Wow, just realised how loooonnngg ago was the last blog entry. Yep, working peeps don't hv much time or even energy to blog. Besides, our lives are boring. Like hamsters going through the routine of life - wake up, get to work, take lunch, work again, get home, sleep (repeat).

Must start thinking of holiday and psyching myself up cos as it is, my horizon looks endlessly dull. Haha. Need to think of work in little packets like how Jonathan does it - work hard and dive hard (only that I can't dive).

Hmm, I'll dream abt my exotic holiday for a start in lala land first. Then I'll try making it happen in time to come. Heh.. Not thinking of going Germany tonite after hearing Pete's 'sausage-making' story. Yikes...

Having hiccups like nobody's business after talking to Pete over the phone just a minute ago. Feeling like a baby that needs burping after a meal. Anyone to burp me? Haha, kidding. But seriously, this bout of hiccups is driving me crazy. 30 seconds haven't passed without a hiccup. No matter how much I drink or the old wives' tale of trying to hold my breath, that loud "hic!" is still around. Gosh.. Oh well, I'll just watch silly Ch5 programmes and wish that the hiccups disappear in no time.

Had quite an eventful journey from church to Marina Square today. Was on the road towards Marina via the CBD area, where I had to inch closely to some p-plate car with a whole load of teenage guys. Because of the road works outside Lau Par Sat, I had to inch closer to that car in front of me so that the van behind wouldn't be stuck in a middle of a traffic light junction. Yup, there I was trying to be nice n inching slowly until one of the young pucks stuck his middle finger out of the car window and at me. Grr... There I was behind some young punks and in my van with Dora. We were both shocked. Irritating young boys..

Not only young boys who can be irritating, old men can be too. Well, I made my way safely to Marina Square and was inside the car park trying to find a lot. Got lucky and found a lot but due to space constraints I had to squeeze at a corner so that the previous car could exit. I was reversing and trying to get into the lot safely when some old uncle just zoomed straight in and took my lot. I was appalled. Dora sat beside me wondering why I didn't horn that bugger or even scolded him. Well I guess I didn't wanna pick up a fight - quite typical of me. So I end up suffering by having to turn around the carpark again and again for another 15-20mins because of this lot that someone snatched from me. Grr.. Old men!

Sigh, boys of all ages can drive you up the wall. Sometimes being nice just allows myself to be taken for a ride. Hrumph!

Anyway back home and facing 2 teenage boys at home. Thankfully they're engaged in their respective computer games and not bothering me. Haha, good that they are rather quiet.

Hmm went for the long-awaited gathering w Qinlei last night. Rou already had some bday celebration with her friends, so by the time she ended (which was like 12.30am) we told her not to come cos Indochine was abt to close.

Anway so I still owe Qinlei a gathering at Timbre cos gun-cheong spider me thought it wld rain cos it started drizzling while we were in the queue. Yup, so we left and ended up at Orchard shopping n makan-ing.

I picked up all the nice dresses and asked her to try n show me. Grr... she kept avoiding the topic. Keep walking away frm me. Wong Qinlei, you better wear one n lemme see!

And she gave me the biggest bomb on our way back - asked me to drive her mom's car cos she was a bit groggy after drinking. I freaked out completely. Didn't dare look at her while I was driving. Eyes all peeled on the road. Thank goodness the roads were v quiet the whole journey back. And she was right to lemme drive cos there the traffic police was on the road summoning another guy for speeding. Hahah slow coach me trotted along at 70km/h the whole way back.

Anyway driving the car was quite funny. When we first left the carpark, I cldn't adjust to the sensitivity of her brakes and ended up doing a pseudo-E brake. Hahah she laughed at me and I panicked. Thankfully I managed to get a sense of it quite quickly. But my gawd, I was so scared the whole way home.

Hmm my arms are aching frm gym. Shall stop typing n put on the deep heat frm Pete. Pain pain.. Feels like I'm going back to rugby training n worse. Only that the gym instructor is a tad more smiley than Rong Jing Xing.

Tonight's Starry Starry Night marks YZ's 1st ever evangelistic garage band concert. Praise the Lord that everything went on smoothly. We had 2 salvation and 3 who indicated interest to know more abt Christ! Whee! All glory to God cos everyone were just the hands and feet to do His work; not ours.

This is also the 3rd gig we had in YZ. First was in 1998, the Waaahh concert which was a 70's theme. Second was in 2000, the Millenium concert which was more funk age. And now is the most big scale concert, with 100 over youths. Amazing..

