Monday, October 29, 2012

quarter of a century old

so my birthday is over and done with, and i am officially 25. a quarter of a century. that's scary. it was a quiet affair, with class in the 'morn-noon' and buffet dinner afterwards. and the best present i received this year, is this.


love letter and photo frame from zhu, amongst a couple more stuff. haha ok seriously 感動-ed when i saw them. i'm so thankful to have her in my life! i mean, 12 years of friendship - npcc days, drama club days, poly days, work life, and our recent activity spam. she's probably seen the very worst of me and still willing to be my friend! lols.

even though she's younger (by a month), she acts more old mature and i wanna shout, THANK YOU FOR ALL YOUR SUPPORT AND ADVICE AND HELP AND WHATNOT ALL THESE YEARS! if you were a guy i'll marry you. really. =)

in fact yesterday morning she asked me to make a wish and i thought, it doesn't really matter if i pass the assessment or not, since i'm not planning to continue. but zhu needs to pass cos she wants to learn cantering and i don't want her to waste time/money in beginner again. SEE I SO GOOD RIGHT?! in the end she pass but still want to take beginner plus. chey!

lols. anyway, buffet dinner was at kuishinbo suntec. initially wanted to try shooting the buffet tables to show you all, but i was almost hyperventilating when i saw the greens, potato salad, pasta, sashimi, and so many other things, that i decided i'll just snap whatever i took. after these few shots, i totally forgot. LOL.


must must take the snow crab legs. to make your money worth. and i think they're having the salmon fest or whatever, so they had quite a lot of salmon dishes. i especially liked the potato salad and cream salmon pasta. i took 2 servings each! lol.  

then nearing the end of our dinner, we heard the supposedly-famous kuishinbo jingle being played. none at my table knew about it, so thankfully i had read about it on their website. the jingle actually signals the limited serving of a special food item. i think we managed to get 3 or 4 bowls of the peach (i think) pudding or something. but not very nice though lolol.

alas, this meal made my riding lessons seem cheap. $475 for 9 of us, with 2 senior citizens having 10% discount. overall i think, while i enjoyed the dinner, i won't be returning anytime soon. (actually i will, cos they gave me free buffet for 1 pax.) but for authentic japanese buffets, i would still recommend riverview hotel's, and for international, i can't seem to forget buffet town. =D

after-buffet times like this, i miss the muay thai workouts. boo.


running out of space. =)

Sunday, October 28, 2012

over but not done with. or not?

today was my last beginner riding lesson. well, i didn't really plan on continuing, so my goal was purely to have as much fun as possible, and to put into practice everything that i have learnt so far. it was more of a personal test for me, since my performance has been really inconsistent throughout. 

i didn't mention the last lesson cos it was with mike and it was absolutely horrendous. it all went so well the previous 2 lessons but went totally down the drain in that lesson. 

so anyway, they gave me rocket today. T_T super thankful that i have him cos he's easy to start trotting. actually, wayyy too easy. when we were walking our rounds, he would steer, start, and stop himself without me doing much. trotting together as a group was okay too; he did everything himself and i could practise the rising (which also didn't go too well cos i kept having double beats).

the individual runs were the killer. he started trotting easily as usual, which eventually turned into a CANTER. if you don't know, you sit when the horse walks or canters, and rise when it trots. so in majority of the runs, i was kinda stuck inbetween the trot and the canter. and when that happens, i can't steer. if there were individual points for steering, i would get a big fat zero. T_T

and the lesson was over. kinda too fast for me to get into the momentum actually. the surprising thing is, he let us all into novice 1, which is the next level of riding. but as you can see, i totally owe it to rocket and even with such a star horse i can't steer to save my ass. so yeah, i totally didn't deserve that. lol.

if i were to continue, i'll probably join zhu and alice in the beginner plus course again instead of novice 1. (though i must admit cantering feels quite fun!)

ah wells. please let it rain cash. =|

Friday, October 26, 2012

男人如衣服

it is so so difficult to decide on where to go on a date. we've been to the zoo, bird park, USS, night safari, barrage, flyer, and goodness knows where. nowadays it's mainly movies, walking around and eating. sigh. so today we ended up watching a movie at cineleisure before having dinner at vivocity. so boring! =(

this was what we watched.


