Stress of gifts

In less than half a year I've already dreamt twice that my wallet was stolen/lost. Each time I panic like crazy in the dream. In the latest dream, I lost my luggage and wallet - and I was more worried about the wallet than anything else! Not the contents of the luggage nor the money and cards in the wallet - just the wallet itself. 

I don't think I've had such dreams before with previous wallets. I guess when someone gifts something expensive to me, I feel very pressured not to lose it - because I don't know how to face the person in the event it's lost!! The stress is getting to me. I think I'll have to buy all the expensive things myself in future. Such is my life. Sigh. 

Rime

Photo by Nick Mattlock.

Nature and man.

This is rime formed windward over man-made wires; a result of water vapour/snowfall/freezing rain and high winds.

Retina is the way to go

These days I use the MacBook only when I need to save my rosters to PDF to be sent to my mum. 

Otherwise it's hardly ever turned on. 

I'm now doing some light reading on it and I realize, GOSH my eyes!! They're hurting from seeing all the grainy pixels in the words. I don't think I ever had that problem in the heyday of using this laptop but now my eyes sure feel the strain. 

About time to change everything to Retina display. 

CRAPPY 2014

This is like the darkest year I've known. Wtf. 

Gaza. Boko Haram. MAS x2. Taipei plane crash. Indian plane crash. Worst floods in Malaysia. Russia vs. Ukraine. Ebola. Syria. ISIS. Police vs. Black people x4. Ferry disaster x2. Crazy Chinese passengers x4. Republicans took the senate. Another hero to zero (Pistorius). Indian rape. MU BPL standing for season 2013/14. My fucking country's seditious politicians, more brazen than ever. 

Today I landed in Singapore at 2 pm. Ground staff greeted us with the shittiest news - AA flight from Surabaya to Singapore has gone missing. 

.……

Great way to end 2014. 

Hope the pax and crew are safe otherwise this might just be one of the worst ever year for aviation if it isn't already the worst. 

______________________________

Take your mind off the important matters to laugh at this: http://m.life.com.tw/?app=view&no=213556

ROAAAAARRRRRRRRRR

ARRRGHHHHHH!!!!!! 

I'm refreshing Facebook every 3 minutes because I'm FUCKING BORED OUT OF MY MIND!

On house arrest AGAIN and this time the boyfriend is not free to entertain me. Boyfriend not free to send me dinner later too. Boyfriend not with me tomorrow too! It's Christmas Eve and I'm eating bread that I bought yesterday. It's Christmas tomorrow and I'll be alone. 

I wanna cry. 

Ps: no the boyfriend isn't cheating. He's just got to be at a wake. :( 

Annoy someone this Christmas

Yesterday I discovered a neat app, Peel, on my tablet that controls just about any TV. I am not sure about the antique CRT ones but most new TVs ought to be compatible. 

That app will first ask for your TV brand and also country. By knowing which corner of the world you're in, it'll be able to pull up your local TV guide (not a problem too if you're using cable TV) and then proceed to control everything through the app. 

It was quite funny to see the boyfriend lose control over his TV even though the TV remote control was in his hand. I could choose to turn the TV on or off, switch channels or even adjust the volume just through my tablet. 

Unfortunately I don't see this app on iTunes Store. So right now this is just for Android users. 

Stuck in BP

Poor boy. Came to BP to pick me up today. He even took leave. 

And now he's stuck because his car engine died. The overhaul's gonna take about a week. 

An unexpected layover for him tonight, and additional night for me! Thank goodness my leave goes on till next week. 

You're most welcome

You can thank me for this community service message later. 

What happens is I do bring bread for some flights, usually to eat before I check out, simply because bread and peanut butter is the meal of champions. 

In all these years there have been many times - especially in the last two years - where I completely forgot about the bread in my luggage and I would only discover it there a week or so later. In the past, I would take the bread out of the luggage and eat it in Singapore during my off days. That's how single people eat, stop judging me. (I love bread too!) But with Markus, I eat with him every single meal ever so often I waste almost an entire loaf of bread and that's how I got to know what I now know. So back to the part where I discovered my loaf only many many many days later. I always thought, "Gosh I'm gonna find some really disgusting stuff there," thinking it'll be very moldy and disgusting. But no. Never. 

So I kept on purpose this loaf of bread from 16 November till today. I had already mentioned a few posts before that I stopped buying Gardenia. The reason I have this loaf was because the boyfriend bought it on my behalf when he realized I had forgotten to buy breakfast (that's what I call my meal before flight, regardless of the time I leave for flight) for the next day's flight. I ate two slices and the rest I kept aside. 

Then a few days ago I bought a loaf of bread from the local bakery. Costs almost 50% more than Gardenia for less than half the number of slices per loaf. 

I ate only two slices before it expired. I put it aside with the gardenia and off I went to Seoul. 

Today I came back to check on the results and again I wanna tell you - there's proper bread out there so stop eating crap bread! 

Sample A that doesn't have crap is crap. Sample B that has crap is actually not crap. Get it now? 

A picture tells a thousand words. Made on the 16th and still hasn't got a hint of mould. All that preservatives that I've been eating my whole life...all because I loved my Gardenia bread since I was a kid...most probably is the cause of my pimples...my hair loss...my weight...my IQ...my weak nails...my rabbit's death....

STOP EATING CRAP! 

Look at his frown

The first shot I took because he was giving me a drink.

I kept drinking and didn't want to hold my own cup...

Then he started to frown so I took a second shot, this time of his face. 

Almost seamless and perfect ok! *pats self* 

The last for the fortnight

Had so many standby in the last two weeks. Yesterday, that ended half an hour ago, was the last phew. 

I was house-arrested for 24 hours. NOT COOL. 

Later today I'm going to roam the streets of Singapore to make up for the time I lost today. 

Sad fact of life: I found out a few days ago I'm allergic to Carmex. FML. 

LV x CL

!!!!!

Christian Louboutin collaborates with Louis Vuitton! 

Spikes on trunks!!! I want one please? 

A typical day in UK Airspace

UK 24 from NATS on Vimeo.

KKK vs. Anonymous

Ku Klux Klan has been very active lately because of the judgement due on the officer who killed Michael Brown, in Ferguson, Missouri. No doubt it's a very racial issue...

Who would then become the new hero in putting the KKK in check, but Anonymous.

Anonymous took over KKK's twitter account, and has warned KKK against violence. KKK had previously threatened to hurt protestors in Ferguson.


Let's welcome our latest hero, ANONYMOUS.


ps: What really baffles me is that the KKK is still active. In this day and age! Everyone's already some kind of brown, but these white supremacists still think there's a world for the white only. It's hard to believe that in my travels to the US, I might have walked beside a KKK member who would very much like me poor, suffering, or even dead, because I'm not white.

ERP at Changi

BOh my god.

I just came back from Japan. 

Passenger profile is suppose to be the easiest. Japanese don't press the call button at all. They only drink juice and water. Yet doing the return flight to Tokyo has been so tough my legs have ached both days. IT IS BLOODY HECTIC. 

All I wanna say is, Singaporeans should reflect on themselves. If I ever run an airline, Singaporeans for sure will pay a premium for the tickets. On top of that, government imposes the ERP everywhere. How about, taxing all Singaporeans who wanna leave the country, AND THEN channel that tax to us cabin crew? 

£%^€%<$[€~^！

To prove my point - and that's on top of all the other cr@p that my colleagues and I had to put up with on this flight - a family were traveling and their teenage daughter left a bag behind in the seat pocket. The cleaners had already boarded when the crew were leaving. My colleague saw the bag and her first reaction, "Oh SHIT." In the bag was a box of premium Japanese chocolates, hand phone and a power bank. 

