Cellphones, Mobile, Handphones

Getting a cellphone soon.

First choice:

Sony Ericsson Z520a. This has camera and video capabilites, plus it's quadband.

Second choice:


LG C2000.

Have never used any other phones other than Nokia, so unsure of how good LG's and Sony Ericsson's software is.

Yifan is currently using a Samsung, and I like it cos it's small and sleek and works pretty well, but the only thing is the phone does not have a built-in camera, so that's out for me.

Or maybe I should just stick to this:


Nokia 6102.

xz, this is the one you are currently using, right?

That way I dun have to learn how to work the phone from scratch, how to store numbers, etc etc. I know this allows infrared data transfer, so I can send pics taken on the cellphone to my computer. But what if my desktop doesn't have infrared detection? Do I have to send the pics via infrared to my old laptop and then transfer to my other comp? Or do I buy a card- reader to transfer the pics like what I do with my CF card from the digicam? How does it all work?

Overdue

Some pictures:


My latest earrings -- sterling silver chandeliers with Swarovski Peach pearl and Golden Silk crystals on sterling silver french ear wire.

Thank you, yifan!!

*****

Following dug up from old files.


My first haircut in Dallas.



Ooh, baby.



What a line-up!

Starring Park Jin Hee

Just watched: Love In Magic




I thought it was just an okay movie. Certainly not worth the hours spent downloading it. If you manage to get your hands on the DVD though ( and I dun mean buying it from a store), I guess the movie is alright for a light weekend afternoon entertainment.

There are funny scenes, but if you are looking for something with a strong storyline, Love In Magic is not for you. What I liked about this movie -- it doesn't make you sad after watching it. However, it also is quite a forgettable movie.

Chocolates and Bunnies

V-Day has come and gone, and I thought I could try my luck at getting those heart-shaped chocs at a bargain. But alas,


They are already selling Easter-themed chocolates! Shelves and shelves of it. I bought chocolate eggs, the kind I used to eat at Aunt Nyonya's house when we went visiting during CNY. Incidentally, Yifan said he received the same kind of chocolates at work yesterday. A colleague had left him some eggs on his desk. ( Coincidence #1)

*****
(Coincidence #2)
Performed some of my taitai duties yesterday. Walked in Kohl's for 2 hours while Yifan went to see a customer 5 minutes away. Kohl's is a departmental store, and NOT a supermarket where I could get bread and milk, as someone so innocently thought. :)

Anyway, I was looking at some guy's polo shirts, and I thought they would look good on Yifan. Old school-looking. The kind I like. I especially liked a green polo. Now I have never seen Yifan wear any green shirt/ T-shirt before, and I dun think he has anything in green ( except for the lime-green shirt from British India that we bought together years ago). I didn't buy the polo cos I wasn't sure how he would feel about it, and when he picked me up from Kohl's I casually remarked that " you don't have any green Ts. Right?" For a second, he was stunned. He had just received a T-shirt from Allan who had only just come back from Brazil, and you guessed it, it's a GREEN t-shirt. Just to prove it, he reached to get a bag from the backseat of the car, and there it was. Unbelievable!

You Win, I Lose

Okay, so Yifan thinks he can do better than me. Here goes.



I concede defeat.

Me and Yifan




Just having some fun before I go do serious stuff like vacuuming the floor.

I know the drawings are lousy, and very lacking in accuracy. For one, my hair is brown and not black. Neither is my face so big and fat. But yes, Yifan has brown hair now, and a new haircut. Dun mind the line on his forehead, though. That is just, errmm, poor drawing on my part.

Sha's Reviews

Olay Complete All Day Moisturizing Lotion SPF 15-Normal Skin


This is by far the worst facial moisturizer I have ever used. Upon application, it felt greasy and thick. Kinda like how you'd feel if you use body lotion on your face (I'd imagine). After more than 2 hours, my face still felt greasy and uncomfortable. Yucks!

And if you thought the greasy feeling was bad, imagine waking up the next day with little red bump-like rashes on your cheeks.

The moisturizer's now back at Walmart. I returned it after just one use.

note: apparently i am one of the few who doesn't like this moisturizer. almost everyone else I read about on MUA loves it!!

