Beads and Pieces

Happy Birthday, Ma !!!

It's Ma's birthday today. She just turned... errmmm, better not say, since a woman's age is always a secret. Here's wishing you Good Health and Happiness Always!

*****
I placed my order with Artbeads just last Thursday, and I got everything today. Fast eh? I was very impressed with the service -- I got an email confirming my order, then another one informing me that the items I wanted had been shipped. Then my pearls, ear hooks and head pins arrived wrapped in a beautiful purple tissue paper. Ahh!

Gonna try making the earrings later tonight. If all works out well, I will be ordering more soon!

Will post pics of the earrings as soon as I am done. :)

All About CNY!

First CNY in Oklahoma/ Texas, and 3rd CNY overseas...

Though there wasn't any lion dance nor CNY decorations anywhere in sight unlike last year in NY chinatown, we had a pretty good CNY eve last night. Yifan's boss treated everyone ( only the chinese) to a wonderful buffet dinner in Addison. There was a wide spread of food-- sashimi, teppanyaki, desserts... and the all-important CNY eve must-have -- Steamboat. Needless to say, I was happy. I'd been looking forward to having steamboat for CNY for the longest time, and had actually planned on making my own.

Pity we didn't bring our camera last night.

I ate A LOT of prawns last night. ( think 90% of my entire dinner.) Yifan didn't eat his usual amount, though. He hasn't been feeling very well for the past few days. Nothing really serious, just indigestion, and an overall phobia for fast food and any other kind of western food.

It all started on Thursday night after we caught " Memoirs of a Geisha" and had late dinner at 10pm. Hooters and buffalo wings. The wings were probably too spicy for him ( his was okay, but he had one of my Bentley-sauced ones) We got home around midnight, showered, slept. The next morning, he felt sick. Threw up a little, but not much, so he still had that yucky feeling in him.. and that nauseous feeling came back yesterday when he had Burger King for lunch. That BK lunch ruined the entire day for him yesterday, he couldn't really enjoy the dinner. Sigh!

It's terrible having to eat fast food for lunch Mondays to Fridays every single week. Yes, I know there are other options besides fast food. Other options like TGI Friday's and Chili's but those aren't any much better. At the end of the day, it's still burgers and fries. Though I only eat at MacDonald's once a week, I can truly understand how he must feel. I nearly puked while eating at Wendy's yesterday too... and when I saw a family sitting in front of me with huge packets of fries, I had an urge to throw the fries away. How can people eat such stuff?? Till now, and it's been 1 1/2 years, I have not eaten anything from KFC. I still remember how sick I felt the last time I ate the chicken drumstick. Not that the food tasted bad, but I just couldn't do it anymore. I dun know if I can ever step into another KFC outlet again.

In fact, it is so bad that Yifan has sworn off fast food for one month, and said he'll rather starve and suffer from gastric pains than eat another burger and onion rings.

The reason why we could survive the last 2 years was because in New England, things weren't that bad. Lots of diners around serving more than burgers and fries. The Chinatown in Boston had Vietnamese Pho. Our weekend trips to NY often had us bringing back roast duck and roast pork. TX is too large a state, so it's often difficult to drive to the Vietnamese/ Chinese restaurant just for a quick lunch in between meeting customers. Drive-thrus are, therefore, pretty much the one and only choice.

Hopefully things will become better in a couple of months when we move down to Frisco. At least, Yifan would not have to drive such long distances everyday and coming home for lunch may be a viable option.

Swarovski

I think I am going to try my hands at jewellery-making. I saw some sites selling Swarovski pearls, and they all look so pretty.

I'm actually not a very hands-on type of person, and anything that requires creativity and delicate fingers are usually out for me. I loathed sewing classes during home economics, and I loved it when the time came for us to switch to cooking lessons. I've tried knitting many years ago, and gave up. I've done cross-stitching too, and that was okay, cos you had step-by-step instructions to guide you. Sometimes when I go to the store, and I see balls and balls of colorful wool, I feel like knitting all over again. The only problem I foresee is that the result I get wouldn't be worth all the effort. No way am I going to be able to come up with something that looks better than what I can buy at a store. Plus, knitting a scarf or a sweater would take a lot of time. My interest may already have run out before I am done with a sleeve. :)

So why am I even thinking of making my own jewellery? Ever since I got into the dangling earring craze, I have been thinking of getting pearl ones... and Mikimoto is definitely not within my, or rather, Yifan's budget. So I figured the next best alternative would be to make them myself. I dun think making earrings should be very difficult, right? From what I read so far, there are minimal items I need -- tools and materials. And there's always Yifan, my more creative and artistic half, to finish it for me if I give up along the way. It helps that I have lots of time on my hands right now. So there's no better time than now.

One other significant factor: the website I found doesn't charge shipping, and materials are really really cheap !!

