And so I have been driving the car almost daily, under the supervision of HP, mostly after dinner, and I do think I am improving. I just hope I don't become too complacent and rash, like many young drivers are, who get into accident because they like to speed and are not experienced enough to handle it. I must say that I have the tendency to speed a little, there is just something about driving a flashy red car...

And for the past few days, I have been enjoying life, sort of, neglecting studies. as usual. Went to watch memoirs of the geisha with steph at Jurong Point yesterday. Having read the book, I still thought it was a great movie, incredibly moving and with lots of great acting and emotions. I was feeling pmsy and grumpy and stressed yesterday, and he was so sweet and patient, and made me feel terribly guilty that I was so mean to him..hahah..and we went on a binge as well. After the movie, I bought some horribly tasting kueh tutu, then we went Scoopz for ice-cream where we had green-tea and avocado(yeuks I know) flavoured ice-cream. I though it was pretty nice, though not as good as island-creamery. After that, I saw Tong Heng and couldnt resist buying the egg tart and char siew puff. And we ended the day with dinner at Beauty world. After which I felt so full. And when I got home, there were jars of pineapple tarts, cashew nut cookies, almond cookies..... and I couldnt resist of course...i feel my resolution slipping away and my waist line expanding...ohh nooo..but I swear after chinese new yr, I have to go on diet, me and steph cos I am always 'encouraging' him to eat snacks.... but for now, I am just going to enjoy all the goodies and worry about dieting 'tomorrow'

Yayy, chinese new yr holidays coming..And after that? Really have to start studying seriously already. No more procrastination. =(

And today, our Mazda 3 arrived. We went to collect it in the morning, and I had to go along to hear the instructions and all. I almost swooned at the sight of it, my very own chilli padi car. Well, technically its not mine(yet), but as HP is not in Singapore most of the time, and why would mum drive the mazda when she has a BMW, so I would probably be the one driving it most of the time, though for now, they wouldnt let me drive without supervision as they are scared that I would get into an accident, being a new and inexperienced and rather unsafe at times driver(at times) :p So I went for my virgin drive after dinner, which was a bad idea cos mum complained that my inclination towards speed and fast acceleration made her want to puke. I was very amused at the way both of them were more nervous then me. We drove to NUS and back, via commonwealth and back via Holland road where I got to speed a little, and it was truly exhilarating. I think that I should have no problem adapting to it, though I would have to brush up on my parking skills, which is, I think, a psychological barrier, and also to familiarize myself with the roads. My spatial skills arent all that great either, especially when changing lanes, but hopefully I would get the hang of it all in no time. Especially with more practice...

Sooo exciting..hahah..I cant wait to turn a few heads ;)

Today is my free day, so off I went to have fun before I pack up my holiday mode. The library was my first stop, as usual. I wandered around takashimaya square, doing some food tasting of chinese new yr goodies, had a bowl of steamed almond egg white with milk, which, as the salesperson informed me, is good for the skin. And it tasted really good. I am really mad about almond and steamed egg custard.

Had lunch with Yumin at Marche, not much of a lunch actually. Just a small bowl of wild mushroom soup with bread and shared a strawberry cheesecake which was very disappointing. It looked so luscious and rich on the display, but tasted cakey, and was not smooth enough, and was too sweet. Definitely not made with pure cream cheese. I can do better than that. After lunch, we went off to catch In Her Shoes, a chickflick starring Cameron Diaz which turned out to be a nice, hearwarming story about 2 sisters. And man, is she hot, all tight bum and long legs and svelte figure and tousled flyaway blond hair...sizzling hot. And the dresses she wore in the movie are so nice, that it inspired me to buy a dress after the movie, when we went shopping. A white dress at that. I know I think white dresses are very bridal and virginal, but it was quite fitting and sweet and simple, and the price was right, so I decided to go for it. As for shoes, there was a sale at URS, and I saw one that I quite liked, but they didnt have it in my size, and so the hunt goes on, though I am not fussy about my shoes, being a flip-flop and slippers person..

And so a lovely afternoon just flew past like that...wish time can go slower, especially when I am enjoying myself..I look forward to tomorrow though, its date day as we have wednesday afternoons off, but I have jazz dance class in school at night. After so long of wanting to join dancing, I have mixed feelings about it, one part lazy, one part trepidation and one part looking forward to it. I love dancing, but I rather think I am better suited at watching people dance as I can never remember the steps, having taken Salsa and jazz dance lessons before, I don't think I have much potential...hahah...but we shall see..

