KL Day One...

it is officially New Year’s Eve...
woke up at 5:30am to get ready for the trip...
took the cab and met the rest for breakfast at the Beach Road army market...
only one food stall and one drink stall were open...

collected our bus tickets and hotel voucher from Golden Mile...
surprised that we had the luxurious coach with egg-shaped seats...
everything electronic... no more manual seat adjustments...
unfortunately the in-coach entertainment system (with individual screen, headphones and even game controller) was not activated...

customs clearance was a breeze...
unfortunately, this group of Taiwanese tourists on the same coach as us did not fill out their “white cards”...
the whole group was delayed because of them...

i was sleeping for most of the journey...
except for the stop at Yong Peng...
after much searching, found the kok kok candies mum wanted...
bought a dozen packets since she liked it so much...
mum has reminded me again before the trip not to buy any more t-shirts...
my wardrobe does not have any space for them...

KL traffic was already building up when we reached the city...
it is always a joy looking at the Petronas Twin Towers...
majestic as always...
checked into the hotel at around 1:30pm...
after washing up, we headed to Jalan Alor for a late lunch...
then we were off to the new shopping mall Pavilion...
it was simply too big for any comfortable shopping...
my legs were aching by the time we completed the first level...
since all of them have not tried Madam Kwan...
decided to have some coffee and desserts at Madam Kwan...

finally it was back to the hotel for some rest before the so-called gala dinner...
well, it was nothing but a normal buffet dinner...
food was lousy but we had fun playing with the party gifts...

after dinner we went to soak ourselves into the New Year’s Eve mood of Bukit Bintang...
the main road was closed to traffic to facilitate the countdown tonight...
we decided to walk to the Petronas Twin Towers...
we came to P. Ramlee where all the clubs were...
the place was getting crowded and noisy...

some Kodak moments at the Petronas Twin Towers...
before our coffee break at San Francisco Coffee in KLCC...
James called to inform us about the meeting place and time...
we decided to be adventurous and walked to Marketplace, a new club in town...

met James’ friend, Gary, who is working in M1 call centre in KL...
another affirmation that we are connected to the global economy in one way or another...

entrance to Marketplace was RM45 which was expensive by the local standards...
but it came with a party pack...
we had so much fun playing with the lumi sticks...
and the shot glass with lights on its base...
somehow the lights on Sonny’s shot glass were not working...
only managed to get a working one after the 4th exchange...

more of James’ friends came...
there were Raymond, Ken and Ben...
before we knew it, the time was approaching 12 midnight...
at the stroke of midnight, we all turned into frogs...
no lah, the fireworks around the Twin Towers commenced...
and it lasted for quite a while...
besides being mesmerised by the lights, we were also busy hugging and wishing each other “Happy New Year”...

after the countdown, it was time to dance...
seriously, age is catching up and i lost the zest and energy to dance...
was vaguely moving my ass and hips at the side of the dance floor...
we then went up to the rooftop to relax and chit chat...
by 2am, we were all tired...

managed to catch a cab along the road although we were prepared to walk back to the hotel...
stopped along Jalan Alor for supper...
before calling it a day...

Happy New Year, folks!!

I'm So Excited...

left the office at 5:45pm and was grinning from ear to ear...
i finally can feel the excitement about the KL trip...
this is the third consecutive New Year in KL...
SMSed Jason and Shaun about tomorrow meeting time...
just to make sure none of us is late...

reached home and was packing my bag...
Sonny drove Nova’s car to pick me up at 11pm and we went for roti prata supper at Jalan Kayu...
on our way back, noticed that Nova’s car had a crack on the windscreen...
Sonny was obviously disturbed by it...
managed to calm him down after a while...

Shaun was still working from home at 1am in the morning...
poor thing, always like that, pre-holiday blues...

CLM...

during lunch with Jason, i asked him how do you tell your boss that he has B.O...
Jason replied that you do not do that...
it is a Career Limiting Move...
it is probably more suicidal than limiting...
looks like i have to suffer for as long as i am with this company...
OMG!!