Just to side track a bit: We don't like to find things that passengers leave behind. Because after a tiring flight, the last thing we want to do is to personally deliver the item to Lost And Found. It's a tiring process because instead of taking our bags and go, we have to go to the office, sit down and wait for our turn, and then fill in a form. If it had been the someone else who had found the bag, I don't know if this girl would ever have seen her phone again. My colleague ran to the Chief and IFS and said she needs to rush off to Lost And Found. She hurried off. As she was entering the airport terminal, our forgetful teenage girl was coming towards her, realizing that she had forgotten her bag. And she took it from my colleague and never even thanked her. WTF. I TELL YOU, this generation of Singaporeans is damned. She, and that Starbucks complaint girl, show just how bloody entitled they think they are. My colleague didn't have to rush off to try to return her bag. My other colleague had gone through the passenger manifest just to try to recall who was sitting at that seat (whether it's a Japanese or Asian etc.). And then she just comes in and disregards my colleagues' efforts. The cleaners had already boarded. These cleaners are foreigners who are paid peanuts and who knows if she would ever have seen the phone again if my colleague hadn't been first to see it. HONESTLY MAN. 

Screwed up. Who can I blame???? 

Carry me to the toilet

Last night when I woke up from a nap after flight at the boyfriend's place, I had to use the loo. 

So I turned to the bf and I said, "I'm very tired but I need to pee. Carry me."

And then the boyfriend carried me all the way to the toilet in the kitchen. Along the way I woke up from fright because his house has so many antiques! It was rather dark and I was afraid he would miscalculate and my legs would swing and break something. Eventually I broke nothing but I did knock my elbow -___- because there was a swinging door to the kitchen and he either forgot to open it by going in back-first or he did it on purpose because bitch was getting too heavy! 

Move over already

So someone is in the news AGAIN for I don't know what reason. Always in the tabloids, but why do people even care?
She's hot? Don't think so. Like, I didn't even think many would be impressed with her nude pics.


I'm going to sleep until this blows over. Wake me up when Nicole Scherzinger does a nude shot thankyouverymuch.

Theodore Chan

Welcome to the family.

Thank God that mum and child are both healthy. 

Theodore, Y U SO CUTE????

Home

Came back to BP last night...to wait for the stork! 

Overeating in HK

Gosh. On my first day in HK I had already fallen into the trap of eating too much. 

I was nauseous the moment I came back to the hotel. Couldn't do anything but lie down and squirm, and sometimes sat beside the toilet bowl, thinking I would vomit but I didn't. I was feeling awful for almost two hours, so I had to wait it out before I felt well enough to remove my makeup and go to bed. 

In four hours I ate four times, one of it a full dinner. It's insane. 

Eating starts again in four hours hahaha. Oh yeah. 

Did I also mention there's freaking ICHIRAN in HK???? Like in Causeway Bay itself, where I am?? Hellyeahhhbaybehhhhh!! 

:,(

Was searching through my mailbox for an email. It's a funny email that my cousin sent but I couldn't remember the subject line, so I searched by email address. 

Instead, I found a group conversation between my sisters, cousins and I when my grandma was taken into hospital and when she became very critically ill. 

I read the conversations at random... And I was brought back to the time when it all happened, when Internet was vital to update the cousins of my grandma's situation (no data roaming was a pain). *sigh* 

It was such a struggle for all of us to put up a strong front for our parents back then. Grandma, we miss you. 

CHRISTMAS!

A package arrived today for the boyfriend's Christmas present. I'm super excited!! 

I hope he will be as excited about it as I am. I am quite sure I'll be stealing it from him every now and then. 

Happy bunny. <3

And GOOD MORNING SAN FRANCISCOOOOOOOO. U LOOK AWESOME. 

Countering breakouts

I've been having breakouts for the last two months or so. It sucks. Before the scars can heal, big new zits form. From anywhere on the face to the neck to even my scalp. 

So today the boyfriend bought me this, hoping it'll balance the hormones. Isn't he sweet :) 

Last weekend, Mayne bought me a cronut. Great to have finally tried a cronut! The craze in NY is dying but since I always give away my NYC flights, I wasn't able to try one until a few days ago. I like it, but I also don't want to think of how fattening it is. 

I'm also watching this drama Fated to Love You, Korean version. I bawl at every episode wtf FML. Why is it so hard to love??????

Tomorrow I'm leaving for a flight that's taken so long to come by. HKG-SFO. Brings a tear to my eye when I think of SFO. But it also pains me to know that I won't be seeing the boyfriend for two weeks. Sigh. Just can't win.

Tonight he had to go for this meet-the-people thing where he helps people in need. So we didn't get to spend that much time together either. 

All these time that I'm away makes me treasure all the times when we are together. 

WAKE UP YOUR FUCKING IDEA

Edit: so she took down her complaint on Starbucks' wall because she got flamed by hundreds of people. Starbucks initially were apologetic but its second comment said it was happy to see so many people who supported the store manager and it will stand behind the store manager too. Basically, stupid bratty girl and her friend left her books and stuff at Starbucks including their drinks while they went away for 30 minutes. Then made a huge fuss because the store manager cleared away their stuff and drinks. She insisted they had no right to touch her things and she also insisted on getting another cup of the drinks they were having. The manager lectured them, but still gave them half a cup of whatever they had because that's what was left when it was cleared. Anyway removing her post is too late. Google Starbucks Singapore complaint. Straits Times has already picked up the story. 

Welcome to Singapore. Land of complaints. Where kids start young.


https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10152814956439507&set=o.191921700135&type=1&theater

*slow clap*
Well done Huixin, you are exactly the kind of disgusting Singaporean I tell my friends about.
Fortunately, it turns out that many other Singaporeans are not like you (as can be seen in the comments). So yes, stop disgracing yourself and your fellow Singaporeans. As it is, I already hate seeing students hogging the tables in Starbucks. Many times, I can't find myself a table to sit because it's filled with students and their books spread all across even the big tables. With all the support the manager is getting, I hope Starbucks gets the message and support him through this.

While we are still young

Had a fabulous weekend with the cousins in London, celebrating Annabelle's third birthday. And just like a  kid's birthday party should be, there was plenty of ribena-color and apple juice-color liquid flowing. Free flow. Except that that liquid made me very sleepy (since I had touched down from flight that day itself). 

I had last seen Annabelle when she was only less than 4 months old. She's now 3! I don't know when I'll see her again. I didn't feel very old last night when in actual fact I should because when I was three, my uncles and aunts were the ones singing me birthday songs. I never remembered my uncles and aunts to be young. So in the eyes of Annabelle when she grows older, I'll always be her old "biao-gu". :( 

It's hard to imagine ourselves to be that old but in fact we are. 

I realized only this morning that a cousin is turning 40, and 40 is old!!!

I remember very well when mum was 40. How did my generation catch up so quickly to be that old?

#Forever21 #ifonly 

Sigh. 

Damn you nightmare

I had such a dreadful dream. And some parts of the dream was actually from last night in reality. 

I dreamt my boyfriend cheated on me with Fann Wong T___________T. 

And the night before I found out he cheated, we drove past V Hotel and he went, "V Hotel...." This actually also happened last night in reality. So in my dream I yelled at him that he had wanted to go to the hotel with Fann. Not funny ok because it's so real. As I confronted him I punched him countless times in the face (in the dream this happened in an Estima and in reality yesterday I came back to Singapore in an Estima) and he didn't retaliate. 

It was terrible. He even wrote a note and called her "Wife."

I hate Fann. 

(And strangely the boyfriend has never been a fan of hers. He always told me that she's ugly.) 

As I texted him about the dream (or most parts of it that I could still remember) I couldn't stop crying. Such a horrid nightmare. 

RIP Grand Master

Oscar de la Renta has passed away. 

Such a great loss to the fashion industry. Just this past NY Fashion Week, I was marveling at his beautiful floral and feminine pieces for SS'15 that I even showed Anlynn how beautiful and wearable the dresses are. 

 

He appeared at the end of the show to take a final bow. He appeared weak but who knew that that was indeed his very last bow. 

