If the title sounds/reads familiar, translate it to Hokkien and you'll get it.

The aunt took to the Hokkien saying quite literally this morning. I was making luncheon meat sandwich toast this morning and as i was spreading the luncheon meat on the bread on the toaster, i saw cockroach feelers peeping out from underneath the metal plate. I was shocked when i saw those feelers coz there was barely any opening for the roach to crawl in in the first place. Granted that the metal plate was not fitted in tightly, i couldn't for the life of me figured how to roach crawled in. Anyway, i shrieked when i saw the feelers and grabbed my bread slices off the metal plate lest the feelers contaminated my food.

I called out to my aunt and she told me that it was ok and i should just continue with making the toasts coz there was no way the roach could have crawled out. She took the toaster and hit it by the sides, trying to get the stupid roach to come out but it didn't. She placed the toaster back on the kitchen top and told me to continue. Which i did. Well we forgot this one step of heating the toaster up to force the roach out or even kill it with the intense heat before i started to toast the bread proper, coz the feelers came out from the other side of underneath the metal plate again as i was spreading the luncheon meat on the other bread slice. I shrieked and asked the aunt again that it was indeed safe to use the toaster and she gave the affirmation.

So i completed the spreading, pressed down the toaster and switched on the electricity. About a minute through, i saw the damn feelers again and this time from the back. I screamed for the aunt again and she switched off the electricity and hit the toaster again. This time, the roach crawled out and she caught it as it was crawled onto the kitchen wall. I asked her if it is still safe for me to eat the toasts since the roach crawled out from underneath the metal plate and might have contaminated the toasts. She said it wasn't possible since we hadn't used insecticide on it. Well, being the gullible one that i am, i continued on and ate the toasts. That it didn't taste as good, attributable to either the brand of the luncheon meat or the roach, i did not know. All i knew was that i needed to down the toasts coz i was to have a long day ahead which ended in naught coz i was chased home for being still so sick.

So yeah that was the story of la1 sap4 jia3, la1 sap4 dua3 :p

Date:	2013-05-06 20:44
Subject:	The first (or amongst the first) to know
Security:	Public
Mood:	grateful

I may not have a wide circle of friends but i am heartened that the few whom i know felt that i am a good-enough friend (to them) to be let in on their big news: one with a wedding (or a ROM to be precise) to come and another with a third BB along the way. And yes, they have since 'announced' it publicly now but to be in the loop of first-hand news back then really gave me a warm feeling through and through (:

Date:	2013-04-07 15:41
Subject:	And so the typical Sunday ritual goes
Security:	Public
Mood:	lazy

I have dinner (food) at tea time and yes i am done with dinner for Sunday already.

(Time check: 3.41pm)

CNY 2013 came and gone and boy am i glad that it is over. The pre leading up saw me busy with work and somehow being tired and puffy-eyed almost every single day despite sleeping and waking around the same time. Then there were the massive spring-cleaning that spanned across four Saturdays and knowing me as you do, i absolutely LOATHED spring-cleaning to the max; it doesn't help that i'm a hoarder and the custom-built furniture meant that it's home to pests (namely ants and roaches) which meant that it's hell to clean and clear up. Have i mentioned how much i hate roaches? And that i got multiple ant bites all over my legs which itched like crazy and leaves awful looking scars?

CNY itself was pretty nondescript. As usual. Nothing out of the ordinary and as usual, nobody asked me that one question which i believe (and hope and pray) that will never be asked. I also spent the time getting on a K-drama marathon of Rooftop Prince which i know i'm slow to but then again, i was never into Yoo Chun (i think he looks kinda ahjussi even though he is younger than me) so i started watching it coz i needed a distraction and something to entertain me on the second day.

I think i almost caught a tum bug on the third day which was spent on the drama marathon after getting outta the house to get myself a muffin and a cuppa bright early in the morning. Which was why i was so surprised that i woke up feeling pretty ok on Wednesday to get to work. Not that i was looking forward to it coz i had some damn awful Wednesday blues that morning but at least i didn't feel lethargic nor do i have a pair of goldfish eyes on my face (something that had been plaguing me for the two weeks leading up to CNY).