Banana Leaf...

went to Kerry’s new apartment Residences @ Somme to flush the toilet for his cat...
poor thing was meowing the moment we stepped in...
very sad meowing...
one of the art pieces was on the floor...
wonder if the cat did that...

after that went to Banana Leaf on Race Course Road for dinner...
had curry fish head, curry chicken and masala squids...
together with white rice and two different types of nan...
the food was good but the service sucks big time...

the uncles and aunties at another table was wiping the banana leaves with tissue before their meals...
such strange behaviour...

Lazy Sunday...

breakfast with my family at AMK...
had kuay chap and mee siam...
i must be hungry...
mum decided to prepare lunch since i will be home...
so sweet of her...

afternoon was spent catching up on my beauty sleep...
wanted to tidy up my room but was too lazy to do it...

went for a jog in the evening...
completed 7km in 43 minutes...

came home and watched 90210 episode 4 plus True Blood episode 1...
True Blood blew my mind away...
Ana Paquin was fantastic in the show...

what a lazy Sunday...
*yawnz*

Celine Dion – A New Day (Live In Vegas)...

saw this concert on my flight to NYC...
was touched by it and cried during the show...
managed to get the DVD recently after so many months of “out-of-stock”...

spent the Saturday watching the double DVD...
first it was the concert...
a mixture of concert and theatre...

then the special tribute to Celine’s fans...
featured his fans from all over the world who were given the opportunity to watch her concert in Vegas...
Celine met all of them too...
touching moments...
there was a fan who has seen the concert 81 times...
two others tattooed “A New Day” on their back...
and some flew 30 hours to Vegas for the concert...
two fans were from Japan and one from China...

continued with the bonus DVD featuring the making of the concert...
and the 120-minute behind the scenes...
which re-played the entire concert from the perspective of the crew...
very interesting...

after five years performing at the Coliseum specially built for her show...
A New Day has ended its run...

Boxing Day...

well, Sonny’s home PC was indeed boxed...
decided to get intimate with a Trojan and cannot get connected to the internet...
spent 5 hours on it until 2am and was unable to solve the problem...
next day after MacDonald’s breakfast, went to the PC repair shop at Loyang Point and was told that the only solution is to reformat the hard disk... faintz...
will have to backup all his data and send for repair next week...

2008 Time’s Person Of The Year – Barack Obama...

Barack Obama, the US President-elect was named Time Magazine’s Person of the Year for 2008...
i have not read the article...
but i have no idea why was he named...
when he has not even taken office in the White House...
maybe it is because he is the first black American President...

Christmas Feasting...

first it was lunch with Sonny’s family...
his mother, his step-father, his sister (Nova), his aunt, his uncle, his other sister (June) and her family...
rather stressful cos i am not the social kind...
eventually managed to chat with Nova more than anyone else...
and his aunt is quite friendly...
we had so much fun “bitching” about the gifts Nova received...
the funniest has to be his nephew who bought earrings for the aunt, who does not have her ears pierced...
lolz...

took the MRT to Lavender...
checked out Kerry’s new studio apartment at Residences @ Somme...
a decently nice place...
was beyond my expectations in terms of size and shape...
Kerry did a good job in making the most out of the triangle-shaped apartment...
went to check out the rooftop...
nice view...
had dinner at Putien restaurant (www.putien.com.sg) in Kitchener Road...
food was good...
service was good...
price was good too...

came home, showered, checked emails and slept...
tomorrow is a working day for me...

Merry Christmas!!

finally it is the eve of my most favourite holiday, Christmas Day...
left the office at 3pm, the official time for all staff...
simply no mood to work... lolz...
on the way home, picked up a couple of packets of mint leaves...
requested by James for his mojito...
got home, showered and drove dad’s car to pick Sonny and his “critically acclaimed” fried tom yum bee hoon up...
the weather was gloomy and drizzling...
dropped the mint leaves at Kenneth’s place...
took the chance to look around his newly rented Bedok Central HDB flat...
nicely done... i especially like the cosy balcony...
James will also be moving in as his new house maid mate in 2009...

as we were driving from Bedok to Dover (via ECP and AYE)...
the rain started pouring...
this was the first time that i am driving under such extreme conditions...
luckily by the time we hit the AYE, the rain became lighter...
despite having the map and memorising the route, i missed AYE’s Exit 8...
saw Exit 7A and expected an Exit 7B...
but there was not to be...
eventually still managed to find Tianwei’s place...

