Pics

Here're some pics of my pretty friend.

One of my crazy colleagues emailed me over the weekend for something mundane concerning work. And then she asked the customary “How’s everything in China?”

I guess she wasn’t expecting my answer when I said “ Im kinda sick and I miss home a lot especially when im sick”

Her reply was simply “I know how you feel on the second part”, cos she is based in Dubai.

Within 10 minutes, my direct boss emailed me (he’s a BB freak) to ask how I was.

That was the weekend.

2 days before I leave Shanghai, I received this package at my hotel from my colleagues in Singapore.



It contained the el cheapo biscuits that I like, 3 in 1 milo, a stuffed penguin toy, a pocket IQ test (????) and a note that contained pictures of chili crab, satay, mee goreng that said “ Goodies await your return. Have a good flight back”, signed by all my colleagues.

I was so touched.

Cheap

Things arent exactly cheap in Shanghai.

Quite a lot of things are more expensive her, especially imported goods.

A bottle of Evian in my room.. S$13..

I didnt feel like paying for expensive water so i got the chambermaid to give me more bottles of free water. w00t

Whilst here, I cut my hair twice at Toni & Guys, went massage twice for just S$16 each (damn good) and also went to pedicure and manicure.

I feel clean now.

Wedding

I just heard that one of my friends is getting married on 28 Dec.

Seems like 28 Dec is a good date to get married. Shitfong also get married on that day last year.

Feelings

Perhaps it was the pain of a last dinner.

Or perhaps it was the peppermint tea.

Tonight was the last night i was spending with my pretty Shanghai friend. (I'll upload some pics later on a faster internet connection)

Among the nonsense we ALWAYS talk about like work and my extensive use of Chinese proverbs, we started talking about marriage.

Yes, marriage.

Not between us of course. But Pretty Friend ("PF") said that she was not getting young anymore (borned in 1980) and her parents are excited for her to get married. But she doesnt want to lose out of her single life like meeting friends, going for movies and going for ice cream, etc

Some sagely advice i gave was how about finding someone to be a partner, as opposed to a bf/husband. A partner whom you would feel comfortable with to do all the single life stuff and also a partner whom you can also bring to meet your existing friends. Sounds like very logical advice really but not easy to accomplish.

She sent me home and after a hug and then another, we parted. We enjoyed ourselves this time. She helped me book all my domestic flights, brought me shopping and brought me to a massage place.

Dont know when i'll be back. It's a mixed feeling.

Sick

I was sick over the weekend.

It was the same ailment as what I got before i left for Shanghai. Feverish, losing my balance and having a splitting headache. I also got a tummyache but that was largely cos of the obscene amount of food i ate.

The fever kicked in first and i only realised that it's the same as what i got in Singapore when i began losing my balance.

It totally sucks being sick over the weekend and being so far from home and my pretty Shanghai friend was busy with her friends.

Bad weekend. I wanna go home.

Trips

Phew, I'm in Guangzhou.

I only blog when i'm out of Shanghai cos the internet connection is just sucky there.

Staying in this nice hotel. Been a long time since i stayed in a nice hotel.















I was quite enthralled by it all untill i tried using it. Absolutely horrible. The shower room's glass door has a rubber end which made opening it so hard i nearly broke the door. There are so many switches all over the room but no indicators. The new age switches dont sit in very well.

Nice room but not practical.

Do i complain a lot? I just like things to be perfect.

I've been thinking about this for some time. Decided not to chase after the BMW already.

I've decided to save up and buy a condo unit. Preferably somewhere in the east, with a pool. Hopefully residential prices continue to drop as i save up.

Missing

It's day #13 here in the Middle Kingdom.

I miss proper english.

I miss my car.

I miss my mum's steamed chicken.

I miss my bed.

I miss my imac.

I miss badminton.

Eating at Sea

My client brought me out to eat on a restaurant on boats.. it's a fishing community that live on boats.







It was damn dirty that i nearly puked. It's a whole bunch of fishing boats together and the water's in between the boats are very dirty. Plus the workers throw whatever they want into the nets where the fishes are kept..





There was sea urchin too.



Eating while the boat was bobbing up and down was not fun. I couldnt wait till the lunch was over. :(

Its Day four in China and I'm already missing home.

I went to Sanya yesterday to see some clients.

My flight to Sanya was delayed. There were some angry people at the waiting gallery. Loud voices and then banging of the counter. Angry women were yelling at the counter staff about them being rude about the delay and then wanted to see the manager. I could tell the guy who was being scolded was close to tears. Tons of ple were taking pics and vids.



After a while, the people trooped off, presumably to see the manager.

Then i saw this.



