On Chinese New Year and everything nice...

From my last post until now, I can promise you that I did try to post a few times but they never resulted in anything concrete that was 'post-able' if you know what I mean...

Almost three weeks ago we ushered in another new year and what's my thinking for 2012?

Do I want to set another list of new year's resolutions which ultimately I couldn't live up to? (that's the norm, like do more exercise, eat more healthy food, be more active, etc, I'm sure you've got them in your list?)

So when Steve asked me what my new year resolution was, I said 'to contiue to be happy in life'. It's quite a simple one, don't you think? Such is life, no matter what you do, what position you're in, how much money you've got or how much money you earn, ultimately, if none of the above makes you happy, then there is no point.

Having said that, being happy doesn't mean that you have to improve or change your life dramatically...sometimes, it is as simple as changing your perspective in life.

I must admit I am a simple person with simple pleasures. For me, being happy can include being able to finish work on time, go home, kick off my shoes and snuggle under the blanket in front of the telly with a hot cup of tea.

Another example? Being happy means getting a phone call from the other half telling me that dinner for the night is sorted, and all we need to do is to heat it up...

There comes a point in life when you struggle to find the meaning of happiness. For me, it changes according to surrounding events, my mood and my hormones (if you're female, you will agree).

Last two weeks, I wasn't feeling very happy mainly because I found out that one of my high school friends was fighting against cancer. Eventually, the sad news came that she had succumbed to the horrible illness. Instantly facebook was full of tributes to her and everybody who knew her shared the sad news....

Gradually, people started moving on and talks of the Chinese New Year celebration started to dominate facebook and life resumed normal again...

I guess what I'm trying to say is that, as humans, our normal instinct is to come to terms with sadness, pick ourselves up and move on again to a place where there is happiness...

If you are stuck at a place where you can't find happiness, don't keep looking in the same place. Spread out your search, open up your mind and space.

Before I end this post about happiness, I would like to take this opportunity to wish everyone I know, a very happy and prosperous year of the Black Water Dragon. If you're due to have a baby this year, may you have a healthy and happy Baby Dragon... If you're due to get married this year, may you have a blessed and wonderful long marriage ... If you are just being you, plodding along in life, I wish you all the happiness that life can offer to you...

恭喜发财

Guilt sucks...

It's been officially one month since I started my new job and I'm still coping...

Took me one week just to get my head round the structure of the job and what it entails...

Then it was another week setting up meetings and getting to know various important people who i'll be working closely with...

I spent the third week trying to understand and memorise acronyms and technical jargons - PQQ, ITT, CEQLW, COMPRE, DDRE, CRE, T&C ... I know, you tell me...

Then last week I had a minor surgery at the hospital and am now still recovering from the effect of anaesthetic...

So overall, a full-on month... Which is also a month riddled with a sense of guilt... I haven't been doing much sewing and i know I promised a friend I would make a pretty nappy bag for her and until today I still haven't managed to deliver... You know who you are...please be patient and I promise I'll finish your lovely bag before your beautiful little girl turns 18!!

Summer has started but Steve and I still haven't managed to go for a swim in the sea... The weather though has been great, was perhaps not warm enough yet (I'm such a whooz) ...hopefully the weather will properly pick up soon and we can go for an after work swim like we did a few times last year... So refreshing and relaxing...

Okay, I'm going to bed...another intense day at the office tomorrow, trying to unravel more mysteries through reading contracts, emails and agreement forms! Exciting stuff!!! On the plus side, most of my new colleagues are helpful and nice, which makes thing a lot easier...

Good night.

Change.

So it's a bit strange right now. I've been waiting for this moment for quite sometime. And when you've been in such anticipation for something to take place, quite often the reality of it is somehow quite different from what you've imagined.

I've always known that i'll miss sitting opposite DSC, but I didn't expect to feel....lonely. In my previous job, there is me, DSC sitting opposite me, and my boss in her room but still near enough to shout for me, asking me what the date was. So when I found out I was moving to a bigger department with a much bigger group of colleagues, I was ecstatic. I said to DSC, finally a chance to mingle in a REAL office environment, with more than 3 people in the office. I was so wrong. In a much, much bigger office, everybody minds their own business and you feel more lonely than ever, especially if you're new and everything seemed so unfamiliar. I told DSC today that I felt like Joey in 'Friends' when he moved out temporarily from Chandler's apartment on his own. Lonely, 'office' sick and lost. DSC assured me that things will get better through time but we'll see. The highlight of the day is DSC bringing me my favourite chocolate - kinder bueno with White chocolate. I was almost reduced to tears by the kind gesture. The only consolation in this is that I've only moved to the office next door so I still get to see DSC, which is comforting. But the downside is when the old boss couldn't find the marker pens in the stationery cupboard, she decides to go to your new office instead of sending you an email about it, or look more closely in the cupboard.

Anyway, tomorrow is another training day so I'd better go to bed now. Good night.

Reminiscing

As I was reading through my previous blog posts I really had a good time reminiscing about past events. And I felt really good that I had kept a blog and that I had religiously documented significant events which took place in the past. Reading through my own blog posts, I was brought back in time and relived those moments. It felt just great and that made me more determined than ever to keep my blog updated. I know I've been neglecting my blog for a while and also my recent blog posts were mostly about sewing projects. I think I shall try and change that from now on.