*****
Now because of the Olay disaster, I decided this time around to invest in something good.

Shiseido-- The Skincare Night Essential Moisturizer



This is my saviour, and it doesn't come cheap. US$38.50 for 75ml.
It's actually a night-time moisturizer, and really shouldn't be used in the mornings, because:
1) there is no SPF
2) the moisturizer may be a little too heavy for day use

However, I have used it in the mornings too, except I then will not use the same moisturizer at night. Also, I only use it either when I plan to stay home the whole day ( and so no need for SPF) or when I use my face powder along with it, which contains SPF.

The lady at the Shiseido counter was also nice enough to give me samples of:

Hydro-Balancing Softener Alcohol-Free




This retails at $32.50 for a 150ml bottle.

Gentle Cleansing Foam


Another costly item from Shiseido The Skincare collection. This is $26.50 for 125ml.

Review:
The cleansing foam is the best best best one ever. Better than clinique soap, but still comparable to the cheap and ever-dependable Shokubutsu.
Not the squeaky-clean kind that makes your skin feel tight and dry, and yet it doesn't leave a film on your face.
Dun think I will buy that anytime soon though, cos I still have another 4 new tubes of Shokubutsu at home. But I wouldn't mind if I get samples of that again. :)

The softener ( or toner ) works well too. No alcohol, which means it doesn't dry or irritate your face. Nice smelling. Not sticky and doesn't leave your face taut and uncomfortable.

I would definitely buy it if I didn't have half a bottle of Kanebo ( very good too) to go, and another brandnew bottle of Kose Toner waiting in line.

My positive experiences with Asian cosmetics and skincare has propelled my trust in them to an all-new height.

P.S. If you are looking to buy a face powder, check out Missha Illuminating Photo Projection pact SPF 20. Price: S$21.90. I had only used Clinique Stay Matte Pressed Powder before, and thought it was good. That is until Missha came along. Now I know better.

To Plano

We are moving to Bella Vida!



That's the clubhouse of Bella Vida. The estate overlooks the Ridgeview Golf Course. The golf buggy in the picture is solely for the purpose of fetching potential residents to tour the estate. It's a big place, in fact, the largest estate we've seen so far -- 500 units in total.



Clubhouse lobby.



Pardon the blur picture. We didn't want to appear "suaku" so yifan had to take the pictures furtively.



A look at the ceiling. The clubhouse is basically a miniature of The Venetian in Las Vegas.



Gym, aerobics room, massage room, sauna, and tanning salon upstairs. You probably can't see very clearly from the picture, but on the right, just above the litter bin is the coffee/tea dispenser, and next to that, cookies. On the left is the business center with free internet, fax, copier. Also has a hi tech conference room for meetings. The concierge desk is no different from a hotel's. Our unit overlooks the golf course and a park very much like NY central park. It has a jacuzzi in the master bedroom and walk in closet size of a room.



Pool table.



Theater room. There is a video library where you can loan DVDs to watch it here, or to watch in the privacy of your own home. All for free. Also free are weekly aerobic / yoga classes, free beer parties, free newspapers, free breakfast. Of course, all is already calculated in the rent, which is the salary of an average worker.



View of the pools from the clubhouse. There is a lap pool, a regular pool, one for water volleyball, one with a swim-up bar, a suntanning pool and then yet another pool.



Lastly, gated access to the apartments.

Moving On

Dinner on V-Day was seafood pasta at Roma. Good food, terrible ambience. ( only exception is the complementary salad with "ketchup" being passed off as italian dressing)

I should start off by giving an overview of what Durant offers.
Durant is essentially a college town --the South-eastern Oklahoma State University is just 5 minutes down my street. Because of that, I often get asked if I am studying here, especially since Asians in Durant are either students, or working at the Chinese Buffet Restaurant.

2 public laundromats, a handful of nail spas, a huge 24/7 Walmart, a couple of banks, car-washing places, some really old-fashioned looking stores, and that's about it.

