Her First Branded Bag

She came back last night with big frowns and was close to tears as she described how the strap on her Calvin Klein bag had torn. She bought the bag just a few months ago on her December Las Vegas trip. I can tell from her eyes she loved the bag very much and sense the immense sadness in her heart. Oh I can feel it too.

That night I 'whatsapp' Joey and Agnes and begged them to find if DFS carried something similar to the CK. Eventually after much discussion we set out to meet the next night to shop for a new bag for Meimei. It just so happens Meimei had to attend an office dinner the same night too. So the three of us plotted on the shopping trip secretly. Meimei tried to find out what I was up to in bed but I couldn't let the cat out of the bag could I. She was all "why is Boyboy chatting with someone? He doesn't usually go messaging anyone at night ..." Heheh.

So I picked the girls up from office the next day and off we go. We covered practically almost all the boutique in the DFS Scotts store. There were several close shaves as Joey and Agnes each were tempted by bags from Prada. After an hour and a half I finally had a short list of a classic Louis Vuitton Tote, a Burberry Bag and a Gucci treated leather bag.

I knew Meimei's dream is to get her hands on a LV bag. But I think it's a little too common plus the classic would make Meimei look 'mature'. It was still the number one choice as we browse through several other brands like Prada, Bottega, Marc Jacobs, Coach etc.

Finally as we rounded up the boutiques and were making our way back to LV, I noticed a Fendi store. Hey we've not been there let's take a look. Nah nothing much in there I thought as I began to walk out. Then suddenly Joey called out to me, 'Hey this looks like something that W would like', 'Bling bling yah just like her CK bag'. Ka-ching! Well the rest were all the modeling, comparison and 'hum and hor' as we deliberated this against the LV. But really, this looks so much better than the classic LV.

And so was to be Meimei's first Branded bag. It's very subjective as to what is branded. Any bag with a brand name is branded yah? But well, this is to be her first 'LV category' branded bag. I can still remember her grin when I presented it to her and her words 'I thought you said you will never ever buy a branded bag because you know the cost?' Yes yes, I said that, but I didn't bank on my heart being melted by puppy eyes. *kiss I did it for love.

Pong! Pong! Hu!

Over the past few months I've been addicted to a game. It's not a passing infatuation like the Tower Defense or Pet growing games. I did play FF3 for a while on the Ipad but stop when I completed the game.

The one game that has me hooked all this while is a iPhone Mahjong Game - 麻将天下. You won't find this in most Apple Stores, I think it's only available in the Hong Kong one. It's quite basic without all the fanfare graphics and distractions and solely focuses your attention to the game. As with the mahjong game itself, you can play it over and over again without ever being bored of it.

So, I've been playing Mahjong whenever I'm bored or waiting, say for food at a restaurant. I even play it when I'm in the potty since the iPhone has now replaced newspapers and magazines as the 'to-bring' item. Hey, I choose between reading the news over the phone or play games on it can't I.

So well, being the cheapskate that I am, I don't really like to gamble on the real game, I'm glad Meimei downloaded this on my phone. Now the challenge is to win on those big big combinations, which would never happen in my lifetime if it were the real thing.

The Mentalist

We love this TV series. Meimei is in love with Patrick Jane, the lead character in the The Mentalist series. The quirky and suave way he goes about solving crimes is so interesting and different from the other crimes series. We are into the 4th season now and hoping for many more to come.

If you haven't seen this series before, you are truly missing out on one of the best. Be sure to start from the first as the storyline plays from season to season.

NS Charge

I didn't take my IPPT last year, so I'm charged again for failing to perform my civic duty as a member of the Singapore Armed Forces. This is the 2nd time I'm being called to attend a 'hearing'. Hey, hello ... do you think we have time to be doing all this. 

We have to compete in the workforce with so many other 'Foreign Talent' (or Foreign Trash) who do not have to spend time off work to waste their time in Reservist. The rich folks can spend a couple thousands and obtain medical certificates excusing them for anything from grass, physical perspiration to the freaking sun. The rest of us have to spend 3 weeks a year rotting in a desolated camp while feeding the entire mosquito population in the forest.