One major event which is worth mentioning is that after two years and three months being in the department where I am working right now, I shall be moving on to another department next month. I just can't wait. I think after two years and two months, I am eager and ready for a new set of challenges. My mind is yearning for more knowledge, to learn new skills. In the past few months, many vacancies have come up within the University and I have applied for a few but in the current state of economy, competition for jobs is fierce and I was told that for one of the previous jobs that I had applied for, they have had over 130 applications!! So when this recent job vacancy came up and was only open to internal staff, I was hopeful. I took a lot of care and a long time preparing my application; speaking to the right people within the department to find out as much as I could about the job role; reading up extensively about the deparment, and after checking my applications for more than a hundred times, I clicked the 'Send' button and ever since then, my heart was in my  mouth. Luckily, a few days after submitting the application, I went on a week-long holiday to Rhodes Island and that sort of took my mind off it a bit, until my mobile rang while I was on holiday. Three days into my holiday, I received a telephone call, inviting me for an interview for the job the following week. And can you imagine the state of my mind for the entire time after that? I started preparing myself mentally for the interview. And the couple of days leading to the interview, I started practising on my own; checking out tips for interview online; and rehearsing answers to possible interview questions in my head over and over and over again. Although in the end, none of the questions that I had prepared for came up during the interview, I think the preparations helped calm my nerves and I was able to feel relaxed and confident before the interview. The entire interview process was daunting. I was given 5 different scenarios and had to explain how I would deal with each scenario and after that 5 people in the panel each asked me different sets of questions. I gave examples from my experience as best as I could but when I came out, I was angry with myself because in some cases I had given the worst kind of examples that you could think of. And then the awful waiting began. We were told that we would be informed the following week. And it was only the middle of the week when the interview took place. How was I going to survive till the following week? All the speculating, the not knowing, the anticipation?! Well, I did survive, barely. I was in a constant turmoil all weekend, playing the interview in my head over and over and over again.

I think I did well?

No, I think it was a flop.

No, I think I did okay, they were impressed. 

No, I did not really answer some questions correctly.

And then Monday came, and eventually at around lunch time, I received the good news. I have been offered a job with the Centre. And the relief just washed over me. I was happy, I was relieved and I was nervous. Nervous about telling my current manager. And because she was working out of the office for a few days, that presented me with the greatest means of informing her -- through the great email. Not the best way to tell her, but it had to be done, and it had to be done quick so that I don't delay giving in my notice and hence delaying the start date of my new role.

So now, three more weeks before I move to my new department and I am now writing 'handover handy tips' and it made it realise how far I have come at this current role. When I first started, I knew nothing. What a learning process it has been, these past two years. From organising a Conference, to editing the Centre's newsletter, to facilitating a workshop on my own to having to step in as the Finance administrator... and many other things. And I have no doubt that when I step into my new role, more learning of new skills and knowledge will take place and I am really excited by that prospect. It is cliche but true. Learning is a lifelong process and I couldn't agree more. As humans, we thrive on learning new skills, getting to know new people, visiting new places, gaining new experiences, trying new things, and buying new gadgets (hehe). As myself, I thrive on enhancing my existing skills, gaining more experience, and learning new sewing techniques and making different lovely projects.

It is Friday today, the best day of the week and this weekend, we are off to Frimley to have an early celebration of Steve's birthday. So roll on 4.30pm I think so that my proper weekend can begin. Have a great weekend you lovely people and to end my post, let me show you a pair of shoes I bought for my recent holiday and I love them.

Don't mind the socks. I know it's meant to be slip-ons but I still like to wear socks so that I don't end up smelling the shoes with my sweat.

A weekend of Summer

Before I start to tell you all about what's happening lately, let me just give you 5 very good reasons why you SHOULD NOT buy an iPad.

 1. It is an absolute time waster.

You wake up in the mornings and you lay in bed reading news, RSS feeds and Facebooking. Before you know it, it's time to get dressed and you realise you're going to be late to work and you end up rushing through breakfast which in the long run is not healthy for the digestive system.

2. If you used to have other hobbies, you can forget about them.

I don't know about you but I used to have loads of hobbies and enjoy sewing, doing crochet and knitting. Before the iPad Age, I've been making pretty purses and have other pretty projects in mind, not to mention I promised my Mum I would make her a handbag for Mother's Day (it's May in Malaysia). So I've been thinking about the design and the pattern for a while and then I decided that getting an iPad would make it easier because I can then sketch out my design and work out the pattern and take notes anytime and anywhere I feel like it.
  
BIG MISTAKE. I have been procrastinating the making of the bag for so long I have stopped feeling guilty. But mind you, I did try to attempt it last week. Day 1, I drew some lines onto a piece of paper, before I caved in and continued playing my game on the iPad. Day 2, I researched for pictures of some bags on the iPad and had 5 minutes of thinking about, before I conveniently switched over to the Games App and continued with my game. Day 3, what bag?

3. Your partner will complain that he's lost you to the iPad

Yup. Poor Steve. He jokingly complains to his friends that he's lost me to the iPad. When you are busy killing aliens who are trying to steal your sheep, really, you don't want to be interrupted !!

Before you judge me, yes, I do share my iPad. Steve has a go on the iPad too, occasionally, when he can tear it off my hands.

4. You are turned into a free app cheapskate

Yup, I check the free-app-a-day website everyday and install anything that is free even if it was an app to help children to learn to tell time. So you end up with loads and loads of junk apps on your iPad which you will then waste more time sorting through and deleting.

5. It gives you the delusion that your life depends on it.

These days, I do a lot of things on the iPad. I read the news on it, I facebook on it, I record my work daily tasks on it, I bury my face in it during my lunch break at work, I finish work at 5pm and can't wait to get home and spend my free time on it, I have stopped sewing because of it, I bury my face in it during and after each meal times, I have stopped concentrating on the TV programmes because of it .... and NO, I do not have an addiction issue. I AM NOT OBSESSED WITH THE IPAD. I AM NOT ....

I am just waiting for the novelty of it to die down slightly, and then I'll be back on planet earth and will be able to resume my normal, ordinary life. For the time being, honestly, I know I wrote the list above, but I didn't mean any of it (my dear iPad please don't be mad with me).... LIKE I SAID, I DO NOT HAVE AN OBSESSION ISSUE !!! 

Anyway, lest you think that I have turned into a complete iPad-loony, I do have some pictures and stories to share with you and no, they are non-iPad related.

I went to York two weeks ago and visited a really dear friend of mine and had a totally relaxing foody and girly break. A few pictures just to show you what I mean.

Curry noodles, nice and spicy

                             .                                        Had my hair curled.

We had our picture taken at the trainstation before I had to board the train home. Hopefully we'll be able to do this again soon... Thank you Bea for the lovely and fabulous time I had in York.

