Wah...i was reading my old posts...when i stumbled on these posts written back in 2005 and 2006!!! Wahaha~

Piggy's Teenage memories (17-18) (06/05/2005)

Piggy's Teenage Memories (13-16) (11/06/05)

Piggy's Childhood Memories (25/05/05)

Hmmm...let me try to recap what happen during the Uni days...

1. I had a hard time choosing which course to study after i got the 'A' level results. The courses that i shorlisted are Business (at both NTU & NUS), Architecture(NUS), Major in Mathematics (NUS), Psychology and Engineering. NTU Business School was my 1st choice then as that's the only school in SG that offers the course Actuarial Science. And why actuarial? I read up about it from a local career guide book. Good prospects, unique profession and it's about maths + statistics + business. And I like things that are not the norm (i.e.business or engineering) In fact, I prefer NTU to NUS, since the former is of a more relaxed / laid back environment compared to NUS, which i think has a rather competitive environment (and i don't like it) I'd rather be in the suburbs, at the western end of SG.

2. I enjoyed my 1st year course of business, as there's a variety of 'interesing' subjects. Business law and Accounting are so interesting that i did not mind studying them again. Well, I had spent way too much time coaching someone whom i call hubby now for his 'A' levels back then that i thought my own studies can come after that.

3. I had a taste of being in a courtship which was rather short-lived, at the end of my 1st semester in the freshmen year. He's the one and only guy whom i think there's probably a chance for us. We attended the same tutorials in that semester. He told me that he noticed that i'd be staring at him when he's talking and that I dun make eye-contact with other people. Probably he likes the exclusive attention i'd given him? Haha~ At some nights, he would call me from his hostel to chit chat. It started from a project discussion which got evolved to casual talks. But if i'm not the wrong, the number of phonecalls we had can be counted using 1 hand? or 2?

On our 1st date, he gave me 3 stalks of blue roses(he had asked me wat flowers i like); asked me to wear a skirt (since i only wear pants/jeans back in my teenage years); sent me all the way back to the north despite the fact that he stays in the east; played with my fingers and almost held my hand on the MRT train ride... I'd probably never forget the scene when he waved at me (my flat is on the 2nd floor) while talking on the hp with me. I'd never forget how hard he tried to keep the dates interesting, and surprises he wanted to plan for me. I'd also never forget the question he asked me on ICQ when i rejected him because of my hubby. 'Are you sure he's the one?' But i'm happy for him now since he had gotten married some 2 years back.

4. During my 2nd year, I got into the specialisation which i always wanted and many fellow course mates shunned as they thought it is a difficult area to get in. Yeah. So many shunned it that there are only 18 of us in the cohort despite 25 vacancies were being offered that year. I was delighted as if i had got into some 'exclusive' club. Haha~ It was during my 1st day in my 2nd year that i learnt from the professor that we had to continue taking professional papers after graduation (NTU only offers exemption for core technical subjects from the IOA, provided you score good grades for those modules) Oops.

5. I skipped lectures so that i can get more sleep at home. Gave tuition to students ranging from primary, secondary and JC (basically on mathematics and chinese) in order to earn more pocket money for myself. Always study at last minute and continuously at the benches/empty lecture theatres/unoccupied seminar rooms in NTU from morning til evening during the exam preparation period. Yes~ i dun really like to study in libraries. And i dun think i like those examination halls which are big, cold and full of people. I shudder at the sight of students almost burying their heads into the tables.

6. I did not stay in the hostel for many reasons. 1) No entertainment, i.e. TV, PC, telephone 2) No Aircon 3)Got to do own laundry and cooking. 4) My father can bring me to school/home since his workplace is less than 5 mins drive from NTU. 5) Need to join activities to earn points so that i can continue to stay in the hall, which i think is....pointless.

7. I nearly wanted to join the Strings ensemble under the influence from someone (whom i call hubby now) back then. Well, when you are interested in somebody, you are just interested in things that interest him la. I thought there'd be a day when i can play a violin while he play on his bass/cello. I couldn't afford a violin and my coursemate (guy from No.3) bought me a muscial toy violin. Haha~ I gave up that idea as i got plain lazy. The practise timings are in the late evenings. No way i want to reach home ard 11-midnight.

8. The way the students board on the bus (the only bus from Boon Lay interchange to NTU) sometimes made me wonder whether i'm in a university or in the highly populated country, starting with letter 'I'. Okie i think i had exaggerated. But there's definitely no proper queue.

