Check out Jurong Point extension!

Woohoo! The new Jurong Point extension is now opened! What a crowd there was this evening, gosh, I think the residents in Boon Lay were all there! Of cos, with over 200 additional outlets in the new mall (they call it JP2), you bet everyone is curious!

I find that the new mall looks like Marina Square/Vivo City now :) That is, having more of a "town area mall" taste rather than a "neighbourhood" taste.

Here are some of the new stores that interest me:
Chomel
Pretty Fit
The Cheongsam Shoppe
The Clothes Publisher
Bakerzin
Benten Cafe (Japanese pasta restaurant)
Burger King
Cavana Express
Dian Xiao Er
Ding Tai Feng
Haagen-Dazs Cafe
Ji De Chi Dessert
Jia Xiang Mee Village
Kuishin Bo
Lai Lai Hong Shao Niu Rou Mian (although I no longer take beef now)
New York New York
Old Town White Coffee
Sky Thai Fastfood
Thai Express
ToastBox
Skin Food
Mini Toons
Aussino
Pets' Station
Harris bookstore
Challenger
Fairprice Xtra
Yamakawa Super
And lots of little shops selling cute gifts and apparels...

Just walking past the new shops today is enough to excite me! I have not even gone inside them to browse and shop!

Kiddy toys

Haha, hanging around with little kids is getting into me... I am starting to develop an interest in window shopping at Toys 'R' Us and Kiddy Palace and wowing at toys. Hey, it is amazing how advanced and comprehesive toys are these days, compared to those from my time. Gosh, I love the big set of 64 pieces of fruits and vegetables and cooking utensils. And mind you, the food pieces come in velcro, so that you may "slice" them and fix them back later on.

But my favourite is still the Sylvanian Families series, which I can never afford to own a big set with a house and so on. But I am contented enough to DIY a mini set of "cake shop" with cakes pieces, table, chairs and a rabbit figurine. :) Comes with a small pack of candy too!

Haha, bought this battery-operated bubble gun at Giant. Have always longed for one. While those "original" ones are selling at close to 20 bucks, this costs only $2.90, and the pack comes with a bottle of bubble solution. :)

Wow, tumbling blocks! Haha, never played this before and I always wanted to know how it feels to have blocks crashing down. Finally get to tried my hands on this today after buying this imitation from Toys 'R' Us. Guess what, it comes with a handy tin box and costs only $7.90 after discount! This will make a good family game when I have children in future. :)

Congratulations, HJ!

Went to attend HJ's church wedding at ARPC at Adam Road yesterday. She looked really beautiful and her hubby looked so cool! Really like the glitters on her gown, they made them look like there were lotsa stars on her :) Even the pastor was so good looking, hahaha. Guess what, her march in song was also Canon in D, like mine :)

Cosy and warm setting with grand piano on stage.

Couple taking the marriage vows - they actually had to memorise the lines!

Groom giving thank you speech. Check out the glitters on HJ's gown!

Father's Kite-buying tale

My sis told me my father saved $1.50 from buying a kite at Chinatown and how the savings came about was quite ridiculous. Here is how the story goes:

My father bought one kite at Chinatown at $4.50 and went to test fly it nearby. It was rather windy and the kite flew. A mother and her child walked pass and the child said "I want! I want!" Therefore the mother went up to my father (thinking that he was selling kites) and asked him how much was the kite. My father quoted $5. The mother tried to bargain with him but my father told her it was already very cheap and his profit margin was only 20 cents. In the end he completed the sale at $5.

My father went back to the shop and bought a second kite and went to test fly it again. This time 2 students went up to him and asked if he was selling kites. He told them he was a demonstrator. Again he sold the kite to them at $5.

My father went back to the shop again and bought a third kite. The shop owner remembered him and asked "Didn't you just buy a kite?" My father replied, "Well, I am your regular customer!" And the shop owner said, "Well, then you may have the kite at a 50 cents discount - $4 for you then!"

(LOL....)

Rest In Peace

I didn't expect Normal to go so fast.

Yes, it had poor appetite 2 weeks back. Its stomach was slightly bloated and whenever it gobbled up the food pellets, it simply spat them up without swallowing. But didn't its stomach go back to normal after several days? Yes, it seemed to have shrunk in size without having much food over those days but didn't it start to eat and swallow some smaller pellets again?

