Her Story

Chatted with an acquaintance last Sat.

It all began with her asking us to help keep a lookout on new job opportunities. She's in mid 20s, a mum of two. She knows it's not easy to find another job with high pay which she so needs it. Her main limitations4 sec school dropout & understands very little English. Then came her ranting about work & family.

She married a Malaysian at 16 & had her 1st child at 18. Left the husband 3 months after the birth of her daughter. Later, her current husband, then suitor, pulled her out from some illegal business she got involved in & brought her back to Singapore. Also helped to obtain all legal documents for her girl to live here permanently. They now have a son of their own.
It should be a happy ending for a defiant gal but it's actually just the start of another rocky path.

The husband left his job soon after they got married. Has since been earning barely enough to feed himself as a night shift cab driver. Not helping out with housework nor taking care of the children as he wants to catch up on his sleep in the day. So she has to pay for most of the expenses besides servicing a loan she got from her family member for the purchase of their flat. She's a retail sales job and after the long working hours, the only time she has to get her housework done is late night. Every month she also has to pay quite a sum to his mum who's staying with them to solely look after the kids at home (ie. no shuttling between schools & home, no housework). What really dumfounded us was when she said the flat was bought under the names of her husband & MIL.

She's ever thought of leaving him but her own parents have declared that they don't have extra space to accomodate her & won't look after her daughter too. Also, all the legal documents concerning her daughter have been locked up by her husband.

She's not sure was it out of gratitude that she married him.

After the session, hubby & I just looked at each other, no solution apparently. If everything she said was true, whichever route she chooses, it's going to be tough.

Well... another unhappy marriage that we've heard of.

House of Love

I'm fond of taking pictures of our home. No major change in these 2 years though... just trying to refresh the look (especially our living hall) with some fresh flowers / decorative add-ons / replacements here & there. And the 3 sets of sofa cases do contribute substantially in varying the look. I enjoy seeing the difference after each attempt.

So pictures serve as a good reference too.

Regarding our home, we've some bigger projects for the near future, or at least we hope to...

That is, (1) some minor works to our master bathroom. (2) new sofa set. I'm so into white couches lately. But they ain't cheap. (3) Wallpapers in part of the living & bed rooms. (4) a lil custom-made bar corner. A glassy one please. That would be very nice... to have a more proper place to store our alcoholic & non-alcoholic beverages, & all the nice glasses we've bought. But this is the least in the priority.

If everything goes well, project no.1 should be carried out next week. As for the rest, definitely not going to happen this year.. nor H1 of next.. taking $$ factor into the main consideration.

For now, pix have been compiled as:
- when we first got our place
- & after some renovation
- in year 2006
- this year

My latest toy ...

A Braun Silk-épil Xelle. Bought on Sunday. Had spent quite some time deciding between Philips & Braun.

It's pretty useful & I'm happy. :)

My curious hubby tried on his beard stubs near his neck & nearly teared when he felt as if his stubs were being yanked out by the 40-tweezer head at 1 go. Hehe.

Conclusion is... girls can bear greater pains. Even if it's over the tolerance level, vanity is the best painkiller.

A lil French fare

Had lunch @ sis'. Her daughter, Rachel, played the little host, or rather, waitress by replenishing our drinks.

Business was good. Hubby just finished her signature dish...
Erm... it's actually mine. I couldn't finish so he took over after he's done with his steak.

All tables were occupied. Sis & her staff had a hard time keeping the table for us as they're not supposed to take reservation (only on walk-in basis) & we arrived late.

According to sis, publicity helps a lot. The bistro appeared in the papers a couple of times for the last few months & has since attracted throngs of food lovers. Good for her.

Though I don't agree to many things that she does, I've to admit that she's a good chef.

In the Singapore Top 100 Dishes which is also my fav & was what I ordered that day :)

Bitten too many times

Last Wed lunch time, I bought my usual take-away bee hoon kueh from the coffeeshop nearby. Was walking back to office when I heard a "hello" behind me. I looked over my shoulder & saw this young chap following closely. Had no idea when he started to appear as the last I knew was meeting 2 chatting ladies at an intersection & then they walked behind me.

