General Election 2006

The election is over, but unfortunately for Gomez and the WP, it seems that the nightmare has begun. Gomez was denied exit from the country and his passport was being detained by the police…

This general election 2006 is deemed as the Gomez-incidence election as the saga of “why-did-you-say-you-have-submitted-the-form-when-you-did-not-submit-the-form” was more widely discussed than pressing issues such as rising health costs, increasing public transport and generally increasing cost of living.

The way that the issue was being pounded by the PAP really disgusted me. So much for a first world government and a first world election process huh? Nonetheless, Gomez is a real blur-c**k to screw this up…

This election is my very first election and for the first time, I followed the news/blogs closely regarding to this election. I am deeply aware that my vote will indicate to my beloved government what I think of them and hopefully, the govt will reflect upon that in a constructive way.

In fact, my mum and I went for the Workers’ Party rally on Friday, 5 May 2006 and I must say that I am overwhelmed by the crowd, by the passion of the speakers and I have never been more proud when I recited the Pledge that day, under the lead of Mr. Low Thia Khiang.

The post-65 voters (meaning voters who are born after 1965) want to see a government, who will show more empathy towards its people, more openness in the media and a more level playing field during the elections. Well, at least I do hope that I can see my country progress towards that direction.

I want to thank the opposition parties for contesting against the PAP and give me the opportunity to vote. I want to salute the new candidates of the opposition parties for standing up against the old guards and make them work. Kudos to all of you!

Performance at Velvet, 28th May 2006

Last night, 2leftfeet put up a GREAT performance at Velvet!

It was our virgin performance as this routine was meant for the West Coast Salsa Congress in L.A in this coming May.

Thus, currently we will be doing some free performances to gain some exposure. Last night everyone put in their best and we had really good reviews about our performance!

After so much sweat, time, effort and tears... finally, 2leftfeet performance team is rocking the world!

Career Switch

I am quitting soon.

Currently, I am working in an American based MNC, and have been with this job for the past 1 year and 2 months, working as a Financial Analyst, doing corporate accounting. After months of consideration, I have decided to switch career and return to the cold, hard world of Finance to work my ass off (for a better bonus, I hope!)

So, in about a month’s time, I will say good-bye to my fabulous boss and to my fellow colleagues.

I was really lucky to get the new job, as I was just leisurely looking through Recruit and spotted this rather small ad, looking for investment assistant as a newly set Hedge Fund is looking for an assistant to support the fund managers. During that time, I was deciding to quit corporate accounting as I’ve always wanted to try Finance again…

I was previously a Trading Analyst when I 1st graduated from NTU… working for an Oil trading company, supporting the oil traders and seeing how much money they trade in a day. (Losing 25 million USD per trader per day is very common!) Work was rather exciting as I had to watch the market rather closely…

Anyway, back to the story of finding this new job, I saw the ad, I applied for it, and I got a phone call later, went for the interview (without any expectation as I do not have much relevant experience) and got an offer within the same day of the interview!

That was a lot of change within a few weeks! Nonetheless, I am really excited about my new job… It will be tough, but at least, I will be doing something more exciting! Yippe!

I passed my driving test!

Yup! I did it! I finally did it! I can finally drive legally in Singapore! Yeah Yeah!

After some calculation, I spent close to Sing $3K to get my driving license. Ouch… so bloody expensive isn’t it?!

Nonetheless, I am so pleased with myself!

I took the test on last Friday, 7 April 2006 and I passed! ;P

So, am I going to buy a car? Of course… NOT. I cannot afford it…. Sigh, so expensive to own a car here in Singapore. I’ll just make do with my mum’s Nissan March and zip around during the weekends.

If I am loaded… I’ll buy my dream car! The Mini Cooper S! Too bad, I cannot afford it. One brand new Mini Cooper S will cost around $150K Sing dollars (inclusive of COE). Even a 2nd hand Mini (less than 5 years old) cost around 100K!

Anybody wana buy me the miniature of the mini? I prefer red, PINK or orange color…

I’m going diving again!

