Mad Over MADDY

Ahhh... simply LOVE this Jimmy Choo! But the price is just Madness. Possibly why it's called the "Maddy"?

Photography At Its "Best"

Weird shot I think... watched a Taiwanese talk show the other day on how these "blog beauties" took their own pictures for their blogs. They were even providing tips on how to take good "self portraits" and I must say, some photos were not half bad! So, inspired by them, I too decided to take a family portrait this morning at East Coast. Terence wanted to take the picture of Gideon and I but I promptly said "No", much to his amusement...

My Candy Machine

Aha! I finally found it at Marina Square on Sunday - the really cute candy machine I saw on Ashley's desk before. Gideon insists it's for him and I had to yank it back from him, literally. I DID let him take a picture with it... :-)

My "Surprise" Birthday Celebration

This is my second attempt including this post - there seems to be some Blogger problems but anyhow, hope this works this time! :-(

Well, so much for initiative as I tried to plan my own birthday dinner. I should have had more faith in Rena doing the planning (she did plan even her own birthday celebration!). It began when Rena introduced this nice restaurant at East Coast Park, recommended by Xue Ping. She mentioned one day that we should go there for my birthday. So a week before the actual day, I sent an email out asking who'd be able to make it for dinner. It had to be a week ahead as I was going to Shanghai and not sure when I'd be back. No one, except Elaine replied (she got a scolding for that hee hee) and the funny thing is, Elaine is always the one who hardly replies to emails... Rena had already made arrangements with the Gang and Terence, who was part of the "surprise" of course didn't pull it off as he KNEW I was busy making reservations for dinner yet didn't try to dissuade me from doing so in the first place :-( So of course, Rena and I double-booked at Zen Cafe - Shindo Art.

I had a great time - food was not bad; the company was great. The Cafe was reviewed by Ah Yoke so it couldn't have been anything less than good www.wineanddine.asiaone.com.sg/reviews/restaurants/fusion/20061001_001.html and the price is defenitely reasonable. EVERY item is prepared by the owner-chef Alan Sim. But be sure to make a reservation 'cos the cafe is really tiny.


Thanks guys for the evening! Nevermind the surprise, I had a great time!

Count Your Blessings

Celebrated my birthday with the gang at Zen Cafe Shindo Art at East Coast Parkway this evening. Instead of downloading and sharing the evening's pictures, I decided instead that this was more important : I bumped into Kim, a friend I got to know through Joanne, my classmate from Poly. Kim and I had been in touch due to work but it's been some time since I heard from and about Joanne - until tonight. Jo has nasopharyngeal cancer. I'm not too sure at this point in time exactly how severe but from what Kim tells me, she's definitely fighting the illness and staying positive. Alex, Jo's husband has of course been a great source of support. As I blew the candles on my cake tonight, I count my blessings knowing that I have health. First thing I did when I got home was to get into www.jokwan.blogspot.com to "get back in touch" with Jo. Gideon said to Terence & I this evening as we were driving to East Coast and lamenting about the haze, "I'll ask Jesus to blow the haze away,". I say a prayer for Jo tonight, asking Him to blow her pain away and make her well again. For those who read this, whether or not you know Jo, please say a prayer for her, and remember to count your blessings everyday... For me, I thank God tonight for all that completes me - health, family and friends. Stay strong, Jo!

Fireman Gideon

Just had to post this picture of my little Fireman. Think he looks more like a witch in the strange looking fireman helmet! Hah!

ASPAC S&M Meeting

It was the RED team's 1st ASPAC Regional S&M Meeting. Held from 28 to 29 Sept in Singapore, it was really the opportunity to put the face to the name, after finally meeting colleagues we speak to all the time over the phone or email. The 2 days were rather stress-free with enjoyable dinners and cocktails to look forward to at the end of the day. Can't say the same for the GMs and DOSMs who just concluded their budget reviews, though.

Birthdays...

Birthdays galore in the family from Sept! The kids celebrated their birthdays while the adults can't help but feel "OLD"...

2 Nights in Bangkok

Eugene, Rena, Terence & I headed for Bangkok on 18 August - a much needed holiday! I "heartlessly" left Gideon behind and anticipated some time-off. Massages, shopping, blissful sleep and hassle-free mornings sipping coffee and enjoying my sunny-side up. Ahhhhhh...

Rena had a good start to the trip when she won a $250 shopping voucher after purchasing a Bally wallet. Although Eugene continued dreaming of what he could do if she had won the car or $250,000 instead.

We arrived at The Davis, Bangkok www.davisbangkok.net . Having seen the website, I had high expectations of our room. Unfortunately, despite an upgrade, the room we got was kinda old and the decor disappointing. This is supposedly a "Design Room" but most definitely not my kind of DESIGN. Ah well, we'll make do - as long as it is comfortable. Eugene & Rena's room added to my disappointment. The contemporary decor and glass panelled bathroom made me wonder how my "Design Room" could cost more than this room! So for those planning to stay there, remember to ask for the Corner Wing building which is cheaper for some strange reason. The rest of the hotel was very nice, though. The Lobby and ground floor bar with its very modern yet comfortable furnishings were a rather nice welcome.



OK, no time to waste and it was off for lunch. But first, helping Angie with her religious obligations at the four-face Buddha temple near the World Trade Centre. She wanted a dance for the Buddha and I learnt then that prices vary depending how many dancers you "hire" - 2, 4, 6 or 8!