Things seemed to be going well until 2 nights ago, I noticed little bloating at its stomach again. It couldn't have put on that much weight overnight? Oh dear. And guess what, yesterday night its condition got even worse. The bloating became more intense and even the scales seemed to have puffed out. Internet sources say that this is a disease known as "dropsy" where there is building up of internal pressure caused by bacteria infection. Although there is antibiotic treatment, most cases of dropsy are fatal. But I didn't give up hope after knowing that. We planned to get the medicine from an aquatic store the very next day (today). I said a prayer before I went to bed last night, hoping that Normal would recover soon.

But just this morning, when I looked in at the quarantined pail, poor Normal's body had flipped. It had gone....

Normal's body lying in its "coffin"


Coffin being sealed... (sob sob!)

Burying in progress...

You must have suffered, Normal. Hope you rest in peace...

Never to grow up

Sometimes I wish I had never grown up.

Being a child is great. No burden, no responsibility. They just need to eat and play. No one will blame them if they do not excel in their studies. When they make mistakes, they will be let off after they get punished, and their mistakes would be forgotten by adults. If they show improvement in their behaviour or studies, they get lots of praises and rewards. They can say whatever they like, without thinking whether their words will hurt others. What is money to them? They just know money can buy things, but never wonder how hard it is for the money to come by.

Being a toddler is even better. Adults are happy as long as they do not cry and do not fall sick. Who remembers what kind of tantrum the child got into the day before? If they can follow simple instructions, it is a bonus.

What about an adult? Lots of burdens and responsibilties. People remember the mistakes you have done. Sometimes there are nice people around to show you some guidance, but you are expected to show improvement fast. If you do not perform up to par in the expected time frame, the nice people will still get annoyed.

Smart people pick up things fast and they get more in life. For example, in a dance workout, if a student can catch the steps and routine in that lesson, she gets to work out more and enjoy the lesson more. The slower students remain blur throughout the whole lesson and don't get to perspire much. In short, they waste their time and money. It is even more true in any workplace. Which boss likes an employee who is dumb and slow?

This is a competitive society we are living in. Is the society willing to be more patient with slower people or slower people have no choice but just have to keep striving?

I wish I had treasured my childhood days more.

Happy MV :)

When I saw this MV on cable tv the first time today, I was really captivated by its bright cheerful colours, cute bubbly artistes and lively tempo! Although I didn't really catch what the lyrics were all about, although I could tell that Fahrenheit's singing was way below SHE's, I was really in high spirits throughout that few minutes. :D (unfortunately this Youtube version is not as clear as the one I saw on tv)

I really felt strongly, for the first time, that the artistes in the MV did succeed in their role, that is, to entertain.

How to enjoy your life and job

Author - Dale Carnegie; Publisher - Vermilion

I find this library book so awesome that I simply must make a record of its summary somewhere, lest I forget them in the near future.

Part 1: Seven ways to peace & happiness

- Let's not imitate others. Let's find ourselves and be ourselves. Remember, there is no one else on earth like you.

- Apply the four good working habits that will help prevent fatigue and worry: Clear your desk of all papers except those relating to the immediate problem; Do things in order of their importance; When you face a problem, solve it then and there if you have the facts necessary to make a decision. Don't keep putting off decisions; Learn to organise, deputise and supervise.

- Most of our fatigue derives from our mental and emotional attitudes - boredom, resentment, anxiety, worry, etc. Such emotional factors exhaust the person, makes him susceptible to colds and reduce his output. Therefore you must learn to relax while you are doing your work. Begin by relaxing your muscles. Think of yourself as an old crumpled sock. Otherwise you are producing nervous tensions and nervous fatigue!

- Our life is what our thoughts make it. You can direct yourself to think thoughts of courage and happiness, power and peace. By thinking the right thoughts, you can make any job less distasteful. Think of what getting interested in your job will do for you. Remind yourself that it may double the amount of happiness you get out of life, for you spend about one half of your waking hours at your work, and if you don't find happiness in your work, you may never find it anywhere. Keep reminding yourself that getting interested in your job will take your mind off your worries, and in the long run, even if it doesn't bring promotion and increased pay, it will reduce fatigue to a minimum and help you enjoy your hours of leisure.

