2 more days to my exam

Yes. U read it right. It's exam. The last time I had an exam was like 5 years ago for my Japanese N4. Brain has became rusty over the years. Being a working mom without a maid at home is tough. There are many things that I have to remember as I have an allergic kid. On top of that, I have to come out with different recipes (healthy ones!! No salt or sugar or seasoning) so he doesn't complain about food and eat well!

So… as usual, I will play piano pieces while I study as it makes me calmer. However, this time round it came to all my fav piano pieces during my teenage years. Reason (autumn in my heart), winter sonata. Things get pretty emotional.

With my mom's demise recently, where all the relatives gathered - I guess it would be almost impossible for another gathering with them. They told me that my mom would have invested more on me, as I'm one of the cleverest among my generation. I just kept quiet bcs there's no point saying such things, and I'm pretty contented with what I have right now.. which is so much better from previously.

However, I do feel sad for all the things that I have left behind to take the route that many will not choose to take.

Nevertheless… I'm grateful for what I have now, and thank god who has been watching me always.

Tips for working mothers without maid

Must have items:
Ta Tung steamer
Dishwasher
Dryer if possible!! (Even tho I don't have one, i will go to the laundry shop to dry my linens on rainy days)

Just don't sweat over small stuff just bcs u need some grace, and you are already doing too many things! Things will get better each day, just hang on, be positive. Enjoy ur kid cos they will grow up very fast!!

Food tips for maximum nutrition for the little one (no salt, no sugar, no processed food approach)
- freeze poached tomatoes in cubes to replace canned tomatoes. Add cherry tomatoes to the pasta sauce when heating up for extra nutrition
- freeze stock!! My son's fav is Chinese chicken stock where I use 1 kg of chicken bones with scallions and abit of ginger. Put it inside the baby food portion container for freezing, so that u can control the amount to defrost.

If you live in sg where car is so expensive, just take grab!! You need to use ur energy wisely.

Hire part time Nannies from babysit app, aunty app. Or wherever u can find.

Just hire a part time cleaner to do all the major cleaning!!

Buy good quality cleaning products like Norwex, cos u jsut don't want to do the same thing twice.

We have 3 laundry baskets to separate our clean laundry. We do not have the time to fold it.

It's been a Long while!

I realised I stopped blogging since 2013. it's 2017 now, so it means 3 years.

It's the eve of a public holiday, and I've just completed baking a Long awaited banana cake, and made Chinese herbs for my menses. Suddenly, it just crosses my mind to check what I've used to write in my blog. It's just good memories.. I used to be kinda free last time (well, at least before my current job) so i tend to blog often. However, now that I read my blog, it seems like I've changed so much :)

Well, I will try to recap my memory.

After my final exams, my first plan was to go to Europe to find Amy. The trip was a reward to myself for working my ass off for the degree. It was my first Long haul flight, plus my first time traveling for such a Long time - in short I didn't know what to expect.

So, on Good Friday's eve of 2014, I flew fm SG to Newcastle via Paris, and then Amy & Brian (worked in Germany at that time) came to pick me up. Lived in Amy's rented town house, which was quite cool cos I get to see my first fire place. Few days later, we made our way to Troon, a small town in Scotland, where Brian's parents live. I was quite tired initially due to jet lag (UK was 8 hours behind), I'm Glad that Amy's parents provided a comfy place for me to crash. The next day, we went to a short road trip to Amy's fav castle - Culzean castle. Followed by a short drive to Johnnie walker's house (now a restaurant).. etc I can't remember tho. But it was a wonderful road trip in Brian's dad's Mini Cooper xD.
We had Easter dinner, and it was really fun to be part of the celebration.

We went back to Newcastle after a few days. Went around Newcastle's modern art museum, and drank Super nice berries cocktail at a bar right beside the millennium bridge. Ate my first authentic Italian food during one of the nights and love it!!

