Why Am I So Unlucky Lately?!

Can you believe I actually got fired today due to linguistic inability?! It came as such a surprise to me when at the end of the day, I was summoned to the other partner's room, and said my services are terminated. They are paying me one and half months in advance as compensation. Apparently they preferred someone who can speak a variety of dialects to handle the clients my Boss has.

In the first place, when I went for the interview, I already stated that I am not able to speak any dialect, but if they really needed someone who can speak dialect, I can try to pick up. So I was told I was actually supposed to be working for one of the other lawyers who would be going to court and I had to follow to court and prepare all the necessary documentation. Then on my first day, they put me under the big Boss himself - the one with all the foreign and elderly clients who cannot speak my language and I cannot understand when they talk too fast.

Is there anything wrong with just knowing how to speak English?! They hired me despite knowing that, and now they removed me for the same reason?! Apparently I got into some trouble with one of the Indonesian Associates who thought I was from Indonesia (not the first time someone think I am Indonesian so I am used to that already), and started speaking to me in Bahasa. I thought he was talking on the phone so did not reply. In the end he had to raise his voice at me just when my Boss happened to walk past. I apologised and said that I did not know he was talking to me, and besides, I do not speak Bahasa (at least not yet). Anyway there was still some miscommunication as I could hardly understand his English so I made some mistakes in some of the documents and he started screaming at me again. I had to amend the documents five times (first was the miscommunication, the rest was because he could not make up his mind thus kept changing the wordings) before he was finally satisfied.

I guess also whenever a dialect-speaking client called I had to pass the phone to my colleague who could understand the dialect. Thus a lot of times, my colleague ended up solving the problem for me. Anyway I believe along the way something happened and some people said some things so now the bosses think I am totally incompetent.

Plus the fact that whenever I was not sure of things, I had to spend some time reading up and researching, and asking for guidance on how best to handle so as to solve the problem in the best way, thus people must have felt that I am really incapable of handling matters. But it is not as if I ask all the time, only once in a while when I was really stumped on what to do. And, as usual, I still meet people who take credit for what I do. Is it any wonder why I got fired then?

Why am I so unlucky lately?! Now I am out of love, probably soon to be out of family, and now out of a job as well. The only good thing that came out of it was that I have two interviews scheduled already, one tomorrow and the other on Tuesday. Strange coincidence to receive emails on the job interviews the very day I lost my job. And it was on the resume I sent in quite some time back, before this recent job. Now I have to go through the entire tiring procedure again.....

Why can't I just have some good luck for once?!

Sexual Discrimination?

I have come to the conclusion that this is still a merciless male-dominated patriarchal society. No doubt things are more equal than before, but there is still sexual discrimination around. All things being equal, ie same qualifications, same results, same job, the men still get higher starting salaries than women, better job prospects and chances of promotion. For a woman to be able to rise up in this world, she must put in thrice as much effort and show ten times as much capability as the men. Still, it is a good sign of progress that more and more women are now able to rise up quicker than before.

Perhaps this discrimination originated a long long time ago during Confucian times. Confucius’ philosophy was that a woman was subjected to the bidding of her father, husband and her son when he took over as head of the family. Punishment to a woman who committed a grave mistake would be worse than a man who made the same mistake. A man could fool around and have many concubines, and the wife had to bear with it all in silence. Yet a woman could not even look or talk to another man. Unfair, isn’t it?

This trend did not occur in just the olden Chinese society alone. Even in Western societies, the men were the head of the household and only the sons could inherit; the women have to be subjected to what their fathers and husbands wanted them to do. Whether it was ancient Greece during the times of the Peloponnesian War between Athens and Sparta, or medieval England during the times of the chivalrous knights, women often have to be traded between the warring countries so as to make peace. These women have to marry men they did not love and some of them had to wallow in misery for the rest of their lives.

Due to this supreme dominancy between the male and female gender, is it any wonder then that men are still chauvinistic in this era? Men still feel threatened when a woman rises higher than them at work, or if their wives earn more than them, or are higher-educated or smarter than them.

Of course I am not saying all the guys are like that. Most of the guys I know are pretty nice and have no qualms for a woman surpassing them, but from what I observe, there are guys who still have the chauvinistic mentality who think that women will never be better than men.

Traditionally, a woman’s place is at home and the kitchen. Women were not allowed to study, and could only stay at home, cooking, sewing, taking care of the husband, in-laws and kids. In ancient times, some of these women were not even allowed to talk to their own parents anymore once they got married. Only the rich and affluent girls were allowed to learn how to read and write, but even then, once they got married, they had to listen and respect their husband’s wishes.

Strangely, if domestic affairs are more a woman’s cup of tea, why are the best chefs, fashion designers, makeup artists and hairstylists all men? On the other hand, if men are traditionally better at entrepreneurship and running a business, then why are some of the best CEOs of public-listed companies women then? Like the CEO of SembCorp, or Hyflux or Temasek Holdings. At least it gives one hope that society is progressing at a fast pace and changing for the better.

I grew up in a conservative family, so I have my share of discrimination as well. We seem to have more girls in my family, and although my grandmothers always claim they have no preference, it is very obvious that the treat their own sons and grandsons better than their daughters and granddaughters. Sexual discrimination probably originates from family upbringing.

My paternal grandma was very lucky to have a mother and brother who wanted to educate her. So her brother used to bring her to the village school, and she was often subjected to the merciless teasing of the guys in her class as she was the only girl in the entire school. She almost wanted to drop out but her brother protected her from the bullies in her class. She topped the class every year and managed to complete what is now Secondary One, but after that the school ruled that girls were not allowed to progress further, thus she had to give up studying. Up to now, she still reads the Chinese newspapers everyday. Yet my aunt was not allowed to continue her education beyond what is ‘A’ levels now, but my uncle and father both could go to university.

My mum used to be the top student in her school too, but my grandma disallowed her from attending university as she thought that my uncles’ university educations were already too much to bear, and besides, my mum is a female so need not be too educated. My mum fought with my grandma over this issue, and in order to pay for her university education, she took on several odd jobs part time while studying. I guess she had her own share of poverty, thus wanted all of us to have a good life. Perhaps that is why she expects so much from me. Yet my mum now treats my brothers so differently from me.

No matter how the world is changing, I guess parents, being parents, will still have discrimination, especially in favouring the male children over the female children. Is it any wonder why the rest of the society is so patriarchal then? Although with all the feminists fighting for the cause of feminism, things are already much better now than, say twenty years ago, but discrimination is still there. Maybe it is this sexual discrimination that some women do not make good bosses, as once they are in a high rank, they will want to prove themselves and outdo all the men?