i think it's only showing at cathay cinemas. not very popular i guess. not surprising though, because although it had 'veteran' actors like teresa mo, ronald cheng, raymond wong and raymond lam (and quite a few more), the storyline and acting weren't impressive. to make things worse, the original cantonese was dubbed into mandarin so horribly! what saved it was probably the funny and touching scenes. (raymond lam's bathing scene was by far the funniest!) 

but it felt like such a long time since i last watched a movie that i suppose i can say i enjoyed it. lol 2 more to watch next month - ah boys to men and breaking dawn!! excited~

then dropped by h&m and got super unimpressed by the crowd and long fitting room queue. sheesh. so we made our way to vivocity. which had practically double the amount of crowd. seriously, whoever said we could support 6 million people comfortably did not really use their brain squeeze amongst the weekend town crowd at all. tsk!

we went straight for desserts! maddening hot weather. and thanks to the crowd we had to wait around 15 mins for a table. the other time we came, it was almost empty! =( we had the same thing as before since i was craving for the chocolate ice. super yummy! happy girl already lol.


then walked around before heading upstairs for dinner. imperial herbal again! lol. a bit pissed cos we specifically requested for a bigger table with normal chairs when we made the reservation but they still gave us the small table with these weird chairs. cute but not very convenient for a maxi. =\


i brought wall-e out! mad heavy but i am giving up on handphone cameras already. -_- quite like how the foodies turned out today so i think they deserve an individual introduction. just to haolian the photos. hahahahhahahahahaha! wall-e is so going to have a permanent place in my bag.

1. fried fuyong egg. hastily split this into 2 cos our table confirm not big enough to put all the dishes. it has shrimps and mushrooms in it. i think it would taste better hot cos by the time i came round to eating it, it had turned cold already.


2. fried cuttlefish. came with a dish of salt and pepper. i super like this!  the cuttlefish isn't hard and chewy and goes so well with the s&p. not enough lor lol.


3. sambal kangkong. quite nice/normal, but i have tasted others which were horrible, so being nice/normal is very good liao. i kinda preferred the sambal kailan though. =|


4. thai tofu. we had this the other time too, but i wanted it again. cos very nice!


5. fried tilapia. i saw this on another table the previous time and wanted to try. regretted it cos the sauce is nice but the fish was more bones than meat. had a pretty difficult time eating it.


but anyway, total damage was about $45 after all the taxes. um, pretty reasonable no?

Wednesday, October 17, 2012

what's cooking?

been quite long since we last cooked. i always thought home-cooked meals are cheaper but i guess not. this dinner would have cost us $20 if not for the voucher SSD had. tsk!

1. mushroom soup! add water and canned mushrooms to the packet of soup mix and voila~! one of our favorite dishes, but i still prefer the MFM type. boo.


2. tomato garlic prawns. fry garlics, add prawns, then add the sauce. love the big fresh juicy prawns. which cost $10 alone. =\


3. salmon belly in bbq sauce. a weird combination, since SSD didn't have teriyaki sauce. but tasted yummy nonetheless. the belly was super oily and not bone-less. totally should have bought salmon fillet instead.


the end!

bruised.

having not truly exercised for the past almost 10 years (!!), i've recently been torturing my poor body with mentally-challenging horse-riding and physically-challenging muay thai lessons. #servemeright

if you've been following me, i'm up to my fifth lesson in horse riding. 2 more to go! we got a super strict instructor last week. there were a lot of mounting and dismounting involved, which i probably failed big time. didn't help that i had a feisty horse haha. we also practised the rising trot again, with no hands this time. it was actually surprisingly easy once you got the rhythm. next week is probably gonna be nightmare, since we're gonna have to start, walk, trot, rise, steer, and stop all by ourselves. oh wells.

