.Paisley & Cream Cafe.

Saturday Tea at the lovely and cozy ‘Paisley & Cream’.

Mango Flavour Cupcake

Mixed Berries Flavour Cupcake

Too pretty to be eaten, huh?

Just like a perfect English tea at a little cafe by the street-side (sorta).

Tea, sweet pastries with clotted cream/preserves, light sandwhiches and scones and people-watching … that seems like the perfect life. Im sure I can get used to the occasional afternoon tea chill-out.  

Anyone wants a cuppa tea with moi?

Ah, it’s the holidays but frankly- i would say its pretty much non-existent for me. Chantelle is quitting already so to replace her temporarily, Uncle T wants me to head down to the studentcare everyday for my hols. Agreed to it so far since the kids’ exams are approaching and besides, work keeps me occupied in the day and i can always spend my evenings with my loves And that aside, there’s another set of work commitments. Recently just joined this company as a freelance events executive – good exposure and experience for me to grasp a better idea of how to go about planning events & its activities and programmes, sourcing for sponsors (the tough part!) and hitting the target number of audience (stress!) for each event. Main scope world be to work on organising mini-fashion shows in clubs but if we are fortunate enough, we’ll get to work on corporate events such as family days and company D&D Had my first taste of working on a club event last Thursday and you know what they say – it might all look glam on the surface, but you never know how much hard work/effort one puts in to ensure that it’s a success lol.

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Weekends:

Oh, weekends were terrible!! While everyone else was probably having so much fun with their friends during post-exam period … I was at home most of the time, nursing a fever that sky-rocketed to 39.4 degrees! It’s so silly – 2 wks ago, baby was taking care of me cz i was having menstrual cramps … a week back, i was caring for him as he was down with a throat infection as well as a high fever and the last wkend, it was his turn to care for me again. Just like a cycle but i hope it ends right here. Thanks Baby for your tender,loving,care

Nevertheless, we finally booked ourselves a 4D3N trip to Tioman. Scheduled to leave in 2wks’ time. Now, I can hardly wait for a short vacation before the start of all those academic pressure starts to set in.

 Japamala Resort: 1 of the world’s top 10 luxury boutique resorts!

*gotcha! Of course, I would love to stay here … look, it’s utter paradise! especially its exclusive Seaview Pool Sarang Villa. with its very own plunge pool … can go skinny-dipping lol *just kidding*. and look over the clear waters of the sea. It’s luxury alright! But unfortunately, we aint some rich kids so settled for Paya Beach Resort instead.

11th – 14th May. That’s the dates that Im terribly looking forward to

Things that makes me smile:

Need me say more?

Friends & Company!

The upcoming short getaway.
Away from the hustle and bustle of the city life.
Isn’t that amazing?

Aint it beautiful?

All those bland food the past few days is making me wanting to go on a seafood feast!
crabs! oysters! prawns!

Or some sashimi which I haven’t eaten in ages!

Looking at creative graphic/visual designs makes me smile!
Making me secretly wish to excel in designing too.

finally done with exams. and you know what? Im still stressed up.
June’s going to be a hectic month. Summer semester is always insane with its hectic and hurried schedules. More fashion shows-cum-club events to organise and plan. Tuition. 2 volunteer assignments. Preparation for UB. And my best friend, Sara is going to return for a month of visiting from Canada. GOSH.
Im probably going to give up a few stuff in order to maintain my sanity and a healthy balance in my social life. It’s either a choice of all work and no play or some work and some play. I wld choose the latter.

Just took an utterly adorable picture of fat girl … sleeping with her butt out of her little sunflower house!

Weekends:

Spent the bulk of the weekends working for anj creative dance school’s open house 2008. Easy job, new friends and yes, more money! There’s always a part of me that wants to take up dancing – it used to be either hip hop or MTV dance mix when I was still in secondary school/JC but as I grew older, that interest changed to latin dancing such as salsa and rumba. Gave dancing a shot a couple of times before but somehow, im all clumsy and forgetful when it comes to dance steps and routines.  

Anyway, that’s not the point. What I want to state is that you would be surprised with the increasing number of middle-aged folks who pick up social/latin dancing as a hobby. Some even signed up for 2-3 different dance classes at a shot and for the bulk of them, they appeared to have a strong and keen interest and passion to express through dancing. As they say, learning is a lifelong process.. no one is too old to pick up or learn a new skill

.lovely dance shoes.
that don’t come cheap

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Stress & Pressure:

Lately, i find myself plunged into a tumult of emotion and stress. There’s just so much pressure to not only want to get good grades for each semester but also, to get prior relevant working experience so as to give me the comparative advantage when I graduate and start looking for a job next year. Yes, it’s all self-inflicted but the sudden thought that I might not save up enough money for retirement (i know, everyone thinks it’s absurd when i start talking about retirement fund when Im not even out of university yet!) is petrifying and frightening. I don’t want to be 70 years old and still having to find myself constantly working just so that I can support myself financially.

