Fate and the elusive rubbish bin

The first question that popped into my mind was, "how on earth do the japanese keep their streets so clean with no bin in sight?!" I mean seriously, if after walking for over 200 meters and there's still no bin in sight, that piece of trash would likely already be on the floor by then. But the streets were so absolutely spotless that I would feel insanely guilty if I threw my gum wrapper on the street.

I honestly wonder how they do it. The fabric seats are so spotlessly clean on the public trains that you want to lean your face against the seat and caress the fabric. Even the supposedly stale heated air smells good...

Oh and by the way, the 6 degree of separation rule? It's NOT a rule.. its a LAW~!!! And 6 degrees is way too much... I think 3 should jolly fit the key, some one seriously needs to relook the total number of degrees.

Tell me, how do you go about looking for a friend in the vast city of Tokyo without his contact number, email and when he doesn't respond to facebook messages? Honestly, it's probably easier to just try NOT to meet up.

But ah hah! Here FATE plays a major role. It's incredible and entirely unbelievable even, but as luck may have it, my hubby's Japanese counterpart knows this friend of mine personally~!! Over breakfast at the hotel lobbey, the Japanese lady Yumiko mentioned that she was going to visit a Singapore scholar from a Singapore Uni who is studying at the university. I drew the connection but of course, we are talking like 1 person out of the entire Singapore population of 4.4 million who is a student who happens to study at that same university as my friend. I mean honestly, what are the chances that she knows him right? Probably next to zilch and nada. Still, just trying my luck, I asked if the student happened to be <>.

And guess what? It was~! We all got so excited that we almost all jumped up to hug each other. But in the end, Yumiko san passed the message and we all got to meet up. My friend then told me that he intended to meet Yumiko only in the afternoon of the day I was leaving so if Yumiko did not have breakfast with me that day and if my friend decided not to meet her earlier, we would all not have known that everyone knew everyone and we wouldn't have been able to meet.

And then, dear hubby went on to visit a place. As luck would have it, the no. 2 of that place was my hubby's primary school and secondary school senior. Yikes! We seem to be meeting up with fellow Singaporeans more than we do in Singapore~!

Somehow this year, I feel like celebrating Christmas

Yes, amazing as it sounds, this person who simply hates to celebrate anything has finally been bitten by the Celebration bug. I think it probably comes with the baby...

Ever since Wally arrived in my life, somehow every single day I am itching to find something to celebrate.. whether it's his first Halloween, first bite of solids, or even the first time he is wearing a new romper! Somehow I wish that Wally was there to celebrate my wedding for me even... If he had been born before I got married, Wally would have been there to see Daddy and Mommy put their signatures down and become lawfully wedded people.

This has got me thinking that maybe I should go and take wedding pictures again. This time with Wally in them. And if sometime later I had another kid, it would be yet another excuse to go take wedding pictures with BOTH of them too~! Haha~ That would be fun wouldn't it? I've already bought Wallace his very first tuxedo.. AH! yet another thing to celebrate.

Soon, Wally will be able to celebrate my 2nd wedding anniversary with me and also our very first Christmas together. I dunno why but really I really really want to celebrate christmas with my dear little boy together with the darling hubby wubby... What present should I buy for Wally?

Fell in love with a Prada

Yes yes, call me a faithless bitch, but I've actually fallen in love with a bag from Prada for once... Made of soft buck/deer skin, it's part of the latest SS 09 collection and has that fantastic gradient treatment.

I missed out the gorgeous LV Mirage the last round, what with it being limited edition and all, so I am in total anguish at the second chance at this great piece from Prada. Unfortunately the price in S'pore is not so nice... Priced at S$3120, I am thinking whether I should just give up and go. Another thing is, I am such a careless person, I will probably soil and spoil the buck leather within weeks of acquisition.

However, I have just gone onto the official Prada website and it appears that its a lot cheaper when purchased online and delivered to the UK where the Godma of my son resides. Am seriously considering whether I should ask her to help me buy and then get one of our returning friends to bring it over for me. Its GBP950 which makes it about S$2250 at the current exchange rate.

How ah? Should I buy it?

Time heals everything... fate is a wonderous thing

I have to agree sometimes fate is a weird thing.

Once upon a time, I gazed on photos of someone else with tears of sadness that get swallowed back down into the depths of my heart. Yet years later, I can look at the very same photo and smile knowing that the person who was once so important may have already become a stranger, but yet i remain content knowing that he/she is happy with what they have in their life.

