… happy. Strangely happy. And contented.
That is all. :)
Random
Interesting Sunday!
Yeah, the title is kinda lame, but heck.
Met up with Bruno today to go Cirque du Soleil – Totem, their second last show of their leg in Singapore. Initially when Bruno was asking if I’m interested to go to this show, I was like “nooo I don’t like musical :3 “. Then he was like “WTF this isn’t musical.” He then showed me a few videos… and I realised okay, this is something like acrobatics. But since I wasn’t like too familiar with him yet (I think we haven’t even met up when he was telling me about Cirque), I told him maybe not… He sounded really disappointed though, coz he couldn’t find anyone else to go with him. And he would really love to attend it…
A couple of weeks later (after we met up for the first time), he mentioned about it again and I relented and say OK, I’ll go if he really can’t find anyone to go with him. Well, he really couldn’t get anyone, so yup, we went today, on their last day of performance, the second last show.
The show was totally spectacular. Every segment has their breathtaking moments, and some are hilarious. Bruno and I found out that our favourite segment is actually the same one, so that’s pretty cool. This is just our third time meeting, but we were kinda like old friends already. Silent moments were totally not awkward at all too. And he’s such a persuasive person, lol. I hated Vietnam coffee, and he could managed to convince me to try his favourite Vietnamese coffee – Trung Nguyen’s Legendee. It has a similar taste to civet cat’s poo coffee, and it’s priced at an alarming price – SGD16.50 for a small cup! He still treated me to it though… as he said I should try it at least once. OK fine…. It’s very sweet actually. Strong and sweet. To be honest, I preferred the one that he ordered for himself – Passion (if I didn’t remember the name wrongly).
We lingered in the cafe for a good while, because he needed to charge his tablet and there’s free wifi in there too. Then while we were thinking of where to go for dinner, he suddenly suggested Vietnamese food. Well I’m really not a fan of Vietnamese food, but somehow he again managed to convince me to go try one restaurant that he feels has really good Vietnamese food, and so we went.
It was this small restaurant at Grandlink Square called Little Vietnam, and to be honest, it’s really not a place where I would even take a second glance if I pass by it. But okay, we were seated indoors, and we looked over the menu to decide what we could order. He decided to order the braised duck because he said it was really good (he did know that I should be avoiding duck and chicken though), and we also added a dish of stir fry kangkong which he specifically asked for no chilli (thanks, Bruno). So when the dishes came, I tried the duck and boy, the meat was bursting with flavour with every bite. It was spicy, but for some reason only my lips were tingly, and my throat felt fine. There’s totally no need to drink water at all because I don’t feel the spiciness in my mouth! That was a pretty surprising experience.
The kang kong that came along was good too. Usually if I asked for the non-spicy version, either it’s super salty or it’s just totally tasteless. The chef though, managed to get it done just right. Heavy on taste, yet not overly salty. I don’t need to reach for the water even after eating half of that dish of kang kong. The beef slices were flavourful and tender too. Very nice!
Oh yeah, he ordered Vietnamese coffee again, before remembering that he would get migraines if he drank too much coffee. In the end he only drank about half of it, and I helped him finished the other half, haha!
So yup, that kinda summed up what happened today… a bit tiring for the both of us because we both really kinda disliked going out on Sundays (he made an exception for Cirque du Soleil), but interesting for me because there’s so many “firsts” today! And really, big thanks to Bruno for managing to convince me to go for the Totem show. That was an awesome, eye-opening and hilarious experience. ^_^
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忽然间，好累。
身心，好累。
戴着面具微笑着，真的，好累。
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有多少人，明明分手了，却还爱着。
有多少人，明明还爱着，却说放手了。
有多少人，明明难过，却还微笑着说我很好。哭的时候没人哄，于是学会了坚强。
怕的时候没人陪，于是学会了承受。
累的时候没人可以依靠，于是学会了自主。
一个人如果不坚强，软弱给谁看…?
Happy *Belated* Birthday To Me!
So yup, I’m officially older by a year now. Hello, 34 years old!
Got a couple of birthday wishes from some colleagues and close friends, thank you all so much! *feels loved*
Received a lovely drawn card from Reko again (hadn’t received any from him in a while!), and I thought the idea was so cute! It probably took him only like 5 minutes max to come up with it, but heck, it’s the thought that counts, lol.
Haha, isn’t it cute!! He says the bear is on his way to meet me for my birthday lol. I could see that it’s really just a simple and rough picture, but it really just put a huge smile on my face. Thank you, Reko! For remembering my birthday, that is. :D
Took leave on my birthday itself and Bear was nice enough to spend it with me. I knew I could count on my buddy to accompany me! Haha. Not that I would mind being alone, of course. I’ll be alone later today! Which I’m so looking forward to, too. :) Anyway we went to Clinton Street Baking Co because the last time we were there, it was so crowded and the waiting list was so damn long that we decided to give it a miss. But since today is a weekday, we were hoping that there’ll be less people, and yup, we got a table! We ordered their “signature” dishes – their Pancakes with Warm Maple Butter and Wild Blueberries, as well as their Buttermilk waffles with fried chicken.
Verdict: Well I didn’t really try the waffles with chicken, so no comments on that. The pancakes were good though. Soft, warm, fluffy, fresh. The maple butter was sweet and slightly salty, and when paired together with the slightly sourish blueberries, the taste was really “oooomph!”. Very nice!