i'm also up to my second muay thai lesson. many people seem to be surprised that i'm taking this. i really look so gentle meh? -__- anyway, we mainly learnt the different positions last week and did padwork this week. which i actually super enjoyed. especially the kicking! it felt good to be able to unleash the strength. i doubt i'll enjoy slower sports like yoga very much now lmao.

the killer part is actually the warm up session, which gave me like, 5 days of sore painful calf muscles last week. i could hardly walk! we added half a round of jogging this week, so i'm pretty fearful what i'm gonna wake up with tomorrow lol. 

another downside is the equipment. we got 'cheated' as we were not informed that we had to buy our own skipping rope, gloves and shin guards. i already got the rope (for a freaking 15 bucks!) but still debating whether to go ahead with the rest or not. pretty reluctant to spend another 60 bucks especially now that i have no input. T_T 

but these lessons made me realize how much my body had deteriorated since the NPCC PT days. 10 years ago omg! i really really need more exercise. 'nuff said. =|

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Sunday, October 14, 2012

home-made natural air fresheners

i came across this website on pininterest some time ago, and finally decided to try it out! unfortunately mine doesn't look as pretty as hers. T__T

step one: slice oranges. i decided to use the citrus one since i had them in the fridge. lol.


step two: add spices. i have here cinnamon sticks, whole cloves, and a pretty star anise. (which my mum kept for so damn long and had already lost their fragrance. -_-)


step three: bring to boil. after that, i left it to simmer for about 40 mins on the stove.


step four: pack for reuse. as you can see, the water is cloudy already, but it still smells pretty good. so i kept it in a container and froze it. shall try boiling it next week! (itchy hand added a couple of rose petals for dunno-what.)


according to the website, the scent is supposed to slowly spread to the whole house, which unfortunately mine didn't. mine turned out very "cinnamon-ly" without much citrus smell, even though i had used 2 oranges. 

and it only lingered around the stove/kitchen area. =( maybe i was a bit greedy to expect the whole house to be filled with just a small pot of scented water. however if you have the aromatherapy burner, you can try using that. i think it should smell very nice for a small room.

but the best thing is, it's totally natural!! have fun making yours!

Monday, October 8, 2012

halfway there

last weekend was my fourth riding lesson. 3 more to go!

this lesson was my favorite one so far. i got rocket, one of the recommended horses. i think he is probably more experienced and therefore more familiar with the training sessions and easier to control. like during the trotting runs, i think he steered himself. LMAO!

but most importantly, we got a new instructor! bye mike, hope i don't see you again. lols. i sound so bad but there's such an obvious difference in both instructors that i'm really hoping not to get mike again.

♥ we got an indian instructor this time, which meant he could communicate better with the individual horse handlers and give them clearer instructions. 
♥ he called us by our names, which certainly felt more encouraging than mike who called us by our horses' names! many times i didn't even know mike was calling me. tsk. 
♥ he made us do leg stretching and strengthening exercises and taught us how to stand properly before combining it with the trot. no more silly touch-the-cone stuff!
♥ i felt that he gave each of us more individual assistance which was definitely more helpful than watching others and not knowing if my mistake is the same as theirs or not.

the horse handlers were also pretty helpful with their tips this lesson. no more karthik (my handler for the past 2 lessons)! i only came across him once during the runs where he tried to say something to me but i ignored cos i couldn't understand him. LOL i'm so bad!

previously i was always eager to dismount but this time i felt sad that the lesson ended so soon. previously i was also a teeny weeny bit reluctant to go cos i don't know what weird stuff i have to do to embarrass myself again. but after this lesson, i feel eager to start next week's lesson! i had a lot of fun and i actually felt myself improve. can't wait to ride again! XD

Sunday, October 7, 2012

desaru - one trip too short

back from our short 2D1N trip to desaru! my second time there. =)

this time, SSD bought the package deal from groupon (although desaruff can offer the same thing), which included coach transport, hotel stay, day tour, and some meals. quite alright i suppose, considering we'll probably spend more if we went genting. total damage: ~sgd150 each.

