23.9.05
new experiences.
went to work on wed. i'm quite amazed at how a hotel functions esp after working in one. i realised that it requires like very detailed planning and stuff. normally we dun see this other side, only the glam and glorious side. but now i understand how they manage to showcase such organisation, excellence and professionalism. it all boils down to detailed planning going on in the background. i entered the swissotel via the staff entrance beside the timberland shop in raffles city mall, and was greeted with some form of underground maze! there were sooo many routes jus zigzagging about and it was like some underground bustling city. u sign in at the security, make ur way to the fashion room where u jus tell them where u're working and they'll giv u the right uniform from that whole backlot of 1001 uniforms, then proceed to the locker room where you see people jus changing infront of their lockers, (think football movies?) then proceed to the 69th floor (the wonders.. and the view!) for work after navigating ur way to the right lift. (raffles the plaza and swissotel share the same underground passageways so it is quite a headache) after work u proceed back to the locker room to change out, return ur uniform back to the fashion room (ahh no need to wash urself) and go to the payroll room to collect ur cash using ur voucher issued by watever unit u were working for. systematic? yeah definitely so.
we actually had an early night cos all the guests left by 9 plus but after helping to pack up the rooms and return all the cutlery back to their original places, i still reached home at 11 plus. waitressing is very tiring leh. i never knew a tray of glasses could be so heavy. it was a buffet style cocktail party so we had to stand around with the tray carefully balanced on one arm for an extended period of time, (i purposely chose my left so that i'll train my weaker arm's muscle ;p) hence ur arm soon grows tired. then u feel very happy when u manage to offer someone a drink and they accept cos then u'll feel ur tray significantly lighter! yep, so thats so much for the experience. oh at least the colleagues are nice and fun. but i still prefer office jobs. more brain juice involved and more pay too =)
i watched sammi cheung's magic kitchen with my frens who stayed over last night. considering the fact that we din sleep the whole night until after we had breakfast this morning, i feel very awake and alert now. (enough to type this post at least!) it wasnt really a superb show but it was touching enough to get me tearing at parts. in total, we watched 2 movies (with ice cream -smiles and thanks sheryl for that- and chips.. mmm perfect), played table tennis (very useful to energise us when we were feeling sleepy) and..i can officially say that i've completed 16 rounds of majong before! a new milestone =) previously our record was 15 rounds, which was quite stupid cos it was one round short of completing the bei3 feng1. yeps so i had a great time catching up with my jc frens and colleagues-to-be who have been mugging very hard in nus. and i'm a very good fren k. knowing that they've been working so hard i treated them to a 4 course meal at -drumroll- my very own house! i cooked jap. (see what a clever choice, exquisite but ez to make ;p) assorted sushi (the express way: make ur own! u get to choose ur condiments too - kill 2 birds with 1 stone), cha soba, tempura and miso soup. mmm. i spent most of the time buying the ingredients tho. had to go down to the jap supermarket at lido. and then to the one at liang court cos the lido one ran out of unagi. and i had to have unagi. treat mus treat dao4 di3 mar. haha. hmmm and i think the reason why i spent so long was cos i was amused at all the special items they sell. afterall, it IS another form of shopping. yep, i am growing to like other forms of shopping. i used to only like shopping for furniture cos i've a fondness for furniture design. (yep anything to do with DESIGN, it gets my attention) then it was stationery. for all you know i might begin to like shopping for clothes even tho i once hated so. talk bout discovering the gal within me. haha.
i fluttered by;
10:20 PM
16.9.05
random rants regarding insignificant independent incidents `*
i like my title.
i think i have a very high tolerance level of pain. yesterday i hit my toe on the edge of a drawer. i gave a quick ouch, felt a little tingling and numbness and then it was over. i din even look at the cut twice. then i sat down at dinner with my feet on the chair (yep very unlady-like and undainty.. whatever) and soon realised tt my toe felt wet and i had stained the fabric of the chair. mum actually said 'aiyo why you so careless spill chilli on the chair'. which made me laugh and delayed my explanation. which made her continue rambling bout the chilli sauce. which made me laugh even more. i finally managed to say it was blood in between my bouts of laughter. funny thing how one small cut can cover my whole toe with blood. i was quite amused myself. maybe it was deep.
i baked brownies today. i think i'm super health conscious. (ok despite the fact that i was baking BROWNIES) i saw the instructions: 1/2 cup oil. and thought, ok. i'm only going to put 1/3 cup oil and abit more water to offset that. and.. i actually used olive oil, thinking it was healthier. i mean.. it IS. but my mum jus told me no one uses olive oil to bake anything. hmmm. maybe thats why my brownies taste a little wierd? or mayb its jus xin1 li3 zhou4 yong4. cos it din taste wierd to her b4 i told her that i used olive oil. oh nvm. at least the lucky ppl in my cell get to have brownies with vanilla ice cream and delicious mooncake as well during cell. yay. see its good that i'm lucky. (and nice) cos its rubs off on the ppl around me too!
