The return of both a loved one... and an enemy!!! *AAARRRRGH!!!!*

Hubby's back from reservist... and so is Xiao3 Bao1. *SCREAM*

Yup, Hubby's finally back... returned last Friday evening and went through some mobilisation exercise on Saturday and finally back home for good. We went out only in the evening on Saturday cos I was on duty at work the whole day, plus Hubby had that mobilisation thingy to attend. It was a fruitful evening though... went to our usual haunts at Funan and bought comics and games (yeah! I've got a new DS game now... It's this tennis game called 'Sega Superstars Tennis.. pretty fun and hassle-free... easy to play, which is good for people with brains like mine :p Hubby chose this Mortal Kombat DS game that was on sale for only $20... eee... very violent one lor...) Anyway, we also got DVDs and this cool Super Mario Galaxy soundtrack that contains orchestra-played tunes from the famous game... got Hubby to help me load some of the tracks onto my phone cos I want them as ringtones.. so cute mah... ;) Oh ya, Hubby also got a new backpack from Nike... army print (sigh, looks like he's starting to enjoy his time as a soldier) but ok la, quite nice.

Now about that dreaded Xiao3 Bao1, the cyst. It's like a pimple, only it's more hideous than a normal pimple, cos it can grow to be oh-so-large and noticeable... Beebee gave it the name Xiao Bao last year when I kena it for the first time. It was horrible! Thought it's just an extra large pimple and was anxiously just waiting for it to dry out or pop or do whatever it had to in order to vanish completely from my face -- and life!-- but it didn't...it just got bigger and bigger until I was totally self-conscious. Luckily it was the school hols then, so didn't have to work. Attended a farewell gathering for Kai Yi and everyone saw lor... Kai Yi also couldn't resist asking about it. Sigh. She asked me to go see a dermatologist, so I made an appointment with this doc at Mt. Elizabeth Medical Centre. Not bad la. Eventually after a couple of jabs, Xiao Bao went away after ruining most of my June 2007 hols....

Until LAST WEEK. Yes, this terrible terrible enemy sneakily appeared again when I was least expecting it, and it came with a partner this time! It showed up near the previous place but there's one more on my chin. This time, I decided not to wait any longer. Made an appointment this morning for the same doc again, and thank goodness he had a slot available this afternoon. After work, I just zoomed straight down to his clinic in a cab. He gave me two jabs again, one for Xiao Bao, and one for its partner. Dunno why but this time, the jabs hurt much more than the other time, but I didn't scream out loud lah... so paiseh so must pretend to be brave, but in my heart, I was definitely crying in pain!!! Paid about $100 in all for the jabs and consultation. Sigh. Doc says that Xiao Bao appears cos I'm stressed, so asked me to take things easy and exercise more, not just on weekends, cos it's such a great stress reliever. Well.... guess will have to try lor...

Now just hoping that the two unwelcomed guests that came and just parked themselves on my face will leave soon. Then I'll get a chance to growl "Good riddance!". *Grrr...*

Home alone...

Listening to FM 93.3... lovely romantic ballads playing this evening...feeling a bit down though... sigh, missing Hubby, who's away on reservist (again). He came home last Thursday evening cos of the Good Friday holiday, stayed for a couple of days, and had to book in again this morning. Got up early at about 5.30am with him, sent him off at the bus stop at 6.15am, and have been working at home ever since, apart from meal breaks and occasional phone breaks when Hubby calls back to talk to me.

Guess the stress is catching up with me once again...was determined to spend the two full days relaxing with Hubby yesterday and the day before, but thoughts of work always haunted my mind. Heart feeling very heavy too...think Hubby sensed it cos he noticed I didn't mention work at all, and he knew I must have been bottling things up. Yeah, he really knows me well. :) Sigh, just didn't wanna ruin the days for us by complaining about work that's not finished yet. Anyway, even though I did worry about work piling up at the back of my mind, I'm glad to say that I chose to spend quality time with him over work before he went back to camp. After all, it's one of those times when we'll super cherish each other's presence cos we know how difficult it is not to see each other for days on end now that we're accustomed to being married to each other. :)

Ok ok... missing him more liao.. let me recount the nice things that happened to us since my last entry here...

Spotted at last: The Wonder Drink -- C.C. Lemon!!!

Heh, last Saturday, Hubby and I went to Orchard to jalan jalan... and just dropped by Isetan supermarket cos we thought of checking it out to see if it's got the wonderful bottled lemon drink that our tour guide on our Japan trip last year recommended us to take for loads of vitamin C. Couldn't see it at first but later, after asking this guy who works there, we were led to it... so overjoyed! Wanted to buy three bottles at once but decided to buy just 2 first...anyway now that we know where to get it, we'll surely go back for more! It costs $3.05 per bottle, but it's really lemony and is a little gassy, which makes it more shiok... *slurp*! But too bad I can't drink a lot, cos am supposed to control my sugar intake, but it's really a delicious drink! ;)

Tears on 2nd wedding anniversary...