It was an absolutely lovely and beautiful weekend just gone and Steve and I had a lovely time sitting in the garden, having a cheese, biscuit and salad picnic in the garden, going for a walk on the beach, and cooking nice food.

Last but not least, I have been to the salon and got myself a new look. It's a crappy picture taken in the toilet at work but you get the idea. My long straight hair is now slightly wavy and curly, something which I've always wanted to experience. And I quite like it.

What do you think?

It's time to get productive

Ever since I've made my very first oil cloth bag from my own pattern last year, I've not really made anything else with oil cloth so I thought since Beatrice has especially requested for a wallet as her birthday present, I have decided to use oil cloth to try and make it.

I must say I was quite pleased with the result although the colour scheme was not 'Spring' enough for her so I agreed to make another which was more colourful. Meanwhile, another friend of mine saw the wallet and wanted me to make and sell her one.


Although it wasn't a big sum of money, I still managed to get a certain kind of satisfaction from making a small amount of money from such an enjoyable and fulfilling hobby.

Next week i'll be heading off to York to visit Beatrice and I really look forward to it as we always have a great time together on our short get-togethers.

Meanwhile, I did manage to make another wallet for her which has a more Spring look to it.

Take a look at these pictures.






- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

Chinese New Year Eve

Today is Chinese New Year Eve and unfortunately I'm working. Come to think of it, even if I wasn't working, what would I be doing at home? Bumming on the couch in my PJ's watching/ flicking through some boring daytime telly. This is the time when I miss home and family the most. Listening to Chinese New Year songs on Youtube; reading blogposts from others about CNY preparations; talking on the phone to mum and listening to her tell me about her preparations -- always makes me feel a bit sad and nostalgic. This year(as with two or three previous years), due to poor planning, I wasn't able to make it home to celebrate CNY with the family. I am determined that next year, I will book my tickets early so that I can be home for Chinese New Year. Chinese New Year is not complete without all your family  members around you. And I do feel guilty come this time of year, knowing that my family will be missing me, yet again, during their reunion dinner. So having to work today really sucks, and not only that, I am working till 10pm tonight, so tripple S.U.C.K.S !!! But luckily, one of my colleagues from my evening shift is kind enough to cover for me tomorrow night so at least I can do something special then in the evening just as a small mark of celebration to usher in this year of the cute bunny rabbit.

Anyhoooo, let's move on and I shall show you in a picture sequence of what has been happening lately. I know, I know, didn't I mention at the beginning that I will put in a bit more effort in updating my blog and so far that hasn't yet materialised. You  must forgive me as ever since we've moved to the new place, we have not had the internet so that has made things a bit tricky, especially in terms of blogging after work. But, today being Chinese New Year Eve, I am in the mood to update my blog, for some strange reason.

Last year, Travelodge was doing some great deals on their room rate and one can get a room for as low as £9 per night so we booked three weekends away to three different places that we've always wanted to visit but never got round to because ordinarily it's too expensive. So the weekend before last, it was a weekend away to Brighton and we only paid 12.50 per night, for a room in the heart of the Brighton City Centre and it was brilliant. We explored the famous and cultural North Laines, went for drinks at the pub, and of course had an excellent Indian lunch at the famous Chilli Pickle restaurant and it was absolutely mind-blowing. Some pictures to show you.

Steve ordered the chicken curry dosa and it came looking like two gigantic horns on a plate and it was delicious and authentic.

I ordered fish curry thali which came with rice, dal, pickle and bread. It was a bit too hot and spicy for me but the mixture of spices in the dishes were amazing. Not too over-powerful; just the right touch. 

We spent a considerable amount of time at the Amusement park at the pier mainly because Steve was determined to win me a teddy bear from the teddy bear clawing machines. And also I was addicted to the 'coin machine' and the phrase for the day was '10p more', '10p more'... ie, if I slot in another 10p, the machine will push the coins further to the edge so that more coins will drop out. Steve had to practically drag me out of the amusement centre so that I don't lose another 20 lot of '10p more'... here's a picture of Steve working hard at those teddy bear 'clawing' machines.

We didn't get the big teddy from this machine but Steve eventually managed to get me a smaller and cuter dog from another machine. And we both left the amusement park feeling smug and contented with me hugging the doggy to my chest and looking proud (great weekend huh? lol)

In my last post, I was excited about my latest sewing project and I can now reveal that it's a beanbag for the lounge and I can tell you I am very satisfied with it. 

This picture shows the inner and the outer bag before the big operation of white fluffy bean filling into the bag.

And here's the beanbag and it's really comfortable too. ps, note to self, must start making other things too. I haven't seen my sewing machine in ages.

On a seperate subject, I have been buying honey pomelos from Lidls and they only cost a pound and it's always juicy and lovely, although the last one was a bit too sharp for me so it's still sitting in the fridge.

Not many people know about this fruit in this country and people always shy away from things they are not familiar with. People love grapefruits and this is almost like a grapefruit, but three times bigger !! So if you see a honey pomelo when you're next in Lidls, get one, and follow my example to cut it open. It's juicy, tangy and sweet.

I am very lucky to have DSC working in the office. She often surprises me with lots of goodies.

Chocolate mice, that is.

How cute are they?!?!

Okay, this concludes my non-Chinese Chinese New Year Eve post and Gong Xi Fa Chai to all and wishing you a full year of health, wealth and happiness, just like the bunny.

New Year, New Post

7 days into the new year and my last post from last year is staring back at me, almost with a fed-up expression, demanding to know when I will finally get into gear to write a brand spanking new entry for the new year.

This working week started on Tuesday, so really it was only a 4-day-week, but it felt like it's been dragging on for dayssss and I am glad that it is finally Friday today and all my muscles are beginning to loosen themselves and my 'relax' mode is about to kick in, in a few hours' time. 

Sometimes it is a challenge thinking of interesting and engaging topics to write about on the blog and at the moment, the 'fountain of ideas' in my head is as dry as the Sahara Desert.