Bread that doesn't mould

Oh my god. I think what they say about Gardenia bread is true. How much preservatives is in that bread?!?

I came back from Frankfurt two Fridays ago. The bread's expiry date was on the 4th. Today is the 13th. My room is exceptionally humid and warm (haven't you seen photos of mould growing on my Hermes box?). So humid that I collect 1.3L of water in 7 hours with my dehumidifier. I forgot about the bread in my luggage and only saw it now because I'm packing away some things. And I see not a single green/gray/black speck on the bread. 

!!!!!

Time to switch to another brand maybe?

ACM

Visited a museum today.

Here's what a passport in the middle of last century looked like. 

Such a tiring day today. Walked so much. But the weather was lovely so that wasn't too bad. 

This whole week I'll be in Singapore. Eat grass month. Where's my money gonna come from?? 

Rant post

I just wanna brag that I've finally flown with an airline legend. Notoriously infamous one. On the most challenging route. Boy am I thankful I survived. Two girls are in trouble though, hence I'm just thankful that even though I finished the flight with no voice, aching calves, a hungry stomach (I had breakfast at 5 a.m., and I finished the most punishing turnaround at 5 p.m. having no meals until I landed), aching shoulder and a headache, I don't have to go back to office to answer for any wrongdoing. 

Coca-cola was key to survival. On the return leg I could feel my muscles go weak so I downed a can of coke for sugar. 

It wasn't just the crew who weren't impressed by the legend. The passengers weren't either. I won't go into that but thank you Mr. Isaacs at 54H. Will remember your kind words and motivation forever. 

Like, seriously?

I don't spend more than RM1k to make prescription glasses. It's a lot of money for something I wear on occasional basis and, 1 grand is just a lot lah!!! 

I know there are glasses that cost RM2k easily because the boyfriend happens to be a fan of Starck Eyes by Philippe Starck. 

In fact, when I first knew him, I couldn't believe he would spend that money on glasses. 

(He happens to be quite obsessed with glasses too.)

Then came the Cartier frames. Super love them. Markus has been trying on a few pairs and it's all exquisitely made. And again that pushed the price boundaries. I was actually all for the boyfriend getting a nice pair of Cartier frames. 

Basically, because of the boyfriend, I came to know some frames cost a grand or two (in Singapore dollars). Quite a big deal for such a small accessory that doesn't tell you time and just sits and look pretty on the face. No special mechanism whatsoever. That's about as expensive as it'll get, right? 

Maybe not. 

I had serious jaw-drop moments last weekend at Takashimaya's Paris Miki. 

I mean, WTF ARE THESE MADE OF? 

I cannot make sense of this. CAN. NOT. 

$33k?! 43k?! 65k?! 88k?!!!???!!!!!!

...........

Ritter Sport kinda day

Went to three supermarkets just to find the yellow ones. Only one had it. Cleared everything - that's all they have. 

Three supermarkets too to find the Ovalmatine spread for Anlynn. Again only one had it (of course, the last one). 

And Mövenpick and Müller yoghurt!! 

Bestest yoghurt :) 

Sleeping on clouds

For the past 9 days or so, I've been going about life on little sleep, while those days were long and most times tiring. 

Holidays are what holidays are. You think you're on a break but the tight holiday schedule just tires you out more. 

I'm just thankful that for a first flight after my leave, the load was very light (while I retune myself to getting back to work) and that the hotel is a Marriott. 

Nothing better than finally catching up on my sleep in a Marriott. 

Goodnight, world. Zzzzzz.....

Marketing

Every corner I turned, I saw Do Min Joon's face. I don't know his real name I know it's quite feminine. I won't attempt it here in case I get it wrong. 

He's not even cute, is he? He's the face for everything! Clothes, makeup, luggage, food. Sheesh. 

Next is MCM. Because there are so many Chinese tourists in Seoul, MCM was in my face the whole time. Seriously what's the big deal about MCM? I don't get it. I don't think it's nice, neither are the studs. The worst thing is, they all carry the same brown/pink/sometimes blue backpacks. Young and old, boys and girls. In other words, every Chinese tourist. Some aunties are not even age-conscious and just carry these hipster backpacks blindly. 

Next up. New Balance sneakers. Because Asians love them. Koreans, Chinese, Hong Kees. I wanted a pair myself not so long ago. In fact, only two Saturdays ago, I was in two shops trying on different pairs. After this trip to Seoul, I don't want them anymore. 

How Instagram and Vogue and 女友 made everybody look like a copy of everyone else. 

Flying home

Mum and I are now at ICN waiting to board our flight back to Singapore. 

Been such a wonderful trip! 

Mum is in disbelief that the empty luggage we brought - which she didn't want to bring - is full.

There is no empty space in all hand-carry and check-in bags. 

Well, for Japan, Korea, US and Europe, it's really hard to not fill up any luggage! 

6

Blogging from the new iPhone 6. 

Pleased with the larger display, but the vibration sounds so weird - as though something is loose somewhere. 

Did you all see the girls in kebaya on TV tonight? Amazing. The drivers must be disappointed. They probably wanted to see some skin before the race but sorry, no skin!! 

Moschino at Milan FW

Barbie-themed!

All the models were dressed like Barbie dolls. And the clothes and shoes were very Barbiesque. Love it!! 

After the McDonald's M-logo accessories fad, I think Moschino is set to garner more fans with accessories from the collection of Spring/Summer '15. 

In other news, Chanel's supermarket-themed goodies have hit the shelves. 

The shopping basket costs a whopping US$12,500 (not yet inclusive of tax). 

Are u kidding me! 

Chappati vs noodles

I'm in Mumbai, India. Before this flight, I had flown to Beijing, China. 

The two countries with more than 1 billion citizens cannot be more different. 

India is the world's largest democracy. China, the world's largest communist country. 

China is far far far far far far faaaaaaaaaar ahead financially and overall progress. The airports that welcome you say a lot. Then you start to compare: the cars on the street. The public transport system. The everyday lives of the common people. The buildings and houses the people live in. The schools. The roads. All that, worlds apart. 

1 billion people to make a difference but India just can't catch up.

Is it to say that....communism is better? 

Most countries, however undeveloped, usually try to make the airport vicinity and roads leading to the airport look as nice as possible. It's the first and last impression to tourists and investors. But in Mumbai, second city only to New Delhi, there are pot holes right within the airport. -.-

Also, just the collection of hot towels tell a lot about the journey the common people make. When you have labourers on flights to Singapore, the hot towels that you collect back are VERY dirty. Like all grey with soot. These folks probably travelled quite far to come to an international airport by train. We do get labourers on China flights too but their towels are never half as dirty. 

I think we can thus gather that either the trains the Indians use are old, or that the air quality in India is bad. It could be both that. We know though that air quality in China isn't great either, but they probably have "cleaner", greener trains. 

I could go on and on comparing each and every thing but I'm gonna stop. I'm tired from my flight and there's no point in me comparing it all when you just need to google some pictures to know what I'm talking about. 

Storm is a-brewing

Shit happens when your family gets too big. 

And when parents die. 

And more so when the children have memories that fail them! 

Please stop the nonsense. 

Kanken

Today the boyfriend and I went to a shop in Singapore that sells Kanken backpacks. 

It's a brand of Swedish school bags. I was intrigued when I saw two passengers carry it on my previous flights. 

When the boyfriend saw it, he disapproved of it immediately. He said, "Go get the Chanel backpack instead."

First of all, I never told him I wanted a Chanel backpack. I only mildly played with that idea in my head just a few days ago. 

Second of all, the Chanel graffiti backpack is elusive and is so hard to find!! 

Laduree cosmetics

I have finally found you!! 

Beautiful colours, and creative packaging. More pictures to follow. 

I bought an item from the skincare range. I actually think the pearl serum is very good too. That could be my next purchase. I've samples, so will see how it does. 

Sleep

Have you ever wondered if the sleep you're getting now may be the most peaceful sleep you'll have in your life? 

