it did not do as well as the albums he did with Stock, Aitken & Waterman.

Being a loyal fan, I would listen to his music every once in a while. On Sunday, I went on You Tube to look for his ‘Take Me To Your Heart’ video. At the end of the video, You Tube listed some recommendations of related videos. One of them caught my eye – Rick Astley – Never Gonna Give You Up 2006 (Live). I didn’t hesitate and clicked on that link to watch the video.

I think this was the first time that I’ve seen Rick singing ‘live’ and the first time I’ve seen him in the new millennium. Oh my god! My Ruddy Big Pig still looks good. He turned 41 years old on 6 Feb but he still maintains that boyish good looks (ok, I know some of my girl friends would beg to differ on the good looks bit but I don’t care – beauty lies in the eyes of the beholder). I cannot remember how many times I have watched this video last night. This live version of the song is simply awesome and Rick takes my breath away! This morning, I quickly converted the video on MP3 and I have been listening to it on my iPod all the way to work and back home.

In the video, there is a surprise towards the end of the song – something I did not expect which made this video simply memorable. It seems like he still has a legion of fans, who seems to have enjoyed his performance. I know I did. I am still in awe when I watch Rick in this video (sneaked in a few moments to watch it at work today). When I listened to the MP3, it put a smile on my face. Twenty years on, I am in love with Rick Astley all over again – I just cannot explain this feeling I have about him. Hugh Grant has always been my number one but after seeing how good Rick looks like now, I think Hugh will have to take a back seat for a while.

Hhhhmmm…never gonna give you up, Rick.. NEVER!

sweating it out in the sun...

In recent weeks, I have been making a point to get out on a Saturday and spend some time in the sun – what with my weekdays are spent at the office desk with air-conditioning. Sun is a good source of Vitamin D and it helps to cheer you up and so, I thought I should get some sun once a week and have a good work out to sweat it out.

On Saturday morning, I went a couple of hours of cycling by the beach (under the sun off course) with Ken. Spoke to Ken about it over lunch on Thursday and I think he was keen because there would be possibilities of feasting his eyes over some hot babes on roller-blades by the beach. Hey, it doesn’t matter what his objectives are. The important thing is we were going for some leisurely exercise.

We started off with a nice breakfast (I had a nice cheese sandwich with a cup of flat white to wash it down) before renting a couple of good bikes, to start off the morning. Halfway through our cycling, we had to get off our bikes as there was a duathlon going on. Loads of men were running 10km in the sun. We got back on our bikes after we passed the duathlon’s starting/finishing point and we were cycling pass the runners. It was cramping us from cycling really fast but we were maneuvering the runners, which may have pissed them off.

I think Ken was a little disappointed that one of his objectives were not met – there were not many hot-babes with tank tops on roller-blades that morning. Yours truly on the other hand, got some feasting of the eyes through cycling by those duathlon runners – some of them have really nice butts. I know, they are all sweaty and not really in their best appearance but still, it were a feast. Ken almost made an impression on me when he did a 180-degree flip with his bike – nah, he didn’t. He almost flip over his bike when he hit the break to avoid colliding a cyclist in front of him, who was going really slowly. He almost fell but somehow, he managed to do some 'acrobatic' move to prevent him from falling. I think the so-called acrobatic move left more of an impression on me - a funny one, that is. I wish I had my video camera on for that one.

We treated ourselves to a nice Indonesian lunch and a couple of nice healthy drink that afternoon before Ken went off for his basketball game and yours truly went home to rest after being up and about since 5am. Ken had his warm up with the cycling while I had my warm up before that. I thought I have my own mini duathlon – one with a break in between. I woke up at 5am and went for my 10km morning run before Ken came over. Then, we cycled approximately 15 km later that morning. The energy, which generated from the running and the cycling, left me high, up to the point till I got home. I am a little sore at the butt now and had some sunburn on my shoulders but I’d do this again in an instant. I’m sure Ken will share my enthusiasm for another cycling session again (which I am sure we will make a point to do it). I just hope there will be some hot-babes for him to gawk at next time. As for me, I am happy to be able to test my body for an extended endurance. The obsession continues.

oogle @ google...

It is amazing how many of us out there are still not catching up with the world of internet. Do you know just how amazing this world wide web thingy is?? My only wish is that this internet thing would have surfaced much earlier than the late nineties. It would have saved me so much time from traveling to the library to do research for my projects and assignments during my school days. It would have saved me money from photocopying pages from books, which I need to supplement what I already have in my text books. It would have saved me a lot of money from buying fashion, football & teen magazines in order to satisfy my hunger for information of what’s going in the fashion (not that I was such a fashionista back then or am now anyway but still), football and my teen heartthrobs. It would save me a lot of time from having to speak with the travel agent on the phone to find information on my flight and hotel options or going to the travel agent to collect my air-ticket. Everything now can be done electronically.

Do you know just how much wealth of information you can get from the Internet??? There are so many resources available out there like videos, recipes, company information, porn… hey, you name it, you got it. And all you need to get this information is the help of search engines like Yahoo, Alta Vista and off course, the one that is taking the world by storm, Google. All you need to do is type in the information you want like say, “how to get big breasts” and within milliseconds, this search engines would generate pages of search results, with the most relevant on the top. If the information you find on the first link is not what you want, you can always go the next one. Or, you can always modify your search criteria. There are just so many ways to go at it.

However, there are still people out there who just don’t make full use of it. Are they afraid that the internet would come back to bite them in the arse if they went in search of information that they want? It bothers the hell out of me all the time.

