Something New in the Summer Dew
What I bought on Summer Sunday
1) Pink Hard Cover Notebook, 208 Pages, $2.60, Popular Bookstore. I am going to write the contact details of people whom I NEVER want to ever lose contact with in my life inside here. The thing is......do I really need 208 pages and do I want to do this in a Popular notebook?
2) Awesome Pawsome 5 in 1 pen, Zebra, white finish, $7.30, Popular Bookstore. It comes with four colours and a pencil, all in the body of one fat pen!
What I received on Summer Saturday
1) Tinted Contact Lenses, Chocolate. From Weixiang. I am gonna be sporting brown eyes very soon. Not like it is my first time but I haven't worn tinted lenses for the longest time.
What Popped Into my Mind on Summer Saturday - Sunday
1) A new ambition - Curator. Isn't this cool?
Imagine my nametag:
Ang Xu Yun, Curator (HOW COOL)
Instead of......
Ang Xu Yun, Marketing Officer
Ang Xu Yun, Admin Executive
Ang Xu Yun, Clerk
Ang Xu Yun, Jobless?
In response to all these, my sister said, "You are really back to normal."
11:51 PM
Saturday, July 25, 2009
Dear Stomach, would you please stop churning?
Some thoughts that flashed my mind when I was sick to the core.
1) I would give away my clothes (even my secret stash that I haven't worn, F.W. clothes, the jackets I love and my pretty dresses) if that meant I could get well completely.
2) I would donate $100 (I know that is not alot but it is actually a lot to me to give away) if that meant I could get well completely.
3) If I continue eating the amount of medicine I am supposed to eat, would I get kidney and liver failure? I swear I felt one of them twitch in pain down my back.
4) Did I lose weight? I did. But I don't really want to lose weight in such an unhealthy way. I am gonna build my fitness back. I miss swimming so super damn much.
Okay, on a more serious note, I gained this revelation.
5) 能吃是福。I have always thought, from young, that these four Chinese words meant that it is a fortune that one is able to afford the food that is put on the table and that we should be grateful for it. Of course, we should count ourselves very lucky when we get to enjoy delicacies of all sorts. In all, I thought that the four words meant to teach us to appreciate what we have to eat because it is a blessing to have something to eat.
However, after being sick for so many days and having a really weak appetite throughout, I thought that these four words might mean something else too. 能吃 essentially means the ability to eat. Could this old Chinese saying actually be telling us that the very act of eating itself is indeed a blessing that many people have been taking for granted?
When I was in Secondary School, I did volunteer work at the Geriatric Ward at a certain hospital. My job was to assist the nurses in whatever my limited capabilities could. Therefore, I was most useful and busy during mealtimes, because at least, I could feed the disabled elderly pretty well. The luckiest ones could choose what they wanted to eat and did so heartily, the luckier ones could eat what they were told to eat, and the lucky ones could eat abit out of an extremely strict diet.
There were also the unfortunate ones. Some of them had to be fed formula milk. I poured the milk into the funnel scoop by scoop, and slowly waited for it to flow through the rubber tube and enter the patient's mouth. It was painful to watch. But perhaps I guess, the saddest ones were those who had the sign "NIL BY MOUTH" hung on their beds.
We should all really be counting our blessings now that we can eat and have so much to eat. I really cannot wait to regain my appetite! I would be so thankful!
10:09 PM
Thursday, July 23, 2009
Pretty Pencils Poisoned!
I do not know what I had eaten to cause this. But I had been tormented for the past few days. My new found favourite position was to squat next to the toilet bowl and throw up. I do not know whether it was due to the GP's incompetency or the severity of my food poisoning that caused the extended torment. So, my parents decided to take me to the hospital once and for all.
This was what I had gotten after being warded for observation in SGH last night.
I seriously doubt the doctor's sanity. This is too much medicine, isn't it?! I have been like feeding on medicine and I am sooooooooooooooo sick of it. Well, but at least I feel better now. IV drips work the best.