When it comes to food, there is no lack of fast-food restaurants in Durant. McDonald's, KFC, Arby's. You name it, we have it. However, other than the recently opened Chili's, there is just Roma Italian Restaurant, and 2 other chinese eating places. Pathetic, I know.

Needless to say, Roma was running a brisk business yesterday. We stood by the door waiting for a table. Thankfully, the wait wasn't too long. It's really the most "posh" eating place in the whole of Durant, but it was more like eating at a diner's. Very noisy, and not at all romantic. But still, we managed to catch snippets of romance happening around us. A girl gave her boyfriend a CD. Yifan said it's a self-burned CD! Hahha. Behind us, a family came in and the lady had a single stalk of rose in a vase.

*****
I caught a glimpse of the most stunning dress on our way back to the car. It was a light turquoise evening dress. I immediately thought of the probability of me having a chance to wear that. Hmm, maybe the next time someone in the family gets married, i can wear that?? But I'm not sure if that would be a little too much to wear as a guest. I wouldn't want to outshine the bride. Heheh.

*****
In the 2 1/2 years I've been in the US, I have moved 3 times.

Middleboro, MA- the little town next to Taunton where I worked. It's another one of those sleepy towns with not much happening. I love the diner's there though.

Fairfield, CT- town where the rich people reside. Very different from Middleboro. More "upmarket", more sophisticated. I miss the Fairfield beach (Atlantic Ocean) and La Salsa. Nothing beats having the Atlantic Ocean behind your garden and Victoria Secrets boutique outside your front door.

Hartford, CT- "black" town, and the capital of Connecticut state. Almost like being in the CBD, with all the tall office buildings. Congested with cars and people.

And now, Durant, OK.

I appreciate all the opportunities I have. Like getting a chance to live overseas, experiencing things I wouldn't normally experience. I like moving to new areas to live, cos with that comes new environments to adapt to, new places to explore. But that also means I forever leave behind a place where I once called "home". It's sad knowing that you will NEVER go back there again. Never will I get to eat Baked Scrod at the Middleboro Diner. Never will I get to visit the Fairfield beach on weekends, and never will I get to jog at the Park in downtown Hartford.

Places like Newport in Rhode Island, Marblehead in MA, Cape Cod in southern MA, I know all that's now just part of the past. Sometimes, it doesn't even feel real at all.

Funny how sometimes you don't treasure what you have until you lose it for good. I used to grumble about how boring Middleboro is. I liked Fairfield, and my only regret is not having taken as many pics of the place as I could have. Same for Hartford. Granted, there aren't that many places to take pics of in those towns I've lived, but I could have taken shots of the laundromat, the local Stop n Shop, everyday things that I dun really see when I lived there.

I dun want to make the same mistake with Durant again. In fact, I know I have already changed in this aspect. I no longer hate Durant. Yes, it is still as boring as the day I first moved here 8 months ago. But I know come the day when we eventually move to Plano, I will look back and think about how those little stores in downtown Durant are actually quite pretty too. In this cowboy town that I initially thought was a blast from the past.

Maybe in future, I should just stick to visiting places that I know I can definitely go back to again. Like Bangkok, Las Vegas, and NY. And even then, I know it's not going to be the same with NY too. I think of NY as a city we visit on weekends, for groceries and authentic chinese food. It sure is not going to be the same the next time we go as purely, tourists.

Love Is In The Air

Happy Valentine's Day, everyone!



My V-Day so far:
1. Joined Yifan and his colleagues for lunch at Branding Iron. It's Bobby's birthday today! He says he only gets 1 present on this very special day. Hah! And I thought it's good to have your birthday fall on special occasions like these.

2. Went to Walmart to get myself Olay Moisture Lotion SPF 15. The skin on my nose has been peeling non-stop, maybe because of the ACV that I've been using. Whilst we're on the topic of moisturizers, let me say that I now truly believe that drugstore brands pale in comparison to skincare brands like Clinique and Biotherm. I would have gotten Clinique's Moisture Surge Relief if not for the fact that I dun think I'll be going down to the mall anytime soon.