The next day, 16th March... 3:16... the special day -- our second wedding anniversary... :) Can't believe I shed so many tears on this day... tears to do with touching love... Hubby surprised me with a funny and loving card he bought and customised on his own by adding phrases or expressions that depicted the moments of our lives together. So touching... I guess that's really all that matters in life, having someone who loves you for your strengths and despite your flaws. :)

Later, on the same day, I cried again... I made Hubby watch this DVD I bought at HMV the other day, titled "All About Dogs". It's a compilation of short Japanese films that presented dogs as the theme, each about 8-10 mins long. Really heartwarming. There're funny ones, heartwarming ones and totally sad touching ones. Check out the video I saved on my blog here. It's the last mini film in that DVD, but happened to come across it on youtube, so thought I'd post it here to share and also for myself to watch whenever I want to. It's the saddest film in the DVD, but also one of my favourites. I shed so many tears whenever I watch this. It reminds me of not just a heartwrenching relationship shared between a dog and her owner, but also of how much love exists in real life-- between animals, animals and humans, and of course, between humans. The presence, and absence of love, can really affect one's life tremendously.

My new hobby!

Heh, on Good Friday, Hubby and I went out to Orchard again. We decided that since he'd be booking in this morning, we'd spend Saturday at home so he can rest and spend the day out on Friday instead. After lunch at Wheelocks Place, we popped by the toy store as usual and I found myself growing fascinated with cute miniature Japanese food displays. Later in the afternoon, we stopped by Taka to check out possible display cases, after some consideration, and started hunting for cute collections I wanted! Hubby was such a dear... kept asking me which ones out of a certain series I wanted, and helped me look hard for those I like... Went back home with ten boxes of these miniature food collections, and a display case. So exciting! Although it was late by the time we settled down at home, we still sat down to open the boxes and figure out how to display the bits into full meals (it was close to 1am by the time we finished!!!) Hubby also helped me carry the case gingerly towards the kitchen after we cleared a lovely spot for it. It's definitely not gonna be the only case on display! ;D

My very first few boxes of collection and the display case... carefully selected after spending hours at that section of the toy department at Taka... heh. The second picture shows what the contents of each box look like when you open it... you've to figure out how to fit all these delicate pieces together so they form a beautiful set. Next few pictures show the display case when Hubby first set it down on the kitchen top, when the cover of the display is set properly, and what it looks like with the rest of its neighbours in the kitchen ;P So pretty!!! Now whenever I enter the kitchen, I'd just stop by to admire it for a while... hee hee.

Ok, gtg now... need to pack. Although finished some work today, I still have loads to clear, so I need to brace myself for a full hectic week ahead. Plus gotta do house work now that Hubby's not around... sigh, he's such great help usually, taking on the responsibility of taking care of our home. It's when he's not around that I realise how much he actually does. *guilty*

Guilty pleasures...

We're coming to the end of the week already... soon, it'll be the end of the March hols and I'll be back at work on Monday, 17th March... boo hoo... and what's worse, starting from that same Monday, Hubby won't be around for approximately TWO WEEKS... TWO WEEKS!!! Sigh... yeah, he'll be away on reservist training again... ;( But, on a brighter note, at least we'll try to spend quality time together over both days of this coming weekend, especially since Sunday's our 2nd wedding anniversary. :) I know Hubby might not be in much of a mood to celebrate, but just knowing that we have spent two years of married life together makes me feel really happy and proud of us. Hee. :)

Speaking of happy... I indulged in guilty 'pleasures' today... sigh, dunno whether it's cos the hols are coming to an end and Hubby's gonna be away for some time or what, just wanted to make myself happy in a materialistic sort of way. Went out for lunch and shopping with Beebee and ended up going home with two new tops (for $50+ in all) and a nice pair of bronze-coloured heels (for only $19.90).

Also received a treat from Beebee (3 cheers for her bonus!) at Streets Cafe at the basement of Raffles City, right beside Shokudo. It's a Hong Kong style eatery, cosy with a pleasant deco and ambience. Even the staff members there communicate with one another in Cantonese. Food is reasonably priced and the portion's quite good too. The meal cost Beebee about $38 in all, which is quite ok considering what we had (maybe we ordered a bit too much... both of us were walking around like bloated penguins after the meal :p).

Here's what we ordered (oooh, I love sharing yummy-looking pics :P):





From top left: Beebee's main course of chicken chop spaghetti in cream sauce, my main dish which is Portuguese Stone Rice with chicken, and the three sides we had -- golden fish fillet, HK fried wanton (how can I resist? I'm a wanton freak sometimes...) and Beijing pork dumplings. Now you understand why we waddled after the meal...