Well the seeds have been sown (although I wished I had a chance to share, but somehow the youths at my table were not interested) so now we await God's perfect time to let those seeds grow and take fruit.

It was a good ride back home with Fred tonight. Although I was a little sian that we didn't join the rest for supper, I guess it was good time alone with him. Hahah, after he complained that I haven't been spending time with him as much nowadays. Got to talk abt his experience serving in a larger capacity this time round, and also learning how to juggle between demands in school and responsibilites in church. Fred also shared how Charles was telling him and the other guys that doing background work such as logistics was much 'safer' than those on the stage - because it's doing these things that you really serve God and is less likely to be carried away with personal pride. I thought it was amazing sharing from Charles (once again :P) and it was good that he shared with Fred, cos I cld see that Fred's perspective about service has changed dramatically. I hope it'll be something permanent and not just a 'spiritual high' that's temporary. Besides praying for the young ppl who have heard the gospel, Fred will top my prayer list. :)

Hmm it's time to take a rest and get ready for tomorrow's service. Wish it will be a laid-back Sunday after service so that can spend more time with Pork Chop, cos it's going to be yet another wk where we're like guys in army who only book out on wkends. Bleah. But then again, there's Starry Starry Night briefing. Wonder how long it'll take... Sigh, just live with it lor. Time is limited..

Can't believe yesterday was Eat with Your Family Day at work and I left work 2 hours after our official time off. I was probably one of the few pathetic souls left in office. Yucks, whole journey home felt so sian. Everyone's taking the opposite train to start the wkend chill out and I'm going home. Ok, only plus point was my mom was nice enough to help me dye my hair and I just watched TV with my brother as he was playing games. Anyway the dye didn't work - my hair's as black as ever. Maybe I shld just hv a bright blond streak like how I always wanted to try for fun. But then again, it's not a common sight at work and I'll stick out like a sore thumb. Bleah. Ok, I'll do that another time. No pink streaks cos they fade too quickly. Haha.. Randomness.

Life is so fragile. One day you're going to school, next moment the school collapses on you and that's it. End of the journey and no chance to see the world. I can't say for sure whether it's good - that you're back with God sooner, or that you've missed out on seeing more of God's creation..

But this doesn't change the bottomline; which is to appreciate the people and things around us while we can. Even as people stress over their worldly pursuits (money, career, house, car, club, prestige...) these aren't going to last. Imagine having the nicest and grandest house in the hit area of Suzhou or Myanmar. Whatever you've worked so hard for, or even gave up precious parts of your life for, is crushed and reduced to rubble in a matter of seconds. Is the satisfaction or joy that you had such posessions enough to see you thru the agony of losing the family when a tragedy happens?

I dont' think we even need to tread to the end of a natural disaster to realise that such pursuits are frivolous, temporary and empty. Just take a look at funeral wakes and you'll realise that there's absolutely no difference in the way a rich or poor leaves this world. We all just go back empty handed. Sounds cliche? But that's a fact of life.

I'd rather choose a close-knit family, love-filled, God-filled and meaningful life than an ostentatious life of the rich and famous. Hrmph, the rich have their problems too. Fewer possessions, fewer problems. Life is simple.

just when i'm whining about work and how i wanna laze, the scripture reading in today's devotion has reminded me to choose to be responsible and follow through the piece of work. guess God always knows when i start whining and immediately points it straight back at my face. but that's in a gd way - keeps me from being a 'soft and fluffy' believer who thinks i can get away with things..

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From Our Daily Bread:

I Don’t Feel Like It (Matthew 21:28-32)
He answered and said, “I will not,” but afterward he regretted it and went. —Matthew 21:29

Have you ever faced an unwanted chore and felt as if it were the last thing on earth you wanted to do? Mowing the lawn, doing the wash, cleaning the house, or even preparing a Sunday school lesson after an exhausting week can make us feel like procrastinating.
When this happens, my wife and I have a motto we repeat to each other: "I don’t feel like it—but I’m going to do it anyway." There is something about recognizing our lack of motivation and then choosing to be responsible that helps us follow through.
God’s value on faith and obedience can be seen in the parables of Jesus. Christ spoke about two sons who were asked to work in the vineyard. The first said no, but "afterward he regretted it and went" (Matt. 21:29). The second said yes but did not follow through. Then the Lord asked His listeners, "Which of the two did the will of his father?" (v.31). The obvious answer is the one who finished the task.
Our Lord’s illustration underscores a key spiritual principle. God is interested in our faith and obedience—not just our good intentions. Next time you are tempted to shirk your duties, why not say, "I don’t feel like it," and then ask God for the grace to do it anyway. — Dennis Fisher