Work was pretty blah this week but then again, i kept a low profile and didn't go antagonise the boss or stir up trouble (aka more work) for myself. I just want the work week to be over fast so that i can rest again over the weekend. Oh but the highlight of the CNY or the start of the work week in the year of the Snake has gotta be shaking hands with one of the more prominent figures in the jud.icary. It's nobody based in the building i work in but one whom i find to be down-to-earth and a decent fellow amongst the field of eagles. Cheap thrill i know but hey at least that made my day, or at least some.

Date:	2012-12-31 21:49
Subject:	Sometimes, you really can't have your cake and eat it too
Security:	Public
Mood:	content

2012 has been a tumultuous year, full of ups and downs and more downs than up, which make me glad that we are at the tail end of it with the new year in sight.

Somehow, the Chinese saying "有得必有失" came to mind all of a sudden just like that. Not that i don't find it relevant or applicable to whatever had transpired over the year but i guess it is something that happens every year (and no, i ain't being pessimistic but merely being truthful, the way i am and can be). Just like how i titled this post with what i firmly believe in. Well, at least i don't mean for that to happen *all* the time which would be downright negative :p

Anyhooz, this is my last post for 2012. Have a splendid time counting down tonight (the weather's holding so it's all good isn't it) and as usual,

MAY 2013 BE A BLAST AND A BETTER YEAR FOR YOU!!!

Date:	2012-12-29 00:01
Subject:	Moving on: Resolutions 2013
Security:	Public
Mood:	okay

Until i get in the mood to review my achievements (or non-achievements) of my 2012 resolutions, here's a short and sweet one for 2013.

- Eat healthy (with the occasional indulgences once in awhile permitted) and be happy.
- Don't sweat the small stuff i.e. getting mad is fine but get over it soon too.
- Be thankful of the loved ones and friends who stick around i.e never tak them for granted, ever.

Ok they sound quite similarto my 2012's innit?

Before i hit 32, i told myself that i had better document that hilarious visit into the Horror Maze at Everland in Seoul.

Seoul was sorta an impulse trip for me. Having seen the piccas of ST in S.Korea earlier this year stirred up a keen wanderlust and when RTLS and YC told me that they were planning a trip there, i kinda 'invited' myself along and asked if i could go with them. Fortunately, my dear friends were accomodating enough and let me joined them and so it was a solo flight to and fro, with me meeting up with the two and part of her family (who were there for a family photoshoot) in the middle of their trip.

Everland was one of the days where all of us spent together. The three of us reached Everland first while her family joined us later. I took the roller coaster for the first time in 4 years (i think) with my last adventurous ride on one at Tokyo Disneyland. I must say that i didn't spend the ticket-worth there that day and the visit into Horror Maze came at an additional fee too. However, i surprised myself and RTLS by suggesting to go in and so the three of us paid for the ticket and waited for our turn to enter.

We were to enter the haunted maze/house in our own group and i being the scaredy cat (ironic i know, since i wanted to go in in the first place) told them that i wanted to be in the middle, with YC taking the lead and RTLS behind me. So i was holding on to YC's top and holding RTLS' hand as we ventured in the narrow-path maze.

The maze was all to be expected, with human actors masked as ghouls, vampires, mummies and dead carcasses chasing after us. We were running and screaming and laughing all at the same time through the maze (it wasn't a maze maze per se but a single route to the exit to be accurate) as those scaries were chasing us and coz it was so narrow, we bumped into things and at one point, RTLS fell and as she pulled me down, i dragged YC down as well and one of his shoe fell off. RTLS got jabbed by one of those poles that hold a hospital drip and as YC grabbed his shoe (without putting it back on) and pulled us all up, RTLS was in much pain, except that we didn't know it. We continued running through the maze and RTLS starting crying 'hajima hajima' and 'stop stop' alternately and since both YC and i had no idea what 'hajima' meant and we thought that she was asking the scaries to stop chasing after us, we continued on running and i dragging her along.