- Would you take a million dollars for what you have? Count your blessings - not your troubles!

- If you are tempted to be worried about unjust criticism, remember that unjust criticism is often a disguised compliment. Remember that no one ever kicks a dead dog.

- Do the very best you can; and then put up your old umbrella and keep the rain of criticism from running down the back of your neck.

Part 2: Fundamental techniques in handling people

- God himself does not propose to judge man until the end of his days. Why should you and I? Therefore, don't criticise, condemn, or complain.

- The big secret of dealing with people - give honest and sincere appreciation.

- Arouse in the other person an eager want. He who can do this has the whole world with him.

- Do this and you will be welcome anywhere: Be genuinely interested in other people!

- How to make people like you instantly: Make the other person feel important - and do it sincerely.

Part 3: How to win people to your way of thinking

- A sure way of making enemies and how to avoid it - Show respect for the other person's opinions. Never say, " You're wrong."

- Gentleness and friendliness are always better than fury and force. Begin in a friendly way.

- In talking with other people, don't begin by discussing the things on which you differ. Begin by emphasizing - and keep on emphasizing - the things on which you agree. Get the other person saying "Yes, yes" at the outset. Keep your opponent, of possible, from saying "No." This will set the psychological process of the listeners moving in the affirmative direction.

- How to get cooperation: Let the other person feel that the idea is his or hers.

- Appeal to the nobler motives. Individuals who are inclined to chisel will in most cases react favourably if you make them feel that you consider them honest, upright and fair.

Part 4: Ways to change people without giving offense or arousing resentment

- How to criticise - and not be hated for it: Call attention to people's mistakes indirectly.

- Talk about your own mistakes before criticising the other person.

- Ask questions instead of giving direct orders.

- Let the other person save face.

Onboard Star Aquarius!

View from Harbourfront Cruise Centre: Getting ready to go onboard!

Checking in...

11 years ago, we stayed in cramped cabins with double decker beds; now the cabins are much more spacious!

Sumptuous lunch at Dynasty Restaurant, with yummy cakes and pies!

Lift lobby on Deck 9

Posters of past performing artistes - eg.费玉清，张宇，甄妮

Sun rise on 2 Aug, 7.15am

Short workout at the gym

Swimming pool outside Dynasty Restaurant


Live band at outdoor restaurant serving BBQ food

I must say I really had a good break during the cruise! Well, there wasn't much to do except to stuff myself silly with the yummies and take little naps when there weren't any interesting programmes. What a waste of time by sleeping away, you may think, but waking up at 6am to catch the morning sunrise (and sleeping at 1am the night before) was really tiring! Of course I needed to make up for the lack of sleep! :P

The casino was really an eye opener. It was much much bigger than the one at Genting. My little sis and I had a great time going from table to table, not to play, but to figure out how the different games worked. Heeheehee! We even discussed which game dealer had an easier time in his/her work!

Oh yes, almost forget, I counted more than 70 stars on the night on 2 Aug 2008! At first I could only see a few bright stars but as I stared longer into the sky, my eyes were able to see more and more faint stars. Hmm.... This taught me not to see things on the surface only... and to be more patient.... :)

Weekend Cruise!

Woohoo! Guess what, I will be onboard Star Cruise this weekend! Will be going with my parents and little sis. Well, my 2nd sis was supposed to go with them instead of me but she had to pull out due to a last minute arrangement by her company to go to Malaysia. And I get to go instead! The most exhilarating part is, my father sponsored the trip and I just paid $20 to the tour agency for amendment fee!

Wow, it has been 11 years since I last went on a cruise. Looking forward to watch the stars, sunrise and sunset! Am going to feed myself fat with the sumptuous buffets! They have really yummy Chinese and international cuisines. Hmm... shall I bring my track shoes and sports attire to their gym? After all, I won't be able to go Amore this weekend...