I was out at lunch recently and my colleague received a text from one of the guys in her team, asking her if she knows the number of this headhunter firm and he was in the office in front of the computer. I took a deep breath in disbelief and started rolling my eyes.

A friend once told me that her boss was impressed at how she managed to solve a problem on a Microsoft platform product when she is not even familiar with it. She said that she just Googled it and everything she needs to do was laid out in steps in front of her on the screen. Her boss could not believe that she could such information on the internet.

I had someone at work who kept bugging with his questions on time difference between Singapore and the US, which irritated the hell out of me when people kept asking me the same old question more than 2 times and two days in a row. I gave him the link to timeanddate.com, where you can convert the time difference between Singapore to Timbuk Two. That saved me 2 minutes a day now from the ‘do you know the time difference between here and there’ question.

And I don't believe the crap when people say that they have lost touch with the latest music, fashion, sporting news, etc. Unless you choose to be ignorant like me with the current affairs of the world today, you have no excuse. You can always search for the lastest chart topping hits in America, the UK, Europe and Asia. You can always search for the sports club or sport personality you support. It only takes but a few minutes to have you up to date with any information.

Come on people! Live a little! This is the new millennium, so please keep up with the times! Go to Google and search for whatever information that you want. Don’t be afraid of the Internet. It is there to make you life so much easier. Go and booked your holiday online. Chat with your friends online. Go do your research online. Go read the news online. Go shopping online. Go have that French sentence translated to English online. Go be a blogger. The Internet has made our lives so much easier and it is there for you to utilise it. Be independent! Why rely on other people to search for information when you can do it yourself and have that tool right there in your face?? Almost everyone and anyone working in an office has a computer now, so don’t be giving any more excuses that you don’t know where to get information from. Go on! You have nothing to loose but the image as being uncool and being behind the times.

a miranda hobbs moment...

In episode seven of the final season of Sex & The City, there was a scene when Miranda saw a pair of skinny jeans, which she has saved since 1984 because she couldn’t fit in it. She went to put it on and found that she could button and zipped it up. She went out for a party after that. How’s that for a confidence booster?

Well, I had that moment last Friday morning, although, my moment wasn’t exactly with a pair of skinny jeans. It was this pair of white straight leg jeans, which I bought online from Victoria’s Secret in 2003. I have worn it much between 2003 and 2004 but since 2005, I have not been able to fit in it – and I think I don’t have to say why. I almost tempted to give it away but I decided to keep it at the back of my wardrobe, with the thought at the back of my mind that someday I will be able to fit in it again.

On Friday morning, I wanted to put on this black top with a pair of jeans to work (it is casual Fridays at work these days). Then, I thought about the time when I put on the same top with the pair of white jeans in 2003. I went to look at that corner of my wardrobe and saw the white jeans sitting there. I was not confident that I would be able to button it up but tried it anyway. Well, surprise, surprise! I was able to button it and zipped it up too. A big smile splashed across my face and my mood was lifted higher. I paired my outfit with big earrings, red bag and a pair of wedges and went off to work, walking tall as I left home for work.

The day went great – much work to do but nothing was too daunting. It is amazing how a pair of jeans can make a difference to you mood and your day too. I ended the workweek with a nice lunch, a purchase of a couple make-up items and treated myself to a relaxing massage after work. I am sure that there a lot of women out there who had experienced the same moment. When you are unable to fit into your favourite item of clothing, it can just spoil your day but when it is the other way around, your day, your week and your world becomes so different – like there is nothing that can get in your way. This is a kind of moment that we all should have everyday!

nail biting moment..

Watching the Man U match against Fulham on Saturday was a heart-stopping and nail biting moment for yours truly. It was like watching them play in a cup final or the last few matches before the end of the season where losing is not an option. Yet, that was the 28th Premier league match, with still 10 more matches to go. It was heart-stopping probably because Fulham put on a strong fight and the score line of 1-2, in favour of Man U, did not reflect what happened on the pitch. Man U’s performance was less than stellar with Fulham getting half of possession, based on my own gauge.

2003 was the year when Man U last won the Premiership title and the way they are playing this season, it is obvious that they really want to bring this season’s trophy back to the north. Players’ performance and fitness also played a part and this season, Man U players are on top of their form. The boys from the 90’s like Gary Neville, Paul Scholes and Ryan Giggs are in top form. Off course, the player that has been impressive from the start of the season would be Cristiano Ronaldo. That guy kicks ass! His skills and speed can terrorise the opponents. During Saturday’s match, when it looked like it would end in a draw, Ronaldo ran from before the halfway line up to the penalty box of Fulham’s, outrunning the opponent’s defence and rammed the ball to the right hand corner of the goal-post to score the winning goal at 88th minute, in front of their supporters who were seated behind the goalpost. The celebration after the goal was like it was the match that really mattered. The whole team thanked the supporters after the match and it was a great moment.

Winning this match against Fulham meant that Man U is 9 points clear of Chelsea, who is involve in a Carling Cup Final on Sunday, hence not playing a premiership game. Making the gap bigger meant that there is more pressure on Chelsea to win their remaining 11 matches. Honestly, I don’t really care - I just hope they continue to drop points - :-P - so that Man U can continue to widen the gap.

This Cristiano Ronaldo guy – his English seems to have improved remarkably since he first joined the club in 2004. When he first came to England, I understand that he spoke minimal English. Now, it seems like he was born to speak to language. Watch the interview.



10 more matches till the end of the season equates to 10 more nail biting moments for yours truly when watching Man U play.

already??