Anyhow, everything started & was over in less than a minute while I continued walking throughout....

Guy: Hello, can I know you?
Me: No.
Guy: Then can I give you my name card? (handing me a card)
Me: No.
Guy: Just take it, please?
Me: No.

He asked me to take his card for the 2nd time & I shook my head while giving him a wry smile before picking up my pace.

He might be thinking I embarrassed him in front of 2 ladies.

Isn't this a passé way of knowing girls? Or am I wrong?

Befriending someone on the streets used to be real popular. It didn't just happen to hot babes... those who've seen pix of my much younger days will know what I mean. And hubby can't stop himself from laughing at/teasing me whenever we're on this :\

My 1st encounter should be....... when I was in Sec 3 or 4? A group of guys were roller-skating (yep it's that era haha) at the opposite void deck. I was below my block walking to the bus-stop when a few of them approached me, wanting to chat. There's a particular one who'd been skating next to me persisted for a distance before giving up. I thought he looked cute but mum ever said towards strangers4 . So I ignored them. Though I was secretly hoping to see this cute guy again at the void deck.

Then along the way, met people who came up with those usual stunts like asking for time, saying I looked like so & so, asking for direction, etc. A freak even tailed me from the bus all the way to my void-deck.

Besides the roller-skating boy (the memorable 1st :þ)... a few gave a deeper impression:

- On my way to school (pre-u). After I alighted, someone called me from behind & asked for time (typical!). Then he started asking for my name & stuff. Another cute guy who's an undergrad & a swimmer. Then we exchanged home nos. Obviously I no longer listened to my mum after a few years ;) Met up a few times. I was once pretty crazy over him. Imagine those days without cell phone.... when you're out, you're literally out of reach. So I would spend most of my time at home, near the phone. But I'd to accept he's just a rover.

- During year-end holiday job (pre-u again). A Swiss asked me for direction & then those usual questions. Contact details exchanged. We corresponded (letters) a few times after he returned to Zurich. More than a year later I think, he visited Singapore again & I agreed to be host. Know what he did on the 1st day we re-met? He proposed to me! He actually asked me to marry him!! That totally blew me away. I was only 19 or 20 then whereas he's nearing 40. We weren't even dating, at least not that I knew of, & I didn't like him at all. Of course I rejected him flatly. Tough to avoid him completely as he's staying here for a week. The next time we met I asked my sis & 1 of her girlfriends along but he treated them as invisible most of the time & attempted to overwhelm me with mushy words the entire evening. That's final for me. I refused to take his calls & had to let him spend his remaining days here by himself. At least there's something good about those no-handphone days, hee. After he returned, he didn't give up & sent me letters, pictures of his yacht & cottage.. saying those would belong to me if I were to marry him *faint* but I didn't respond. Then one night, mum woke me up @ 2am+ & said my boss was looking for me. Turned out to be him blabbering away. I hung up on him shortly after & think that's the last I heard of him. Couldn't imagine myself liking an 'elderly' then.

- During the initial days of working. Was waiting for bus after seeing a doc. Then this very tall & skinny guy who's also waiting at the bus-stop came forward & chatted with me. I recognised him as one of the patients at the clinic. Exchanged home nos & he asked me out the following Sun evening for drinks. He confided in me that his girlfriend had died of cancer a year ago & since then he couldn't bring himself to date other girls till he met me. I was so gullible then & took everything he said. We supposed to meet again the following week but he disappeared, I tried calling but couldn't reach him. Only a few days later he contacted me & said he's busy with work over the weekend. We kept in touch via phone as he always claimed he needed to work extended hours. Blame it on my naivety that I didn't realise I wasn't even a 'Girl Friday'. Only after he went missing for weeks that I finally gave up hope. About a year later, he called me out of the blue. But I was already attached then. As I was so stupid (that I didn't realise he's a jerk when it's so obvious), I even tried to introduce a good friend to him by organising a movie outing with my then clique (5 couples). Thank God she's not ready for another relationship though she'd good impression. Then 1 day, Michelle who'd met him during the outing told me I'd been duped. She attended a wedding dinner the previous night & coincidentally saw him at the next table but he pretended to not know her. She confirmed with a mutual friend that he's indeed Alwin Cheong & then came the shocking news.... he'd already been attached for more than 4 years & the girlfriend was sitting next to him! To think that he told me his girlfriend died of cancer more than a year ago?? Since he's such a scum to be cursing his own girl, I've no qualms about revealing his full name. Who knows, he might still be deceiving other innocent girls now?

