Pizza vs Foccacia

2 weekends ago, I tried making some pizzas. Recipe for the crust seemed easy enough and my brother even made some self-made kimchi as topping. The dough wasn't as sticky as I thought it would be and the crust turned out to be very crispy. All in all, my brothers and I had fun making and eating the pizzas...

So, thinking that bread-making would also be as easy-peasy, I made grand plans to make some foccacia bread on the following weekend. I was especially inspired by another blogger, Petunia and her very delicious-looking picture of her grape-with-rosemarry foccacia.

But my first bread-making experience turned out to be a scary one!

It started all good on the Saturday morning, until I really couldn't figure out the recipe as provided by Petunia. The proportions were in "cups" and after translating the measurement to "ML", it still seemed rather strange to me. So, I last minute googled another recipe which I thought look rather simple and easy to understand.

Following the recipe, I mixed the dry and wet ingredients together to get a REALLY sticky dough. In fact, it was sooooo sticky that I freaked out a little, and ended up adding more flour. But, it was still very sticky! After 5 mins of trying to knead the dough, I gave up and dumped the sticky dough to my KitchenAid. I used the dough hook instead to knead the dough.

So while my KitchenAid was kneading the dough, I was clearing up the huge, sticky mess that the dough had made on my table top. I had pieces of sticky dough all over and, I tell you... these sticky bits refused to be washed down the sink! I had to use boiling hot water to dissolve the bits.

After almost 8 minutes, my KitchenAid started making weird noises and I peeped into my mixing bowl. Woah, the sticky dough just got STICKIER!!! Argh...... so, I freaked out once again and added more olive oil. By now, I doubt I was following the recipe anymore...

I stopped the KitchenAid (in case the sticky dough spoil my prized KitchenAid mixer), and decided to knead by hand all over again. So, I kneaded and I kneaded and I kneaded, but the sticky dough simply refused to yield... and it continued to be as sticky as ever, so I added more and more flour... until a "smooth, elastic dough that stretches" was finally formed.

By then, my table top was all messy again. Argh...

Anyway, I could finally start proofing the dough. I put the sticky dough into an oiled bowl and cover the bowl with cling wrap. The recipe indicated 1-2 hrs of proofing until double in size.

So while the dough was proofing, I rushed down to RDA to fulfill my volunteer duties. 2.5 hrs later, I was back and yup, the dough was double in size by then.

I transferred the dough to a square baking tin and let it proofed for another 1 hour or so. Ok, by then my guests would start appearing any moment, so I just had to send it to the oven. A quick dressing of sea salt, cherry tomatoes and thyme leaves from my dying thyme, and in the oven, it went.

25 minutes later, I presented: the Foccacia bread. It was edible, thankfully. Despite of all the additional olive oil, flour and more flour! The bread did not rise as much as I would like, but... at least it did rise!

After this experience, I think I'll just buy a foccacia bread from my Delifrance! Pizzas are definitely easier!

p/s: Thanks E for taking such beautiful pictures of the bread. ;)

Some people just have limitless amount of energy, not any old, how energy, but POSITIVE energy.

As much as I can, I try to let myself to be surrounded by these people; to breathe in their positive vibes and bask in their positive glow. After that, I’ll find life is good again and I’ll be so damn happy and thankful that I’m alive and healthy, with a good head on my shoulders and 4 useful, working limbs.

The irony part is that, these people aren’t my high-flier friends who are making big bucks, but they are the parents or children whom I worked with, on every Saturday. As some of you may know, I volunteer with the RDA – Riders for the Disabled Association of Singapore, and it has been 2 very rewarding years since I first stepped into RDA.

I’ve learnt how to be grateful, how to have an open heart, how not to take things for granted, how vast a parent’s love can be and how strong and resilient these children/teens are. Sometimes, I feel ashamed of myself whenever I feel down, I mean, how bad can my problem/issue be, as compared to these children and parents who have to face everyday.

If they can make the best out of how little they have, the more I should work hard and accomplish what I have set myself to do. I started off with the thought of volunteering my time and give what ever little contribution back to the society, but it turns out that I am the one, who is receiving and learning so much more.

Next Saturday, 18 Sept 2010, RDA is organizing a fund-raising Fan-Fare where there will be Pony/Horse rides, Face-painting, Games, Food and Drinks stalls. Coupons of $20 will be sold on that day, and if anyone of you happens to be free or around the area, do come down with your little ones, to “horse” around with us! All funds raised will be donated to RDA.

I will definitely be there, of course. I am most probably taking the afternoon shift – 2.30 pm – 5 pm or so.

Add of RDA: 5 Jalan Mashhor, Singapore 299174. Tel: 6250 0176

RDA is just next to the Singapore Polo Club, behind the row of nurseries (FarEast Flora ..etc) along Thomson road.

2 begonias have died... ;( so, I've decided to grow herbs instead. Mint is quite hardy, the basils are puny, but at least still alive. The frangipani is doing ok, I see many green leaves sprouting. *phew*

Spot the "Botak" plant... These are "Japanese Bamboos" or, at least that's what I've been told at the nursery.
Ginger is growing happily. A rather no-frill, easy to grow plant. Hopefully I'll have free gingers to eat soon!

I bought this Thyme just 2 weeks ago, but its roots are turning black and the leaves are dying too. Hiaz, to minimize my loss, I cut all the healthy leaves and froze them. Doubt it can hang on much longer...

Cookie, the curious cat was checking me out... until she saw another cat at the car park.

My plants after 3 months

So it has been 3 months since I moved in. Time to review my planter boxes...

Begonias -> Not much of a success. 2 have died, the remaining 4 seems ok, but they aren't looking all that healthy and happy to me. Hmmmm...