We literally ran through the maze (ok i know you know we ran through the maze as i have mentioned countless times already) with the scaries chasing us throughout and Rei crying out relentlessly. The last part of the maze was this corridor of doors and as we ran past it at top speed, the doors opened with the scaries in the room wanting to scare us. Except that we ran too fast for the scaries to open the doors and there were too slow to scare us coz we had ran past them and made it for the exit. By the time we burst out of the exit, we were literally bent over laughing out loud and those people who were waiting in the queue to enter the maze were staring at us, wondering what the hell is wrong with us coz we were all ROTFLOSO.

That done, as we collected ourselves, reality set in. RTLS scolded us for not stopping and YC and I defended ourselves coz we had no idea what 'hajima' meant and that she meant for us to stop running (as opposed to the scaries chasing after us). YC also tore his fabric shoe and was limping all the way back coz it was difficult to wear a shoe that was torn off.

That, was the highlight of the day and probably the trip. 真是一生难忘哈哈

Date:	2012-12-11 00:00
Subject:	As i progress to the second year of my 30s
Security:	Public
Mood:	pensive

I realised that growing older doesn't make me mellower. It has just taught me to control my temper better compared to when i was younger and i've also learnt not to take BS from people which will 'shortchange' myself.

As sad as it, people do change and friends do come and go. Even those whom you are close to previously may end up moving out from your circle of friends; which is why i treasure those who are still in even more.

And at times like this, i wish i wasn't such a typical Capricorn.

I trapped an ant with water and observed how it struggled in the attempt to crawl out of the puddle which it couldn't do so without 'dragging' the water along with its body and eventually to its death, probably from a combination of exhaustion and drowned.

[ETA]: Oh no wait. The ant was merely resting to reserve its energy while waiting for the water to dry up so that it can move again. Great survival tactics!

Thoroughly ENRAGED.

I haven't been this angry in yonks.

Date:	2012-11-02 22:54
Subject:	A dazed and confused moment
Security:	Public
Mood:	amused

Perhaps a confused moment to be more accurate.

What happened was that i hopped on the train towards home coz i was headed for my facial at HV. I went through the motions i.e. my usual route to the MRT station, past the gantry, escalator on the extreme right down and turn left to the platform. The train arrived just as i got down the escalator and so i got on without a second thought.

I stood by the connector and was just stoning and minding my own business when it was going towards OP that i looked up towards the directional signs on top of the train doors. I was shocked to see that it was blinking towards Kallang and for that few minutes, i was stunned and thought to myself: did i board the train from the wrong platform (recalled my route and ey, it was correct, leh). The thought that "hey it sure is taking a long time to get to the next stop than what is usually." came to my head and i paused the song on my Nano and waited to see if i needed to get out and get on the train at the opposite platform.

As i was waiting for the train to stop at the next station i.e. Kallang, i looked around and then took out one side of my Klipsch and coincidentally, overheard a tele-conversation of this man standing opposite me with someone on the other end of his mobile. What he said assured that i was on the right track home coz he was telling whoever was on the line that the directional sign seemed to be faulty and that he was reaching Tiong Bahru next. By the time his convo ended, the train reached the next stop and lo and behold! It was Tiong Bahru station indeed!

Relief swept through me. I wasn't going bonkers that i wa hallucinating nor was i so darn stoned that i got on the wrong train. For awhile there, i even thought that SMRT changed the directions of the trains and i was headed the other way to the east instead lol.

Yes that was the moment that summed up the work day.

I'll be back to blog about that eventful moment in the Horror Maze at Everland.

And yes, i've gone to Seoul! One item of my (non-existent) bucket list.

It is funny and strange that our paths never seemed to cross, despite us visiting the same joints/places. Serendipity lost me along the way i guess.

Date:	2012-08-19 18:19
Subject:
Security:	Public
Mood:	calm
Music:	It Might Be You - Stephen Bishop

Miracles happen every day of our lives. And the reason wedon't realise it is that most of the time we are in too much of a rush to notice the angels going about their business.