9. Had a very bad cold war with my best friend aka my wifey in 2002, sometime between her 21st birthday and mine. That's a torturing period of 4 months. Imagine you couldnt/don't want talk to someone who is once dear to you? I'd wanted to mend the friendship but being spiteful back then it was hard for me to do so. Thanks to our mutual good friend (wonder if wifey remember who the guy is) who got her to celebrate my 21st birthday together... Hope that nothing will ever tear our friendship apart.

To be continued~ Working piggy's memories (21 ~ 25)

1. What is your name: Ziwei (name of a flower, Crape Myrtle)

http://plantanswers.tamu.edu/trees/crapemyrtle/bashamspartypink.html

2. A four Letter Word: Zeal

3. A boy's Name: Zac

4. A girl's Name: Zoe

5. An occupation: Zoologist

6. A color: Zaffre (wikied this, some shade of cobalt blue)

7. Something you'll wear: Zara

8. A fruit: Zucchini (wikied this, it looks like a cucumber)

9. A food: Zinger burger from KFC

10. Something found in the bathroom: ZA 2-way cake foundation

11. A place: Zurich

12. A reason for being late: Zzzzz

13. Something you'd shout: Zhu (Pig)

14. A movie title: Zorro (Mask of Zorro)

15. Something you drink: Zappel

16. A musical group: Zombies

17. An animal: Zebra

18. A street name: Zion road

19. A type of car: Zephyr (wikied this)

20. The title of a song: Zai Jian by Xiao Hu Dui (means goodbye in english)

In Year 2009, there is a list of things i'd like to start doing:

1) Sleep regularly. Sleep at 1am and wake up at 7am. But i still enjoy the quietness in the wee hours. Hee~

2) Exercise regularly and pick up swimming. Well, this depends a lot on my motivation.

3) Leave the office by 7pm everyday. Except for the week of month end reporting. Need to get a work life balance. Especially now i have only 3 months left to study for my April exam.

4) Pick up cooking, probably from mum during weekends when i go back for visiting. ;p

It'll be great if i can do these consistently for the 1st half of the year...

Okie...my "hua-chi" mode is back again...Just watched one of Joseph Cheng's latest drama, Love or Bread or 我的亿万面包.

鄭元暢 Joseph Cheng

Taiwan / 19th June 1982 / 188cm / 78kg

The first time he caught my attention was in 2005 when I was watching an interview on him in one of the Taiwanese talkshows. He has started off his career as a model, and thus the hostesses asked him to demostrate 2 different styles of catwalks in the show, the active style and the quiet(expressionless) style. And wah...he can do both styles very well. Suave! Professional indeed. He got a very cute laughter too and he's someone who can really laugh out loud when hear something funny. What caught my attention is that this guy, cares a lot about his image and skin that i thought he's narcissist and i attribute this to his modelling and acting career. There are some speculations about his orientation ever since his first drama ('The Rose', see next paragraph) and the suggestive rumours about him and his best friend, Mike He (Another suave-looking guy) at the beginning of this year which caused this pair of good friends to keep a distance from each other. Well, guess this is rather inevitable for people in the entertainment circle.

The Taiwanese drama 'The Rose' or 薔薇之戀 (Based on a Japanese manga) marks the start of his acting career. I'd never watched the Rose' before but from what i gathered, it's a family-love (or incest) story that evolves around 4 half-siblings. Joe, who is acting for the first time has to play a complicated character Kui, who is in love with his older brother and later on for his younger sister, played by Ella from S.H.E. Not only the drama got the most popular drama in 2004, both Ella and Joe also got more main acting roles in other Taiwanese series. Frankly speaking, among the new rising idols in Taiwan, they are one of the better ones who can act pretty well in any role.