The herbs -> Mint is good, the basils... barely surviving. Thyme died. ;( Still considering whether I should get a pot of Rosemary. Argh, but I don't want to be a murderer... Luckily, the ginger is doing alright. The pineapple plantets (not in the photos) seem ok too. Hub commented that the "herb corner" is looking untidy and ugly. That kinda hurts my ego abit... But, that's how herbs are, aren't they? Any tips to "beautify" the area?

Japanese Bamboo -> Not good at all, the first batch had almost all died. So, I bought a second batch and some are showing signs of stress again... leaves are turning brown and dropping everywhere. I'm getting a bit discouraged, maybe I'll just get another breed/type of plants instead. Argh...

Another year to slog

Ideally, I should have passed my CFA level 3 by now, and can finally start thinking about starting a family. I’m in my earlier 30s… and biologically, it is about time to have children before age-related complication sets in.

But life isn’t all rosy and no matter how hard I try, things just do not go according to plan. I really did sit down and study for this Level 3 exam, but either I’m getting senile or I’m really just a stupid person, I did not manage to clear the exam, which already was my 2nd attempt.

1st attempt: I was busy with the wedding prep and subsequent house hunting activities that I did not prepare well for the exam. So, I jolly well deserved to fail.

2nd attempt: Wedding was over and finally got myself a HDB flat, I put in the effort and really sat down and studied. I did all the mock exams provided and went through all my notes. I really wanted to pass the exam and proceed to get my chartership. But, when I saw the morning paper… I panicked. The structure of the paper was very different from what I had been practicing and basically, I had no idea what the questions were asking about.

With that, I flunked.

Next year will be my 3rd attempt and I cannot afford to fail this time round. I have registered for the course early and once my books arrived, I will start studying. I will also sign up for “tuition” classes and seriously intend to be a “chao mugger”.

Haiz, the disappointment and shame that I have to endure for my “failure” is very, very, very difficult to stomach. In fact, I was moping around for the past weeks and took me a while to finally accept that what ever grand plans I have about having children, will just have to be postponed for another year.

Some friends commented that I should just go ahead with family planning and not let CFA be a hindrance. But I find this exam to be highly demanding and the fact that I have to juggle between my job, my personal life and the exam is already killing me. I simply cannot imagine being pregnant AND study 6 books and sit through 6 hours of mind boggling exam in a day. Yup, the 1st paper will start from 9-12, a break of 2 hours, then the 2nd paper from 2-5pm. And usually you will not have time to even pee nor drink any water during the intensive 3 hours per paper. It would be just scribbling, scribbling and punching madly into the calculator.

Just the thought of taking this exam all over again, is already making me DEPRESSED.

Why am I doing this to myself…?

Pictures taken by a true artist...

Same HDB flat but an artist can somehow capture angles and pictures that I simply cannot.

I invited a really talented friend over for dinner yesterday, and the pictures that he has taken made my place looks like a million bucks!!!

*impressed*

Bleeding Blueberries Muffins! I like...

Check out my little strawberries muffin cups. They are so cute, aren't they?!

Got some leftover dark choco chips... don't waste.

How do you like your muffins?

Above pictures are my 2nd batch of muffins. The 1st batch tasted pretty horrible because I didn't cream the butter and sugar before I mixed all the ingredients. The result: sticky muffins.... which I really don't like. But I gave them to my neighbours anyway. Haha!

I like my muffins soft and buttery, almost like little butter-cakes in a cup. So, for my 2nd batch, I ensured that the butter and sugar were sufficiently creamed. All light and fluffy before I folded in the remaining ingredients.

Blue berries and dark choco chips actually worked! Heh... and I got what I wanted. Light, buttery little muffins... Yum. So much happier with the 2nd batch.

Now... I have some apples sitting in the fridge, as well as a spare packet of walnuts. I'm thinking of making apples+roasted walnuts muffins for breakie tomorrow...

Regrets…

There aren’t many regrets in my life but if ever I could turn back time, the one thing I would change: study harder during my university days.

If I had put in more effort in my studies, attended the lectures and tutorials; and had the discipline to sit down to study for the exams, I believed that I could have done so much better.

Now, my poor grades from my Uni days are biting me in the ass.

And I have nobody to blame but myself.

Recipe: Braised Beef cheeks

This recipe is from The Sunday Times. Yup, I regularly cut out the recipes featured on The Sunday Times and keep them in a folder. Most recipes are rather easy and from my experience, taste really good! This dish is definitely one of my favorites, the cheeks were very flavorful and so melt-in-your-mouth. All my guests and Hub love it too!

Note: I bought my frozen wagyu beef cheeks from Mmmm! at Square 2 (novena), and they cost about $20 per 450-480g, which could feed either 3 not-very-greedy people or 2 really greedy/hungry people.

Ingredients:

1 tsp dried parsley flakes

1/2 tsp dried thyme

2 bay leaves, coarsely chopped

1.25 L of red wine

130 g carrots, diced

150 g yellow onions, diced

50g celery, diced

4 cloves garlic, crushed with skin on

2 beef cheeks. 450g each

salt and pepper to taste

flour for dusting

1 tbs canola oil

10g butter

Method:

- If using frozen beef cheeks, do rem that they will take about 24 hrs to thaw in the fridge!

To marinate the cheeks:

- Put the dried herbs in a muslin sachet and place it in a large pot, together with 750 ml red wine, carrots, yellow onions, celery and garlic. Bring the mixture to a boil with the lid off, then cool to room temperature.

- Place the beef cheeks in a large resealable plastic bag, add the red wine marinade (with all e herbs + vegetables!) and leave in the chiller for up to 24 hrs.

