One year wiser?

My birthday’s coming up and I’ve received my first cake – a banana walnut muffin (my favorite flavor) (p)reserved from yesterday. The thought really counts! The icing on the cake really was the flame on the candle. Very environmentally friendly and real – it flickered when I blew at it! Thereafter, I could remove it with my fingers. I love it so much that I broke out in tears of joy (or laughter, rather) uncontrollably.

I didn't have to go to OCBC!

Birthday wish for this year is there will be no more terrorists in USA and Canada for now, so I can go for my holiday there in spring. They can make a comeback after that.

For now, I think it’s more important to cut my fringe/trim my hair! And not forgetting a photo of me in the necklace my colleague bought me for Xmas, as presented by McDull earlier!

Childhood Friends

These are 2 of the friends I meet annually – when the one oin the middle, a PhD student in engineering, comes back to Spore from Australia once a year. Other times of the year, the rest of us are all in Spore but never meet or even contact. Once in a while, I do get sms adverts like so-and-so has gone into some business, festive wishes which have been dwindling.

More about these 2 friends: one in the middle should be my oldest friend unless I can trace my kindergarten friends. I knew him since pri one. The other one was from another class and said he also knew us since pri one cuz we joined them for Chinese classes, but we have absolutely no recollection. He lives and works near me but we never kept in touch. The cool thing about him – he is a ROCKER! So proud that I know him!

Their lives sound fun but I also have my far share of fun and excitement – the daily intelligence journal and now even in the research work for a property project (highly confidential). How cool?!

The one on the left is ME.

Precious English Lesson

I had wanted to gather over time and then put up the list of precious (but widely/daily available) pointers from a foreign talent. However, the pinnacle was reached last Friday, so I had to put the list up before the next one, at the expense of bad karma. Please appreciate this:

Pronunciation:
Morning/ afternoon = morling/afterloon which have now been corrected but followed by “se-peaking”.
Clinic = key-e-nic
Empty = empathy
Guess what 'organic yoga' means? Our initial guesses were yoga without a mat or naked yoga. It turned out to be neither cuz she meant 'organic yogurt'.

Spelling:
Manicure = Menicure
Pedicure = Penicure (my boss said this service only available to men)

Yes, copyright belongs to the foreign talent who said she got PR status within a year cuz she’s bilingual! Singaporeans, buck up!!!

More X’mas presents!

More interesting and beautiful presents received!

From Canada:


One of the three legendary animals for the Vancouver winter olympics 2010. This one is called Quatchi, a sasquatch which eats anything n has big feet – just like me! But it can do a split which I only managed up to secondary school. He wears earmuffs, just like McDull!

Colourful dainty necklace. My friend and I have been searching for a multi-shaped, multi-material and multi-coloured necklace. This makes a good interim one!

From Singapore (and Sarawak – the sender is):

A cute but not-so-powerful milk bottle fan - but probably the most irritating gift i got this year. Quatchi’s hair barely moved.

A bunch of leaves necklace. Love this one but haven’t found right clothes to match it but here’s to show much I value it.

Doesn't he look royal with it?

Avatar

Great show! Though initially put off by the smurf-looking blue monkeys. After watching it, the characters seemed more based on zebras than monkeys. And must it in 3D, though sometimes I got tricked by my own eyes – I thought the flying stones are going to hit me or something and panicked for a moment.

My only peeve is that the 3D specs are manufactured in the US, so given my asian nose, the specs were too heavy and didn’t sit well on my nose. I was holding it almost throughout the 3-hour show.Those at Universal Studio were so much lighter and comfortable.

The ‘live nature and thy planet’ message is so much clean cut and crystal clear than the days of quacking at Copenhagen. And great soundtrack! Pls lend it to me of you have it!

Incidentally, I thinhk my last movie was Slumdog Millionaire. That shows how picky or out I am. My favourite singers are ABBA and The Bee Gees.

Collectible Accessories

I’m an accessories lover cuz I believe they can jazz up plain dressing. Most are bought from my own pocket and I’ve also received lots as gifts. Can’t feature so many here (lazy to take pictures and lost some, esp earrings), so here’re some blingy ones:

Bought this in a pair in Portland in March 2008. It turned single less than half a year.

My ex-colleague made this for me to make up for my loss. It suffered the same fate.

Ball of fur - Xmas present this year.

My recent favorite from mini bits. Worth buying – when there’s a sale.

Promised myself to stop buying bags cuz simply too many, esp from Naraya which I deeply regretted. However, when I saw this on new year’s eve, I knew I had to buy it - so chocolaty, delicious looking. And it was on sale.

I believe in choosing clothes and accessories your style. So if you’ve a china face (and most importantly the behaviour), yes you look good in the act-cute/striking/cheapo dresses and the carpet-looking shawl though 99.99% of things are MIC!

Ways to beat the office pervert

A blog entry suggested by my colleague and here’re my thoughts:-

How to stop the pervert from wolf-ing around in the office:

1. Warn him or get his buddies who aren’t fellow wolves to counsel him


2. Button your blouse all the way up (check that no buttons foul up), or simply go for the turtle neck


3. Wear stockings/leggings even if you dress is more than a metre long


4. Studs, nails n needles are in, look for those with these latest designs on the shoulders, waist... wherever he's most likely to put his arms around.
5. Step on his foot with your esp. with your stilettos if he sneaks up to you from your back. Just on his ‘foot’ and not ‘feet’ cuz you may lose your balance and end up in his arms


6. Roll your chair over his feet if he sneaks up from behind your seat


7. if he tries to get fresh with you, lure him to a crowded place like the pantry, where there's also hot boiling water


8. If he snaps your photo (of anything u consider an outrage of modesty), ask for a copy via email with the sweetest smile, then foward it to HR – straight to the director


9. Passively, wait for him to prey on queen bee
10. Kick him in the crotch as a last resort?
    

More suggestions welcome!

Merry Crimbo and may you stay away from all wolves!