short introduction. desaru is a coastal resort area in johor, malaysia. it is becoming increasingly popular with tourists, especially with the new senai-desaru expressway (SDE) which opened last year. the beach spans 22km, and with a variety of watersports and family activities available. nothing overly fancy; just a nice quiet place to relax and connect with mother nature. ahem.

day 1: fruit farm and fireflies tour

met at the flyer on friday morning and departed shortly after 9am. took the SDE and promptly arrived around 1130am? quite fast right?! we were told our first stop would be the fruit farm.

when we got off the bus, the first thing that greeted us was the scent of dung fertilizer. power one leh! must be freshly made. lol. and the amount of houseflies buzzing around was so horrendous that i hurriedly slapped on even more insect repellent. @_@ then the guide started showing and explaining to us the different fruit trees. but she went quite fast and i soon gave up trying to follow her, opting to focus more on photo-taking.

honestly, i've seen majority of the stuff before and it didn't quite interest me. i guess this tour is more for families hoping to educate their kids with something that can hardly be found in urban singapore. but i did learn something new though - if the banana flower points upwards, the fruit can be eaten. if it points downwards, the fruit is just for decoration purpose. although, if i had the space to grow a banana tree, would i waste it for decoration? hmmmmm.


the farm had a mini zoo, which got me more interested than the fruits. although i noticed the areas aren't very clean for the animals. ahem. there were more that i didn't shoot. like the ducks walking around, the monkeys, snakes, and rats. my favorite would have to be the snowy white bunny. super cute and fluffy and sweet and clean and pretty! lol.

they also have bunnies and ducklings for sale, which didn't really make sense since their main customer base are singaporeans. would people really want to purchase a bunny or duckie and go through all that quarantine trouble?


lunch was free flow fruits and an 8-course meal. quite alright; only had one chicken dish i couldn't eat. then sat in a mini bee talk. it was informative, as i found out about the whole process of royal jelly. it was quite disgusting lol. sighh. the things women do. =|


back to hotel next as we didn't have the ostrich or crocodile farm tour. didn't want to spend extra money hehehe. and so, we checked in at the lotus desaru beach resort. from the photos on their website as well as the reviews i had researched beforehand, i wasn't really surprised to see how much it looked like our hdb apartments. though i must admit the interior was slightly better than what i had expected.

we got a first floor, double story, one bedroom apartment, complete with living room, dining table, kitchen facilities, guest toilet, as well as the bed and another toilet upstairs. through the photos online, the bathtub was quite miserable so i didn't bring along my bathbombs. which was a pity because the tub turned out to be quite spacious and clean. argh!


dropped by the beach for a while before it started raining. after we hurried back to the room, the rain stopped. -_- love the feeling of wind in my hair, sand under my feet, waves crashing against my legs, and bringing away my troubles. for that moment only. lol.


then went for dinner. which was probably the worst thing that happened this trip. i had read about this deal of 2 drinks + 1 pizza for 30rm and was very much looking forward to it. however we were informed that the deal was no longer available, so we chose their set menus. i took the malay set while SSD took the chinese set. then got a tom yum soup to share.

i had known not to expect much of the food but this was certainly below my expectation. the chinese set was just chicken rice while the malay set was briyani chicken, which was freaking spicy. i tried to eat the chicken, but i couldn't get past myself and had to pass all the meat to SSD. (damn poor thing he.) that, plus one drink, and fruits (which by the way, never came), cost 22rm++ each! at least i had some seafood from the tom yum soup, but it tasted quite yucky and so not tomyum-ish. hais.


all the while we had dozens of houseflies buzzing around us. it got better after the fans were turned on, but when some persistent ones continued to pester us, the staff lit a candle to help chase them away. this, on the other hand, i have to commend. the staff were quite courteous and friendly. didn't really experience any bad service from the staff this trip. =)

last activity of the day was the fireflies tour. my first time! it wasn't included in the groupon package but the desaruff guide from earlier offered to take us there. we paid 40rm per pax inclusive of pickup from hotel, but you can probably get it cheaper at the counter there. i wouldn't recommend first-timers to drive there yourself though, unless you manage to tailgate the tour van. the road in is totally unlit and probably very easy to lose your way inside that maze. i also assume it's gonna be very scary driving in the dark if you don't know your way.