AY said that she must stop being jealous. But as ES said to me, human emotions such as desire, passion and jealousy are innate in all of us. As long as these emotions remain part of human nature, we will never be rid of them.

I look at Wallace and wonder at the miracle of life sometimes. How is it that this Little Boy out of the million of other little souls queuing up in heaven came to me? And I think again about the other hundreds of unwanted babies that are aborted or miscarried and wonder again about fatedness.

Time erases the tides of pain. People always say that time heals all wounds... I cannot agree more... so if any one is hurting out there, be content knowing that one day all will be well and cherish all that you hold now and that will come in time...

It's been 2 years at the Clan!

Wow... It's been 2 years... 2 short but eventful years at the clan... I got married, my desk got shifted, I got pregnant, I got a kid, I got small bonuses along the 3way, underwent a handful of training courses and I am now on maternity leave.

It seems just yesterday that I first stepped in and sat down at my desk.. yet at the beginning of this month, I was already training an intern to take my place and cover me while I am gone. The intern tells me that he may have to leave even earlier. hey that reminds me!! I should attend the online courses everyday! There are now a myriad of online courses available on my company website/intranet... wahah! At last! Some semblence of meaning and goals in my life.

I am starting to want to go back to something meaningful that can occupy my entire morning and afternoon other than staring at the black box known as the TV. Maybe I should go back to work earlier... Arghh... I never truly understood the pains of being a stay at home mom...

If there's anything I have discovered about myself during this one month, is that I don't like to stay at home and I definitely dislike lying in bed unless its with the man in my life undressed.. wahahah! whoo hoo!

Damn, my heart is straying to the secular world again... new life, new journey... ARGHHHH I miss my old life! Hahaha!!!!!

CATS - not quite what I expected

I must admit, what with all the rave reviews and high praises, I was expecting a production that was vibrant, full of colour, bright, cheerful, exciting and with a fascinating set that changed with each song.

To sum it up, I was probably expecting a feline version of "Chang and Eng". Needless to say, I was therefore very disappointed.

Firstly, I found the very start of the musical a complete turn off. The music was too loud, the lights too flashy and yet were able to completely mask and obscure the stage in darkness and shadow. I found myself squinting very hard against the dim lighting on stage while the cats came in to prance around and dance. I am not sure if the performers are aware, but when the lights are turned down suddenly, people tend to need at approx 5 mins for their eyes to adjust to the darkness.... the floodlights in the eyes of the audience definitely did not help the temporal night blindness.

It was all highly interactive with the cats dancing on the parapets and coming up close and personal with the audience (I was after all in the Cat A foyer stalls so I did get a rather good view). However, I had at the very least expected some semblence of a story line, considering that Andrew Lloyd Webber wrote such a fantastic musical for Phantom of the Opera.

Unfortunately, CATS can basically be summarised into one sentence: A bunch of cats hoping to be the chosen one.

In between, every one was just taking turns to sing and dance as a way of introducing themselves. Of course, as expected, the underdog or undercat in this case, always wins... thus poor ugly, unwanted and abused Grisabella gets to be chosen... so what's new right?

Unlike 'Chang and Eng' which was presented with many smooth transitions from one scene to another, with a great many touching and tear wrenching moment, not to mention the unforgettable "Mai Pen Rai"... the only thing that came close to being a little bit moving was when Grisabella sang "Memory"...

The thing was, having heard the voice of someone like Susan Boyle.... the performer who played Grisabella was a poor excuse for a singer.... I bet Susan Boyle would have done a much better job playing the said role. This singer had too weak a voice which could hardly stir the emotions, plaintive as she may have tried to sound. I don't know the name of this lady, but she's definitely no Elaine Paige.

To be fair, I did read about CATS online before I decided to attend this evening's performance. I knew from the start not to expect much of a story line and I definitely understood that the story (or rather the lack of) surrounded a bunch of self-important cats hoping to be chosen to be reborn into the Heavyside Layer for a better life.

My question however is, if the Heavyside Layer was so fantastic, why doesn't old Deutronomy go himself instead of choosing someone every year to go? Also, the story doesn't tell us if any of those who previously went did come back to reveal what those wonders in the Heavyside Layer were.

I dunno, but the word "reborn" makes me a little bit skeptical. This Heavyside Layer sounds more like a hell to me than any heavenly wonder.... I bet the Heavyside Layer is probably in fact some Cat slaughter house which explains why no one ever came back to talk about it... Something like "The Island" or the "Pig's Heaven" in Charlotte's Web.