Date:	2012-08-05 17:04
Subject:	Le sigh
Security:	Public
Mood:	contemplative

Missed chances, lost opportunities; the What-Ifs and the Could-Have-Beens. That's just the way it is.

I attended the wedding of my cousin's daughter today and at the lunch reception thereafter, i was 'stuck' at the table with another of my aunt who then took the opportunity to ask when's my turn and when will i bring someone to show hem. Her daughter, who was another of my cousin and was at the same table, tried to tone down her mother's tactlessness when she heard that but i replied that how to bring anyone home when there isn't anyone to bring in the first place. On that, my aunt said it must be my high standards ladida, something which i had expected coz it must always be something about me that is hindering my own prospects and i had to stop myself from rolling my eyes in front of her.

Well in a way, it is those darn standards in the way i suppose. I mean, nobody i've met or known in recent times met my so-called 'high' 'standard' standards, so to speak for some; no chemistry with others. So what am i supposed to do! Ok granted that i don't meet alot of 'eligible' prospects to begin with (ironically, considering my second and current jobs have had/have more 'potentials') but what am i to do when i don't meet any one that who will make me feel that i have butterflies-in-my-tummy? I can't force things that are not meant to be can i? Yes so i am guilty of not being pro-active but when i am at this comfortable stage of sustaining myself well enough and have enough of family and friends' loving to get me going, cut me some slack already can?

It's not the end of the world being single, is it?

From blogging every.single.day of every bit of mundane happenings of my very unhappening existence to very irregular and random posts when the mood or inspiration strikes.

From being an ultimate narcissist who took photo at every.single.opportunity available to one who couldn't be bothered to even bring the camera out and depending on the iPhone when photo opp strikes.

From a habit of hanging on and finding it difficult to let go at every.single.instance to taking an attitude of easy come easy go (or almost).

From being quick and bad tempered at every.single.matter to having a hold of my temper and turning to rationality and cool thought to handling difficult situations.

From being unsure of every.single.time when it comes to the job to being more decisive and determined in moving on.

Yes, that's all me from before and now after.

Date:	2012-06-02 00:09
Subject:	Impulse'd
Security:	Public
Mood:	indescribable

The two budgeted were planned from over half a year ago and the two full-service were planned from within two weeks to a month, with the last made with excitement yet trepidation tinged.

Amazing how i am 'progressing' these days.

Date:	2012-03-31 19:52
Subject:	Outlet to release
Security:	Public
Mood:	blank
Music:	Hurt - Shinhwa

And so. All my angst/frustration/stress/emotions culminated at the conclusion of the event proper (as the tea reception started) yesterday and my waterworks started having a mind of its own and persisted whenever anyone talked to me to comfort me of Murphy's Law that transpired throughout the day.

So yes. I was a wreck as the reception progressed on and i managed to excuse myself to go back up to office and start on another piece of work which the big boss wants to be submitted before noon time on Monday. Even then, i couldn't get the waterworks to stop and kept swabbing my eyes and smearing my liner over my puffy eyes.

Thankfully, after an hour or so of tearing on and off, it stopped temporarily for me to get back home (with a quick stop at CM for library and dinner) and even after i got home, i started all over again for no reason despite being drained ttm. I was physically, emotionally and mentally drained from the day and went to bed early for a Friday and the overnight downpour did provide a cosy environment to be in bed. While i wish i could say that i had a good rest, i woke up groggy and exhausted still. In fact, i woke up in the middle of the night and wondered if it was Friday and was my event even over. To say that i was not affected by the happenings of yesterday would be an understatement.

Now, i just have to pull myself back up together and be in a whole one piece for Monday. At least i can look forward to a good dinner and a shorter than short work week next.

Initially, it was just doing Perth alone since i am familiar with the city and i do need to R&R&R&RP (rest, relax, rejuvenate and regain perspective) but a crazy idea came to mind and i'm now thinking if i dare to fly solo long haul to visist CS and his wife in US come year end. It will be an experience no doubt and might be an exciting one too, IF i have the guts (and moolah) to do so.