Will post photos when I come back! :D

梦

有谁会解梦？

最近我常梦见以前的同学，尤其是中学的同学，十多年没见的同学。在梦里，她们的样貌依然是十多年前那样。有句话说“日有所思，夜有所梦”，可是我并没有在白天的时候想着她们啊，哪来的“日有所思”？

难道在我心深处，我很想回到以前那种无忧无虑的日子？

改过自新

今天6月30日是我改过自新的第一天！昨夜我睡前，就跟自己说，我不可以再过着颓废的生活了！我不可以让意志再消沉下去了！

这几个星期来，如果没去打那份兼职（薪水又微薄）的工，我几乎可以赖床赖到上午10点多（还好那天Normal出事时，我还来得及救它！），早餐与午餐也吃得乱七八糟，下午也没做到任何建设性的事，直到4点多才想当晚要煮什么晚餐，这才舍得去买菜！新鲜的肉都被早起的auntie们买去了！要不然就是胡思乱想，想一些很负面的事！就连Amore也懒得去！

我真的受不了这样的自己！前阵子我还兴致勃勃地说婚后要好好规划人生，要活的精彩，如今怎么变得那么没有斗志？？我一定要改过！

所以我今天调了闹钟，让自己9点前起身（我要开始训练自己越来越早起！）。正正经经地吃完早餐后，我就去上Amore 10点半的课！运动后觉得精神好好，整个人都充满了斗志！才中午12点，我就去吃午餐了！难得今天有定时吃早餐与午餐，心情好好哦！还有还有，午餐过后，我就去买菜了！而不是像平时那样，等到最后一分钟！

当然，我所谓的“活的精彩”不应只是早睡早起，吃的定时而已，但那是最最重要的。我一定要做到。即使现在还没找到全职的工作，我也要让自己每一天都过得充实。我可以看很多书，看新闻，看食谱，弹keyboard，做些手工等等。要不然，开工后，就很难找到时间做这些事了。

明天一早我要到图书馆去！今天逛书局时看到几本励志的书，我把书名和作者都抄了起来，回家上NLB网站search, 没想到我家附近的图书馆可以借的到噢！真是奇迹！既然这些书是畅销书，它们一定很抢手，所以明天一早我就得到图书馆去把它们找出来，免得被别人捷足先登！

今天会比昨天好，明天会比今天更好！加油加油加油！

Chasing Game

Gee! I think Normal is back to normal again, in fact it is very greedy now, every time when I approach the pond, it will swim towards my direction and keeps opening its mouth. Haha! I do give them a little feed in between meal times and the feed is practically snatched up in seconds! Sometimes I wonder if I have been starving the fishies but the speed at which they zoom past is amazing!

It is interesting to watch them play this "chasing game" whereby Normal is always being chased by 红鳍子 and the latter is always being chased by 红眼睛. As a result, they line up in a single file and swim in circles.

Hahaha, what a life.

Poor Normal!

Sob sob! I found Normal motionless on the floor outside the pond yesterday morning! It had leaped out of the pond while I was still in bed!

I thought it had died but I could see very faint breathing at its gills. I quickly placed it back in the pond but it remained motionless, its body half-floating half slanting in the water. 红眼睛 and 红鳍子 seemed to be aware of what happened and swam beside Normal and remained by its side. What a worrying sight!! To my surprise, Normal's breathing got stronger and stronger and finally, after a few minutes, it managed to flip back to vertical position and swam a few cm away! It was alive once again!

But Normal appeared so weak. The scales on one side of its body seemed rather ruffled. It must be injured when it landed on the floor.. Its body seemed so unbalanced when it swam and it kept hiding in a corner for the whole day...

Have a good rest, Normal. Hope you get well soon. And please please, don't be so adventurous again. It may cost your life.

Fishies for my Pond!

Please warmly welcome the new members to my family! Their hometown is Qianhu Fish Farm and their breed is Shubunkin (玉如意). After they made themselves comfortable in their new environment, the first task for us was to assign names to them to enable us to distinguish them.

The one that has red eyeliner is named "红眼睛"; the one that has a small red patch on its fins is named "红鳍子" and the one that appears most normal is named "Normal".

May the little fishies grow big and strong! :D

Fallen ill.....

I finally believe what my father said is true. Someone who falls sick often will recover from his sickness in a short time; Someone who seldom falls sick will take ages to recover, or even his life may be endangered.