Anyway, if you are someone who just wants to sit in the theatre and not think of anything but just sit down and watch a bunch of humans pretending to be mostly faceless/nameless cats to entertain you with forgettable song after forgettable song and with hardly any conversation in between, then CATS is definitely for you.

Else, if you are like me who needs a story line to captivate you with some intelligent dialog, moving scenery and clear distinctions between the actors punctuated with some unforgettable classic songs, then I suggest to give CATS a miss.

Such a long time since I last blogged

Ah, such a long time since I last blogged.

Not really blogging about anything in particular today other than maybe erm... Citibank shares? Wahaha.

Yes, I must say I succumbed and bought into the share fever especially when the Citibank shares hit that all time low of less than USD1. I wish I had more cash on hand to buy more though... Now that prices are about USD3, I could have made 3 times the amount of cash to buy my coveted LV pieces... Unfortunately, with a baby boy on the way, I'm afraid the LV niceties have gotta make way for the more important nappies.

Well, having hitched on the bandwagon somewhat late, I guess the only way now is to wait. Colleagues at the Clan indicate that we should all wait for the Q1 profit and loss results to be out. If its bad, buy more shares... if its great, time to sell sell sell...

Hopefully my Citibank shares can sell for a good price... I wanna get a new house... wahaha!!!

I think I must be kinda nuts... hit by a mega Barbie doll/The Sims fever. I've simply had too much fun running around getting the right stuff to decorate the new place but now that its done, I've started to feel bored again.

I realise that staying at home is probably not the thing for me. Much as I love to do nothing and have cash keep rolling in everyday, I honestly find it rather boring to be stuck at home and doing nothing constructive.

It might be a good idea to entertain myself by starting an online business the way AH has done. Unfortunately I am just lazy... Haha!

Recently, I have been thinking about Edinburgh quite a bit. I wonder whether the flowers along Princes have opened again? Or is it still too chilly, I wonder? Sigh, honestly I would very much like to bring a lappy, grab my Gucci and head out to the airport with my passport wrapped in LV. Then, I would get a ticket to go.. I dunno anywhere would be fine... maybe Hong Kong? Doesn't have to be far... but again with bb on the way, DH just doesn't think flying should be my thing.

I haven't visited Italy yet.. I think Milan and maybe Sicily would be nice in Summer. Another cuppa in Laduree in Paris would also be a good fix.... The closest thing I''ve had to that was breakfast at Delifrance on my birthday... wahaha.. somehow that felt very nice.

Ah... miss NC who is currently in Taiwan... I guess she should be headed back to Scots soon... Hmmm the Damier Neverfull is hitting the UK soon... damn... maybe I should ask LT to help me buy and i pay him back.. it should make a fantastic baby diaper bag... LOL

I feel really really down...

I have to admit it.. I am feeling really really down...

I mean, its not like I don't like my job or that I've got nothing to do or whatever.. it's just a feeling of despair... boredom... and a craving to get out and go on a nice long leave.

Honestly, I don't have to travel to Milan or Paris to go shopping... I just want to get out of Singapore... its terrible the way things are now since its just absolute boredom that attempts to drown me.

It's not that my job isn't challenging but I feel that my life has come to a point whereby I just want to go for a nice long holiday by myself and do nothing but laze in a nice cafe having breakfast, maybe enjoy the fresh morning air and then spend the afternoon at some Parisian style cafe sipping chamomile tea and eating a lemon slice or something.

Even shopping bores me! Can you believe it? I actually find myself not enjoying the spoils of my purchases the way I used to. Maybe its cos' I am using my own money.. maybe it's cos my hubby stopped buying me christmas, birthday and valentine's gifts? Whatever it is, I find myself spending money like water but yet derive little satisfaction from it.

I know its just me. I am not exactly burned out, but I lost motivation and drive somewhere along the way again. I find myself lying awake at night unable to sleep, but also find myself unable to wake in the morning.

I sometimes feel like crying and also like laughing out loud. I find myself shedding tears of depression, but also tears of jubilance. Maybe I am going nuts by going in circles trying to find something that will make me not so bored, but ultimately not succeeding other than to continually bore myself with trying to find ways not to be so bored.