12:37 PM
Saturday, July 18, 2009
Best I Ever Had
When I met Weixiang today, he surprised me with this remarkably awesome looking strawberry cheesecake which he had baked, all by himself, during the night and into the wee hours of the morning, just for me ((: I was really touched when I saw it, right to the bottom of my heart. This is absolutely the first time anyone has ever baked something for me specially. He was indeed born to be a baker, haha. 
We ate our dinner at St James' Station Kitchen which served such fine Chinese cuisine prepared with the freshest ingredients. The best thing about this place, ironically, is that there isn't much of a crowd there even with the great food. Thumbs up! One thing about being with Weixiang is that I know I will never be hungry, we love food to bits and we constantly eat, in huge volumes.
Over dinner, I was suddenly inspired by the black and white pictures I was taking. I have a new business idea. I am gonna make them into greeting cards and postcards! Signed by Pretty Pencils! After our dinner, we went to Dragonfly (his favourite hangout) for a bit. Okay, I have ever heard people saying that that place is kinda tacky but I think they have the best live band EVER. The singers sing so very really well! I almost thought I was in a concert. I think I have a thing for singing at the top of my voice in really noisy places, because I assume no one can hear me. I sang along with the music in a pretty expressive and dramatic way, Weixiang was.......very amused.
Dear Yoga,
You're Only The Best I Ever Had. (This song is SO STUCK in my head.)
Love, Pretty Pencils.
11:54 PM
Friday, July 17, 2009
I get high because you are my Ecstacy and You get high because I am your Ketamin.
0800 hrs - Alarm rang. Snoozed it.
0820 hrs - Dragged myself out of bed.
0821 hrs - Washed up and showered. Got dressed.
0940 hrs - Got out of the house. Made a run for buses. On the bus. Worried because I thought I wore the wrong shoes. Slept. Reached Orchard.
1030 hrs - Arrived at Canele, Shaw. Surprised to see so many people having breakfast at that hour. Wondered why do these people not have to work. Waited.
1050 hrs - Ordered Eggs Ben Florentine and Omelette Ham with Toast. $21.
1100 hrs - Zihua arrived. Ate. Chatted.
1140 hrs - Left Canele and headed to Wheelock. Walked around.
1200 hrs - Bought a grey thing (garment) at Wheelock Bysi. It is highly versatile and looks like what F.W. would wear. $15 (omgzzz how could I not buy it?), on sale. Extremely pleased.
1220 hrs - Walked towards Ngee Ann City. Cold Storage.
1245 hrs - Bade goodbye to Zihua. Walked towards Heeren to take a bus.
1300 hrs - Arrived at Cathay. Bought 2 tickets to Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince. $12, Amex promo. Comes with Complimentary Popcorn. Delighted.
1305 hrs - Waited.
1400 hrs - Lover arrived. Slacked.
1420 hrs - Got into the cinema. Ate and ate and ate popcorn, sweet flavoured. Drank coke. $2.70.
1435 hrs - Movie started. Thought that Ron looked really bad and Hermione really hot. Harry was just......Harry.
1715 hrs - Movie ended. My eyes were brimming with tears (but no tear rolled out) because Dumbledore died.
1845 hrs - Legs were dying of fatigue after walking around aimlessly for an hour or so with the Lover. Settled down at Food Republic for dinner. Chicken Drumstick Noodles + Green Apple Juice. $9, ripoff. Received a flower hair clip from Zihua who met me again to return something.
1930 hrs - Food Fest at Takashimaya. Made out in public with Lover (kidding). Trying to act like lesbians. Bought Spicy Korean Rice Cakes. $3, fair. Sat on a bench in Takashimaya. Watched people. Thinking if I would get bashed up soon because I was taking candid shots of strangers. Bumped into various people whom I know by name and not by name.
2020 hrs - Left Takashimaya. Took a walk, destination: Parkmall Bus Stop. Went into The O.C. (Orchard Central, not Orange County) on the way. Sashayed around.
2040 hrs - Walked more. Sang "Heal the World" at the top of my voice.
2100 hrs - Boarded the 190.
2200 hrs - Home. Showered. And here I am. Lifestyle of the Bummer.