dinner was simply pasta, chicken, fried bee hoon and some snacks from Old Chang Kee...
we were chatting most of the time about Shanghai, the city where the school Eric will be teaching in 2009, is located...
we played our own versions of “Don’t Forget The Lyrics”...
with four categories: 80s, 90s, 2000 to 2007 & 2008...
could only manage songs from the first 2 categories...
totally crashed out of the last 2, especially 2008...
not been listening to music and radio for the longest time in my life...

after the game, we had our log cake and ice-cream...
before proceeding to Pictionary...
somehow i was unable to draw as well as i could before...
and we lost the game to the other 2 teams...

gift exchange came next...
my gift was from Eric: a cushion and a pen...
there were also separate gifts from Teck Cheng & Youxiang, Steve & Daniel, Eric and Tianwei...
i came prepared too... gave them the Herbalife quencher to keep their faces moisturised in air-conditioned Singapore...

after that, Sonny and i left the gang to continue with their mahjong at around 1:30am...
drove to Kenneth’s gathering...
by the time we arrived, they were still playing games...
Kenneth was red like a lobster with all the alcohol...
James, Jason, Thyetus and Shaun were still sober...
David and Shawn had left the party...
managed to catch up with them until around 3:30am...

i was so tired by the time i reached home...
slept immediately after shower...

Merry Christmas everyone!!

Muthu's Curry...

boss decided to use our department funds for lunch today...
headed to Muthu’s Curry at Race Course Road for that...
nice décor but a bit noisy when it is crowded...
delicious food although they could have been more spicy...
the curry mutton was soft and tender, without the stinky mutton smell...
and the dessert was super sweet...
overall a pleasant dining experience...

Christmas Dinner...

met Christina and Pat for dinner at Plaza Singapura...
on the way collected the DVD for Celine Dion’s Live In Las Vegas – A New Day...
been out of stock since i came back from NYC...
saw it twice on the in-flight entertainment system...
i cried the first time i saw it...

wanted to eat at Swensen’s but there was a long queue...
ended up in Lao Beijing...
“Christmas dinner” in a Chinese restaurant...
it was nice to see them both healthy, cheerful and happy...
just like any other dinner with my ex-colleagues, this time we were spending most of time bitching about my ex-boss...
she is after all our common enemy...
lolz...

Needs Vs. Wants...

was discussing needs and wants with Siang Leng over emails...
the conversation started while we were discussing about saving up for rainy days...
especially in these uncertain times...
anything can happen and we might lose our jobs tomorrow...
Siang Leng try to save up 50% of his gross income...
while i am contented if i can save up 20% to 25%...
to each his own...

my conclusion is that everything has to be in moderation...
needs can become wants and vice versa...
and everyone has their own standards or limits...
i try to meet my needs as far as possible...
and to satisfy my wants whenever resources permit...

Birthday Celebrations...

met Siang Leng and Lik Kiam at White Sands for Siang Leng’s birthday brunch...
had dim sum at Xing Wang HK Café...
surprisingly it was very good...
Siang Leng’s birthday is on Christmas Day itself...

took the MRT to Orchard...
for another birthday celebrations...
David’s 44th birthday...
high tea at Scotts Lounge Grand Hyatt...
limited selection of English high tea but very good quality...
they even serve 16 different types of tea...
as well as black coffee, espresso, latte, mocha and cappuccino...
all free-flow...

met up with Nova, Sonny's sister, at Raffles City to help her with her Christmas shopping...
she managed to buy a few things from Zone and a shop called Nova...
lolz...

today is “dong zhi” (冬至)...
traditionally we have to eat the glutinous dumplings “tang yuan” (汤圆)...
had that when i was home in the evening...