For me, I am not a feminist like some of my friends. I do not care what rank I rise up to or how many men are under me. What am I trying to prove and what do I have to prove? That the men under me are less capable? Or that I can finally get back at the men who have trodden me? I work to sustain my self and my family, not because of prospects of promotions opportunities. And I have no qualms living a domesticated life with just my family around me.

My girl friends always said I am very stupid to have this thinking; I am educated so why do I even need a guy? I feel that one can get a job anywhere as long as one is willing to work, but a good man who can truly love you and a loving family who looks up to you do not come by so easily. I may be stupid, but I know what is most important to me in my life at the end of the day.

TIME : A Fashion Magazine?

This week’s TIME Magazine comes with a supplement of TIME Style, where the entire issue is on the fashion legends and icons like Polo Ralph Lauren, Christian Dior and Giorgio Armani, as well as the new looks for Fall 2005. Well, is TIME Magazine moving towards the fashion arena? Then the other fashion magazines will have to go out of business soon.

I have been reading extracts of articles from TIME Magazine since my university years, but I have only started reading every issue this year. My youngest brother is very lucky to go to a school where the students have to subscribe to TIME Magazine as part of General Paper classes. I never had that priviledge. So everytime my brother is done with an issue, he will hand it over to me and I will spend hours poring over the interesting articles inside.

TIME Magazine is a good read because the articles are on world issues and current affairs. The articles feature journalism in the highest degree. It is a journalist’s dream to be on the editorial panel of TIME Magazine, just like it is a photographer’s dream to be on the panel of National Geographic Magazine.

I remember when I was taking my curriculum English module back in NIE, the lecturer told us about the different degrees of writing for different audience. Take our local papers for example. The New Paper is targeted for ‘N’ Levels, Straits Times for ‘O’ Levels, Business Times for ‘A’ Levels, and TIME Magazine and The Economist for degree holders. Readers’ Digest is for everyone. Thus, there is a big difference in the writing styles and articles featured in the various papers and magazines.

This also reminded me of the time when I was doing introductory law and we had to submit a portfolio of fifteen articles on the issues and different areas of law. The lecturer specifically told us not to take any articles from The New Paper. The articles must at least be from The Straits Times, and she expected us to check out other newspapers of the world as well. So I had to go round the whole island searching high and low for foreign newspapers like the International Herald Tribune (the best newspaper I have ever read so far), South China Daily Post, The Daily Mirror, Apple Daily, The Star, Asian Tribune, Bangkok Post, The Nation and The Sun. One newspaper I have never been able to find but would so love to read is the New York Post.

I have been reading Reader’s Digest since I-cannot-remember-when, and some of the articles are light-hearted and heart-warming. It is a good read after a tiring day of school and you like to learn more about how to grow nice vegetables or take care of your pet, etc. I do not buy The New Paper, although I will always borrow from my friends whenever I see them with one. My friends have the habit of buying The New Paper and reading it on the bus or train.

My parents subscribe to both The Straits Times and the Chinese newspaper, so almost every evening I will just flip and scan through the articles. I do not read Business Times although I do read The Economist once in a while as and when I managed to find a copy. I have been reading the local female magazines as there are many real issues which I can relate to, as well as National Geographic as I am always astounded by the beautiful photos. Besides, I can learn more about what is happening to the natural environment around us. Now my favourite read is TIME Magazine, full of intense articles with no right and wrong conclusions, issues which readers can debate over.

I am not sure if this is the first time that TIME Magazine comes with a fashion supplement, but I guess this is the reason why it is such a good read and highly popular around the world. It uses different genres of writing, and tackles a wide variety of issues, from politics to history to geography to science and technology to business to literature to economics to religion and now to fashion. One will feel so much more enriched just by reading one article from TIME alone. This is one magazine I am definitely going to continue subscribing to, together with Readers’ Digest and National Geographic.

Best And Worst Dates

I was asking my recently-married friend how she met her husband. She replied it was through an outing with some friends that she got to know him. Their first official date was at Country Manna at Suntec City, so when they got registered last year, they chose that restaurant for their solemnisation. How romantic and sweet!

I started reflecting on the dates my friends went out on, some memorable and some not-so-memorable. A girl friend told me that her best date would be last year when her boyfriend (husband? since they have already registered) proposed to her under the moonlight at the open air bar atop Mount Faber. That is so romantic! My best friend confessed that her best and most memorable dates have always been with the guy that treated her the best.

What exactly does people define as a "good" or "bad" date anyway? I guess a "good" date means an outing with someone you do not mind going out with and both of you have a great time, are comfortable with each other, and really enjoy yourselves. A "bad" date will be one where just five minutes into the date, you already feel like going off.

I have my own share of good and bad dates as well, but I guess for most people, first dates with the partner (or new partner) would be the most memorable, although not necessarily the best. Sometimes, surprisingly, a date with just a mere friend may be even better than going out with your own partner, although I have never had that experience.

What do I remember of my first dates? My first date with my first guy was a Saturday at Marina South. We went kite-flying at the big field, bowling, eating oyster omelette at the hawker centre there, then took a long bus ride back to town. We were sitting at the long back seat right in the corner, just keeping silent and enjoying each other's company. That was our first and best date, as subsequently, we never had anymore "good" dates so to speak. And the irony was we were not even officially together yet at that point in time.

My first date with my second guy was, of all places, at his home. He sprained his ankle and I bought some of his favourite snacks over to see him. We ended up having a movie marathon, snacking, listening to the music blasting out from the radio, talking and laughing with each other, and dinner with his family. When we got together, our official first date was a day at Bugis Junction, where we went to Billy Bombers for lunch, watched two movies end to end, window shopped where he bought me a pair of earrings and a soft cuddly bear, sat down in a cosy coffee house and snacked on chocolate cake, went to Kinokuniya and browsed through the books, followed by a dinner at Swensens, and he saw me all the way to my front gate after that. I was hesitating whether to let him kiss me then, but he was so shy that we did not have our first kiss until a few days later.

My first date with my third guy was when I met up with our mutual friends at Lido for the midnight screening of "Gangs of New York", but on our first official date, we went to Swiss Culture for a (you guessed it!) chocolate fondue lunch, then to Shaw Towers opposite to play pool, and back to the old Marina Square to eat the famous pork noodles (when it was still there), and he walked with me all the way back to the train station before meeting up with his friends. These are some sweet things which will forever be locked in one's memories, no matter how many years have gone by.