Yes, I think it makes sense for the second category. After all, if someone whose immune system is ultra strong can get sick, it means the virus is so strong that it can destroy the antibodies completely. Therefore the body needs a long time to build up antibodies again to fight against the virus and hence the recovery time is long.

I fall into this second category. I have not caught the flu virus or had fever for the past 2 years. In fact, I even received a medical incentive of $100 from my company for taking only 1 day MC in 2007, and that was due to mild stomach discomfort. While there was a period which my whole unit took turns to take MC, my body was strong enough to fight against their germs and viruses. I was the only one who didnt fall sick. While I was still proud of this "victory" till last week, my immune system was put to a test after being in contact with a virus carrier (my husband) for 2 days.

Alas! My poor body had been fighting hard for the first few days. Just that stupid me neglected the warning signs of a strangely tired body and didnt have enough rest. Even on the 3rd day when I started to have running nose and had slight fever, I still thought I had recovered when the running nose stopped and even went out with my sis on the 4th day. I think my body could no longer take it. When I came home, the fever started building up again. At one time, my temperature hit 38.1 degrees Celsius. The panadol tablets did manage to suppress it quickly and that night before I slept, my temperature had dropped to 36.9 degrees Celsius. But the next morning on the 5th day, I woke up having my whole body aching. I knew the fever must be back again. True enough, the temperature was 37.8 degrees Celsius. I finally decided to see a doctor.

When I came home from the doctor's visit, my temperature had already risen to 38.6 degrees Celsius and I had a bad running nose and cough. All symptoms of flu started showing up. I even thought I was about to lose my life (after all, I had not had such high fever for almost 10 years!). Even after taking the medicines from the doctor, I still had slight fever till the 6th day, but at least I was recovering...

I guess my body has to build up its immune system all over again. It is really depressing that the strong foundation built up over 2 years had collapsed eventually. Maybe I need to go for flu vaccination before my Japan trip, in case I fall ill again while I am there...

Farewell, One Raffles Quay!

Muahahahahaha! I can't believe I have really bade farewell to my workplace on 30 April 2008!

Goodbye to the crowds at Raffles Place! Hope I wont have to squeeze in the crowded trains with you for a long time to come. Hope I wont have to vie for seats with you again during lunch hour in the near future.

Goodbye to my office building One Raffles Quay! I must say you are beautiful, and your receptionists and umbrellas (to lend) are beautiful too! Even your washrooms are beautiful! I have nothing against you, really. :) If not because of you, I might have chosen to bid farewell earlier!

Lastly, goodbye to my office seat (and colleagues)! Hmm... I realise I dont really have much to say to you. Hope all of you get along fine with my replacement! All the best!

P/S: Hopefully, my next job will be far far away from Raffles Place and very very near to my new home! I do not wish to spend so much time to travel to work again!

I fell down!

Sob sob! Such big bruises! Result of a trip and fall last Sat! And guess where the accident happened?! At my new home! Am I not a fool??! Who would get hurt so badly at home? Well, I could only blame myself for not keeping my eyes to the front but to the right instead, and I tripped onto some large barangs on the floor and fell with a loud thud (followed by a yell in pain, of course).

What I can only do now is to continue to rub medical ointment on the bruises day after day until they finally fade off. Kneeling really hurts now and I am not able to attend the stretch-fit/yoga/pilates lessons where sometimes I am required to balance on the knees. Haiz! :(

乐器如人生

乐器是很神奇的，没人去碰它时，它就静静坐在那里，一声也不吭，谁也不知道它的厉害。或许我应该说，它厉害不厉害得看弹奏它的人有多厉害。同样的乐器，出自不同人的手里，可以像杀鸡杀猪，也可以令人陶醉。即使是同一首曲子，由不同人演奏，感觉又不同。可别忘了，它原本是安静不吭声的，可是却有能力带来优美动听的旋律！

人生不也像乐器一样吗？每个人每天都有24小时，有些人可以活得精彩，有些人却过着毫无目的的日子。我相信“熟能生巧”，如果一个原本不吭声的乐器可以奏出动人的音乐，那原本空白无色彩的人生也可以丰富起来！