When one is married, he or she may go to bed bogged down by marital problems. 

When one has children, he or she definitely will get a lot less sleep. And the biggest what if - what if the child isn't normal? 

Sleep well everyone, for the future is unknown. Sleep the best you can tonight. 

HAHA crap post but it's because I love sleep (and mooncakes). Grateful to every night's good sleep. 

Love note

And I just saw this note stuffed into the piggy's net. <3

Little piggy

The day before I had to leave for this flight, I asked Anlynn to help me buy two mooncakes for me to take on this flight. 

Other than a durian-flavored snow skin mooncake that Markus' mum gave, I haven't had any mooncakes. And I love the traditional baked ones the most. Since it's 八月十五 on Monday, I felt it was necessary to bring at least one on my flight so that I can eat them before Monday. 

Unfortunately...

The one I asked Lynn to buy wasn't individually packed. Not sealed and no silica gel. As a result, it must be consumed within 7 days from purchase or within 3 days if not refrigerated.

So when I got to Narita, the first thing I did was to put the two mooncakes in the fridge. 

AND THEN I FORGOT THEM WHEN I CHECKED OUT. T______T

I only realized it when I was filling in the crew customs declaration form on the flight to LAX. I was thinking if I should declare it and what would an American customs officer think if he saw the word mooncake. Like wtf is a mooncake. I was so upset. Really couldn't get over it and I told a few colleagues about it. 

Today, while I was shopping, I bumped into my leading stewardess, Serene. She said she tried calling me at my room but I wasn't in. Then she took out the piglet mooncake from her bag and gave it to me. She said she has two and she forgot that she had them in her luggage. She insisted I take it. 

To be honest, I don't know how true it is that she has two. Maybe she brought the piglet for her own consumption and maybe she only had one. 

So touched. She's so sweet. I'll share the piglet with her tomorrow. 

In other news, Australia is not so cheap after all.

Remember the Sensationails kit I bought? It's £70 in UK, AUD90 in Australia and FREEEEEAAAAKKKKKKK, US$40 in the US! I wanted to stab myself. It's less than half the Australian price! The thing is I had no confidence of coming across it in LA (because I'm stuck in Torrance, not downtown LA, and it's hard to move about without a car). I saw it by chance only because today out of norm, two colleagues and I took a cab out to somewhere else for breakfast and there was a Walgreens just opposite the cafe. 

Sigh. I shall not dwell on this and look forward to eating the piglet onboard tomorrow with Serene. 

So much to eat, so little time

Back in JAPAN!!! 

I've so much to eat. On top of the usual stuff, I found Kyoho grapes in the supermarket! I've to finish them in a night because I can't take them into the US. 

On top of that, I've got TWO mooncakes (because it's mooncake festival) that must be finished before the end of the flight. 

My stomach can only take that much food. 

Why my October roster is like &:#^$/!! I feel sad just looking at the new roster. I feel like I could fall sick just looking at it. 

My honey loves me

Had a mini date night last night even though I was perpetually on the verge of collapsing after a long day (with very minimal sleep the 2 days before). 

Little things that the boyfriend does for me, show me that I'm loved. 

Whether this is forever or if his feelings will remain unchanged remains to be seen. Of course for now I should just appreciate what I have and be content. 

--------------------------------------------------------

My leave bidding results for 2015 is out. So the thing is... I could strangely bid for leave when all the others who are promoted this round couldn't. The reason being they will still be under probation. The system probably overlooked my promotion ERHEM and allowed me to bid. 

The bad news is, as it has been the case for every single year, my leave bid for Chinese New Year failed. The good news is that it allocated 10 days of leave from my birthday onwards. And my dear system failed to realize that's right in the middle of my probation. Why does that make me happy? Because that takes about 10 days right out of me having to serve probation. I don't even wanna point out all the other days it allocated me (also during my probation period) because originally I applied 2 weeks for CNY. Who knows some time next year an ass will realize it and then take it all away from me and spoil my birthday for me. 

HOLY COW. I just realized. I turn the next decade next year! Please don't spoil my birthday trip (the boyfriend says Japan!)........

Gel nails at home

Guess what. Australia can actually be cheap too. 

Cheaper than the UK by £20! 

Had a long hangout session with my colleagues today. One of them, Jessica, just got out of a relationship two days before this flight because her boyfriend of six years committed adultery. And even has a child from that affair. 

It's traumatic, and I salute her for being able to come for this flight. 

Thankful journal

This journal will remind me to be thankful everyday. 

I'm sure by the end of the book I will have very interesting things to look back on. 

We sometimes are grateful for certain things that happen in our day but we don't remember it many months down the road. 

This will remind me of the good things that come my way and of the good people in my life. 

"I felt sorry for myself because I had no shoes, until I met a man with no feet."

Girl kills shooting instructor by accident

WHY IS A 9-YEAR OLD HANDLING A GUN???? 

Why are kids allowed to handle guns?

Americans are indeed crazy. 

Community service message

If you have very expensive shoes that need to be repaired, but don't know which cobbler to trust, go to Masterfix at ION Orchard. 

I've sent my shoes there to add on protective soles for my precious shoes. That man there is also very good with Christian Louboutin shoes. He has matching Vibram soles and he will also advise you on what's best for your shoes. 

He was recommended by a sales assistant in Burberry because my boots' soles were wearing thin. Upon hearing that it's good to just add soles to all expensive shoes (especially since most of the time the soles are leather and those wear out so fast), I brought all expensive shoes that have soles that aren't rubber to him.

The first time I was there I saw a two pairs of Louboutin sneakers and several pairs of other designer shoes that he had just done his magic on. Cleaning, dyeing and repairing are amongst the stuff he does for your leather goods. 

Yesterday I had to pop by again because a pair of my flats needed repair. When I dropped by I saw a pile of shoe dust-bags that included Louboutin, Ferragamo and Miu Miu on his stool - evidence of his little projects. 

Each time I was there I had to remind him to be gentle with my pair of pony-hair shoes. I kept reminding him the hair will fall off if he's not gentle. And each time my shoes came back looking like they were well taken care of. 

There are several Masterfix stands around the island but I would like to believe that this branch handles expensive shoes on a regular basis and is thus experienced to give your shoes the care and treatment it deserves. 

Oh. If you have cross-body straps that are too long, it seems that they can shorten it for you too. I have heard that the Masterfix at Paragon managed to shorten the cross-body strap of a colleague's LV Eva clutch that comes with a non-adjustable strap. 

Remember the name: MASTERFIX. 

Project handphone cover

The boyfriend is busy eating his favorite fishball noodle soup while I am busy decorating my new phone cover. 

Ho, news.

So today I found out on Instagram that ShaolinTiger, the angmoh blogger who lives in KL, is married to Kimberlycun. And they now have a baby!! 

These are the pioneers of Project Petaling Street (PPS) together with Kenny Sia, Bin, Cheeser, Suanie. 

I don't know what has happened to PPS now. The group got too big and many mediocre bloggers joined the crowd and it became a lot harder to pick out the better ones. 

Anyway back from Zurich with the usual stuff in my luggage - Ovalmaltine spread (you don't know what you're missing if you haven't tried it) and lychee sparkling wine. This time I'm careful not to check in the spread because it shattered in my luggage the last time! 

Benefits of being a crew - no liquids, aerosols and gel restrictions. \o/ *whee!*

I recently found my ex-roommate on Facebook. She was the nicest roommate I could ever ask for. I lost her number and I just couldn't think of how else I could locate her. I'm so happy :') 

Me being me, I never did single bit of cleaning. So she was the one who mopped the floor always. And because she drove, she always drove me out for dinner or to go shopping. I've about 9 years worth if catching up to do! 

Shucks

No lobster tonight because:

1. La Villa, the Italian restaurant that I liked so much, is closed! It used to be on this plot of land that had a huge garden (good for garden weddings actually) along River Valley Road. Government has taken back the land to be used for a future MRT project. As of now La Villa hasn't found a new home. What a bummer. Markus and I love that place because it's so cosy and it serves very good food. We told ourselves we have to go back to try the lobster one day. But shucks! 