But I think my very best date would be that particular evening, a few months after graduation, when my second guy took me out to Michaelangelo's at Holland Village to celebrate our fourth anniversary. He picked me up with his dad's car, whipped out a big bouquet of a dozen red roses, and we had a nice candlelight dinner with champagne. We actually had a ride in the car around Holland Village first before he finally stopped the car behind the restaurant. During dessert, that was when he whipped out that little box and popped the question. Not THE question, but the engagement question. That is still the most memorable date of all.

I have experienced bad dates too with my guys, but there were two incidents which stood out that I would consider the worst dates of all time. One was with my first ex, the other one was with a guy whom I never ever went out with again because he was just so totally repulsive! This guy wanted to celebrate my birthday so brought me to an Italian restaurant, and I ordered spaghetti bolognaise. The first words that came out of his mouth was, "Wow! You know French! Impressive!" Erh, that was not French and spaghetti is a very common dish. All the while he kept talking (in Hokkien and Singlish) about his rich family background, and the teachers he hated, the friends he hung out with, the activities he liked. What put me off was that he actually asked me why Shakespeare could not write in proper English! That was proper English of that time, only thing was the English language had evolved through the centuries. It was an unbearable three hours for me, listening to incessant chatter with a "language" I could hardly understand, and I had to pretend to be listening as I could not even get a word in.

The worst date with my ex was partly at Bugis Junction, after a bad morning. Concidentally I had my happiest and saddest moments there. It was on a Saturday and I had to go back to school for a make-up tutorial. The class was supposed to end at 11:45am but dragged until noon instead, and I was supposed to meet him at noon. He was a stickler for punctuality and if I was still not there on the dot he would just leave. Strangely he was always at least fifteen minutes late, yet I was expected to wait till he arrived. He was also in school that day to work on a project. I rushed out of the classroom and went to the main entrance where we were supposed to meet. I managed to make it just on time but he was not there.

After waiting for half an hour, I thought perhaps he had gone home or something, so called his home only to find that he was in school. That was the era where pagers and mobile phones were unheard of and practically non-existent, although I did carry a beeper then, a gift from him so he could "summon" me whenever he needed me (in his own words!). Well, I looked everywhere for him - library, general office, classrooms, canteen, basketball court, etc, but there was not a single trace. My beeper did not even beeped a single time.

I was panic-stricken as I thought something had happened. I waited until 1:30pm when he finally appeared - walking in from the school gates with his friends. Could he not have even paged me to let me know he was out of school?! To think I waited an hour and a half and searched the whole school looking for him! Apparently, they were in the library until 11:30am and then went out to the nearby hawker centre for breakfast. And he blamed me for not being resourceful enough to look for him!

Anyway we went down to Bugis Junction, where he made me buy new clothes to change out of what I was wearing. We came from school, obviously I would be more casually dressed. Then we went for lunch at the food court, or rather, I ate since he was full. He kept scolding me for the way I ate, my dress sense, and screamed at me for taking fifteen minutes just to finish my food, although I was already eating as fast as I could already. He said time was too precious to waste, he could be doing a lot of things instead of being out with me. So being out with me was a waste of time then? I wanted to watch a movie but he claimed that as wasting time, so I suggested going to Kinokuniya to browse through the books, but he said reading was a bigger waste of time. He wanted to just hang out and window shop (which I think would be an even bigger waste of time as compared to watching a show or browsing in a book store, as after all you would just be walking around and doing nothing).

When evening arrived, we went to Bugis Village for dinner, and I developed gastric after that since I ate so fast as he made me finish my food within ten minutes otherwise he would just go off. Then since he had a straight bus back to his place, I had to wait with him at the bus stop till he boarded the bus, before walking all the way to the train station to take the train home myself. When I reached home that day, I cried myself to sleep.

That was practically one of the worst days of my life. I also could have just stayed home and did my own stuff, instead I chose to go out with him since we had not gone out for a few weekends, yet I got treated this way. Thinking back, why did I not just leave after he stood me up? My best friend said she would have left after half an hour, why did I continue waiting? Yes, why, I wonder? Was it a combination of first love, youth, immaturity and naivety? Or perhaps I was really just a sucker for punishement and masochism.

Apocalypse Now?

Thank goodness my first brother is alright! Saw him online last night. He told me the damage was not as bad as was reported in the media, but six people did die as they were either crushed by falling trees or swept away by the overflowing rivers. Water and electricity supply was cut off for two days and was only resumed last night. Phone lines were still cut though thus he could not call back.

My dad finally called back but my mum refused to speak to him. He told me what happened - he was in a meeting so gave his phone to his female assistant. When my mum called she was the one who answered but the batterty became flat, hence the disconnection. So the misunderstanding is cleared.

Actually I think my dad should just come back. What my mum probably wants is for him to come back and appease her (speaking from a woman's point of view). It is not the first time my mum has over reacted or threatened divorce. I think she believes my dad will not cheat on her but perhaps all her tantrums are to make my dad stay around more often? After all, which woman can stand for it for her husband to be away most of the time and never around for the family and her? Especially at her age when her career is at a standstill and her children are independant, she probably feels more lonely than before. Like someone said, parents are also humans and they can act childishly too, even more so for someone like my mum who likes to insist on her own way. I feel helpless seeing my mum so upset but there is nothing much I can do as well except pray that everything is well for them.

Just read that the dengue virus has spread to Malaysia and now there is even a horse virus which just spread to dogs. So all the animals are dying one after another and humans are contracting deadly epidemics. Seems like Apocalypse is arriving. Now I have to hope and pray that there will not be another holocaust, be it at home and the world.

The Power Of The Written Word

It is amazing the type of message one can bring across through language and communication. Words can make others melt or be infuriated. I guess it all boils down to the proper usage of the language. For people who are more proficient, they are able to play around with the words and still bring the message across in a sophisticated way.

The written word seems ten times more effective in conveying a message than the spoken word. That is the reason people prefer writing letters or writing down their feelings. Seeing the words in black and white brings the messages across better than verbatim. When people speak, their verbal messages may be distorted and lots of misundestandings may ensue. I am so ashamed of myself that after years of being an English student, I have still not reached the stage where I can make people swoon over my words alone.

One of my friends has posted an entry on how to use other types of words to cover up expletives. Another friend also posted a couple of interesting entries on how some sentences can be taken out of context. Interestingly, these contexts are mainly of the sexual nature. Perhaps the dominant instinct to mate is prevalent in every mammal, homo sapiens included, thus the first thing that normally comes to people’s minds are things of a sexual nature. (Of course I am not speaking for all.)