But Joe's most popular role is the one in 'It started with a Kiss or ISWAK' (Itazura Na Kiss or 惡作劇之吻), opposite Ariel Lin (who just got the Taiwanese best actress for her role in 'They kiss again', which is the sequel to ISWAK). YES! I had mentioned this in the previous post. This is the same drama which my first love Takashi-san had starred in 1996. Initally, i was quite skeptical of watching the series, when it was aired in Taiwan in 2005 (Oh, it's the most popular series in 2005). I could not imagine how a feminine looking guy (all because of Joe's role in 'The Rose') can play the aloof genius character which i loved most. Haha~ So i never watch the Taiwanese version until it was aired on SCV Channel 56 last year. With the more elaborated script and better acting skills from Joe and Ariel, i personally think that the Taiwanese version surpassed the original one and it also gained popularity in Japan. And sometimes my heart melts as i watched the sweet sweet lovey dovey exchanges between the two of them. Aw... Though the both of them becomes the best onscreen couple and teamed up in 3 idol dramas (3rd one is on air now in Taiwan, called Love or Bread), sparks of love has never seem to go off in real life for them... So sad...Anyway, it's cuz of ISWAK that i started to watch any drama Joe had starred in...heehee~ (Except for a few which i could not find the VCDs here...)

Heartbeat: 3.5 thumps for his hot kisses with Ariel and his cropped hair

吳尊 Wu Zun

Brunei / 10th October 1979 / 181m / 73kg

Which show other than Hana Kimi (Hanazakarino Kimitachihe) that brings Wu Zun to his present popularity level in Asia? His first cameo in Tokyo Juliet (opposite Ariel Lin, too) protrays him as a too pretty boy. I had watched his second drama first and i fall for him instantly. Muahaha~ But if i had watched Tokyo Juliet first, probably i wouldn't think much of him. Heehee~

   Tokyo Juliet (2005)

  Hana Kimi  (2006)  

So what i like about Zun? Not only for his pretty boyish face (he really looks like a woman when he put on a wig and wear a dress in one of the scenes in Tokyo Juliet), but also his sincerity towards his fans (through his blog) Though he doesn't know Mandarin, he still makes the effort to write his blog in both English and Mandarin (of course with the help from his friend, but i see no translation done in the recent posts le). And he bothers to put up photos of the fans he met everywhere (China, Taiwan, HK, Malaysia and Singapore) and the gifts he received from them and also...words of concern and quotes for them. Hee...i may be biased as there may be other artists doing the same... ;p (Chun's Blog: http://www.wretch.cc/blog/wuchun10cool)

As someone from a weathly family in Brunei, he definitely has no airs around him. (heard that his family is the sole car distributor in Brunei) A rather modest young man who is keen to try new things and take on challenges. Learnt that before he got spotted on in Taiwan (for the role in Tokyo Juliet) he used to do modelling in SG. Boy, how could we miss him? Haha~ Not only he has to manage his acting-cum-singing (He's a member of the Taiwan boyband, Farenheit), but also his 'babies' (he owns 2 fitness clubs (Fitness Zone) in Brunei). Thumbs up for hardworking and ambitious man~ He's also very health-conscious (use tissue paper to absorb the oil before eating) and fitness freak (that's how he got his muscular figure, which seems a bit in conflict with his boyish looks...)

Heartbeat: 3.2 thumps for his pretty looks

胡歌 Hu Ge

China, Shanghai / 20th September 1982 / 182m / 72kg

He's the first Mainland chinese actor whom i like~~~ And i think he looks like Fujiki-san.

仙剑奇侠传 (2004)

Got attracted to Hu Ge after watching the drama 仙剑奇侠传 (2004) or Chinese Paladin (it's a popular chinese role playing game which Mr Huang played before) However, i'm not that crazy over him as i did not watch every drama he starred in, probably also due to the less frequent airing of mainland china series? The other few serials that i watched are...天外飞仙 Fairy From Wonderland (Din watch the whole series as the storyline is kinda boring and the ending is kinda sad) and 射雕英雄传 The Legend of the Condor Heroes (i watched the whole 50 episodes in just a week). He acted opposite Ariel Lin in both serials (Again! She seems to always have love affairs with all my favourite actors...haha...but i must say she's a very professional actress who deserves the Best actress award.)