There’s no right or wrong in the way that each individual leads their life so honestly, its not for me to judge how one wants their life to be. Recently, someone I know is going to get married and everyone knows that settling down is never a cheap affair. The wedding banquet and preparations itself already costs a bomb and let’s not forget that for most couple- they would opt to have their own living space if possible. Since when does housing comes cheap in Singapore? And so, for this couple …  A 3-bedroom flat that costs an estimated $380 000 when the market price is $150 000 just because it offers a “scenic beach view”. A dream wedding at the beautiful “The Sentosa Resort & Spa” where a table costs an astonishing $1200. It’s totally fine if say the couple is doing well financially and have been saving up their money for their very big day. However, it’s not quite so for this couple. The guy had just started his own company about a year back and the girl quitted her job so that she can devote and dedicate her time and energy into investing in his dream job. Basically, had it been an average couple – what most people would say is “Work harder to turn your dream wedding into reality” … but well, sometimes, some lucky people are born with a silver spoon. or golden spoon, i would say so myself. Parents being loving parents, inevitably offered to pay for the bulk of these payments. I know that it’s difficult to save up such a large sum of money within a few years of working and on most occasions, the parents will definitely chip in a sum of money to help foot for part of the wedding expenses. However for this particular case- I personally just feel that if the couple knows that they are not financially stable yet then they should compromise to work things out and perhaps settle for a less luxurious or expansive wedding/apartment. To add to that, he has his very own car all paid for too – full payment of the car all settled. It’s quite amusing to me that all that these people have to do is to raise their hands out, and money starts coming in. But it makes me ponder – really, how long can one lead such a lifestyle (let’s exclude the filthy wealthy people here) whereby you become so dependent on your parents/family for cash? Money is fleeting. One day, the cash is going to run out and you realise that life is not as perfect as it seems and that’s when you have to work at life to keep it going.

Straits Times once published an article before – regarding working adults who still rely on their parents for financial means. An example listed was this gentleman who brought home a monthly income of about $3300 which frankly to speak, is sufficient if you don’t indulge on frequent luxuries in life. But no, it wasn’t so for him. In fact, as quoted “he uses contributions from his parents for shopping .. armed with 3 supplementary credit cards from his mother, he indulges his designer tastes at top boutiques like Hugo Boss and DKNY. His mother also covers his mobile phone bills, which can reach up to $600.” Likewise, another lady admitted that she could get by her $2000 salary but that would mean that she would have to cut down on her shopping. Hence, her parents not only foot for her $340 monthly car-park bill but also, “funded her extravagant shopping purchases, such as a $3000 Chanel handbag and a pair of $600 Ferragamo shoes”. I understand if the child is in dire need of money and the parents offer a lending hand. But for the case of asking money from the parents just so that the excess money can support their expansive lifestyle? I think that’s just outrageous and ridiculous. You have a job – so work at it and earn your own cash to maintain your own lifestyle. Lifestyle is a choice that one makes – frugal or costly. Such mindsets that some of these adults have is just going to continue to breed dependency on their part.

On the other hand, Ive friends who aren’t so fortunate and thus, have to earn their own keeps while studying. Or for the even less priviledged – they are only left with the option of working first to save up the sufficient funds before they can pursue further studies. Life’s tough. That’s why like I’ve said before – I admire people who can keep a balance between studies and part-time work or work full-time/study part-time. Better still, if they can maintain all their distinctions. It’s not easy .. imagine, after a day of schooling – there’s still work commitments that u have to attend to and just when you thought that you are done with the day, there’s still assignments and projects to tackle with. Bravos to those of you, you’ve earned my full respect and admiration for your determination and drive. It might seemed like a trying and challenging period of your time now but Im pretty sure that at the end of the day, your efforts are going to be paid. And you guys know that you worked your ass off for it … that’s what that makes it all the more worth-while and satisfying.

Baby, you too. You know that I’ll stand by you and try my very best to help you out whenever possible. We’ll go through this together.

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Finally, a shoutout to Juliet – congrats for getting the internship at SPH. you know that many would love to be in your position – prestigious career move for u babe. does this means less clubbing and girl nights’ out for us?

.sick.