I Guess my next destination was to London. Stayed at Sarah's cosy place, and one night with Cate. Don't have deep impression for London tho, besides modern Tate museum and the tower bridge. Most of the time I will be eyeing for a cafe, aiming for scones with clotted cream + mocha. Ah, and king's cross station of cos. Life's good :)

Next dest was to isle of Skye via Edinburgh. Took a night bus to Edinburgh fm London, and signed up for a tour. Everything was so amazing at Skye, and 3 days was too short! The sceneries were amazing and I want to go back!

I traveled back to Edinburgh, and managed to bump into Ken. Heez! We had dinner, and went to have a drink nearby. I heard back to the hostel early bcs I need to catch Ryanair's 7:30 am flight to Dublin.

Went to Dublin and visited UCD. Life's in ucd seems boring tho. Trinity college seems to be more interesting especially the library!! Historic and almost ancient.

After Dublin, I head to Leipzig via Frankfurt. Reason? Cheaper alternative! Took a bus fm Frankfurt to Leipzig. Then here I am, met Brian's friends, went to Dresden for a day trip, then to Prague for a few days. Prague was quite touristy in my opinion. There a communist buildings in between ancient buildings.

And I missed my flight on my last day in Leipzig cos I overslept. Taxi in Europe is not cheap, i tot I can make it via train, but I missed the stop to airport. so I have to buy another flight fm Berlin to Edinburgh instead. From Edinburgh, I took a train to Newcastle. Basically, Edinburgh is really like a stopover place for me. I have no time to enjoy the city. I will Be back tho!!

I Guess. This is all about my Europe trip. 21 days with lotsa traveling - train, bus, flight :)

Not Long after I came back fm Europe, I got my open water diving license :)

So, Jan 2015, I went to Maldives :) dived, swam with dolphins, whale shark watching..

I guess that's all for now..

May x

i just complete my last PCA! omg! i took so long to do it. kept on procrastinating. i know i shouldn't, this is the last sem, i have to really go all the way.

after the kl trip, i've got hangover for weeks! couldn't bring my old self back.. probably i just let everything go, all at once in kl.

i just had a new hair cut, dyed it back to very dark color, close to black. my friend says that i will never find a bf with this hair cut lol.

This was taken in the library while i was resting my brain. :D

my colleagues were all shocked by me. they couldn't recognise me, and i, couldn't recognise myself in the mirror either! i thought it was someone else!

haha, nevertheless, i missed my old hair. i love it.

but its ok. changes make you appreciate what you used to have. now i know i love my old hair style.

nevertheless, my hair can still grow anyway! just that it will take longer to grow this time.. so i don't have to go to the saloon anytime soon, sorry sharon! in order to save some bucks.

saving bucks for my long awaited holiday! :D :D

first KL trip after 2.5 years

7:30 am, i reached balestier plaza, with eyes half open. slept at 2 am the previous night watching scam city & triumph in the skies, and woke up at 5:45 am to do packing and to get ready. 

the bus departed from balestier plaza sharp at 8 am, however, it was stucked at the causeway for 2 hours - moving super slowly, hence i only reach kl at 3:30 pm. mandy & her bf pick me up from mont kiara. mesmerized by mont kiara's housing & buildings. what a great place to live, unfortunately i cannot afford one. haha

went to one U, and then chooi leang came to pick me up, and then meet wanni for some chinese 'zhu char' - made to order dinner. The initial plan was to burger lab, but look at the queue!

 

later on, we head to scotts garden for some drinks. bar hopping of course, went to beer factory first, next to some chinese live band bar called 'dong men' just directly opposite beer factory, cos chooi leang has targeted some of the bar girls over there. went back to mandy's house at segambut after that. i don't want to be too late, cos mandy might be worried about me. glad she has bible reading overnight at the prayers' house.. so it minimizes my disturbance. 

on the 2nd day, mandy brought me to eat vietnamese food at some nearby shop, and then we went to a nearby new mall called Publika. it was a unique mall.. especially its hypermarket downstairs, whereby the designs of each different section is so awesome. Have you ever thought of harvesting your own hydroponic vegetables of choice? Here is it! 