Twilight / Christmas Gathering...

the day started with breakfast at Downtown East food court...
the kway chap was so-so only...
although i liked the kopi-o “gao” (aka thick)..
then it the much-awaited and much-anticipated Twilight...
totally disappointed...
besides the two lead eye-candies...
there is nothing worth watching...

after movie went to Loyang Point for my hair cut...
decided to cut it real short this time... hehe...
came back to Sonny’s place, showered, rested for a short while and walked to Siang Leng’s place to collect my 18 packets of Tim Tams and 2 bottles of Absolut Vodka Christmas Edition...
got lost in the HDB flats along the way and a 10-minute walk became half an hour...
and the weather was super duper hot lor... *faintz*

deposited the stuff at Sonny's place...
took the cab to Ming’s place for our annual Christmas gathering...
i missed the one 2 years ago cos i was in Taipei...
last year we did not have any, for reasons which we could not remember...
the cab fare from Pasir Ris to Fort Road was a shocking $18...
partly due to the peak period surcharge...
and to think that both places are in the east...
*roll eyes*

it is always a joy to catch up with friends during the festive season...
it adds to the Christmas feel...

iTouch...

received an iTouch for Christmas...
something i have been planning on getting for a while now...
but was waiting for M1 to sell the iPhone...
i am not ready to switch to the red camp as yet... lolz...
was busy installing the gadget with my AspireOne...
and also downloading the latest firmware and applications...
managed to connect to the home wifi...
i am so happy with my new toy...
and i am still exploring my other not-so-new toy, AspireOne...

Molton Brown...

last minute attempt to get David’s birthday gift...
and i knew i can always count on Molton Brown for that...
managed to get a gift set of 6 small bottles of shower gel...
they will come in handy since he travels so much for work...
also bought a couple of gift exchange items there...
over-budget, but i really like the packing and presentation of Molton Brown...
very nice and classy...
interestingly, i have yet to buy something for myself from Molton Brown...
instead i have been using the samples given to me each time i was at the shop...

went back to Zone for the second time this week...
still did not buy anything...
the same salesman must be so mad at me...
lolz...

Christmas Shopping...

been busy with my Christmas shopping this past week...
although i have started more than a month ago, there are still last minute shopping to be done...
Wednesday night had dinner with Sonny at Takashimaya...
then from Takashimaya to Cineleisure to Robinsons Centrepoint...
did not manage to get anything at all...

while waiting for the taxi, bumped into Ken and Clarence...
managed to chat a little with Ken...
concluded that our December cycling has to be postponed to 2009...

R.I.P...

my one year old 500G Seagate FreeAgent hard drive died on me last night...
devastating...
MP3s GONE...
Porn GONE...
Pictures GONE...
and above all...
TV Series – ALL GONE...
the hard drive is still under warranty for another 4 fucking years...

Zombie...

feeling like a zombie now...
slept at around 1:15am last night...
after watching Survivor: Gabon...
luckily my boss is on sick leave...
and i am meeting Sonny and Jason for lunch...
something to perk me up...

Survivor: Gabon – Finale...

was surfing the net with the TV on...
suddenly saw Survivor: Gabon starting on TV...
took me by surprise...
it was the finale for the season...

Bob became the oldest winner of the show...
while Susie came in a close second with just one vote behind Bob...
poor Sugar did not get any vote at all...
kinda expected cos she is always the crying one...
there goes another season of Survivor...
immediately one week after the finale of The Amazing Race...
guess it’s now back to my 90210, True Blood, Dexter, Fringe, Brothers & Sisters, Heroes and Gossip Girl...
and of course the first season of Touched By An Angel...

LONG LIVE AMERICAN TV...

Christmas Shopping...

started my Christmas shopping more than a month ago...
mostly at Borders...

today after work, decided to stop by Raffles City for more Christmas shopping...
managed to find Sonny's gift at Robinsons...
was strolling around aimlessly for more gifts...
but was not lucky there...

think i shall continue my shopping at Plaza Singapura tomorrow...

Prayers Of Thanks...

it was raining since the night before...
went out for breakfast at Loyang Point...
had roti prata plus yam cake plus glutinous rice...
simple and nice...

met up with mum and brothers at the Loyang Tua Pek Kong temple...
as it was raining, i took the bus instead...
gave our prayers of thanx to the Tai Sui for protecting my younger brother and me over the last one year...
picked up a free calendar on the way out...
will be back again after Chinese New Year...
to ask for protection from the Tai Sui for my mum and elder brother...
whose zodiac signs are Goat and Dog...
together with Ox and Dragon, are the four zodiac signs that clash with the Tai Sui...

headed home after that...
busy clearing my emails, watching TV and catching up on my newspapers and other readings...
will have to start cleaning my room for CNY after my KL trip...
i have dedicated two Saturdays to complete the spring cleaning...

