sewing machine

the sewing machine has arrived and it is the size of a toy. really. i can imagine a three year old kid playing with it. to think we had ambitions for that fantastic work/craftshop.

parting words

i felt so terrible about not sending dan off today. i got off the cab after a couple of streets because i figured the snowstorm would have made it impossible for me to come back from newark. and for some reason i have this aversion to new jersey (wait--who doesn't?). maybe because everytime i go there i am plagued by bad luck: that one time with hang, stranded outside a very closed ikea, cursing our heads off for not checking beforehand. just this past saturday too, another wasted trip to that cursed ikea store in jersey that did not have fake plants or nice

so anyway, back to me not sending him off. the guilt gnawed at my heart as i walked to the nearest bus stop from where i was dropped off. i felt so cheap for not wanting to pay a hundred bucks to the cabby for the return trip and so shitty for leaving my bf to travel by himself in the horrid weather. then i thought--what if it had been me? i would have thought:"selfish fucker." and i'd hold him to it for the rest of his life. now i feel like the worst girlfriend in the world. :(

and this constant parting is such a pain. the worst is the several hours you have right before the flight. it's too short yet too long--too damn "in limbo" time, you don't really know what the best use of it is. so you end up not doing anything in particular and when the time is up you wish you did so the parting memory is sweet but a flicker and the moment's gone.

sick and unsuited

i don't get access to gmail or hotmail from my desk. used to in the training room but not anymore. but i just found out i still have access to blogger.com--i guess they don't think people would be blogging from work. oh well.

sick because i have a flu. starts off with the running-like-a-faucet nose. now it's all sore from tissue abrasion and i've already gone through half a box of clarinase.

unsuited because i wanted to wear my emerald(?) green giordano t-shirt to work and needed to have a jacket on. but all the jackets i have don't have matching pants. ie-i have no complete suits. so maybe i will have H&M for lunch today.

i just purchased for hang and myself a $10 sewing machine on ebay. let's pray it is good and we can set up our little craft workshop in our kitchy apt. speaking of kitch, i fear my boyfriend, having slightly higher UQ (uncle quotient), will be repulsed by the disney paint (literally-- we bought disney brand pink and orange, called love's first kiss and tiggerific orange respectively) when he visits this weekend.

can i just say how great i think freshdirect is. we got our first shipment two nights ago and everything was so fresh and nicely packed, i might never go to the crappy neighbourhood grocery stores again. everything there is overpriced and rotten and always full of either old people who clog up the lanes, or shady drunk people who want their food stamps exchanged for money. but enough of my judgement of old people because i will become one pretty soon. my point is that freshdirect is FRESH and DIRECT to the door for an extra $5--which is probably cheaper than cab fare if i had to transport all that stuff myself. the wonders of internet!

black rings

i was knocked out for at least eleven hours on the flight back to london. but i still have panda eyes so i might have to resort to buying a tube of concealer to help myself. the thought of having to spend more time on my already very vain self (you know, polishing nails is already a pain in the butt!) will cause me to shove that thought aside and wait until i'm forty and just surgerize away the black rings and saggy skin. one time i spent a whole afternoon with elaine to try and find a concealer that would match my skin but came away with everyone of them making my bags look very purple. one counter lady said: "oh..you'll just have to use foundation all over your face then!" that's when i gave up.

since the chinese new year diet of bak kwa and pineapple tarts did not help me shed my pounds, i am going on a new detox diet. only very wholesome and lean food. not too much fruit because they're full of calories and i LOVE fruit so it's going to be tough. please ask me about it frequently so i am on my toes. no more chocolates and cookies from the office pantry. but i was told by the sinseh who massaged my ankle that i can't walk too much on my left foot so that the swelling will go down-- so i have top devise non-foot exercise. i am thinking floor swimming (belly on the floor, limbs simulating swimming) or air cycling (back on ground, legs in the air).

i cried at the airport as i parted with my family. i was so sad to leave. ten days is such a short time and although i know them all intimately, i feel like i don't know them at all. once i'm away, they get on with their lives and i with mine. it's been like that for three years already and i wish i could spend more time with my sisters who are fast becoming beautiful young women. i'm missing out on the regular boy talk, the gossip, the shopping and just those lazy days of falling asleep on each others' beds.

how do i have my cake and eat it?

hit and run

once again back in sunny singapore. my sisters welcomed me, saying "you were just back--we don't miss you yet". oh well.

my singapore indulgences (in no particular order) :

1. bak kwa.
2. out of season durian which still tasted rather fantastic
3. lynette's fabulous pineapple tarts (check out pineappetit.com)
4. kaka's agar agar
5. a year's supply of cds from THAT CD SHOP (because they were on sale--how could i resist??)
6. converting everything to USD and thinking: what a steal! (i also convert everything to singapore dollars when i buy stuff in the states and think how much i'm getting ripped off)
7. my trusty town bee
8. slippers!!

tomorrow and tuesday i'll be working out of the singapore office which should be fun. i can't wait to explore the pantry here.

my chinese new year resolution is to get at least 7 hours of sleep a day. my eye-bags are becoming samsonite eye-luggages--durable and guaranteed for life.

when i leave this time i don't know when i'll next be back. it's a harrowing thought knowing that i'll only be able to take 15 days of leave a year for the next 40-50 years of my life. i bought dan the lonely planet book "a journey through every country in the world"--there's so much i haven't seen and done and now i wonder if i ever will. i am plotting my escape already.

time to go or i will not get that 7 hours.

i shuffle

so after looking at the ipod for my sister's bday present, i am quite tempted to get one for myself. (i eventually got her a fourpicturesinone lomo camera because the shuffle is out of stock everywhere). especially so because my cds keep jumping and i can't find a bunch of them. don't you just hate that, when you're in the mood for something and you realize it's gone and you have no idea where to. i am resigned to listening to robbie williams--rock dj now (yes, it's the old album, pirated no less)

i leave this thurs for london for two days then back home for chinese new year. i can't wait--bak kwa, ang pows, pineapple tarts, ang pows... it's been a while! but most of all, being home will be a nice respite from the cold and work--more love and tlc. i always get a warm fuzzy feeling thinking about home and i wonder why i subject myself to living away from it.

got our instant wall put up today and hang finally has a room. the living/dining space is much bigger than expected and we have to figure out what to with it (more furniture means more money). did i mention we painted our wall orange and pink and hang's door will be similarly coordinated. we also painted a chalk board with latex paint. why we didn't just get a chalkboard beats me. i guess the idea of painting one on is just that much sexier eh.