I guess the highlight of the new year is us appreciating the new living space that we have right now. In the next post, I will put up some pictures of the house but at the moment because the weather is always so dark and gloomy I reckon any pictures taken will not look very nice at all. In the meantime, we are still collecting bits and pieces for the house to make it as nice as possible. Having said that, for reasons that I will not get into details right now, this shift is only temporary so we are trying not to go crazy with buying new things so that when we eventually have to move out, we won't have to face a new clutter, on top of the old one we already have. But I am determined not to worry about something that has yet to come and I will enjoy this moment to the maximum. It is really lovely to have my own sewing room although I haven't been in there for quite a while. However, that is all going to change soon because as I am composing this, my whole body and mind is trembling with excitement over a project that I can't wait to get started on as soon as the weekend begins!! And obviously more will be revealed about the project as the pictures of the finished project are unveiled in the next post, hopefully !!!

Oh and just a few pictures to share with you of our quiet but absolutely delicious New Year celebration at home. I love steamboat because it always reminds me of Chinese New Year with my family and also it's an excuse to prepare lots and lots of calorific fantastic array of seafood!!

 We made some siew mai for lunch on New Year's Eve.

 Firing up the gas stove to make sure that our steamboat experience will take place without a hitch.

And the selection of food that we had. We surprised ourselves by finishing quite a huge amount of it but still have enough leftovers for a quick noodle soup meal the next night. D.E.L.I.C.I.O.U.S !!

Okay my dears, I think this will do for a new year post from me and hopefully in the next post I will be able to upload some pictures of the house to share with you. Until then, a belated Happy New Year to you and take care.

PS: This entire post was composed with me holding the phone to my ear with my left hand while being put onhold with the Maybank2u telephone customer service and my right hand tick tack typing away. And I keep hearing this over and over again - "Sorry, all our EXECUTIVES (they certainly think very highly of themselves) are still busy. Please hold, we will attend to you shortly." They can't even be bothered with putting on some nice music to sooth the 'seething anger' that I am slowly building up within me. I don't mean to put the Malaysian service down but it really wouldn't come as a surprise to find that the EXECUTIVES are probably sitting there yakking away about what to have for dinner and decide to let the phone ring and ring and ring.... I need to make the EXECUTIVE decision about when is the best time to give up and hang up...

The Three Most Useful Things I've Ever Bought.

It is normal to go through life making mistakes and learning from them.You often make the wrong decisions which you will later regret; say the things which you would wish you hadn't; and buy the things that you will find out later to be rather useless and serve no purpose. This might not be strictly true for some of you careful shoppers out there, but for me, it is one of those things which I have come to accept in life. I am impulsive, careless and easily swayed.

I was sitting down with a cuppa one day and started reflecting on things (as you would, with a cuppa)... and I started to look at the things around me and realised that actually, not all my 'impulse buys' were deemed useless and a waste of money. In fact some of these 'impulse buys' turned out to be the 'best buys' ever !! And most of all, they were inexpensive items which I have come to rely upon every day, without realising it. 

So without further ado, let's introduce them.

#Item 1

I bought this in a sale after Christmas, not last Christmas, but two Christmasses ago for 50p. And  ever since then, I have used it every day without fail, to bring  my lunch to work. The best 50p I have ever spent.

#Item 2

Last year, I went on a girlie trip to IKEA, and on impulse bought this laptop table for my Mac. I love having this table next to the bed and I wouldn't know where and how else I would have set my laptop up in the room given the limited space that we have around us. And the price, a mere £14.99 ! 

#Item 3

I was browsing in Sainsbury's one day when I came across this blue dotted bowl and thought to myself that I must have it. So I bought it for £2.50 and I have come to rely on it a lot for my meals at my desk -- my morning porridge, my Monday instant noodle lunch, etc.

So there you have it. The three most unassuming items which I have bought that I have come to rely upon so much every day, and it didn't even cost me an arm and a leg.

I never win anything, until now...

Do you find yourself being EXTRA motivated in completing surveys and questionnaires when the reward for the prize draw is attractive and lucrative?! That's what I did...

Three weeks ago, a survey was launched at my workplace and I, along with 600 other people took part in the survey, in the hope of becoming the lucky winner in the random prize draw. I have done that many times and since very young, I have not had much luck in lucky draws so I did not harbour any hope at all.

So I got back into the office this week after my two-week holiday and have long forgotten about the questionnaire and the prize until I got an email yesterday.

Apparently, I have been randomly selected (with a randomiser software) as the winner for the prize!!! How about that?! Of course I was beyond ecstatic and my exact response -- "You are joking !!!!!!!!!! You're not pulling my leg, are you?!!!"

So the bearer of the prize came by yesterday and dropped this off for me.

 Yup, that's my name. That's for me !

So I opened it and revealed this...

Can you guess what it is at this stage? Is it a book? Is it a pencil case? Okay, okay, let's carry on then...

The all-too-familiar symbol?! Surely you can guess by now? No? Okay another picture to show you...

Yup. You guessed right.

It is a brand-spanking new 8GB Ipod Touch by Apple.

The trouble with this is, I already own an Ipod Nano which Steve got me on X'mas a few years back and I am absolutely happy with it even until today. As for the WiFi capability and being able to surf the net and check my emails yada yada yada, I've got my BlackBerry to do all that. So technically, technically speaking, I have no need for this Ipod Touch. Even when I got the MacBook last year, it came with an almost-free Ipod Touch (cost me £20) and I sold it for the same reason, I didn't think I need one. Today, another Ipod Touch has yet again managed to appear in my possession and I am again left with the decision of what I would do with it. I was admiring it last night and Steve said ,'You are tempted to keep it, aren't you?'. Well, yes, I am tempted to keep it but I know I'll grow tired of it after a day or two, after the initial excitment has died down. So, so... I think I shall sell it and put the money towards getting a sewing machine!! What do you think?! I think it is a brilliant idea !!!!

To be or not to be?