My friend was writing about the concept of a “colourful” language by using a creative way to use the power of words to cover any expletives and the tool for any effective communication. An extract from his post as stated :

Unfortunately, the need to exclaim in annoyance and/or frustration remained. That's when the "nicotine patch" of explexities stepped in. The "fish" and "duck" and milder (and hence less offensive and more acceptable) "s**t". But these soon caught on with my peers and I started to get bored of them. Then came the moment of enlightenment: a good friend of mine observed that usually it's more important HOW you say a word/phrase rather than the word/phrase itself. It's the amount of emotion and ur articulation of it that imbues it with the power that it has. So, we started experimenting with a couple of innocuous words and discovered that multi-syllablic words were quite effective. Thus began frequent cries of "E-le-phant!" and "Wa-ter-me-lon!" and my personal favourites, "Ba-na-na!" and "Ram-bu-tan!". In fact, it became somewhat of a manifestation of our individuality and creativity. ;-) And to add a bit of emphasis and spice, we'd occasionally intone, "Blar-dee papaya!" or something similarly cathartic. :-)

Using words to cover expletives are not the entire power of the language. What about words taken out of context? There are sentences that could be spouted innocently but taken to mean something else altogether. The other friend I mentioned had the fortune (or misfortune?) to be involved in situations where words spoken could be taken out of context. Extracts from his post :

- The man with the bottle in his hand was hitting on the other man. (Actually this referred a a fight in a food centre.)

- "How (person A) Got to the Top and How Long He Took" (an innocently suggested title for an interview with a top male Scrabble player)

- Since you are seated right next to her, you can bang her. You can only bang her once, unless you have some special power that allows you to immediately bang her again several times. (Two persons playing a Bang! Cardgame.)

Makes one think of things, don’t they? But the most classic one is this :

MICHAEL Buerk watching Phillipa Forrester cuddle up to a male astronomer for warmth during BBC1's UK eclipse coverage remarked: "They seem cold out there, they're rubbing each other and he's only come in his shorts."

KEN Brown commentating on golfer Nick Faldo and his caddie Fanny Sunneson lining-up shots at the Scottish Open: "Some weeks Nick likes to use Fanny, other weeks he prefers to do it by himself."

MIKE Hallett discussing missed snooker shots on Sky Sports: "Stephen Hendry jumps on Steve Davis's misses every chance he gets."

JACK Burnicle was talking about Colin Edwards' tyre choice on World Superbike racing: "Colin had a hard on in practice earlier, and I bet he wished he had a hard on now."

CHRIS Tarrant discussing the first Millionaire winner Judith Keppel on This Morning: "She was practising fastest finger first by herself in bed last night."

WINNING Post's Stewart Machin commentating on jockey Tony McCoy's formidable lead: "Tony has a quick look between his legs and likes what he sees."

ROSS King discussing relays with champion runner Phil Redmond: "Well Phil, tell us about your amazing third leg."

CRICKETER Neil Fairbrother hit a single during a Durham v Lancashire match, inspiring Bobby Simpson to observe: "With his lovely soft hands he just tossed it off."

CLAIR Frisby talking about a jumbo hot dog on Look North said: "There's nothing like a big hot sausage inside you on a cold night like this."

JAMES Allen interviewing Ralf Schumacher at a Grand Prix, asked: "What does it feel like being rammed up the backside by Barrichello?"

STEVE Ryder covering the US Masters: "Ballesteros felt much better today after a 69."

THE new stand at Doncaster race course took Brough Scott's breath away... "My word," he said. "Look at that magnificent erection."

WILLIE Carson was telling Claire Balding how jockeys prepare for a big race when he said: "They usually have four or five dreams a night about coming from different positions."

CARENZA Lewis about finding food in the Middle Ages on Time Team Live said: "You'd eat beaver if you could get it."

A FEMALE news anchor who, the day after it was supposed to have snowed and didn't, turned to the weatherman and asked, "So Bob, where's that eight inches you promised me last night?" Not only did HE have to leave the set, but half the crew did too, because they were laughing so hard!

US PGA Commentator - "One of the reasons Arnie (Arnold Palmer) is playing so well is that, before each tee shot, his wife takes out his balls and kisses them .... Oh my goodness!!!!! What have I just said?!!!!"

METRO Radio - "Julian Dicks is everywhere. It's like they've got eleven Dicks on the field."

HARRY Carpenter at the Oxford-Cambridge boat race 1977 - "Ah, isn't that nice. The wife of the Cambridge President is kissing the Cox of the Oxford crew."

TED Walsh - Horse Racing Commentator - "This is really a lovely horse. I once rode her mother."

NEW Zealand Rugby Commentator - "Andrew Mehrtens loves it when Daryl Gibson comes inside of him."

PAT Glenn - Weightlifting commentator - "And this is Gregoriava from Bulgaria. I saw her snatch this morning and it was amazing!"

Reminds me a little of the campfire songs of old, where the first phrase involves a vampire who can suck, second phrase an ice-cream man who can lick and the third phrase a carpenter who can screw. Some of my more "imaginative" friends added in a fourth phrase involving a prostitue who can, erh, I do not think I need to spell it out. :-p

Maybe we should all start being more “civilized” and start experimenting with more “colourful” language to replace words that are undesirable or can be taken out of context? The pen is mightier than the sword indeed.

F.R.I.E.N.D.S.

This may sound really funny, but I just started to watch "Friends" seriously the past few days. I have watched snippets and a few episodes here and there, but this is the first time I am actually watching all the way from Season One onwards. My youngest brother is a huge fan of that show, and he actually bought the entire VCD compilation of all the seasons, thus I am starting to watch from the beginning, especially since the TODAY newspaper of yesterday had a review on the series.

Everyone I know is raving about the show. It started during the time I was in upper secondary and ended only last year. A full decade, really an achievement! Even other favourites like "Ally McBeal" which I used to catch snippets of did not last that long. My parents were very strict with television time, so when I was in school, I was not allowed to watch any television programmes in the evenings, and after I left school when I could watch anything I liked at anytime I liked, I got too busy to really sit down in front of a television set and watch a programme.

The few episodes I watched, plus the first few episodes I had been watching lately make me figure out why it is such a popular show. Friends hanging out at a coffee joint trading gossips. The themes are on friendship, love, relationships, career problems, family problems, finding one's true love, married life, having kids.... things which someone like me can relate to. These are very real issues which occur to anyone. Problems which can occur to me. I can totally relate - Rachel's need to be independant of her parents, Monica's mum favouring Ross over her, the depression one gets when the object of one's affection likes someone else, the seeking of someone who really loves you, the decision to make a major career change, the problem of conceiving and childbirth for married couples. (Well, not the last one, but at least that is a real issue for most married couples).