The people were lined up along the steps from the immigration and security place, to block the new people coming in after clearing immigration. They were chanting and holding placards saying "我要回家！"

Then i realised that it's ba zhang festival on monday and that's why they wanna go home.

So exciting yet sad at the same time.

There're some things you cant prevent no matter how much you yell, chant, block, bang counter. Cannot means cannot

Maths

Sometimes I think I'm quite ordinary.

Sometimes I think I'm pretty great.

Usually the former occurs more often. It's called central theory, i think, where one usually perceives others as similar to oneself.

So when my in-house legal counsel asked me what was 30% of 100 million, I was quite concerned that there was a hidden legal nuance i was unaware of. After all, i topped my school in mathematics in sec 2. This was disturbing.

I told her 30 million.

And i emailed my only other lawyer friend - Goddess - to tell her how dumb my colleague was.

Goddess said, "Well, technically it's 33.3333333333 million"

I was felled.

I struggled back to pri 5 when i learnt about percentages. I thought it through and i thought AGAIN. It's 30 million!!@!

Never believe what lawyers tell you.

For those less challenged: here's a maths qn.

Peter spent $48 on some storybooks. he spent 1/3 of the remainder on a dictionary. he had 2/5 of the total money left. how much did he have at first?

Not Good

I dont know if it was the lack of sleep from previous night.

Or that my contact lens were due for a change.

Or was it because by 9:30am, my to-do list exploded to 14 items.

Or was it because of the extensive bleeding from my fingers two days before.

Or it was from the pit in my stomach from the realisation that my mum needed surgery.

By 10am, my head was spinning and my eyes couldnt focus and i literally lost my balance a couple of times. I was breaking out in a cold sweat.

I was due to make a presentation of my findings from my Vietnam trip at 1130am and i still couldnt focus on my points.

When i eventually did present, I even trembled a couple of times due to the cold air con, the cold sweat and just fear of screwing things up.

I went to the doctor cos i was just afraid i was going to faint while driving. He said that i was heaty and coming down with a flu and with some parts of my throat and ear getting inflamed, my balance was affected. This was the first time i heard something like that.

I just ate my meds and feeling quite groggy now.

Tomorrow i make my way to China for 3 weeks. Never been away from home for so long, except for the 42 days i spent in Taiwan during my army days.

Hurting

I've been hurting for some time. In many places.

One of the more worrying places is that the last two fingers on my left hand always not much feeling. My left hand's always more weak.

Ive gone to many places for help. Then today i went to this acupuncture sinseh. He was damn rough man. Jerked my left hand so hard that the insides all had a tingling feeling. It's almost like all my nerves were firing up.

Then he pierced the acupuncture needles to each of the joints on my last 3 fingers. Ive had acupuncture before but this felt damn pain. Then i realised he pierced the joints to bleed them. After he squeezed out the blood, he then used a stick (which is shaped like a nail file) and kneading at each of the wounded joints. I was screaming. After a while, the joints all turned blue black. He said it was all the bad blood stuck there.

All this while i was lying on my tummy on his table with needles in my back, writing away like a beached whale.

My hand feels much better now.

Song

I heard this song on the Sichuan Charity Fund Raising show this evening. Some of the artistes and their kids were butchering this song.

It sounded familiar but i couldnt place it.

The sad lyrics made me think it was Jay Chou's Shi Jie Mo Ri. But i thought it was quite a weird song to choose.

Then i realised it's not the Jay Chou song.

It's actually this song.

I actually remember watching this MTV in a KTV, on a rare occasion i went to a KTV (think only 3 times in my life). Brought back so so so many memories.

Sigh.. im very sad now.

Tripping

I'm tripping. I left my previous job cos of the intense travelling. Thought i can relak one korner here.

I'll be going to Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City next week.

The following week, I'll be relocating to China for three weeks - got a nice cosy hotel in Shanghai and then flying domestic to Beijing, Sanya, Haikou, Guangzhou, Qingdao, Chengdu (shudder).

My boss said to stay at least 2 wks but i can extend to 3 weeks. Will see my mood. I'll definitely be back for this.



I went to their concert the last time they were here in 2005.

Just Cant Run Far Enough

I used to run quite a bit. I enjoyed it. I used to run from my house to east coast on weekends when i book out. It felt good. Till i fractured my ankle.

Then i bought a bicycle. Then i cycled all the way to east coast. Much easier than running. But cycling is more dangerous than running.

I used to swim a lot. I used to swim on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, hours on each stretch. I have lifesaving certificates,long distance award and some speed awards even. But after some years of not swimming in uni, i now get a headache when i swim in a pool.

It just feels like sometimes things dont last. It's really odd that i get headaches after swimming, despite being decently good at it at one time.

Nothing lasts.

Ive started running a bit now. I went cycling on Monday and thereafter i went shopping for goggles.