It's been a rather busy week this week..lots of loose ends to tie up before I am off on a two-week holiday home to see the family.. YAY !! Mind you, these past two months leading to this trip has been a challenge of collecting/buying various presents and goodies for the family members -- chocolates and toys for the nieces and nephew, perfume and cosmetics for mum, jewellery for the Sis-in-law, Twining tea for Mum's friends, more cookies and chocolates.... The most difficult bit I have to say is buying for the two men -- Dad and my brother. I have one or two items for them, but I feel that it might not be enough. So, I still have this weekend before I fly off on Monday to try and sort something out. But I don't want to make the mistake I made last year when I went home --  I bought so much that in the end they woulnd't fit in the luggage and I had to leave some of the cookies and biscuits behind !! And this time, because I'm not going home with Steve, he has promised to bake some chocolate chip cookies that I can take with me for my parents because my dad loved the cookie that we brought back for them last year.

The office is finally back to normal this week with me being able to 'bug' my colleague incessantly while she's trying to get some work done. And from her holiday in Cornwall she brought me the most B.E.A.U.T.I.F.U.L and functional souvenir for me !! It's not a great picture because being my usual anal self, I am reluctant to open up the plastic wrapping and take them out in case I dirty them. But aren't these just so cute and adorable?!!

I haven't yet quite decided where and what to use them on so they'll have to stay in the plastic for a while longer but once in a while I do pick them up and ogle and admire them because they are just so cute !

Right, totally unrelated... I am in a mad quest of finishing my blanket because I am hoping to bring it on the plane with me for some warmth because I always find that the air conditioning is often too cold for me on the plane. But there are two dilemmas... 1. the blanket is surprising heavy and bulky (Duh, it is called a 'blanket') and 2. once I land in Malaysia with the guaranteed heat of up to 30 degree C and the humidity that envelopes you the minute you walk out the plane, I'm not sure if it will be worth while carrying all that weight just to use it on the plane... I don't know.. I guess when it comes to actually packing for the trip, the matter will resolve itself. But for now, just a couple of pictures to show you.

There is no system to the colour sequence. I basically use whatever colour that I come across first in the bag.

You can see Steve's foot sticking out in the background and the general messiness of the room. Can you see that bag sitting in the corner (next to Steve's foot), that's a whole bag of toys and stationery and goodies for the family. So tonight when I get home from work at 10pm, there will be more toiling to expand the size of the blanket. Now that it has grown so big, it takes soooooooo long just to finish one round of colour !! Fely, I've finally used the new bedlinen set I showed you not long ago... Nice?!

Okay chaps..... I will be in an Internet-less zone for the next two weeks.. so when I come back, there'll be lots of blog entries from you guys that I can catch up on (yiippiieee). Till then, take care and see you soon !!

Stuff British People Like

My colleague forwarded me a blog  -- Stuff White People Like and I think it is absolutely genius and hilarious. After reading the blog, I suddenly had the inspiration to start my own list, through my experience and daily encounter with British people....

Just let it be known that this is entirely my personal opinion and that this list should be taken with a pinch of salt and friends, feel free to add your own...

Stuff British People Like

#1 - Refuse to do something out of 'principles'. It's not that they are kedekut to spend 5 pence on a plastic bag, but out of principle, they WON'T pay for the bag because they think it's wrong. (But it's funny that they don't make it a principle to bring their own bag so they don't have to pay for one?)

#2 - Claim that they have a great sense of humour and believe that they have the funniest comedies on telly while their 'most highly acclaimed' shows like The Fawlty Towers, Yes! Prime Minister, or Blackadder are boring like hell. 'Friends' rule !!

#3 - Go for a drink. What ever they do, where ever they go and what ever the occassion, 'going for a drink' always appeals to all British people. It is something that I took quite sometime to comprehend and would never get because where I am from, going for supper, or going for yum char, or meeting up for dinner ALWAYS seems more attractive than just 'having a drink'.

#4 - Saying 'please'. 'Do you need a bag?' 'Yes, please'; 'How many apples do you want?' '5.... please'; 'Can you pass me the salt, please?'; 'Could I speak to the manager, please?'. 'Can I kick your butt, please?'. And when somebody doesn't say 'please', elderly people make disapproving 'clucking' sound and mutter under their breath 'how rude!'.

#5 - Make small talks at the check outs and think that they are extremely funny and original, having no inclination or the awareness that it was the 101th time I've heard the line 'I've only come in for some milk' for the day.

#6 - Insist on telling you what the weather is like outside when you can clearly see that 'it is pouring down with rain' or 'it is such a glorious, sunny day outside'.

#7 - Practise their newly acquired greetings in Chinese with you. 'Shed Shed... is that how you say it?'...'Erm, it's Xie Xie.'...'Yeah, that's what I said, Shed Shed.'....'Yeah, that's right! You've got it!! (eyes rolling, NOT)

#8 - Go for a walk. Aiyoh, this one, I will never get. Mind you, I am lazy and I get cold easily and I don't like the wind blowing straight into my bones.  As long as it's not pouring down with rain, they always want to go for a walk !!I just don't get that...

Okay, these are a few examples that I can think of. Please feel free to add to the list?

Hopeless me.

One of the things on my 'To-do list' last week was to ring up my mobile service provider, Orange, to terminate my mobile phone contract which ends effectively next month 2nd March. Since I love my current Blackberry and there is no need for an upgrade, my sensible self tells me that instead of paying up to £30 a  month for the line rental, all I have to do is to get a pay-as-you-go sim from O2 which will allow me to have unlimited text and unlimited internet as long as I top up £15 every month. Simple?

Here's how it went...

Orange 1 : Hello, you are through to Orange Customer Service, how may I help?

Me: Erm, I would like to terminate my contract which ends next month please.

direct and straight to the point. so far so good

Orange 1: Okay. Could I have your telephone number please?

Hmmm, this is easier than I thought....

Me: Sure, it's 07XXXXXXXXX.

Orange 1 : Thank you. Let me transfer you to my colleague who will be able to help you.

Oh oh, and I thought it was going to be straight-forward... perhaps not

Orange 2 : Hello Peng Peng, my name is Beverly. I hear that you are planning to leave Orange. Would it be possible to find out from you why that is?

Must stay tough..... must stay strong...... must stay focussed

Me : Well, I have decided that I can save more money by using an O2 pay-as-you-go sim and top up £15 every month because I don't make a lot of calls or send many texts so I don't really need to be on an expensive pay-monthly contract.

extremely proud of self by now

Orange 2 : I see. Now Peng Peng, How about if I tell you we can do the same deal for you for £15 and on top of that you'll get 200 free minutes as well but it will be a contract-based sim.

