More photos on the 2 of them

Tigger

Armani

In sync, they are...

Just so cute!

My 2 Little Monsters

In the end, I got two of them, instead of one. Long story, but at least two of them are perfect campanions for each other. Got them for a week already, and I just bathed them this morning, so they are smelling really nice and clean now.

See how much they have grown from the last pictures that I posted?

They are really two little monsters that ceate chaos in the house and they make us SOOOOOOO the busy, btw!

This is Tigger...

Tigger playing...

This is Armani...

Both of them.

Which Puppy?

I still have not made up my mind which puppy schnauzer I should have…. Each has his own unique personality and I wonder which one will suit my household better… Both of them are coming to eight weeks old already, and they are 2 of the 5 puppies that were born…

This puppy has a more unique hair colour obviously, and very active. Think he will make a suitable companion to take out for slight more challenging walks and activities. But he fights like a king and obviously will be a little tyrant if he is not properly taught.

This one is the youngest of the lot. His hair colour is beautifully schnauzer with the black very black. He is more timid than his brother, and is not as adventurous. But he is of good nature, and I think he will just be more tame and perhaps a tad more obedient.

But obviously they are still so young, so you can never exactly tell how they will be when they are older. Of course, if they are properly trained now, they should turn out better when they are adults.

Whichever, they are still soooo adorable, aren’t they?

Ipad wor...

Many Apples fans may have awaited this new product eagerly. The new gadget, Ipad was unveiled last Wednesday… and Apple CEO Steve Jobs called it “magical and revolutionary product”…

This table-style computer weighs about 1.5 pounds and is 0.5 inches thin. It does not have a hardware keyboard, but uses a touchscreen keyboard. With a size slighty smaller than a magazine, this Ipad has a nearly 10-inch multi-touch screen, which is supposedly to be very precise and responsive, and works on any orientation. One certainly doesn’t have to worry about space constraint for photos, movies or music as it is available with a choice of 16GB, 32GB and 64GB of flash storage.

Would you get it once it is launched in about two months’ time?

Recently...

Had been busy after my holiday trip from Phuket…
Time just whizzed past!
Did a business trip at Hanoi last week…
And learnt a new skill over the few days there – to be a goldfish, sleeping without eyes closed
Such skill is difficult to master, and my skill definitely needs to be very much polished
Other than that, I could not quite remember what I did over these few weeks
Must confess I did not keep my fitness level well
Only did a run every Sunday and distance covered was pathetic. Haiz.
Felt tired very easily too, so all I wanted is to rest and be a couch most of the times

On a different note, I can expect more changes to come this year…
How will life be then? Will I rise up to the occasion? Am I adequate?
Heaps of question marks…yet few answers
Perhaps things will only crystallize as time passes by…
For the time being, leaving it aside may jolly well be a wise choice…
*Shrug*...

Manta Ray!

Did 5 days of liveaboard diving at Similan. All other stories aside first, the best part of the diving trip was the upclose encounters with the manta rays on the very last day of our dives. The underwater current was so strong the very first instant moment we caught sight of one of them that all of us were clinging on to a rock or something for our dear life to catch a good view of it. But OMG, they are such gracious creatures!

Such amazing experience! I belive a video should speak more than a million words... :D (but i ought to say that the video quality is not great cos i compressed the file from 300mb to about 6mb..)

Fireworks @ Marina Square

We must be out of our mind yesterday to decide to swing by raffles place area to catch the fireworks! We forgot how crowded it was - we did get a taste of it three years back. Short memory huh.

We did not manage to go anywhere near the Epslanade area. The detour route was frightening, and the crowed did make it any easier. Even the Asia Civilisaton Museum area was swarmed with people! We attempted to get a good spot at Hitachi tower, but all the tall trees blocked the view. Finally, out of final desperation, we quickly headed towards One Raffles Quay to see if  the view could be better. Clock was ticking and we were less than 30mins away from 2010....