Lunch was at MK Steamboat. When in Bangkok and not sure where to head for a meal, MK's the answer! Delicious steamboat in comfortable surrounds and a fraction of what you'd pay for regular steamboat in Singapore! We wonder how MK could fail when it came to Singapore couple of years back.

We were fortunate to bump into Terence's and Eugene's ex-classmate Ainsley who brought us to the fabulous Somboon for seafood. And of course the ever hospitable Anthony Low who took us to a North-Eastern Thai cuisine dinner.



Bangkok has started expansion of its many shopping malls and the latest ones are World Trade Centre and Siam Paragon. High-end luxury brands galore! A far cry from from the night markets, flea markets and road-side stalls. We wonder if the Thais were getting more affluent but learnt that the distribution of wealth is still pretty extreme. One thing's for sure - the Thais LOVE shopping and wondering in these malls. On any weekday afternoon, Siam Paragon is as packed as Raffles City is on a Saturday!



Night-life continues to thrive despite the regulation on opening hours. Most clubs and bars close at 1am but this does not deprive Sin City from its number of party-goers and "fun" seekers. Rena and I checked out one of the latest clubs - Bed Supper Club. It was a cool, sleak bar and club, with guests lounging on beds, literally! Clearly an "ang moh" hangout but the music was cool and crowd was pretty decent.



It was an OK trip overall. I came to the conclusion that BKK is not somewhere I'd like to visit again with the guys - for OBVIOUS reasons...

Lost and Found

Was going through the pictures on my camera and found some of these which I forgot to download. Another lazy afternoon having a cuppa at Katong Shopping Centre. Gideon, here, is of course messing himself up with his "Awfully Chocolate" ice cream and sharing a Gameboy moment with Uncle Ricky.

Now Open - The RED Office

The Red Office is finally ready and we officially opened it with our friends from the Raffles team as well as Mr McAuley, Karen, Mrs Tai and colleagues from Swissotel The Stamford. It was a pity Julian, Adrian and Hock Soon weren't around or we'd have a complete team picture. It took months of preparation (and frustration) getting this office ready - but all's well worth-it! The team is happy with a bright and cheery office despite the fewer people.

The garden right outside sure brightens our day and we're currently contemplating if we should get this Spongebob patio set... will anyone notice, we wonder :-)

Champagne, Wine and a lazy Saturday afternoon...

5 August - Rena's birthday. And of course, the "party-planner" organised her own birthday lunch. A great Saturday afternoon for Il Lido at the Sentosa Golf Club http://www.sentosagolf.com/dining/lido_italian.htm. Clear blue skies, the ship-lined sea and the therapeutic greenery of the Sentosa golf course formed the backdrop to lunch at this art-deco(ish) restaurant. Funky fans, quirky chairs and bright cheery colours - what better place to spend a lazy afternoon then sipping wine and savouring the cuisine of Michele Pavanello (formerly from Pontini). To top it off, service was wonderful! I must say that I benchmark service to the tolerance levels staff have of kids. And at Il Lido, they definitely did well in that aspect!



We then adjourned to KM8 where Jeremy and Alvin joined us. It was sun, sand and lots of fun for the kids (both the big ones and the little ones...). An evening football match among the kids became a match for the BIG boys! I wonder what the little ones think of their dads...

Happy Birthday Rena!

Spongebob Strikes - from The Philippines

"For every house is built by someone but God is the builder of everything." (Heb.3:4) - Julian returned from his mission in the Philippines as part of the Hope Builders group from Holy Family Church http://www.catholic.org.sg/hfyc/. We all thought it was a truly "noble" and self-sacrificing act as he spent lots of time making arrangements from first-aid kits to budgeting. The group went to a rural village in the Philippines to build houses for poor families. Well, these pictures definitely have nothing to do with the trip (wish I had some which Julian showed... will post them later) but Julian bought this tie from his trip for Gideon, who wore them for a couple of days, and even insisted it went well with his school uniform!!??

Happy Birthday Mama!

21 July - Mum's birthday. We knew it was a toughy trying to arrange something to celebrate the occasion but we tried. Terence got Aunty Chey Heng, Daphne and Sharon to pop over so we could surprise Mum with dinner. Somehow Mum still managed to cook some simple food and kept dinner at home. Well, as long as she's happy, no? And anyways, it was a good get-together as well - wish Gu Gu was still around...

Zainab's 17th!??

The office celebrated Zainab's birthday yesterday, 14 July. She claims she's 17 - ah well... we gave her the benefit of the doubt! Rose and I decided to strike a pose for photographer Suneet and I took the opportunity to show off my new hair-style as well :-)

Biker Boy!

This is it! Terence and I decided that Gideon should get a little more sporty - get out in the sun, swim more often, do the stuff that big BOYS do... killing Droids and monsters on the XBox isn't exactly my idea of being "active". I chanced upon a programme last evening and caught a 6 year-old boy doing some amazing bicycle stunts. Hmmm... perhaps we should get him a real bike and get him started. So off we went and got him a bike with brakes and a bell this evening! The little monster was not too thrilled in the beginning but got a hang of it and spent almost an hour at the basketball court. Think he feels kinda like a big boy now? I wonder if he'll still cry in school on Monday...