O help us, Lord, to heed Your Word,

Its precepts to obey;

And give us strength to quench the urge

To do things our own way. —Sper
Obedience is faith in action.

nice blog template that reminds me to remember who i am in God's eyes. thank God that Shann was back in church briefly on saturday! credit to rach and sophie who made a surprise visit at Shann's place after BS. guess i've gotta spend more one-on-one time with the girls or arrange group outings like we used to last time :)

Taking a long wkend break is wonderful.. To take things slow and look at things around you. Went for the long-awaited cycling trip at East Coast with Pork Chop yesterday - amazing! The whole trip was really enjoyable. Taking in the things which we seldom see in the concrete city. Wondering why I never seem to have seen such lovely places in Singapore. No skyscrapers but nice sea view and greenery. Wished we just kept cycling and never got back to the city life.

Thanks for going with me Pork Chop!

Singapore's public transport is lousy to the core.. There's no frequent or even regular cycle for busses or trains and it's getting more expensive (check out SMRT's announcement on its bottomline today). Mere peasants like us are told to have confidence in our 'reliable' public transport system, but somehow I've had to leave my home 20mins earlier so that I can be at work early. If I had left just a little later, I'd end up late for work. Even so-called 'premium' busses don't work.

Need to gripe about the public transport cos I stood from the MRT right up to the bus ride home today. It was over an hour on heels, carrying my laptop. Now my lousy and frail backbone is aching. Sigh, even more tiring than running 2-over km on the treadmill. Thank goodness I was on the other end of the train carriage; unlike some very unfortunate lady who was stuck in the midst of many blangah workers (not that I'm being racist, but it's always very uncomfortable for a lady).

Meanwhile, I'll just bear with the public transport cos mere civillians like us can't do much except writing complaint letters which probably gets tossed into the trash bins.

1.5years ago it was the Forbidden City.. 1.5years fast forward from there, and we're here at We Will Rock You. Amazing isn't it?


The musical was fun. Reminds me of a sing-a-long session with all the Queen tracks. I liked it, but probably wasn't able to appreciate it as much as a true blue Queen fan. Nonetheless, the whole plot was quite fun. Not a huge storyline since it's just a time to bring out Queen songs, but good enough for me.


Hmm, maybe watching a musical shld be an annual event. Haha!

"Nothing" - Jeremy Camp's Stay

Well I must have been good I must have been right To see you standing holding, holding me tight With your arms around me i know that you are there You're never in the distance I always know you're near

Nothing i can do, nothing i can say Can make you love me more, your love remains the same You gave it all for me, you gladly took my place To rid myself of all, all my guilt and shame

I must have stood strong, i must have stood tight To yield the thoughts around me, the battle in my mind And knowing you surround me, your wings coat my despair Whatever my condition, the cross it shows you care

:::::::::::::

How apt when we study about Jesus' faithfulness for BS this week.

Juno - one of the only films on screen now tt's worth watching. Also the mind stimulating kind, rather than silly "Meet the Spartans" (alright it's good for a wkend brainless laugh)

The scriptwriter for Juno's brilliant. Able to intertwine both reality and some humor in it. Very interesting how issues such as teenage pregnancy, maturity, abortion, marriage, social strata, love etc are mixed in a very tasteful fashion and not to overwhelming. Like some film festival shows but not too over the top. Worth a watch. Thanks pork chop for the movie treat! Love it! :)

Have been thinking about the human race this whole week. My conclusion: humans are weird and ugly.

Take a little train ride each morning and you'll see the real facet of humans. Squeezing and shoving their way into the train carriage. I wonder where's the social graces. Even if you don't feel like pushing your way in, someone behind you pushes you forward. (Yes ladies are always at risk. Aunties are the surviving champs) This morning's train ride totally pissed me off. Someone along my bench was actually quarelling over some seat! Goodness gracious. Then when it looked like all was quiet during the journey, some other wacko came in shouting "please move in, there's not ghosts in the centre. I'm not the ghost. Why don't you want to move in? There are pretty girls to look at in the centre." Although all these people weren't talking to me, it just spoiled my day. Re-affirms my thought all week about how ugly people can be.

Maybe all we see is a facade of people and things. Beneath everyone is some deep and dark secret that they try to hide. Of course I'm human too and it doesn't preclude me from the pack. But it's a matter of what one's hiding. Is it something that compromises your friend's trust in you? We might seem to know someone for ages, thinking that we know all about them as we can. But truth is, maybe not. Maybe there are some things a person wishes to keep mum about. Hmm, but aren't people supposed to be truthful to one another? Can we not even blink when we say sth that our mind/heart tells us not to? Can we trust humans 100%? I think the better bet's with God.