Poor MK – he’s nursing a high fever and cough. The last I checked – it was 39 degrees.
Despite being totally unwell and having a high fever, he still decided to accompany me to visit my grandpa at Mt. Elizabeth hospital. And he insisted on sleeping over because he wants to spend more time together since it would be yet another week from now when we next meet up. So … he’s right here getting his well-deserved sleep while I try hard to get some revision done for COM 242.

Our “His/Her” pendants - a steal at only $5 from DIVA.

It’s going to be a better day for you tomorrow.

.it’s all about birthdays.

Three 21st birthday parties over a weekend.
1 house party and 2 chalet parties at Aloha Loyang.
Happy Belated 21st to Chern Chieh, Wendy and Shi Hui
There’s also Shuling’s 21st birthday at yet another chalet ages ago.

Shi Hui’s bf is real sweet too, created a movie using the photos of the both of them. Gweny, debra, evan, soy hoon and I thought he might even be proposing to her at the end of the clip lol.

Speaking of being 21 … Im gonna turn 21 too, in 8mths’ time. Honestly, I don’t really think of 21 as being such a hyped-up thing as what most think of. So, whenever anyone asks me if I have any plans for a smashing celebration … the excuse that I give which is true too, is that I will be away in US so i wouldn’t get to celebrate it here anyways. But if I really do, what that matters most to me would be the company of my family, closest friends and of course, HIM. Everyone loves a BIG party with all their friends going but really, at the end of the day, your different groups of friends are just going to stick to themselves and it’s only you the host who will be running around and making sure that all runs well. It’s an exhausting task. I would prefer quality time with just the ones who matter most to me.

It’s all about ‘ifs’ here … hence if given a choice and the money capabilities - I would choose a yacht mini celebration with just baby and the closest of my girlfriends and that would truly make me a happy girl It’s expensive though, so … … must think twice and thrice before I come to a decision. Either that or I would most probably stick to having different birthday celebrations with the different group of friends … the usual thing but perhaps, try incorporating a special touch to it.
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Since we’re on the topic of birthdays, we just had a birthday celebration at the studentcare for two of the girls too. But boy are they still so young – one just turned 8 and the other 9. I feel OLD. somehow, this birthday celebration reminds me of my Macdonald’s birthday celebration when I was 6 years old when all we cared back then was food and more food, games and fun.

They are so camera-shy lol… didn’t wanna smile for the cameras!

They finally did so, after much persuasion…
wide smiles

Naturally, all kids would be smiling when there’s fun and food !!!

Happy Birthday to everyone!!! and I know, more Birthdays to come!

A Little Gift …
from 1 of my student. Small little gestures like this that made my day  despite having to nurse a bad headache over the past few days.

Pink pencil and a lovely blue rose from the adorable Cassandra.

Heading for a job briefing regarding the event that Im working for this weekend, plus another session of tuition. Where’s the time for me to study lol?

.kids, tuition and blogging.

3 times tuition this week.
Most people would decrease the tuition sessions when their exam time is drawing nearer. YET here I am, increasing the number of times that Im heading down to the studentcare centre. But really, now that all projects and assignments are done … I cant stand being too bored at home, and just spending the time revising for the papers. And since i enjoy the company of those kids, coupled with the fact that their exams are approaching too, I thought I might as well spend more time at the centre in that case.

Had some spare time so it’s ‘pictures time’ for some of the kids, they love taking pictures anyways!
Here’s presenting:
Eddie: the most mischievous kid EVER!
Christine: the sweet and soft-spoken korean girl
Hong Chuan: boys will always be boys …
Kenneth: 1 of my fav student!

Slightly more than a week left to the holidays. Isn’t that what everyone else is looking forward to?
Travel. Friends. Hobbies. Preparation for UB trip.
Unfortunately, unlike my fellow friends at NUS/NTU/SMU – mine’s just a pathetic 3 weeks before my summer semester begins.

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Just found a thought-provoking read about blogging from http://www.ifbu.blogspot.com/

How Stressful is blogging? Really?

When I first started blogging, I thought it a mere obsession. I tried to blog every day, developing a ritual by chronicling my personal style. Once it became a habit, and the more involved I became with my blog, the more time it took, and the more I demanded of myself. I love the growth, and it’s opened the door to many other opportunities, but at what cost?   

Once I asked a fellow blogger how much time she spends blogging, she replied, “oh, about 2 hours a day” She has a pretty successful blog, so I thought I was doing something wrong because I was spending nearly every night researching, getting linked into various social networks, looking for new blogs….etc. Juggling everything in my life started to get pretty intense. Then I realized, it was stress.