希望婚礼过后，我可以好好规划我的人生，让它更多姿多彩！

弦歌有你 张信哲 x 交响乐

刚去看了张信哲“弦歌有你”演唱会，真是令我听出了耳油！他真的好棒哦！听他唱现场，真是一种享受！他的声音永远都是那么的清晰优美！你知道吗，演唱会门票完全售完，满座！和交响乐的合作也很新鲜，音乐和歌声都是live的，感觉更能接近观众！

虽然大荧幕上并没有播放歌词，可是当他唱着那些经典歌曲如《过火》，《爱如潮水》，《难以抗拒你容颜》等，大家还是可以跟着唱，可见他真的有好多好多经典歌曲，令人百听不厌！这些歌曲带给我很多很多的回忆，我突然觉得他就像一位很久没见的老朋友，感觉还是那么的熟悉，毕竟我中学年代开始听他的歌，那也是十几年前的事了!

我好像已经好久没买他的CD了，我所拥有的都只是卡带，可见真的是好久好久了。那些卡带都发霉了，不能听了，而我现在才感到遗憾。我怎么不再买他的CD了呢？他的声音还是和以前一样令人陶醉啊！他还是跟以前一样亲切有礼啊！他不就像一位老朋友吗？

演唱会到尾声时，大家都high了起来，很多人甚至跑到台前去想更接近他，他还笑说“怎么演唱会要完的时候，你们才high啊？”不管怎样，我想大家都和我一样，真的很enjoy!!

他说他的新专辑《逃生》将在4月发行，他也有在演唱会上唱了一首很有京剧味道的《牡丹忧》，好好听哦！这张专辑我一定会好好支持！

Dream on wedding

Last night I had a vivid dream of my wedding day.

The dream started off from the banquet venue and I was having the march-in rehearsal with my husband, wearing the white gown with the long tail. I was not wearing any shoes and had to tip-toe as I walked in order to match my husband’s height. He started off walking faster than the tempo of the music (not on beat) and I pulled him back so that he would slow down. I had been worried that I might step on my gown at the front and or even trip but my march-in seemed to be a breeze, even at the point where we walked up the stage.

I saw my jie-meis hopping in, one after another, after the rehearsal. All of them were wearing pretty white dresses with similar designs and materials. Their make-up looked professional even though they had done it themselves. All of them looked very sweet and happy. They were chattering among themselves, didn’t really speak to me.

Not sure why, but the next scene was outdoors. I was trying to look for my wedding shoes (remember I didn’t wear any during the march-in rehearsal?) I was opening up boxes and boxes of shoes but couldn’t find the pair that I was looking for. And goodness knows where all the other shoes come from in the first place! I heard my jie-meis shouting the countdown to the start of something (not sure what) “10! 9! 8! 7!.....” but I still couldn’t find my shoes! I hurriedly went over to them but they had already locked themselves in a little room to discuss how much ang pow they were going to demand from my husband. I banged on the door and shouted that I couldn’t find my shoes and asked them to help me but they ignored me totally. At the same time I also realized that I had forgotten to have a discussion with them beforehand on the details of the gatecrash and the amount they would accept.

It was already past 8pm and the banquet was supposed to start. All guests were already seated. And I was running about bare-footed in their presence trying to look for my shoes! I began to try on some of the shoes in the boxes and they didn’t seem to fit. I was still trying to recall where I had placed my wedding shoes. In the end, I remembered. They were at home.

The lessons learnt from this dream:

-I must remember to bring all the necessities to the banquet venue, eg. my gowns, matching accessories, SHOES, ang pow box, toiletries for bathing, etc. If I forget any one of them, that’s it.

-I must not forget to have a discussion with my jie-meis on the details of the gatecrash.

Gosh! Hope everything turns out well on that day!

王子

你可曾遇过你心目中的王子？

你心目中的王子是怎样的？

我想，应该是你第一眼看到他，就很奇妙地被他吸引，有他在你身边，你感觉从未感觉到的幸福，就好像自己是个公主一样，而当他离开你的时候，你感觉从未感觉到的心碎。即使好久不见，若在街上遇到他，你还是会心跳加速，你还是觉得他依然有“王子”的魅力。

昨晚我做了一个很长很长的梦，在梦里我就遇到了这样一个“王子”。

Sentosa Flowers 2008

New year is to celebrate the end of winter and the start of spring traditionally. What image do you have in mind when you think of spring? I think of the bright blooms, chirpy birds and warm cosy weather. :) You can find all these at the Sentosa Flowers! A good place for families, couples and friends to visit during this festive season. But I must say the response this year is really overwhelming (on 2nd day of CNY), such that you see more people than flowers, and there are long queues at "photo spots". Well, but again, where is the atmosphere of New Year if there is no crowd?