spread the love, baby!
i fluttered by;
2:20 PM
15.9.05
i ACTUALLY quit my job.
this post is dedicated to berating my boss. (tho i know dedications are supposed to be positive) but i really need to do this. so that once i let it all out, work will be more bearable. eh no. i forgot. i've already quit my job.
i myself cant believe what guts i have. telling him like at the end of today that i'm not coming anymore. just like that. but then again, things have been jus building up waiting silently like steam in a kettle ready to throw the lid off anytime. i was going to quit sooner or later. but i din expect it to be so soon. now looking back, i realised that every day put up with my boss jus obliterates my confidence and morale, bit by bit. destroying the good thing the Lord's been building up in me over the years. its a good thing i quit.
i tell you. my boss is a slave driver. he calls you up when you are having lunch. he asks you to work OT last minute. he chases you to produce results in unreasonable time frames. and did i tell you he's an unmarried 30-smth year old man who works round the clock? (and i dun hav anything against unmarried 30 yr olds.. but i jus feel that he's the kind who jus cares bout money and thus the marital status) he keeps telling me that the ppl under him work until 2-3 am everyday, just to motivate me and prove that he's a big boss with great authority (he actually said that, and added that ppl go weak in their knees when he starts scolding). i pity all those working under him. he just reduces you to nothingness. and the thing was. he was getting to me. i know i shouldnt have let it but it jus did. i couldnt help it. he made it seem so true that sometimes i wondered if my brain was giving way. but then as i thought more about it, i realised he was usually contradicting himself. like saying i hav no initiative. and then when i take the initiative to ask him whether i should proceed with a task, (because he says everything has to go through him, he wants FULL CONTROL, right down to the fullstops and commas i put down in a draft) he asks me not to bother him with trivial stuff. oh n when i told him that i quit, he said that i always had a reason when i did something wrong. and hence inferred that ppl like me dun learn from mistakes and thus wun go far. n so i tried explaining that yes i did hav a reason for doing whatever i did at that pt of time and hence everytime he says i did smth wrong i would pt out the reason. but that doesnt mean i dun accept his correction! please, dun tell me he expects me to jus go yes yes yes. then he'd probably say that i jus blindly do work without thinking through the process. he can go earn his millions a month for all i care. (yep tts also what he told me, he earns millions) please, there's more to life than money, u know what i mean? i bet he doesnt. ok now i feel better. more capable of rational thought. hmmm i'm thinking whether this would constitute as slander. no i guess not. cos i'm very sure i'm quoting in context.
i fluttered by;
10:15 PM
14.9.05
i AM a lucky kid.
man u're right bout that. i AM a lucky kid. and soon i'm going to be a lucky and FAT kid.
dad keeps bringing back mooncakes almost every other day. either that, or ppl deliver them right to our doorstep. and no i'm not as lucky as to have a dad who buys or orders mooncakes every other day. its given by either his clients or business partners. yep but it still means i get to eat a hell lot of varieties of mooncakes!!
and now i'm going to list them down one by one so that u guys can water ur mouths off! hahahaha. no la, i'm more practical than that ;p ...err its so that next time i know where to get good mooncakes to give to people i think deserve them!! ahha... for all u know u might well be one of them so u'd better listen up. (ok hmm i still prefer the 1st reason)
now bringing you the nominees starting from the moooost delicious:
mini snow skin mooncake with mocha truffle filling from raffles hotel tel: 63388785 remarks: doesnt taste like mooncake cos its sooo special, this is heaven for choc lovers
flaky pastry mooncakes from eater palace at geylang road tel: 67415617, 67418893 remarks: yam redbean greenbean and white lotus fills, the yam one being especially nice even tho i dun really like yam but its soooo gd i think i grew to like yam!!
mini snow skin pandan mooncake with macadamia nuts from raffles hotel sze chuan court
snow skin mooncake with d24 durian filling from goodwood hotel remarks: durian lovers this is for you, the durian actually still tastes bitter and its like eating durian right out of the shell!
assortment of TRADITIONAL mooncakes from peach garden chinese restaurant tel: 62543383 (novena gardens outlet) remarks: oooh the macadamia nut white lotus paste filling one is supa good
4-in-1 mini mooncakes from harbour city restaurant at alexandra road tel: 62733966 remarks: filled with macadamia, walnut and all the nutty goodness
assortment of TRADITIONAL mooncakes from tae ming confectionery tel: 07 3553635 remarks: havent tried, cant eat so many mooncakes at a go! it may go up the list next time.