It seems like only yesterday when all of us were looking forward to this 4-day weekend. Now, in about 12 hours, some of us will be back at the office. What a drag! On the bright side, this will be a short working week - 3 more days and it is the weekend again. Yahoo!

world without music..

The other morning, after a few minutes of starting my regular running session (well, okay, more like jogging - I cannot run. Well, I can but not very fast though), my iPod went dead all of sudden. This has happened before during my runs but it would recover by itself within seconds. This time around, it went for a good minute or so without recovering. I tried to revive it - hitting pause and play again a few times did not work. I tried choosing a different play list, that didn’t work either. Then, I tried resetting it by pressing the ‘menu’ and ‘play’ buttons at the same time. All these were done while I was still moving with my jog. It was not easy I tell you – meddling with your iPod on your arm while trying to main the speed of your job. But alas, after resetting my iPod, it still did not revive, much to my dismay.

I have never run or jog without the company of my iPod, being the music junkie that I am. Those fast songs that blast into my ears during my running/jogging sessions, keep me going. The music made the long distance seem shorter. But that morning, with 7km still left to go before the end of my run, I was left in the world of silence. The only sound that I could hear, other than the vehicles passing by on the road, was the sound of my breath. I was dreading it and 7km seem like a daunting distance.

Questions went through my mind while I jog without my music – silly thoughts actually – like did I charge my iPod? If my iPod could not be salvaged when I get home, does this mean I need to buy a new one? The thought of having a new iPod was tempting but I wasn’t ready to invest in a new one. Then, I thought, if I am left with no choice but to get a new one, which model would I get? IPod video? IPod Nano so that it would be easier on my arms when I run. Plenty of thoughts crossed my mind while I continued my run. The next thing I knew, I was at the last few hundred metres and the dreaded run without music came to an end.

It took me less than 30 seconds to revive my iPod the moment I got home. It came back to life after I plugged the power in, which did not surprise me but at the same time, I was relieved because I know that I did not have to invest in a new MP3 player. I hope that my iPod will not fail on me again while I am running. I know there are people out there who prefer to run without music but I can’t. Music is the next closest thing I have to a coach to motivate me while doing my exercises. I am, after all, a music junkie. What will the world be without music? That run without music was enough to tell me what it would be like - painful.

ghost town..

Aaah, it is that time of the year again when our island becomes a ghost town, what with today being the first day of Chinese New Year. Practically, half of the population of this island has left town – the foreign Chinese would have gone back home (wherever home is that is outside of Singapore) to spend the holidays with their families, the expatriates would have gone for their holidays somewhere exotic and off course, some of our Singaporeans would have left town for their holidays too. What Christmas holiday is like in the West, that is how it is like for us this time of the year in the East.

I love this time of the year. At one point, I would be one of those people who would be in a hurry to leave for my holiday during this time. Not anymore now. It gets very expensive to leave time during this holiday season and especially if you planned to leave at the last minute. I love to stay put in recent years because this is probably the only time where I can actually hear silence. Yes, the atmosphere is different. All the shops and eating joints are closed (very rare that this ever happens in commercially-driven Singapore), roads are less congested and the human traffic is far less than any other day. I woke up this morning and could hear the difference – it was quiet unlike other ordinary day. I just love it!

On top of that, this is one of the rare times of the year where we get a two-day public holiday. What more could one ask for? I will not going back to work till Wednesday and I am relishing every moment of peace and quiet and time away from work. Two more days of lazing around in bed till late morning….aaaahhh, heaven…

can you keep up??

There are certain genres, which I only go for when going to the movies. Generally, I like chick flicks, comedies, animated and sometimes, drama and a little bit of action packed. However, every once in a while, I get talked into watching movies, which I am not too keen off.

A few years ago, my friends, Joe & Ken convinced me to see X-men. I wasn’t looking forward to it but went anyway. Initially, the movie was a little too intense to my liking. But at the end of it, I enjoyed it much.

A couple of nights ago, I agreed again to see another movie, which I am not keen off. Ken talked me into watching Ghost Rider, starring Nicholas Cage & Eva Mendez. First of all, I am not into Nicolas Cage and why do I want to see his movies. After failing to find an alternative movie, I caved in and went with Ken’s choice, to his delight.

There I was at the start of the movie, dragging it. The only plus at that point was the guy who played young Nicolas Cage. He was so hot! (His name is Matt Long, by the way). As the movie progressed, I was enjoying the CGI effects and the comic relief. One bit which I enjoyed much was when the modern day Ghost Rider with his modern day motorcycle as his ride, met up with the old day Ghost Rider who had his old ride in a form of a horse. Before they rode into the horizon, the modern day Ghost Rider asked his old counterpart, “Can you keep up?” That cracked me up.

Not a bad for a first movie of the year for me. I am looking forward to seeing the Hugh Grant movie, Music & Lyrics. It may be bad and corny but as long as Hugh is it, I am there at the cinema.

escapade...

Bloody hell! Has it been that long since I actually updated my blog?? Unf!@#$%believable!

It has been a crazy month. Work was one thing. Adjusting to an extreme change in diet was another. I was attempting to cut back my carbohydrate intake to just 10% a day that one week which led to some dire consequences. The mood swings were at the extreme and I was not coping with it very well. It got to a point where I had a row with a friend over NOTHING, was shedding tears like there was no tomorrow and it was not even my PMS week! Bizarre, I know. For a moment there, I thought I was going insane and may need to get help. But as I fine tuned my diet, I was right back on track. Thank GOD!!! I could not live with myself with my mood hanging low all the time.