Sure, Olay's cheap-- less than $6 for 4fl oz, and something like that from Clinique would cost around $25?? BUT, it's been almost half an hour since I applied Olay and my face still feels sticky. And I dun think it helped the flaky skin much too, cos I could still see it. Usually when I use Moisture Surge, the flakes totally disappear.

Note to self: dun stinge on essential items, like wok, moisturizer, toilet paper... You pay for what you get.

3. I got new neighbours. They were moving in when I came back earlier. I think they are hispanic. I spoke to the girl a bit, but the guy didn't look too friendly. And I think there was an older lady with them too, but I'm not very sure, cos she looked to me to be wearing a thick fur hat (like those people wear in moscow) and had long white hair down her shoulders. So, couldn't really make out her age, plus I only saw her from a distance.

4. No V-Day celebration for us, except a dinner later. We dun really like celebrating V-Day with everyone just because everyone celebrates it. Heheh. But but, yifan did a beautiful drawing for me over the weekend. Would have taken pics of that and posted it here, but my camera batteries went dead after I took a couple of shots of my shopping.

5. Yesterday was laundry day and while waiting for my clothes to dry, I popped into Factory Connections. OMG! Why didn't I discover this place sooner?
I emerged 10 minutes later with a pair of AE shorts, and a pair of Union Bay ones. *happy like a bird*
Yes, I am already shopping for summer clothes, when I really should be getting winter clothing instead. I have tons of summer clothes as it is, but I always grumble that I have nothing to wear when the weather turns cold.

Anyway, here are the pics.







The nice lady at the check-out informed me that they restock every Tuesdays and Thursdays. I very nearly wanted to check out the new arrivals after lunch today since the store is right next to Branding Iron. Luckily, my willpower and self-discipline prevailed. I made a semi-conscious decision to do laundry on tuesdays in future. That way, while waiting for my laundry to be done, I may just drop by for y'know, just to looksee and mostly just to pass time. :)

6. Walmart's FULL of Valentine stuff-- balloons, individually wrapped flowers, roses in vases, bouquets of flowers, heart-shaped post-it notes, and my favourite--- chocolates in pink and red packaging. I couldn't resist and bought a packet of Dove Milk Chocolate last week. Dove has become my favourite brand of chocolate, overtaking Hershey Kisses. The foil wrapper that wraps each and every individual heart-shaped choc has a little something special printed on it. The one I just ate had the words : " Chocolate. Always your Valentine."

I toyed with the idea of taking pics of everything that says Valentine's Day in Walmart. In the end, I decided not to. I'm sure people would think I'm strange if I took out my bulky camera and began shooting the flowers and the chocolates. Hehhe.

Oh, something sweet happened earlier while I was in Walmart heading towards the face care section. This fat ( or more like chubby) girl ( a walmart employee) just received a bouquet of roses and she squealed with delight upon reading the accompanying card. The flowers were from a guy called Matt or something like that, I overheard. Anyway, she was so happy, she was jumping up and down, and holding the card to her face.

Maybe I shouldn't use the adjective "fat", cos it sounds like the only reason why she was so happy at receiving flowers was because it's her first time ( now this I am just assuming) Of course, anyone would be happy to get flowers, and anyone would probably react in the exact same way. I should ask xz what her reaction was when she got flowers from kiat. :)

Earrings Again

Got my gold pearl earrings yesterday. All ready to show the world. Again, no batteries = no pics

I have a confession to make. Yifan was the one who made my other pair of earrings too. The celestial cream ones. I felt bad for taking credit the last time. :(

But I did help a little in the entire process-- I picked out the materials, ordered them, and strung them together on the headpins. Yifan "merely" looped them up for me. But I am DEFINITELY going to learn to make them myself.

******

How much do you know about Valentine's Day? Actually, I dun know much at all. Gonna read all about it now.

The Day Began ...

... great. We went apartment-hunting yesterday afternoon. I had previously shortlisted some potential apartments in Plano. Frisco's a nice new town, close to Stonebriar Mall and all, but apartments there are pretty limited, so we cast our nets wider, and I found some beautiful ones in neighbouring Plano.