To cook the cheeks:

- Remove e cheeks and set aside.

- Strain e marinade into a bowl and leave aside. Reserve the herb sachet and vegetables.

- Season the cheeks with salt and pepper, then flour it lightly, dusting off excess.

- Heat a heavy skillet, add canola oil and evenly brown the cheeks on all side on medium heat.

- Pour away excess beef fat rendered in the pan and use the pan to saute the vegetables.

- Placed the sauteed veg, beef cheeks and herb sachet in a casserole dish and add the red wine sauce, and the remaining red wine. Bring to a simmer and skim off surface scum.

- Transfer to a pre-heated oven at 140 deg C and braise for between 3.5 and 4 hrs. The red wine should just cover the top of the cheeks.

- After 3.5 to 4 hrs, remove the beef cheeks and set aside. Strain the sauce into a small saucepan and skim off the layer of oil. Discard the veg and herb sachet.

- Reduce the sauce over low heat until thickens. Season with salt and pepper.

- While waiting for the sauce to reduce, slice the beef cheeks into about 2 cm thick, then sear in a hot pan with butter. By now, the cheeks will be fork tender, so flip it just once when searing.

- To serve, drizzle sauce over the beef cheeks.

Ta-dah! Yummy Braised beef cheeks!

I followed the recipe word for word, until the part of reducing the sauce. My guests were hungry and so, I used Worcestershire steak sauce instead of waiting for the red wine sauce to reduce. The effect was still rather pleasant since the cheeks were already bursting with flavor.

Hopefully you'll enjoy the cheeks as much as I did!

Pear and Chocolate cake with Ice-cream

Chocolate Meringues

Lemon drizzle cake with ice-cream

Braised Wagyu Beef cheeks

Mushroom soup

Above are some pictures of the recent baking and dinning sessions.

Instead of throwing a huge house-warming party, Hub and I have been hosting a series of small group dinners for our friends for the past weeks. And I've been cooking and baking for every weekend for the past 6 weeks or so.

Although it has been fun getting accustomed with my new oven, hob and hood. I'm getting a little tired of cooking and cleaning continuously for the past weeks. Some dinners were held on Fridays, which mean that I've got to start preparation from Wednesdays and there were times when I had to cook soup/bake desserts on the day before until 1.30 am, so that my guests would have something decent to eat.

I need to "close shop" for 2 weeks to recuperate!

Which part of Black-Tie do you not understand?

Ok, now that the so-called blacktie event was over, my conclusion: Ladies in Singapore do not understand dress-codes…

99.5% of the gentlemen came in their tuxedos, shiny black leather shoes and cute little bow-ties. I counted only 3 men out of a total of around 50 gentlemen, who came in their business suits and of course, they stuck out like sore thumbs.

As for the ladies… horror of all horror, some came in PANTS, some wore dresses that I would wear to office instead of a black-tie event. I would say, about 50% of the ladies did not adhere to the dress code.

Of course, the organizers were decked out to the nines, where the ladies wore beautiful gowns, expensive jewellery, carried exquisite beaded clutches and did their hair and make-up. But, they were the minority…

It turned out that I was one of the better dressed! Geez…

Sure, this wasn’t one of those gala charity dinners or some award ceremonies, but seriously… pants??!!

The organizers took the effort to book a swanky, exclusive dinning venue, brought in some good labels from 1982 Bordeaux, paired the food with the wines and wanted to have a glamorous event to celebrate our nation’s 45th birthday and yet, some ladies didn’t even make the effort to wear a decent long dress…

Where do these people come from?!?!

HDB Letter Boxes

On Wednesday night, Hub and I were on our way to dispose our stash of recyclables to the recycling bin and we realized that our block’s letterboxes were under “renovation”.

In fact, HDB/town council would be replacing the old letter boxes with new ones and suddenly, Hub said “Eh, do you think we can display these old letterboxes in our flat??”

I was like… HUH? 0 _ 0

“The town council will throw the whole structure away, what a waste. We can display it at home, it will look super cool and also add storage space” added Hub.

“Okay…. ….. …. How the hell are we going to move the thing to our flat?!” Although the structure is “only” about 1.5M in length and 1 m in height, I wasn’t too sure about its weight. If it is a 100% steel structure, we will need a few strong men to execute the job.

So, I gave the town council a call yesterday and have also emailed the person-in-charge. Hopefully, this will pull through and I will then have a piece of HDB’s history sitting in my house!

These letter boxes are 23 years old!

What if another lady wears the same dress as me?

As the black-tie event draws nearer, I start to wonder whether I’ll be caught in a situation where another lady wears the exact same dress as me!

There is such a possibility since I only bought the dress rather recently and it was an off-the-rack item. Not to mention that the dress was very affordable, despite the fact that it looked rather grand and good enough for a black-tie event. Well, in my humble opinion, of course.

So… I’m betting that all the other ladies, who will be attending the event aren’t the cheap-skate-types. I hope that all of them will be wearing Prada, Valentino or TanYoong and the equivalents, and not my cheapo-po-but-still-presentable gown (I think!) from a local store…

OMG, what if someone really wears the same gown as me?

I have thought of bringing a scarf/drape along, but I cannot find anything matching from my pathetic collection of scarves!

*panic*

Ip Man Cat 叶问猫 葉問猫

Hub showed me this video last night. SO CUTE! And this cat really looks like Cookie! I'll go home and check whether Cookie can perform such stunts as well!

Am I ashamed of my mobile phone?

I was reading Mind Your Body this morning and came across this article written by Mr. Gary Hayden. The article was titled “Modern Trappings” and the gist of it was about our full-blown consumer society and how we, as consumers are most probably “conned” by the advertisers and manufacturers to think that we want or need certain products/services, although seriously speaking, those aren’t genuine needs.