2. The boyfriend doesn't feel too well. 

So it's porridge for dinner I guess. *sniffles* 

My God isn't Walt Disney

My world isn't written in a fairytale. 

So, how does one know if he's the one? 

There's no dramatic music for when he does something to catch your heart. There's no slow-motion to that true-love kiss. There's no antagonist, so you won't have the world rooting for you. 

Everything feels right but is it? 

--------------------------------------------------

Going on a date with my baby tomorrow. Long-awaited date!! LOBSTER! 

The boyfriend's mum bought a Chanel Boy bag two weeks ago. I couldn't believe it because whoaa, auntie why u so hip?! 

Anyway today she said she doesn't like it anymore and wants to sell it at half price. Haha. Unfortunately, it's not my kinda bag otherwise I would have taken it off of her. Half price, used only once, such a good deal! 

Operation Burger King...

SUCCESS!!!

Finally! 

It's better to arrive late than to arrive ugly

Not that I agree with being late!!! 

My roster for September was released a few days ago, exceptionally early I must say. 

I have a flight to Japan - a long-awaited one because my toiletries supplies are extremely low. And I need to stock up on my B&BW hand-soaps when I get to the US of A. 

I was counting down to how many more rosters I will have before I start my training for the next role. 

For the six months after that, life will suck because I won't be able to change flights. Toiletries dry up also no choice but to wait forever for the flight I need. And life after that six months will suck even more because I'll very likely be the most junior in that rank for every flight. If you didn't understand what that connotes, it means I'll be assigned all the lousy work positions. Gone will be the days of me being the most senior (or second or third most senior) and getting all the good work positions. 

Life doesn't always get easier....

The real deal

This, my friends, is the real deal. 

THE MARIAGE FRÈRES. 

Not TWG, which is a mere copycat of this. 

Buy only the original. 

Daniel Henney

The boyfriend and I were talking about Korean Americans over dinner today. I mentioned that they're very hot. I googled Daniel Henney and showed him. 

He thinks he looks just like Daniel Henney. 

....................

>.<

I wish. I so wish.  

Well done, losers

The latest tit-for-tat drama between my country and my residential country is downright childish. Embarrassing. 

You raise, I raise too. 

Oh you raised also? I raise even more!!

You know what I think? Well done. Come I clap for you. Truly two world-class countries. 

&:?%*|\$!!!!

In other news... Well not much. I'm going home later (and I'm sure my regular cabbie will give me the most shocking new cab fare effective August 1st). And will come back to Singapore on July 31st. Screw all that toll hike for now. I balik dulu, makan popiah ibu. 

Finishing line

Operation Burger King, almost there. Almost there. Damnit sometimes I wish life wasn't so hard! 

Not turning on the TV!

Titanic is the name of my hotel. No kidding. There's a channel on TV that plays Titanic (the one with Jack and Rose) 24/7. Uh-huh. 

Whoever is a Titanic megamaniac will be thrilled to stay the night here. 

Istanbul

Just landed in the land that's Europe and Asia. Many of the passengers came from Australia and spoke with heavy Aussie accent, all coming back to celebrate Eid. 

I spoke to one guy and asked if he's stopping in Istanbul. He said no. He has another flight to catch. I asked where is he from? He said Palestine. Always like that one... When Crimea was fighting I met a Crimean. Immediately I told him I am sorry about what's going on in his country. The best (or maybe worst) part? He holds an Israeli passport. How the heck? He explains that there are three parts (all along I thought there were only two) to Palestine. One is the West Bank,  another is Gaza and the last is part of Israel. And that's the safe part, where all his family members (300 plus of them) are. Those Palestinians there are the ones who can go in and out. Those in Gaza and the West Bank are completely trapped because Israel fenced them up and had them isolated. 

It's crazy. It's just crazy. How much he may hate them, he still needs to hold the Israeli passport. 

Anyway. Can't quite elaborate here but I'll just quickly tap this in so that when I look back at this post in future, I'll be reminded of this bitch with 28 allergies who won't help herself and still wanna yell at us. A passenger two rows ahead of her told us he wished The Company will blacklist her. 

Rouge Louboutin

And so Mr. Louboutin has a new idea... To launch a red nail polish in the exact shade as his famed shoe-soles. 

That beautiful red. That inescapable red. The red that others try to copy but you know they're fakes. There's only one Louboutin red. And imagine rocking it when you're wearing your Loubies. 

Will have to see if it's decently priced. If it is, IMMAGEDDIT! 

Standby

One of the worst things ever in an air crew's life - STANDBY. 

I hate standbys. 

It's like Russian roulette. You don't know what you're getting yourself into. Can't report sick and can't change flight after you've been called up. It's not uncommon that people report sick for flights after they realize they're going to be flying with some sick monsters. And then guess who gets called up...

That's still ok if you know beforehand like a day in advance. Then you can plan your sleeping time. 

For me I had to sleep very early last night just in case they call me at 3 a.m. for a 5 a.m. reporting (it has happened before!). And then you don't know how to pack in that rush. 

Because I slept so early I was up at 2 a.m. and doing nothing till I fell back to sleep at 6. Highly critical time because so many lousy flights in the morning that people will report sick for. And it's also the time when they wake up and realize, "Gosh I don't feel too well..." 

So I slept till 11 and woke up to have a bowl of cereals. Then went back to sleep till 1.30 p.m. The reason I keep sleeping is because I don't know how long a flight they'll call me for, so if it's like a 10-hour flight then I really must sleep a lot before such a flight. And now I've slept all I could. Can't sleep no more. And I'm hungry. Can't even head out to buy food T____T. 

I couldn't even stock up on food because what if I get called up then what happens to the food? I could bring them with me, but what if I get called to Australia or NZ where the customs are...don't wanna talk about it. 

And then you can't plan anything either for the days after a standby in case the flight is more than a day then everything you planned for gets disrupted. 

So yeah I hate standby. Hate hate hate. 

Bored out of my head. Yesterday I wish they would call me up before I went to bed. Today, not so much. Not prepared to go for flight in such a short notice. 

Still have to wait it out until 2359 hours OMG help meeeeeeeeee. 

Stronger nails

Gel nails!!! Why didn't I do them sooner?

From the day I started flying, my seniors were already doing acrylic nails but that of course was harmful to the nails. Then there was gel, and I still didn't believe that it would be any good to have those.
My nails chipped EVERY flight and required repainting the night before every flight. Do you know how time consuming that is?

On my last visit to do my toe nails, the manicurist suggested I try gelish since my nails are brittle and split often. Gel layers are thick and hence make the nails stronger. It has been a week since I got them done and my nails haven't chipped nor have they split. It's amazing!! I don't have to rush home before a flight to paint my nails. I am certain my nails can finally grow out and on my next visit, acquire a proper shape. My nails were too short to be shaped any differently last week.

SHOULD I GET A DIY KIT?......

Heading to China

So no social media for the next two days. 

Meanwhile have a fabulous weekend everyone!!! 

Have fun in the sun!

To another fallen Wau..

RIP. :'(

Almost got mugged

In all my years of flying I've always heard of the notorious pickpockets in Rome. On my virgin trip here I was almost a victim of one this morning. 

THE FEELING SUCKS but I know not as much as if I had really lost my wallet. 

First of all it was an expensive gift from the boyfriend. And it's so new it smells pristine. In fact any note I take out from there smells so strongly of the leather. While the boyfriend has many nice things, he hasn't even bought himself anything expensive since I knew him. Instead he spent it on me so it means a lot to me. 

Of course there will be so much hassle if I had really lost the wallet. It was already half way out of my bag (I brought a really cheap bag to Rome and if you will notice, all tourists even the PRCs carry pariah bags in Rome) when I realized the flap was open. When the girl (OMG she's not even gypsy!) saw that I realized she quickly left before the train door closed. 