To call the apartments beautiful is an understatement. The first one we went to, and the one which we currently have our eye on, Bella Vida at Ridgeview Country Club, is just amazing. It reminds me of the hotel we went to in Newport, Rhode Island a few years back. Behind the front doors of the clubhouse lies a huge lobby, the kind that you see only in 5-star luxury hotels. Beyond that, a stunning view of the 6 pools in the entire estate, one of which has a swim-up bar with a full-time bartender. The lobby looks more like a museum in Europe than any clubhouse I've seen so far. Marble statues, paintings. Oh, and a grand piano right in the middle.

Impeccable service from the concierge staff who showed us around.

A pool table, a gourmet bar, tanning salon, aerobics room with FREE pilates and yoga classes, onsite masseuse, a business center, fully-equipped gym, sauna, theatre room with a large projection screen, oh, and get this, every other Friday is Happy Hour, and you get free beer at the clubhouse, and every other Saturday, free brunch for all residents!!

Very impressive indeed.

Had a look at a couple of the available units. Hmm, not bad, bright and airy, just what I like. The unit that we have tentatively requested to be put on hold faces a little creek that runs through the estate.

I really must remember to bring my camera the next time we go back out.

Lion City Dinner
Had early dinner at Lion City Restaurant -- our 2nd time there in a week, and that's not counting the first ever time we went and left without eating.

First thing that caught my eye when we went in-- curry puffs. Yifan was aiming for that too, so for the entire time that we were eating, we kept a close watch on people going near the counter, and made sure that there would still be curry puffs left for us. Quite gan cheong, actually. :)

4 curry puffs left when it was time for us to pay the bill. Yifan bought 2.

The King
First time we got to the cinema early, and it was packed-- lots of families with young children. Never experienced anything like it before, cos we'd always gone on weekdays. I'm glad we were early, cos the theatre was full!

Greedy yifan opened up the bag of curry puffs,... only there weren't any curry puffs inside. Instead, there were 2 buns with char siew in them. Huh!! After all that and we didn't manage to get curry puffs! So disappointing.

King Kong was okay for me. Just okay, cos at certain parts, I felt like the movie was a little draggy. Halfway through the movie, I thought I was watching Jurassic Park, what with all the dinosaurs. Then there were those huge insects and water creatures. Errr...

Celestial No More
I dun know how it could have happened, but I lost my pearl dangling earrings. ( Yes, the ones that I posted pics of the other day. They were barely a week old.) The left side to be exact. This is truly unbelievable. I know it's partly my fault that I didn't use the earring backs, but how is it possible that the earwire will slip out from the hole? Really really strange.

I looked high and low in my room, but nope, nowhere to be found. It is gone for sure. I dun know where I could have dropped it. In the theatre perhaps, cos it wasn't in the car when yifan went to search this morning.

I got pretty upset, cos those were my best earrings and my current favourite.

I'm undecided as to whether I should get a new one to replace it. For now, the remaining one is safely kept in my bag.

Boo.

Is this me?

Your Seduction Style: Prized Object

The seduction game you play is tried, true, and still effective: hard to get.You know that the best seducers turn the tables - and get their crush to seduce them.The one running has the power, and you're a challenge that is worth the chase. You are a master of enticing and pulling back. Giving a little and taking some away.You are controlled enough to know rewards come after a long seduction dance.Even though you want to call, email, or say "I love you" first - you don't! You're style is the perfect mix of hot and cold - so much so that you have many suitors.Think Holly Golightly from Breakfast at Tiffany's ... or any of those creepy guys from the Bachelor.You're skilled at inspiring a chase. The real test is picking the person to slow down for.

Apparently, I am someone who plays "hard-to-get". I'm not sure, actually. In fact, I dun think I do, at least not consciously. I am just a reserved and shy person, so my actions/inactions may be misconstrued as such.

Oh, but it's nice to know that I have many suitors. Hahah! Let's see, at last count, it was ....

Sonsrena

Had a look-see at Sonsrena yesterday afternoon.

Lesson learnt: Always look for young/younger staff to help you

We were served by this woman who looked to be in her early fifties. Overall, she's a pleasant person, but just a little too old and confused. We told her what we were looking for in an apartment, what layout we wanted etc etc.. and she didnt seem to hear us, all the while going on and on about something totally irrelevant.