11:22 PM
Tuesday, July 14, 2009
Tuesday Afternoon Solo
It was indeed fate that I had to spend some time alone today to find my inner peace. I was supposed to meet Zihua but she had migraine and cancelled on me. I called Lover, but she missed my call. I called Huiyi and she exclaimed, before I could speak a word, "OMG GUESS WHAT? I got the H1N1." I gave her my blessings and made my way to Keppel Club by myself.
New personal record: 30 laps in 1.5 hours I had the whole pool to myself most of the time as there were only a couple of others around. I felt so relaxed I think I almost fell asleep swimming.
This is my Keppel Baby! I could just sit in this jacuzzi the whole day and stare at the sea. Today, I had company. There was an old man, the oldest I have seen so far at the club, in the jacuzzi. He sat at the edge of the pool, and rested his chin on his overturned hands, facing the sea. He was very nice and he made small talk with me. For a brief moment, I thought of my grandfather, who never lived to enjoy such luxury.
Today, my sister brought home 5 fat (according to her) mealworms, which I haven't seen and wouldn't want to see, for her Biology project. They made her lose appetite during dinner just by thinking about them. I then decided to be nice and made her chocolate coated strawberries to bring to school tomorrow! ((:
Today, my sister brought home 5 fat (according to her) mealworms, which I haven't seen and wouldn't want to see, for her Biology project. They made her lose appetite during dinner just by thinking about them. I then decided to be nice and made her chocolate coated strawberries to bring to school tomorrow! ((:
10:47 PM
Saturday, July 11, 2009
I Can Feel Now......
Yueying's 21st Birthday Party at Varsity Park. I really ate a lot.
Quick thinking is a must when you have forgetful friends (ie. Lydia haha). But it is definitely also a good chance to foster creativity. These three birthday greeting cards were the most unique of the stack.
Dear Blue Dolphin,
Right now, I can really feel that I am being tested in all aspects of my life. I really wish you could just take me away into the blue and beautiful ocean where you live. But I know there is no other way to handle this than to face up to it (because I cannnot live in water like you, I am a different type of mammal). It is gonna be hard but I know it will all pass anyway. I CAN DO IT and I know you would support me with all your other Dolphin friends ((:
Love, Pretty Pencils
11:42 PM
Night At The Museum
Sunk Cost Theory
A cost that cannot be recovered once it has been incurred. Thus, do not let sunk costs affect future decisions. So where does perseverance stand in such light? I have had a good taste of this dilemma tonight, in a number of situations and even under various contexts.
Friday evening saw Lover, me and a new made friend Zhiqin, at the museums. It was the Night Festival and thus, there was free entry for all. The most exciting thing was actually the complimentary Caricature Drawing by professional artists at the Peranakan Museum. The number of people queuing up to be drawn was impossible and it took an excruciatingly long time before the three of us got our turns. We debated several times if we should just give up or continue to queue. We succumbed, decided to persevere and waited, blatantly ignoring the sunk cost theory.
The caricatures of Lover and me. See how prominent features on our real faces were exaggerated in the cartoon?
The night ended with the three of us walking away from the supposedly much awaited performance outside the National Museum at 1030pm - The Loop of Fortune. It started late and it was boring. We applied the sunk cost theory and got on our way home.
1:29 AM
Thursday, July 9, 2009
Effortless
I think her beauty is effortless, and her face seems to tell a thousand stories.
What I have already craved for this week:
1) Spicy Korean Rice Cakes
2) Chocolate Frogs
3) Strawberry Cheesecake
4) Mango Red Tea or Pearl Milk Tea
5) Cafe Latte, Starbucks
6) Chocolate cupcakes
(baked by Julie and Huiyi. Because Julie said they are SO GOOD.)
Today, Lover and I baked Jellyhearts, which is really just strawberry cheesecake. The baking process is generally easy as no oven is needed. All we did was beat everything together, pour them in layer by layer and then just waited for time to pass. While waiting, Lover and I poured our hearts out to each other. I am so thankful I have her.