Sometimes I wished I was as gulible as I was back in sch. Yup I know that I'm easily fooled, always trusting and always taking things as gospel truth. But isn't that better? It's easier to deal with a crying baby than an expressionless person. As stupid as it sounds, it might be better to live in a make-believe world and think that everyone's righteous. Than to discover years later that some thing you believed all these while is not what it is. I don't know whether it is better to know or not to know and live in ignorance.

Well some things don't change - our guts. Ack, this has just confirmed that my guts are usually more accurate than my rational mind. Bleah..

Looking at other people's photos of partying, travels and social gatherings etc kinda makes me feel like some big stick-in-the-mud. Like so loserish to rather spend time at home with my family, even if it means just sitting around watching tv.

Oh well, I've got no life. Just work and home. But I kinda am such a person. No social butterfly. Then that's where the conundrum is for me - feeling bored staying at home yet not a keen person of large gatherings.

Yup cheers to sitting at home and watching aimless dramas with my family. I'd rather spend time at home where we don't need to pretend to be very sociable. Close friends are gd enuff. Partying to hook up some networking is stupid.

Hahha, can't imagine how no life I am now. Playing silly online games early in the morning and chatting with ex-colleagues.

It's whenever my ex-colleagues ask me how's work/colleagues/life etc that I realise how much better it is to work with them. Yup audit sucks, the long hours and doing things that are seemingly pointless and non-value adding. But I guess it's the team that sustains everything. To suffer together and appreciate each other's work more. To be valued beyond your work - as a friend and not just a colleage/co-worker. Maybe it's just lucky that uncle boon's team is the strongest and closest knit within AABS21. Dunno. But well, I'll run along alone in the new work environment with that little group of newbies; my new princesses at work. We decided not to include the princes cos they're all married and one even tendered and took back his letter. I feel so pessimistic talking to him that I decided to stay away in case it rubs off me. Hahah!

Anyhow, I'll wait for the Labroy and CSE teams to come back to ORQ and we can have lunch!

Meanwhile, it's back to playing silly online games and waiting to have BS with the girls.. :)

Hmmm CNY second day.. How does everyone feel? Sick of all the snacks and bak gua? I am kinda sick of all the food already. Feeling bloated and over-stuffed every moment. Trying so hard to eat in moderation, but it's difficult when the elders keep asking you to eat. Oh well, so I'll just try to live with a big stomach for the time being. Hahhaa!

Feeling absolutely alert and awake after clocking in many many hours of sleep yesterday (maybe abt 10hrs) after I knocked out early last night.. But wow, it's gd to feel more refreshed after a bath.

Today's visitation was less hectic cos we didn't go to 2 places in the end. Well, my family's gonna visit them tmr, but I'll be giving them a miss this year. Prefer the slower pace of just visiting a few people will do. But I guess my dad's trying to keep the tradition of visiting all the elderly cos they don't see us any other time during the year.

Yup, so there's the CNY rush for my family... Phew....

The one final gathering at Yee Lin's place - the annual fellowship of that community of people who have shared their teenage yrs together.

Quite amazing how this group has evolved over the years.. Couples getting married, new ones getting attached (hahah like yours truly), married couples having first kids (most have progressed onto baby #2) and including new young adults we meet at YAM.

I absolutely love such gatherings even though it's not a very regular thing. It's lovely to catch up with folks you are close with. A community where you can be yourself, laugh out loud and tease each other for being so geeky as youths.

Aside from having nice fellowship, there's also the new topic of joy - laughing at the kids when they do silly things. So there it was the first photo of the kids sitting together on the couch. Those kind that we always had as kids, memories of our childhood friends. It'll be fun to capture that same group sitting on couches at different stages of their life; to see how they've grown etc. Tsk, I hope to lay hands on one of those photos for the blog. If not I'll just hawk over Dav's blog. (he never fails to amaze me in doing the most out-of-the-box things ever)

For now it's farewell to dearest package.. We'll see you real soon!

Hate it when I'm sick cos I'm like a walking burping bag - burp every few minutes. It was so embrassing this morning when I cldn't control my incessant burping in front of all my colleagues. How unglam and disgusting for a girl to keep burping. Guess I must stop teasing pork chop for his burps.. Bleah...

Saner moments in Bintan this year..