She didn't really know her stuff, so it wasn't surprising that we had to go to the management office to see what she had, then to the individual units, back to the office again, then to the units again. We did that a couple of times until she said we were really tiring her out, and she felt like she just did the treadmills!!! Excuse me, but she was the one who didn't have accurate information about vacancies and prices which was why we had to go back and forth.

There came a point where things got so ridiculous, yifan and I both had to try so hard to refrain from laughing out loud. She told us such-and-such units would only be available few weeks from now. Then minutes later, she said such-and-such units ( the exact same units she had just mentioned earlier) are available for immediate move-in, and asked if we wanted to look at them! Yifan and I looked at each other with our eyes wide open, and I started to giggle... under control initially, but then I had to try coughing and later on, pinch myself just to stop laughing. And the woman, she was oblivious to it all. Amazing!

After an hour there, I think the old woman kind of gave up. Actually, we had both given up half an hour before, and I couldn't make myself pay attention to what she was saying anymore... so it was just yifan and her trying to make out which unit had which layout and at what price. blah blah blah

Then just as we were about to leave, she said something totally unexpected, and which we thought was the smartest thing she had said the entire time. She asked how the Toyota Scion drove, and said it looked very cute. FINALLY!! If she knew nothing about her work, at least she's heard of the Scion.

Almost Heaven

May I present ....



Celestial Swarovski Earrings!!

My first pair of self-made earrings -- swarovski cream pear-shaped pearls topped with antique silver pewter sorcerer's bead cap on sterling silver french hook earwire.

I thought the earrings look absolutely gorgeous, and I couldn't resist the urge and bought some more materials to make another pair. Can't wait for the stuff to arrive!

And The Story Goes On..

Picking up from where I left off ...

I stood at the nearby magazine shelves and overheard the boy ordering another drink for himself. It was then that my fears were more or less confirmed. I TOOK THE WRONG DRINK! Hesitated for a bit, not knowing what to do, I figured no choice, I had to go sit at one of the tables in Starbucks, cos I couldn't possibly be standing around with my bar of Godiva and the Frappuccino and try to read my book for god knows another how many more hours. So for the next half hour or so, I was seated comfortably at a table right next to the exit, just minding my own business and reading the Lucky mag, when the same mom-son team walked towards the door. She stopped just in front of me and said:" if you think your drink taste a little different, that's because they had it mixed up. Yours is in the freezer." Errr... I didn't know how to respond, and only managed a little "thanks". It's bad enough thinking you got the wrong drink, but even worse when someone confirms that fact for you. So now I tried to avoid looking at the Starbucks girl, just in case she calls out to me to tell me the same thing! I took one more good look at the menu. Nothing to give me a clue what my drink was. If "DF" doesn't stand for Double Chocolate Chip Frappuccino, I dun know what it can possibly be. Anyway, all that's over now. I should really just stick to my Hot Chocolate from now on.

*****
Saturday aka Ren Ri aka 7th Day of the Lunar New Year, we went grocery-shopping at our usual chinese supermarket. They were selling love letters and those bamboo plants! And playing CNY music too!! Now , this I thought was very very strange. We were there about 2 weeks before CNY, and there was absolutely no sign that CNY was just around the corner. No CNY goodies, no CNY songs. Then all these now. For a while, I was confused. But maybe these supermarket people were the ones who got the date wrong.

*****
Apartment Hunting Day

We saw around 8 apartments on Saturday. Now, when I say apartments, I really mean condos. Much like the condos we have in Singapore, with swimming pools, gym and some even with tennis courts. Of course, the pools here are smaller than what we are normally used to seeing in Singapore, less amenities in the estate, smaller estate size etc etc.. but very very nicely done. At least the clubhouse with a business center and management office are almost always beautifully furnished.

Didn't manage to see the interior of the apartments for all except 2 though. We were there too late. The 2 that we saw, I thought they were not too bad, although one of them was a little odd in layout with all the corners and so not very good, in my opinion. I like apartments that are very bright and open. Yifan didn't like them both. :(

But here's one that we shortlisted. It looks very pretty from what we could see.. which was the pool, gym and clubhouse.




