Quickie

*yawn* quick post before heading to bed with a book. Let's play a guessing game.

I was in Forever New with the boy (believe it or not the bf is my unofficial fashion stylist lol. He approves or rejects what I wear, and I do ask for his opinion a lot) trawling through clothes when we chanced upon a skirt with a floral print and a bow tied around the waistband. He looked at me and said, 'This looks like something xx would wear.' I was surprised, I know I shouldn't be but I always am when he takes notice to what someone wears.

Sitting next to it was a white cardi with flowers on the neckline. Again he said, 'This looks like what  xx would wear too!'

Then we put the cardi on the skirt and said, 'This is the total outfit she would put together and wear!' Oh snap, we were totally thinking the same thing at the same time hehe. 

Can you guess who it is? She's a character from a TV show....

It's Rose from Two and a Half Men!!! :D

Birthday photostory...

The apartment smells BEAUTIFUL- thanks to the lilies given to me by my manager. She even went through the trouble to decorate my desk with balloons and ribbons!

I'm not big on celebrations- so like last year *Montalto*Botanical*Press Club*, I kick-started my birthday a lil bit earlier. The night before my birthday, the boy and I made an impromptu decision to pay Izakaya Den in the CBD a visit. On the actual day itself, I took the day off work since I have an unofficial 'no-working-on-birthdays' policy and spent it doing whatever I felt like! Days with no plans and time constraints are the best. I <3 it!  Short post for now- reviews on Izakaya Den and Cafe Gaia to come in the next couple of days :)

Paid the newly refurbished Myer a visit- came away with two pairs of Leona Edmiston Luxury Opaques. Nothing, I repeat, nothing can top these. They are the best (imho) :D Stocking (no pun intended, hee hee) up for winter and nothing wrong with keeping a spare pair for the confused a.k.a chilly summer days Melbourne seems to be experiencing so far.

Bally surprised me with a handwritten birthday card! Who does this anymore? It entitles me to 10% off full price items for the month of January. I don't see myself using it- any takers?

Cupcakes from the heart, for the soul. Most delicious cupcakes in town- you have to try them!

Every girl needs a large cocktail ring. And pastel purple tips- gorgeous colour!

My shoes arrived two days ago- great timing, right? They are a half-size too large but nothing insoles and heel grips can't easily fix! Call me crazy, but the colour is hard to come by....I'm not willing to wait forever for them to pop up in my size!

Izakaya Den

Cafe Gaia

Till next time, xoxo!

Fill me up

The past week or so the fuel tank had been near empty many times. The light would blink slowly, and then quickly and then slowly again when he topped it up with $5 bucks worth of petrol. The reason? Fuel was more expensive than usual! So today was the cheapest we'd seen it all week and we went in to fill the tank.

Result? HAHAHAHAH- the tank is still not full!

He got in the car and literally went, 'Ehhhhhhhhhhh, why not full tank!' Hee hee hee, what a noob.

Summer berries

The last time I had superdupersweet strawberries were 5 years ago (yes, it could have been that long!!) when I went strawberry picking with my family at Sunny Ridge Strawberry farm- and my mom lost her sunnies in the midst of picking but that can be a story for another day haha,  so I was really happy my visit to Queen Victoria Market on the weekend ended up being fruitful- har har. Pardon the pun :D I got 3 punnets for only $4! 

I love that summer is when my favourite fruits come into season- white fleshed nectarines, strawberries, persimmons, fresh figs, oh yum! I also went apple and peach/nectarine picking last year at the farms in February and they were very, very sweet as well. I've never been able to buy fruits from the markets or supermarkets that were that delicious ever since tasting the freshness and juiciness of fruits coming straight from the farms. I can't wait for the little weekend excursion to QVM to see what fruits I can add to the menu for next week!

Only in KL...

If I didn't do this now I'd never do it in the next week, so here goes- my trip back to KL in pictures! :D Everyone loves pictures, right?

Roast chicken rice- delish!