The author also mentioned about a mobile phone operator in Britain that ran a series of advertisements with the tagline “Ashamed of your mobile?” The ads portrayed situations in which people are shamed ‘cos of their mobile phones were not up-to-date models.

Now, that sounds a little familiar.

I am one of the dinosaurs out there who is NOT carrying an iphone or any versions of Smartphones. My current phone is Sony Ericsson, Cybershot C902. Of course, when it was first launched almost 2.5 years ago, it was a cool and hip phone with a built-in camera of 5 mega pixels (a very big deal at that time), a radio-&-MP3 function and could also surf the net, as long as I pay for it.

Then the iphone came along and the rest was history.

Since then on, almost everyone I know owns an iphone. Well, except Hub. Both of us are gadget-idiots, and just somehow not really interested in any entertainment electronic devices, such as Wii, Xbox, PSP, ipods, iphones, imacs, ipads … etc.

So many people have commented on how “lao-yah”, ie: old and lousy, my current phone is, and some of them had even commented in distaste “OMG, how can anyone NOT carry an iphone”…

And up to now, I still have no desire to own one. I have checked it out and was previously considering of getting the iphone4 once it hits Singapore. But then, I’ll look at my trusty-and-never-say-die-no-matter-how-many-times-I’ve-dropped Sony Ericsson, which is still in good working condition. I just don’t see the need of a new phone.

“Don’t you wana play all the cool games?”
“You can watch youtube and other videos while commuting”
“There are so many cool aps!”
“You can use it as an ipod”

Yup, I know that but I do not play games nor do I want to. When I’m commuting, I usually catch up on my readings. Be it books or more often the case, financial reports or magazines that I usually do not have the time to read in office. If I do not have any reading materials, I’ll usually just quietly think or reflect upon certain topics/recipes/issues that I want to ponder about. I actually enjoy the 20 mins of free time to let my mind wonder, or simply observing people in the train.

I do not need the iphone, ipod or i-whatever. Of course, I want all these cool gadgets and will most gladly welcome any gifts or donations! HAHA. But seriously, I do not need these items.

The day when my current phone died on me, maybe I’ll consider getting one. But as of now, I am happy (although still slightly embarrassed) with my Sony Ericsson.

Disappointment...

Life has ups and downs. And during the "down" periods, I will be dramatically depressed and mourned for the loss of a loved one, a loved pet, a sought-after-job-that-I-didn't-get, or another failed exam, a failed interview; or some health issues that I cannot be cured of.

Every trough in life has made me a stronger person, that I know. But when I'm right at the bottom and all hope is lost, I DO NOT want to be a stronger person. I just want to wallow in my misery and feel sorry for myself.

But ultimately, I will pick myself up. Be it hours, days, weeks, months or years later. Life has to move on and wallowing in self-pity will not get me anywhere.

Nonetheless I can't help but to envy those who just seem to have everything. These people are just born blessed. They have everything works out for them and everything seems so EASY. I hope these people count their blessings and give thanks to who-ever-is-up-there.

Then there are others who just have to work so hard. I'm one of these hard-sloggers. I simply have to slog like hell just to be an average person. Sometimes I really feel like giving up, but I cannot admit defeat so easily. Sometimes I asked myself why do I have to fight so hard for? For pride? For dignity? For money? For love? For myself? For family? Why can't I just take things easy and just cruise along? Then there will be times when I beat myself for not fighting hard enough, for not working hard enough, for not doing enough, for not achieving enough... ...

Sigh. And the slogging continue.

Apologize for these senseless ramblings... just need to get these negative feelings out of my system.

Some Pictures from Singapore Garden Festival 2010

1st Pic: My favorite exhibit. I like the structure and how innovative this garden was. The combination of aquatic plants and soil-based plants was really cool and the concept was such a modern interpretation of what a garden could be...

2nd Pic: a bed of begonias. So beautiful... the silver leaves with dashes of purple. Currently I have some begonias in my planter but after seeing this, I cant wait to buy more pots of begonias!

3rd Pic: These pretty pink blooms were rather strong smelling.

4th Pic: I was wondering what were these "trees" made of... still couldn't figure it out.

All in all, I really enjoyed the exhibits! $7.20 well spent. ;)

Cookie still thinks it's World Cup season

During the crazy days of World Cup, I would wake up at unearthly hours to catch some live football action and somehow, Cookie, with her super senses, could figure out that I was awake and would swing by to keep me company. Although I must admit that the whole block could probably hear me shout with joy whenever Spain scored, so Cookie's "super" senses might be overrated.

USually at about 3 am, she would meow daintly at the door and I would let her in, and both of us would watch football together. She would happily park herself at her favourite corner on the sofa and I would just sprawl myself on the sofa while drifting in and out of consciousness...

There were a few times when Hub would wake up to the sight of a daintly cat, curled up in a corner with a very UNDAINTLY human being snoring away on the sofa...

But now, World Cup is over but Cookie doesn't know that. She is still coming over at 3 to 5 am in the morning, meowing out to us, to let her in. Im the heavy sleeper, so I cannot hear no shit, but Cookie is kinda driving Hub crazy as he is a really light sleeper.

To add icing to the cake, Cookie, being a really smart cat, has figured out which window is our bedroom window and started to meow outside directly outside the window instead of the door! *no worries, we stay at the 2nd floor with a HUGE window ledge, so Cookie will not have the danger of falling off the ledge*

Of course, me being the pig, is still blissfully unaware of what is going on. Cookie is a very daintly cat, her meows are usually very soft and meek. Like "mmmmmmeow", so I doubt the neighbors can hear anything as well.