This Sunday, the New York Times wrote a compelling article about the role of stress in a bloggers life. The 24/7, round-the-clock nature of the web has bloggers latched onto the ether struggling to be the first, the best, whatever, and it’s having grave consequences. One blogger gained 30lbs since he started his blog. (I’ve gained 10). Two leading bloggers have actually died of heart attacks in the past few months.

Blogging can be loads of fun. Heck, I wouldn’t do it, if it weren’t. It can be stressful, hard, intense.

It’s also very important to take care, be healthy.

What kinds of things to do you do to stay happy, healthy and well rested as a blogger?

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My opinions on this?I have always thought of blogging as a hobby – a leisure activity that people enjoy doing – perhaps because it provides us a chance to escape from reality … a little haven for us to pass time and jot down our thoughts and experiences. To some, blogging can be portrayed as a platform whereby they could write about a particular topic that’s of great interest to them and share it with the rest of the world (for instance, fashion, gossip/tabloid or politics independent bloggers). But I believe that for the bulk of us, blogging is some sort of an online journal where we can write about our daily activities and express our feelings and opinions.

However, it becomes scary when one becomes so addicted to blogging and brings blogging to a whole new level. Obsession or Addiction to anything is never a good thing. I personally don’t believe that anyone should feel obligated to blog because if that is the case – wouldn’t blogging be seen as yet another set of work for us? If we blog with the mindset that “I got to come up with something interesting and intriguing to write about”, it’s definitely bound to take away the fun of blogging. In fact, it takes away the spontaneous and ’spur of the moment’ essence of blogging because you might just want to come up with a blog entry just for the sake of blogging and so … when that is finally done, you heave a sigh of relief and think to yourself that “at least it’s done and over with”. If that’s so, I don’t see the difference between blogging and completing assignmenets. Sounds the same to me.

 
One of the reasons why these people gets so obsessed with blogging and perfecting their blogs could be due to comparison. People love to compare. There’s millions and millions of blogs out there and hence, so much for comparison. But what we have to understand is that there’ll always be others out there who are better than us. If we are going to live our life comparing, then it’s bound to be a sad and miserable life for us. The goals and aims of blogging also play an important role in contributing to the accelerating stress levels of some of these bloggers (IMO). Perhaps, the group of bloggers who feel the tremendous amount of stress and obligation would be bloggers who have successful and popular blogs. Therefore, the desire for them to want to maintain/ increase the readership and no. of subscribers is there … and so, explains the stress for them to constantly come up with something captivating and fascinating and also, to be consistently kept updated of the latest happenings. It becomes inevitable for them to feel the pressure to beat other well-established bloggers to the punch of becoming one of the best or most popular bloggers out there.

At the end of the day, blogging should be viewed as something fun and enjoyable .. not something which we have to fret and get all worried about. Bottomline: Blogs should very much be an expression of ourselves and the rush of passion.

.it’s a pleasant surprise.

4th 21st birthday celebration in a week. Everyone seems to be turning 21 in April.
Happy 21st Birthday, Sok Yin!

Presents for the Birthday Girl.

Addicted to Ministry Of Food, especially the ‘to-die-for’ desserts.

My lovely babes. Keeping ourselves occupied in the Ladies’. No wonder, both the bathroom and the mirrors can be the girls’ best friends at times.

Was having a blast when I received a sudden surprise call from baby! My initial thought was that they were given allowance time to call their loved ones back on the main island. Unfortunately, I was far from the truth. Poor baby, got stung by a jellyfish not once but twice … plus, he’s been having a sore back due to a previous back injury. As such, both the doctor and OBS instructor felt that he should be let off from the training stint, for the better of his health. He was pretty upset and disappointed about dropping out from the OBS course since it was something that he had been looking forward to. Nevertheless, health is more important than any other thing. There’s always other opportunities for him to showcase his leadership qualities.

GODIVA black chocolates just to cheer him up!   You know, I would never ever spend that amount of money on chocolates, if they were for myself. But sometimes in life, we wouldn’t think twice about spending that extra bit of money for our significant other.

Silly us cam-whoring

LOVE is when …

you are hungry in the middle of the night and your boyfriend gets out of bed and whips up a dish of mee pok noodles for you
And … despite not feeling totally well, he still took extra good care of me – getting the pads, menstrual pills and feeding me with delicious porridge. Was having severely painful cramps and it really was hell for me. But having him by my side eased the whole situation, and made it all the more comfortable for me. I couldn’t have asked for a better boyfriend than him.

Having video call on MSN with him at the moment! with our piglets!!!

Just a short note for you, baby:
“Once in awhile right in the middle of an ordinary life love gives us a fairy tale.”

.close to you.

Nothing else needs to be said.
.11 days more to go.