*****
We went Lion City Restaurant again. Yes, that's the 2nd day in a row, the first because they were already sold out by the time we got there. This time round, the owner recognised us even before we stepped in, and waved to us. He must have thought that we were very desperate for singaporean/malaysian food.

I must remember to bring my camera along the next time we go there. It looks very different from the other chinese restaurants we have been to. For one, the name " restaurant" is a little misleading. It looks nothing like a restaurant, more like a kopitiam. Very bare, very quiet. A pretty small area too.. filled with those cheap " wooden-looking" tables you sometimes see at coffeeshops, and a few pictures of Singapore hanging on the wall.

The Malaysian-owner ( this we gathered from the Bahasa Malaysia he spoke over the phone) was kinda amusing. A man in his 50s, we thought he was a little of a control freak. We seated ourselves at the first table nearest the door. He came over, took our orders and then told us to move to the table further in cos " it's cold to sit here". We were both a little startled, but okay, we moved. The next thing we knew, he told another couple who were sitting at a small table ( the kind for 2 persons) to move to a larger table !!

His business must either be booming, or he keeps very little stock on hand each day. We ordered kangkong belacan, he said no more kangkong. What about okra ( ladies finger) instead? And even okra is running out soon, last portion. Okay, okra it is. Then before we could finish telling him what we wanted, he started to walk away, as though we had ordered enough. ( it was actually just hainanese chicken rice and okra with rice) We stopped him, and said we want a beef hor fun. He said no more. Huh? It was just slightly past 7pm, and no more beef, no more kangkong??? Unbelievable. In the end, we settled for seafood hor fun.

Okay, I must tell you, the food was GRRREAAT!!!! Never before have I eaten such authentic home-cooked style in the US. Not even in NY chinatown. The hainanese chicken was a little tougher than those in Singapore, but I attribute that to the hard water in the US, since everywhere we go, the chicken is slightly tougher too...

Now, the food didn't all come out at the same time. He brought out the chicken rice first, and before he left, he said to me, " ni3 xian1 chi1".... I was stunned. We would usually wait for everything to be out before we started, and this guy actually told me to eat whatever has been served first. Walau. Yifan and I couldn't take it and we started laughing till tears ran down my face. This man is totally ridiculous. We joked that he might even tell me not to eat too much chilli. Hahha.

All in all, it was the most wonderful meal since I came back. Just before we left, the man apologised and told Yifan that he felt bad that each time we were there, the food had more or less run out. Yeah, he should really feel bad. We were there at dinner-time, how can he run out of this and that??

Can't wait to move. I'm guessing Lion City is going to be one of our usual haunts real soon.

BTW, an observation: Ever noticed that most malaysian-owned restaurants always call themselves Singapore ones? There's Singapore Cafe in NY which is owned by a Malaysian woman, and now this Lion City, also by a Malaysian.

Yifan and I came to the conclusion that people identify food more closely to Singapore than to Malaysia. After all, what is a popular/famous malaysian food? Of course, we know there's Ipoh Hor Fun, Penang Laksa.. but foreigners dun know that, whereas people instantly know there's hainanese chicken rice, char kway teow etc etc at Singapore restaurants. Hmm.

Huh?

Just read:



Spent my entire Sunday afternoon at B & N yesterday. Managed to finish up " Confessions of a Shopaholic", then read Lucky magazine, the book by Les Giblin, and part of Elle Girl. Woo!

Yesterday must be a record-breaking session for me. I was there for, let's see... 6 1/2 hours in B & N.

Yifan had to work yesterday (!) Poor thing! He's been working every Saturday since we got back last month. Last week's by far the worst week... imagine working on a Sunday too, that's 7 days at a stretch, not to mention another 5 this new week. Missed the Superbowl game ( not that I really care), but I thought the $10 we paid to reserve our dinner at the pub was kinda wasted. Yet another disappointment when we got to Lion City restaurant at 8.30pm wanting dinner, but they were already sold out. Talking about Lion City, it's supposed to be a Singaporean/ Malaysian restaurant that serves up pretty authentic singaporean dishes. I saw kangkong belacan for only $6.95 !! Cheap as hell. [ Oh, and the owner of the place spoke to me in singaporean mandarin. So good to hear that. :) ] Pity they were only left with vegetables, prawns and fish when we got there. Left and went to eat at Bangkok City restaurant instead.