After days and days of salsa dancing, salsa trainings, salsa music and salsa partners, I am just about to bish (means punch) anyone who mention the word “salsa” to me…

Especially after the recent weekend’s training, sad to say, the current morale of our team was really low and I was just so tired on Sun’s practice as I had a late night on sat and had to wake up really early on Sun due to Ching Ming Jie, where I went to pay respects to my late grandfather.

Back to the morale issue of the performance team: we need MORE guys! Currently, there are twice as many girls than guys in the team, and to make matters worse, some of the guys are rather weak in their dancing and since salsa rely on BOTH the guy and the girl to look good, it can be really frustrating when the guy is not making much effort to buck up.

Sigh… and the performance in L.A is only less than 2 months away!

Anyway… some of my hall friends are organizing a diving trip to Pulau Aur (Malaysia) in August and I am just so excited!

Although, Pulau Aur itself is not a great diving site… in fact, there isn’t much to see at all, except for some sea cucumbers, rocks and occasional fishes. Nonetheless, it will be great to dive again, to breathe the crisp and dry air from the oxygen tank, to enjoy the peace and silence that the ocean offers and to do something else besides salsa!

Hmmm… I will need to get a wet suit. I do not want to go through the agony of squeezing into a wet suit that is too small!

I can’t wait to dive again! ;p

For those who MSN me... will know that this is the portrait of myself.

I just love this picture so much! One of my cats really look like that... fat, yellow, cute and a little stoned.

Hey... she may be fat, but she is NOT clumsy. Jumping from one cabinet to another cabinet is her favourite hobby.

I have a fat, flying cat. ;)

The lucky boy in white is the Birthday Boy!
Happy Birthday!
And all the sexy, gorgeous girls in black are, of course, the girls from the performance team!
And the fairest of them all... is of course ME!
Haha... literally.. "fairest"... ;p

Horror of all horror

I was at Union Square (Singapore one and only salsa bar) last night, and to my horror, I realized that I truly sucked at social dancing!

It has been a while since I last social dance as I have been busy with the performance training for the L.A congress. However, I got to learn the hard way that being a good stage performer doesn’t equate to being a good social dancer! (I’m sure many guys got to experience that 1st hand last night)

I was soooo S-L-O-W in reacting to the guys’ lead, and not only that, my rhythm was in a mess. Basically, if anyone knew that I am going to perform in L.A, he or she will most probably go “yah… rite.”

Sigh… I am so upset.

Time to pull up my socks and get my ass to Union Square every week to social dance!

Cool Salsa Video

Came across this salsa video and I am all motivated again! This video showcases how dips can be done with style and grace, and currently, my performance routine seems to be focusing more on lifts, rather than dips. Although my instructor did mention that there will be a difficult dip in our routine (Can’t wait!)

So, for those who are curious to what salsa dips are (hrmm… not those with nachos), check out the link!

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=5061062132646680465&q=salsa

Meanwhile, a quick update about my life:

Work. Dance. Eat. Sleep. Work. Dance. Eat. Sleep. Work. Dance. Eat. Sleep.

Yup, that’s my life right now. Although I am perpetually tired most of the time, there is a sense of purpose in me: to learn the salsa moves and execute with excellence, so as to “wow” my audience.

There is a part of me that gets all excited (yet stressed!) when I perform as I see performances as a kind of “exam”. After invested so much time, effort and money into salsa, I’ll like to test myself whether I have put my time to good use. Plus the fact that I really do like to perform lah… haha.

Meanwhile, for those who are curious about my cats, my mum is still keeping all of them. HDB has kinda given up on us… and actually told my mum to be as discreet as possible with the cats. Hrm, how to be discreet when you have 7 cats???

So much for the “HDB vs my tubby cats” Saga.

And just for you, Chio, I am enjoying your book “Riding towards the sunrise”. Will blog about it next time!

I am sooooo stressed!

Life is so stressful for me nowadays; in fact, it has been like a mad rush since the beginning of 2006.

Most of the stress is work related, as I have been rotated to a new role with more responsibilities! (My pay is still the same though…)

And currently, I am also training for a salsa performance, which will take place in late May. During the weekends, I’ll spend up to 8 hours on both Saturdays and Sundays on training… it can be really tiring. Going forward, there will be at least 3 to 4 trainings per week… how fun.

