Own Time Own Target

was wondering why the sudden jump in visitor count, and from statcounter found that almost 30 came from pp who yahoo'ed for DHL hot air balloon

and dunno the yahoo count led to to this site being wikicompany'd, well specifically this post, or the wikicompany mention led to the high yahoo rating.

must be all those parents looking out for ideas of where to bring their kids this June holidays...

well, be quick! the coupon expires in 2 days!

and HAVE FUN!

Have been sleeping at late hours almost the whole month, getting into bed at abt 2am most nights, 1am at the earliest, and 3am some times.

Not sure why, all i do is:

• nuan abit after the kiddies zzz
• some housework,
• verify credit bills and make payment,
• check out the mail,
• wash some bottles and clothes,
• packing after the kiddies,
• reading newspaper,
• catching up on magazine reading (i subscribe to shape, runners' world, readers' digest) no time for books,
• have a late nite snack,
• catching same day reruns of amercian idol (1130pm to 1230pm) while it was still on
• some stretching and ankle exercises
• nuan some more trying to quieten the mind before going to bed

and suddenly! it is 1, 2, 3 am!


i wake up 645am nowadays to beat the traffic and trying to catch the company bus (and hopefully save some money on cab fare)

bad.

i end up

• trying to grab a seat on the train and take a small nap between Outram and Boon Lay station,
• taking multi-vits (at least i'm not taking red bull nowadays)
• drinking more coffee
• working less efficiently
• reacting with less quickness

bad.

how?

Labels: to Despair

Dont you just *lurve* business travels? Exotic locations, interesting food and drinks, hotels, aeroplanes, earning milege points all on business accounts? NOOOOO.

Business travels is all about work work work, work preparing for the trip for the presentation/ meeting; work at location; work at nite in the hotel for the next day; work when you get back to office, on top of clearing the stuff in the in-tray which has piled up.

The location doesnt mean anything becos often times the itinenary is airport-office/factory-hotel-(repeat)-airport, with meals in interesting places if you're lucky, but then that means drinking too.



Aeroplanes? 1 hour flight to KL dont even bother to adjust seat inclination, 2 hrs to JKT/ BKK just enough time to fire up the laptop, 7 hrs to Japan at least got some time to zzz, 17 hrs to USA/ Europe is way too much. I still shudder from the memory of unexpected despair and tearing at the sight of the Changi Air Control Tower when in a cab approaching the airport.

and i miss the kiddies. miss them miss them miss them. especially worrying if they are unwell when i have to go. heart-wrenching, that. the first time i took a long trip, i was crying harder than Kiddie E who sent me off at the airport. :o

The only thing that's true is the spending on corporate account, travel allowance, savings on meals and transport that you'd otherwise spend when at home. But thats provided you dont blow the extra + savings on shopping (at the airport) or duty-free liquor on the way home wor...

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anycase, just a rant. cos this time it was a hectic job from preparing for a premature trip to BKK on short notice, then change of plans to go KL on even shorter notice, both of which are fraught with local office politics, fragile egos that needs massaging and asses that need to be wiped.

arrgh. not enough time to get all my documents in order, and i'm flying in a couple of hours' time.

siangz.

Labels: to Travel

ok, i bought some glucosamine an in attempt to booster the recovery of my ankle last week.

the toot sales girl got confused about the discount, and charged me $99.60 first for 1x vits for the kiddies and 2x triflex, and then charging me $6.20 for the over discount, and since rebate is $0.50 per $10, i received only $4.50 instead of $5.00 for total purchase $105.80 becos they were in 2 charge slips... can die. X( but thot nevermind, forget it...

until i realised this today from a discussion in SgRunners, and thanks to penguin:


i thot i had purchased good value for money glucosamine becos 1 got a bottle of 60, and amount per serving was 1500 mg Glucosamine, 1200mg Chondroitin Sulfate and 900mg MSM.

but then hor... Serving Size is THREE TABLETS, and Serving per container 20, meaning i have to take 3 tablets a day to meet the 1500mg serving amount!

so duh right?

going to chase back my $0.50 rebate later, hmmmph*!