I'm thinking of joining a triathlon. http://www.triathlon.sg/ Thinking of doing the Mini - swim 200m, cycle 10km, run 2km. Doesnt sound difficult on paper but to do all three consecutively.

Sweets

I met an ex-colleague for dinner that night.

She said she wanted to buy me a meal cos she got a good bonus. But i decided on such an expensive place that i decided to buy her a meal instead.

When she met me, she showed me something she stole from the office for me.

Running

I started jogging after work recently as i wanted to get my mind off things and maybe lose some weight.

First time i jogged, was the first in some years since ive used my track shoes. Track shoes were bought in my US tour in Dec 2002 for merely US$25. But it's quite a funky design and i love it.



When i put on my shoes after such a long time, the side straps came out. Thank goodness, the entire shoe's like a glove, so i could still run after removing the laces.





After that, i decided to go buy another pair.



I remember being one of 24 people in Singapore in 1992 to own the Nike Air 180.

Has it been worth it?

You give it a lot of thought.

You wonder if you need her in your life.

You've done without her in your life so far and it's been fine.

You consider for a long time. Is this right? Is this the right decision? Are you ready for this step?

You buy things to make her happy, hoping that if she's happy you become happy too.

At the end of the day, it's not about the money. You'd have bought her the world if she wanted it. It's about the commitment.

You worry if it'll end up with nothing. Will it be a headache, heartache or immense joy?

You wonder if it'd bring you the immense joy that you, your mother, your father, your sister have been waiting for.

Is it worth it? You cant tell till you make the next step.

You realise that the word "worth" pops up more often than others. It's a question of worth because in all things there's a cost and benefit and you jus have to weigh it, consider it, analyse it to make sure the joy you feel is more than the risk you're taking.

So many things you'd have to consider before you hire a maid.

Today I’ve Lost You - Take That

Driving home in my car, nearly midnight
Rain on the road in my view
Holes in my heart, it’s the first night without you
On my clothes I still smell your perfume

Should i call?
When I left you were crying
Is it too late to apologise
From talking to fighting, admitting, denying
To finally saying goodbye

Now I regret every word that was spoken
I said some things you know I didn’t mean
Maybe we’ll turn back the time
Work it out, start anew
Or maybe today I’ve lost you

I can’t help but think of our last conversation
I close my eyes I can still see your face
I hope what I’m feeling now
You are feeling it too
Or maybe today I’ve lost you

Driving faster out on this empty road
Being single’s so bad at twenty-three
Looking for signs, asking strangers directions
When the answer’s right in front of me

Strange how a day it can feel like a lifetime
I know what I had now it’s gone
Ive swallowed my pride cos alone here, I’m dying
And with you is where I belong

For twenty-four hours I’ve been searching for reasons
Reasons why we should be living apart
Hope I’m not too late to come home
Work it out, start anew
Or maybe today I’ve lost you

maybe today, I’ve lost you
maybe today, I’ve lost you

Bali

I actually went on a day trip to Bali yesterday.

And im back in the office today.

My super duper ultra big boss asked me which part of the island I went.

With my limited drawing skills, I drew a map of Bali for him.



This looks like someone’s testicles man.

I hurriedly went out of his room to print a proper map when he looked confused.

Carz

I went to my boss's room today and saw that he placed the car i gave him on this mantle place he has in his room.

Look at how proudly it stands.



Until you step further back and see the kick-ass models already there.

Compliments

I have been complimented for various things before. But I never thought I'd receive one like this from my boss after last week's conference in Shanghai. Definitely not my chinese speaking abilities.

"I just wanted to congratulate you on the great job you did at the conference, without your chinese speaking capabilities it would have been much harder. So GREAT JOB!"

Conference

Going to this conference that my ex-company hosts gave an odd sense of familiarity. Odd feeling cos I've gone to this conference ever since its inception and it's the first time I am attending this as an outsider.

My former boss came to introduce himself to my current boss and it was an awkward moment for me. Current thanked Former for letting Current have me, while Former said it was only a loan. Kinda weird moment there.

There were several cocktails and dinners during the conference and we were shuttled by buses from hotel to hotel, depending on where the coctails/dinners were held. I caught this sign as i was walking to the shuttle bus.



IHG stands for InterContinental Hotels Group. Haha.. this was a funny one.

I brought tons of brochures and even more namecards. It was a tough time trying to explain what my company was in Mandarin. I spoke so much Mandarin that i got a headache in the first two days. Gave away all of them and now i have this much namecards to reply to.



Hopefully i get a deal or two out of these buggers.

On a happier note, I managed to catch up with my pretty Shanghai friend. I've now known her for 3 years now and she was literally my first work friend. It's fun to see how we've grown into our roles.

