Watching 红星大奖 from 火星

I am actually quite busy at work. PLUS, I am busy watching 红星大奖 2009.

I lurvvvvvvvvvve 土豆! Updates later!

No thanks to no electricity

Mdm just got back to a pitch dark room after spending a long but rewarding day in Bangkok. The front part of our house had a electric short circuit early this morning for the second time in 3 days. Mdm got up at 6a.m. hoping to get a nice hot shower before my morning flight but found myself caught in a position, i.e. having a cold shower in the dark versus not. Mdm went with the latter and ended up looking rather oily at the end of the day. ARGH.

More on the trip tomorrow when I get back to school.

Of having pets

Nieces got a hamster home the week after Songkran. Barely after a week (Sunday morning), the hamster was found dead in its cage. Apparently the heat was so unbearable that it killed the hamster. When we got up in the late morning, nieces were back from a trip to the pet shop. They got ANOTHER hamster.

I used to not like hamster. It reminded me too much of rats. After I got Cocoa (my dead poky monster), I have mysteriously developed an anti-fear towards rodents. This new hamster they got home is super duper cute. Seriously, you can spend an hour just watching it. The way it moves around its cage, running on the wheel, nibbling its food etc. So if you are thinking of getting a pet and is too lazy to care for a dog, why not a hamster. Hamster is way cuter than fish (which is I think highly uninteresting and with low level of pet-owner interaction), smells better than turtles and require little attention. When we are on our own, I would very much like to have dog(s) and some small animals in the house (rabbits/hamsters/chinchillas)!

My mum never approved of animals at home but I brought Del back anyhow. Seriously, I think having pets is a good training for kids. The nieces at home for example are spending way too much time on computers (and they are just 12!). Pets can very well be a good form of distraction.

Hello MERLION part 2

Adding on to the list in my previous post is a new item, i.e. catching up with my dearest cousins Mr. Yang commented that I have missed that out (and it seems that I am looking forward more to chicken rice than meeting up with my beloved cousins). This is so not true. I miss my cousins okay. Plus, how can I not catch up to update myself with the latest gossips in town (e.g. gf, new gfs etc.).

Mdm had a long gossipy conversation with MM yesterday. We talked about practically everything under the sun (dad, mum, cousins, her friends, my friends, the now in deep shit ming yi etc.). I came to realize that we have been sisters for almost 26 years now and my dear sister has past her quarter life mark!!! She's 26 and I got married at 26, meaning... OMG OMG OMG. Anyway, MM volunteered to be the coordinator for our family gathering (at our very own IR?). I didnt have to ask and she offered! How nice.

On a separate note, check out this very nicely done apartment, link here




I love the happy colours!

Hello MERLION!

Mdm is going to be back early next month. LALALA.

Mdm is doing the CNX - KL - SG, SG - BKK - CNX route again in 2 weeks time!!! It's troublesome I know BUT, it's barely SGD 250 pp and I get to visit my granny at Melaka. I am excited about my trip already!!!

It has just been 2 months since I was back for my aunt's funeral but it seems like it had been ages, probably b/c I had been too busy the last time round. Mdm has abit of planning to do b/c I am going to check out every single place I have missed i.e.:

1. ORCHARD ROAD! (From Scotts Isetan, Mdm's journey shall begin. I will roam roam roam then take the underpass over to Tangs, check out their homeware at B1, then take the underpass again to Wisma, roam roam roam, then over to Takashimaya, cross over to Paragon then walk to Heeren and then finally crossing back over to Cineleisure for a movie!!!)
2. Bugis Junction (P's favorite)
3. Raffles city then over to Marina Square (I havent been there for a long long time) and the new Marina Barrage.

As for food, I am so going to eat the best chicken rice in Singapore (which according to P is the one at Maxwell). Other than that, I am missing my mum's home-cooked food. I didn't have any home-cooked food when I was back in February and my mum makes the best soup in town. I am so going to drown myself in her pot.

Everything post Koh Chang

We were back since Thursday but I haven't been able to access Blogger till today. I suspect it was blocked as it had been done before. We were in BKK the day after the red shirts captured a tank and paraded down the streets of downtown BKK and we had spent the day before our departure catching news on TV and monitoring the situation in BKK. Somehow I felt that the chaos in Thailand was magnified. Even though the protests have been ongoing for years now (switching from yellow to red) and the tourism industry had been badly impacted, the constant chaos has yet to endanger the general public. In fact, if you look at the death numbers and their cause of death, it aint't really due to clashes. Like I sms-ed my folks back at home, I hadnt seen anyone in red when I was in BKK though there were indeed differences travelling to BKK this time round. Streets for once were not jam-packed (which could also be due to city dwellers travelling out of the capital during the Songkran holiday). The shopping area from Siam world all the way to MBK was closed and we ended up heading to The Emporium at Phrom Phong Station which was a pleasant surprise.

We settled at Citadines 16 which I am recommending to anyone who's planning to make a trip to BKK. It's the best value for money accomodation I have stayed in BKK so far. It even comes with a complete kitchen! My high-so MM would luuurrrvvve this place.