Long story short, we did finally manage to squeeze our way to a pretty good spot with many others outside One Raffles Quay area eventually.

Needless to say, the 8min fireworks were totally captivating. Everyone was exclaiming in awe...as you can tell from the above short clip!

Life = fireworks? It is short, but should be as spectacular and breathtaking as it can be?

Brand new year. Time to set some new goals... to be in creation for some better moments for my memory bank...

Have a fantastic 2010, folks!

This week....

Festive mood is in the air...
Practically got no mood to work in office since last week.
Have been going out for slightly longer lunches
With many lunch treats this week too!
More time to work through my outstanding stuff
Coupled with the luxury to learn some stuff at my own pace
If every week is as good as these 2 weeks
How perfect that will be... *dream*

Heading off to Similans in less than 3 days' time
Got myself a new Olympus camera with underwater casing
The old one is going to be buried as it is close to its deathbed now
Luckily I realised it last Sat
Giving me enough time to quickly search for a replacement on Sun
Otherwise I would scream my heart out during my diving trip
For I wouldn't be able to imagine diving with taking photos already
$$ gone up in the air...
But what to do, diving is such an expensive leisure activity
Almost done with packing my barang
Time to dive, eat and sleep soon
And to get fatter again...
:O :)

"Believe"

Take a moment to enjoy and "feel" this soundtrack during this festive season.

Merry X'mas, folks.




Children sleeping
Snow is softly falling.
Dreams are calling
Like bells in the distance.

We were dreamers
Not so long ago.
But, one by one
We all had to grow up.

When it seems the magic slipped away,
We find it all again on Christmas Day.

Believe in what your heart is saying,
Hear the melody that's playing.
There's no time to waste,
There's so much to celebrate.

Believe in what you feel inside,
And give your dreams the wings to fly.
You have everything you need
If you just believe.

Trains move quickly
To their journey's end.
Destinations
Are where we begin again.

Ships go sailing
Far across the sea.
Trusting starlight
To get where they need to be.

When it seems that we have lost our way,
We find ourselves again on Christmas Day.

Believe in what your heart is saying,
Hear the melody that's playing.
There's no time to waste,
There's so much to celebrate.

Believe in what you feel inside,
And give your dreams the wings to fly.
You have everything you need
If you just believe.

If you just believe
If you just believe
If you just believe
Just believe
Just believe

:)

Have another trip planned… to clear my outstanding leave…
It will happen early next year,
In fact, first  week  day in Jan.
Cheap budget airtickets promo makes it too appealing to be missed.

Going to spend 8N in Phuket…
Spending the first half of the trip doing liveaboard in Similans…
Yes, finally it's time for eat, sleep, dive again after 7 long dry months.
It'll be another unforgettable interaction with the astounding underwater world.

2nd half is R&R time at Patong beach...
Sipping orange juice and savouring honey chicken while lazing on the beach chair,
Dipping in the cooling seawater when feeling hot and watching the day goes by…
Not forgetting the shopping and massages of course!

This is called Life.
Brand new year with a superb start too.

Singapore Marathon 2009

I did my Standard Chartered Marathon Run this morning. We were blessed with great weather – cloudy and cooling. Team Fat Bird was the official pacer this year, and they were easily identifiable with the balloon they tied on their back and the timing they displayed in front and behind their runner tee. I saw them training at east coast park before and I remembered vividly the tagline I saw on their poster. It was something along the line of “Birds fly. Fat birds just run”. Hah!