My colleagues and I were pushed so hard as we boarded the train. It's a distraction because we would feel the push rather than a pull to the bag. 

And that almost ruined my entire day. 

On the train though, two gentlemen were very concerned and told us to be very careful of gypsies. Ya but it wasn't even a gypsy!! Blonde-haired! 

My bed is a mess

No surprise there.

Whenever the boyfriend comes over to change the sheets, I'll tidy up and the bed will look so inviting. Then things that don't belong on the bed will eventually start to pile up. 

Right now I'm looking at a tablet, a pair of glasses, nail polish remover, a stapleless-stapler (from Japan), clean laundry, a paper bag from Poh Heng (with an aunt's gift in there that's overdue), a paper bag from Cartier, two handbags, a water tumbler (the water there hasn't been changed for 3 weeks?? GROSSSSSS), a cardigan, letter from tax department, a pajama top that I wanted to wear some nights ago but didn't, hand cream and keys. 

Plus all the soft toys and pillows, you really wonder where I sleep. Thank goodness I only need the space of a small wooden plank. 

So my birthday has just passed and I THANK GOD everyone left me nice and, at the very least, decent birthday greetings on my Facebook. Decent is like just two words, happy birthday. Straightforward. 

I was so afraid that someone was going to ruin the wall by posting "HBD!"

Wtf is HBD. 

I see it now and then appearing on my newsfeeds. Friends have friends wishing them HBD on their birthdays. 

If one can't even type out the words happy birthday, sooo lazy that all one can muster are three letters, might as well don't wish? How very sincere. 

I find it really irritating. So hard to type meh? Or cannot spell? Nowadays phones have spell checks - at least try, the phone will guide you. 

Going to Rome for the first time ever. And restoration work started on the Trevi Fountain last month. The timing couldn't be better. *rolls eyes* 

Ok I think I'm whining too much. 

It must be the bed. 

Messy bed = bad aura. 

Mentos Mystery

The petrol kiosk had this new thing at the counter called Mentos Mystery while I was paying for my stuff. 

Thought I'll just give it a try. I love Mentos. 

Basically the tube of sweets are all colourless so you have no clue as to what flavour it'll turn out to be. 

I've already had 4 - why are they all lemon flavour (the one I dislike the most)?? 

Edit: so they all taste the same. I did a google and my concept of Mentos Mystery is totally out the window -.-'' 

It's all in one flavour and I'm suppose to guess what it is?... Not fun at all. Gimme my pink Mentos. 

Get your tissues ready

http://m.imgur.com/gallery/H5cJHc4

Tokyu Hands

So Tokyu Hands will open in Singapore soon (in, of all places, Jurong)! 

Looking forward to that! It definitely won't be 7-8 floors like that in Shinjuku, Tokyo so I'll be interested to see what the Singapore store will carry. 

Meanwhile for the luckier folks in KL, Nobu is opening a branch there according to a friend. 

NOBU! In KL!!! 

Christina Ong can't even open one in her own home country??? 

Another happy thing

Every year, for the last 6 years, The Company gives me a present the day after my birthday, as our annual bonus comes in on July 7th. 

This year, I got another wonderful news that feels like another big birthday present :) 

These past years' hard work (including dragging my feet to work just so I don't take MC, that's the kind of sacrifice one has to make) has paid off. 

Zippadidoodah!!

This seems like a rockin' good year!

My love

Don't think I've blogged this. Saw this video some time ago but decided to watch it again tonight. And I still cried even though I've seen it before! 

:') 

http://youtu.be/hXiCB6SZp4U

Sorry I'm using the blogger app which is really just barebones for blogging, hence I can't insert the video on the page. Instead I'm providing the link to you to open in another window/tab. 

The child in the news right now

This morning I read about a boy who was found so malnourished that his limbs have become deformed. 

He was covered with his own urine and faeces. And he lives with his mother. 

Why? Why did a mother leave her son in such a condition? Why didn't she even give him proper clothes to wear? Why did she not give him FOOD? 

http://www.thestar.com.my/News/Nation/2014/06/21/teenager-physically-challenged-found-in-flat/

I had just seen a video a friend posted on Facebook of the moment the immigration officers discovered the boy. 

It's very heartbreaking to see the boy and how he slowly moved on his buttocks as more officers came by to see him. I couldn't bring myself to finish watching the video. When I fast-forwarded it, I saw that they had him stretchered off. 

That video is not for the faint-hearted. 

I hope now that his former babysitter has decided to adopt him, he will lead a much better life. First of all, let's hope the doctors can help give him back some of his strength. 

Bad engineering

You know what I hate? Escalator steps that don't move in-sync with the handrail. 

I'm sure you've been on escalators where your arm gets extended further and further when you had placed it right beside you on the handrail when you first stepped on the escalator. 

Courtesy campaign

Saw two big boards at a bus-stop that's also above an MRT station. 

One says "Bring out the Stand Up Stacey in you", encouraging users of the MRT to give up the seats to people who need it more. A few meters down, there's another board that says "Bring out the Move In Martin in you", of course asking commuters to move in to the center of the cabin to make use of available space that's usually not used. 

Why don't they use Stand Up Seng and Move In Muthu? Or Stand Up Siti and Move In Meng? 

It's Singapore. Just saying. If Malaysia were to have a similar campaign I'm certain very local names would be used instead. For the fun of it! 

When wandering around in Paris...

Rose petal tea, "Butterfly" with strawberry flavored shells and one lone vanilla macaron. 

China asks Britain to expand Heathrow

"China wants London's Heathrow airport to expand its capacity so that Chinese airlines can introduce more flights between China and Britain, China's ambassador to Britain said on Friday, saying he had written to the government about the issue."

China wants also more slots and says Heathrow should have a third runway. The third runway issue has been a controversial and thorny one and suddenly, an outsider comes in and tells London to freaking expand the airport and build another runway - regardless of what the people living around the area think - cz it needs to serve China's massive population. 

China, like that also can. You win liao lor. 

Can't feel my legs

There are few flights that can make my legs ache this way. It did live up to its name.

Though we had an empress dowager onboard (FFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFF!!!) it's ok. It's over for me. Pity her army of maids, her children, her husband,and all those who have to put up with her permanently. 

I shall not sweat the small things but I will sweat the big things like, the freaking weather. Weatherman, don't be so hot can or not?!?

-----------------------------------------------

And it feels good to have showered and smell fresh. Thank you Dr. Scholl for your miracle socks. These socks are an absolute must post-%*{!++%^ flight. My tired calves recover faster with these socks. 

What a pity Ah Boy is not here. Cannot order hot chocolate. Sigh. 

Ps: if you are reading this William, you probably can guess which flight I just did!! And the dowager is from your home country -_-'

Stupid Watsons thermometer

Edit: And I'll be getting my money back. 

On Sunday night I went to a neighborhood Watsons pharmacy to buy a thermometer. It was either the house brand digital thermometer or a mercury thermometer. 

Late on Monday night I wrote Watsons a less than pleasant email. I had to, considering their refund policy requires that the item be returned in a sellable condition (I stuck the thermometer in my mouth, how do you sell that again?). In order to get my money back and to voice my displeasure, I resorted to the following email.

This also serves as a reminder to YOU never to buy the Watsons brand thermometer! 

I bought a Watsons thermometer yesterday at a neighbourhood store of yours due to a lack of choice. For digital thermometers, that was the only brand available. 

And I need to let you know that THAT piece of useless device should never even be allowed on the shelves! 

I have been running a temperature over the weekend. As my previous thermometer had run out of battery,  I went to the nearest place that sells one at that time of the night so that I could monitor my temperature at night.