Hangzhou

I did a day trip to Hangzhou when i was in Shanghai.

上有天堂，下有苏杭。(i'm very good at chinese proverbs, as evidenced here). I've been wanting to go Hangzhou for a long time.

It was a long long journey..

1. 45 mins to the train station to my hotel

The train station was packed at 9am man.



2. 1.5 hour journey to Hangzhou

I called my ex-colleague to ask how to get to Hangzhou. Coincidentally, she was there at the same time! Haha.. she mistakenly took the el cheapo RMB15 (S$3) train which takes 3 hrs and there was no allocated seats. So she stood for one hour until she got a seat. For RMB 50 (S$10), i got a seat and the journey was 1.5 hours.

3. 2 hour car ride to Thousand Islet Lake.

It was raining the entire day which made the pictures bad..but the fogginess added to the mystique of the place.







Going down the slippery slope to get to the boat.

Illness

I think i have an illness.

No matter how late i arrive back from a trip, I'd unpack everything, dirty clothes, toiletries, work files, accessories, etc before i go shower and sleep.

No matter how long the flight is.

It's 2:30am now and im glad to be back.

Shanghai

Came to the conference my ex company hosts every year. But this time I'm here as a delegate. In the past, we used to all squeeze in a serviced apartment to save costs.

Now i finally get to stay in the hotel where the conference is held. So nice.





It isnt that obvious here but the cupboard opens both ways: one side opens into the toilet, and the other side opens at the doorway. Very convenient.



It's an 88 storey building. Scary!





I was famished after my flight and ordered these... yummy.. but they had 10 xiao long bao...



Then i just had this for lunch... nice soup!

Help

I actually recently got some part-time help for my mum. She comes in once a week to clean up the house and help out here and there. This lady came highly recommended by someone i felt is a little too picky and anal for her own good. So i trust her opinion on things like these.

After the first time she came, she wanted my mum to buy the following:

1. A stronger vaccuum cleaner
2. A stronger iron
3. Some special table cloth she recommended

We bought #1 and #2 before her second visit and she helped us buy #3.

On a second visit, she wanted us to buy:

1. A better ironing board.

I didnt manage to buy an ironing board before her third visit.

On her third visit (today), she suggested that my mum bought a cupboard to store the excess clothes we have.

Siong man.

Cards

Just got my order of 2 boxes of name cards for an upcoming conference i'm attending.

Means i wont be getting promoted anytime soon i guess.

Vicious Spiral

It’s strange how one thing can lead to another.

I actually went to Watson’s to get pore packs.

Then ended up getting batteries for my wireless keyboard. Wanted to get 4 pieces only (S$7.05) but then 8 pieces cost S$10.50. More worth it.

Then while paying, saw this two-bottle dettol promotion. Original price is S$15.50 and then now is S$11.80 if I bought more than S$15 at Watson’s.

Bought them all.

Cant think of a nice title

My mum’s happy that my that uncle won S$10,000. His daughter’s in uni and could use with some extra dough. He's very thrifty. Handphone screen spoilt never change. My mum told me to buy him one.

Coincidentally, DBS ibanking has that fab offer with 40% off Samsung phones. I waited till 31 March before ordering cos I wanted to pay till payday. Then I realised deadline was 31 March and the payment website doesn’t work with Mac and Vista (office laptop) and then was panicking cos I cant get my 40% off deal.

I finally managed to in the end. And now he won S$10,000.

I hope good things come to good people.

Digital Aged

It was a flurry of activity in my house last night. I came home late cos I went to get a PSP. I was supposed to stay out later to wait for my mum who was supposed to go to town to pick up my cousin’s maid to come stay at my house cos my cousin’s going on holiday.

After some change in plans, the maid no more coming liaoz. So I went home.

When I came home, my mum was yakking on the phone cos my aunty won second prize in 4-d (or toto). W00t S$2,000. And then another uncle called to say he won first prize!!!! W00t w00t w00t w00t w00t S$10,000! Happy like bird. My mum was very happy and yet half sianz cos apparently she saw the winning number on a car license plate together with my uncle when they visited my aunty (same one who won second prize - very complicated). But she was too lazy to buy in the end. She was nonetheless happy.

In the short window of time my house phone was available, my cousin (the one with the maid) called to say that she’s getting a cab to send her maid to my house. Asked me to take down the taxi number so that we can go down and pick her.

My mum hurriedly took down the numbers to buy in the next 4-d!!

In other news, PSP is very difficult to play.

PSP

Just bought a PSP.



Increasingly more things in my room is white.

My Mac's white.

My keyboard's white.

My ipod's white.

Bought an ipod speaker cum radio that's white too recently.

Nothing

Have you ever had that feeling that NOTHING you do seem right? NOTHING.