Nonetheless, this is something that I really want to do since this performance will take place at the prestigious L.A Congress. Yeah, that’s right! I will be performing with all the salsa experts from all over the world, how cool is that!?!

However, all these stress from work and salsa is taking a toll on my mood… I can be really cranky and grumpy. So, if I snap at any of you, most probably I do not mean it.

Meanwhile, I will continue to update on the “Saga of the HDB cats”.

p/s: If you can’t fight them…. Find their loophole. This is how I am dealing with the HDB now.

Dear Mr Ang,

Thank you for responding to my letter, however, I would like to bring up a few points:

As quoted from you:

2 "We wish to explain that cats are not allowed to be kept in HDB flatsas they are nomadic in nature and are difficult to be confined within theflats. Due to this, cats can cause nuisances, such as shedding of fur,defecating/urinating in public areas, noise disturbance etc, which affectthe environment and neighbourliness in our housing estates."

Firstly, animals will be nomadic if the pet owners are not responsible to keep them within their premises. Dogs, cats, rabbits and birds will definitely roam beyond the flats if they are not properly caged up. Therefore, the problem lies with the pet owners and not due to the animals if they are found to be roaming in the common areas.

Furthermore, for my case, the door and windows of my flat have been specially grilled to prevent my cats from venturing out to common areas, in addition to the fact that they have been sterilized. Thus, they are extremely quiet and are all toilet trained.

Secondly, dogs will also shed fur, defecate/urinate in public areas (I have seen many dog owners who DID NOT pick up the droppings of their dogs in public area such as lifts and parks), as well as noise disturbance (dog's barks is generally louder than cat's meows).

Therefore, the above reasons which you have quoted do NOT only apply to cats, but to dogs as well. And dogs will equally affect the environment and neighbourliness in our housing estates if they have irresponsible pet owners.

Thus, once again, it is the pet owners who have to be responsible to ensure that their pets are not a nuisance to the neighbours, regardless whether it is a dog, cat or parrot.

I understand and appreciate HDB's priority to promote a pleasant living environment and good relationships for all residents in our housing estates. However, it is extremely unfair to discriminate cats because any animals will be nuisances to the environment if the owners are irresponsible. The problem lies with the owners and not the animals, by prohibiting cats to be kept as pets is just curbing the symptom and not the root of the problem.

In addition, the ruling that disallow cats to be kept as legitimate pets could be one of the reasons why the numbers of stray cats in neighbourhoods are high as cat lovers have no choice but to rear the cats in common areas. Thus, fuelling a vicious cycle where cats are causing nuisances to the public.

In fact, I suggest that HDB to issue licenses to cat owners, similar to the current policy where dogs are licensed pets.

In conclusion, I urge HDB to revise its ruling, so as to allow responsible pet owners to own pets of their choice and do their parts to reduce the numbers of the stray cats, thus reaching a win-win situation.


Yours faithfully,
Miss Lee.

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I will fight for my cats... I refuse to let them roam the streets.

I need support... ...

Responsible Pet ownership versus HDB ruling

On 4th February 2006, SPCA has once again urged the public to be responsible pet owners. However, I will like to highlight that under the HDB ruling, “Housing and Development (Animals) rules 1989”, cats are not allowed to be kept as pets in HDB flats.

Toy dogs, birds, hamsters, fishes and rabbits, which can grow to the size of a cat, are allowed to be bred as pets, but just not cats. Even though they are sterilized, and after sterilization, they are usually very quiet and tamed.

I will like to understand from the HDB why there is such discrimination towards cats.

And being cat lover myself, I have 3 cats at home. Unfortunately, due to complaints from a neighbour, I have been warned to “remove the cats” (as quoted from the letter) within 2 weeks, or else I will be slapped with a fine of two thousand to 4 thousand dollars, and upon second or subsequent convictions, I will be charged in court under the Housing and Development (Animals) rules 1989, in addition to “Environment public health act, section 44” and faced imprisonment of not exceeding 3 months.

My cats are sterilized and are kept indoors at all times. They are extremely quiet and I sincerely believe they do not pose any nuisance to my neighbours at all. I love my cats very much and pride myself being a responsible pet owner. However, with the warning from the HDB, how can I continue to be responsible towards my cats?