Question: What should you do to keep a dying flame from dying?
a) Add fire.
b) Keep away the wind.
c) Let it be because God would decide.
d) Blow it out.
9:54 PM
Wednesday, July 8, 2009
Options and Futures
In Finance, I probably would never really understand fully the workings of options and futures. But in life, I would, and everybody else would too. People like to have options, as many as possible, and then choose the best option, which at that point in time, is believed to yield the best future. When you have more than one choice, how do you know which is the best for yourself? And sometimes, even if you knew which is best for yourself, you realise YOUR LIFE is really not all about yourself.
Yesterday evening was spent at Fish and Co. Glasshouse to celebrate Juliana's 21st birthday! ((: I have missed them so much and I was really beaming, genuinely happy to see them again. It was all nice and cosy to have everyone (full attendance!) gathered around the table and just eat and catch up. Nice music, nice food, nice drinks, bad service. I am gonna complain.
Have you ever seen a girl who is so devastatingly beautiful you feel like your heart is going to break just by looking at her picture? And besides that, she has everything else you ever wanted. I might have seen one. Or two. Green with Envy.
2:48 PM
Monday, July 6, 2009
Lover, you make me love Monday.
It was a hot and sultry Monday afternoon when I met my Lover at BPP's supermarket to buy groceries for making the day's lunch. She was late even though she lives just five minutes away, literally a stone's throw. But it is okay, I still love her, very much indeed.
We got back to her place at Maysprings after shopping and started to cook. Well, I shall not elaborate too much on that since the cooking was rather smooth sailing and uneventful. We succesfully made pork (Yes, with the all time trusted Lee Kum Kee) and baked rice with mushrooms and chipolata toppings! Very delicious indeed.
By mid afternoon, the weather turned cold and windy. We abandoned our original plan of swimming and got settled in front of the television on the couch. Well, actually, Lover wasn't on the couch, she was riding on her I-Gallop throughout. We watched a movie, 27 Dresses, together with Lover's younger brother and his two other friends.
Looking at the company I was in, I suddenly thought that it looked like it was a mini Youth Day Party as it happened to be a Youth Day school holiday today. I haven't celebrated Youth Day for quite a while now and that momentarily brought me back to days back in Crescent and SA. Very briefly.
I have to say I am still such a sucker for such movies. Yeah, I enjoyed the 27 Dresses. On the whole, the entire movie was very predictable, so predictable that you could have thought that you had written the entire script. But, still, my eyes were brimming with happy tears by the end of the movie. The female lead did not end up with her dream guy, by her own choice, and was happily marrying the man who never appeared in her dreams. Maybe, this would change a typical girl from dreaming about her dream guy to "dreaming about a guy who never appears in her dream". It is still dreaming anyhow.
(PS: I FINALLY ATE MY SPICY KOREAN RICE CAKES TODAY. AFTER CRAVING MORE FOR THAN A WEEK.)
10:24 PM
Sunday, July 5, 2009
Aroused
I was at a terribly boring Housewarming Party with my mom and my sister last night at Bt. Timah. This party was thrown by one of my mom's oldest friends who had just moved from a unit in one block to a unit in another block within the same private property in which she had stayed in for the past decade. Or more. My sister and I knew not a single soul at the party, and thus, we devoted our time there to helping ourselves with the food, pretty shamelessly.
My mom was actually feeling awkward too as she did not know most of the people there. But when she found someone to talk to, that was it, we were stuck there. Being a sweet daughter, I still gave my most winsome smile to people I barely knew.
At the apartment, when the situation was to our advantage, my sister and I took control of the very precious remote control. It was again, done in a pretty shameless way. So with that, we started watching the AYG 2009. I have never really watched any sports match with such careful attention. When I saw most of the swimmers wear Speedo, my favourite swimming brand, I was thrilled, I thought I could be a swimmer too. I was following so closely their timings and positions, and cheered quietly with my sister when Singapore won a something. This made me even more inspired to make swimming a huge part of my life. I am like SO MOTIVATED to break my own records! ((:
Can you answer these questions?
1) FIFA 2004 acknowledged that soccer originated from China. What was soccer called then?