And the characters are so colourful. The innocence and sweetness of Rachel who had been so sheltered, the intellect and idiocy of Ross, the controlling and obsession of Monica, the lame and sarcastic Chandler, the simple-minded but lovable Joey, and the loyalty and selflessness of Phoebe. All these characters are as real as any of us. The complicated issues they have to deal with are also real albeit exaggerated - Ross's lesbian ex-wife, Rachel getting pregnant with Ross's child after a one-night stand, Monica and Chandler finally falling in love with each other in London, Phoebe finding her true love, and Joey? Still the simple-minded lovable fellow.

Which is why the show is so endearing to everyone who watched it. Which is also why most of my friends love the show so much, and love every character in the show. Me? I am going back to the time when I was still sixteen and catch up on the lost years by watching the entire series from the beginning to the end.

Sixth Sense?

Have you ever wondered where do we go after we are gone? Some believe in life after death, ie our souls either go to Heaven, Hell or the Purgatory in between. Some believe in reincarnation, ie our souls would be reborn as an animal or human, depending on how good or bad our previous lives had been. There are some who believe that some souls wander around aimlessly, mostly harmless, except for a few mischievous ones.

There are people who can “see” things, people who are blessed (or cursed?) with what is called sixth sense, or psychic powers, or the “third eye”. In fact, I know a couple of guys who can actually see and sense things. Seems like it is always guys, never girls, at least never any I know or heard of, that has this uncanny ability.

I have friends who went through army training at Pulau Tekong, one of the offshore islands, supposedly to be the most “unclean” of all army camps. This guy I know used to be rather sickly when he was young. Once, after a major illness, the priest at the temple which his mum and grandma was attending said the spirits knew he could “see” them, thus he was more prone to their attacks. Accordingly, he was made to drink some concoction and opened his “third” eye, and from then, his health got better.

Anyway, he was recounting that in the middle of the night while in camp, he went to the common bathroom and was about to relieve himself when he saw a while form sliding by. He just finished whatever he was doing and went back to bed. We were all astounded at his calmness, but he said as long as we did not do anything, they would not harm us.

Things like these got me thinking just how much is fact and how much is fiction. But my friend has no reason to tell a lie, especially about things detrimental to his entire health and mental state. My ex-boyfriend’s great-grandmother ever sensed something at her old place, and witnessed a chair rocking by itself. And the other friend who can “see” things is a born and bred staunch Catholic, but even he also once recounted how he saw two spirits having a conference together.

So does it mean that people who are Christians shall not believe or will not be prone to spiritual stuff? My secondary school is a convent, so there are crucifixes and prayer messages in every room, but I have teachers and schoolmates who have felt and heard things in certain rooms. I do believe that there are lots of unexplained events out there, things which no matter what religion you are or how staunch your beliefs are, still can never ever be explained.

Even in print and media there are stories like these circulating around. And genres on science-fiction and spiritual happenings are very popular among people. How do you think local writer Russell Lee’s True Singapore Ghost Stories series are so popular? Incidentally I submitted a story into Book 11 recounting my friend’s experiences, and although it was not published, I won S$50.00 for it.

There used to be a series of Japanese manga about a teacher who is a ghostbuster, and he dedicated his time to help save those students who had been possessed by ghosts and demons. The comic series included “beings” like the incubus and the succubus, the Japanese 100 Legends of ghosts (or something to that effect, anyway it was about a hundred more famous ghosts folktales). One of the strips also gave tips on how to open one’s “third” eye. Personally, I will never want to open any “third” eye whatsoever. Sometimes it is better not to be able to “see” anything.

I guess the best explanation for these “beings” seemed to be given by young Haley Joel Osment in the movie “Sixth Sense”, where he told Bruce Willis that he could see dead people. Sometimes these “people” did not know that they are already dead, thus still lingered on, probably because they did not die in peace or still have unfinished business. His words proved to be true in the show, when at the end of the movie, Bruce Willis realized that he had already been dead for a while, but never discovered that fact, as his unfinished business was to take care of the kid.

I hope I can have a good night’s sleep tonight …..

Hair There And Everywhere

My mum asked me to cut my hair last night. What?! Cut away my crowning glory?! NO!!!! I took almost a decade just to grow my hair back to this length, and one full rebonding session to get rid of the curls before my hair becomes this soft and silky, and now she wants me to get rid of it?

She complained it is too long, the ends and edges are all uneven and will be prone to split ends. She said if I must have long hair, keep it around chest level at the most, as anything longer will give a “messy” appearance. But if I cut the edges away, my curls will come back, and I do not want that, at least not until I have the time to go for another proper rebonding job. I am finally able to just slide my comb through my hair without any hassle, so no way am I going back to the old days of wavy hair where I have to take pains trying to detangle all the strands while brushing and combing.

Strangely, I never really cared how my hair looked like until after my rebonding job. At times when I was too pressed for time to curl my hair properly, I just let it be and the waves just curled on their own. But my hair became very messy as the curls were all over, ie some curled in, some curled out, so there was no proper style. After rebonding, everything became straight, so I do not have to worry about how my hair is like anymore.

Yet with straighter hair, I seem to want to take more care of it when it is much easier to maintain. Where in the past I would just brush my hair haphazardly and go out, now I will make sure I brush properly, and comb through before going out. In the past after washing my hair, I will leave it to dry naturally before brushing the curls. Now, I will comb through to detangle every strand, letting it dry naturally and comb through again after it is dry. Perhaps it is just human nature – when one had spent quite a bit on something, one will want to keep and maintain it in good condition to make it last as long as possible.

My aunt once remarked that I have rebonded my hair for more than a year now, why is it still as straight and sleek? When my cousin rebonded her hair, all the waves started coming back after a year or so, although none of my relatives have hair as wavy as mine. I discovered that a major part of hair maintenance has a lot to do with the shampoo one uses.

After I went for rebonding, the hair salon gave me a special shampoo and hair mask which I had to use for the first month and until they finished. After that, I just used my own shampoo, conditioner and treatment mask. I do not even stick to the same brand; I just buy whatever I fancy at that point in time whenever my old shampoo ran out.

So far I have used Pantene, Organics, Dove (all old formulas), Clairol Herbal Essence and Vidal Sassoon. Dove is still the best – my hair really becomes sleeker and silkier just after one use! Pantene and Organics are not bad too! If the older formulas of the shampoo is already good, then I really cannot wait to try out the newer improved formulas, as they will be even better! Clairol Herbal Essence only smells nice, but does nothing effective to the hair whatsoever. I find my hair actually tangled up more after using it. The same goes for Vidal Sassoon – my hair would tangle and the hair treatment cream did nothing for my hair.