You know you need a vay-kay when every little thing gets to you – that was how I feel each time I talk to anyone at work on projects that we are working on. However, we will be having a long weekend this week, what with Chinese New Year holidays. Four days off from work! Hurrah! What more could one ask for? So, yours truly is looking forward to getting away from the insane world of work and just chill.

Speaking of getting away, it reminded me of a Janet Jackson’s song called ‘Escapade’. That kind of song puts you in a mood for a holiday (another song is Madonna’s Holiday for obvious reasons). I remember watching her performed the song on the American Music Award in 1990 (God, that song is like 17 years old now!!) – I love it so much that I watched it over and over again and trying to follow her dance steps. But alas, I have accepted the fact that I have two left feet and probably why I have not quit my day job till now. I guess I will just have to enjoy the choreography from the video and just do the dance steps in my dreams.

a woman obsessed…

And that woman is I… obsessed about losing more weight and keeping fit.

A few years ago, some of my colleagues and friends would discuss endlessly about losing weight and keeping fit. They were talking about their gym sessions, their consultation with their personal trainer, diet pills and blah, blah. They were in their world of their own and I didn’t understand what the big deal is… until now that is.

I have never been fat (just that I am a big and heavy boned girl) and over the years, I have never lost any weight. I’ve gained a bit here and there but sometime between 2005 and 2006, I have gained so much weight - 8kgs to be exact and my Body Mass Index (BMI) was at the verge of going to an unhealthy level. I joined the gym but the endless workout on the treadmill, spinning classes as well as body balance didn’t seem to make any difference on my weight and my size, which continue to increase. I gave up after 9 months of no improvement. I got even heavier in 2006 when my daily meals would consist of much nasi padang (rice with dishes, usually contains coconut milk), mee goreng (fried noodles), prata with egg (local Indian pancake) and the the tarik (foamed milk tea and the milk is not low-fat milk). Pretty scary combination if you ask me.

The turning point was in November last year. I signed up for the Standard Chartered’s 10km run in August - hoping that with a goal in sight, I would start exercising again. However, that didn’t happen until early November 2006 – I panicked because I have not been training since I signed up. Also, I found out that I weigh as heavy as some of my male friends, who are taller than I am. I stopped procrastinating and began scheduling strict running sessions - 3 times a week in the mornings. Also in November, I discovered that I have lost 3kgs. Pondering back, I observed that my daily meals have changed. I have begun to eat a whole lot less of carbohydrates and more protein, of which I have continued to do. In the course of training for the 10km run, I began to shed more weight and slowly, I was able to fit into those clothes, which I could not fit prior to November and my BMI has gone back to normal level. That motivated me further and that was when the obsession began.

Now, I get very determined to do my runs 3 times a week, 40 to 45 minutes each time and would get upset if I do anything less than targetted. I would opt for the healthier meals where possible and eat less carbo. I would do weight training every other day. I research on improving my fitness. I have even set goals for myself in terms of losing more weight, toning up my body and shedding those fats around my abs and stomach. Today, I actually bought Women’s Health Magazine because there is an article on working on your abs and super-healthy new foods. The worse - I would weigh myself almost every day for fear that I may put back those weights that I have lost.

Oh my, what have become of me? I have become one of those people, who I hated a few years ago for their obsession with losing weight and keeping fit. Yikes!! My constant obsession with fitness stuffs may have driven some people up the wall. I have gone insane, I tell you! However, a couple of close friends said to me that it is difficult for someone who has never lost weight to understand what the buzz is about unless they have lost weight themselves. There is a reason why I am obsessed - I am seeing results and I am happy about it, compared to 2005 when all my slogging at the gym resulted to nothing. Obviously now, I have been doing something right! And all these hard work is worth all the while when you feel good at the end of it. Plus, I get compliments from people around me saying how good I look with the weight loss - their words motivate me even more. So, excuse me for being obsessed - it is all for the benefit of yours truly and I am going on living the life of a fitness freak and reap the benefits while I still can. And now, I understand what those fitness freaks were ranting about a few years ago.

So, here's to healthy living and the 21km run for this year’s marathon!!! There is no looking back - just moving forward!

man u 3 - aston villa 0

Literally! Villa lost to Man U again over the weekend - 3 consecutive defeats in a space of 6 weeks. I feel sorry for them. They started the season well but now, they are at the bottom half of the English Premier League. Not even a manager like Martin O’Neil, who has done wonders at Scottish Premier League with Celtic, is making a difference at the club. With the exception of one particular manager, the other Scottish Premier League managers who made the return to English Premier League don’t seem to be able to do that magic. I guess the demands of the English League are much greater than that of the Scottish League.

I also think that it all comes down to money. I mean, look at Chelsea. If not for that Ambromovich (I don’t care if I spell his name wrong) guy injecting the funds, I don’t think Chelsea would have won their last two Premiership titles. It takes a whole lot of financial & management support for a club to win trophies with quality players. Quality players means having the money to get the good players in the market or having the time, money and resources to create quality players from the youth of the country. Also, when a club with injuries, they would still have quality in their reserve /youth squad to replace the injured players. Not many clubs have this luxury.