Puffff I am not falling for that

Me : Nah, your offer sounds really good but I think for the time being I will stick to my pay-you-go plan because I don't really want to be tied down with another long contract.

Proud of me, aren't you?

Orange 2 : I see. Erm Peng Peng, I can see from your record that you are due for an upgrade of your mobile. Is there any particular phone that you might be interested in upgrading and we can see if we can do you a good deal?

Oh oh......... this could be my down fall....

Me : Well, ermm... welll... I am rather interested in the new BlackBerry 9700 that's just come out. But... but.. to be fair, I am quite happy with my existing BlackBerry to be honest (voice trailing to a whisper...)

Damn it! Stay strong, woman!!

Orange 2 : Right. Now, how about if I tell you that we can get that phone for you for free, and you only have to pay £19.99 per month and you get 200 free minutes, 200 free texts and unlimited web data, which would suit your usage just fine? If you were prepared to pay £15 a month anyway, this is just an additional £4.99 and you'll get a new phone for free.

Hmmm.... I must admit she's making a very, very good point....

Me : Ermm.....welll....Oh okay I'll take it.

Whatttttt am I doing??!!!!!!!! Noooooooo !!!!!!!

Orange 2 : Sorry? Did you say you'll take it? Oh that's great. Let me take down some details.

Me : Oh yes, oh yes...haha (nervous laugh).. can't believe I'm getting a new phone.

hands shaking with excitement by now and voice cracking with giddiness..

..........

The rest of the conversation was just her taking down my details and informing me of my delivery date.

How useless am I?? But I honestly think that was truly caused by her excellent marketing techniques!! And also, to be fair, the actual conversation was longer than that and she had spent a lot more time than I described to persuade me. I only made it shorter so that I don't bore you to death with the actual conversation of me going, ermmm.... ahhhh.... ermmmmm... wellll.....and plus I wasn't entirely sure if the £15 pay-as-you-go sim would provide me with BlackBerry Internet Service so it didn't take her long to persuade me to stay.

But, c'mon, £19.99 for a month and a free BlackBerry 9700 ... Who can resist that??!!

 

As we speak, I have just received a text informing me that my parcel with me new phone will be arriving this evening at 5pm!!! How exciting is that??!! 

Honestly, gadgets and technology would be my greatest downfall. I belong to Geek Land.

What is to be your greatest downfall?

That mother of two really puts me to shame...

Right, I guess I'd better buckle up and start writing a new entry.

Write about what though? I really admire Fely and her ability to constantly update her blogs with interesting feeds and pictures. Quite often I will start writing a blog and then abandon it halfway through because it just doesn't sound interesting enough.

I don't really want to bore you with my daily routine of waking up at 7.30am, getting to work for 9am, finishing work at 5pm, getting to evening work for 6pm, finishing evening work at 10pm, getting home at 10.30pm, shower, a bit of internet surfing before going to bed at 11.30pm. Surely you  must be yawning by now?

Well, the one thing new this week is that I am now having to take the bus to work again... mainly because I have completely forgotten that the car MOT has expired and by the time I remembered (I didn't actually remember, the other half did :P) I had been driving the car illegally for a whole week without realizing it. So I have booked in for Friday to get it done, so hopefully by next week I shall be on the road again with Lil Fuzzer, after a clean 'health bill' that doesn't require too much money to repair :P

It's strange how we get used to life's conveniences...

Before the age of Mobile, we were fine and each time we left the house, we only needed the house keys and money. These days leaving the house without my mobile makes me feel as if I've gone out of the house naked. But I know one person who cannot be bothered as to whether he has his mobile with him and that would be Steve. Everytime I ask him, where's your mobile, the answer is to be expected -- Don't know, really.

Another one is my car... for most of the 4 years I have been in the UK, I was without a car and I was fine, relying on other people's kindness to drive me around and if I can't get that, taking the bus was the next best thing...

This morning, knowing that I had to catch the bus to work has really put me in a grumpy mood. Walking to the bus stop, standing at the bus stop waiting for the bus and walking from the bus stop from outside the university to my building seemed like such an enormous effort.

It just goes to show that human beings can be conditioned to become lazy so easily. When we were in secondary school, having a bicycle to cyle to school seemed like such a luxury !! Remember those good ol days?!

Sometimes, I think it's good to bring ourselves back to basic, and to look at life from a simplistic point of view. That is how you achieve contentment. Cliche but very true.

ANyway, I am rambling on and on now and I guess that's my cue to stop.

Till the next entry, take good care of yourself and smile always :)

Will the questions ever stop?!

When you first embark on a relationship with someone, everyone is happy for you and they wish you well.

After two years, the questions start coming in ....'When are you getting married?'....'Do you plan to get married?'...'When do you plan to have babies?' ...'Are you getting married soon?'....

So after being with my other half for more than four years, you can imagine the questions come from left, right and centre at all times.

Frankly I am quite fed up with these questions. I know, I know, I know from the bottom of my heart that half of these people who ask these questions are genuinely concerned for my well-being (the other half being the classic Ke-Po-Chi)...

Quite honestly, I do not have answers to all these questions and it's rather tiring having to explain yourself over and over again... and believe you me, the questioning session doesn't stop after the first one.... it is a series of questions with a full-on interrogation...at the end of it, I am often left with the urge to shout to the person's face...BUGGER OFF AND MIND YOUR OWN BUSINESS !!

Perhaps I shouldn't be surprised that people are asking these questions... afterall I, like many other girls, have pictured myself meeting the right person, getting married, and having children. I happen to be stuck at the first stage for a long time without proceeding any further and people are beginning to wonder why.

I once heard a friend say something rather casual but it had such a great impact on me.

'When you are too busy worrying about the future, you often neglect to enjoy and cherish the present.'

It is very, very simple and yet very, very true.

With that in mind, I am now a much, much happier person.

Some people may say that I am trying to convince myself more than anything...

But the truth is, I honestly don't mind.