Early next morning, we spent 5.5 hours on a supposedly 1st class bus to Ao Thammachat Pier, Trat, Eastern Thailand. Seriously, even P was complaining. When we went to Koh Chang few years back, we took a minivan from Khao San. The trip was shorter. This supposedly 1st class bus made stops and it is nothing like Aerobus. On our way back, we actually sat at the last few rows and the stench from the toilet kept me awake. I seriously cannot understand why they even bother to install toilet facilities and not upkeep them.

We checked into a nice, new resort and to my dismay, we were arranged a room not having seaview but facing this newly dug water body (hole). ARGH. And the resort didnt have its private stretch of beach. Other than these, the place is almost perfect. We spent 2 days on the beach and ended up looking very badly burnt. P and I are now looking like 2 nicely bbq-ed chickens. This is the worst tan I have had so far and I am looking at least 3 shades darker than before. As of yesterday, we were both peeling.

It had been 4 years since our last trip to Koh Chang. Like most places in Thailand, tourism and commercialization simply ruin everything. Accomodation of all kinds sprouted in Koh Chang. Few years ago, we managed to stay on the busiest stretch of beach on the island (still with minimal tourists), enjoyed the sun, travelled around the island etc. Seriously, you wouldn't want to step out of your resort now. Though the beaches are well-kept, the streets are kinda filthy and waste management is a serious problem. Seriously, I don't think I am going back to Koh Chang again.

On a separate note, P showed me this vid when we got back home. Check out this link if you havent heard of Susan Boyle. I was expecting a good laugh but man, I was moved. It would be exaggerating to say this but she must have in some way changed my eagerness to judge.

No dating for you

Few days ago, my nieces got back from BKK armed with 2 Blythe dolls and they spent the rest of the day taking pictures of their new acquisitions. Yesterday, they shampooed their dolls and did some barbie thingy to them (e.g. combing their hair, dressing them up etc.). They were apparently very occupied with their new toy.

Big T's 13 this year. I can clearly recall how I spent my first year in secondary school and playing with a Blythe doll (or alike) is definitely not in the list. Seriously, I was already dating at 13. Recalling it now, I don't even know what was going through my head to even think of dating at 13. It sounded so crazy. And if you ask me now, dating is an adult affair and no one below the age of 21 should even think of getting into any serious r/s.

Opps. I think I am a not-so-likeable mummy in the making.

Hot hot hot in Thailand

It's heating up here in Chiang Mai (max. 36-37°C) and in 2 days time, Mdm is having a week long Songkran break. This meaning, Mdm is so not into working mood now. Mdm is so not letting P realize that there's a 99% chance he would be deep-fried under the sun in Koh Chang. One of my friends in class left his thermometer in his yard one afternoon last week and he swore the temperature reached 40+°C. The heat is yet to be unbearable (although soon it will). This is the time of the year that I will be sweating even before I start working out on the threadmill. By the way, in preparation for our mini escapade next week, Mdm has started working out on the threadmill everyday. =))

If all's well, Mdm would be heading home in a month's time to pen our signature on the papers. We count ourselves lucky that at last, things seem to be going well in the right direction. We have spent twice as much time (and hassle) than most applicants. Since we are finally on the track to penning on the agreement (plus the HDB loan and AHG), I guess all's worthwhile!!! Suddenly, it felt surreal that we would be having a place of our own and we are financially committed to something.

The most stupid photos

Saw this really duh set of photos (link from http://cowboycaleb.liquidblade.com/) aka
the most stupid photos.

Link here.

The dog problem in Chiang Mai

Pictures from our home-made big feast last weekend, complete with P's favorite saba, unagi and kimchi.




Just this afternoon Mdm went to a dog shelter that one of my classmates is volunteering at. The 5 of us took a half-an-hour ride and we were welcomed by 100+ doggies, which was one word - OVERWHELMING. Seriously, I wasn't expecting such a well-run shelter in Chiang Mai. Mdm got to speak to the co-founder, who's a very nice German lady and the work they have done is amazing. More than half of the non-profits in Chiang Mai are currently run by foreigners. So you can see how these people who have fallen in love with this place, are contributing their part to improve the lives of those here (including animals!).

Stray dogs are everywhere in Thailand and it is a very serious problem here (not with dog abuse but with lack of proper animal care knowledge). P and I had wanted to grab a pack of dry food there but after my trip there this afternoon, I got to say that a pack of dog is seriously not what they need.

I don't think it's easy to get funding from Thais but running such a huge project does involve lotsa money (and effort). Looking for funds from overseas organizations would continue to be a challenge for the shelter.

















Check out this vid "Paul Gets his Wheels!" and the shelter's website Care for Dogs.

Trip!

I think I made it sounded like things between the both of us are not okay. Sorry folks for the misleading post. I guess after spending almost 2 years in Thailand, I am still missing home alot. Don't worry people. Things are more than fine. =))

We are going to be away during the Songkran festival and we are heading to the beach! We found this really nice accommodation on Koh Chang.

We would be spending a night in Bangkok then 2 nights on the island. =)

On a separate note, pictures are up for the grand opening of my project. If you are interested, check out FRC's website. Pictures are on the right hand side and the link is under the heading "Events". Very pathetic pictures of Mdm but check out the room, signages and everything else. They are all done by Mdm.