Meet the King of Capsules

Lifepak Nano



Yifan was recommended by the chiropractor to take these supplements to raise the level of antioxidants in his body. Sad to say, he's not been very conscientious. :-) I can see why. Just look at the size of the dark brown capsule.

I'm just glad my level of antioxidants is pretty okay.

2 of my favorite guys

Guys need the occasional pampering too.
Here's Yifan at a Clarins facial massage:




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Kel's leaving for Australia on Monday. Take care of yourself over there, and dun forget to have fun too!

B(ack) & B(razilian food)

Just read:



Little White Lies by Gemma Townley

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Quite a bit has been going on lately. We finally saw Just Like Heaven. I'd wanted to catch that movie when it first came out last year, but along the way, I'd totally forgotten about it until we saw snippets of it while at the clubhouse last weekend.







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I am officially on the chiropractic bandwagon!!

I've long known that I have a problem with my spine, so this morning, I paid a visit to Yifan's chiropractor and got all my scans done. Apparently my situation is quite bad, and the doctor was surprised that I am not suffering from any symptoms now. My upper right back is in quite a bad shape ( no pun intended) and right away, I started on my first treatment.

The things that can result from a misaligned spine are just amazing. I know that sinuses and headaches can be cured with trips to the chiropractor, but never have I imagined that my nearly- monthly period cramps could be attributed to that too. The doctor had some possible explanation, which I couldn't really follow a 100%, but the gist of it is that, over the years, my spine may have shifted, thus causing somewhere that is holding the uterus to press against something else.. and hence the pain I get almost every month. Hmm, that would make sense since it's only in this past year that I've started getting cramps.

Before anyone gets all worried, rest assure that spines do get a little out of place over the years, due to physical, emotional stresses/strains etc. In the doctor's words, everyone should go for chiropractic maintenance just like you go for dental check-ups.



dr rob methvin

On a more positive note, here are some pictures taken at Texas de Brazil:

No Work Doesn't Mean No Good

Was talking to a friend earlier, and he asked if I was taking any enrichment courses or perhaps I should consider taking up a job or second degree. The general idea people have is that staying at home, and not working means you are wasting your life away, and that you eventually end up being a housewife who is "out of touch" with society.

I beg to differ. I think life is what you make it out to be. Sure, I can be an old fashioned housewife, closed off from the rest of the world. Or, I can be a stay-at-home wife who picks up new hobbies, learns new languages, new computer skills, and at the same time, travel and still keep up-to-date with the goings-on in the world. I choose to be the latter.

Then there are people who think not working makes your brain go dull. Not true again. Lots of working people only know what goes on in their own industry, and nothing else because work is life, life is work. Come to think of it, most jobs are just a lot of number-crunching and data entry work. Doesn't really call for quick thinking eh?

During this time that i am not working, I've learnt more stuff than ever. I am not in the rat race. I now have the time to indulge in the things I like to do ( namely reading and cooking) and also discover new hobbies like jewellery-making. I am still a newbie at photoshop, but at least, compared to a working professional in the banking industry whom I know, I actually know what photoshop is. :-)

The Appearance

Just read:



Learning Curves by Gemma Townley

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Sometime last month, Yifan got a speeding ticket. He was travelling at 50mph on a stretch of farmroad with a 30mph limit.

Speed limits here are very tricky. At certain stretches of the road, the limit could be 50 or 60 mph. Then, the limit could suddenly become 20 or 30 mph a little further down the road. For someone who is unfamiliar with the area, he could be caught off-guard. That's exactly what happened to Yifan on that particularly unlucky day.

We were totally bummed at having to pay for the speeding ticket. I checked the fine amount online -- US$275 !!! Did some research, and Yifan decided he wanted to appeal. So this morning, he went for his court hearing, and called me right after and related the story to me. Apparently, there were a lot of other people there to appeal against their traffic offences. He said his was the most minor offence. Other people broke multiple traffic regulations, were caught for speeding past the red lights etc etc, and there was even a chinese woman who had been caught speeding in a construction area. A no-no here! She looked as if she was about to cry because she claimed she did not have money to pay for her fine.

Anyway, Yifan's court appearance only took 3 minutes, and he came out with a $95 fine. He also has to get his driver's licence changed to a TX one, and take a driving course ( haha!). All in all, with that $95 fine, $10 admin fee, and $25 to change the licence, we still ended up with a good deal.

Oh, and we are trying to do something about this getting lost on the roads and driving over the speed limit business. The day he got that speeding ticket, I went to get him a digital compass.Hopefully, nothing like that happens again.

Taste of Lexus

Just watched:



My Scary Girl, 2006

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In slightly over a week, it will be Halloween. People are already starting to decorate their houses with spooky webs and pumpkins.







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Today was also the first day of Taste of Lexus. The event was more extravagant this year than it was last year. We totally enjoyed ourselves!




orientation



Lexus Oasis -- massage and relaxation area where visitors could enjoy a short session of massage, compliments of Dermalogica.


Introducing the all-new LS460




back seat of the LS 460


you could raise the footrest of the backseat.. it was just like an aircraft seat.. and there are massage functions too!

There were lots of good food awaiting us. Kebabs, anyone?