After hanging around at city hall for the entire afternoon and purchasing items we wanted, we left at 5+pm cos I had an appointment with Stephanie to do my brows and Beebee had to go home for dinner. After 45 minutes of eyebrow trimming (poor Stephanie, my bushy brows must have really given her a tough time... really dunno why the hair of my brows grows back so quickly and becomes unkempt so soon... sigh), I went around Jurong Point (which is where I got my pair of shoes too --purchased them within 10 minutes cos really liked them for being so nice and cheap). Wanted to look for something to get Hubby too... think he guessed I was gonna try getting him stuff today... but couldn't really find anything suitable. Sorry, Hubby... no extra gift for you this anniversary. :S The only thing I got him was a nice tuna and egg Japanese crepe I bought as takeaway for his supper this evening.

*HAIZ*

No stress! *Heeheehee*

Ooooh...Hello Monday! So glad that although it's a Monday, I've no Monday blues at all today! Ho ho ho... The only *blues* I experienced perhaps were not being able to spend time with Hubby today when he's at home most of the time.

Well, where was I? Sigh. Was in school 'moving house'. Big boss says some of us must move place in staff room, then Sophia and I were among those who kena, so both of us made it a point to go back to clear our current workstations and move to our new ones-- now we are occupying the corner where the PE department used to sit. Great that we're sitting side by side too, and although we were physically exhausted at the end of the day, the whole process was actually quite fun, cos we get to be in a new environment (with window beside us for some added 'scenery') and revamp our cubicles. I must say that I was pretty pleased after spending several hours doing that. :)

Just talked over MSN with Sophia and Portia. Long time never talk on MSN liao. Anyway, recap on weekend... It was so nice... This was one of the rare weekends when I could really cast work aside and focus on spending time with my loved ones. :) Hubby and I managed to play quite a bit of table tennis on both Saturday and Sunday, and on Saturday, before going to in-laws' place for dinner, I went to town with Hubby. We dropped by City Hall cos we wanted to make use of the $50 voucher that Tommy Hilfiger mailed to Hubby. Their VIP privileges really not bad lor. Anyway, we wanted to get lunch first, and guess where we ate? Yup, we went back to Shokudo Japanese Food Bazaar. This time, we didn't go for variety-- just grabbed main courses that we wanted.




Hubby's order of Sashimi Deluxe with rice, my bowl of Char Siew Ramen (think the Hokkaido style one we tried at Central was nicer, but of course, nothing beats the one we had at Japan!), and Japanese Siew Mai


At Tommy Hilfiger's, Hubby picked out a nice T-shirt and spotted a cool book too, written by Tommy Hilfiger the man himself. I paid for the purchases and told Hubby that I'll give him the book as his 2nd wedding anniversary gift. :) Later, when we went down to Orchard Takashimaya, I had my eye on a silver ring by Esprit, and went to try it on. Hubby paid for that ring, and it was his turn to give me something for our upcoming 2nd wedding anniversary. Hehe, so not bad la, in one afternoon, we settled both our gifts, and we were each sure that the other would like it, cos we chose the gifts ourselves! Hehe.




There's the book titled 'Iconic America' by Tommy Hilfiger, written with the assistance of George Lois. It features lots of info and pictures about things that represent America. Nice to browse through (except for a few pages-- Hubby'd know what I mean :p). And the Esprit ring that I chose. Am wearing that on my index finger when I go out now. :)


Later, we also grabbed a couple of DVDs and a CD from HMV. One of the DVDs is the latest 'Take That' concert. We watched it at home on Sunday. Not bad, lots of surprises and great choreography and laser effects.

Finally, our last stop of the day was Hubby's parents' place. Had a nice dinner there then went to 'play' with some stuff in Hubby's old room. Was poring over Dragonball pictures in a book and Hubby also showed me his other precious collections. Heh. I didn't express it clearly but I felt good that Hubby wanted me to know and see his childhood collections. Oh, almost forgot (how could I?!)... I had my first experience of viewing through a real pair of binoculars! Hee... Hubby got this as a gift when he was younger, and he taught me how to view through them. I zoomed in on one block in the distance, and was really stunned cos the binoculars showed the different apartments and common corridors/ staircases so clearly. as if it's even nearer than the nearest block. Really cool gadget. But cannot use too long, later spoil eyesight.

On Sunday evening, went back to Bukit Timah for dinner. Gorged ourselves on so many fruits after dinner! Heh. Stayed till 11pm then went home... no need to worry about whatever happens the next day. So nice and carefree lor.