Labels: to Eat Drink Party

i have a cravings for all things kickass hot and fiery right now, think it goes with the mood, the restlessness, the need to take internalise and breath fire.

the thrill of the heat.

only prob is, i've getting pimples and some ulcers (no doubt some ulcers in the stomach too) but i've found a great pimple patch remedy :D

another jalapeno please!

Labels: to Eat Drink Party

okies, here's the 30% discount voucher to the hot air balloon ride that i was talking about in Own Time Own Target: grounded!

valid till 31st May 06 only hor...

Labels: to Shop Buy

ok, i'm officially depressed.

had been having this nagging pain in the left ankle, like since forever, and i thot that it was finally on the mend when the pain is only felt when i flex it up and to the right.

although i want to train for my 1st race (Shape 10km in Jul) i wanted to make sure i do not jeopardise the recovery and make it worst.

so i started looking at gadgets. heh. what else did you expect from gadget freak here? a very interesting 1 is a wobble board that is a board mounted on a semi sphere ball. it helps to:
- train your proprioceptors (the body sensors which sense where parts of the body are even without looking. the stuff that helps you stay in bed when asleep, those that help your body to react when you miss a step so that you dont fall flat on your face etc)
- improve coordination,
- strengthen knee and ankles
- and strengthen your body core.

how you do it is this:



went checking on how much and where to buy it too. about S$50 for the cheapest one made of plastic on the net before shipping. none in aibi. gonna check other local stores for an alternative called bosu ball too. way more expensive but more versatile and i've seen it in gyms.


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ok, so why am i depressed?

because i work up this morning with a frozen left ankle which was painful even as i walk, without flexing it. AAARRRGGGHHHHH!

Labels: to Despair

it must be this thread in SPUG about hum that made me had char kway teow for yesterday's lunch, and laksa for today's.

well, at least we were not discussing Moet, or i'll be thirsty for awhile yet. ;)

Labels: to Eat Drink Party

Caught a ride with colleagues and had lunch at Bukit Merah Central today.

oooohhhh... the memories, the food, the smells!

smell of KFC hit us as soon as we stepped out the car the car park below the hawker center.
to my pleasant surprise, most of the stalls that i used to frequent are still here:
- fried kway teow (all 3 of them, with my fave being the one at the far end, near the KTV)
- boneless chicken rice (next to fave kway teow stall above)
- goreng pisang
- bak bu teh
- slice fish soup (opp bak bu teh), and they added a new fried ginger and shallots fish dish
- fried fish soup (the very expensive one in front, which they say is less tastey with new staff)
- prawn noodle (the soup is to die for when you are trying to cure a hangover)
- fish ball noodle (the aunty who is generous with the sauce not there liao)
- rojak grilled on charcoal
- each soft drink per can + ice is still $1.00 here
- even the hello kitty shop is still thriving, and of course the aunties touting the 3 packs of tissue paper for S$1 :)

unfortunately,
- the 十全大補鸭 together with kway chap store not there anymore
- desert stall also gone
- the swimming pool had been closed down, the pools have been emptied

didnt have the chance to check out whether these are still there (in the kopitiams surrounding central):
- 秋莲 ban mian
- maggi mee goreng + roti prata
- the friendly aunties at the fruit store

darn, it was practically a trip down memory lane!

good memories, but mostly food memories :D

Labels: to Eat Drink Party

was supposed to have started on my training for the 10km shape run over the long weekend, but a sprained ankle that has stubbornly refused to heal plus a bad back put paid to it.

Finally seeked medical attention for both, going to the chriro twice over the weekend (twice more this week), and sinseh for the foot today. hopefully well enough to start on the eliptical sometime this week, and a short run this weekend.

went out with family to try out the hot air balloon, since we had a 30% discount voucher.