[newest addition!!] assortment of TRADITIONAL mooncakes from ritz carlton tel: 62352498 remarks: havent tried too. i think this has got to be given away. we have too many mooncakes. oooh but the thought of it being from ritz.. oh well. the receiver will be soo sooo happy too.
wow that sounds like alot of mooncake. i AM a lucky and FAT kid already.
oh as for my bro. dad was teasing him saying that now that he's got exams and its the 1st time he's REALLY studying, he seems to have more pimples. bro replied, 'no actually i think its the mooncakes' hahahaha i laughed like xiao. cos i think that may be more than true.
i fluttered by;
9:33 PM
12.9.05
i resolve to treat my mum nicer.
yes. and i hope i keep by my resolve.
i dun hav to treat my dad nicer. cos i already do. ok mayb i can treat him a BIT nicer, but yeah u get the point. my dad's the best dad in the world. he understands me. i can communicate with him. he reasons well. he lets me do whatever i want as long as its reasonable. and i tell him what i'm doing. we laugh and do things together.
my mum on the other hand is abit tricky. sometimes she's very nice. but those are rare occasions. she nags alot and i know that its cos shes concerned about me. which is very nice of her but the reason why i still cant stand it is cos i feel its misplaced concern. like when she nags at me day and night cos i bathe late. the convo always goes the same way:
"why u always bathe so late?!"
"ok ok i'm gg to bathe soon"
"yar but thats still late, why cant you bathe earlier?!"
"cos i've got stuff to do (which might not be entirely true) but anw why cant i bathe at this time? its not say very late what"
"its late! and u're going to get a headache again!!"
"but i told u my headaches not due to bathing late"
"but it is! when you bathe late and your hair is wet you'll get a headache!! (what kind of link is that?!)"
"no but i dun wash my hair when its very late and anw i blow dry before i sleep if i do!"
but she'll continue on her stand and sometimes her arguments dun even link or make sense. until we'll jus stomp off in opposite directions, both very upset. it happens so often i dun even know why i'm not numbed by it all. but i'm just not. my heart seems to have the capacity to keep getting hurt all over and over again. i think i must have a very big heart.
so anw i started reflecting and guess what. i decided that i should just comply to some of her requests even if i dun believe in the bathe late = headache theory etc. that would make her really happy and i would get less naggings. win-win situation? hopefully. unless she de2 chun4 jing4 chi3 and like ask me to sleep at 10pm etc (oh btw she does still ask me to do that on some of her quirky nights).
yep now everyone must think i'm a goody goody gal but actually i'm super rebellious (or at least thats what my mum says i am). nonetheless this conclusion still came about because i realised how blessed i am. my mum's actually really good to me. it was pouring today (the kind where even the bus stop shelter seems useless in keeping out the rain) and alot of ppl, including me, were huddled at the bus stop. waited for so long for the rain to get less heavy but it didnt so many jus dashed out n ran all the way home. no doubt they'll be soaked to the skin. i was contemplating walking in the rain but then i concluded i shldnt and my mum said she could come n get me. in fact in the car back she told me when she saw it was raining she wanted to go to the driving centre to pick me up, but i was already at the bus stop. awwww. so thoughtful.
and after much thorough reminiscence, i realised this is not a one-off occasion. yep thats the best part. my mum has been doing things for me, buying stuff for me (not as in things i ask her to buy, but things i mention and which seem insignificant, but she takes notice and sometimes surprises me with her buy), all these of which i take forgranted.
oh dear, i really must treat my mum nicer.
i fluttered by;
9:32 PM
10.9.05
weddings.
phew.. yesterday i jus attended yet another wedding. my cousin's. mum's side this time. somehow close friends and family choose the same year and almost the same month to get married, such that i've been to 3 weddings in less than 2 mnths.
my cousin's (now) husband is very funny, i jus realised. he came back to the brides house with the roast pig and bridal gifts, and was asked to say smth while he passed the stuff to his mother n father-in-law. caught in a fix he confidently said, "mum and dad.. i present to you this roast pig in exchange for your daughter." hahahahaha.. oh and he did the funny thing of looking back with deadly eyes at the crowd when the pastor said the "if anyone knows why this couple should not get married please raise your hand or forever hold your peace" part. plus the "phew, finally all's well" action after the whole procedure. see similarities.. anyone?
i created a new word. tjow-ish. anything funny is tjow-ish. or actually, anyone funny is tjow-ish. yeah so my cousin is tjow-ish. josh says that sounds like a tribal group.
oh tjow u had it so lucky man. guess what the husband-to-be and bashing door party had to do? there were 8 tasks:
Dance macarena
Sing a song
Shave their armpit hair (!!!)
Swim one lap in the pool (groom exempted... but still!!)
