Own Time Own Target

Even before being desperately poor since the market's crashing to a 5-year low, I have been taking personal austerity measures for a couple of months now.

• No book buying from Borders, no matter the discount - I go to the National Library.
• No new clothes - the last was a pair exercise pants from duty-free shopping in Changi Airport in September. the previous last were 2 $8 t-shirts from Baleno sale in August. and before that probably a shirt in May.
• No curry puff/ bbq pork/ egg tarts/ chocolate/ snacks except the from the pantry hoard at home, and nothing new until the hoard runs out.
• No drinks at lunch - only soup if available with meal, else cooler or tea from office
• No new bags - the absolute last was a Coach bag that E bought for during USA trip, and none else this year.
  
• No new shoes - the last were 2 pairs from factory outlet (ok, i confess! they were nine west. but still!) during USA trip in August, old shoes to mended by roadside cobbler instead of Mr. Minute.
• No new toiletries/ cosmetics until everything has been used up
• Saving electricty and water at home
  
• Buying groceries only when they are on sale
• Choosing cheaper alternative if and when possible
  

Not much fun to do (or to read i'd imagine... or is it MORE fun to read? ;) ), but essential for my mental and financial health.

I do have 1 indulgence: my pilates class which i utilise to the max by making sure i dont cancel for a fee, i make sure i do all the exercises in the correct form and push myself to the max, and i continue to exercise outside class (i've started jogging again! 30min for 5.5km, not too shabby). The results thus far - a lifted butt (YAY!), trimmer waist and better posture. YAY!!!

I havent saved that much to tell the truth (since i never did used to be a big spender, except on food and drinks, haha), and more than half of what i did save went to the kids.

Good breakfast, Snack after class, Art supplies, School related and required stuff, Clothes and shoes - they grow so fast, Stickers with their names for school supplies, Small pocket money to teach them to budget/ count/ get change and save, Trick and Treats and Kiddie rides within reasonable limits, etc etc

But the pleasure and satisfaction when spending on them is priceless.

And i guess E derives his pleasure when spending on me too. :)

Labels: to Invest, to Love

Dropped by Parkway Parade over the weekend to check out some shelves at Howard's and lunch.

We were looking for the food court at level B1 and were lucky to passed by a couple of new eateries- a Japanese mini-mart who sold fresh produce and food (which you can eat in the mini-mart), a Brazilian butchery with a bistro, and a bakery.

Needless to say, carnivore that I am, I chose the butchery and we ate at Fabianne's Bistro.

The menu was tempting, offering lots of meat dishes and wagyu beef (from Australia), grass fed beef, aged beef (where a carcass was left to "decompose" slightly in a controlled environment to enhance its flavor and texture, instead of cooking from freshly butchered cows). was that too much information? oops. Pasta, Salad and Soup AND a wine list.

I decided to be wallet conscious and only chose a "normal" steak, E chose the sausage platter of which came with one each of bratwurst, oxford and linguica served with sauerkraut, prawn pasta for the kids (they were very nice to have offered and cooked the dish without chilli) and a ceasar salad to share.

My steak (for the life of me, I cant remember the cut, not tenderloin, not sirloin but something cheaper and fatter) done medium rare (is there any other way?) was tender and satisfying charred on bits of fat. The sausages were interesting, but the sour veg was great! Pasta was good too.

The portions were very generous and the whole meal (with a lemon soda for me and beer for E) came up to about $68.00 (10% off with Citibank Cards).

Cant wait to go back there to try their other stuff, i spied Crackling skin pork belly, Bahian spicy crab soup, and wagyu beef.

But before that, I got to seriously consider their Christmas menu (raw butchered stuff for those who can and want to cook, and roasted stuff for those who only want to eat without prejudice to level of cooking skills).

Other meat places that E and I want to try: 10 at Claymore at Pan Pacific Orchard Hotel (formerly known as Negara Hotel) and Prime Society at Dempsey.

Labels: to Eat Drink Party

What's going on?

The next book i picked up featured an experimental gay relationship and 2 deaths- one by fire and one by brain hemorrhage.

Both stories tempered with acceptance and moving on.

Seriously. What's going on?

Labels: to Read Think

2 recent books that i picked up featured gay authors who had way too much drugs in their misguided youth. Funny but sad. I meant the books.




Then i caught an unintended performance of a song that had haunted me on a Taiwanese game show. It drove me to tears in broad day light, during a GAME SHOW.




for a change of pace, i picked up everyman but it started with a funeral and ended with a death.

ARGH.

Labels: to Despair

I worry.

My mantra on the road recently has been:

"It's not me, but you're just too slow."

It is TRUE, but still.

Labels: to Drive