Unfortunately they were grounded due to expected bad weather when we arrived, even tho when we can an hour ahead of arrival that they were ok to fly :(

we tried our luck by hanging around the place and buying stuff from the only super expensive f&b outlet there, $3.75 for a hotdog! just the bun and the dog!

or by going on the internet by paying $1 for 10min....

and even more unfortunate, the weather got progressively worst and we left without flying :(

E wanted to buy me a dinner as belated birthday treat + early mother's day celebrations.

Didnt feel like Jap or Italian, but had a cravings for thai-teo cheow style clay pot shark fins, but also wanted to try peach garden @ seragoon gardens.

Both Leng and E thot that i should go for fins. heh, for once, both my bestest friend and hubby agrees on something. :D

E was late picking me up from Tanjong Pagar MRT due to traffic jam in CTE plus rain. and it was later that we realised that Outram is nearer to Craig Rd than Tanjong Pagar. DUH. But luckily for me, some shopping available in International Plaza, or i'll be stuck with 1 newspaper stand + 1 cheap clothing store at Outram station. phew~

Anyways, service at Siamese Fins was pretty decent, lots of please and you're welcome to our thank yous, and mostly attentive staff who gave us the name of each dish as it came, cautioned us that the pots were hot, and gave us endless refill of our tea.

We ordered the $78/px set and in the menu were: Shark fins in claypot, fishmaw with abalone, crab craw, dou miao (with the largest leaves i've seen!), seafood fried rice + desert (was supposed to be fresh mango but we changed it to assorted thai deserts cos E loves them).

i also had a very cool refreshing young coconut drink. The food was good, but not as good as i remembered them, perhaps i've become jaded with age.

While we were eating, Chen Hong, a celebrity chef from Taiwan came for a meal too with 2 friends, and he of course received fawning service from the manager including an exclamation of "this is special for you" when his fins were served. they also reheated his fins when it got cold while he was on the phone. he was taller than i expected, but also more effeminate that i expected.

anyways, we were stuffed by the end of the dinner, and i was happy :)

burp*

Labels: to Eat Drink Party

Was supposed to have dinner with my family at the new Ming Jiang at Rochester Park, but they were full after we trekked alllllll the way uphill. bummer.

so we trooped down to North Border near the carpark, which served Tex-Mex food in an open setting, and we took a table in the open under the ancient tree, beneath a dark blue sky filled with brilliant stars and a cresent moon.

The appetitisers were good, the seafood salad in lime sauce, the corn bread, the best of northern platter with cheesed stuff jalapeno/ buffulo wings/ and something i dont remember now, chicken wrap all went swimmingly well with the limited ed Brown Brothers shiraz i ordered.

Main course was a let down tho, my baby back were practically tasteless, the steak so-so and the only 1 that received better review was the rack of lamb.

while waiting for the deserts, the waitress showed us the 2nd level of the colonial building, and let Kiddie E tried on an indian chief feather hat-thingy. she looked like a princess :) then we went to the tiny store that sold lots of hot sauce and hot snacks and handicraft, but unforunately no pickled jalepenos. bought a dreamcatcher key ring. wondering where to put it now.

But deserts were the saving grace, the lava chocolate mound with ice cream was worth the trip by itself! the caramel flan with ice cream was ok, but the chilli ice cream was strange (the waitress actually advised us that it wasnt that nice), kinda like vanilla with crushed chilli peppers buried in it. try once enough liao.

Labels: to Eat Drink Party

Just finished watching the post election conference.

- So PAP won, 82 out of 84 wards maintaining the status quo with an overall result of 66.6% of all valid votes.

- there was a scare in Aljunied where they eventually prevailed 56% vs WP's Team A.