天外飞仙 (2005)

射雕英雄传 (2008)

While filming the 'Legend of the Condor Heros', Hu Ge got into a very serious car accident (sometime in 2006) that not only took away the life of his assistant but also nearly cause him to be disfigured. He had to go through surgeries and took a year to recover. The producer who insisted Hu Ge to take up the leading role, 郭靖 Guo Jing, refused to find a replacement and the filming finally resumed in 3Q2007. And i finally got to watch it in September this year. He's still as suave as ever but probably one can notice a difference in his looks. I think that he seems to look more matured in the 'Condor Heros' compared to the boyish face in 'Chinese Paladin'. Anyway, if one is a fan of 金庸 Jin Yong novels, one may be disappointed in watching this version as the story does have some 'ridiculous' twists in the plot. e.g. How can that evil sworn brother 杨康 Yang Kang changed for the better in the later part of the story? And how on earth the flirtatious son of 西毒 fall in love with Yang Kang's lover, 穆念慈? Nevertheless, i still enjoy watching it...Not only he can act, he also can sing and he has sung songs for his dramas and has his own album this year. Yeah~

武侠梁祝 (2008)

Too bad, i did not manage to catch the movie he acted with Wu Zun and Charlene (TWINS), called 'The Butterfly Lovers', few months back. By right, both Zun and Hu Ge should be able to lure me to spend money to watch it in the cinema (I seldom spend money to watch chinese films in cinemas as SCV always show them on Ch56). But eh...i think i got too realistic and decide to save the money to watch 'Vicky Christina Barcelona'. Now...i'll wait patiently for it to show on SCV or VCD or some online website? Hee~

Heartbeat: 3.7 thumps for his big eyes and boyish looks

The following is written by someone (I dunno). There are 5 paragraphs and each of them represents a different kind of attitude.

1st Para:

I took to the street. There's a deep hole on the sidewalk. I fell into it. I feel lost and in despair. This is not my fault. It took me a big effort to climb out of it.

2nd Para:

I took to the same street. There's a deep hole on the sidewalk. I pretended not to see, but I still fell into it. I can't believe that I fell into the same hole. But this is not my fault. It took me a long time to climb out of it.

3rd Para:

I took to the same street. There's a deep hole on the sidewalk. I saw it right there, but still fell into it. This is a bad habit. I opened my eyes and i know i'm there. This is my fault. I climbed out of it immediately.

4th Para:

I took to the same street. There's a deep hole on the sidewalk. I made a bypass around it.

5th Para:

I took to another street.

We cannot choose whether we want to be born into this world. We cannot choose what kind of experiences we'll face in life.

But we can choose to face them with a different attitude. We can choose to change our way to deal with the present and/or take on an alternative path.

It's up to you to think the cup is half-empty or half-full, or... twice as large as it needs to be?

Okie...i'm going to be 花痴 in this post (and the next). So pardon me for my 花痴ness. Yeah, as you can see my heart doesn't only beat (faster) for one person but also for these few 帅哥啊.

Reason for this post? Well, someone asked who i want on my Hen's night? I replied, 'i want my Wu Zhun or Fujiki Naohito' Haha~~~ So here's the list of candies i want.

1. Takashi Kashiwabara 柏原崇 (my first love)

Birthdate: 16/03/1977   Stats: 178cm/65kg

My heart melt after i watched him playing this character called, Irie Naoki, in the drama 'It started with a Kiss' (or Itazura Na Kiss)Irie-kun is an 18 year old with IQ of 200, but is cold towards people around him, including his own family(yah...he's some handsome intelligent jerk). His world changed after a fellow female schoolmate Sato Kotoko , whose character is totally opposite of his (loud and kind girl but always get into dumb incidents) enter his life, whom he fall for unconsciously as days go by. The drama was aired in Japan in 1996 but i only caught it on TV around 4 years later. Since then, I'd collect dramas and movies where he plays the leading role, like 'Shota no Sushi'(1996), 'Big Wing'(2001), 'Love Letter' (1995) and 'Another Heaven' (1999?). But somehow, i think that probably it's Irie-kun who is my first love, not Kassy.  Probably i like the way he shows his genuine care and concern for Kotoko when she's not looking. So sweet~ 'Love Letter' is another movie that caught many gals' hearts.

Heartbeat: 3(times faster) for his enchanting eyes and cute boyish looks

2. Fujiki Naohito 藤木直人 (aka my lover)

Birthdate: 19/07/1972   Stats: 180cm/62kg

The second Japanese actor i love. Greatest love of all. 'Love Revolution' is the drama which got me enticed into him. The way he walks (with style), the way he smiles, the way he calls his lover Kyo~ ko san~... 'Love Revolution' is the one drama that  shot him into fame and he took the leading role in several dramas after that like 'Antique' where he's a mysterious Pastry master; 'Hatsu Taiken' where he's a handsome target of a 27-yr-old virgin; 'Nurse no Oshigoto' where he plays a dumb-looking doctor; 'Kou Kou Kyoushi' where he's a high school teacher with some terminal illness and fall for his student (dark character); 'Game' where he's some cool advertising executive; 'Itoshi Kimie' where he's a professional photographer who is losing his eyesight in a couple of months;  'Gal circle' where he's some funny looking cowboy from Arizona, sent to Japan to look for a girl by name of Imoko; 'Hotaru No Hikari' (One of his latest drama in that i watched) where he's a divorcee staying (unexpectedly) with his female employee who is a 'dried-up' fish, one who prefers to laze at home than to look for romance.