Suddenly, I feel very motivated. Can't wait to start !!!



A sample of what I hope to achieve.

Bermuda

Started reading a little on Bermuda -- a string of islands an hour and a half away from New York.




Why the sudden interest?
- - Jess recently got posted there for work for 3 months ( or rather, she's on training) and I got to see amazing pics of the place

-- I found out it's pretty close to where I am living now. By that, I mean it's something like a 10-hour flight from DFW to Bermuda, with a transit in JFK. Yes, I know it's stupid to have to fly up north and then back down again... anyway, heard that there are direct flights from Miami to Bermuda. That should be a better and more efficient route.

-- I think it is highly unlikely that I will ever visit exotic places like Bermuda and Cancun once I leave the US for good. Places like these are just way too far to travel from Singapore. So best time to visit would be now, or sometime in the near future.

Check out www.bermuda.com
How can anyone resist its charms? I know the pictures look too good to be true, but trust me, I saw those candid shots taken by Jess, and they all looked like picture-perfect postcards. Cloudless blue sky, turquoise ocean, lush greenery. A paradise for avid photographers, I'm sure.

One slight problem-- Jess did mention that Bermuda is a good place for retirees... and it reminds her a lot of Perth.. Errm, that's not very good to know. For one, the pace of life there must be pretty slow since it's suitable for retirees. Young people like us may get bored after a while. Then the thing about it reminding her of Perth doesn't sound very appealing either. I for one, am not a particular fan of Australia. Or mabbe she said the quaint buildings look a lot like those in Perth ( which would then be fine) ... Can't remember what she said exactly lah ! In any case, I think holidays are always fun, regardless of where you go. Don't you think so?

Just read:





We were just 15 minutes away from home when there came a loud "pop" sound from the back. I thought my bottle of oyster sauce had hit something at the back of the truck. Then came scrape-scrape sounds. Oops!! We had a flat tyre... How fun.

We had a spare tyre, but Yifan didn't know how to change truck tyres. It was 10pm and close to 0 deg. ( Yifan only had on a t-shirt and long-sleeved shirt, no jacket) so called AAA and the guy came in 15 minutes. Not bad eh?

I had wanted to take pics of the guy's huge trailer and of him changing tyres, but I only had a light sweater with me, and I didn't want to leave the warm comfort of the truck. So both of us sat comfortably inside, while the man got himself all dusty. Poor guy, he even had to jack up the back of the truck with us in it. Hahha. Well, at least he got a $5 tip at the end of everything, though he did miss part of the concert he and his wife were attending at Choctaw Coliseum.

N.B. Thank goodness for AAA. Great service at a great price. We didn't even have to pay for the tyre change!!!

Oh, and the problem source :: a huge nail had gotten stuck in the tyre on the highway

" .... The only concern I have is the food. I am allergic to coconut and I hate seafood of any kind.
What all is there to eat? What is the food like? Can you buy stuff like cheese, bread, milk, eggs, etc at the grocery store for not alot of money or are those staples expensive?..."

The above copied from a forum I frequent. Apparently, the person is planning a move to Singapore, and he has some worries.

It beats me how some people can be so ignorant. FYI, the questions were posed by a guy who is currently living in Illinois, US. Hmm, I pray he's from some small town and not the big city of Chicago.

Lots of people really need to get out more. The other day at DFW, I overheard a woman telling her companion how nice it was to come back to a place where signs are in English, and people speak English. They had just arrived in home sweet home Texas after a vacation in Cancun, Mexico. Errmmm.... I thought the whole point of travelling is so you get to see what you don't usually see in your own country, experience what you don't experience in your country, learn about other cultures and way of life etc etc... Where is the fun in travelling and exploring new places, if all you want to do is to speak your own language, eat your own kind of food, and basically not be " thrown out of your comfort zone" ??

I dun think I have been away from Singapore for that long -- but things have certainly changed quite a bit.

All these years, I have only dealt with sullen-looking aunties who dun as much as give you a look when you pay at the checkout counters. They'd just put all your stuff in the plastic bags, tell you how much you owed, and then take your money. Occasionally, you get lucky and come across a few who would actually mumble a word of " thanks"... but that's more the exception than the norm.

Then, suddenly things are different. During this recent trip back home, I had on a few occasions, met salespeople/cashiers who are so polite/helpful I couldn't really believe it. Yifan wanted to get some pants so we went Robinson's Raffles City outlet. ( there was a sale going on then, and we got some pretty good buys.) There was this particular guy, he looked to be no more than 17 and obviously a temp worker, who was asking browsing customers if he could help ( not the kind of follow-right-behind-you salesperson) and even suggested styles which he thought would be suitable for customers. He was enthusiastic about his job, and it showed. Not once did he lose the smile on his face when asked about available sizes, or when he had to run to the storeroom to check stock. The way he worked, it was like he was running his own business... and I dun even think he gets a cut from the pants he sells. A stark contrast from all of the other temp workers in the same department. You could tell the rest were just trying to get things over and done with.