I hope the HDB can revise the rules and allow cats to be legitimate pets, especially since more than 80% of Singaporeans are HDB flats dwellers. If dogs and rabbits can be kept in flats, I cannot see any valid reasons why sterilized cats cannot be pets.

Currently, in my situation, I really do not wish to abandon my cats and sincerely hope that I can continue to care for them till they die of old age. It is extremely frustrating and heart breaking if I have to give up my 3 beautiful cats to the SPCA or any other shelters, just because I stay in a HDB flat.

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I am having some troubles with the Housing and Development Board of Singapore. As you have read above, I am sending my frustrations to the Straits Times Forum, to the HDB, to the Singapore Cat Welfare Society.

This is issue is causing a lot of grievances to my mother, who is extremely attached to the cats. Sigh… they are more like her children now than me.

My mum is the best…

Just had dinner with my mum and it just hit me once again that I probably have the best mother in the world.

I did not have an easy childhood; my father was missing from my life most of the time and even when he was around. He was more of a terror than a father.

I still have 2 younger brothers and yet, my mum brought us up single-handedly. All these while, I knew that I have to work very hard, so that my mum will have an easier life in future.

Despite the hard times, my mum never let me felt that I am poor. She gave me what ever she could, scrimping on herself and gave her children the world.

When I graduated, my dream was to travel Europe. Although my mum thought that it was a total waste of money (she had never traveled by plane), she “loaned” me additional 2K when I most needed the money (for my frivolous want!) And of course, she never asked for repayment for the “loan”.

When one of my brothers secretly bought a motorbike, my mum got so freaked out that she bought a small car for my brother to zip around. She paid for the car in full.

Now that all 3 of us have grown up, and especially that I have already started working, I told her to take a break and not work so hard anymore. She refuses to listen, stating that my two younger brothers are starting on their universities soon and she needs the money to pay for our education. She is even trying to save up for my Masters.

Upon hearing that, I wanted to cry.

A mother’s love is so selfless. Without my mother, I will not be who I am today. (Not saying that I am anyone great now…)

But I could have easily been led astray during my teen years. Yet, my mother was also there for me and my brothers, playing the roles of a mother, a father and a breadwinner.

Just have this urge to tell everyone how great my mother is.

Mum, I love you.

I’m tired…

The time is now 10 pm and I am still in office. Worked till 2 am last night. Worked till 930 pm the night before. I foresee working till 10 pm tomorrow and the day after as well.

I do not think my brain is working anymore. Ever single brain cell is either on strike or has already crashed and burnt.

At times like this… I really ask myself why am I working so hard for?

I do not know…

All I know is that I am fucking tired now, and I need to sleep. Yet, I can’t finish my work and the deadline is tomorrow.

You know what…

Fuck it.

That’s it. I am going home NOW.

Salsa Performance School

Although I have failed my driving test, I got into my salsa school performance team instead! Yeah! Which means that I will get to perform and might even make my way to L.A for the Salsa Congress in May!

Really excited about this since it has been quite a few years since I last performed for any actitives. F.Y.I: I used to dance for my college's Modern Jazz team. (Can't tell huh?)

Can't wait to start dancing again!

Today is a sad day for me…

I failed my driving test this morning… (Sob)

Now I really feel stupid because everyone around me passed on the first attempt. My 2 YOUNGER brothers passed, beloved passed, brother’s girlfriend passed, my mousy girlfriend passed… and to think that I took my driving lessons from the school.

I am so disappointed with myself.

Sigh… now I have to wait for another 2 and a half months before I can take the test again. Not only that, I also have to pay for another 3 revision lessons and that will cost me altogether 350 bucks. Just because I failed the damned test today!

And I did not even make any major mistakes! And there was this STUPID SILVER CAR that suddenly stopped in front of me and caused me 8 demerit points! I hate all silver cars now… especially Mitsubishi silver cars…

The stupid tester is inhuman. He has scarred me emotionally for the rest of my life.

I hate him.