But Hub can hear her every meow in the morning. So far, he is ignoring all her meows so as NOT to encourage her from coming over in such unearthly hours. I hope Cookie gets the message soon...

Or else, I'm going to have end up with a grumpy hub with panda eyes.

Cookie, the black-&-white cat

I first met Cookie one late evening when Hub and I walked over to check out the reno of our new place. She was relaxing at the void deck and actually came over when I called out "meow meow".

She was very friendly and endearing, and I was thinking to myself that this cannot be a stray cat. She was too trusting of humans, she must have been previously someone's pet.

Subsequently, I would always bring a can of cat food whenever I went over to check out the reno. In fact, I made a point to walk over almost every night, so that I could feed Cookie.

Very soon, Cookie recognized my calls and soon, was responding to my voice and would start running over when I called her name.

Now that we have moved in, we learnt that Cookie used to belong to a family on the 3rd floor. But for some reason, she was being "banished" to the void deck. I also realized that there are easily at least 5 other people at our block who are feeding Cookie, and almost everyone who stays at my block knows that this black-&-white cat is Cookie.

Cookie follows me around when im at home. When I was watching World Cup, she was sleeping on the sofa, next to me. When I was doing some work on my dinning table, she would jump to the table and sleep near me. When I was handwashing some laundry in the toilet, she camped outside and waited for me.

It is VERY difficult not to like this cat. Furthermore, she's a talking cat, she will talk back with different "meows" whenever you talk to her. SO CUTE!

The catch is that, she is ultimately not my cat, and she is used to roaming around at the void deck, and will always want to head back to the void deck. I can't keep her at home all to myself.

The good part of having a part-time pet: I dont have to clear her litter box nor her hairballs.

Ok, I think I can deal with this compromise!

My very first Black-Tie event

I have never been to any galas or charity dinners or formal, corporate functions that require a Black Tie dress code. Not ever in my 30 years of life.

And suddenly, Hub received an invitation to attend a formal dinner on National Day and the dress code is Black-Tie.

W.O.A.H

Hub already has a tux, as well as, different types of bowties and cummberbunds to choose from. He has the traditional bowtie and silk cummberbund for the true, blue traditional black tie function ala James Bond. He also has something that is more stylish, a thin, black silk ribbon for e bowtie, or even a grayish polka dot bowtie with matching cummberband that shouts FUN and yet still formal enough for a black tie event.

Yup, that’s my Hub for you.

As for me, to my horror, I realized that I do NOT own a formal, long gown. Damn… I should have bought my evening wedding gown 2 years ago instead of renting it. Argh… I REALLY loved my gown then. Unfortunately, my bridal studio had closed shop for good, so I can’t go back and buy back the gown; and I also seriously wonder whether I can still fit into that gown in the first place.

I do have a few pretty, flirty cocktail dresses and some formal but knee-length dresses. None deem fit for a black-tie function.

That means that I HAVE THE PREFECT REASON TO BUY A BEAUTIFUL GOWN!

I am secretly very excited!!! Of course, I showed my pained expression to Hub when he told me about the event last night and I was grumbling how I have to waste money buying a gown just for this event, but seriously, I WAS JUMPING FOR JOY AND EXCITEMENT once I was alone in the bedroom.

It is also stated on the invitation that “national dress” will also be acceptable since it will be National Day after all. So…. Does that mean that I can wear a Sari? A Cheongsum? A Sarong Kabaya?

Hmmm…. How about a Cheongsum gown? I have about a month to find a gown… which means that I have to get it off the rack instead of tailor-making one as the timeline is too tight.

Shopping time!

p/s: The orange gown on Michelle Yeoh is absolutely divine! But I don’t think orange will look good on me… but it’s such a beautiful gown isn’t it?

My Planter boxes are ready!!!!

Took a day off to do up the planter boxes and.... Dah Tah! They are done! Now I just have to ensure that the plants live and flourish!

1st Picture: The standing planter which is made of old teak.

2nd Picture: The planter which is in my wet kitchen. Original plan was to plant some edibles but as I do not have sunlight in that area, I can only make do with indoor plants. Nonetheless, seeing all these greenery already makes me very happy.

3rd Picture: The outdoor planter that is along my corridor. The monster fern doesn't seem that big in the picture because I've trimmed almost 40% of its leaves.

4th Picture: The "Before" picture of wet kitchen planter.

5th Picture: The "Before" picture of the corridor planter.

The Planter Box Saga…

So I went to World Farm, a nursery at Yishun, 2 weeks back, hoping that I could buy some plants on the cheap and engage replanting services from its staff at a reasonable price.

World Farm has a very different feel from the nurseries situated along Thomson Road. World Farm, is literally a farm… it feels very kampong and people just leave you alone to touch, smell the plants. Those along Thomson Road are more commercialized and the nurseries are always busy, busy, busy with other customers that it seems to me, nobody ever slows down to REALLY appreciate the beauty of these plants.

Anyway, I really enjoyed my trip at World Farm, despite leaving empty handed. As World farm is busy preparing for the up and coming Garden Show at Suntec, the Manager said that they were really short-handed at the moment, and suggested that I contact a landscaper to help me on my planter boxes instead.

“Eh… ok, but I’m on a budget, y’know” I said.

“It’s ok, this guy is good and cheap” said, the Manager.

“So, agar-agar how much do you think the 2 planters will cost?” I asked.

“Aiyah, should be a couple of hundreds lah. Max of the max, 1K” he claimed.

Alright then, I contacted this landscaper, he came over the next day to check out my planter boxes and said that he would provide me with a quotation in about 2 days time.

2 days later, he quoted me $2XXX. I was like WTF….?