'Lui cha'- the best vegetarian dish ever

Snowflake (fine, this is Taiwanese but mmm 'gui ling gao'...

But really, nothing to shout about...they almost always use the same ingredients in every combination

The best 'rojak' in SS15....been around for years and there's always a queue...

Proof.

Nothing in Melbourne can ever compare to the 'mee hoon ker' I had...

Carebear came with me... and she says hi

Aloe vera plant- thriving in my grandparents' garden. If only I had one here too, it's great for soothing sunburns, itchiness...and tastes delicious when boiled with rock sugar and red dates, or eaten raw with honey. 

Potted plants galore- how does her garden grow so green?

Home of caterpillars. When I was young we used to torture caterpillars. Bad, I know.

Mangoes everywhere!

Even high up in the air...These are for the squirrels, my grandmother says.

 

And then we have these- unique to the Chinese culture.

Wok.

What would you call this (no, not the stool)?

 Nothing. Can. Beat.

My. Grandmother's. 

Home-cooked. Food :)

The end to another year gone by....

Hi everyone, Christmas has really snuck up on us, hasn't it? Feels like I was just celebrating Christmas last year with my family in Melbourne, eating a delicious roast turkey prepared by mom and opening presents gifted by the boy :)

This year I only decided 3 days ago to head home for Christmas to celebrate the holiday with family and I'm off tonight! Can't wait :D . And since I made such an impromptu decision, I spent today hunting down presents and wrapping all of them up. Ok, one was bought a month ago and I was eye-ing a couple yesterday, but I can't believe I managed such a monumental effort in such a short time!

I just wanted to take this opportunity to wish everyone a Merry Christmas, enjoy the New Year celebrations, be safe on the roads when travelling (drinking and driving is a big NO-NO, in fact it's downright stupid) and I'll see you again next year!

Keeping to promises

Oh HI, it's been a while (I've lost count of how many times my posts contain 'it's been a while') so let's move on from that, shall we? :D Skip the unimportant stuff I say!

Remember how I promised a few posts back that I'd post up pictures of some of my online purchases? Well I received ONE package so far so I'll treat your eyes to some pretty dresses! All pictures from ASOS of course, no way did I morph into a leggy brunette overnight. 

How gorgeous is this? Look at the beautiful pleats and the rich navy colour! Absolute <3 It is a nightmare getting this dress on and off though, I feel like there's no easy way but to constantly wiggle for 10 minutes to put it on/ take it off. At least I burn some calories doing that. Why don't they make a size 7? A 6 in this is a teeny bit small for me, but an 8 would be too big. :\

This dress has a whimsical peter pan collar, tutu underlay and scalloped lace hem. Could it get anymore perfect? Yes- the back is awesome too! Highly pixelated pic but you get the idea.

And for work I thought this would be perfect....

Sure it looks short, but since the model is Amazonian and I'm on the other end of the spectrum, fingers crossed it'll be a-OK for work. I haven't received this yet because this was delivery #2 which consisted of 2 packages, and guess what? They delivered only one package, so they'll re-deliver the second package tomorrow. Argh *refer below for story*. 

Now let me tell you a story. I only started work in the last week of September and on the FIRST day of work, I got my Louboutin babies delivered. To work. Cos someone had to sign for it and no one would be home during working hours. Which I then showed my manager. To which she later asked, 'How in the world are you going to walk in them?' So first impression I reckon I made was- 'this girl likes to shop'.

And I'm always heading out to the post office to post stuff/ collect packages so I more often than not have a carry bag containing a package. I'm trying to limit the deliveries made by the postie or courier so I re-route them to my residential address and get the boy to fetch them from the post office since it's a 5 min drive and he gets home before they close. But as luck would have it, they upgraded my package to courier/express delivery so someone has to sign for it. So how now brown cow? Only option was to get it delivered to work. And what do they do? Stuff up and deliver one today, and another tomorrow! I have to figure out a way to sneak the package to my desk without anyone noticing *thinks ninja thoughts. It has come to a point where my colleague has called me over to her desk to look at shopping emails and discounts thinking I'd be interested...cos that's all I do, rriiight?