He also acted alongside with Kassy my first love in this move 'Shukumei' (2004) in which they are 2 different brothers by blood. I was looking high and low for this movie after i learnt both of them are in it. The shops in SG were not selling the VCD then (and even now) and i had to ask my ex-colleague who goes back Malaysia every weekend to buy for me from JB. Haha~

He's talented not only in acting, but also song-writing and singing. So far, i've been downloading his songs and got just one concert DVD. I even thought of learning Japanese so that one day i can fly to Japan to watch his concert. But i guess it's a too late now since he got married to his gf of 8 years in 2006. However, his image was tainted several months back when he's reported to have an extramartial affair.

Heartbeat: 5 (times faster) for his mesmerizing eyes, smile and cute unique voice (I might even faint if he smiles at me)

花痴ness To be continued...

One piece of advice when you are choosing your wedding gown is: never bring along too many people with you (1-2 is fine) or bring 2 different groups of people, else u'll find yourself in a dilemma...

So what has happened to me? I had chosen my wedding gown and tea dress with my 2 sisters on last weekend. So, this weekend, i brought my Mr Yellow, my Papa along with me to try on the groom's suit and father's jacket while I look for an evening gown. My mum, my kid brother and my sis-in-law came along to join in the fun. I tried putting on 3 evening gowns: one red halter neck dress, one dark red with some black ribbon and one dark purple with jewel embriodery which makes me look like an Indian.

After deciding on the red + black ribbon a-line gown as my evening wear, I put on the wedding gown and tea dress to seek for some approval. But...i got a 'NO' from ALL of them~ Fine...but i must say it was quite disheartening to hear that. Anyway Mr Yellow decided that he has to interfere and flip through the wedding gown picture samples.

He picked 2 strapless ball gowns (like a dictator) for me to try on: 1 ball gown that is flared on the bottom and covered with embroidery on the bodice and on the circumference of the skirt (see photo A, not exactly the same one as the one i tried is fully embroidered with gold threads on the bodice and train) and the other ball gown with ruffled bottom, embroidered with crystal beadings and sequins (see photo B, same thing...just looks quite similar to what i tried on). 

The 2nd one was chosen as the 1st one looks similar to my evening gown which is an A-line style of dress with a few pleats on the skirt. As for my tea dress, we settled on a lavender dress (for now). I'm contemplating whether i should get a made-to-measure cheongsam to match Mr Yellow's cream-white 中山装 (suit with mandarin collar).

The final gown fitting and trial make-up and hairdo will be on the 21st Dec, one week away from the actual day. Hopefully i will lose 3-4 kgs by then. Haha~

Here's a sneak preview of my EG (Front view of the dress)

At last, I made a trip down to the bridal shop at Telok Ayer with my jie-meis to pick my wedding gown on last Sat evening.  My appointment was around 6+, but i got attended to only after 8pm as the staff were kept busy by a few couples around and we decided to have a coffee break somewhere nearby. It was a fruitful one as my jie-meis and I managed to draft out with some gate crashing ideas and we have a great laugh while doing it.

Here's an unflattering sneak preview of me in the gown. Too bad i wasn't allowed to snap photos of the gowns that i'd tried. There's another halter neck gown which is elegantly hand embroidered with tiny purple flowers along the neckline and bottom of the gown. Too bad i look rather matured in that dress and so i decide to stick to my first choice. Oh by the way, I like this gown right after i tried it on...even before i sign the package with Volans. It is this dress + the reasonable pricing + the owner's warm service attitude (who is a taiwanese btw)  that make me decide to take up the package. Sad to say, lazy piggy has not been watching her diet nowadays that she no longer fits in the gown nicely. Goal for her by end of Nov shall be: To fit into the gown without a rubber band on the zip at the back of the gown. Hiak, to think the zip can be nicely zipped up 3 months back...