This guy is trying to skin me alive man. Hub, being the Forever Mr. Robert said “wah, ok what… very cheap. Half price from what our ID quoted us originally”

NO way! I can do everything at HALF THE PRICE.

That was it. I went down to Thomson Road yesterday (Sunday), since it was only 5 mins drive away. Drove past JM Flowers, saw the huge “50% SALE”, parked at its car park and all ready to start buying plants and the necessary equipments to do up the planter boxes.

Yesterday was the last day of sale; sadly, many of the good stuff were sold out. Nonetheless, I made my choices and picked the best looking ones available and caught one of the sales managers to sit down and discuss the charges required for delivery of plants and soil, as well as replanting.

It turns out that JM does not provide landscaping services, meaning that I’ll have to do all the “groundwork” of the planters myself, and JM can then take-over by laying the soil and replanting.

Ok, although I’ve never done anything like that before but I have done my research, I know all about the geotextile, the drainage cells and the type of soil that is suitable for my plants. All theory, of course.

Nonetheless, I’ve bought most of the hardware required and will start working on the planters soon.

The total bill: $700-$800 or so, since the soil will be charged as-per-use during replanting. Heh, luckily for the Monster Fern that we picked up earlier, will help us save quite a lot since the huge fern practically covers the entire planter that’s along the corridor.

Bleah. $2XXX, MY FOOT!

Impulse buys over the weekend… *argh!*

Between Hub and I, I am the frugal one.

No doubt, Hub has a good eye for esthetics, as you can easily tell from his dressing and the way he carries himself. In fact, many people have suspected that he…. hrm, belongs to the “happy” people, but rest assured, he’s just what we call a “metrosexual”.

As for me, I just try to look presentable and not disgrace my husband when we are out. I’ll put just enough make-up in order not to scare people; I make sure I smell clean, look clean and smart, and basically no-frills.

So, when it comes to buying furniture, Hub looks out for exquisite items that come in exquisite prices. I’m the practical one, if we were to buy anything expansive, it better be in a strategic location in the house where everyone can admire. That’s the whole point right? Or else, Ikea sells very decent looking furniture that can be quite chic, and at definitely more affordable prices as well!

So, during the weekend, Hub wants to buy this bedside table that I thought was ridiculously expensive. It’s a bedside table, for goodness sake, and who will notice a bedside table??? Guests will most probably spend 5 seconds touring the master bedroom and after that, just mingle around at the living/dinning area. Why spend such money on a bedside table that nobody will notice??? And the icing on the cake is that he intends to put it at MY side of the bed ‘cos he thinks it will fit better?!?!

I was stomping on my foot insisting that he shall not buy a useless piece of furniture until I saw the most beautiful “designer” planter box that is made of old teak. I basically went gaga over it and after stroking the planter box for the 2397th time, I decided that Hub should buy the planter box instead.

O, did I mention that I already have TWO build-in planter boxes in my new place…? But, but, but, that old-teak planter was SPEAKING to me!! I simply couldn’t resist…

And the planter box cost as much as the bedside table.

Eventually, instead of buying only one piece of furniture that we were supposed to, two happy people bought two silly pieces of furniture and made the furniture shop owner even happier.

Damn. What happened to the practical, frugal, old me?! Well, at least my beautiful planter box will be displayed right at the front door area, and not next to my bed!

Maybe I should get this picture, blow it up several times and hang it somewhere at my new place. ;)

Me and my “picky” mouth…

I’m not picky about food, in fact, I eat EVERYTHING. I choose not to eat certain items like shark’s fins, bird nests, blue fin tuna … etc due to environmental concerns. But technically, nothing really disgusts me and I’ve tried cooked bugs or even some raw stuff that normal human beings do not usually eat…

However, it really upsets me when I have to eat bad quality hawker food. Guess I’m spoilt by my mum’s home-cooked dinner since young and now that I’m married and camping with the in-laws, dinners are usually take-aways since my in-laws do not cook.

And I am SO SICK of hawker food! They are either too oily, salty, or at the other extreme end, tasteless and bland. So, whenever I can, I’ll cook my dinner. Be it a steak, pasta or sometimes, a complete Chinese meal of 3 dishes and 1 soup.

And since I stay with the in-laws, it can be a bit tricky if I only cook for myself and Hub, and leave them out. So, I’ll have to be the dutiful daughter-in-law, and rush home to cook dinner on a weekday to feed myself, Hub and the 2 elderly.

It’s not that I’m complaining. Since I’m the itchy backside that wana cook dinner. Nobody is forcing me to do so.

It’s just that I’m picky and want to eat some, wholesome, home-cooked dinner after a long day in office. Although cooking is a hobby for me and I do find it therapeutic, There are times that I do wish, FOR ONCE, I can come home to a home-cooked dinner, instead of being the mad woman who has to hustle around in the kitchen after work.

Now that I’ll be moving to my new place very soon, I’m thinking of buying a slow-cooker to enjoy stews or Chinese soups when I’m back from work. No more yucky hawker food for dinner!

But that will mean that I’ll have to prepare for dinner, on the night before. Haiz, Still no free meals anyway!

We’re finally moving in!

Next Thursday, 17 June 2010, is supposedly an auspicious date for us to move into our new place and thus, by hook or by crook, Mr. Contractor gotta pull it together and hand over the keys, latest by Wednesday.

Our new place is almost ready, but as usual, there are still tons of stuff that needed some touch-ups. Some re-plastering/repainting of walls need to be done, our wet kitchen’s back splash hasn’t been installed yet, wine fridge’s socket is still not working, some of the cabinets’ hinges have to be changed … … etc.

Other than these nitties and gritties, we are almost ready to move in! Yeah!