Now, all I need to do is to convince my mother to stop worrying (wish me luck).

On a completely separate issue, I have a question for you to ponder upon...

What would you do, when you are at the check-out at the supermarket, it is your turn to pay and your mobile phone starts to ring? Do you...

a. ignore the call because you know that you can check the missed call later and ring the person back
b. take the call but end it quickly telling the other person that you are at the check out and that it is rude to talk on the phone
c. take the call, expect the cashier to pack your shopping for you, and when she's finished packing your shopping for you, you throw your money down, take the change and then leave the till without even a smile, a glance, or a 'thank you'

Sometimes, it's good to watch our mobile phone etiquettes because it is too easy for people to be rude these days without even realising it. Who knows, you might just make someone's day a less miserable one :)

I've been hit by a block

Lately my blogging juice has run dry and I have nothing to blog about.

Can't be bothered to blog.

Too lazy to think.

Matters are too trivial to blog about.

Blanket is slowly but surely growing bigger at a steady speed.

Christmas is creeping up fast and gift ideas have not yet popped up.

I just realised that I've lost my spectacles and they are nowhere to be found and it hurts my eyes staring at the screen without them.

Question for you: Are you currently happy?

Talk to me if you're not....I'm listening.

Autumn, leading to X'mas

It is a funny time of the year.

You are never sure what to wear because you might get too cold, or too warm.

I am not rich so I cannot afford to have the 'in-between' wardrobe like most people do...autumn cardigan... autumn jacket....

My range of clothes (which are getting more and more limited these days as I have 'outgrown' most of them) jump from summer, straight to winter.

It's crazy that we're now talking about Christmas already. Shops have started stocking X'mas merchandise as early as September !!! (a bit like CNY and Hari Raya at home, no?) With Royal Mail on strike, there is an added pressure now to get Christmas presents sorted as early as possible because we do all our X'mas shopping online.

So Steve said to me that I must start dropping hints about what I want for X'mas. Year after year, it gets harder and harder to get each other X'mas presents. I have not done very well last year for him and I still feel bad about it. Last year he really pulled out all the stops and surprised me with an amazing portable piano and the best thing I got him was a Heston Blumenthal cookbook, The Big Fat Duck Cookbook which was not your ordinary cookbook and it still cost me an arm and a leg. The book weighs around 5.5kg, with glossy pages of scientific cooking methods, stunning pictures and amazingly unusual out of this world's recipes and it's more of an artwork rather than a cookbook. It has got some amazingly unusual recipes for things like 'snail porridge', 'tea jelly', 'sardine on toast sorbet' and 'smoked bacon and egg ice cream', to name a few.

Apart from the portable piano, he also got me a nice, cuddly and fluffy 'tatty teddy' dressing gown which I almost brought round to Bea's in Reading when she told me her house is really cold. I changed my mind because the whole thing bundled up would have taken the entire space of the small backpack I was taking. And it was really cold and I regretted not bringing it. Just to clarify, the person in the picture is not me, hehe. But the dressing gown looks just like the one I've got. Cozy, isn't it? Anyways, so he got me this nice dressing gown, and I got him an alarm clock with a weather station. haha. I know, I know it's terrible. But it is no ordinary alarm clock !!! It's got a special cord which you can stick out the window and it'll tell you the current temperature and it'll give you a very accurate weather forecast !!! Seriously, I thought it was cool !! (I know, sad...)

So this year, I really don't know what he's going to get me. I've got me laptop, got me piano, got me car, can't think of anything else I need, really..... hmm. The worst part is I don't know what to get him !! I got him a PS3 on his birthday this year, his dad and brother got him an exercise bike, so I've run out of things I can get him... SIGH. Any ideas, pleaseeeee feel free to drop them in.

I might ask for a pair of UGG boots though. They look so comfortable and so lovely !! But they are bloody expensive. I've never been able to spend a lot of money buying expensive clothing or handbags. So if Father Christmas is listening.... please may I have a nice, cozy and lovely pair of UGG boots?? Pwetty pwease...

Anyway, we're heading up to London tomorrow !!! Yayyy !! Am really excited about that. We plan to have dinner at a Japanese restaurant in St. James Park after the musical, Wicked, so I'll let you know how it goes.

Mean time, take care peeps and have a good weekend and a great Halloween.

On why it was absolutely justified for me to be NEUROTIC !!

So last night I cried myself to sleep... and this morning Steve accused me of being neurotic.

As it is a well-known fact, I am a techno geek and where possible I always look for an opportunity to get the best software updates for my blackberry and my Mac and I love designing my own themes to be used on my blackberry... you get the idea.

Last night, for the first time, I installed and ran the Blackberry Desktop Manager on my Mac because I had received notification that there was a new software update !! So while watching the TV, I plugged in the phone and started going through all the familiar steps of clicking this and clicking that.

Not even bothering to read the screen for what I was installing because I've done it countless times, I set the phone up to receive the 'latest' software.

When the phone rebooted itself after the update, I picked it up to see what has been 'updated'. The first sign that told me something was amiss was when the screen showed 'As this is your first time using a Blackberry, this setup wizard will guide you through.....'

Hmmmm.....

Before I proceed, I need to layout the foundation of how important my Blackberry is to me... I have ALL my passwords in there, I have ALL my contact numbers, ALL my work and personal appointments on the Calendar, my pictures.... basically, my WHOLE LIFE !!Okay, perhaps not that serious, but you get the drift.

So, I checked my phone directory, BLANK ! I checked my password keeper, BLANK! I checked my Calendar, BLANK !! Blink, Blink, Blink...

NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO !!!!!

By then my fingers were trembling and my heart was beating fast and there was sweat on my forehead.

What followed was a series of frantic revival rescue missions, trying to revert the update and looking up forums to see what I can do to 'undo' the damage... and to make matters worse, the Desktop Manager (as if by fear) has refused to work properly on the Mac, leaving me more frustrated and hopeless than ever...

Steve, as usual, while trying to be positive was saying things like 'It's replaceable'...'I'm sure there's a way round it' and 'Why are you so upset?'.... all of which were not very helpful at that time.

