To Oh! Ten. . .

46 days! I did not even realise that's how long my last post was. . What happened in Nov? And today is already the last day of the year and the decade. Hmmmm. . . Actually life has been pretty much the same. . . Monotonous. . . repeated cycle. . . Eat, sleep, work. . . Patiently waiting for the precious miserable weekends then groaning about the next day being Monday. . .


Since it's NYE, I thought I might just scribble something here. . . Making resolutions maybe? I think I fulfilled most of my 2009 to-do list. . . More runs, more holidays. . . Met Beyonce!!!!! Ahhhh. . . Sweet Dreams for 2009. . .



Since the last posting on Eliza Bday. . . Went for another 10-15-42km run. Nike, New Balance & SCM. Honestly I did not train intensively for this year's SCM, but managed to shave 20 min off the previous 42km. Really really want that Sub-5 timing. . . So I had officially started training 3 days ago in preparation for Sundown.



After the success of Not a Lonely Xmas in 2008, the TingTing once again produced a spectacular celebration for 2009, White Xmas last week. Probably the only event in the year where every mutual friends will gather and just mingle and do some catch-up a.k.a bitching.




Work wise, I have learnt a lot, which translates to more work. I am certified Loadmaster, therefore I will be able to trim aircraft weights and prepare the loadsheet for A319 and A320. Because of this useful skill, I was given the chance to bring back our latest aircraft from Hamburg. Finally, I get to step my foot somewhere beyond Bangkok. But still love Bangkok to death! 2 holidays trip confirmed for 2010. . Bangkok in Apr and Phuket in July. . Ton rap soo Tai 2010.

My resolutions for the brand new decade?? Nothing much actually. . .
-- > Be healthy always. . . as age is working against me.
-- > To plan another Bangkok trip (or maybe 2 more)
-- > Sub-5 for 42!!!
-- > Take up diving. . .?

No bangs and boomz for me today. Will just take it slow and quiet (for now) .

Happy New Year!
Sawasdee Pee Mai!

Double Joy Weekend

What can be sweeter than celebrating Eliza's 24th?? Of course my hard earned FIRST dragonboat medal from the 5-crew race last weekend! For the past 1 year or so, it has always been plates from Minor Finals, and finally last Sunday the hard work has paid off.


It was such a humbling experience for me, given the chance to row with a bunch of "old guards" who had rowed for NUS and Kiyah Splashh during their glory days. They still had not lost their touch, which were proven with the silver medal that we clinched in the Men's Open. Even though we had to row 2 additional repercharges on the first day before reaching the semi, it gave us the chance to fine tune our techniques and seating arrangements. We reach the Men's Open final after a tight race, beating 2nd placed PLK Paddlers by a mere 0.12 seconds. The Inter Business/Clubs semi was just as competitive, and we lost to another Kiyah team by 0.22 seconds. Nevertheless, we gave it all out in the Men's Open final and redeemed ourselves with a respectable 2nd place win.



Of course another (not-so) sweet occasion that weekend was Eliza's grand 24th celebration. It was held at the same place as last year's Xmas at Bt Batok chalet, but this time it was the rugged type, with no furnitures. Not so suitable for an overnight stay, unless you don't mind roughing it out on the floor. After the 2 sets of heats and 2 sets of repercharges, I still had to do up the place with Jenn. We were done decorating the place even before Lynn could lend her hands. (Hint: She was not early as usual. . .)



The atmosphere felt like a mini Xmas celebration, competing in must-have Taboo and also crowning the best Eliza-dressed of the night. With Jenn Gaga presence, what more can you ask for your big day. . .!

My Good, Good Night. . .

Who cares whether Brawn managed to clinch the constructor championship or Hamilton won the race at Singapore F1 race. The highlight was the F1 concert at Fort Canning Park on 26th September. The night where my all time favourite girl performed in front of 9,000 screaming fans. It was a long wait but it was certainly worth it. I started queuing with Jon from 2pm onwards to grab the best spot in front of the stage. And we managed to! Right in front at the barricades.


Beyonce appeared only at midnight, but we were treated to good music by DJ Havana Brown. She was so hot. . . and the music she spinned was even hotter - hot club R&B music which got the crowds pumped up. It was like a mini Zoukout and I was already soaked wet by then.


Soon after that, it was a 15 min skit by beatboxer Killa Kella before Black Eyed Peas came on stage for the next hour or so. The ever energetic Peas got the crowds even more pumped up. They ended with their no. 1 reigning hit on the Hot 100 Billboard for 13 weeks - I Gotta Feeling, which was so grand with confetti showering the whole park. DJ Seb Fontaine then spinned electronic pop songs til midnight.





When the clock struck midnight, everyone was chanting for Beyonce to come on stage. Once the curtain was drawn, the gorgeous diva who was dressed in a gold sequins dress with a bunny ribbon at her bum appeared. . . finally. It was a starstruck moment. . . Although she was nursing a sore throat, she gave it her all with a perfect voice and routine. A true classy performer indeed. Her Halo finale tribute to the King of Pop was so haunting and I'm sure some of fans were left in tears. I was left with a hoarse voice by 2am after all that screaming and shouting. . . I guess it was my sign of love for her, together in health and sickness. . .having sore throats together. . .