Some days later, I was at Tampines Mall buying some accessories. The young girl at the checkout actually said " Thank you. Please come again." when I paid for my earrings. I thought I misheard her. Yifan offered a possible explanation for what I had experienced. Salespeople these days are much younger, and more educated.. quite unlike those aunties in the past where their priorities were solely getting their work ( ie serving customers) done in the fastest possible way. No time no small talk, no need for Ps and Qs.

I kinda agree with him.

Then there's also the polite Malay cashier at Guardian's at Pasir Ris Mrt Station, and the salesgirl at Far East Plaza who helped me in picking out a pair of jeans. So many instances of good customer service, in just 2 short weeks.

Yep, singapore still has a long way to go in terms of providing the kind of service you experience in Japan, but from what I see, I say we're doing a fairly good job so far. Afterall, we are but a young country, and there's still a lot for improvement. But working on it, we are !!

Hair today, gone tomorrow

My curls are falling out!!

The hairstylist told me the curls should last around 6 months, but it hasn't even been a month since I permed my hair, but it looks like I am already starting to lose my curls. Argh!!! My $300 is heading for the drain pretty rapidly. It must be the hard water that's causing this.

I really have to go take some photos of myself with curls this weekend before it's too late. I'm not sure if I will ever perm my hair again. Reds is way too expensive for a repeat visit, but yet I really like how I look now with big natural curls, and I might not get this same effect if I do it elsewhere. Oh well, I'll stress about that when I go back to Singapore, since it is highly unlikely that I will have a perm here cos I dun know how good the salons are in TX.

Yifan said I look Japanese with my curly hair. Hmm. ( will try to post Before/After pics soon for comparison.)

Was talking to Sue earlier and we both think straight hair runs in our family. I have ridiculously straight hair, straighter than even rebonded hair... so that's probably another reason why my curls dun seem to last. ( Most experienced hairstylists can tell a rebonded head of hair from a naturally straight-haired one. But there was this shampoo girl at Reds who, while blow-drying my hair after my perm the other day, told me not to use my rebonding shampoo anymore !!! She must still have a long way to go..heheh )

well, hellooo

My first day back in Durant...: a little jet-lagged ~~ woke up at 4am and got back to sleep only around 6am, only to have to wake up at 7+ to send yifan to work.

I can't quite believe how the last 18 days whizzed by so fast. Got home late last night-- the flight time was shorter than expected, but we took an hour just to clear through the US customs, and by the time we were done with dinner and grocery-shopping, and the nearly 2-hour drive back home, we were both so tired. In fact, yifan had to stop the car halfway thru for a short snooze before we could continue on our way home.

A recap of all that happened in Singapore in the 2 weeks I was back ( as best I can):

- I ate a lot : mee soto, crabs, stingray, lala, rojak, curry chicken, fried beehoon, otah, chicken rice, bak kut teh, kway chap, drunken prawns, roti prata, 1 buffet lunch, duck rice, nasi padang, mee siam, spine meat soup, laksa, durians... etc etc, almost everything on my list; nasi lemak and curry fish head were the only items left out due to time constraints. :)

- Finally got to see Ju after so many years ( think it must have been 2-3 years at least?)

- I permed my hair !!!! -- expensive but I think it looks nice

- My annual dental checkup -- doctor said I am lucky considering I dun floss my teeth everyday ...heheh

- Carrying and feeding shiwei's little bundle of joy

The best part of the entire trip was, of course, seeing my family and friends once again.

If not for the distance I have to travel, I am pretty sure I will go back for hols more often. The long flight just scares me. Me, the " frequent flyer", got a little nervous just 5 minutes into taking off at Changi Airport... I started to breathe heavily, I felt sick, I panicked. Sigh!!

I suspect I suffer from a little claustrophobia. I worry when I see how full the flight is. I worry when I find out I dun have a seat at the emergency exit. I had to have an aisle seat, so poor yifan had to sit all cramped-up from Tokyo to Dallas cos we were in the middle section. Even then, it was uncomfortable for both of us. My right shin was pressed against the seat in front of me throughout the entire SIN-tokyo flight cos the rows were so close to each other. It was horrible.

At Narita, I was so envious when 3 people were upgraded to First Class !!!

I dun want to fly on American Airlines again. Sullen-looking flight attendants, and poor service. No help with storing bags in the overhead compartments; waiting a long time for meals till you were so hungry you could faint. I didn't know onboard service could be this bad until I experienced it firsthand. It's Asiana for me in future.

*****
It's 10.20am now and I am feeling tired and sleepy. Nope, no sleep allowed, otherwise I will never recover from jetlag.

Better to unpack the bags, and organise the clothes for laundry later today.