Oh and I also bought a mouse ring because it looked cute!

When I get to work I can introduce him to my computer mouse. 'Mickey, meet Minnie'! HAHA. Now, excuse me while I pick myself up from laughing so much till I accidentally rolled onto the floor.

A bone to pick

Sorry for the lack of pictures lately, maybe when my packages arrive I'll post up my shopping buys <3. In the meantime however, I blame the HOT weather for turning me into one giant ball of moodiness. I was just chatting to the bestie earlier and we started talking about holidays (yes, she goes on like 5 a year- well at least that's what it feels like to me!), and of course Air Asia and Tiger Airways naturally popped up in the convo. 

And it made me realise I've never ever talked about my dissatisfaction with Tiger. They really suck- yes, very mature of me to use such an elementary expression. But really, I have nothing complimentary to say about them. Let's play a word association game now. When I say Tiger, tell me the first thing that pops into your head. 

Tiger.

ALWAYS DELAYED @#$%^& . That's two words + cursing, but who's counting?

I have been scarred from my previous experiences and I can safely say never again will I even think about flying with them. I don't care if prices are ridiculously cheap, they are cheap for a reason and it's always not worth the low prices.

Take my recent trip to KL, where the family and I were due to fly Tiger from KL-Singapore. Flight was at 12pm so we were at the airport by 11am to check in. What do we see when we arrive at the check-in counter? Confused looks on passengers' faces and a sign on the check-in counter notifying us that our 12pm flight had been delayed to 4pm! Cue another round of cursing. It still makes my blood boil to this very day. Imagine having to wait almost 5 hours at LCCT- an airport where there's NOTHING you can do. 

Why did they delay the flight? Who knows, we weren't even told. We didn't even receive an apology when we checked in for the 4pm flight. Of course, everyone's guessed that it was because the 12pm flight was empty and it wasn't economical to go ahead and depart when you can cram everyone onto the later flight and decrease operating costs that way. 

Seriously, Tiger is rubbish. 

The other time was when I had to fly from KL-SIN to catch a flight from SIN-MEL. It was my first time flying Tiger and looking back now, I shouldn't have been surprised it was delayed too. Imagine if it was delayed for 5 hrs and I missed my flight from SIN-MEL and had to figure out some other way to get back to Melbourne. 

Not happy, Tiger. I whole heartedly agree with the Air Asia ads. If you were meant to fly, you'd be born with wings.

...(speechless)...

I.Have.6. Packages.Coming.In.The.Mail. O.M.G. (plus one shipped to KL). GULP. 

*at least I'll get some credit card points? *consoles self.

OK, so...

...lately when I'm out (or online) shopping I've developed this habit of checking the inside label or description of each garment to see what material they're made out of. 90% of the time it's polyester, acrylic, viscose, something that probably starts melting when worn more than 10 times etcetc. I never used to care but I'm starting to realise I prefer clothing made out of natural fabrics...and it's so difficult to find these! Where are all the 100% silk, leather or cotton clothes? Where are they hiding. Not that I'd ever wear a leather dress. 

And it's disappointing to see that even the more expensive clothing brands for example, Sretsis also use a lot of man-made materials. Would you fork out $600 bucks for a polyester dress? That makes me think twice. I guess it's good in a way because it's curbing my horrible shopping habit. Seriously, I don't really need a wardrobe half-full of disposable fashion! Skin should be able to breathe naturally, so my quest going forward I guess is to be able to slowly change the contents of my wardrobe. Really liking the sound of cotton clothing already, so comfy!