Back to reality

Back to Singapore. Back to work. And back to reality…

Holidays always have this surreal quality that allows people to be ridiculously happy, relax and somehow spend a lot of money, especially on shopping! Haha.. At least for me!
Now… it’s back to slogging in office. Sigh…

Anyway, the Taipei trip was great and I truly enjoyed myself. Despite the fact that I traveled alone! Highly recommend one to travel alone… at least once in your lifetime. Where you can walk around at your own pace, enjoy your own independence and basically chill… …

I was really happy to see my friend (Taiwanese) again after two years. I first got to know her in New York and somehow we really clicked and had so much fun hanging out together. She was so nice to let me crash at her place (free accommodation! Woohoo!) And that freed me loads of money to shop! And all the girls’ talk that we engaged during this period brought us even closer. I really appreciate her friendship…

Next, Taiwan has really great food and shopping that my daily itinerary was “eat, shop, eat even more and shop even more”. That was basically how I spent my days in Taipei… Furthermore, the cool weather (It is now winter) means that make-up stays and you do not perspire when you are out shopping. Ahhh… heaven!

More about food, the Stinky toufu really tastes FANTASTIC! Ok… I know it really stinks like garbage mixed with someone’s fart. BUT IT TASTES GOOD. Pinch your nose and put it into your mouth… and the stink will be miraculously replaced by a sweet aroma and taste. Viola! You are now hooked to Stinky Toufu.

And for the very first time, I soaked in a hot spring! A.k.a Onsen (in Japan). Taiwan has many great hot springs and I was brought to one in Wu-Lai. The spring water was so silky that it made my skin baby smooth for 2 days! Not only that, I had the view of a mountain with a little waterfall, gushing daintily down the rocks. One of the highlights of my trip.

Ahhh… will definitely want to return to Taiwan. But I will like to explore other parts of Taiwan… that’s if I can tear myself away from the shopping and eating in the city!

At the airport now....

I am now using the free internet at Changi airport... and I only have the last 3 minutes to write this message.

Ok... I will be in Taiwan from today, 27th Dec till 2 Jan. Meanwhile, everyone has a great New Year!

Happy 2006!

Xmas is here again…

I’ll like to wish all of you guys and girls, especially those who have been reading my blog, a SUPER MERRY XMAS and A GREAT 2006!

I have been really busy with my work lately and haven’t got the time to post any entries at all. Nonetheless, one of my New Year resolutions is to keep my blog alive…

Thankfully, I will be taking a break from 27th Dec to 2 Jan 2006… and I will be going to Taiwan!!! Yeah!

Really looking forward to the trip, since I am travelling alone (excited!) and will be visiting 2 friends in Taipei as well.

Hmmm… can’t wait to taste the yummy food!

Will definitely keep you guys updated again!

The big switchzeroo

Ok, I am still alive and that is because I did not run 21 km last Sunday.

I did not chicken out. I repeat, I did not chicken out!!! ;p

Well… I was still coughing rather badly on Saturday night and Boyfriend suggested that we should exchange our running bibs instead. Boyfriend did not sign up for the run initially, but managed to hitch one bib at the very last minute because one of his colleagues decided not to take part in the 10 km run.

After a long though of 3 mins… I decided that he was right after all. In my condition, I could not pull off the half-marathon at all. So on Sunday, Boyfriend was running as “Lee XXX XX” (my name) and I was running as “Henry XXX” (His colleague).

We woke up at 430 am, each wolfed down 2 bananas and put on our running gear and we were all set. The full marathon started at 6 am, but by 520 am, the area (Esplanade) was already flooded with runners. It was like a carnival, with the music blasting and all the fanfare. Finally, it was 6 am and the marathoners set off from their starting point with the music blasting “Who let the dogs out, woof woof woof woof!!!”

After an hour, it was time for the quarter marathoners to set off! The run was pretty relaxing in the beginning, but as I hit my 6 km, my nose began to run faster than my legs… yeek… Not a very pretty sight! And with no tissues… I snorted and sniffed for the remaining 4 km.

Finally after 1 hour and 8 minutes, I completed the 10 km run! With sweat, snorts, mucus and all! Yeah!

It was a good run and I was pretty proud of myself. Heh heh… Now, I am extremely motivated to sign up for the run next year and will continue to train for the next one year!