I was reading the newspapers on Sunday and I found that the media are already putting down Man U – stating that they should not be too confident to win the league this season. It even stated the statistics of when Man U has failed to win the league after being on top of the table at this period of the season. What the media has failed to state is the statistics where a club has stayed on top position at this point of the season and went on to win the league. Aaah, the media – what they wouldn’t do to give negative publicity for their news to sell. Not every one of us is Kevin Keegan who, in the 1995-1996, succumbed to the mind games of Sir Alex and the media and cost them the League title (I swear I could still remember his rant - “I’d love it, I’d love it if we beat them!”) Say what you want, Mr Mass Media but Man U will win the League this season! We will see who will be crying at the end of season!

snooze interrupted..

For every women, there comes a time when your biological clock will start to tick. Mine started ticking too at one point but I have put it on permanent snooze since my late twenties. Okay, I know that that is not scientifically possible but it is something that I manage on my own. It is not that difficult but sometimes, the snooze does go off and I have to put it back to permanent snooze real quick. I can't turn off the clock permanently - it is built-in, a function that you cannot tick off the option when you buy the package - it is a compulsary option. There is a also a bug which causes the snooze to trigger even it is not meddled with. We women are stuck with the wrong end of the bargain, if you ask me.

Recently, the snooze button went off and set off my biological clock ticking again when Mister D & his family were back here for a couple of weeks. I don’t really like children that much – only because I don’t know to engage them. In the past, kids would look at me and start to cry, which put me off children even more. That was until Mister D came into my life. I have never connected with a kid before until Mister D.

Since I last saw him in January 2006, where he would use sign language to tell us when he wanted something, he has now become this chatterbox. I spent quite a bit of time while he was here but the snooze button of my biological clock really went off that night when I sent him & his family off to the airport. It was what Mister D did that trigger off the snooze button.

He got all excited when he saw me at the door and started jumping around, which was so touching because that was the first time I have seen a little person got all excited when they saw me. We engaged in funny conversations - Mister D is so comical. I went through a book of transportation with him – he likes vehicles so much. I carried him after his parents and I had some coffee - he was so happy that he didn’t have to walk. He wanted to sit next to me in the taxi on the way to the airport. And finally what made the clock went ticking like crazy was when he fell asleep while in my arms. I have never had a child come close to me like that before.

It got me thinking – I like the feeling of another tiny human being who wants to be close to you and your attention. Although I enjoy Mister D’s companion, I can’t help thinking that night about having my own Mister D. Bugger! Then, as quickly as the snooze button went off, I quickly put it back on permanent snooze. And it better stay that way for a while. The ticking clock and ‘faulty’ snooze button is not something I want to deal with on a regular basis - something which I have to live with.

Who could resist a cutie & funny little kid like Mister D? He is so irresistable!

2006 - looking back...

Looking back at 2006, it has been a great year for yours truly. Here are a few things that made it great in descending order:

7. A Trip To Dubai In January During The Shopping Festival
A good few days away from work and had some retail theraphy. I hit the malls on some days and bagged some great deals that I have no regrets of.

6. Holiday In China In August
I had a fabulous time in Beijing, Hangzhou & Shanghai with Kevin & Ger. Moments I will cherish for a very long time from now.

5. A New Job In July
I found a new job after hunting for one for a very long time and after having been in my old job for six years. It was a refreshing change and it is also nice to get a good raise.

4. Taking Part In 10k Run In Standard Chartered Marathon In December
It was totally spontaneous because I thought I had to do it as I have been procrastinating about taking part since 2005. I am glad I did, even if it was only for 10km.

3. Changing My Daily Diet & Establishing A Regular Exercise Regime
In recent months, I have minimised carbohydrate intake (which I used to take a lot of) and turned to other alternatives as well as reducing the quantity of food that I eat.

Training for the 10km run prior to the Standard Chartered marathon has also motivated me to establish a regular exercise regime as I am seeing the benefits. I used to dread doing exercise but I enjoy it now.

2. Shedding Some Weight
With a change in my diet and regular exercise, I have managed to shed some excess weight, which I have gained much of since 2005. Since August, I have lost 6 kilograms. I am now within my ideal weight range. I have not felt so good in a long while and the satisfaction of being able to fit in those trousers and skirts, which I have not been able to wear for over a year now, is just priceless!

1. A Complete 360-Degree Change In My Attitude
For years now, I have quite a negative attitude – complaining and whining about almost everything and sweating all the small stuffs, especially about work. Then, one fine day, I did a 360-degree turn and got rid of that negative me after I realised that the negative side of me has affected the people around me too. It sure feels good not being negative and sweating the small stuffs - dealing with things is so much easier now.

With all the positives in 2006, I am looking forward for an even better year in 2007 and keeping the positive momentum going! I am so ready for what’s coming this year!

another day, another year...

Happy 2007, everyone!

simply new...

After two years, I thought I change the template on this blog. It is not like I have not thought about this before. I have been for a while. It is just that I could not find anything that is nice and suits my personality until I found this one. It is simple and the girl on the banner represents yours truly - music always keeps me company. Thanks to Isnaini.com – the designer of this template.

Today being new year’s eve, some of us may be getting ready to party and welcome a brand new year. Perhaps the following mashed-up tracks would put you in a party mood. These tracks are simply brilliant! They are basically two songs which are mixed with music from one song and with a capella from another. Typically, the music and vocals comes from a completely different genres. The other defintion of these mash-up tracks is bastard pop, which I find quite amusing. The discovery of bastard pop was made after a friend sent me a mashed-up video of Justin Timberlake vs 2 Unlimited called Sexy Twlight Back. Now, we are both hooked and have been on the hunt for such mashed-up tracks on the Internet since. The playlist I have put together are a few of my favourite and they would be something that you would want to dance the night away to and usher in the New Year with a bang! Party on!