Before I forget, in case you're wondering why I am just done with the first book in the Shopaholic series, I actually read all the books in the wrong order-- I started with Shopaholic Takes Manhattan, then Shopaholic Ties The Knot, Shopaholic and Sister,and only Confessions at the very end. No no. In fact, I read Sophie Kinsella's other books, Can You Keep a Secret ( partially read) first, then The Undomestic Goddess prior to the Shopaholic series.

Oh oh oh. Something funny happened to me at Starbucks in B & N too. I ordered a Double Chocolate Chip Frappuccino not knowing how the drink will look or taste like. Now, the Starbucks outlets in the US operate slightly different from those in Singapore -- they dun ask for your name when you place an order. Basically, you just pay and wait at another counter for your drink (which the girl will call out when it is ready). There was a mother and son right in front of me when I ordered, so naturally, I was expecting them to receive their order first. So I was just waiting and waiting, then the mom got her hot coffee. A couple of minutes later, the girl brought out some drink that I dun recognise since I am not a regular coffee-drinker, and I distinctly heard her mention something about Frappuccino. I thought, okay, since the mom got her drink already, this must be mine. Plus, " DF" was written clearly on the plastic cup. Took a sip of it... Hmm, how come there isn't the least bit taste of chocolate in it? It suddenly occurred to me that the drink might have been for the son. Not knowing how to react, and not wanting to look stupid asking the girl, I quickly walked away from the counter, so the people at Starbucks couldn't see me. I lingered at the magazine shelves close by, then the boy went to the counter to order another drink !!!! OMG! I knew then that I got his by mistake.

I am guessing that by this time, you must be a little amused by everything. But I have to stop now and continue my story later. Going to B& N now. Yifan just called. Heheh. Keeping my fingers crossed that I dun see the same girl on duty at Starbucks. This is so embarrassing.

Later~

Windstruck

Just watched: Windstruck (2004)



Took me only 1 day to download the entire 2-hour movie!

The only reason why I downloaded Windstruck was because Jeon Ji Hyun starred in it. Not that I am a fan of hers, but I dun really know that many Korean actors, and she was one of the few names I recognised. ( that's basically how I go about deciding what to download)

The movie was categorised as Comedy which I dun quite understand how or why that was the case. True, there were some funny moments here and there, like when the male lead ( i dun know his name, and dun have a clue who he is even now) made all those funny faces when he was " acting" in the police station, and when he got "stuck" in a tight alley while chasing some thieves. But that was about it. For the most part, Windstruck is a sad soppy movie.

It started with Jeon Ji Hyun recalling her past, and how she had caused her twin sister to die in a car accident. Then came all the lovey-dovey scenes of them having fun... But the saddest saddest part came when she thought she dealt her lover ( the male lead) a fatal shot while she was on assignment. ( BTW, she's a policewoman.) Truth is, the guy was shot by some undercover police who screwed up. This, she did not know at that time and never did even till the very end. So obviously, she felt very guilty for causing his death, and attempted suicide a couple of times.

The ending was the most melodramatic, yet one of the saddest I have seen in a movie. Sigh!

But of course, as with any other movie that I watch, there are bits and pieces that I dun quite understand. Yifan is usually the person who has to explain and clarify all my doubts, but he didnt get to complete the entire movie, and had already knocked out halfway through. ( I only watched it at midnite last night) Guess I'll have to wait till he watches the rest of it before I can have my questions answered. :)

I dun know if I would download Windstruck if the movie had been categorised differently. After all, I dun really like watching sad movies cos I always feel sad after that.

On a happier note, we are going to watch King Kong later this afternoon. But before that, gonna check out some apartments in Frisco. Yippee!! Oops, I remember Yifan saying something about King Kong having a sad ending too..