footsteps.

do not make the same mistake as me. horse-riding, is hard. VERY hard.

but i must say, this 3rd lesson went quite alright. no big problems mounting and dismounting (trackpants are definitely easier) and weaving the horse through the cones went surprisingly well. i got the same horse instructor as last week ("oh no, not again" went through my head when i saw him -_-), but i stood beside zhu and got quite a lot of help from her instructor instead.

the biggest problem this lesson, was trotting. i definitely had trouble getting the horse to trot, even after using the whip. i blame my soft-heartedness. and then after the horse started trotting, i had trouble keeping balance. and standing. you see, you had to follow the horse's trot rhythm and stand up. i couldn't figure out when to stand since i was already bouncing up and down. -_-'''

and i think i embarrassed myself again when mike told us to bend down and touch the cones on the floor. it was like, 2 metres away and even with mike holding on my leg the other side, i still couldn't reach the cone. he kept telling me to try and i was like, try your head i'm gonna fall off liao! i was practically horizontal to the ground already, and in the midst of it, i let out a scream. FML i seriously think mike hates me. although i firmly believe none of us managed since it was honestly physically impossible. unless you're spiderman. tsk.

i wonder what we're gonna do for the next four lessons, if we're up to trotting already. i really hope not jumping, cos i will surely fall off the horse. >_<

 

[sponsored review] hadanomy aquaplacenta mist

sana has launched a new range of hydrating skincare products from hadanomy - the aquaplacenta (blue) series, and i was lucky to get a bottle for review. i had asked for (and got) the mist as it seems cooler and more refreshing as compared to lotions or creams. it's also easier to apply (cos i'm lazy lol).

apparently, this is a new formala revised from their previous range of hadanomy collagen (pink) series. in case you don't know, collagen is a type of protein that connects and supports body tissues such as skin, bones, and muscles. it works hand-in-hand with keratin to provide the skin with strength, flexiblility and resilience. which is why it's such an importance substance to fight visible effects of aging!

hadanomy has:
♥ 1000mg of micro collagen
♥ 3 kinds of moisturizing ingredients - hyaluronic acid, acerola extract, and honey which provides a moisturizing effect without feeling too sticky
♥ no colorant
♥ no mineral oil
♥ been patch-tested / non-comedogenic-tested
♥ a subtle natural aroma fragrance
♥ THREE kinds of collagen!!
   - shield collagen, to help firm skin with moisture
   - micro collagen, to help fully firm and plump skin
   - nano collagen, to help blend smoothly with deep penetration of collagen

and in this revised series, they have added a new ingredient - aquaplacenta! i'm sure everyone's heard of placenta, the most common being sheep/lamb placenta. sounds a bit er xin, but it is typically believed to reduce appearance of wrinkles, hydrate skin, reduce skin sagging, reduce appearance of freckles and blemishes, as well as regulate the amount of oil produced. so many benefits!

i'm pescetarian (not that it matters), and as the name suggests, aqua means it comes from marine (a.k.a seafood lol) instead of mammals. how fitting! ^^

aquaplacenta is extracted from the hokkaido salmon's ovary. it is safer as fishes are less prone to plagues and are not injected with drugs such as antibiotics. fish scale-origin collagen is also less polluted by toxic substances and more easily absorbed into the body. besides reinforcing the above placenta benefits, aquaplacenta also helps to treat and heal damaged skin!

the mist! (i believe it retails for $22.90.)

i tried it for a week, spraying it morning and night as the first step of skincare. actually debated whether to try it or not, as i had returned to seeing my skin doctor for treatment recently. but i'm glad i did.
 
♥ first (and most obvious) thing i noticed was the fragrance. it smells so nice, somewhere along the lines of sweet and fruity. a little bit like lychee actually. too bad it doesn't last lols.
♥ i noticed (right from the second use) that my subsequent toner and medicated gel seem to get absorbed faster and better. makeup glides and stays on better too.
♥ skin is more moisturized and slightly less oily. i think.
♥ i still get new pimples, but i don't think the purpose of the mist is to treat pimples so i guess that's fine. but hopefully after prolonged use, it can help to lighten the leftover scars.
♥ nice and refreshing to cool my skin after a hot bath or wake me up in the morning.

can't wait to see its long term effects! :D

questioning my sanity.

i realize i never complained much about GBA as compared to RT. and i think i know why.

lesson number two.