So now I want to stock up on shampoos, conditioners and hair serums. When my mum goes grocery shopping again, I will ask her to buy the new and improved formuals for Pantene Smooth and Silky and Extra Moisturising shampoos and conditioners with the serum treatment, Organics Silky Straight, Soft and Silky, Long and Strong and Weighty and Smooth, Dove Moisturetherapy and Essential Care, and maybe even the Lux Super Rich Silky and Shiny shampoos and conditioners. But if I ask that I know she will only tell me off for being mad. :-p

I know I am being very vain and narcissistic here, but vanity is in a girl’s nature. Besides, the state of my hair now is the only thing really worthy to be proud of, since there is nothing much to mention about the rest of my features and body.

Trouble At Home

I received two apology messages today. One was from that pesky fellow. At least he finally agreed to leave me alone, so good riddance! The other was from my second ex. He apologised for what he requested and said he had managed to make his girlfriend happy by buying her something else. Well an apology is an apology, so I accepted both, although I hope I will never have to go through trouble like these again.

Just when I thought my troubles are over, I have more worries on the home front. A typhoon has struck the southern coast of China, killing six people as a result. I am mighty worried about my brother, who happened to be around that area. He just called back last night before the typhoon struck, and while talking to him, I could already hear the wind howling very loudly. I really hope nothing happens to him.

Today our house phone had been ringing off the hook. Our relatives who heard the news all called and asked if he was alright. We have not heard from him after the typhoon struck. He is the favourite of all my relatives, so whenever anything happened, they would be concerned for him. My youngest brother is the favourite of my parents. I seem to be nobody's favourite. At times, I wonder if people will show as much concern if anything were to happen to me.

My youngest brother just told me terrible news that my mum is planning to file for a divorce. Why am I always the last to find out important news like these?! It seems like my mum is fed up with my dad for always not being around. Like he was not around when my first brother was hospitalised for dengue fever earlier this year, he was not around when all three of us were down with chicken pox few years back, he was not around on special occasions like my grandmother's birthday. He would always make it a point to be around for my youngest brother's birthday, yet he would never be around during my birthday. At times I seriously wonder just who am I to them?

But the straw that broke the camel's back was when my mum tried to call my dad and a female answered the phone. Then after that his phone was switched off and my mum could not get through. Needless to say, she was hopping mad. When she was able to get through the line again, she demanded for my dad to come back immediately and explain matters to her. My dad said he could not come back so soon as he had not settled his work yet.

Why do I feel a sense of deja vu? This scenario sounds so familiar! But perhaps there really is a good explanation? After all, my parents did not survive almost thirty years of marriage for nothing. Although if my dad really did something to betray the whole family, I will never forgive him. Even my youngest brother, despite being the favourite one, also declared he will stand by my mum if anything happened. We know who is the one who has been contributing more to the family, and showing more dedication, commitment and time.

Despite all our disagreements and her perfectionist and pushing ways, my mum is one great person. Since my dad is always away, it was my mum that almost single-handedly brought us up, while coping with a demanding job and taking a part-time Masters as well. I really salute her for this! I do not think I can even have a quarter of her energy and ability. I really hope and pray that nothing will happen. I have seen the problems from broken homes. At this age where my parents should be enjoying each other's companionship, they should not suffer like this. And all the more so for a growing teenage kid like my brother, he should not be deprived of a complete home.

The Best-Laid Plans

“Did you just say you love me?” said I to a friend.

“Aye aye,” said he to me. To which he sent me a heart and a kiss.

“That is so sweet, but a pity you are not the type I like.” I feel bad breaking his heart, but I do not wish to go through another ordeal like what happened with that pesky fellow.

“Never mind, since both of us are history,” he answered.

“Excuse me?” I was bewildered.

“Yes, since I am the Samson to your Delilah, the Caesar to your Cleopatra, the Romeo to your Juliet, the Hamlet to your Ophelia and the Macbeth to your Lady. So ‘choose I, and you will never be regretted’, so said Malvolo, isn’t it?” And he thinks he is quoting everything so well.

“If you are to quote Shakespeare, please get your quotes right. It is ‘Choose I, and joy be the consequence’, as stated by Bassanio from ‘Merchant of Venice’.” I corrected. “Besides, Delilah caused Samson’s downfall, Cleopatra caused the death of both Caesar and Antony (and she herself was poisoned), Romeo killed himself for Juliet (who also committed suicide), Ophelia had to leave Hamlet, and Lady Macbeth turned mad and killed herself after causing Macbeth’s downfall.”

“…..” he was astounded. “I thought you will be touched by someone quoting Shakespeare to you.”

“I do not need anyone to quote Shakespeare to me. But if anyone is to do it, then make sure he does it right. I simply cannot stand it if a person knows nothing whatsoever and still think he is so smart.” I retorted.

“Ok, sorry. I just thought you will like a more literal guy.”

“Literacy is built from young. If you are not in the habit of reading and writing, then do not bother picking it up now as it will be too much for you to handle. Thank you very much as it is really flattering, but you are really not the type I am looking for.”

“So what is your type?” he asked.

“Someone smart and knowledgeable, can talk about any topic under the sun, someone with charisma, someone who has similar ideals to me, similar interests and someone who is caring, filial, respectful, who can at least speak proper fluent English and someone I can click with. I am not going to make the same mistake of ending up with the wrong person again.” I feel bad being so direct, but it is really no point if he is not my type.

“Ok, I will respect your decision then. I thought my plan will go so well and you will melt once I said those things. But anyway, have you found someone like that?” Seems like a nice guy at least.

“The best-laid plans of mice and men sometimes will fail because of poor order and method. One has to often rely on intuition and the little grey cells one has to ensure everything works out properly. And yes, I seem to have found someone smart, seems compatible and very similar to me, but for now, we are just friends. It is best to just let things happen naturally than to do up an action plan but in the end cannot achieve what you set out to do. I am trying not to be so emotionally-swayed and always let my heart overrule my head.”

“Erh… sorry, you are too “cheem” for me. Can you explain again?”

“Forget it, I am going to bed. Good night.” I signed out.

This reminds me of the time when my first brother was trying to court a girl in his college. He spent so much on her (no wonder my mum always complains that he behaves like some Singaporean rich young master up there), gave her everything she wanted, walked her back to her hostel, was there for her when she was down, yet at the end of it all, she said she only treated him as a brother, and started a relationship with someone else. When he called me crying to Heaven and Earth, I was at a loss as to how to comfort him. It also pains me to see him get rejected, especially since that girl was his first love after almost twenty years of his life. But he eventually got over her and was trying to court one of the freshmen in his college a few weeks ago, only to find that she is already taken.