Sigh, all in all, it was really a great weekend. If only all weekends were like this. :)*dreamy look*

Back to Japan... and the dinosaur age! *ROAR*

Just finished my third stack of marking for the day... enough is ENOUGH! Wanna move on to happier thoughts now before bed... :) Hubby's now feasting on whatever tiramisu and french vanilla ice cream's left in the tub while watching 'Underworld' on Channel 5 beside me... it's so good to eat and eat and never put on much weight... *steal an envious glance at Hubby*

Ok, anyway... back to the topic of happy thoughts. Hee, Hubby did keep his promise and took me to the nice Japanese restaurant, Marche style, at the basement of Raffles City yesterday! It's called Shokudo Japanese Food Bazaar, and whoa, the place just swept me off my feet! I love the layout, the Japanese city style decor, and of course, the yummy food!






The first few pics show the front of the restaurant where we entered... like I said, I love the decor! The third picture shows the path you come out from after you pay at the cashier's. The sakura blooms on the glass walls are so pretty! :) And the last pic shows one part of the decor inside... the walls are all lined with such strikingly glam manga style art that it really is a joy to dine there... :)


Hubby and I were given a silver card each, bearing the name of the restaurant. This card acts like the sheet that we get at Marche. You just have to order something at whichever booth you are interested in and pass the card to the person i/c. Then he/she will simply swipe the card to enter your order and amount and out comes the receipt for you. Just go back in a while's time to collect your food. :)


Anyway, I just went about making lots of raving noise as I checked out the various booths. Really 'happening'! Ramen, steamed bamboo rice with eel, chicken etc, chawanmushi, gyoza, burgers, grilled items, omelette rice, sashimi, desserts, drinks... there's enough food to make your mouth water once you step in! :P As we went there for lunch, we didn't over-order... ordered enough for a midday meal to satisfy ourselves. And guess what? The total bill came up to be only about $36! That's less than $20 for each of us. Considering the fact that we are trying to save more money and yet wanna have a good meal, this was really a pleasant surprise. The main courses that Hubby and I each ordered cost only about $6 or $7 plus. And the taste and portion certainly don't lose out to other restaurants that could charge double that amount for similar dishes.






From top: Hubby's burger main course (portion's as good as what Billy Bombers have, at half the price!), my main course -- omelette tomato rice with sausage (the omelette's soft, like scrambled egg! And I know I can never resist scrambled egg), one of my favourite Japanese dishes -- gyoza (this one's realy fantastic, savoury and delicious), our grilled items (prawns wrapped in bacon roll, scallops and shitake mushrooms) and the assortment of other grilled stuff available at the booth, plus another of my favourite -- chawanmushi (Hubby says it's a bit bland but I think otherwise :p)

After that, we gai gai a bit, bought some stuff (mostly mine, though. Poor Hubby...:p) then took the express bus 580 from Suntec slightly before 5pm, wanting to head down to the Science Centre to catch 'Dinosaurs Alive!' at the OmniMax Theatre. I had come across the advertisement earlier that morning while flipping through the newspapers. Was interested in watching dinosaurs in action so thought would go there after gai gai in town.

However, to our surprise, the bus 580 terminated its service at a couple of bus stops after our place, still in the same neighbourhood, instead of going on to Jurong East Interchange as we thought it would! And it was already 5.40pm (we were supposed to catch the 6pm show)...Hehe... we could have changed our minds about going to catch the dinosaurs but Hubby was in an 'adventurous' mood and just wanted to see if we could succeed in getting to the show on time. We really just ran towards the Science Centre after alighting from the next bus we took! Finally managed to be seated just as the show was starting. Wah... it's amazing what you can do and how far you can travel within like 15-20 minutes! :p

Sigh... but too bad, after all the rush to catch the show, we both felt it wasn't quite worth the 10 bucks ticket. Sure, we picked up some new info about dinosaurs, but I guess I was just anticipating a lot more action from the dinosaurs. Most of the show filmed people going about in search of dinosaur fossils and how they worked together to gather information about their discoveries. Hmmm... so was a bit disappointed lor... but it IS interesting still to note that till now, humans have only discovered less than 2% of dinosaurs that could have walked the earth before. Fascinating to note that there are so many more to be uncovered!

Yup, that's the poster of what we watched... and the statue outside the Science Centre about what we could have watched instead -- Mummies, the Secrets of the Pharoahs... :p

Finally, we grabbed dinner at JEC then went back home. I was supposed to continue working at night but was so tired after poring over the filing of Hubby's taxes with him that I just couldn't do anything serious after that. That's why I ended up trying to do most of my work today.

Ok, it's late enough. Gotta go Zzzz soon. Tomorrow's a long day, but at least this weekend was rather fun.. :) Oh and ya, countdown to March hols starting now!