Tell me what use is a thermometer that gave me four very different readings in a span of 5 minutes? 
The first reading it recorded was 37.1 deg. I felt my body temperature was probably higher than that so I took the reading again. 36.8 this time. I felt that a difference of 0.3 is much too huge. I waited one minute and took my temperature again.  36.3.  IS THIS A JOKE? One last chance - 36.6.

I was irritated by the inconsistency of a thermometer. Never in my life have I seen a thermometer as ridiculous as this. 

Tonight I decided to give it another go. Who knows maybe my body temperature went crazy last night right? 
Two back-to-back readings were 37.1 and 36.6 respectively. 
A margin of 0.1 is understandable.  But this crazy device is just not fit to be in production,  much less be on the shelves.
Its reliability gives SO MUCH credibility to the brand name printed on the box. I'm appalled to say the least.
This is the last thing a person with fever needs.

And I want my money back. I wouldn't even pay a cent for a thermometer that gives wrong readings.  If I wanted to see random numbers jump, I can watch the stock market, thank u very much.

Now give me back my seven dollars and ninety cents. 

You know it's really not that eight dollars but rather it is how extremely frustrated I got when I needed to know just how bad my fever was! And now I await a reply. 

Shop the right way!

I see people going to Japan and taking photos of their loot from the supermarket snacks section. 

PEOPLE, U R DOING IT WRONG! 

Sigh. I wish to tell them that there's so much more to buy than just Kit-Kats and Meiji chocolates. 

Tissues everywhere

If I got a dollar for every time I blew my nose, I'd be a millionaire by now. 

Sickies

Sucks to be sick when you're on a holiday. 

What else is worse? 

Your partner being sick too. 

Poor next-door neighbour. Had to endure all the coughs and the trumpet-like sounds when we blew our noses all through out the day. 

The Grace Kelly pen

I bought this last week and only managed to collect it today. 

How regal. Royal purple and champagne gold. The Princess Grace monogram. And a petal-cut pink topaz. 

Now I need a cheque book. Lol. 

Honestly, there's nothing for me to sign (sad, I know). No letters to write (maybe I should start writing love letters). 

Only an immigration form to Thailand to fill this coming weekend.

Sigh

Sleepless after a long and tiring flight. 

Frustrated at how Operation Burger King is coming along. 

Poring through forums and it gets more depressing to know that this Operation will be tougher than I thought. 

I feel sick. If only there is an easier way. 

I have a feeling that this frustration will lead to a lot of impulsive spending. It is known to a close few that whenever I want to spend money, I really must spend it! As a cousin puts it, "Money in Angeh's pocket will bite her." 

Things that I've bought impulsively while I waited for a particular bag include (I searched a whole year, mind you, so these are all from London when I left the shop frustrated): 

- a patent leather Ferragamo tote 

- two Ferragamo scarves 

- Chanel tote 

- countless dresses and coats

There is no bigger therapy to not being able to buy something than to spend that money on something else.

It's like saying if you're not coming home with me, someone else jolly will!! 

Konbanwa...

Yesterday, for the first time in *count count count* 20 odd years someone said I look like Japanese! 

When I was a kid, my uncle's bookshop assistants always said I look like Japanese and my elder sister Taiwanese/Korean. My aunt even bought me a Japanese doll that apparently resembled me. 

And yesterday my captain asked if I'm Japanese. I said I haven't heard that since I hit puberty T_T 

He said then I must have learned Japanese. 

Well i wish. The one last time I attempted Japanese, the outcome was embarrassing. 1989(?) in Club Med. Ran to my mum because I didn't know I had started a conversation with a Japanese woman. I thought you know, about time to flaunt my Japanese skills outside my little home town. Hahaha. 

Since I started flying, I've had colleagues who asked if I'm Indonesian (pardon the Singaporeans, they don't know their Indonesian names from SG/MY names). 

Thanks Skip anyway, u made my morning! 

Two more flights

Two more to my annual leave. Getting there, almost there!! 

In other news, Anlynn is back from London for her summer break. What, spring has barely arrived in the UK if you ask me. She arrived on Tuesday and she had a grand welcome. 

Don't expect so many people to welcome you again in future, Lynn. It'll most likely be one of those random taxi uncles the next time hahahaha. 

Sigh sometimes I wish I didn't have to lead so many lives. 

The life as a daughter and sister to a family back home in Malaysia. 

The life of a stewardess who jets about and is barely in the same place for more than two days. 

The life of a girlfriend to a boyfriend in Singapore. 

I don't know how to split my time -___- 

And I get tired out so easily too. 

There's no good solution to this. 

8585xxx

I'm now a Singapore PR. DAMN, that took a bloody long time!!!

The painful application process (I absolutely hate consolidating documents and I have to give the boyfriend credit for putting everything together if not my application would definitely have fallen to pieces) and the anxious wait. 

I have a 7-digit NRIC that starts with 8585. That's the birth year for me and the boyfriend. ^_^

Getting a PR means I can stay here for a longer term and that means I can quit my job anytime I want! Not quite soon but I have the security of not being deported when I do so hahaha. But my one true love is still Batu Pahat. Bisous bisous. 

The one who stays behind

It seems that the boyfriend finds it harder to cope than I do not having each other during my long flights. 

I guess it has to do with him being the one "left behind". 

When I go away, I have work to do. I am kept busy. In a new place, I adapt. I eat and sleep and shop. 

Meanwhile, life for him here remains the same. Same environment, although yes he has work too. But maybe the week before, he left work to have dinner with me. This week he will leave to have dinner by himself. 

It's just more difficult being the one who's "left behind" and I can imagine that. And I don't wanna be that one. 

I hope one day he won't have to be left behind anymore. 

LV

To all the LV-haters for whatever reason, and the H and CC snobs, I still think LV is a very good brand. 

Though I haven't been buying, I will always be a fan. 

These shoes are meant for walking

I'm now walking in my oldest pair of Tod's. It's really old. Like four years old kinda old. Nobody really has shoes that last that long do they? And this pair has really seen the world. 

In the last one year I've shelved this pair because it looks very worn and it can be quite embarrassing to walk around in it. 

The light brown suede has black stains and the leather toe cap has peeled due to wear. 

I am super casual (read: bo chup) today and decided to take it out of its box tonight. 

It is still as comfortable as I remembered it to be. Worn and seasoned. 

Maybe the leather cleaning people can miraculously restore the leather slightly. Will make a trip to the cleaner's soon. 

Shoes torn again

My Ferragamo plastic shoes split! Again!
These shoes just don't last, and it's upsetting because it costs more than any plastic shoes out there but is so poorly made. The previous pair split the same way and it took me a lot of effort to replace it since most places had sold out in my size.

I won't be buying Ferragamo's plastic shoes again. 

Sigh, I'm really upset because I love this pair so much. Why so delicate one... T__T

Chanel prices revised

I was in Chanel just late last month. And a silly colleague just couldn't put her money down on a medium classic flap. She said "I will think about it. Maybe next trip." 

We told her, don't be stupid!! NO MORE NEXT TRIP! 

She loved that bag so much but I'm certain it was the price that was holding her back. Worse, she fell for a seasonal color - the dark blue for this season. That blue isn't going to wait for you. 

We now know, though, the price went ahead first. 

We kept telling her she can't wait for the next trip because even if she didn't want this colour, the price won't wait for her. True enough, bam, prices adjusted across the board less than a month later. 

The few of us who were with her already told her we can't buy the classic flaps any more because the prices are so ridiculous now to those of us who bought it early. 

This is insane, Chanel. Insane. 

Random Favourites

Crackers (got the inspiration to include this from a cousin's Ig pic): Hup Seng Cream Crackers - Cap Ping Pong, winner of many awards (why people award crackers, I don't know) 

Compact Powder: Giorgio Armani Long-lasting Silk UV Compact #2, it's a miracle product but why so damn hard to find?!!

Lipgloss: Chanel Rouge Allure #56

Hand cream: Any Nivea hand cream 

Scent: Dior, Miss Dior Blooming Bouquet.  Followed by the smell of leather.  