Reminisce

I woke up this morning to the sound of rain pouring down, and turning all the buildings around mine a darker shade of cement gray. I went to my balcony door and looked at the view. I was transported back 5-8 years ago, when it would always rain during my Semester 2 exam periods and it reminded me of how things have changed since. I was still financially dependent on my parents then, anything I bought I dipped into their allowance for me and always had to think twice about getting something....or came from my stash of savings from receiving angpows during Chinese New Year. All I had to worry about was when my holidays were, and how to do well in the mid-sem test, the next assignment, the next presentation...to try to score High Distinctions for my final exam papers....putting a lot of pressure on myself to excel. Uni was fun- but it was always more work than play for me. After all, my parents had invested a lot of money, time and effort to put me through Uni and that's no easy feat. I don't know if I'll ever be able to afford raising a kid (so expensive!), so I've resorted to raising Care Bears hahahaha. 

The sight, smell and sound of rain this morning awoken this distinct memory in me and I can even remember how before each exam I would stop studying a day before and just relax, taking it easy and trying not to stress (not easy!). I would always rug up in the same winter jacket for my exams- with pockets for my phone and my keys. I never brought a bag to the exam hall, but I think it helped that I used to stay right opposite my examination place. I was always a light traveller ;) I would check that I had my favourite pencils and pens, my whiteout, my metal ruler, my eraser that's been in my possesion for a couple of years. I'm like that- I never change my things if they are still working fine, that way I don't amass massive amounts of junk, or have 2-3 of the same thing. I would be very calm as I bumped into friends outside the examination  hall, with many of them freaking out even before stepping foot into the building.

I remember the feeling of taking my seat, and looking around me- hoping I didn't sit next to people who were fidgety or smelled bad hahaha. Unfortunately, having been through 6 crucial exam periods, I couldn't avoid weirdos who happened to sit around me. I remember being told not to flip open the exam paper until we were told to do so, and not to start until reading time was up. I remember going on auto-pilot and regurgitating everything I'd study....but it wasn't as straightforward as that. We needed to really think. It was about application of what we'd learnt. I remember the feeling of freedom, of liberation when the exam was over, and when we were told to 'stop writing'. The unofficial sign that exam had ended. I remember waiting impatiently as invigilators went around collecting papers. Hurry up, I would be thinking. I want to get out of here and smell the fresh air. The smell of being free from the shackles of formal education. I had a plane to catch, My holiday starts soon! Hurry, walk a little quicker. I remember rushing through the heavy double doors of the examination hall, glad to be out and not having to rummage in storage for my bag I never brought. Glad to be home, to start thinking about going to the airport to begin my 1 or 3-month holiday. Life as a student- was a breeze, relatively speaking of course, when compared to life to come!

Swoosh

The weekend came and went in the blink of an eye! Stay tuned- two (and a half) new posts coming up next week! 

Melb Cup Google

How cool is Google today? It's even got on the bandhorsewagon (teehee!) and when I hover my mouse over the picture the caption reads 'The race that stops the nation.' Pic courtesy of Google (obviously).

Hello all!

Just a quick note to say I'm still alive and well- although I've succumbed to a cold. I always seem to be getting sick when the weather changes :( Work has picked up this week so I'm getting a little busy but I should be back soon! BRB!

I want to getaway on a holiday- thinking tropical places like Hawaii or Bali..... think beach, think sun, think tan, think splashing around in water, think running around in a bikini yay so fun! Only thing is, I'll be busy right up till end of March. Maybe Easter Break? But that's so long away urgh. Omgosh that's like 6 more months 0_0.

Parity baby!

The AUD has finally done it. After months of speculation, an interesting/ intense week of watching forex and differing opinions between analysts etc, we have finally hit parity. How awesome is that? :D The last time the dollar matched the greenback dollar for dollar was in 1982 so it's been a few (long) years coming now. Ok, maybe closer to decades...

It was trading as high as $1.0006 before midnight but has since fallen back to below $1. Still great cause for celebration- people will finally get to pop the champagne they've been talking about. Parity parties everywhere- wheee!

Leaving on a jet plane...