My youngest brother also had a similar experience. His first love was a pretty girl in his secondary school. She is good in her studies and very active in school activities. When he showed me their class photo and pointed her out, I was remaking, “Good taste! Never knew you had such high expectations!” Even my ex-boyfriend agreed he made the right choice. He planned to let her know subtly, kept messaging her and talking to her online, called her up for help on any homework and was about to let her know how he felt about her. Unfortunately, she liked someone else who rejected her (I wonder why if she is really such a good catch), and after that she decided to concentrate on her ‘O’ level examinations, so my brother lost his chance. He seems to be over it now though, and said he will not think of starting a relationship until after his army days at least.

Why do these keep happening to all three of us? All of us seem to be so unlucky when it comes to love and relationships. But at times, no matter what you plan, things may turn out otherwise. Just like I never planned to be attached only until university or after that, but after secondary school until the time I graduated, I was already in two relationships. I planned to teach and contribute to society for life, but there are certain things that happened which changed the course of events.

Plans for love and relationships are not the only ones that fail. What about plans for murder? Murderers think they always have the best-laid plans, but in the end justice still caught up with them. And also things like family planning. Sometimes accidents do happen. No matter how one plans, unexpected things do happen at times. So since the best-laid plans may go awry, shall we even plan to do what we want to do out of life? Or shall we just go with the flow and take things naturally?

Career Or Family?

I heard from a former classmate that a friend who married straight out of university is now looking for a job. I am quite surprised because this lady was the envy of all of us. She married an Indonesian Chinese whose family owns some island off Indonesia, and they have properties scattered around Indonesia, Singapore, Australia, England and America. Thus, she has never worked ever since graduation. Now after five years of marriage and two kids, she wants to find a job before too late.

Why does she need to work in the first place? She lives such a good life and can be a socialite, enjoying all the political dinners and charity events which only the rich and famous can attend. She used to be rather happy with her life - married well, with her husband and in-laws treating her very well, and she did not wish to work so fast after graduation. Then when the kids came, she was busy taking care of the children. However, her in-laws were afraid of her wearing herself out, thus hired a maid each for the two kids.

So she started doing housework, only to be told by her mother-in-law to leave the domestic chores to the domestic helpers. So since she was so free, she went to take her Masters. Now that she has completed her Masters, she has absolutely nothing to do the whole day, thus decided to go to work so that she can do something to occupy her time. She remarked that the life of a "tai-tai" could last a year at the most, as soon, one will get sick of just shopping, eating, entertaining and spending money. It seems like people are never satisfied with their lives. Those who can never be a "tai-tai" yearn for that type of life, and those lucky enough to be one want to stop being one.

What about the other one? The normal homemaker, the one that just keeps house and takes care of the children while the husband works, and makes sure she makes the home comfortable so her husband will have no worries? Ironically, not many women are willing to be a housewife (especially not in this era and age), but if you think back, is being a "tai-tai" not the same as being a homemaker? Maybe the status and class is different, but it is essentially the same. Yet women dream of being a "tai-tai" but shun the idea of being a homemaker.

What about men? Are they for the idea of their women working? Unless the guy owns an island like my friend's husband, or like my relatives who own big businesses and have plenty of moolah and can afford for their wives not to work and enjoy life, chances are women still have to work. Most often than not, women end up marrying guys who may be well-off but not to the extent of wealthy, so they still have to work to supplement the income.

For instance, if the guy is earning S$4,000.00 per month and the lady S$3,000.00, their combined income can let them and their children lead comfortable lives. If she does not work, they will have to survive on his S$4,000.00 a month pay, so their lives will have to be simplified. Thus most guys nowadays will prefer their wives to work so that they need not work so hard, and with the wives supplementing the household income, the whole family can lead a better life.

I have been with three guys, all with different opinions on these. My first guy wanted his wife to stay home and be a housewife. She could not even take freelance or part-time work as he expected her to dedicate her heart and soul into the family and taking care of the children well. Needless to say, this was stemmed from his mother who all along had been a housewife and taking care of the home properly so his father could concentrate on his work without worries. Strange then that his mum was the one who told me that women should work, and given a chance, she would love to go out and work. My second guy had no preference whether his wife works or not. But my third guy would want his wife to work so that she could supplement the household income.

Personally for me, my family comes first. If need be, I will sacrifice my career for my family. My friends would never agree with me. They said how can I bear to sacrifice a career I built up for years just to be in that position? And my mum would disagree too. She would say that she saw me through to completing my tertiary education, and yet I do not wish to work in the future?! But I always think your career is nothing. When you grow old, your career is not going to be with you. How many times have you seen middle-aged people who give their lives serving the company but still get retrenched overnight? At the end of the day, it is a warm, loving and close-knit family that matters.

But of course, even if I do stay home and take care of the family, I will not be totally not working. Most likely I will take on freelance jobs, like tutoring or music teaching, or volunteering to occupy my time. Being a homemaker does not necessary mean one has to lose touch with society or the working world as well. Besides I can also supplement the household income even without working full-time. Truth be told, I think those women who gave up high-flying careers to be a stay-home mum are really great! They are willing to sacrifice for their families just so they can give the best to their families. I hope my children will also grow up in a nice loving and caring family as well. Although I wonder how many guys nowadays will like their wives not to work and just stay home to look after the house.

More Compilations ....

I was doing some PC spring-cleaning today when I came across an old archive of photos, taken during the first gathering at my place after the "Madame Butterfly" performance. It was a pot luck and everyone brought food, with the result of having too much food as you can see from one of the photos. Some of us went for a karaoke session after the gathering. This was way back in mid-May, before I got my camera and before I started blogging. Anyway, since I am making a compilation, I may as well add these in as well, so hope you like the snapshots!

Smile, you're on candid camera!

Oooooo.......

This tastes funny...

4 ladies of different Nationalities
(English, American, German and Dutch)

That's a lot of food

Yummy!!

What's this I'm eating?

Don't they look compatible?

The NTU foreign graduates

Something interesting on TV

At the KTV Lounge

Happily crooning away

Help! He's crushing us!

Help! Help!

Nice sexy legs!

The cosy couple
(although not a couple as yet that point in time)

Helpfulness : A Virtue?

I was talking to a friend last night, and he said that it is not healthy for me to always go the extra mile for others. For instance, on Friday I became some sort of "recruitment agent", helping a friend source for a computer programming job as he is thinking of leaving his job, and helping another guy look for students to tutor. My friend said I have to be careful not to be taken advantage of like certain things that happened to me before.