And followed by instructions: 

The even have their own oysters bad inside the supermarket, and its cool: 

And our share of oysters! 

My fav was Tasmanian oysters! The sweetness is too undermined from its look! Mandy brought me back home to rest for a while, and then she brought me to a restaurant that serves 1 tilapia fish for each patron. Fish was quite fresh and there are ppl queueing for tables. Price is reasonable for its taste. 

And that night, went to watch the conjuring with ci cong, his friend and wan Ni. I didn't know it was a horror movie until I was sitting in the cinema. It scare the shit out of me and I wasn't exaggerating cos cicong was hiding behind his friend as well! After that we head towards sunway Giza for some lok lok and drinks! 

Wanni and my fav lok lok! 

Wanni came overnight with me at Mandy's place cos it was easier for her to fetch me around, her aunt's house is like 30 km away from Mandy's house.

On the third day early morning, my official mission to walk around kl city as a tourist began. We woke up early, drive to mid valley, and park her car, so we will be traveling on public transport. Parking around kl city is a bomb, and don't see any reason we should splurge on that. 

 

The KTM building. I have been passing by this since I was little when my parents drive up to kl. glad it is still here. 

Next, this is the new ktm train.. And I was surprised kl has been a woman friendly city that they have ladies only train. They even have parking spaces meant for ladies only in shopping malls to increase the security. Hope these preventive measures reduce the crime rate tho.

Some graffiti found along the drain, taken during the journey.

And here, at KLCC, capturing the icon of KL, Petronas twin tower. 

And then we went shopping around KLCC and took some pictures of cos

And then we went to bintang walk via free bus provider, here's some pictures 

And I like the environment of pavilion. 

We had our dinner at a food court at the basement of Lot 10, and was satisfied with my Penang char Koey teow! Yumz. 

After that I forced wan Ni to walk to trader's hotel for my virgin sky bar trip, which is 2 km away.. And she kept complaining while walking... as expected.. Haha. 

The walk is definitely worth it after seeing its view from 33th floor! 

Service is quite good at sky bar but they're abit slow in serving. 

Next, we head to changkat and it would be my another favourite place. So cool, it has mini attached to the balcony of the bar! 

There are a few minis around attached to its wall. 

Changkat was great cos they have lok lok in between those busy bars! Hehe! 

Since it was my last night in kl, we head to mid valley for another round of drinking. 

The next morning, we woke up early and went for some breakfast at some unknown dim sum shop at petaling street. Me and wanni was too sleepy to decide which stall we should go, but we were lucky cos the shop serves amazing carrot cake! The shop looks old and traditional as we sit inside. It was like having bfast in the olden days. 

And then we head towards the gardens for borders and Starbucks. Sat down and laze around, then shop for awhile.

and then, we went to bangsar for lunch. Ching young called me and wanted to drop by for a quick meet up. I was joking about tabao-ing the famous Klang bak kut teh, but he brought it all the way. As I had my lunch before he arrives, so I brought it back to Sg. And have it for lunch the next day. 

Seriously wan Ni has been a great travel companion this time. And I enjoyed my trip very much! With a great host and friends... My trip will never be so enjoyable without them. 

***** 

After 4 days of worry free days.. I seriously almost forget how to work. I had more than 10 hours sleep yesterday but am still sleepy up til now, but i decide to blog before I forget about everything.. 