So yah, sometimes we just don't have the time to go physical training and pass the IPPT. I've never passed it outside of the 2 and half years in full time National Service. And now that my unit is standing down and I'm been send to a Brigade Unit, it looks like I'm gonna have to come time and again to answer charges, up till 40. Whatever, here's $50. And get off my back, I have work and contribute to the Singapore economy.

Jakarta 2012 - 20th to 24th Jan

Almost every company were giving their staff half day on Friday as the first day of CNY was on a Monday. We flew into Jakarta on a 8pm flight. We had a quick A&W dinner and Papa came to pick us up at the airport. CNY is not an official holiday in Indonesia so Papa had to work. He left us the car and driver so we could go around the malls. So we spend the next few days going around Jakarta in its eternal jams and horrid highways to have our meals. There were of course several highlights.

21st Jan - Lunch was at the big prawn place again. The prawns have strung, most probably due to over harvesting. Dinner's at 4th Uncle's Japanese restaurant, it's a yearly tradition. It's my first though and the dinner is really good.

22nd Jan - We are at 1st Uncle's home for dinner tonight. Mama had a hand in the cooking, so that guaranteed top quality dishes. I've always joked that Mama could open her own restaurant with her skills and recipes.

23rd Jan - We are at 4th Uncle's home today. It's a huge bungalow, complete with it's own garage, mailrooms, swimming pool etc. It really is a beautiful house. Meimei had a great time with playing with their 2 dogs.

Going back on 24th. I really liked coming to Jakarta for CNY. I can't say I would like to do this every year. I would like to go visit relatives with Dad and Mum too. I suppose we have to make the alternative year arrangement work. :-)

Early CNY Dinner 2012

I had this agreement with Meimei that we will try to alternate our CNY celebration between Singapore and Jakarta. So last year we spent the first day of CNY visiting relatives and then flew to Jakarta after. This year we are skipping CNY in Singapore and going to Jakarta instead. So we decided to have an early CNY dinner with Dad, Mum, Bro and Sis-In-Law at our place. 

Thankfully Dad and Mum were ok with the idea. We were afraid one of them would be unhappy about it. If they did, they didn't show it. So we had them over for a steamboat lunch. I specially peeled the shell off the prawns as Dad isn't the type to do it himself. I wonder what the arrangement would be like next year.

2012 Meimei's Birthday Gift

Ok first, I admit, I'm cheap. Well to a certain extent, and in my defense I'm still a whole lot better than other guys. I bought a garnet pendant for Meimei as a Christmas cum Bday gift. It never is good to combine gifts together but well at least I got her something.

Now garnet isn't a bright rock, it's the dullest of stones I've seen. Even coupled with other metals like silver or gold, it is still lackluster. I couldn't find many jewelry with garnets. Some shops don't even carry them. I managed to find one which looked reasonably good.

Meimei was happy she got a gift this year haha she's always one for gifts and surprises, and rightly so *kiss. But even the element of thoughtfulness on my part couldn't drain away the muted attraction of a garnet. So we went to exchange it for something else. That's perfectly ok, anything for Meimei. She found this nice band with 3 little diamonds. This is better for everyday wear compared to Blinky. I'm very glad she is willing to sound it out rather than keep quiet and stash the pendant away, never to see the light of day again. I can see my 'gift' on her fingers and feel good that I 'bought' it for her ... hehehheeh I'm still gonna claim credit!

Christmas 2011

Nua group is here at our place for Christmas celebration! We like entertaining at home. It's so much more comfortable and enjoyable to have parties at home. As usual we are doing our steamboat. I never used to have steamboat just cause Dad and Mum were not steamboat people. So it was only after I have my own place with Meimei that we started to have frequent steamboats at home.

I like how we can indulge on ingredients which were a little more expensive but a whole lot tastier than the things they serve out in the restaurants or steamboat-ish outlets. Our favourites have to the pork belly slices and japanese crabstick from Cold Storage. Those with Meimei's 'secret' sauce and wala! the perfect meal. Oh don't forget the fragrant rice from our Zojirushi rice cooker. The highlight of the meal was the Dark Chocolate Macaroon Christmas Tree from Bakerzin. It looks so good we didn't bear to tear the pieces off!


All in all nothing beats having friends over for a good meal, chatting, games, fun and laughter. That's what the festive season is about. 