We test-drove the BMW- 750i.




waiting for our turn to get into the circuit


notice that there is no gear shifter in the BMW -750i




waiting in line to test drive the LS460


front interior of the LS 460


GS 450h - hyrbrid. the screen shows when you are using the electric
engine, and when you are using the gasoline engine.



They were going to have a live demonstration of the auto-park function of the LS 460. Guess who was one of the lucky few to experience it? Yifan, of course.




getting into position, press a button...


look ma. no hands! the car parallel parks by itself!!


and there you have it -- a parked LS 460 in between 2 RXs


he's seen it, he's experienced it, and yet he still can't quite believe it

Half-time, and a visit to the loos.


the inside of the portable men's toilet








and finally, we waited to test drive the Mercedes Benz S-550


MB S-550. I thought it looks very old-fashioned


MB S-550 car phone

As a parting gift, we each got a Pampaloni Micucci cardholder tray and a jazz CD that we are going to try out tomorrow!

When Leisure Gets Too Much

Just read:



Diary of a Mad Mom-to-be by Laura Wolf

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Possibly too much reading. I am exhausted.

I promised Yifan I would take a break from my books today, but I don't know if I can resist the urge.

postscript: if i am not preparing meals, i am almost DEFINITELY reading. ( 5 days a week... and more when it comes to reading ) so much so that i felt drained last night. maybe i should cut down on the time/effort i spend to prepare my own lunch everyday. as it is now, i cook lunch like i am expecting guests for dinner.

post-post script: how do i read less, and make a simple lunch of noodles/porridge when reading and cooking are two of my favorite pastimes? i actually look forward to doing things like that every single day.

Dreams Are Made of These

Are dreams in color or black-and-white? A guy in spanish class asked last week:" what language do you dream in if you speak English and Spanish?"

I didn't know the answers to that until this morning. All this time, my dreams have been of the hazy, out-of-focus sort where it felt like I was seeing without my glasses. I didn't know if there were colors in my dreams cos the lighting always seemed to be very bad in all the scenes. ( think a dark afternoon in a room with a storm brewing outside). There never seemed to be any talking, hence I never knew if I dreamt in English or Mandarin, or even in Teochew. But I do know that despite the lack of verbal communication ( as far as i can recall), I always just knew what I was dreaming about.

This morning, I made a discovery. I actually dream in vivid colors-- there was black, beige, pink, green and blue. And I spoke Mandarin!! I even made a mental note ( all this time still sleeping, and dreaming of course) to tell Yifan of my discovery when I wake up. Unbelievable!

Our Spanish Class

Just read:



Diary of a Mad Bride by Laura Wolf

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We had our 4th spanish class today and we love everything about it ... except there is this one woman whom we totally cannot stand. Her name is Amber.

Sometimes during class exercises, we have to work with different partners, practising our spanish. We've never worked with her before ( not that I am aching for such an opportunity), but I'd always thought of her as being pretty stuck-up. I wasn't wrong in my judgment of her. Yifan told me last week that he had walked past her ( in opposite direction) and instead of a friendly nod of head, she looked away. I had first-hand experience of this today. During break, we happened to be walking in opposite directions ( again). I wasn't expecting any friendly acknowledgment from her, but neither did I expect her to look up at the ceiling, and " him" at me!! #!@@ Who does she think she is?! I just hope she walks into a wall the next time she does that.

We don't know whether she simply hates us, or she is selective about whom to smile at. She seems to love talking to Elizabeth, the old woman who can barely catch up with what's being taught in class. Or possibly, she feels threatened by us since Yifan was praised by the teacher for his non-accent in the first class. ( fyi, she speaks heavily-accented spanish)

The Patient

We visited the chiropractor's yesterday. Yifan's back has always been a problem, and things became serious when he felt sharp pains down his lower back while he was squatting in the bath tub to wash his hair. He couldn't stand up and I had to help him out of the tub. Then he collapsed on the bed, writhing in pain.

We both didn't know what to expect being our first time at the chiropractor's. The doctor did a scan and some tests, and apparently, Yifan has some problem areas ( moderate to serious), all thanks to the days in army. Chiropractic supposedly aligns misaligned spines, and that in turn, takes care of other symptoms/problems that patients may have, or may be prone to having. In Yifan's case, he is found to be prone towards suffering from allergies, sinuses and headaches. Oh, and his stress hormones are at a pretty high level. --> seems quite accurate.

His first treatment-- neck twisting, which scared the hell out of me.

His latest condition: Back is still painful, so is his left knee ( reason unknown). For the next couple of days, he's going to be pretty much "handicapped".

Home Visit

I'll be home for Christmas;
You can count on me... lala la ( and so the song goes)

I've got the flight back to Singapore all taken care of. :-) That's one big load off my mind. Ticket prices, flight routings... see you same time next year!

Books, Movies, Music

Just read:



Bergdorf Blondes by Plum Sykes

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We finally caught the movie, The Devil Wears Prada, last Saturday!! We loved loved loved it so much that Yifan came home and downloaded it. Says he wants to watch it again. (?!)







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Ahhh!! The wonders of technology!! :-)

I just watched Rod Stewart Live In Concert direct from Nokia Center in New York.



Yifan told me to turn off all the lights, sit in front of the computer, and wave the lighted stick. (!!!!)