- At the DFS of Jakarta international airport. I was browsing while waiting for a flight back after a work trip. I noticed a man was following me for a while & perhaps he sensed that I was turning hostile, he approached me & introduced himself. He's an Italian & maybe because he's handsome, I didn't mind engaging in a conversation with him though his English was limited haha. His friend, another Italian but was the opposite in terms of physical attributes :P, soon joined in after his shopping. We had a coffee together & then they walked me to my boarding gate. I agreed to give him my mobile phone no. but didn't ask for his as I'd no intention to keep in touch. The next day after I returned, he called me from Milan. I was surprised. But I just couldn't figure out what he's trying to say & ended the conversation shortly. It's always easier to communicate face to face with gestures. After days (or weeks?) he called the 2nd time but again, we couldn't talk for long. We could have just exchanged email addresses then.
Soon after, I changed my handphone number. He might have tried calling me again, or he might not have.

As you can see the chance of being acquainted with strange people or jerks almost hit 100%, at least for me, I've shut out those who try to get friendly out on the streets long time ago. Moreover, I'm already happily married now so there's no need to know more guys. :)

KATE

Kate Designing Eyebrow N by Kanebo

Bought the above on my last Bkk trip. Thought it'd be more useful than eyebrow pencil as & when I go for fuller brows. At first I disregarded the 2 much lighter tones & it's just the dark brown I wanted. Now I'm starting to appreciate these 2 shades as I can mix & match. Love my latest brow colour that matches my light brown lashes! ;)

So my verdict is:
- Choices> 4.5/5
- Colour> 4/5
- Ease of use> 4/5
- Staying power (on my oily face)> 4.5/5

However, am now concerned about the stock supply. I can't get it in Singapore... used to have difficulty to even find a Kanebo cosmetics outlet. Thus was happy to finally see their new counters when shopping last week & they do carry Kate range of make-up. But... just not this particular item I'm searching for. Visited their counters in 2 different department stores & lastly being told that it wasn't sold in Singapore. The salesgirl then recommended another similar product of 3 brow powder palette from another range, T'estimo, but its price - $46 (or $42? can't remember). Whereas I got mine @ S$18+!

So anyone's going to KL or Bkk?

Meanwhile.... 1 of my next cosmetics purchase might be an eyebrow mascara. Very tempted to try. Hmmm..

Our date last friday

Hubby tried his best to leave office on time & fetched me. Took a quick dinner at a coffeeshop near home before rushing back. We're going to have our K session, 8-11pm.


Well it's the first time that we - 1)booked it just for ourselves & 2)donned in home clothes for ktv (we'd showered beforehand & were ready to turn in right after). Felt great. Not only because we're able to reach home in a min after the enjoyment, but also the amount we spent. While it could easily be over $50 for such a 3-hr session on a Fri night, we paid only a fifth of it. And enjoyed thoroughly.

This KTV thingy has always been of substantial sentimental value to us. We used to sing quite a bit especially before we got together. That's what we did on our first date as well. Hubby, an NS guy then, didn't have much $$ to spend on dates & his buddy who was working part-time in 1 of the KTV joints gave him very special rates to sing there. So, he brought me there :) Subsequently, he worked hard on those songs that're my favourites so he could sing for me (& impressed me I reckon, hehe). This had become a regular kinda activity for us & an easy reason to ask me out, when I wasn't at The Bar.

We've definitely moved on to the better after these few years. But till now we still enjoy singing together. Hubby still sings for me my favourite songs & we still indulge in the sweet loving memories of those days. I guess, it's one of our ways to keep our love as "fresh" as it has first budded.