The guy I was helping to look for tuition agencies and students for actually thanked me and said it was totally unexpected. He said he does not see people so helpful nowadays. Really? I do not think I am doing anything out of the ordinary. I have given my word that I will help, so the least I can do is to keep my word.

But come to think of it, helping others and making them happy comes naturally to me. As long as there is something I can do, I always must try my best to do it. I do not know whether this is good or bad. I feel good when I know I have helped others in some ways, but on the other hand, I end up being taken advantage of and in the end the credit does to some others.

People will think that someone like me will have lots of friends who are willing to help me out as well. Sad to say, ironically, that is not the case. In fact, I lost a few friends who used to be close to me due to this "helpfulness". At times when I think I am doing the right thing, events proved otherwise, and I get blamed for a lot of things that went wrong when my initial intention was to help out. This is not the same as being a busybody. I do not butt into people's affairs if I am not wanted. I only offer help to those whom I see as being "in need".

Like when my friend is thinking of changing his job and states his interest in a computer programming job, I happen to know some people in this line, so was just asking them if there is any vacancy. For the guy who wants to give tuition, I know of some tuition agencies and some teaching friends who may be able to help him, so all I did was to give them a call and exchanged numbers with each other. I seriously do not think I have done a lot or that I am going the extra mile for anyone.

But when is being helpful and caring considered as too much? Is it being too much if a girl gets a new phone but since the phone is not needed, she gives it to a guy friend because his phone was spoilt so was in need of a phone? Is it being too much when a girl visits a guy friend when he was sick and boiled some soup for him? Is it also being too much when a girl sent over some herbal tea for a guy friend who was sick? But I always feel that there is no line to be drawn if one genuinely cares and wants to help out. There should not be a case of being too helpful or doing too much to one's friends.

Due to this helpfulness, I got into a lot of misunderstandings. When it was my own boyfriend who was sick, I would not hesitate to go over, sponge him, feed him medicine, make a nice drink for him, make sure he is well covered. No doubt whenever I know any of my other friends are sick, I will still show my care. But it will not be a personal nursing visit unless the person is really close or I treat the person as a very good friend. Often than not, I caught the virus from my guy.

When one of my ex was down with sore eyes, I actually helped him put eye drops and sponge his eye areas. I was down with conjunctivities the next day for four days and could not go to school, yet I did not even hear a single word from him or seen a trace of him. My eyes were so sore and I could hardly open them! My classamtes were more concerned than him! And he could accuse me of being unfaithful just beacuse I went to visit a close guy friend who was down with flu and buying some herbal tea for him! The guy friend in question then thought I was trying to two-time, so started being more distant towards me, and our friendship sort of died out just like that. Is it really not good to be concerned for others?

When I was down with chicken pox, I was with my second ex yet he did not even show any concern. He took the time apart to go out with the various female friends he had. My tutorial mate actually called every few days to tell me about the work, emailing me notes and information and asking me how I was feeling, and got a friend who was staying near my area to deliver all my notes, books and stationery to me. Sometimes things like this really makes one ponder that why the very person you give your entire heart and soul to can treat you so nonchalently, yet just a mere good friend whom you only help with school work and discuss tutorials with can be more caring to you.

There used to be lots of gossip about me throughout school because I helped others. When I helped a girl friend with a law paper and she passed the final examinations, she was so grateful that she bought a diamond necklace for me. I found it a bit too much since I did not do much as it was her own efforts that she passed. But she is rich so spending money is her hobby and she is nice to her friends. When one of the girls in the "in" crowd saw my necklace, she was remarking how nice it was and whether my boyfriend gave it to me. I said it was given by a friend whom I have helped. With which she said, "Help in what way? By sleeping with him? No wonder people are so willing to help you." I was totally stunned, so I retorted, "This happened to be given by a girl, and besides, I can jolly well afford a necklace of my own, I do not need to sleep around to get anything, especially not a mere diamond necklace!" I cannot believe the shallowness of some people, and yet law students are supposed to be the smartest of the lot! (I said supposed because there are exceptions, like me!)

So my point is that shall people actually help others who do not give an inkling about you? And shall people continue being nice and caring? Why do people who want to be nice ultimately end up losing out? I lost friends, boyfriends and almost my reputation just because I do not feel right not doing things for others. At times I really wonder whether I should just stop doing so much.

Snippets Of Old .... (A Compilation)

My cousin once asked me why I got myself a digital camera but she has never seen many photos on my blog? So, to accede her request, I decided to upload snippets of the events of recent months after I bought my camera.

Most of my photos died together with my previous hard disk, but I managed to salvage as many as I could, mainly due to the kind efforts of friends who always share their photo albums. Thus, I have compiled the photos taken into five albums, Zouk Night Out with my closest friends (incidentally also a celebration for the two couples who are getting married), chalet stay, Aloha! party, National Day Dinner and Performance, and more photos from the Retro party of last week.

Come to think of it, most of the events are with the Lyric Opera Chorus. They are really a bunch of fun and happening people who always spice up a party. Meanwhile, hope you enjoy the snapshots!

1. Zouk Night Out (4th June 2005)

The IT Analyst and the Air Stewardess
(just registered in early September)

The perfect couple
(just registered last December - together for 9 years to date)

2. Chalet Gathering (17th - 19th June 2005)

Our abode for the three days and two nights

Dealing with Chain Mail?

I'm hungry, can we start?

Smoke gets in their eyes

What a spread!

Mmmm, this marshmallow is so tasty!

Let's see - is this expired?

The flatmates

Erh... ghostly images??

Whasssup?! Heineken Time!

Interesting game

Forfeit! Forfeit!

Toast to the night!

3. Aloha! Party (9th July 2005)

Our hostess for the party

The cute little girl, Camille
(the one who wanted to marry Sonic!)

The Catholic couple
(Incidentally the guy is my sponsor for my bible studies)

Female bonding

The other little girl, Chiara
(Isn't she so cute and adorable?)

Male bonding!

Stangled to death?

Don't you think he'll make a wonderful father?

The cosy couple

The Professional Dancers

The "Geofey" majors

Dancing with balloons?

What's with those balloons??

The "guru"?

4. The National Day Dinner-cum-Performance at Neptune Theatre (12th August 2005)

The "blur little girl" with the cosy couple

Enjoying a feast

All dressed in concert black

Our talented conductor

3 cheers for the end of the song!

5. More on the Retro Party at my place (17th September 2005)

The other group photo

Posing in my driveway

Opera singer in the making?

Doing the "Mambo No. 5"!

Is he trying to do a "Saturday Night Fever?"