Living ‘The Sims’ life

We’ll finally get our new place in about a month’s time.

To think of it, we are only half way through the whole house-buying process. It started with two months worth of house viewings from June and we finally found the ‘Right’ one in late August. A quick negotiation ensued and the deal was finally clinched a week after we viewed the house. We were fortunate to find a direct seller, thus leaving out the housing agent, from the process.

After the first appointment at HDB, we realized that we could bring forward the Completion date from the traditional 6-8 weeks. So, after a little bargaining with the owners, we brought the waiting time down to 5 weeks. Well if you’re already confused with the house-buying process, just wait your turn, it will come clear when your turn comes to buy.

So, we spent the past two weeks scouring exhibitions, furniture malls and the neighbourhood Courts Superstore. It’s always exciting picking the furnishing for a new place. Just like playing ‘The Sims’ but without the cheat codes to expand my shrinking funds. Since we are moving in without the renovating phase, we need only to concentrate on the essential furniture and appliances first.

We started off by paying a visit to the ‘Home Living’ Exhibition at the Expo. Before that we didn’t think that there was much to know about mattress design. That was until the sales reps started to convince us that terms like Pocketed Spring, Memory Foam, Negative Ions, and Orthopedic Designs are important know-how for selecting a mattress that will serve us eight hours each day. So much for the art of sleeping!

We finally settled for a full foam mattress utilising space-age technology, ie. with a layer of memory(visco-elactic) foam on top. It’s a different feel from the common pocketed spring design, so much that you can literally melt into the bed. The debate is still out there on the effectiveness and durability for such a design, we will just have to experience it to know. Anyway, we also had time to pick a bed frame with sloping compressed cushions as headboards (good for sitting up to read or watch TV).

Lots more shopping will be required but we will bide our time and just enjoy the process.

Welcome back Blue Skies

Finally, the blue skies are back and the sun is no more a distant orange glow in the sky. The heavens are pouring too. And most importantly the Haze has been reduced to a PSI statistic of below 30.

Must thank the person(s) who did the rain dance, or maybe it was God himself who decided to let loose the Northeast Monsoon earlier than expected. Anyway let’s hope that the trees are now too wet for another bonfire. As for progress, we can only pray that our ASEAN leaders can hammer out some effective action plan in the coming ministerial meeting on the Haze.

It is back to work after a lazy long break. A short work week too, and even before you can blink, it is the weekend again. Talking about work, I’m feeling so unmotivated nowadays and often find myself dragging my feet to the office. Then at work, it seems that I am just going through the motions, like a puppet on a string, while daily issues and external circumstances control me and my time. Something in me wants to take charge and stop the tide, but this little voice soon fades out when things start to overwhelm. I know I must put ‘first things first’, set smart goals, change my mindset, bla bla bla, but sometimes it is easier to just let things be.

While I write this, the poster in front of me reads, “Attitude : Even if the world is coming to an end tomorrow, I would still plant my apple tree.”. Maybe I just have to find the reason why I want to plant the darn tree in the first place. Maybe I just have to convince myself that I’m doing it for me, not the company or anybody else. Maybe work has become stale, maybe … I can go on and on here, but let’s cut the rant and get some sleep. Maybe my subconscious (or unconscious mind) can reveal the answer to these mysteries.

Signing out. Sweet Dreams.

*******

“-What power would hell have if those imprisoned here would not be able to dream of heaven?”
Dream to Lucifer and the citizens of Hell, in Preludes and Nocturnes

L-O-N-G Weekend

It’s finally here, the long Deeparaya weekend. Four days away from work and the dreary office, with time that is just waiting to be filled with things to do. However one thing about such long breaks is that it often starts off with a lot of promise, with my head filled with tonnes of ideas and plans, but as always good times have a knack of slipping away quicker, and I always leave it too late (like till the last evening of the break) to hurry through the chores that I have time for.

Well, while I am writing this, Saturday is almost gone. Spent the morning catching up on sleep and in the afternoon had a game of hard court soccer with the guys. The game came to an abrupt end when poor Edwin twisted his ankle when he landed badly after a jump. Looks like he will be out for weeks. So much for our Weekend Warrior regime.

Would not be going back home as I expect the jam to be pretty bad on the roads with the ‘balik kampung’ phenomena taking place. Let’s see, places to go … there’s Vivocity. The latest shopping attraction located at the former World Trade Centre side. Was just there yesterday to catch, no-prize-for-guessing, World Trade Centre. The place definitely deserves another look. And if the haze is not too bad, maybe will take a trek up Bkt Timah hill with Vicky.

Things to do … well there is some cleaning and tidying required in this sty, I mean room of mine, Norman is dropping by for a visit, maybe catch up with Wee Loong (hmmm …DOA?), and Vicky will also be busy when her mum and cousin’s family arrive for a short visit. And there is a raya house visit on Tuesday, plus books to read, stuff to buy and information to find out. Three days left. Only procrastination (and sleep) stands in the way. Ok, let’s start tomorrow.

To all Muslim and Hindu brothers, Happy Deepavali and Selamat Hari Raya Aidil Fitri.