*Hic, Drunk at Work

I've been only at this place for about close to 3 months. They are a marketing unit for a 'multinational' liquor company. The word multinational has been overused as usual ... just because you have a corporate office in US doesn't make you a MNC. This place is simply a SME local singapore company. The way it does things, the culture, the people, the processes, all of it points to a small local outfit. 

It doesn't work for me. Alarm bells should have sounded when my Director is also in the role for 2 months before I joined. It wouldn't have been bad if he wasn't so impatient and had been accommodating with the information he wanted. He expects that I would have every info at the tip of my fingers. Hey ... you know fully what the problem is with this place. There is high attrition, record keeping is wanting, the business is highly leveraged on external bank loans, going-concern is questionable, etc. A whole suite of issues and you expect me to have empirical data references for your forecasting and reporting needs immediately the day I join. He is the first male boss I've worked with and I suppose it is a simple case of a clash of egos.

The first task when I joined what to deal with a FCPA audit from Corporate. The marketing and sales folks have been spending indiscriminately, bringing dealers and clients to KTV lounges. And every entertainment session runs into the tens of thousands. Why? Because they bring hostess out for supper and extra activities as well. And these lounges know to build the prices into the official receipts so their customers can claim for these. Seriously ... can't you tell why you are not making a profit? Hello? Are you blind? No amount of cost savings, identification of sales drivers, etc is going to save the company if you do not control your spending. But who is going to tell the Managing Director that he can no longer spend extravagantly? Time for you to face the music from Corporate.

Many of the staff have been here for ages and they don't seem to be the least bit concerned with the profitability of the company. They seem to be more concerned with lining their pockets. That's what you get when half your staff are the Ah Beng Ah Lian sorts and the other half are the 打死不走 type who have been in the company for 20-30 years.

The only interesting part of the job was the induction course where you are required to drink. Yes, you have to drink on the job ... It's a compulsory session. They try to introduce all staff to the products they sell. I must say it's a good way for the non-sales staff to get a feel of the products they see as numbers and codes. Imagine downing several pints of whisky, vodka, tequilas ... everyone was tipsy after it. :-) license to drink at work ... This is a first for me.

A Student Again

The last time I studied was back in early 2000. I told myself then to quickly finish and be done with studying, I never want to hit the books again. So it came as a contradiction that I've signed up for a MBA course. This is going to take at least 3 years to complete. Was it ambition or career progression that I'm putting myself through it again? I guess to a certain extent I hope this would open up greater opportunities for me. And this may be an avenue to move away from technical accounting. You see, accounting can be boring. It is repetitive, post-action, operational, mundane work. You can argue that finance portion of the roles are interesting, they are business partnering and contribute to the growth of business. But still, you are not really into the action, just providing empirical evidence of happenings and trends from the numbers you analyse.

So I'm taking a MBA to explore the opportunities. It may or may not allow me to branch out to my interest like project management. But I guess it is a good way to keep up with my peers who are also constantly upgrading themselves. It's part of the government's drive to improve the skill sets of Singaporeans. The only drawback is the cost, thankfully my last job paid well. I saved most of the bonuses for this. Hopefully I can earn enough eventually to let Meimei be a Tai-tai.

Sadly this means less holidays with Meimei since I don't have spare cash to spend. *kiss thank you for being so patient and understanding. We'll go for our honeymoon some day, I promise!

2011 Anniversary - Stay-In At Mandarin Oriental

Well I had a 'brilliant' idea to relive our wedding day by booking a night's stay at the Mandarin Oriental. So I contacted Eve, our co-ordinator for our wedding, and managed to get a sweet deal on a room.

But I seem to forget the silliest of things ... I left my bedtime clothes at home and didn't have anything to wear. So I had to go with the bathrobe the whole night. And somehow I managed to fall sick and run a fever ... Haiz ... what was meant to be an exciting night-out with Meimei as we tour the Marina Bay area turned into a quiet room service dinner and TV.

Sorry Meimei, I wished it was a romantic day to mark our 2nd Anniversary. I should pump up early on vitamins the next we get to a stay-cation holiday. *kiss.

Crabs Galore at Mellben Seafood

We are at Mellben Seafood today with Nua group. I used to be allergic to seafood, especially crabs. So I'm making up for it now by eating more!