So not knowing what to do next, I started crying (yeah, that would really solve the problem)... I was so upset that I was prepared to throw the Berry on the wall...not only have I wiped out all the data on my Berry, all my other settings must have been affected as well because the Internet refused to work and I couldn't get into my email. I WAS NOT A HAPPY BUNNY AT ALL !

So last night, I cried myself to sleep...

This morning, after waking up and the realisation that I have lost EVERYTHING dawned on me, I became depressed again. I switched on my Mac nevertheless to see if there's anything that can be done. This time, the Desktop Manager has worked again, and I found a file with the title 'Back up' and I began to see a light at the end of the tunnel. So with trembling hands, I plugged my berry in and  click on the magic button called 'Restore'.

I must explain here that I had not thought of doing this beforehand simply because I had not created a 'Back up' file before beginning the installation process so I did not expect that there would be a 'back up' file in the system. (Bless who ever created this feature as an automatic feature in the software)

When the process has finished and I checked my Berry again, I was awashed with relief to find that allllll my passwords were there, my contacts were there and my calendar events were there !!

HAALLLLLLLLELLLUJAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I knew what was coming but I had to phone Steve to tell him the good news (he had left for work by then) and of course what followed was a series of him mocking me and imitating my 'sobbing' and 'wailing' from the previous night...and him calling me a neurotic.

But I didn't care..... all I cared about was that I got everything back on the phone.....Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh...... what a relief.

I think when I get home tonight I shall write down in a secret notebook all my passwords in case something catastrophic like this should happen again (god forbid).

I am not melodramatic or neurotic, seriously.

Being positive

There is nothing in particular that I'd like to share with you... but I came to realise a very important point about life just recently...

The key to a happy life is really and truly having a positive attitude and mindset. I know it sounds very very cliche but I find that I often forget that too easily, and life becomes more and more bitter and miserable for no apparent reason.

So for the whole of this week, I promised myself to be positive, to think happy and smile all the time. This is what I have been consciously and purposely reminding myself of constantly and really, it did help brighten up my day and it makes you realise that when you're down, you bring others around you down as well and that is a very selfish attitude.

Today I was sourcing online for materials on fair trade and other global social issues so that I can produce some materials to be used on the exhibition board and I came across Book Aid International, a charitable organization who deliver donated books to Africa, support and collaborate with local organisations in Africa and make it possible for children in Africa to be able to enjoy reading and borrowing books. On their website, there are stories told by a few African children on how the books have changed and enriched their lives. These are stories that change your perspectives of life, take you 'out of your normal context' and make you appreciate your life and your surroundings. Simple things in life that we take for granted for, more often than not make so much difference to another human being on another part of the world.

When you read the facts and figures, it's unbelievable the kind of social and economical injustice that exist in our world. For example, something that I read not long ago read like this (a rough estimation but it gives you an idea).. For every cup of coffee that you pay for at a cafe, only 0.05% of the profit goes to the coffee grower... is that fair? How about banana growers in Ecuador who had to subject themselves to harmful substances used in the pesticides at all times which caused major problems like organ failures, impotency or even blindness? Or those poor children in the Ivory Coast who got sold into child slavery to work in cocoa plantations so that they can help produce cocoa beans used in chocolate that they have never had chance to taste all their lives?

Anyway, sorry for straying off the topic so much.

Like I said, it's nothing in particular I would like to share.. just some random thoughts and reflections...

On organising a conference..

My current project at my uni job is being a chief conference organiser. Having not attended a conference before, let alone organised one, this is a daunting, challenging and exciting task. In a way, my naivety has served me quite well as starting from the time I took up this post till now, I had no idea of the magnitude in which this task can grow. For months, I was in this bubble where I managed every little task that popped up in a cool and calm manner, and living under the impression that everything was under control.

So yesterday the boss suggested I meet with someone in the Uni who's recently organised a conference so that I can get an idea or two. An hour later, I can tell you I came back with more than an idea or two! I came back ashen-faced, with four full pages of scribbled notes, templates for this instruction, templates for that form, sample for this and that and what not you have it. It was during the meeting that I fully appreciated and understood that it was going to be a mammoth's task.

"You have to make sure you know when your keynote speakers are arriving so that you can have a back up plan in case they get here late.".... "Okay...." says me.

"You have to decide if you want real flowers or artificial ones on the main table."..."Okay..."

"You cannot be at the Registration desk as you'll be running around so you must assign two other people to do that"...."Okay..."

"Everybody who comes will have lots of questions and requests and you have to be readily availabe at all times."..."Okay..."

"Check that the menu for lunch for the two days is set and teas and coffees are arranged for the right time and there is a room for the delegates' luggage."...."Okay..."

"Make sure you have the right form for registration and evaluation..."

"Make sure all presentation slides are uploaded onto the pc in each room and test them to make sure that they work..."

"You have to think about how the delegates would get to the Hotel for the dinner and give them instructions for that..."

"The forms for delegates to choose their sessions will have to displayed with the abstracts..."

"You need to arrange two white boards for this and set that stand for that and...."

So when I came back into the office, I was in 'reality' land. To say that I wasn't aware of the different administrative tasks that a conference involve would be entirely untrue, but I guess all these minute details right from 'Registration' through to the Conference dinner and finally the closing on the next day, every single step needs very careful planning and execution. One detail missing and the thing can be messed up BIG time. Before this, I was only concentrating on the 'before conference' jobs as in marketing the conference, collecting papers for the conference, liaising with presentors and answering their queries, engaging sponsors, arranging the timetable for the two days... This time, visualising the REAL event has made me realise that careful planning is really the key to a successful conference. NOTHING can be missed !!

I am glad to have this opportunity to do all this, something which is completely different from my previous job which is teaching. It's exciting when you learn something new every day and you cross that invisible barrier in your mind and prove to yourself that YOU CAN DO IT!!

After the conference, I was told, that I have the task of editing the Conference Proceedings to look forward to !! That should be fun !!

The conference is not till September and by early September, I reckon everything will be in full swing by then and I shall try very hard not to be in a panic mode. I will keep you posted with how things go, chaps.