*******

"Time sneaks up on you like a windsheild on a bug"

HAZE gets in my eyes

Almost fifteen years ago, the haze first appeared. I didn’t know what it was then; it scared me. All I know was that it was the consequence of men’s transgressions and nature was getting back at us. It created an instant environmental awareness. The haze didn’t stay long. And later we found out that it was the smoke from the burning in our neighbour’s yard.

Fifteen years on, the haze is back yet again. As true as the coming of spring, the haze has never failed to appear around the same time each year. The right combination of dry weather and wind directions have us, neighbours, suffering the same yearly plight. It has been all talk since, without results. Action? Oh we had plenty of those; Satellite pics of hotpots, PSI monitoring, health warnings, and still the same culprits burn as freely as if nothing has got into the thick skulls of theirs.

On a side note, my colleague was making a remark in the MRT the other day. She mentioned that from the comfort of the air-cooled train cabin, it looked like mist had descended on the city, a sight common only in places located in cooler climates. That is until you step out of the door, and the heat and smell hits you and bring you back to reality again.

Anyway here’s an ode to the HAZE (to be sung in the tune of ‘Smoke Gets In Your Eyes’)

Th-e-yy asked me how I knew the PSI was true
I of course replied
"Something’s in the air cannot be denied"
They said "No wonder now we find
our sight’s turning blind"
When the land’s on fire,
You must realize
Haze gets in your eyes
…….

Now foreign friends deride
Ills I cannot hide
So I curse and swear
"Pray that the flame soon dies, or
Haze gets in your eyes"
(Haze gets in your eyes, Haze gets in your eyes)
Haze -gets-in-your-eyes.......

Bliss

No lengthy post on the-wedding-i-attended-last-weekend. Just pictures (hey, there represent a thousand words each, according to that 'bread' song at least). Enjoy the black and white pics.

Ray and Carol's Wedding Day ...

Weekly Food Round-up

“Thirty Eight Dollars per box, no mixing, no sales in individual packs; last day today!” Well that was enough to convince me to get a box of eight mini snowskin mooncakes with dark chocolate crunchy pearl from Raffles Hotel on Wednesday evening. Having tire of the lotus paste variety, and since these snowskin ones came highly recommended, could not resist buying a box of them.

On the same night, I met up a two close friends for dinner at Alaturka, a Turkish Restaurant, in Kampung Glam. Decided to have the ‘Buka Puasa’ buffet that left us totally full at the end of dinner. It was the usual banter, jokes and lastest updates, that so easily flowed between us, friends of over ten years. One was getting married (ROM) on Saturday and the other will be leaving for the States next year.

Then on Thursday night, met up with a couple of other friends for a treat at Tong Shui Café in Liang Seah Street. Dessrt was supposedly Hong Kong Style (the latest business craze now) and we had fruit cocktails and thick taosted bread with peanut butter and butter-honey spread. Another filling treat.

Anyway in a few hours time, I will be heading back to Muar. Ray and Carol are getting married tomorrow, so will be attending both their church wedding and dinner.

Free Hugs

If you happen to meet some stranger offering you a hug on the street, do not be alarmed, he could have been inspired by this youtube video.

Free hugs is a real life controversial story of Juan Mann, a man whose sole mission was to reach out and hug strangers to brighten up their lives. As this symbol of human hope spread across the city of Sydney, police and officials ordered the Free Hugs campaign BANNED. But then the true spirit of humanity came together as 10,000 signatures were collected for a petition to overturn the ruling. In the end, humanity triumphed.

Music by Sick Puppies.

More about the mann …

Do we still need hugs in this times when we can easily turn to the internet and find online communities that openly support us, advice us and ‘love’ us? Go ponder.

*******

"Bush gave an interview and he said people will vote for him because 'They've seen me weep, they've seen me laugh, and they've seen me hug.' These are the same qualifications for a Tickle Me Elmo."

- Bill Maher, Comedian

Over the Moon

I believe that I have gobbled down the equivalent of four whole mooncakes in just the past one week. It’ll probably be five before the week is up at the rate mooncakes are being shoved in my face.

First there was the tasting spree at City Square (JB) last weekend, and then there were the eight that we bought up to now, and then came the cakes donated by suppliers that screams at me every day during afternoon tea time at the office. Well it’s just barely a week away, mid-autumn that is. There’s money to be made, and hotels, bakeries, eating houses and even credit cards are pulling out all the stops to ensure that they make a tidy profit from our sudden obsession for these sugary treat.

Anyway back in the days when mooncake variety means with or without egg yolk, or with nuts, there was a real buzz and excitement whenever mid-autumn approaches. About a week away from the actual day, my sister and I would take out the old lanterns from the back cupboard. There were the familiar multi-coloured folded ones and the animal themed glass-paper ones. Then as night approaches, we will take out the candles and sticks to prepare for our night walk. For that one week, we and our closest neighbourhood friends will prowl the housing estate with our lighted toys, reveling in the festive atmosphere accentuated by the many houses decorated by lively lanterns and the other roving lantern gangs like us.

Well, it’s just mooncakes now that I have grown out of lanterns. Just got to fit in more jogging sessions to counter the effect of those sweet fattening pastries.