my second riding lesson was horrifyingly embarrassing. >.<

step 1, mount the horse. we had a short briefing where a video was shown. what the video showed - place foot on stirrup, pull yourself up, and gently sit on the saddle. what i did - struggle to reach the stirrup (i blame the restrictive material of my jeans), pull/climb/hoist/drag myself up the horse, and plopping ungraciously on the saddle, and already 滿頭大汗. THEY LIED! and i was the last to mount. T_T

oh by the way four of us each had a horse, with one main instructor mike and four indian 'assistant' instructors. so mike came around and said my stirrups were too short and i had to lengthen them. i looked at my assistant instructor, he looked back at me, before i weakly muttered, "uh help?" -_- fml.

honestly i really think my assistant instructor could be a little more helpful. like, it doesn't take a genius to see that it's my first time. nor does sniggering help. nor watching me silently while i struggle with the reins. i probably got more help from my neighbour's assistant instructor than mine. tsk.

so anyway, we were led around the area for a brief walk. for first-timer me, it was a rather interesting and exciting experience. the trot was a little more scary though. super hard to keep my balance!

step 2, steering the horse. this is total madness, and so very very difficult! after walking around in circles, in which i didn't learn anything because the horse was being led all the way, they unleashed the horses and we had to try on our own. that wasn't too embarrassing since it was so messy.

then, he lined us up, put cones in front, and we had to weave in and out. this part made me totally wanna dig a hole and stick my head in. the other three horses went straight, whilst mine crashed unceremoniously into the other lane(s) and everyone stopped to look. FML FML FML! either i didn't pull hard enough, or the horse was being uncooperative. went a few times and it happened all the time! well, at least i managed to get it back to starting point. hais.

if that's not enough, we were told to train our balance by turning 360 degrees (a few times) on the horse without our hands touching it. HOW IS IT POSSIBLE YOU TELL ME?! i don't believe the rest didn't use their hands. but mike seemed to focus on me only. and i was the last to complete this again so everyone was probably looking at me. can die of embarrassment lor. i blame my jeans again. =\

step 3, dismount. this is the easiest and the only thing i can do correctly and without being the last one. guess i was too eager to have both feet on the ground fml. and so, end of a horrible lesson two. let's hope the rest will be better. =(

organizing #1

overdue post lol. having spent the last few weeks hooked on reading organizing blogs, i've been looking around my room for any organizing opportunities myself! main sources of inspiration came from mini manor blog, hi sugarplum, and pink postcard. but of course, their houses are much bigger and they have more space to play around with, and they are stay-home mums so they have more time on their hands. *grumbles*

but anyway, i got so motivated by their homes that i finally decided to get started on re-organizing the stuff in my room. if you don't know, i have so little storage space and so many things, that over the years months, they just start to pile on top of one another. 

my wardrobe is one place that i can never keep tidy. *ashamed* this time round, i merely cleaned it out, lined the shelves with pretty (and useful) linings, and threw out a few clothes for donation. i daren't show you all my bursting-to-the-beam wardrobe but at least i know now that though it's still chock full of stuff, it looks neat and tidy. to a certain extent. drawers are much prettier though.

i have this little corner at the end of my bed, where my huge hello kitty sits amidst my pile of bags, and i've been wanting to better utilize this space. so i dropped by spotlight and got myself this 2 huge big containers with wheels. dumped some of my lesser-used stuff, like bedsheets, into one container, and some of my often-used bags in the other. rolled both under the bed and voila~ drawers! lol.

'prettified' a S-hook to hang my bag, and dumped the mat under the table. i now can have a nice, soft, and comfy (and cheap!) mat to rest my poor feet when i work on the computer. ^^

i think...i'm pretty okay at organizing but doing horrible in beautifying it. i suck in creativity. =( let's just hope it'll improve or i get enough ideas by the time i get my own flat! *cross fingers*

... ...

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my first riding lesson...

...was spent with both feet firmly planted on the ground. lol.

our supposed lesson grounds were used for their show jumping competition, so our stable management lesson was brought forward from the last lesson to the first lesson. i think it's better cos it makes more sense to learn how to put the saddle on first before learning how to ride the horse. ^^

there were four horses set aside for us, so 9 of us were divided into groups to try out. putting on the saddle was probably the easiest part of the lesson since they just stood there for us to try. by the way the saddle is like, freaking heavy. i can't imagine the poor horse having that and me on its back. i'm so gonna feel bad when i climb on top. boo.