Alright for now I gotta bath and get my beauty sleep. Til next time.. 

finally the last sem

on the very day i've completed my last exam for the previous semester, i had 2 appointment with 2 friends from different circles, in order to bring myself back to the normal life. sound abit exaggerating heh? but i almost died, like really! third year subjects are no joke!

on sunday afternoon, i went for IPL, then to have my favourite myanmar food, the last time i had it was like 1/2 year ago during mandy's visit, to the temple, and then facial.

and then i went out with other friends continuously for the one whole week.. shalene's farewell, delicious lok lok buffet at katong, super nice coffee & environment at chye seng huat and there goes my diet, argh. and tmr, i'll be going down to kl to meet some long lost friends!

i guess my diet plan would need to be put on hold til some time then..

so, if you think i have an easy job, i can take up part time studies? or my studies are too easy, i can cope with my job? well.. that's too wrong.

i always have a cool and calm exterior, and might be jolly when approached, but the problem at my work place has just surfaced, and my asst director has been chiding me for being this and that.. i'm overloaded that time.. who can understand me? i wasn't given the opportunity to clear the back log, i was given addtl account to handle as my shipment starts to slow down. and yet, have to back up when colleagues go on long leave. voicing out doesn't help, but when things happen, it will always be your problem. fine, that's enough of all those bullshit, and i can gain my freedom as soon as i complete my studies!

oh yeah.. i'm not getting very good results either. the problem lies with me, i don't put in enough effort. the university is indeed very strict in giving good grades! i only have like max 2.5 days to study for a subject, thereby, i put on full concentration during classes - how much more energy do u think is left in me after a long day at work, and i hope i can save more time mugging on the book. and seriously, i hate it when there are ppl who likes to talk during lecture, just because they themselves have problem concentrating. those theories that we learn, requires you to show your application skills on daily life.

i'm caught in the middle.. between my career & my studies. i couldn't just dump my career aside, that would spoilt my reputation in the market. there goes my future. i couldn't dump my studies either, good grades can bring in better income.

it's 11:20 pm now, and my bus pick up point will be at balestier plaza, i do not know where the hell it is.. and i have not pack anything up til now..

what's holding me back?

i was introduced to scam city & couch surfing by su wei, and met some friends there. scam city is too informative and interesting to me, i had to leave all my HK soap aside to complete my scam city episodes!

to prepare me for my next big trip! probably alone!

oh my, back to reality ~ i had done nothing for my upcoming subjects.

alright then, i shall bring along my text book, so that i can read throughout my journey to kl!

laters ppl :)

Came across a girl who were a Protestant, pretending doing a survey near the mrt, and then insist that I should join her to get to know more about the bible cos it consists of lotsa facts that is about to happen. And in order to survive end of the world, I need to attend the Zion and eat bread + wine. 

If the world really ends, how much can you guarantee that you will survive? Trying to survive before the world end is already a problem. People are now strangling each other to sustain themselves. 

I'm a Buddhist and I personally think that deeds are more important that others factors. We won't know what will happen tmr anyway, and we cannot be preparing each day for the end of the world that we lose our focus to live like a normal human?

Anyway it's exam this sat and I should be concentrating on my studies. Blogging made easy using mobile app. Til next time! 

thoughts of having a house of my own

i have been living in my current place for almost 4 years.. and it was the longest place i have ever stay in sg.

7 years ago..

when i first came to singapore, i stayed in a penthouse at kembangan with my ex-bf and his siblings for less than a year. after the contract ends, we moved to a 4-room HDB at bishan. we broke up in less than 1 year after moving to bishan, so i have to move out from his place to bedok reservoir. this time, i share a room with an ex-colleague for 2 years at bedok reservoir. after that, i decide to have a room on my own bcs i thought i can afford to pay more for privacy, and that's when i move to tampines. cannot expect too much from a 22 yo's mind.

and now, after 4 years of staying in the same place, i thought the owner was a nice person all the while but then ppl can eventually change their mind whenever it comes to money. as the rent has been sky-rocketing these days, i guess she expects more rent for me.. she didn't say it out but showing me black face each time i came home these days :( it's painless but i just feel uncomfortable. 

as i will be completing my course this oct, helen told me to endure for the next 3 months, and then decide for a better place to settle down after that. i was feeling impatient at first, surfing the net almost everyday to look for a better place nearby, but after viewing like the 4th room (just now), just couldn't find any place that i feel i can stay for long. 