I had quite a lovely day today. Went to school early to print out my long overdue notes, and amazing, it was packed even in the morning. After lecture, me and steph headed to Island Creamery at Serene Centre for some much needed comfort food, especially for him..

They had apparently expanded the place, from a dingy little corner to a nice and cheery little cafe, perfect for some quiet moments, given that it is not too crowded of course. They have really nice and unique flavours like Horlicks, Teh tarik, and also the traditional kind. Stephen went for Horlicks and Kahlua Latte
It was really creamy and yummy and such a refreshing treat. The sweet horlicks a contrast to the slightly bitter latte icecream, but both equally yummy. The ice creams are made fresh in the shop itself too... and at $4 for 2 scoops, I thought it was quite a good deal. I went for the mudpie, which though isnt as nice as the cofffe club one in terms of presentation, it tasted very good too, with an oreo base, with 3 layers of ice-cream-espresso, cookies and cream and chocolate...sooo decadent. After that, I couldnt resit popping in to Tierney's Gourmet supermarket and I bought a packet of hot chocolate too, perfect for nice, cold weeathers, and a packet of corn chips.

After that was back to school for more lessons, which is actually about food and nutrition today..yawns..what dun I know about that..hahah..but practising it is another matter though..after that I rushed down to orchard to celebrate Crystal and Shiang's birthday at Crystal Jade Kitchen...

And we had another nice walk along the riverside again. The riverside that held so many memories for us..sad and happy. But happy days are back, and I hope they are here to stay..

Its ironic that ever since school started, i have been reading my books then ever. Not readings, but novels. My new favourite is Cecilia Ahern, her books are really witty and heartwarming and the style different from other authors. Once I start reading, I find if really hard to put down, so I end up reading about a book a day, and thus have been neglecting my inner command to be more hardworking and start reading my reading packet. I also wanted to be hardworking and print out e-reserves readings, lectures notes, library books etc, but I am just soooo lazy, and the place is so packed that I have no wish to squeeze in, and so I procrastinate. I tell myself by the end of the second week, I will readlly pack up my holiday mood, and keep it under lock and key, and I really hope I mean it. Time to start getting serious about things rather than be happy go lucky. My future is in my hands...

Lately, I am crazy over Auntie Anne' cinnamon sugar pretzel, after it being under my nose for so long, I finally discovered how great tasting it is. Warm soft pretzel right out of the oven, coated generously in cinnamon sugar, such that every bite is really finger licking good, cos of all the sugar stuck to the fingers. It is such a sinful treat, cos of the sugar content, and they dunk the cinnamon in butter before coating it with the sugar. And I have been eating it EVERYDAY, very bad for the waistline..but at least I have been starting my regular exercise routine again, so I do feel quite justified eating it. Though my resolution of eating lesser is still nowhere near...maybe after chinese new year..hahah..how can I resist all the goodies, they are my favourite part of chinese new yr, apart from Ang Baos' that is. Cashew nut cookies, almond cookies, love letters, prawn rolls, pineapple tarts, kueh bangkit, bbq pork slices, reunion dinnerS...etc..oohh..can hardly wait...hahah...diet? Nah...perhaps after that...

Speaking of food, I went Coffee Club again with Dad and Aunt Aubrey on saturday at raffles city. There wasnt a full menu there, so the main course was rather limited. I had a Irish Sling, which brought me to a new high..hahah..it was sooo yummy. With Irish cream, hazelnut syrup, milk and a scoop of ice-cream, it was really creamy and rich, it tasted like a better version of Baileys. After main course of mushroom ragout lasagne, Dad couldnt resist ordering the muddy mud pie for sharing. It came towering huge, with a generous sprinking of oreo crumbs and chocolate syrup that made it so sinful. With dinner like that every week, how to ever slim down. I lack discipline....sigh

School has started, and today was the second day of school for me. I still feel like I am in a holiday mode, still in the transition mode to study, not quite there yet...soon.. Looking at all the projects and essays I have to do, it just makes me feel so tired of uni life. Its the very feeling of uncertainty, knowing that everything would just escalate until exam time. This feeling of jadednes is not good, cos this is the period I am supposed to enjoy. Jadedness will come later on in life, when we go out to society to work.