Mashed-Up Playlist

Madonna vs Black Eyed Peas – Humps Up

Justin Timberlake vs 2 Unlimited – Sexy Twilight Back
Franz Ferdinand vs Kelis – Take Me Out (for a Milkshake)

Destiny’s Child vs Britney Spears – Lose My Toxic Breath

cannot resist...

Yesterday, I caved and bought this red coat from Dorothy Perkins. Okay, okay, I know - why on earth do I need a coat in tropical Singapore, where the lowest temperature we ever have here is 22 degree celcius? Well, I have my reasons!

First of all, the coat was on sale. The price was slashed 50% for the end of season sale. The original price was SGD186. I have been eyeing this coat since October when it first hit the racks. I was still contemplating on splurging that much money for something which I may not have a chance to put on every so often. Each time I come back to the store, the coat is there with my size. The store manager was nice. She promised to let me know when the coat goes on sale, which she did - she rang me a few days ago to let me know and would put it aside if I want it. I think the coat was meant to be mine - it has my name written all over it. If it is not, it wouldn't still be there up till yesterday!

The other reason - I have been looking for a red coat for years now. Few years ago, I had to go for a last minute business trip to Paris in winter and I scrambled to get a winter coat. Alas, when you are looking for a right coat at the last minute, chances are, you will not find one. So, I ended up settling for a dark blue coat where I looked rather dull and unglam in all my photos taken while I was in the fashion capital of the world.

Last year, I was in England during late spring. I froze my butt off when we spent a cold Saturday at the seaside town of Brighton and all the way back to London that night with my dark denim jacket. In summary, not only did I not keep warm but I also looked so unstylish.

So now, I am not taking any chances. You will never know when I have to get my butt back to a place during the cold months and this time, I am going to look my best. I am looking forward to it already and I don't even know where and when that will happen. I guess, a girl can't help herself when it comes down to being a slave to fashion and wanting to look good. Doesn't anyone?

we are on our way to gorgeousness!

When you were in your teens, you were in such a hurry to grow older. You want to be in your twenties and you want to start working, have a career, get married, and start a family, blah, blah. Then, as you get to your twenties and then, most of us get terrified of the thought of turning thirty. And then, you actually get to your thirties. So, how does that feel?

Well, yours truly has turned thirty this millennium and had another birthday in my thirties this month. Looking back, I am not the least bit terrified of being in my thirties and going on to my forties. Why should I be? I think I am looking my best after I turned thirty. I am more confident, not afraid to face the challenges in this world. I have the freedom in the world to do anything I want and actually being able to afford to do what I want to do.

So yes, life is a little bit complicated at this age too. There are more responsibilities with the family (parents, siblings) and at work. Most of your single friends are now married and have children. You don’t get to see them that much and when you do, sometimes they want to fix you up. And when you go to clubs and other drinking joints, you feel like you are the chaperon.

However, I am not the least bit concerned about the downside of being in my thirties and single. I am happy being the way I am. I still go on doing what I truly enjoy - go on holidays, going out at a moment’s notice, watching an entire game of football (soccer for the Yankees) with no interruptions and have a long lie-in over the weekend. Some may beg to differ and say that I am getting too comfortable with being single but hey, I don’t give a hoot. This is my choice! Why fix something that is not broken?

What summed up my feeling of being good at this age are the well wishes I received from a couple of my friends:

Have a Gorgeous Birthday!
You are on your way to Gorgeousness!

Now, doesn’t that tell you something? It is not a bad thing being a thirty-something and I’m loving it!

it is about time!!!

I cannot believe that it took me 4 months to get my China holiday photos uploaded on my Yahoo Photo Album! I finally did it last Saturday. Not only did I upload photos from my trip to China, I have also uploaded other photos from my holidays in recent years. It was quite a productive few hours as far as yours truly is concerned and I was quite pleased that I got this task sorted. I am just bad at this – getting worse from before. I need to improve on this.

To view photos from my China trip, click on the following links:

Beijing

Hangzhou & Shanghai

I have put a permanent link of my Yahoo Album at the sidebar – so do check in once in a while for new photos. In the meantime, enjoy the other photos which I have uploaded.

Enjoy!

34939 - the stats..

So, the results/stats are out. It seems like yours truly is an average 10km runner – finishing 2721st place of 4448 female runners. I was a bit disappointed and started making “if only” statements. Then, I chatted with a friend, who is a seasoned marathon runner (he ran 42km in 3 hours and 12 mins. Wow!). He said that I did pretty well for a first time runner & considering the fact I only started training a couple of weeks before. He felt that I could only improve the next time I run and gave me some tips for training up for these races. Perhaps I was being too hard on myself – like I always do when I felt that I could have done something better but never put in enough effort. However, I have received some encouragements from other runner friends and even some proposals of running other races together. I remain motivated.

34939...

That was my race number for the Standard Chartered Singapore Marathon. So, yes, I took part – I ran the 10km yesterday and this was my first time running in a marathon… even though it was only for the 10km run.

I registered for the run in late August but only seriously trained about 2 weeks before the marathon – thanks to procrastination. I completed the run in 1 hour, 29 minutes and 39 seconds to be exact (I think - will verify this on the website after they publish the results in the next 24 hours or so) but I gladly round it up to an hour and 30 minutes. ;-) I feel that it is not bad for someone who was running the 10km for the first time – although I have to admit that at some point, I was brisk walking.