Mochi!

14 flavours of mochi. 55 pieces. Only 3 dollars! Just stuff as many as you can in a plastic bag and the seller even throws in one more handful for you as he packs the bagful in a carrier. What a great buy at Chinatown on the eve of CNY! :D

金元甜甜！

今天逛百货公司看见有个摊位在买应节糖果，就是100克$1.00任由你挑的那种，其中就有巧克力金元，让我想起了中学时，校长每年给我们的红包:)

每年的红包都有2个巧克力金元，还有一张爱心字条，我至今还收藏的很好嘞！一共有6个，从1993到1998 （1997和1998的红包应该是初院期间特地回中学庆新年而得来的吧！）字条上的寄语如下：

亲爱的宝贝：

新的一年又来临了，甜甜的金元为你们带来连年的好运。

我祝你们

身体健康，学业猛进。

生活愉快，笑口常开。

心想事成，万事如意。

愿你们在学习中成长，

做一个温文尔雅，

高贵大方又内涵的淑女。

愿天主降福予你和你的家人。

好怀念中学的时光哦！

请问有几所学校会像我的那样会分发这么有意义的红包给学生呢？我觉得自己很幸运，可以在这么一个有爱的环境下度过4年。除了学校走廊挂着悦耳的风铃，我们还养了许多小动物，甚至有公鸡和鳄鱼！我还记得有几次我们在草场升旗礼时，校长突然要我们静下来，闭上眼，聆听鸟的叫声。请问有几位校长会那么诗情画意呢？

我希望我可以永远记得这些回忆，希望曾经和我一起在这个爱的环境下成长的朋友们也可以记得这些回忆。:)

好心情！

有时候，遇到一个好人，会让你的心情好上一整天；有时候，遇到一个坏人，会让你的心情坏上一整天，甚至气到流泪。而我今天，不只遇到了一个好人，工作也异常顺利！

今天我接到一位时常有工作上来往的bank dealer的电话，他说他帮我找到了红包封套，想在午餐时间拿给我。初次见面，原来这位bank dealer还蛮帅的，虽然他已经38岁了，看起来好像30出头而已！他给我一个大信封，里头有20多包的红包封套，我都觉得有点不好意思，哈哈。他还请我吃roti prata/muttabak哦！我们还聊的蛮多的，这一餐吃得挺开心的！

今天我的office mailbox还蛮静的，没有什么紧急email, 我可以专心做其它事，如果接下来每天都这样，年除夕那天有望作半天就可以回！

我的女manager问我，今天过得怎样？我说还好，应该可以早回，说完便笑了笑。她竟然说，"Do you know that your smile is very sweet? Your husband must have told you that." 我说, "No, he didn't, hahahahaha!" 也许她希望我在公司可以多笑吧，无论如何，有人说我的笑容很sweet, 我应该开心吧！

我今天真的蛮早回家的，6.20pm. :) 今天我老板又反常，6.15pm 就回了，我也更没理由留下来工作了。哈哈。:)

有时候，遇到一个好人，真的可以让你的心情好上一整天。:)

Puppets!

I managed to catch the Guangxi Puppet Art Troupe in action at Jurong Point yesterday. At first I thought it was just some traditional dance item when suddenly some dancers appeared with large rod puppets. They put up items like 《梁山伯与祝英台》, 《天鹅湖》，《女孩与孔雀》，《西游记-大战红孩儿》. It was amazing to see how the puppets could move in such a life-like manner, especially the ballet puppets! Controlling a ballet puppet seemed the most tedious of all, it needed 3 performers-one in front to control the legs, one in the middle to control the head and spine, one at the back to control the hands.

Notice how the performers wore matching costumes like their puppets. I liked the costumes of the peacock item best of all! Both ladies and the peacock puppet displayed such graceful moves!