So, being typical Chinese, we must, of course, consult a Fenghui Master to pick an auspicious date. Then prepare a basket of auspicious items, such as 4 – 8 Mandarin oranges, 1 pineapple, 6 bamboo shoots (I’m just going to get the canned equivalents), rice, sugar, salt, cooking oil, charcoal, a red packet with money, red dates, peanuts and …. Some other random items that I cannot remember for now.

But the most anticipated moment is when both Hub and I will roll the pineapple into the flat and shout “HUAT AH!!!”

That will be so hilarious but fun!

To be frank, I’m not so bothered whether we’ll “huat” or not in our new place, I just ask for peace, health and love. Money, to me, is not a big deal…

Living below my means

Do you realize how easily one can be trapped into living according to a perceived expectation of society? Seems that because both Hub and I are working in the finance sector and in our early 30s would mean that both of us should live in a condominium. It also seems that many have begun to feel entitled to a certain lifestyle and a certain amount of luxuries.

What about living below or within our means? What about living a more enriched life but with less tied to material things? What about pursuing what you wanted instead of what others expect of you?

Of course, Hub and I were previously looking for a swanky condo as our very first love nest but due to the recent property craze, there was no way that we could afford one without taking a three-generation type of mortgage (doubt the banks would approve anyway, this is not Japan in the 1980s). So, we settled for a resale HDB instead.

After Hub and I made that decision, a tremendous weight was lifted from our shoulders and we could afford to renovate our place to exactly what we wanted. We could hack everything away and basically reconfigure the whole space. We could custom-make some furniture that reflects our characters and beliefs.

Although renovation cost us a bomb, it was still within our budget. I did not have to sell one of my kidneys or bags of blood. But if we were to get a condo, that would stretch us a little beyond where we wanted to be, not that we couldn’t afford it. But why must we afford it?

I like to live simply in my simple world and enjoy my simple joys.

Like having sunshine on my face during my morning runs, like having Cookie (my sort-of adopted cat) happily purring at my feet, like preparing dinner for my family while blasting my favorite CDs.

I think I’m a simple girl at heart… very low maintenance and it really doesn’t take a lot to make me happy and contented.

How much do you give?

When I was younger, I was more concerned about how much I'm taking, how much I'm entitled to and how much I'm receiving. It was always about me, me and me, and how much I did NOT have, did NOT take and did NOT receive.

Never once, did I think about how much I should have given nor have given any in the first place.

All the thoughts about wanting, taking and not getting what I wanted made me a rather angsty and unhappy teenager and subsequently, a young adult.

A few years ago, out of the blue, a thought of giving dawned upon me. I just wanted to give my time, my energy, and MYSELF to a purpose, and for a change, I wanted nothing in return. This "nothing in return" was a new concept to me. I've always wanted something in return. It's not that I'm calculating, but I've always believed that nothing is for free, so if I've given something, be it time, energy or money, I expected something in return.

But now, I've learnt that when I give wholeheartedly, and not expecting anything, I will end up receiving the most. Now, I'm more concerned about how much I can give and to who. I'm more conscious of my actions and the impact that I'll create by giving.

Give back to our society, give our aging parents our listening ear, our love and concern. Give our spouse, siblings and friends our support and faith. And for once, expect nothing in return.

By giving, I've become a happier person, and hopefully a better person as well. I hope you can be as well.

Do you talk to strangers?

When I was a kid, I used to talk to strangers ALL THE TIME. Totally shameless, I could say and ask the darnest things ever. Like "can you take my baby brother home and never lets him out ever" to a complete stranger when I had to take care of my baby brother at a hawker centre while my mum was buying food for us.

It seems to me that all kids talk to strangers, kids aren't so concern about whether they will be deem as crazy or stupid by talking to strangers. Being cute and fluffy helps as well I guess. Strangers wouldn't think that a cute kid would be an insurance agent or something...

Now if a stranger suddenly approaches, I would immediately be on my guard. Although most of the times, they were just asking for directions. Or else, they were trying to sell/promote me something. No big deal, not as if they were going to stick out a knief and hack me to death. I would then remind myself that I shouldnt be so defensive and should just chill...

I still remember that many years ago when I visited Hub while he was still a student in London and there was this day when I was wondering around Hyde Park alone. Suddenly there was a gust of wind and some grits got into my eyes, that caused me to tear non-stop.

There I was, standing beside the lake, wiping aways the tears and blinking hard, when suddenly I felt a pair of warm hands around my shoulders. Then some tissues were stuffed into my hands, and a kind voice that said, "there, there, everything will work out fine. It's ok..." then a little squeeze of my hand.

This kind, old lady with a head of white short hair held my hands for another 10 seconds or so... looked at me in the eye with kindness and hope, she gave me a smile, then she walked away. All I could do was to mumble "thank you so much" and then started to tear for real...

Such kindness and such warmth to a stranger. I'll always remember that.

Project Habitat is finally, taking shape

Last night, I had a really pleasant surprise. Hub and I went over to our new place to check out the on-going renovation, and instead of the usual “construction site” mess that basically engulfed the whole flat from Day 1 of the renovation…

The flat was spanking clean! No debris, no cardboard boxes all over the place, no bags of concrete lying around. Oh my god, finally I got to appreciate how big our new place really was.

The renovation is almost 80% completed. By the time I’m done with my CFA exam, I should be ready to move in and start working on the planter boxes.

YEAH!

The crazy things that we do

There was this one day, my interior designer (ID), who is an avid gardener called me one afternoon and told me that he saw this huge Bird Nest Fern that had fallen from a tree, along the road opposite Goodwood Park Hotel.

“It’s a big-ass fern! Really majestic looking! Just that 1 fern can fill up the whole planter box along your corridor.” exclaimed our ID.