I completed my marathon this year with a sub-5 timing of about 4h52min. It was a pleasant shock actually for I never dreamt that I could complete a marathon in less than 5h. Dan and I were thinking that it would already be an achievement if we completed it in 5h15min, judging from the way we attempted to train for it. :P

There were a lot of factors today that contributed to our much faster than expected run. First was the cooling weather. Second were the pacers, who had played a great deal in keeping ourselves focused. Our eyes were always searching for the balloons to see how near or far we were away from the 5h pacers, and were running to catch up when we lagged behind. The power gels were powerful of course, delivering burst of energy when we run out of it. However, my stomach was intolerant to the power gel, and I ended up having 3x diarrhoeas at every 10+km, with the worst at 38km. And it was at 38km that my body gave in… The final diarrhoea drained out all the energy that I had left and I struggled very badly at the last 3+km… My speed was like a snail, yet I was breathing so quickly so much so that Dan got worried that I might hyperventilate.

The aftermath of a marathon is always a nightmare of course. I got serious abrasion, and guess where? The area around my anus! SO painful that I could hardly walk properly!!  Not to mention the overstretched leg muscles and aching shoulders… Luckily I was not alone – Dan got all the symptoms too. Wahaha…

Ok, one chapter closed for now. Finally I don’t need to do last min training anymore, and I can take a short break from running. More marathons? Let’s wait and see…Till I recover from all these pains. ;)

Only left a week!

Standard Chartered Marathon 2009 in 7 days time..
Once again, I never train enough or hard (but what’s new!?)
3 weeks without running when preparing for and in NZ…
Came back and realised I struggled to run a decent distance.
Started trying to do more intensive (means 3x a week. ha!) last-minute training for the past 3 weeks…
Cramping some runs in between weekdays after work (and I have been working much later than before ok!!)
But what difference can I make in such a short time? *shrug*
Now praying that weather will be great next Sun morning. Not hot please! Cloudy will be the best.
And hope I will not finish the run like a snail… Fingers crossed.

Recently...

A complete nightmare after two weeks of fun and enjoyment at NZ. In gist:

Mode: Busy, trying to adapt in new job role
Mood: Stressed, gloomy, uptight
Brain: Struggling hard to learn, adapt and apply
Difficulty Level: Very tough!
Patience: Trying to have it with myself
Distractions: Many, both at work and personal but generally ignore cos no time
Any Breakdown: Yes
Any Breakthrough: Still waiting
Distinctions to Stick to: 100% is possible 100% of the times?!
What’s Next: “The only way out is through”… “I choose this stretch”…

Bless me. I just need to make it.

Some NZ photos

The lake that flows through the Botonica Garden in Christchurch


The railway station @ Christchurch


Abundance of sheeps in NZ!

Reached Slope Point- the most southern point of NZ while we were driving along Catlins


Can you tell this is a seal sunbasking in a lazy afternoon?

Franz Josef Glacier! The glacier that I took a full day guided walk on my birthday!

Puzzling World @ Wanaka - the Illusion room created the most chaos in there! Amazing!

We left our footprints - this is our own stone stack that we did on this a beach on a windy evening. There are many other stacks of stones in all shapes and sizes.

The highest peak reached when we did our Quad biking in Queenstown

Sun is bright and snow is thick... nice weather that day

Lake Gunn - along the way to Milford Sound

An old weighing scale found inside a room in ShantyTown


The morning temperature is so cold that a layer of ice is formed on our car...

My NZ time...

All good things eventually came to an end and it is back to reality. Two weeks of holidaying in the south of NZ flashed by, and before we all knew it we were on a return flight back. If only time can come to a standstill… However, it was really such fun and fulfilling experience that each and every one of us enjoyed ourselves fully.

The weather there was cold with an average of 8 to 14 degree celsius, and it was totally erratic for it could be raining this moment and the sun was out brightly the next minute. But we were blessed with pretty good weather on most days we had planned activities, so lucky us. The pace of life in NZ is pretty laid back obviously that I seriously question if the Kiwis do work at all or not… Can you sense my sour grapes?

Beautiful landscape was everywhere as we self drove to explore from one town to another, and we often found ourselves exclaim in awe from the captivating scenery we saw. Nature forces are amazing, and they have been at work for millions and billions years to crave such exquisite masterpieces. I must say that the car journey from Te Anau towards Milford Sound was one of the best stretches for some fantastic photos. We also had some little amazing discoveries at some turns and corners, leaving us pleasantly surprised.