The Day The Earth Stood Still...

met my ex-staff for our early Christmas gathering...
cos Ranelle is returning to The Philippines for holidays from 20 Dec...
lunch was hosted at Peter’s place in Yew Tee’s The Quintet...
nice place, quiet and peaceful...
except for his two Jack Russell Terriers...
and once in a while, his baby boy, Caleb...
was busy entertaining the boy for a while...
but it was fun... at least he was not crying when i was playing with him...
got a cardholder from Anthropology for my gift exchange...
i bought books for all of them...
hope they can cultivate the good habit of reading...

met Sonny for a movie at Downtown East...
wanted to catch Twilight but was late...
ended up watching The Day The Earth Stood Still...
sub-standard show with bad plot, bad acting and bad special effects...
even Keanu Reeves was not able to save the movie...
although he did save the Earth in the movie...
lolz...

Survivor: Gabon...

since Sonny no longer has a car a couple of months back...
my Friday nights have been spent in front of the television...
first to catch The Ghost Whisperer at 10pm, followed by Survivor: Gabon at 11pm...
this week’s Survivor was rather interesting...
Bob, the oldest man in the competition, has won 4 challenges in a row...
alliances are being broken... and new ones formed...
no one knows who will be the next to be voted out until the end of the show...
i was glad that Matty is still in the race while Crystal, the black bitch, was voted out...
since the first season of Survivor, i have been watching it sporadically...
and each time it further reinforces my view about humans...
that we are all different...
that we are all capable of the worst and the best in us...
that nothing in fair in this world...

Smoking Ban...

so the National Environment Authority has announced smoking ban for the following:
• Lift lobbies
• Markets
• Multi-storey & basement carparks
• Hotel lobbies
• Ferry terminals
• Playgrounds
• Exercise areas
• Non air-conditioned shopping centres, shops, factories & offices
• Within 5 metres of entrances & exits

for full list of places, please visit NEA’s website: No Smoking

luckily i am only a social smoker...
not much of an impact...

Thank You...

The Pasta Shop called me to thank me for the feedback i have provided...
they admitted that their staff were vacation students who were new to the restaurant...
and that they were not experienced...
they explained that one of the managers that day called in sick...
and they could not find a covering manager...
hence the mess...
they further admitted that the kitchen was really slow in dishing out the food...
their own survey showed that waiting time could be as long as 45 minutes...
considering that they have only opened for business for about a month...
these are things that they have to iron out...

told her i was quite pleased with the quality of the food...
and would like to see the service standard improve...
so that they could be successful...

HDB...

recent reports have shown that prices of HDB flats are still sky high...
whereas those of private housing has started to decline...
the reports went on to say that it will take at least 12 to 18 months before HDB flats will catch on the decline...

i turned 35 years old at a time when prices of HDB flats are exorbitant...
and i never fancy private condominiums...
so now it is a waiting game...
waiting for the HDB prices to come down...
and waiting for the perfect location...
Bishan... my dream heartland to be...

Cars...

recently the COE for small cars crashed to S$1...
and the cheapest Off-Peak Car (OPC) was selling at S$11,000...
that was less than my entire New York trip in October 2008...

been trying to convince myself on getting a car...
but could not find sufficient justifications...
especially now that the North-East Line is only 2 bus stops away...
and i enjoy the quality time spent public transport to read, people-watch or listen to my ipod...
of course public transport is definitely cheaper than owning a car...
and i always have the option of driving dad’s car if i really want to...

so the choice is obvious...