And because I had my TCM appointment at 4pm, we then slowly walked towards Orchard and stopped by Peace Centre because Bear’s suddenly craving for the tom yum soup there. He managed to convince me to take a sip, and boy, it’s good! It’s not spicy AT ALL, to be honest – just sourish. It’s not those kind of sour-taste that will make your face all scrunched up though. The sour taste is just right and it really kind of opens up your appetite and makes you want more of it. Maybe next time I can go there again if I’m around the vicinity, haha!
Then we head to PoMo and tried the coffee at the Montana Brew Bar. Their latte was not bad, but I really just prefer Percolate, haha! I guess I’m biased. :x After coffee, I went for the TCM appointment, and we just head for a Shin Sapporo ramen dinner after that before heading home respectively. I’m SO disappointed with the ramen at Shin Sapporo now.. their egg is totally flavourless! The soup and noodle texture are still all right, but the chashu and eggs are totally off the mark. Like, WAY OFF the mark. Sad… I remembered I used to love their ramen when they had a small shop in Suntec… it’s really disappointing to find that they’ve totally lost their standard. =(
Well that kinda concluded the stuff that happened on my birthday! Nothing much, really, obviously. Haha. Gonna go catch my beauty sleep now… long day ahead tomorrow too! Breakfast at Percolate… solo karaoke session at Teo Heng… Dinner with the girls… woot! And on Saturday, it’s GameStart Asia! Gosh so many things lining up! Now I’m kinda looking forward to Sunday too, when I finally can relax and rest at home lol. There’s still that colouring book that Sharon gave me! Need to get started on that too! :D
Change…?
I’m so tired of my job. I almost dread going to work every day now, especially on month ends and beginning of the month. Day in day out same old same old. Geez…
Feel like changing a job, but I know that’s easier said than done. Just wish I could get out of this routine while still doing something I like and can pay my bills.
But then again, I don’t know what I like doing. So that’s the problematic part. Meh.
Ugh, or maybe I just need a break. One holiday a year is just WAY TOO LITTLE. How does one survive with just ONE holiday per year?! *groans*
If I could turn back the clock…
… I will still make the same decisions that I had made.
That’s how I want my life to be – no regrets. Or at least, as minimal as possible.
If it’s meant to be yours, it will be in the end. If two people are meant to be together, they will be in the end, no matter what happens in between.
In the event that we made mistakes, we learn from it and we move on – and of course, take care not to make the same mistake again.
One thing I’ve learnt – always be who you are. Never change yourself for someone. Because soon enough you’ll find that it doesn’t work that way. Never does, never will be.
If the person cannot accept the bad side of the other party, then he/she does not deserve the good side of that person. You can’t have both worlds.
Running away from the issue, or avoiding the issue when it happens, is not “accepting” it. It’s just simply running away from it. If you accept it, you won’t even run. At least that’s how I see it.
I guess I should feel lucky to have met at least one person in my lifetime who had accepted me, for being me. He had never made me feel that I’m inadequate, he had never yelled at me or shouted at me for being me – tempers, bad moods and all. Too bad I had to let him go.
At the end of the day – no regrets. No regrets for what I’ve done, no regrets for what I’m doing, and no regrets for what I’m going to do in the future.
That’s how I would want it to be.
Exhausted
Its been so tiring lately. I’m all exhausted. When will I be able break away from all these chains, these emotional rollercoasters, these routines…
Will all these be ending soon? I’m really just so tired…
Tears
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Maybe I shouldn’t have tried to sleep. I guess the tears have replenished themselves for that few hours.
Happy 50th Birthday, Singapore
I’m about three days early, but let’s not care about such minor details, shall we?
Singapore, through all the hardships, is finally 50 years old. Unfortunately, the man who had pushed Singapore to where she is on international stage has passed away earlier this year. If only Mr Lee Kuan Yew would still be here, I’m sure he would be proud of what he had achieved as he watches the SG50 parade this coming Sunday. Alas…
I’m not a patriotic person. At least I don’t think I am. I have lots of complaints about Singapore, constantly pointing out the flaws of the system, etc, when my overseas friends raved about the positive impressions they have on Singapore through various media.
I do, however, appreciate Singapore for where she is, what she is. Although I’m upset that we do not have four seasons here, I’m glad that we also do not suffer from natural disasters. We are relatively safe, geographically speaking, that is. We have strict laws, but thanks to that we do not need to worry about random shooting in schools or malls. We stressed on racial harmony, and even though there are tensions between different races, there’s no racial riots yet.
There were quite a few times in the past where I thought I would leave Singapore for good, and move to Finland with Reko. Although I was excited about the idea at that time, there’s always another part of me wondering if I’d miss Singapore. Then, I heard Kit Chan’s “Home”, and I realised the lyrics really hit home (pun not intended).
Here’s the lyrics (with the bold parts that resonates the most in me), followed by the MV thereafter:
Whenever I am feeling low, I look around me and I know.
There’s a place that will stay within me, wherever I may choose to go.
I will always recall the city, know every street and shore.
Sail down the river that brings us life, winding through my Singapore…
CHORUS:
This is home truly, where I know I must be.
Where my dreams wait for me, where the river always flows.
This is home surely, as my senses tell me.
This is where I won’t be alone.
For this is where I know it’s home.
Whenever there are troubles to go through, we’ll find a way to start anew.
There is comfort in the knowledge and home about its people too.
So we’ll build our dreams together, just like we’ve done before.
Just like the river that brings us life, there will always be Singapore..
(Repeat chorus)
For this is where, I know I’m home…
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QjU1zKYZsHk
Whatever worries I may have for Singapore’s future, let’s cast it aside for now, and relish in the fact that Singapore has reached 50 years old, and hope there’s many more years to come for us to celebrate. Happy 50th birthday, Singapore. =)