I got to realize that the kiwi population is only 4 millions in such a huge piece of land… No wonder every town seems to house that few people. Singapore is so tiny weeny but the latest population figure stands at 5 millions - where is my personal space huh? Sheep is definitely in abundance though. Guess how many are there? This Kiwi told me that there are 60 millions sheep in NZ- WOW! And I think sheep in NZ are the luckiest bunch for they have endless of green to chew on and ample space to roam around. I think a Singaporean’s dog life is nowhere compared to a NZ sheep!

Oh yes, we did heaps of activities there, especially in Queenstown. Quad biking, skiing, jet boating, white water rafting etc. The only regret was that we did not get to do the hand gliding due to unsuitable wind condition in two consecutive days. Expensive activities indeed, but we did have heaps of fun. I spent my birthday doing the full day Franz Josef Glacier walk… My legs and kneecaps were to give way by the time we were done, not to say that my thigh muscles were aching badly the next day that I could not walk down a flight of stairs properly! But I would love to think I was better off than my brother and his girlfriend whom fell into a slumber for 12 hours the moment they were back at the motel after food! No more glacier walk next time, they complained. Haa.

I am in the midst of trying to sort out all the photos that I had taken in NZ… hopefully I will clean up most of them soon… We have taken thousand of photos all together, okee!

Oh yes, before I end this entry, I must share this quote that I read in a shop at Hammer Spring – “Even if you do win in a rat race, you are still a RAT!”

Flying in another few hours!

Final count down... Will be at the airport in about another 3 hours time. After so many months of aniticipation and preparation, my NZ trip is finally so close on the heels!

My body did give me a stretch at last min - I was sneezing and having serious running nose for the whole day yesterday that I came home immediately after work to sleep. My eyes were all sore and red from the sneezing and I was feeling really tired... Took a flu tablet to sleep thereafter too that made me really groggy when I woke up this morning.

Luckily, it seems like I am all fine today already. Phew! A sick cat will miss out all the fun.

All ready... everything is in place... Bless me with good weather please!

New Zealand, here I come! Whew..!

NZ... I am coming soon!

In another eight days, I will be on the plane to Christchurch…

Itinerary is still being refined at this moment, but we are more or less there… accommodation should also be firmed up over the next few days …

The plan is to self drive to comb the south coastal area from Christchurch and visit key spots like Mt Cook, Milford Sound, Queenstown and Franz Josef… and try activities like paragliding, skiing, white water rafting, jet boating, quad biking and horse riding… Itinerary is as packed as anything except for the last few days which is open at this point in time. 2 weeks is not enough! Arrgh.

I bought most of my necessities over the last few months and have packed many of my things into my luggage already. Intending to pack light but due to the cold weather there, it may be a wiser choice to pack more than less… but redundant stuff ought to be thrown out… luggage can’t fit in so much stuff!

Bad thing is Kiwi dollar has appreciated so much since 3-4 months ago… from S$0.85 to S$1.03 now! More than 15% appreciation! $#&*$^%?! I should have exchanged my Kiwi dollars a few months back instead of hesitating! Lugi!

Counting down to my holidays… Am getting excited even just by thinking about it… (minus the big hole burnt in the pocket after this trip of course…) Yippee!

'Hijacked' recipes?

OMG, have you read the absurd news about Malaysia Tourism minister claiming rights for food like laksa, bak kut teh, Hainanese Chinese rice and chilli crabs?!? So we have an infringement of copyrights in this instance and all of us have been eating pirated food all along huh?!

What more can I say? What craps...
_____________________________________________________________

Malaysia crabby over right to 'hijacked' recipes
AP - Friday, September 18

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia – Malaysia is starting a food fight with other countries to win bragging rights for producing some of Southeast Asia's most beloved recipes, including chili crabs and coconut cream rice, a news report said Thursday.