And today during dinner, mum suddenly brought up the topic of going abroad to do a master's degree or smth, and she was pretty insistent about it. Of course, anyone would be thrilled to go overseas, especially England, but I am not sure I want to. I have too many strings tied here, and I know for sure I would be a changed person when I come back, and I am not too sure I want that to happen. And would I be studying just for studying's sake or would I really enjoy it. Is it really that important to get a Masters anyway when I am struggling to do my basic degree. There are people who know what they want in life and go straight for it. And there are people who are shaped by things around them and let circumstances decide their route. I guess I belong in that second camp of people, but I know for sure I would find it very very hard to let go of the things I treasure here. I think that it has always been mum's dream for me to study overseas, in her words, better equip me in life. I think that she has dreams too, which she cant fulfill, and she wants to life her dreams off me. And I also know that my dad would definitely NOT approve of me going overseas to study. He has told me time and again that he would provide me with my fishing line(BA), and the rest would be up to me. And once again, my parents have widely differing opinions and I am in the middle of it all, not knowing where to stand..

Enough about that, nothing has been confirmed as yet. Back to uni life, I feel that I am less motivated than last sem, and the thought of a busy sem ahead just fills me with dread. I feel like I havent gotten enough rest and fun during the holidays and no wonder, I was stressed out at work everday..hahah..and even now, we still have things to do for the company. I wish I can get out of it, but sometimes there are responsibilites that cant be shrugged off so easily and since we did agree to do it, I guess we must follow through with it. But I think we are being exploited, working without getting paid..sigh..maybe I should be more thickskinned and ask. But sometimes, money is really secondary. I agreed to take up the job purely because I thought it would be a good exposure for me..other than boring old data entry.

I hope I can get my zest and motivation back. Soon.

At least these two days have been very pleasant days..very very pleasant days with MB indeed.. =) nice weather for snuggling

It is the end of yet another holiday, and the start of another school term. Time literally just flew past. On the last day of work, I felt a little sad to be leaving, not the work of cos, but the place, the people and everything. I have somewhat gotten used to all the power suits, all the important looking people around. I do so love people watching..As much as I disliked working, I feel I have learnt quite alot from work, and gotten a taste of the real working world, and especially from Ken, who loves to give sermons, but they can be undeniable useful, and also my morning teh tariks, my daily dessert from dessert hut..and also Izzy, whom I have been seeing everyday, and we have become so much closer, with our similiar characters, taste and so much more. Its so lovely to have someone to moan to, laugh with during boring office hours, and also someone who loves eating as much as I do, we had fun trying all the nice eateries in the area. Someone whom I can bitch to, share with about everything, and being provided with a listening ear, good advice and no judgement.

As it was our last day, Izzy and all decided to give ourselve a treat at Coffee Club. The waiters were all super nice to us and the service was excellent. When we ordered the wasabi softshell crab, he gave us a super huge one. The garlic prawn pasta that I ordered was sooo delicious, and the prawns big and fresh and the pasta cooked till al dente, and deliciously garlicky. After that, we even ordered a dessert of Muddy Mud pie, which was fantastic. It was soo satisfying to treat yourself once in a while. But we were soo stuffed full. And when we got back to the office, there was even more desserts - of mango sago and walnut cream from dessert hut...which was excellent. Izzy and I got a bear each for Sang Chin, who has been so lovely to us, we figured that he liked bears cos his desk is full of bears and dried flowers from his wife..aww..so sweet.

When we ended work, it was pretty late cos we worked OT(foc) to clear some stuff. Actually our work hasnt really ended cos we would be doing some stuff for Ken from home. We rushed down for the Kaetna chalet at Aloha Loyang. Its actually a very nice place and it is pretty new, thus fewer unwelcome visitors around aka creepy crawlies. The bbq was already in full swing when we arrived, though they had just started the fire, and were actually cooking the food over the wok instead of bbqing it, and I had fun frying them, my first experience at cooking. Cooking of the food was actually done by out very domesticated Kaetna boys, all the better for us girls..hahah.. Time passed really fast, and before we knew it, it was past 12 and time to clear up the mess. The weather was nice and cool, and steph and I had a lovely walk along the beach, enjoying the beautiful scenery after the rain..sooo romantic and nice to cuddle to keep warm. It was pretty late then, around 2 or 3am, and it felt good to have all the time in the world without worrying about anything. Unfortunately, we were called back by derek to attend what I call the '21 gun salute' of gsy cos it was her 21st bday, and basically, we formed a circle around her, with her blindfolded and popped the party pooper(or whatever its called).

After that, we just hung around and played card games, I just watched them play until I got sleepy..which was around 5am, and crawled into bed only to be woken up at 8am by my mother who called demanding to know why I wasnt at home, though the day before I had told her I was going for a chalet. What a great way to start the day. So while she scolded on the phone, I took the phone away from my ear and counted to 10 before putting it back. It went on for quite a while before she ran out of steam and hung up. Just great. Trying to explain anything wouldnt have done any good at all.