Post marathon was celebrated with a nice brunch, good conversations over a cup of much needed coffee with some good company and later, a good night’s sleep after being up and about since 4.30am (The run for 10k was at 7.30am).

After that run, yours truly is motivated. Once the aches around the thighs are gone (hopefully soon), regular running is in order. I am determined to complete the next 10km run (wherever and whenever that will be) in an hour. Crossing that finishing line was a good feeling and I gladly run another marathon to get that feeling again.

new attitude...

Up to a month ago, I was not too optimistic about going to work or even doing my job. I was dragging myself to the office every morning and was being negative about every single thing. Hell, I even began putting myself back into the job market, hoping that something better would come along. When asked how I am getting on with my new job, my responses were all but positive.

That was until I realized that I have upset a few friends with my whining and complaining – they didn’t say it to my face but I could sense it. I felt really bad and that was the turning point. I have since taken a new attitude – no more whining or complaining. At the end of the day, it is just a job – it pays the bills, the holidays and the shopping.

Also, I find music helps to soothe the mind and changes your mood. I would listen to my iPod while working at my desk, when I am not busy attending meetings or on the phone. Since I sit near the window, I tend to walk up to it once in a while to look at the view. It is not a nice one but at least it is a view and it helps to de-stress for a bit. Sometimes, when you look out the window when it rains, it gives you that nice feeling. I can’t explain it but it is just a good feeling.

I have also stopped letting any negative remarks from other people about work get to me. Yes, we have problems to solve at work. Yes, there is always discrimination at work. Yes, there are days when things don’t always go your way. But that doesn’t mean it is the end of the world. The day will still end. Tomorrow will still come. Life still goes on. I have learnt to switch off my work brain as soon as I stepped out of the office. I sleep better at night this way.

So far, I have done a good job at maintaining a healthy attitude about work. I am beginning to enjoy my work – accomplishing more then when I was being negative about everything. I hope to keep it going, even during PMS. It has done wonders to my daily life – it is like I am a different person. Why didn’t I adopt this earlier on? It took a few hurt feelings to make me realize that my negativity have affected other people too. No fret, a new me has dawned, to spread joy all around. Cheers!

good enough to eat...

I was not big on body scrubs until I started using The Body Shop’s body scrub and I was sold. Not only does it do good to smoothen and moisturizes your skin and the fragrant is fabulous but it is also looks good enough to eat. When you open a tub, it looks a pre-packed cookie dough or ice-cream. With names like Brazil Nut and Cocoa Buttter (these are my favourites), they can be mistaken for dessert if it is not sold in a beauty shop. They look yummy but alas, you can only use them on your body. When you walk out from your bathroom after a scrub session, you will probably smell good enough to eat too! The Body Shop range – I just love them all!

Liz demonstrating that the scrub is good enough to eat.















My favourite scrubs from The Body Shop

a.s.s.u.m.e.

It bothers the shit out of me when people uses acronyms and not tell you what it means and make an assumption that you know what it stands for or what it means. As the saying goes, don’t assume – u make an ASS out of U & ME.

I usually make a habit to tell new people around me the meaning of the acronyms which I was using. The rule of a thumb is that you must assume that your audience is a new and not well aware of the background of the topic.

However, lately, I have been getting quite a lot of people using acronyms with me and not bother to explain what it means. When I asked them what it means, they seem to be annoyed and explaining reluctantly or whatever they explain makes no sense. I have a hard time telling them that they need to understand that this is a basic rule of a conversation. You use an acronym, you explain what it means. But no, I was not getting any of that, which drives me up the wall.

An annoying example would be this morning when I received an e-mail and it goes something like this (you must note, that the acronyms here have been modified and also that I am still completely clueless over what was being said in the e-mai):

“In order for you to process this, it will have to be ABCD before the status can be changed to DEF. However, I find that XYZ would be the best option but QRS it will be okay for now. Please advise and if I don’t hear from you by so and so date, I will change the status to TUV.”

I went, “What the @#$%^???”.

happy 20th...

.....to Sir Alex for being in charge at Old Trafford, the theatre of Dreams of the greatest club in the world, as far as I am concerned. What a way to celebrate your anniversary:

A good start to the season
A good win against Portsmouth on Saturday
A couple of your closest rivals losing their Premiership match against their city rivals

Things went wrong in London on Sunday when first, Arsenal were defeated by West Ham with a late, late goal, which has caused Arsene Wenger (my favourite French man – him speaking English with the French accent just turns me on and he looks good for a mature man) to be very angry. Then, Chelsea was defeated by Tottenham Spurs 2-1 breaking a 19-year spell of never winning against Chelsea. I was thrilled! You should have seen Jose Mourinho, the Chelsea manager rambling away during the interview with Sky Sports – the interviewer only asked him one question but he practically provided an analysis of the entire game in a good five-minutes. Despite the defeats by Man U’s London’s rivals, the matches were hearts stopper with demonstration of brilliant skills and goals scored – I truly enjoyed watching them.

So, I think Sir Alex has a huge smile on his face this week. All positive results but it is still early in the season to conclude anything.

Remarkable 20 years for Sir Alex. It seems like only yesterday when I read about him leading Aberdeen, a Scottish Club, to win the European Cup Winners Cup in 1983, defeating the Spanish giants, Real Madrid. I thought that if he could do this with a Scottish Club, can you imagine what he could do with a big club like Man U, who was hungry to win the League and other trophies. The managers after Sir Matt Busby were all rubbish. Then 20 years ago today, he took over Man U, to my delight. It took him a few years before Man U won the league but it was worth the wait. There was no looking back since.