Airline: Nil. 

Hotel: Westin and Marriott, it's a tie. Westin has excellent breakfast buffet, you know you know you know?

Foot cream: I don't use one but would love to fall in love with one. If you know a cream worth recommending, please do let me know! 

Food: EGGS. 

Vegetable: Baby Kai Lan

Beans: Baked

Cuisine: Japanese, duh 

Luggage: Rimowa because hotel carpets are a bitch if you haven't got Rimowa wheels.

City: San Francisco followed by Barcelona followed by Berlin and Amsterdam (it's a tie). I don't know where to slot Tokyo. I love to holiday there but I don't think I can live there. 

Town: Batu Pahat. Most live-able place in the world hahaha. 

Friend: Chandler Bing

Useless thing in my toiletries bag: Hair perfume from Japan. It's not so useless in the sense that it has UV protection... 

Pen: Pilot G-1. Gives you the possibility of ever finishing a pen in your lifetime. In a school year, I went through so many of those. There were a few that suffered untimely deaths because I couldn't stop twirling my pens... 

Mask: Nature Republic's Snail Solution Hydrogel mask and also Aqua Collagen Solution Marine Hydrogel mask of the same brand. 

Time of the Year: Chinese New Year's Eve, when I'm actually home. 

Tim Tam: the Adriano Zumbo one...in purple packaging... 

Airport: Changi 

Flats: I honestly cannot tell you if Chanel or Tods win in this category. Tods has a little height and cushion from the ground but Chanel is so soft... 

Losing time through travel

Air travel. Seems to have saved men so much time. And that has made mankind travel more than ever. 

Have we ever considered how much time we waste just traveling? Take for instance a flight from Sydney to Singapore. You start your journey in the morning. You wake up early to ensure you've everything packed, make your way to the airport for the 11 am flight at 8 so that you arrive by 9 am. 

You arrive in Singapore in the evening and you're tired because you couldn't rest on the flight. You have essentially wasted a full day. 

Sydney is merely two hours ahead of Singapore with a rather short flight time of 8 hours. 

When you cross continents, you truly to waste A LOT of time. Almost each journey is a day wasted. What about those flights from America? You leave America in the early afternoon and arrive at night (on the next day) in Asia. 

Flying to me is my rice bowl, and a lifestyle. I fly as just another day on the job. I don't feel like I've wasted a day or so because that's what my job requires me to do.

However to the many leisure and business travelers, I do feel for them. Sit down and take count of the days wasted in total just sitting in a metal cylinder, engaging in small talk with people around you and watching movies that you wouldn't be watching if not for being stuck at your seat. 

I will be wondering from now if my passengers would rather be somewhere else and when they land, if they realize that another day just went by.

How much will you spend on a visit to a hair salon?

My dear William has been charging me more and more with each visit, and I've already breached a mark that I consider ridiculously high on my last visit. What he had done to my hair was to have it permed, treated, cut and blown-dry. 

Today the boyfriend got me a voucher to get my hair cleansed, cut and finished (by that I suppose it means blown-dry) by an executive director at *drumroll* KIM ROBINSON (am I dreaming?) worth.... $900. 

I think that's insane. How can one charge, and the recipient paying, so much to just cleanse, cut and blow?! 

I must wait for a very special occasion to use that voucher. 

Achievement!

So I went down to Harrods today to look for my McQueen scarf. They didn't have the color I wanted, so I headed to the next nearest place that could possibly have it - Harvey Nichols.

They didn't have the color either. But two steps away from Alexander McQueen was Bottega Veneta. I decided to pop in to ask about this elusive new bag that's constantly sold out in Singapore (as well as many parts of the world). THEY HAD IT! 

In two colors, what a bonus!! 

It's actually the Mini Roma. For the record, I've loved the Roma forever. It's a staple of the BV bags (one of the 6 classics) but I have never been able to justify owning one because it's too big and office-like for my lifestyle. It's a gorgeous bag, just not suited for my everyday use. I have many times told myself that I'll buy one because one day I'll leave the airline and work in an office. Thank goodness it never quite got into my head. 

So lo and behold, the mini version was launched late last year and I actually didn't know it till a few months back. And it's always sold out! >:-( 

I tried asking in other cities and I get the same d**n reply. 

Of course I felt very inclined to get it while it's right in front of me but I still had to think about it over lunch with Anlynn and Sean. It's because I have something else big to buy so I shouldn't be spending money rashly. 

I did go back to get it eventually after lunch. And the achievement is that I managed to knock 10% off the price of this bag just for being chatty with the sales girl. 

She said, "I'll give you 10% off since we've already chatted so much." Serious. And I've her personal contact number too, for the future. \o/

In-house doctor in Delhi

I fell sick right after take-off from Singapore. 

I felt bloated and was suffering pain in the lower and upper abdomen. Throughout the flight I was nauseous. Thankfully, there were only 8 passengers in business class with 5 crew. That made it easy for me to keep running to the toilet whenever I felt like I might throw up, or just to have a real good burp, or to pass wind. I had also sat in the toilet for 10-15 minutes a few times because I just felt so terrible. 

I couldn't even stay on to say goodbye to all the passengers before having to run to the toilet again. As a precaution, I took with me an air-sick bag for the bus ride to the hotel. 

During check-in, I realized that I had a temperature. My thermometer died so I didn't know my temperature exactly. Throughout the night, I woke up many times and tried to cool my body with a chilled towel (and something else that only my sisters and cousins know about hahaha).  

At 5.30 the next morning I felt so awful I decided to call for the doctor. I really wanted to fly home that night itself (last night). 

The doctor came an hour later, accompanied by a female hotel staff. First impression seemed fine. Until he too started sniffing. Ok fair enough, doctors aren't immune to bugs. Then he started to erm wipe his nose with his hand. That's gross because after that he took medicine out from his bag that wasn't even a proper doctor's bag - it just looked like a weary, overstuffed leather briefcase. So with all the bacteria on his hand, he transferred them onto my strips of medicine which I would handle and pop into my mouth. Great.

He also kept insisting that I come back to Singapore to check for dengue (which he pronounced Deng-Oo) again and again. I really shut out his words for this because I really do not have the symptoms for dengue. As a Malaysian, I damn well know the symptoms. Then he said I must check for malaria too. *roll eyes* 

As he spoke to me, I suddenly had a sharp pain in the lower abdomen. He hadn't been addressing my abdominal problems so I quickly told him about that pain I had right then. He said, "The sharp pain is an onset of diarrhea. Drink lots of water but don't drink cold water and don't drink hot water. Drink room temperature water. Because cold and hot water will give you diarrhea." 

You know.... At that time I just wanted him out of my room. But no, I had to listen to him babble on for at least another 25 minutes over nothing. Mainly over a mosquito-borne disease that I'm highly likely having. He told me a lot of other nonsense like, Singapore is such a clean country how can there be dengue? Oh doctor. You don't know. When I told him about the very high number of cases, I think he found me as ridiculous as I had found him when he told me drinking hot water will give me diarrhea. 

He dug through his bag for medication for me. His medicine looked quite old... But it's ok. So long as they worked, and that he's leaving..........

I saw him out when he turned back and said the MOST ridiculous shit: (bearing in mind he knows what my job is exactly) "Put cotton into your ears to help you with the changing air pressure in the plane."

When I posted that on twitter without mentioning where I was, it was a dead giveaway for my fellow colleagues that I was in India. 

(because up until lately, and we still get some now and again nowadays, boarding for Indian flights are very challenging. When you have old folks, they ask you for cotton and you have to squeeze through the crowd to head for the first aid kit for cotton and then battle the crowd again to get to the old folks. Repeat many times over.)

Wtf, doctor?! MBBS,FCCP,MRSH(London). I don't know what all those abbreviations stand for but I can read London! They teach you that in London?!

And you expect me, the flight stewardess, to be walking up and down with strands of cotton hanging out of her ears? Can totally sign him off.