wanted to share an apartment with friends.. but then take into consideration that they're working as cabin crews (good $$), living with them might just cause a bomb in my pocket. and other commoners friends are living with their siblings here, and i doubt they have an extra room to accommodate me. 

sigh. 

i googled if a single PR can buy a HDB.. but the answer is no. then i googled for the price of a studio private apartment, and the cheapest price is almost S$500k 

oh my, how much do i need to earn in order to own a studio private apartment? 

and even if i can afford a studio private apartment, i will need to sacrifice all my travel plans :(

nevertheless..

no point thinking too much at this moment, but its good for me to realise the importance of $$.

as for a house of my own.. just come what may. i thought i used to be strong, even though i still am, but there are still alot of things not within my reach.

sometimes we can only plan our directions, and the rest are in the hands of god.

definitely not whining, but these are just thoughts that came across your mind when u reach a certain age. yes, i'm aging.

relationships

i just came back from a sleepover at my friend's place, and we had a good chat, again, sharing perspective over lives.

as random as we can be, we spoke about my ex-hair stylist, which is quite famous among our friends, and i have been a loyal customer for 4 years straight.. until there was once when my hair color was badly done - there were two obvious tones, and the couple unwillingly repair it for me.. that's it, that was my last visit to that saloon.

in addition, i was famed by the newly-wed wife to be flirting with the hairstylist :x i was pissed because the main reason i was there at the saloon was to get my hair done! and she lets her emotions to overcome her profession and the victim is my hair! Awww.. Mad pissed can.

i always respect my guy friends' relationships/marriages, bcs i believe in karma, i don't want the same thing happen to me.

Anyway, it is easy to say so now.. Probably this would be a real life example for me to refer should it is happening to me. Don't let emotions take over your actions. That's the power of EQ.

Japan joyride influenza

Watched hk tv show Japan joyride from azdrama and suddenly got so tempted to go to Hokkaido. They've got very nice places but the disadvantage is u will need to venture it on ur own.. If i'm given the opportunity to go, i will definitely eat lotsa lotsa seafood cos its super cheap and fresh! oysters abalone sea urchin scallop <3

Unfortunately I don't think that I will be going there anytime soon, or at least another 5 years.. 

But so coincidently when i was on my way to buy my weekly groceries, i come across the annual (I think) Hokkaido fair held in mall and saw this seafood bento that I couldn't resist: 

Here goes all my effort of losing weight + sgd25 for this bento

The first time I tried sea urchin was at itacho bugis 2 years ago and had no deep impression about it, and I couldn't Remember how it tastes. Sea urchin has became famous over the years.. And it is so tempting whenever tv shows are talking about it.. Impulsively, I bought this as a substitute for my Hokkaido seafood dream :p 

So now I had the taste of uni (sea urchin).. Not really that great probably it is not very fresh. Hmmm 

****

This week's lunch: seafood marinara!

I woke up early to boil my pasta and some seafood... Then put on some ready made pasta sauce in the office during lunch before heating it up in a microwave 

Taste good but don't feel complete without veggies :x

Should put some broccoli next week, and no more seafood related food cos I cut my hands while trying to 'detangle' the frozen prawns - 2 days consecutively on both diff hands :(

****

Met up with my fellow diploma classmates and had a great chat with them. Each of us has a story to tell about our own development. Jason is one of my closest friend during my diploma days, and I treat him like my little bro. The last time we met was 2 years back and I never expect him to turn up for this gathering.. He is the only one without changes. Same job, same glasses, same hair, same clothing style, same level of 'niao-ness' bleah just kidding. Never expect that we are still so close when we start to talk, even tho we have not keep in touch for so long.. and we had good conversations exactly like years back. Carol has become a happy mummy, Jessie continued her degree - just like me, chin Ning is happy working with her current co, William wanted to cont his degree.. And Sebastian just continue to party more and more with his increased income. Heez

Alright for now :)