then came the harder part - the bridle. had to do this group by group so i think this took up majority of the lesson time. it looked pretty easy when the instructor was doing it, but i was kinda 手忙腳亂 when it came to our turn. so many straps and buckles! and the bit looked so uncomfortable! we also had to tighten certain straps which i think majority of us couldn't bear to do so. lol. relishing the feeling of the horses' head over my shoulder. for some reason i like that. =)

so in this first lesson, i learnt how to put on a saddle, how to put on a bridle, that horses like carrots, and that they step on their own poop. lmao! no lah, our instructor also mentioned that horses are actually timid animals. i guess it's hard (for me) to imagine that. they look so....majestic, i suppose, since they're like the biggest animals i ever touched. (原來 the one i encounted in taiwan, is just a PONY.) their shoulders are at my eye level, so if you know how tall i am, you can imagine how big they are. i had to tiptoe to put the saddle on. can't wait to learn how to mount them next week! (and can't wait to see how zhu is gonna mount them. =P)

so excited! i'm so glad i took this up. to be honest i actually envy people who can have this this this activity after work today, or that that that activity after work tomorrow. their lives must be pretty meaningful. even though only my sunday afternoons are taken up now, i actually have things to look forward to. working on signing up another course with zhu; let's hope it all works out!

two more weeks to being jobless. this is so not me. hais.

idoh

just to share this youtube video i came across on another blog. do take time to finish the whole thing.

i'm glad someone actually made the effort to produce such a video, albeit how sad it may be. this is just one case. i wonder how many unreported cases like this there are in singapore. please spread this.

from the video, 84% of our population live in public housing. deducting those in hospitals, homes, hostels etc, i bet less than 10% lives in landed or condos. out of this 10%, how many are actually willing to take in strays? how many can one actually take in? it doesn't take a genius to realize that there are far more strays in singapore than the <10% of 'rich' people who may or may not be willing to adopt. nor does it require a lot of common sense to see that public housing can be bigger and more suitable for strays.

why not open the chances to those living in public housing? HDB, please wake up. you are not only denying people living in public housing the chance to help a stray animal, but denying these animals a chance to LIVE. 10,000 - 15,000 strays are put down every year in singapore, because supply far exceeds demand. (that's an average of 35 strays euthanized EVERY. SINGLE. DAY.)

let's put it this way. HDB, YOU HAVE SO MUCH BLOOD ON YOUR HANDS! whoever made up this fucking rule, how can you live like this? i hope they all haunt you. really.

and to the neighbor who kept complaining about idoh, please, do burn in hell. =)

of bugis, milly's, and cocoichibanya

yesterday SSD showed up under my block with these. it was our 33rd month-sary. muacks. =)

then we headed to bugis. for shopping. imagine squeezing around in bugis street with this. 

anyway, we spent a couple of hours shopping and i ended up with 3 tops and 2 belts. mad happy cos i spent less than 50 bucks on all those. but either i'm getting old, or the fashion is getting weird. i can't seem to find normal-looking clothes nowadays. too much korean influence these days. haish. one thing i learnt though - if you see something at a stall but for some reason can't buy it, walk around and you'll find the same thing at another stall. #truestory

passed by milly's and saw that they had an on-going promotion for gelish at $20. many bloggers raved about them so i thought $20 was a good bargain. i thought. 

firstly, a lot of times i couldn't really understand what the manicurist was mumbling. secondly, there were 2 obvious bumps on 2 of the nails but she just left them there. i mean, it's okay if you can't draw very well, but isn't smooth nail polish application the most basic skill? -_-''' maybe i'm too perfectionist, maybe i was only doing a promotional item or maybe i went to the wrong outlet, but i think i'll stick to my usual summer sweet nails instead.

hung out at coffee bean before dropping by cocoichibanya for their curry rice again! SSD chose the cream mushroom omelette but i decided to try something different this time. had the seafood curry (level 2) with less rice and extra cold tuna! the spice level was just nice and it had prawns, scallops, and lots of clams. one lovely satisfying sinful expensive dinner. ^^

random-ness

makes sense?

definitely. i always find it hard to explain why i choose to be a pescetarian. the most common guesses are usually religion or health related. my reason, however, is much more complicated. so complex it is that i have given up trying to explain anymore cos nobody understands. lol. i wish i could somehow move on to vegetarianism, but i don't think it's quite possible yet. no salmon? kill me. 

sometimes i pity SSD. you see, he's an omnivore. and when we choose dining places, the first thing to look out for,  would be whether if there's anything i can eat. which is why we usually stick to those same old places. like manhattan's FISH market. definitely something for me! 

 

manhattan flaming seafood platter - everything is so so yummy! ok maybe except the oysters. (those are oysters, not mussels! lucky i didn't spit them out. lol.) it looks very little but we had trouble finishing the fries. definitely dropping by again when i feel thin and rich. =\

and instagram updates!

and lastly, yes i did it. finally. that moment when i stepped out of the room, it felt as if a huge load had been taken off me. but then reality sank in and i realized that frankly speaking, no backup plan is a horrible choice. i guess it's heart over mind this time. wish me luck! loads of it.