I have read this autobiography and I am very impressed with what he has done for the club. His management skills were tough, yet effective. He has also created legends in players like Giggs, the Neville brothers, Scholes and Beckham through developing the youth at the club.

At this moment, I cannot see any prospective replacement that can carry on his legacy when he retires and I cannot imagine having to go through another decade of verbal abuse from other clubs’ supporters (those Liverpool fans in the 80’s were just brutal! It was torturous!). I am sure Sir Alex will have a part to play in naming his replacement. In the meantime, I shall just enjoy the great start to the season by Man U. I just have a strong feeling that Man U will end this season with a high – I just do! Sir Alex, you’re the best there is!!

gone vintage..

I am not so much into vintage but lately, I have been checking out a few shops around town. The best thing about going vintage is that you get to own something which is unique and not walk out of your house one day and see ten other people carrying or wearing the same thing. A good example would be Mango – it is becoming like a factory outlet that place.

The thought of owning something unique just appeals to me and I have made some purchases recently of a few things that I love i.e. accessories to go with my love for clothes and shoes.

I bought the following red clutch and a couple of rings from Granny’s Day Out at Peninsula Plaza:

Then, I fell in love with this Nicole bag from Swirl at Stamford House and I just got to have it.

I also bought me this brooch from Swirl. Cute eh?



Looking at all these vintage items, it reminded me of those days when I was growing up and my mom would be carrying some of these handbags and clutches as well as wearing those pointy shoes, which off course then it was not vintage yet. I wished she had kept them - in mint condition off course. I would have sold it at a good price. Nah! I'd keep it for myself especially those handbags and clutches. But alas... I vividly remember this black clutch which she had that I would model it around, wishing it was mine. She would say, "Well, this is too big for you. When you are older, I'll let you have it." I wonder where that clutch is now because I want it. :-)

how do you mend a broken friendship?

Before I met Mister D’s mom in the year blah blah and became the best of friends since, I had another best of friend, M. I met her when I started at a new school. We were in the same class and we just hit it off with our love for certain pop star and the drooling over young and upcoming Hollywood actors. We were inseparable for the next two years until we were separated by the school system in our third year. That was when it turned sour.

M and I stopped talking to each other and honestly, the details were just too childish to discuss. I wondered what I have done to deserve her cold shoulder and had received some cruel treatments from her and her newfound friends, for which I have never retaliated. Things have not been the same since as I went on the next couple of years till graduation from that school. Sure, I hung out with some new friends but nothing came close to a best buddy. Even though M existed, I have never acknowledged her. I accepted the fact that our friendship was over and I moved on.

However, a year ago, she re-surfaced – in cyber-world at least. She wrote me after seeking help from another former schoolmate to get my e-mail. In her e-mail, she asked me to forgive her for what she had done to me back when we were teenagers. She felt that our friendship was so pure and innocent but she had tainted it. I could sense remorse in her e-mail and that she is now a completely different person. I replied her to say that this happened a long time ago and that I have forgiven her when I realized that I could never have her back as a friend and I moved on since. She thanked me for my forgiveness and to me that was probably closure for her but I never replied to her e-mail after that. I didn’t know how I should move on from there.

Then, this year, I sent her an email on her birthday (not sure if it is gift or a curse but I tend to remember birthdays but not necessarily that I will act on that). After she thanked me, again, I stepped back and not respond. Yesterday, I received a message on this site called Where Are you Now (WAYN.com), which I rarely visit. I logged on to find that M has sent a request to add me as friend found out that she was in this part of the world (she has moved to the States a while back from what I understand). I dropped her an e-mail, proposing that we meet up if she is going to be back in Singapore. Almost a few minutes later, she replied to say that she had left Asia a couple weeks back.

I guess it was a blessing in disguise for now because I am not ready to see her and still not sure how I would handle it if we had met. I know she will be back to these parts again but for now, I think I will continue to write her every once in a while. Those two years when we were inseparable were special. We had drifted apart since and I don’t know if the chemistry will still be the same. I guess I will find out from our correspondences here on and I deal with seeing her face to face when the time comes. Baby steps, baby steps.

take a mickey out of the yankees..

I came across this video while surfing through youtube.com over the weekend. This guy, Craig Ferguson, was a cast in the Drew Carey show, where he played Drew's British's boss. He is Scottish and boy, do I love his accent. There is one part of this video which really cracked me up and those who know me will understand why. If not, enjoy the video anyway. I find it hillarious!

my favourite little people...

Mister D and his little brother, Ray of Sunshine.



Alexandre & Juliette



They are so cute! And no, my biological clock is not ticking!

lost in pollution...

It has been weeks now since the haze invaded our skyline. Thanks to the farmers of our friendly neighbouring country. They just have to set small fires to clear their land, which is some kind of irrigation process. It can be utterly depressing with this haze clouding our skies. It appears like the sky is just right above our heads. This is probably the worst since 1997, with PSI index peaking at dangerous levels in some parts in South East Asia.

It is funny how we referred to this smoke in our skies as haze. In other parts of the world, it would have been referred to as pollution. We have not seen the sun in weeks but this thing called haze has generated enough heat, not to just make us perspire like crazy but also made us feel like walking burning joss-sticks.

So, not only have I lost myself in pollution. I have lost myself in the blogging world too. What can I say? October has been a slow month. The holiday season is drawing close. It seems like only yesterday when I said Happy 2006 and look at where we are now? Plague with pollution and what nots. But hey, life goes on.