Only difference is, I know when I'll be back again! Never thought I'd be affected by jetlag but I think it's a combination of the time difference and daylight savings time in Melbourne that's making me feel so tired. Coming back to KL for a short visit doesn't feel like I'm on holidays at all- I feel like I'm just alternating between my 'normal home' and a 'holiday home' lol. 

I always, always, ALWAYS have reverse culture shock when I return- only for a couple of hours before I get used to the way things are in Malaysia. One example would be where people queue up to board the plane before an announcement is even made. I mean, wtf? Surely you'll get to board the plane since you already paid for your ticket. Another was when I was waiting to get my luggage from the carousel, people were just crowding in and enclosing me into a small space with their trolleys. So what do I do after I get my luggage? Hop over your trolleys? It doesn't take two brains to figure out that leaving some space won't kill you, your luggage isn't gonna grow legs and walk off somewhere else. Urgh. 

OK- enough ranting. On a brighter note, I'm heading off to Singapore tomorrow! That'll be fun...I always love visiting Singapore. And the AUD is SO STRONG right now, I really hope it reaches parity soon! Can you imagine the things I can buy? Hehehe. Although I've only been working for a week and I've already spent my month's pay. Oops. We shall just ignore that small little detail ok?

I like that I have pay TV here and I always have CNBC on in the mornings. Is that a geeky admission? Then in the arvos I switch the channels to MTV and E! Can't get enough of celebrity gossip and reality TV. 

I haven't set my watch and phone to KL time yet so when I woke up at 8am this morning I really thought it was 8am in KL. It was actually only 5am in KL. -_-  If this continues for the next few days I'm gonna have really early mornings and be asleep by 9pm every night. How fun! Not. Although it'll be good for when I return to Melbourne though, since I won't be experiencing any time difference of any sort. Right? I can just picture myself being so tired in the first week of work when I return. Gulp.

I could so..

...fall asleep right now! In fact, I've felt like falling asleep every 2 minutes today this week. I guess now I know what it really feels like to be a walking zombie. So tired from having to wake up on time (like normal people do everyday), and not being able to sleep at night. :\

As we age..

Maybe it's true what they say. That as we age, things start changing....I, for one, have come to realise that drinking anything with even the tiniest amount of caffeine (yes, green tea I'm looking at you) makes me stay up past midnight.

Sleep eludes me once again when I so yearn for it. I have an early day tomorrow! :(

Domestic Goddess

I've recently gone from working full-time (and more) to sewing buttons onto the bf's shirts and ironing his work shirts. Hmm. Something's not right here!

I've also been cooking much more lately...I made Hainanese Chicken Rice, Bak Kut Teh and Butter Chicken  (with some help from our instant friends, of course :D ) and been baking muffins. I made a batch of yummy raspberry and white chocolate muffins the other day, only to realise when I was mixing in the pack of frozen fruits that I bought blackberries, blueberries and strawberries. Clearly, I left out the crucial ingredient and happily left the supermarket thinking I'd bought everything I needed. So today was round 2! I made a new batch of raspberry and dark chocolate muffins this time, with a little bit of leftover white chocolate from the other day's baking efforts.

Mmmm....gooey chocolate in the middle.

Hmmph. The bf just came into my room, stole a peek at my computer screen and said, 'Soooooo you did a bit of work and want to show off?' He's just gone off to bed, gone to play Doodle Jump -_- ..Ok, now he's finished and he's mimicking me writing this post ,'I sew, I bake, I cook...hrmm what else..' Grr....if you're reading this now hun, iron your own shirts from now on :P and I think Hungry Jacks does a mean takeaway so you're all sorted for dinner. Hee hee. *smug smile

I've made a reservation at Cutler & Co  this Sunday and I can't wait! It was awarded 2 hats by the Age Good Food Guide 2011 so I expect a good dining experience. Watch this space.

Off to bed now, it's a Monday tomorrow. Sucks being Monday huh? Everyone just hates you. Gnites!

BRB....

taking a breather from updates....

......work will be a killer this week.