Idol not-so Fever

Its here again. . . After a 3 year hiatus, the Singapore version of the most popular singing reality TV show is back. Claimed by the media as the most "talented" season ever, I almost fell off the chair. The local version pales in comparison to the American counterparts, in terms of EVERYTHING, from talent to production wise.


Huge notable difference is having the results show on the same day as the piano show. And there were only 2 piano show, where 6 contestants from each show will make up the Top 12. Its an obvious move to cut cost by compacting everything, truly Singapore "chop chop" style.


There's a significant presence of exotic Eurasians for this season. My fave will be Frances - a big girl with a big voice. Its a waste that she was voted off. Farhan Shah is on his way to become the next Taufik, but not the voice though. The males contestants so far are adopting the Kris Allen style, belting out acoustic songs. But Syltra shamed the guys totally. She did a KT Tunstall number, strumming the guitar so well with her rendition of "Black Horse & Cherry Trees." However the best performance of the night was not by any of the Idols, it was Michael Learns to Rock. I'm definitely rooting for a female idol winner this year. Its a tall order, given the votes are always for the pretty boys. All 3 voted in by viewers are, no surprise, male contestants and the other 3 females had to depend on the Judges' votes.


Anyway I am not really expecting much out of the show, just watching it to clock my TV hours. I guess everyone should know by now that the winner won't EVER make it in the English music industry. It's well proven by our previous 2 Idols, who went on to make records in their native language and make a name for themselves, not even locally but overseas. In short, the winner will make it big in Malaysia, Indonesia or Taiwan. . . but not Singapore. Sad but true. . .

Running Frenzy. .

The running spirit is still burning strong within me. Just completed my 2nd AHM last Sunday, and crossed the finishing line at 02hr 09min. . . just a few minutes shy of my sub 2hr target. There's always next year. . .

A full marathon already marked for December, and signing up for Nov's 15km New Balance Run. I will just carry on this healthy addiction to as far as my legs will bring me to.

I managed to revive the weekly running session with Jenn & Lynn. Weekly Thursday run at Bishan will begin next week!

Four months after the Passion Run, the cert is finally here. Kinda interesting, in a form of newspaper article, just that the photo is very badly taken. . .

Double "B" Whammy!

LISTEN! If you haven't already heard, my long-awaited Bootylicious Dreamgirl Beyonce (RING THE ALARM!!) will be on our sunny little island for a One Night Only concert on 26th September. Besides that, the Diva will share the stage with one of the hottest R&B group right now, Black Eyed Peas! What else could beat that? 2 hot acts for the price of 1!

They will be performing as part of F1 Rocks at Fort Canning in conjunction with the F1 Night Race in Singapore. F1 Rocks will run for 3 days from 24th Sep to 26 Sep, with different artists gracing the event. But of course 26th is the main highlight for me, and it cost $180 which is $30 more compared to the the other 2 days. But who cares. . .its B and Peas for goodness sake!

I would have not been aware of it if it wasn't for Jon and Ama, who sms-ed me early in the morning, and were as excited as me. I wasted no time in getting my ticket after gym at Bugis, to avoid the disappointment I had when tickets for Jason Mraz were sold out almost instantly. My precious ticket is now under key and lock for safekeeping. Will be having Sweet Dreams til 26th. . .

Ups and Downs

Touted to be the most exciting shopping trip ever, everyone was looking forward to this trip including myself, though I was there only 5 months ago. But when it comes to splashing your money on clothes, shoes and bags it will never ever suffice.

There were lots of highs and lows about this trip: Before, During & After! Supposedly to be 6 of us embarking on this trip but HL, Jef and Stel had to drop out due to work commitments. Jenn also almost didn't make it for this trip after cancelling it twice cos of SPF's travel restriction for staff in view of the H1N1 pandemic. Fortunately the restriction were lifted just days before 24th of July. Coincidentally Eliza and Lays booked on the same period as us on different flights.

All hell broke loose when you have 4 women coming together to wipe out the mall as much as possible. On average we spent around 6 hours per day, combing Platinum and Chatuchak. Our shopping mission was interrupted for a moment on the 3rd day in Platinum when Lays became an unfortunate pickpocket victim. Her shopping bag were cut at both sides unknowingly resulting in the loss of her wallet and handphone. It was kinda freaky cos it happened along a very short distance from the last time Lays still had her valuables with her. The thugs would have to get very close to her to make the cutting on her bag. My heart really goes out to her. . . I know how it felt like to lose your valuables. . . The unlucky incident didn't manage to dampen our spirit though. The ladies went on to add a few more shoes and dresses to their wardrobe.

We parted with Lays and Eliza at Khao San after our foot massage on the last night, and hoping to see them back in Singapore soon. But little did we know that our return flights were delayed the next day upon reaching the airport. Flights departure were pushed to 2 hrs later, so we convened again at Starbucks while waiting for departure. Weary and broke. . . I still had to drag myself to work the next morning and suffered the most severe post-holiday blues. . .