- the surprise of Chiam See Tong winning with a wider margin, E & i were both hoping Situ will win, bringing the upgrading package to the flats. Especially the sorely needed lifts that stopped at every floor, including the 4th level in the block where my inlaws live where the lift only stop at 1, 6 and 10. It is mission painful and slowly for my reumatism racked inlaws to walk up and down everyday, especially with my kids in tow. and worst if they need to bring my bed-ridden bro-in-law out, to the doc or where ever. the upgrading will EVENTUALLY come, but when?

- no surprise over Low winning a wider margin in Hougang. The flats are well maintained and probably the first to have creative painting with contrasting colors and whimsical designs on the block. PLUS he managed to upgrade a few blocks with lifts that stopped at every floor with his own constituency funds without co-pay from the residents until the govt stepped in and changed the rules, allowing only 10% of the sinking funds for lifts upgrading, with the rest for maintenance works such re-roofing, re-wiring, changing of water tanks, painting etc etc. okays, but 90% for those???

- the Gomez affairs was in a way 可大可小, depending on what angle you looked at it. but it wasnt making a moutain out of a molehill that some say, in effect saying that it was an honest mistake- he blur cock- say sorry- move on. I do believe that the integrity of the Elections Dept would have been compromised and reputation smeared internationally if there were no security camera to show that Gomez did not hand in the application form. and what did he need the form anyways if he was never to contest in AMK? and what a strange way to put it when told by the ED officer that security camera footage showed he never submitted the form, i'd have thought a "huh? what? let me check? oh it IS here! sorry, i apologise" would have been much more natural than "i am happy with your version...", that just smack of prior knowledge and very selective choice of words to say nothing.

- the SDP, getting sued BEFORE nomination day. very smart. the 2 lowest scoring in the SMC and GRC contests, figures.

- opposition supporters. had lunch with a friend, she was to have attended the WP rally at hougang the night before but it was too crowded for her to get in. so she left without hearing anything much. then she asked who is contesting in Paris Ris - Punggol, the SDA whom IMHO CMI for their experience and calibre, then she said yup, she support WP and will vote for them. wait wait wait, they are not from WP, they are SDA/ Chiam's pp. Yes, anyways, becos the govt need somebody to check them. ah-so. but if they CMI, they know how and what to check meh? if need to feedback, i also know how to feedback as an individual, i dont need CMI opposition who cannot even speak in full and proper sentences being a postman for me. dont be a blind supporter.

Labels: to Read Think

Managed to borrow a copy of the HP #6, and gone through it in 1.5 days of MC after minor op on 2 May.

Faster pacing and action-packed compared to the brooding HP #5.

but it wasnt much memorable to me, i just want to finish HP#7 (when it gets done) and get the whole series over with.

Labels: to Read Think

was at gyn at 8am to get ready for op.

settled at ward at 820am

pushed to theatre at 9am

told them "about 50" when asked for my weight (haha, there went my birthday resolution to get down to 48, next year maybe)

was told to expect a "good beating" when the anesthesian looked at my small veins + various battle scars from 1st preg. he managed in the end op started at 930am

woke up in the ward, looking into the eyes of a very concerned nurse.

"How are you?"
"I'm fine, What time is it?"
"About 12"
"oh"
"Are you ok?"
"Yes, why?"
"ermmm... were you drinking?"
"huh? no. why? what happened?" well, i havent drank any thing, least of all alcohol since fasting at 12 midnite, i didnt even take any medication for my bronchitis, which i had failed to mention to my gyn, cos i didnt want to run the risk of rescheduling the op which had be delayed 6 months due to my work schedule.
"well, the doc was concerned cos it took you quite awhile to wake up."
"huh? really?" i probed a cut on the inside of my upper lip, did i bite myself?

i asked the gyn when she came for a review at 2pm
"the nurse asked me if i drank. what happened?"
"oh, you were moving quite a bit, and the anesthesian had to give u quite a bit for your size, so he said you must be a drinker..."
D'UH