"We cannot continue to let other countries hijack our food," The Star newspaper quoted Tourism Minister Ng Yen Yen as saying while launching a campaign to promote the country's cuisine.

The ministry is identifying signature recipes that it will declare as Malaysian, Ng said. She did not reveal how the government might counter others who claim ownership of those dishes, but added that details of its strategy will be announced later.

"Chili crab is Malaysian. Hainanese chicken rice is Malaysian. We have to lay claim to our food," Ng said. She mentioned other favorites such as "nasi lemak," which is rice soaked with coconut cream, "laksa," a spicy noodle soup, and "bak kut teh," an ethnic Chinese pork rib stew.

Tourism ministry officials familiar with the campaign could not immediately be contacted.

Variations of the dishes Ng listed are available in several other Asian nations, particularly Singapore, Indonesia, Brunei, Thailand and China.

Some creations, such as chicken rice, were introduced to Malaysia and Singapore by ethnic Chinese workers who settled here after leaving China a century ago.

Chili crab -a recipe of crabs stir-fried in tomato and chili-based sauces - could become a bone of contention. It is often associated with Singapore and is considered the city-state's unofficial national dish.

Malaysia was recently embroiled in another cultural spat with a neighbor.

Indonesians held protests earlier this month accusing Malaysia of stealing a Balinese dance for a TV promotional campaign about Malaysia. It later turned out that Malaysia had nothing to do with the video, which had mistakenly described the dance as Malaysian. The video was broadcast on the Discovery Channel cable network, which apologized for the mistake.

Thots around love

Love isn’t love when it becomes suffocating, I believe.

I supposed it is the space an individual is operating from. I remembered very clearly this example given by someone about his aunt and uncle. This aunt always cooks for them and make sure that they are well fed during every meal… but no matter what, all the kids try to avoid being in her presence for she is always rattling about how much she cares and loves them, how much she make sure they are well and good. The answer is obvious in this instance – the aunt’s actions stem out from her neediness for appreciation and acknowledgement from others, and people feel stifling to be around her.

Yet, he has this uncle that is always stern and will always sit them down to question what they want in life or what’s next for them. Although it is tough to pull a quick one around the uncle, he is always well-like for others know that he does have their interests at heart… He operates from an abundance of love, always willing to give and contribute in every way he could.

See, human beings are somehow very smart. Words just don’t exactly count, for love can be felt… and it is dependent on how you give and how the other person feel about it. If you are always lamenting about your unappreciated love from friends, family or partner, it is high time you relook into the space you are operating from and how you have been giving your so-called love.

My thoughts around it:

• Love is allowing enough room for each other to grow and develop- no stickiness please. Personal space should be respected and it allows one to appreciate the time spent together with the other party.
• Love is genuinely caring and supporting the other party such that he gets to where he wants to be. It doesn’t have to look a certain way - it doesn’t have to be nice words or sweet actions… it could be challenging and provoking questions with honest and authentic feedback…
• Love is like flying a kite – one needs to know when to let loose and when to tighten the string. Holding it too tightly mean it can never fly high or it may snap off; holding it too loosely may mean one may lose it to the wind or it spins out of control. It is an art and it calls for different actions on the same issue in different situations.
• Too much of anything is bad, so no extreme expression of love too. Subtlety is indeed very much appreciated and persistency in the wrong way is repulsive.
  

Learning how to fly a kite well should be in everyone’s to-do list… Maybe one will get more enlightenment as one practices to be better at it. *raised eyebrows*

《走唱陈伟联》

陈伟联 finally got his 3rd album 《走唱陈伟联》released after 2 long years... Already 2 of his songs are a hit... How not to really? He has such a vocal that will somehow touch a corner of your heart and the lyrics of his songs will make you resonate with it...

Here is one of the songs that I like....《分手的情书》