2) What is the Chinese name of the tree Angsana?
3) What is the surname of Lao Tzu?
4) What is the birth name of Emperor Kangxi?
Just tonight, I watched a Chinese gameshow final which was held because of the Speak Mandarin Campaign 2009. They asked questions on Chinese history, literature, lifestyle and pop culture. With the combined effort of my sister and myself, we were both able to answer most of the questions! If only we had joined.
The questions were really interesting and I realised most of the knowledge I used in answering those questions were gained from the Chinese textbooks we had in Primary and Secondary school and also from watching Chinese TV and movies. I am so proud of being a Chinese and I am so inspired to learn more about Chinese history now! I really do think that it is cool to speak proper mandarin in a refined manner like how newscasters do it. Chinese history is so intriguing as well, I want to visit China again!
10:41 PM
Saturday, July 4, 2009
Covet
1) A place of my own. It doesn't even have to be huge and spanking cool. A studio apartment or a small HDB flat would suffice. I just want it to be decently clean and furnished, and done up with ideas of my own. It would be lots of white and wood colours, along with coral coloured roses. I must have an oven for baking and a tea set in my new place. I would want to feel like I am living in a cottage.
I just...... have a huge need for personal space.
2) A flower shop, and it would really most probably be called Shanghai Green. As the shop name suggests, the theme of my place would be very oriental, but definitely in a very contemporary way. The business card of Shanghai Green would be a dark maroon colour and printed with very simple gold Chinese motifs.
3) A car. I have my dream cars but I would be contented with a Suzuki Swift. I would opt for a black one as black spells CHIC. But sometimes, I secretly wish I could have a pink car.
At the beginning of this summer holidays, I could not come to terms with myself that I had no job and no internship. I was desperately trying to occupy my days with things to do, swimming, reading and cooking so that my days would not be wasted. I planned my 21st birthday party, tried to organise gatherings, started new hobbies and dreamed up ideas to take up my time. I am just not the kind who can sit around doing nothing for long. I love working really, and it drives me, in a way that studying cannot. Thus, the idea of being jobless for three months made me feel that I am a sloth.
Now, more than two months have passed since my last paper. Although I still think that my summer holidays could have been filled with more purpose and events, I think I should treasure this last one and a half months of my holidays. It might very well be one of my very last few vacations as I have one whole lifetime to work after I graduate next year.
(PS: Teenagers must be the most annoying lot to ever walk on Earth.)
11:23 AM
Wednesday, July 1, 2009
Walking On A Dream
What I saw today:
1) I saw a little Malay boy from Concord Primary, sitting on the window seat of the bus alone. He was very animatedly flashing his middle finger to pedestrians on the road from the window, tongue out, and with an extremely smug look on his face. He thought no one saw him, till he saw me grinning at him from behind.
2) My Primary School friend, Eunice Teoh. She was my roomie when we went for exchange in Shanghai back in Primary School. We laughed about how we used to be afraid that the hotel toilet was haunted and accompanied each other when we showered, with the shower curtain drawn. We haven't met since Pri 6 and it was amazing how we can still chat with each other pretty comfortably.
3) I was at Palais this afternoon, window shopping obviously because I cannot afford shit there. I was admiring the display window of The Link Home, looking at fine cutlery and very exquisite porcelain crockery, with a smile on my face. Honestly, the kind of dishware they sell is like the kind that I thought would only happen in movies. I was so excited when I saw three tier tea sets! I was scrutinising a round plate when I saw the price tag. It costs $699.
What I bought today:
1) Inner beauty. One piece. Nude. My lover said, "I share a love-hate relationship with them." I somewhat agree. I feel very good buying garments for myself. But I also hate paying so much for them because it is not like anyone can see them.
2) Small paper tags from Muji, made from recycled paper. $1.17 after discount. They are for my new hobby, to tag my pretty pencils. I would probably be writing when, how, where I got the pencils or who gave them to me on these paper tags. Yes, I have decided to start collecting pretty pencils as a hobby, hence the name for this blog.
10:04 PM