The crab bee hoon is fabulous and many think the same, judging by the long queues. We had to be there before six to guarantee a seat. Any later and the crowds pile up and the wait stretches between one to two hours.

We ordered several crabs and other dishes like the Kang Kong and meats. I'll let the pictures do the talking hehe

Bali Trip 2011 - 19th to 22nd May

Meimei suggested we go Bali for a holiday this year. She was here previously for a cousin's wedding but didn't really get to tour the place. I'm in job transition again and so could fully enjoy the holiday.

Meimei's Aunt had some vouchers of sorts and so we had a room at a luxurious hotel. But before that we stayed a night at the popular Kuta area. It is just by the beach so you'll find a lot of 3 star hotels, eateries and pubs catering to the mostly Oceanic tourist here for the sun and surfing. We went around the area, mostly walking from shop to shop to check out the goods. It's basically pretty much a tourist trap. Dinner was good though, authentic Indonesia fare plus Pork. Interestingly although Bali is part of Indonesia, one of the world most populous Muslim country, the majority of folks here in Bali are not Muslims. Pork is freely sold and consumed in the restaurants.

As we moved north towards the Ubud area, we spotted many padi fields. These are always a comfortable sight. It exudes simplicity and calmness. A marked difference from the hurried city life of Singapore.

I caught my first real sunset at Tanah Lot Temple. It was a real beauty. As the sun sets, the ray hit the horizon and blasts the entire area in bright glowing orange. I know now what a real sunset is like.

A special mention goes to this restaurant which serves a mean barbecued ribs. We went there several times to savour the juicy ribs. It's a very popular eatery in Ubud and you have to be there early to get a table. Customers typically stay the whole night, drinking and dining the night away. So if you don't get a seat you are out of luck.

Overall it was simply wonderful to spend time alone with Meimei. Meimei calls this trip our Honey(Days), as a punt to a Honeymoon. We have yet to go on a real Honeymoon. Hopefully we'll find time to go on more holidays together.

Haa~To! Now Say It With Me, Haa~To!

To-date, our favourite Gelato ice-cream. Not too sweet, not too creamy, just the right combination of cream to ice. It gears more towards a sorbet but still retaining the creamy essence of an ice-cream. We were first introduced to it by LaoDa. It's main outlet is surprisingly nested in a retail outlet within a condominium compound along Ulu Pandan road. It's not easy to get to and is on the other side of the island from home. But we try to stop by every time we are back at Dad & Mum's place.

I really wonder why there aren't more outlets serving Haato. Then again it won't be a good find if it's in every shopping mall now would it. I guess it's that one 'special' ice cream that both Meimei and I both covet and enjoy. So step aside Ben & Jerrys, Haagen Dazs, Swensen etc, this baby outshines you by ten to one!

The Stinky Lion Experience

The award winning theatrical show 'The Lion King' is in Singapore! Meimei and I went with a group of her JC friends. And boy was it good. All the costume and props really made it exciting and captivating. The music and singing just draws you in. I can now see what the hype is all about.


The only thing that soured the experience was the walk to the theater ... I wanted to drive initially but lo and behold, J suggested that we car pool to save on parking. I was totally rejecting the idea the moment I heard it but oh well I don't see anyone else voicing any concerns so I kept quiet. They are after all Meimei's friends and I wouldn't want to be the inflexible husband.


As it turns out, J decided to cheap it out further by parking at Marina Square and so we had to walk the bridge to Marina Bay. Come'on! It was meant to be a classy night out, in nice long dresses and heels, getting there comfortably with time to spare to check out the merchandise and chitchat. But, nooooo, we had to take a 15 minute walk to get there. And when we did get there we were all perspiring and thirsty without time to grab a drink before the show starts.


So when it came to go home, I insisted to take the cab. I can sense Meimei was hurting at the ankles and nothing J said was gonna sway me. I gave him a dirty look when I told him I'm definitely not walking back. Phhhhfffff. I was bitching about it the entire trip home.  


If you can afford a car, what's a few extra bucks for parking ... Yes parking at Marina Bay is horrid - $25?, but I'm willing to pay that for the convenience and comfort. Never again.