so we arrived at this kelong (where there is also a floating seafood restaurant) and given life jackets to put on. boarded the boat and soon we set off! lol i probably didn't look it, but i was very excited and therefore, no photos! lol just kidding. seriously who takes photos of fireflies?

cruised along the river (in near total darkness) with one of the staff flicking water at the nearby vegetation. AND THEN FIREFLIES APPEARED!! small shimmering specks of lights. it was absolutely amazing to see large groups of fireflies appearing all of a sudden. many oohs and ahhs could be heard when that happened. yes me one of them lmao. the staff caught a few and passed them around. another kind of amazement to see the tiny light on your hand (not mine, SSD's).

sigh. i don't know how to describe this experience. overwhelming? to see and be so close to such a simple yet magical part of mother nature. probably also because i had heard the story of how fireflies spend their lifetime searching for their soulmate, that makes this whole experience even more beautiful and emotional. mother nature, y u so amazing!! (please don't catch and take the fireflies away from the area. their soulmates might be waiting for them.)

day 2: water theme park and home sweet home

buffet breakfast was significantly (imho) better than our dinner. simple fare, but they tasted pretty good. i should have ate more seriously. LOL.


visited the water theme park. didn't look very fun, although the cool water did look inviting. the most famous would probably be the giant coconut, which was filled with water and overturned when it got full.


then nua-ed, slept, and watched tv before checking out at 1pm. loitered around the lobby for 3 hours before the coach finally came to take us back. overall, it was kinda too short for us to relax or enjoy the water. but i was glad to get out of singapore. now that i'm back, it's time to start worrying about...things again. boo.

Tuesday, October 2, 2012

feeling pretty loved.

some of you have seen this on instagram (@mmeeshell).


and some of you have seen this on facebook.


yep. SSD proposed. =)

... ...

so, it started off with dinner after my riding lesson. he told me it was to 賞月, but he had unwittingly revealed that i might not be going home that night. so i was kinda expecting more than 賞月 lol. (that's why i say he isn't very good at planning surprises.) 

manhattans! nothing special, but i brought wall-e out so i had nicer photos so i have to haolian. rofl.


then walked over to clarke quay. they had the lantern festival thingy, which resulted in loads of people. which made me kinda hot and bothered. =\ they also have the zodiac thingy, which confirm not true, because mine said i will get promotion etc etc. tsk. there were also food stalls, which made me regret having dinner. i really should have bought the bbq sotong no matter how full i was. X_X

and we continued walking all the way to riverview hotel. -_- i did guess we were going there, although i also hoped the destination was somewhere nearer along the way so i didn't have to walk so far. (trotting was even more strenuous than last week!)

i suppose i was a little surprised to learn that he had already checked in. lols. and upon reaching the room, my main concern was actually the couch to rest my poor legs lol. and then he showed me this.


and told me to open the curtains. for a moment i actually thought he was trying to scare me lmao. then.


super touched. i suppose i did choke a little. lols. touched not because he proposed (kinda guessed it when i saw the bed of flowers) but how he did it. i never thought he'll be ingenious enough to use lightsticks. so pretty! XD

then i realized he had brought all most of the necessities for us to stay the night. and the efforts he had put into everything. it touched me more than the proposal itself. 謝謝你! =)

guess the next thing he did? update status on facebook. #facepalm. which resulted in both our phones ringing everytime someone likes or comments on the status. -_- and which also made me feel super duper touched and loved to see the many many well wishes from my friends. #usuallyforeveralone. especially wan ting! she's like more excited than me hahahahaha. 謝謝你們!!

anyway, i kept telling SSD that if he had told me earlier, i could have brought more stuff to make our staycation even more comfortable. it was, after all, a suite! SSD had used his special connections to get the room for less than $200! 


which came with free breakfast. i love hotel breakfasts! not much of a variety though. XD


then ran some errands before heading home to zonk out. here's the bling if you missed it.


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last but not least, a little help here?
thanks! =)
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