Then again, I think I have found my answer. I hate long drawn out processes because yes, they bore me to death. I hate having to have a single letter vetted by 10 pairs of eyes. I hate having to wait for 9 months before my baby comes out. I dread the prospect of having to stay in Singapore for the next 10 years until my baby grows old enough to understand the world and what it potentially holds. I dread the next 3 months while I wait for baby to grow. I repel the idea of having to stay in Singapore for the next 3 months and not being able to go away for a nice long holiday in Korea or Japan or wherever.

I just hate it. So damn hate it. I want to be able to take leave and fly away for a full month and go appreciate the shopping culture of Milan, bask in the warm subshine of Sicily and maybe spend a week in rainy Scotland visiting my son's Godma.

Oh yes, and I hate the prospect of having to save every single cent and scrimp for my son's education and well-being... I'd honestly rather be saving Singapore's economy by splurging on some branded luxury that I probably don't need.

Arghh I hate this life.. so utterly utterly boring... somebody just kill me... before this drawn out process does

非常讨厌的工人

他妈的，真让我想破口大骂。没看过这么烂的女佣，真让我心寒。

我终于明白我的家婆为设么不要帮我看我的小孩。原来，她一直都以为我没有尊重他的意见，跟工人已经讲好了。 而我却以为他一直没有把我当媳妇看，不重视我未出生的小孩， 不把我的小孩当孙子。

原来都是这个可恨的女佣搞的鬼。 这个烂女佣还跟我家婆说，等我生了，小孩就给女佣看，女佣也并搬到我的新家和我们一起住。我家婆也就生气了，觉得我这个媳妇不会做人，没有请他老人家驱住，反而叫女佣去。

我真的是又气又恼。 首先，我到底有没有搬去我新家住还是一个大问题。第二，这个女佣好吃懒做， 凡事粗心大意 错了就拼命为自己找借口，讲她多几句她又会顶嘴。 这种女佣，我哪里会想要请啊？

上个星期六，我的新家开了过年派对，这个烂女佣竟然指折我，说我浪费钱，一直用纸巾来擦干碗碟，我应该买多些桌布， 让他们这些女佣比较方便。我那晚的脚特别的酸痛，女佣的这句话跟让我发了脾气。

“谁说我没有桌布？你有没有问过我？谁叫你用纸巾来擦干碗碟？ 你觉得我先千多吗？请你别assume!” 说着，我转身就走。

在眼角中，我看见其他的女佣投在暗暗的笑。 我也懒得去管， 因为几个月前女佣没把妈妈家的地板擦干， 害我摔了的事， 我还放在心上。我并没有原谅他，因为当我问他为设么不擦干一点， 女佣既然怪我说地板一定会湿， 干吗没有看清楚就踏进来。

这种女佣，你说，我还会邀请他看我的小孩吗？

I got myself a Gucci... wahaha!!!

Yes, go ahead... accuse me of wasting my moolahs while the economy is taking a severe beating... Hey.. someone's gotta do it... if everyone stops the C, the GDP outout goes kaput! I am doing my country's economy a favour!

Anyway, went shopping today for something from the Coach Amanda series in purple... but I left Orchard Road with a Gucci instead..

Too bad, the thing about Coach is always that their more popular items will always get sold out really quick... (thank goodness I bought my limited edition pink one early!) needless to say, with all that rich jewelled tones, the Amanda collection was long gone already!

Being the LV lover that I am, I still had to make my pilgrimage to the holy Mecca of Parisian handbags - LV... Haha, I know that I am definitely not going to get myself an0ther LV... i think I am starting to recognise the folly of my ways because that doggone Passy in Ivoire Epi costs 3 times as much as the Gucci I just bought.

Still, I just had to pop in to take a look at the amazing array of candy colours that the Alma now comes in for the Vernis leather. Frankly, after seeing the real thing I am not that enamoured anymore... Amazing... I hail this day that the Alma in Amarante Vernis no longer moves my heart.

Anyway, after having trawled all the hallowed halls of LV, Chanel, Dior and Fendi (I almost took out my credit card for a Celine by the way... gorgeous colour that yellow) I decided to take a final look at Gucci before I walked out to TANGS.

I was almost ready to walk out of the store already when the nice SA Emily took out the bag. It was greyish brown GG plus canvas with white leather straps handstitched to the bag's main body. Big and roomy, it was almost the size of the largest LV Neverfull but comes with a zip which I like.

Took the bag to use today like 2 hours after I bought it and I love it.. hehe! Waterproof because of the GG plus canvas which has been treated and yet secure enough with a zip... dumped my umbrella, drink container, cosmetics blah blah but still got lots of room.

Hehe, love it!