Customer Service: One Way Or Two Ways...

met up with Sonny for dinner at Wheelock Place...
Sonny had his tooth extracted in the afternoon and could only have soupy food...
as usual, Sun With Moon was crowded (even on a Thursday) with 25 to 30 minutes of waiting time...
even Sakae had a queue which surprised us...
came across this new restaurant The Pasta Shop (which is run by Sakae) a few shops away...
decided to give it a try since it was rather empty...

the concept is similar to Pasta de Waraku, except they do not serve pizzas...
we ordered a potato salad, wet pasta with scallops and spinach (for they ran out of asparagus) and pasta cabonara with bacon and egg...
besides being a little too salty, the food was not too bad...

unfortunately, the service sucks BIG time...
most, if not all, the waiters and waitresses were young school boys and girls...
and my sense is they were never trained on customer service...

1. we were standing at the entrance for a while but no one came to greet us... they were all busy running around for whatever reasons...
2. they did not smile at the customers... first i thought it was only us, but later i found out they generally do not smile at all...
3. we had to ask for our iced water...
4. the guy who served our potato salad did not bring us any cutlery... and we had to ask from another waiter...
5. the food took a long time to arrive... by the time they served my cabonara, Sonny had finished his pasta...
6. it was only at the entrance, after we have paid, that the waitress smiled at us with a “See you again”...

the two guys at the table next to us had a worse time...
his pasta was still not served despite after he reminded the staff twice...
but when the pasta finally arrived, he angrily (and bitchily) told the waiter that he did not want it anymore...
which left the waiter in a shocked blank “what-the-fuck” look...
the customer then walked to the cashier, paid and left...

i do believe that good customer service works both ways...
it won’t work if only the service staff is doing all the work...
the customer has to reciprocate accordingly...
just like any relationship...
the fact that the customer is paying the 10% service charge should not make any difference...

Standard Chartered Half Marathon...

woke up at 3:30am to get ready for the half marathon...
breakfast of 3 pieces of bread...
pre-run jitters resulted in visiting the toilet 3 times...
taped the nipples and applied lubricant on my thighs to prevent abrasions...
made sure the ipod shuffle is working fine...
got dressed and left the house at 4:40am...
the shuttle bus left Hougang Sports Complex at exactly 5am...
it was a full bus...
looks like the number of runners has increased significantly over the years...
reached City Hall area around 5:20am...
unlike previous years where i deposit my bags in Joseph’s car...
this year Joseph is running the full marathon while i am sticking to my half...
deposited by bag at the baggage counter...
there were 5 segments this year...
the baggage area looks a lot more organised this time...
only problem is the muddy field...
went to poo before doing my warm ups...
while warming up, i saw the full marathon runners passing the Esplanade Bridge...
it was quite a sight considering the number of runners this year...

this year’s half marathon route was different from last year’s...
it contained quite a number of U-turns which was quite irritating...
also, the distance markers for the half marathon was not quite correct...
i only covered 2km after 45 minutes...
which was impossible...
decided to skip some of the water points...
waited for those with the isotonic drinks...
by the 17km mark, my legs were beginning to ache...
and i was limping a little for the last one kilometre...
hunger strikes soon after...
luckily there was banana and i ate one to keep the energy level up...
completed the race in 2 hours 43 minutes...
not my worst timing but also not one that i should be proud of...
although i did not set any personal best for myself this year...

after the race, picked up my finisher’s medal and collected my bag...
changed into my slippers and took the MRT home...
with my T-shirt and shorts still wet from the run...

reached home and my knees were aching badly...
this must have been the most painful experience i ever had...

suddenly the thought of hanging up my running shoes came to mind...
it was just this year that i hung up my dancing shoes...

i will continue to run as a leisure sport...
but to take part in races like these where i have to wake up in the wee hours...
it is just too much for a body that is already 36 years old...

Long Time No Update...

it has been a while since i last updated my blog...
that was because i started writing notes on facebook...
which sort of replaced the blogging...
but now that facebook has been blocked in office, just like instant messaging...
i am back to updating my blog during office hours...
so you will see more consistent blogging from now on...
hahahaha...

since i joined the new company in Raffles Place...
i either pack my lunch or have Herbalife shake for lunch...
besides blogging, i am also using my lunch hour to read...
i have been buying books from Borders, using the 30% (+ 10% member) discount...
books, all of a sudden, are so cheap and highly affordable...
but i should control my urge to buy more books...
until i have finished reading what i already have on my bookshelves...