Plan to do it again soon. But before that, we've just blocked online another session next fri with Mr&Mrs LL. Looking forward to that!

The pre & the post

We started to be in a celebratory mood days before our anniversary. Didn't have anything extravagant. Just dwelt in the joy & love we shared.

Set dinner at Out of The Pan on Wed evening

Dined at Prego with PY on Thurs. As you can see, I'm trying to make good use of our Card. ;)

Visited our friend in hospital who'd just given birth. Then had a quick & simple dinner at one of the stalls in Paragon before heading home. Hubby brought some work back to do so we could enjoy our special weekend & an extended one as we'd applied leave on Mon.

But who knows, right after our celebration I fell sick. Started to feel unwell on Sunday. Then spent half of our Mon in clinics... both western & chinese. Sigh.... A day's ML on Tue as still felt lousy. Much better now though the nose infection hasn't totally gone.

So this week I work only 2 days. Hee.

2nd Anniversaire !

Began with a lunch @ Sakae Sushi Citilink Mall, near enough for the check-in thereafter.

Checked in slightly after 2pm & we're pleasantly surprised with the room. Spacious & looked new. There's a whole lotta difference from The Stamford where we stayed exactly 1 year ago.

Love its bathroom in particular. The all-glass design is so our concept!

The only downside was the parking. They don't offer complimentary parking for in-house guests. Last year The Stamford at least offered valet parking @ $5 or $8... we can't remember. We're being "advised" by the receptionist that a total of S$30+ would be needed for overnight parking & all. And the best they could do was to suggest that we park at Bras Basah Complex which would be 'slightly cheaper', according to her. But we'd our own ways & left our car at somewhere (basement carpark too) even nearer than BBC. When we left on Sunday afternoon, only $8+ was deducted from our cashcard :) Thanks to the regular Sunday morning walks (after sending mum to church) that we discovered this place that offers per entry rate for both overnight & Sunday parking.

Got prepped after a good rest & before leaving for our dinner, I gave hubby a surprise. He'd showered me with so many gifts & surprises in the past & it's my turn to pamper him. He wasn't aware that I managed to sneak in his present. He's usually very involved in the packing of bags so it's not easy to put something without him noticing. I actually left it in my office & told him on Fri night that I needed to go back to office on Sat morning to get my shoes for the evening. He wasn't suspicious as his troublesome wife does that quite often (not only shoes).

Seemed like he's giving a thank-you speech after winning an award. Haha.

Bought him a MontBlanc Eau de Toilette

Then we proceeded to our candle-light dinner (buffet) which was just across the road. We had a wonderful time.

@ the Bar & Billiard Room, Raffles Hotel

A pic together

After a long dinner, we went on to Paulaner Brauhaus for a brew.

That night, hubby filled himself generously with wine & beer since he didn't need to drive

We stayed for less than an hour. The couple at the table before us was too distracting. The ear-licking show was up for as long as we'd stayed & attracted too many audiences. We're pretty sure they weren't an official pair though. Anyway, we shall be going back for more. I mean the beer.

In all, it was a great, great night.

More pix here.

Property fever

Last Sat we went for a good friend's (my ex-colleague) housewarming lunch. She & the husband bought this apartment in Eunos at the right time, just before the surge. It's a 3+1 but they commented that the overall area size was smaller than ours. We told them that it's either location or size. Unless you are really rich to be able to afford both. For theirs, there's actually nothing much to criticize about... They like small development & for one with total 44 units, a "fish tank" swimming pool (transparent walls), gym & kids' playground are all accomodated. Also comes with a see-through balcony & all needed like backyard, bomb shelter, maid's toilet... They paid less than $700k for their pool view unit & the biggest attraction is the approx 5-min walk to/from Eunos MRT station. Was such a good deal. She said a few months back similar unit was sold for $1 million!

As for TM's, he bought his 4-bedroom unit in Tiong Bahru for less than $800k & now collects a monthly rent of $5k. Whoopz!

Even our place, there had been calls asking whether we would be interested to sell/rent out. The price was definitely better than in the past but we opted out. Sell high, buy high too.

But the market is kinda cooling down now.