Eat one ang ku kuey filled with wasabi
Eat fish (the groom hates fish)
Drink some bitter tasting concortion
Iron one of the bride's blouse
okay now back to tjow's wedding as promised. tjow actually had the key to claudia's hse!! what..?! yes.. they were all banging on the door after merely completing 2 tasks, and we were all bewildered when the door jus swung open. ok but he still had to sing a love song to claudia and REALLY propose to her because those were claudia's requests. goodness.. tjow how could you NOT have proposed to claudia?! that milestone is as important as sugar in coffee. though of course some ppl prefer theirs bitter. but you know what i mean.
after the tea ceremony and all we went back to st andrew's village. to get geared up for the big event. we had been practising for worship for tjow's wedding for 2 weeks till this point. practice had been really fun with mok and his funny antiques and singing methods, plus corn and his trying out of various fillers and endings, of which some were REALLY cheezy. but now was the REAL thing. in restrospect, i think we did do quite well. and i really liked playing the piano in a team (albeit my amateurish playing skills), especially since its for worship, for God's glory. how i wish i was baptised and can use my hands to worship God every single week. i probably wouldnt be as amateurish at accompaniment as i am now too.
did i mention that claud looked very gorgeous in her gown? (flowy, lacy and all things pretty) looks like all women look the most radiant on their wedding day. felt like giving her a very very big hug but i was afraid i would destroy smth. haha.
all these weddings are making me think, feel and dream. visualising right down to the very minute details like the flowers i would use. and then i would get goosebumps cos i would suddenly realise i dun even know who would be standing beside me. so i would force myself to stop. leave that till when you know it would materialise, you know?
ps. debs i will always be there for u.
i fluttered by;
10:49 PM
4.9.05
updates, and the BIG EVENT.
i realised i havent posted for quite some time.. 2 wks to be precise. phew, going to take a deep breath before i start rambling. i'm on quite a high now somemore, so stop me if i get boring. (oh theres always the other option of pressing the small little cross on the top right hand corner of ur window ;p)
i had to decide between monash university and university of melbourne by the 19th. all along i had my mind set on getting into university of melbourne and when they replied positive i was elated. but after that feeling subsided indecisiveness took over. there were many things that i was considering. monash was a 5 yr course compared to 6 yrs at umelb. this was cos umelb had a compulsory extra degree (BMedSci) incorporated into the syllabus. at most other med schools, this is optional. 6 yrs!! 6 long yrs.. 1 more long lonely yr in australia. on the other hand, umelb was supposedly more prestigeous and of course one would wanna choose the better university. their training is probably better and that matters. so i went to consult my dad's friend who is a doctor. he was very helpful and helped me ask around. he then got back to me saying that all his doc friends agree that monash is better.. i was super duper shocked!! now thats 2 plus points for monash and none for melb except for the fact that they are a bigger university (which means more local friends) and their campus is right smack in the heart of the city (which means theres less emphasis on rural medicine; their syllabus is probably more similar to singapore's). ok anw so that was the main force that propelled me to choose monash over umelb. despite knowing now that opinions on which uni is better vary due to the simple fact that there isnt an official ranking for the med schs in australia, i still think i made the right choice. dun think i wan to study an extra yr for a degree that isnt necessary. bro would be into his 2nd yr of uni then too. -considers expenses and shakes head- haha actually i'm not so dong3 shi4 la. but yeah its just another push factor. -gasps for air-
i stopped schooling at smu. again, many reasons involved. basically i felt that i wasnt going to learn much.. (at least not my 3k worth of sch fees!) ..contrary to what i intended to do. i wanted to get the most out of the 4.5 mnths, to 'experience life to the fullest' if i were to phrase it idealistically. but the feeling sank in on the 2nd day of sch. wanted to stay back for a public speaking workshop but all my friends werent going so i 'happily' went home. i was too slack. another evidence was that even in the 1st wk when everyone started attempting to mug.. (yeah now u noe smu is not that different afterall) ..i was just attending lessons and hardly bothering to take notes (notice the word hardly bothering.. i actually did take.. which was probably better than half the class who had nothing in front of them at all). but still. i figured i could make better use of the money. so much for knowledge being priceless. -inhales, exhales, inhales-
i started work immediately the sunday i quit school. (and i quit on fri so there was no lag time at all.. its really frustrating when employers take eons to get back to you) i'm very sure this job requires a professional degree man. all the company background and procedings that i have to learn, as well as business generic terms and what they encompass!! ask any pre-undergrad and i bet u they wun noe whats an escrow agreement! i have the whole office to myself tho (which is very much a luxury cos its big and theres a couch), but that means solid independent work is expected. and seriously i dun mind the stress (ahh cos once again i'm learning) but i cant stand it when the boss is especially snappy and rude. i hope its jus this incubation period cos i'm still not familiar with the procedings and he fails to realise that i'm new and def wun be able to perform to the standard of the person b4 me, who has probably worked many months already.
i shall give it time. b4 i next think about switching jobs. oh and i think.. i just worked myself to a low. shall update bout tjow's wedding tmr =)
i fluttered by;
10:17 PM