After checking out of the chalet, I spent a lovely day at Tampines Mall with Steph...its the first time I have been there, I think, stepping into the 'eastern' territory. Its quite a nice place,with lots of shopping to be done, and lots of my favourite food under one roof..thus I was quite excited. And its very fun to explore new places as well. We watched The Family Stone, which is quite a nice, entertaining, and heartwarming christmasy movie. We took a very long bus ride home from there where we had dinner at Zion riverside foodcourt where I had a yummy beef horfun for dinner and nice piping hot cheng tng..

I slept in today, had such a good and long sleep that I didnt feel like waking up, plus the weather was still rainy and cold, perfect for sleeping. Went for church service at 2, and before that I popped in to Candy Empire and bought a whole load of chocolates...hahh..hopefully can last me quite long..lovely Cote d'Or 86% Cacao Dark chocolate..ooh lala and Truffle Noir which is dark chocolate with a rich truffle filling..yummy..

After service, I went for dinner with Dad at Suntec. I was supposed to treat him, but in the end he treated me to Kenny Rogers. Then I in turn treated him to drinks at NYDC. We had a really good time chatting and laughing that onlookers wouldnt believe we are father and daugher, and he looks really young for his age..haah..i can just about tell him everything, even dirty jokes and stuff. We are really close, except when he scolds me, he can get really scary..hahah..duh.

And so its back to school tmr. And I really cant say I am looking forward to it. And for the first time, I would be totally alone, at least for tmr, lunch and dinner alone, going for lects alone :( Not a nice feeling at all. Lecture from 12-2, then a super long break till another class from 5.30-8... So if any kind souls have mon aft free as well..they know who to look for :)

I had a fantastic New yr weekend. At first I was feeling sian and all, thinking that there is too much hype over New Yr, its just another year after all. Whats the big deal, and 2005 wasnt all that great either. So I was feeling down and moody and grumpy. On new yr's eve, I slept the day away cos of the drowsy effects of my cough syrup. In the evening, I had dinner with Dad and Aunt Aubrey at Ramen Ramen at Upper Bukit Timah. Their ramen is really really good, though the soup base is somewhat salty. After dinner, we went to the Coffee Club at Siglap as Dad wanted to avoid the New year crowd. No such luck though, it was just as crowded over there. We had the delicious Muddy mud pie and a rum and raisin truffle...yummmmyy.. Around 1145, we decided to go catch the fireworks at Mount Faber, unfortunately, there was a huge jam at ECP. Apparently everyone else had the same thought. And we were stuck there for half and hour, and I could only catch a little glimpse of the fireworks.

On Sunday, I went for church service, and it was super filled, more crowded than usual, and thats saying something. But I was glad I went, cos instead of moaning over what a horrible year it was, I was thankful for the things that it brought, and also filled with more hope for the new year. And after service, we just hung out with the cg people and had a really great time chilling with them, such a change from my usual boring sunday routine.

After that, me and steph decided to be spontaneous and hopped on the first bus that came along, and it brought us to Ikea. Where we had a GREAT dinner of swedish meatballs, chicken wings and roast beef, and an additional cream of brocolli soup which looked gross, but tasted pretty good. Then we had a nice long walk in the rain to the busstop.

On monday, I went to East Coast Park with Steph. I was so excited to be doing something different for a change and also to be able to rollerblade again. I even dug out my pair of rollerblades which hasnt been in use for a good 4 years. It still looked very new. It was only when I used it that I figured that the ball bearings must have become somewhat rusty cos it required alot of effort to blade, and I couldnt go fast. So there I was, all red faced and perspiring profusely, huffing and puffing, trying to keep up with Steph cycling at a very leisurely pace beside me where I decided that I couldnt take it anymore, so we rested for quite abit at a bench before heading back. After washing up, it was still quite early, so we headed to Changi Airport, and had dinner at Popeye's again, which tasted extremely delicious to two starving souls. The day came to an end all to soon and we took a long bus journey home. It was really an incredible day and its been so long since we last spent some quality time together, so I treasured it all the more..

So its the new year, I dun have that many new year resolutions cos they are made to be broken...hahah..and honestly, I can think of so many new year resolutions that I have made the past years that disappeared somewhere along the way... the coming semester would be a tough one for me, I just hope I can survive it...