That was like 4 pm in the afternoon and where the hell could I get a lorry to pick up that huge fern in such a short notice?! So, I was thinking to myself “Nah… not worth the effort”. Nonetheless, I told Hub about the fern and he too, thought that the whole process of scouting for a lorry and to go down all the way to orchard area to pick up a fallen fern seemed extremely ridiculous.

But that fern stuck to my head ever since…

And it brewed and brewed and I JUST COULDN’T GET IT OUT OF MY HEAD. Until I couldn’t take it anymore and at 1230 am, ie: 8 and ½ hours after that wretched phone call. I told Hub that we needed to get that fern.

It would be like a housewarming gift from God.

And to my surprise, instead of yelling at me for being “crazy”, Hub pondered for a while and said to me “ok, let’s go and get that bloody fern?!”

So, at 1230 am, both of us last minute rented the biggest car that we could find, a Honda Odyssey (thanks to KahShare), quickly changed into something decent and dashed down towards orchard road to “rescue” a fallen fern.

And what a HUGEMONGOUS fern it was?! OMG… the leaves almost reached my shoulder?! Hub looked at it for like 2 seconds, and with all his strength, actually managed to pick up that Fern and squeezed it into the back of the Odyssey. There was just ENOUGH space for that fern.

Then the best part: where to put that monster? At first I thought we could just dump the Fern outside in-law’s flat but it was simply too big. So last minute, I called up my brother’s GF who had a garden and her mum was totally cool to adopt our Monster Fern temporarily.

So, at 1 am in the freaking morning, 2 idiots headed to her place to “deliver” the loot. And she was very sweet (and awake) to direct us where to place the Fern. The Fern was so big that when Hub carried the fern, he looked as if he had completely “disappeared” and you would see the Fern had suddenly sprouted 2 legs and “walked” itself to the garden. It was a really funny sight and instead of helping him, I was crouching at a corner, laughing my head off.

By the time we settled Mr. Monster Fern and cleaned up, it was already 2 am and we completely knocked out after that.

What an adventure.

p/s: the photo above isn’t the Monster Fern, just a picture that I’ve gotten from the net. I’ll take a shot of Monster Fern when he’s settled down at our new place. Monster Fern is way bigger than that… …

Keeping the romance alive

Hubby and I have known each other for 15 years, and out of that, we have been together for about 9 yrs... I used the word "about" because I seriously cannot remember when we “officially” started dating. *opps…*

So after being together for so long, we are already very comfortable with each other that… sometimes, we become TOO comfortable and start to take each other for granted. We would get so bogged down with our daily lives that we would just grunt at each other instead of engaging in meaningful conversation.

But there’s one thing that Hubby will ALWAYS do every single day. He will hug me fiercely for like 15 seconds everyday. NO matter how tired I am, no matter how much laundry I have to do, no matter how stressed up I am over my work or studies. I’ll feel very much loved after that.

And during times like that, I’m really grateful that I married him, and I will feel totally 幸福.

But still not enough to iron his clothes.

;P

I know this is a bit late, but HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY!

How many babies is this poor mother carrying on her back...? I counted 11. OMG. She's a super-what-ever-animal she is!

I'm sure all mums out there feel like this super-animal-mum once a while. But all of the mums told me that carrying all that 11 brats (0r even if it's just ONE brat) is all worth it.

To my mum: It's our turn (3 of us, brats) to carry you on our backs now. Love you, mum!

Discouraged…

Feeling low and discouraged currently.

The stress of studying for an exam, house renovation, personal investing, company investing and keeping a lookout for greener pastures… all of the above are giving me A LOT OF STRESS.

Exam -> This stupid CFA level-3 exam is freaking killing me. Exam is in a month’s time and I have not finished mugging yet! I know of friends who are already revising for the 2nd/3rd time! I’m in a slightly panic mode… …

House Renovation -> Mr. Contractor has finally started on the cabinets and other carpentry works, but issues such as weird measurements and dimensions kept surfacing and I am getting fed up with Mr. Contractor. It has even reached the stage where I don’t really care anymore, just finish up so that I can move in by June!

Personal Investing and investing for the company -> Everyday, I look at charts, read financial data, internalize economic events and hopefully, pick the right stocks and make some decent returns, for the company that I’m working for, as well as for myself and for Hubby. At work, I’m facing a lot of stress, especially when the markets are moving very fast and very volatile. At night, when we’re at home, Hubby will tune to CNBC to check on the US market and European markets and sometimes… all these stress are really getting to me.

Meanwhile, I’m also thinking of changing my work environment. I’ve been sending out some CVs but haven’t heard anything from the headhunters yet, Geez… is my CV that bad?!?!

All in all, I just hope that after the exam, I’ll be in a better place.

I'm looking for a painting for my bedroom...

I wanted something dramatic, something sensual (it's the bedroom afterall, stupid), something that will make you make you go "hmmm".

Then I saw this painting. Too bad, I can't get it in spore. ;(

I'm going to Paris! Tickets booked... and euro is cheap. B.E.S.T. Will start to change some euros soon...

Some pictures that I've collected from the net to remind myself why I love Paris so, so much.

J'adore la Paris...

The after-and-before photos!

Woah... can't believe that it's actually the same space huh? Looking at pretty pictures of renovated apartments bring me so much joy.

But when you are the one actually going through the process of renovating your own place. Argh... not so fun. Nonetheless, I'm looking really forward for my kitchen to take shape. Currently, it still looks like a construction site.

Mr. Contractor... if you are reading this, PLEASE get your act together and start working on the cabinets NOW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

*vomit blood*

P/s: above pictures are from Apartment Therapy . com. Not my place lah...