I'd checked out the wedding banquet decor on the same day, with Mr Yellow and here are some photos...

View from the stage

The lightings.

  Table decor. A stalk of red rose...

Reception Area. Notice the man in black?

Overall, it doesn't give me the wow feeling and i feel more can be done here. Need to think on how to enhance the decor without any knocking and hitting with minimal costs...

This post is highly correlated to the previous one. I'd attended a career development course last week (because Your Majesty had asked me to attend plus i need to fulfil some internal requirement.) No no...i didn't write the previous post just becase i attended the course. It was meant to mark the 1st July 5-year milestone in my working life and the post was awfully late.

Anyway, the whole course focuses mainly on where you are now, what you want to be and how to get there. The class was asked to do a quiz to identify our career anchors - i.e. one's particular perception/orientation towards working values and priorities. Basically, there are 8 types of career anchors:

1) Technical/Functional Competence

This kind of person likes being good at something and will work to become a guru or expert. They like to be challenged and then use their skills to meet the challenge, doing the job properly and better than almost anyone else.

2) Managerial Competence

These people want to be managers. They like problem-solving and dealing with other people. They thrive on responsibility. To be successful, they also need emotional competence.

3)Autonomy/Independence

These people have a primary need to work under their own rules and 'steam'. They avoid standards and prefer to work alone

4) Stability/Security

These people seek stability and continuity as a primary factor of their lives. They avoid risk and are generally ‘lifers’ in their job

5) Entrepreneurial creativity

These people like to invent things, be creative and most of all to run their own businesses .They differ from those who seek autonomy in that they will share the workload. They find ownership very important. They get easily bored Wealth, for them, is a sign of success.

6) Service/Dedication to a cause

Service-orientated people are driven more by how they can help other people than by using their talents. They may work in public services or in areas such as human resources.

7) Pure Challenge

People driven by challenge seek constant stimulation and difficult problems that they can tackle. Such people will change jobs when the current one gets boring, and their career can be varied.

8) Lifestyle

Those who are focused first on lifestyle look at their whole pattern of living. Rather than balance work and life, they are more likely to integrate the two. They may even take long periods of time off work in which to indulge in passions such as travelling.

After tabulating the scores of the list of questions on my values and motives, it turns out that my highest score (value) falls under Technical/Functional competence, followed by Stability/Security and Lifestyle. My lowest scores fall under the Managerial and Autonomy categories.

I'm not surprised at my own results. I know I'm definitely not one of those kind to work towards for a managerial position. I rather hold a stable job (stable job doesn't mean doing the same tasks) that can make use of my expertise and that allows me to have a work/life balance PLUS working under a good boss for the rest of my life. While i'm working for my ex-boss a few years back, I could even think of being his assistant for as long as he's in the same company as me. But well, circumstances and thinking had changed and i'm working somewhere else now. To me, it's important to work for someone who appreciates your efforts and have faith in you completing the tasks entrusted. I know i'm expected to work like a working machine and should deliver work whenever asked to do so, even in the shortest deadline one could imagine. But it'd be great to have someone who will, besides providing you the opportunities to learn, to give some words of encouragement and guidance whenever needed. I'll never forget the one time when my ex-boss encouraged me when he could sense that i'm demotivated at work. His words hit right at the spot and i felt quite touched to have someone who bother to care. But now, i know i got to stand on my own feet and work towards being a 称职的精算师. Though, sometimes i wonder where my path is heading to...and whether it'll reach the final destination.

1st July 2003, marks a milestone in my life. My first day as a working adult.

I remember that interviewers always like to ask this question, 'Where do you see yourself in 5 years time?'

Yah, back then i probably had given stupid answer like, 'I'd probably pass most of my actuarial exams?' Seriously, i had no idea at all about what will happen to me in five years time. No planning, no anticipation. I just want to get a job and earn my bread.

How was i like 5 years ago?

Fresh actuarial graduate from local university, yearning to find out what actuarial work is all about. Thought that salary is not as important as getting work experience. Wore stockings and covered shoes on my first day at work. Knocked off from work between 6 to 7.

Hated waking up at 7 on every weekday morning and simply couldn't imagine myself doing this for five days in a week for the next few decades of my life. After all, i only attended 2 to 3 days of lessons during the Uni days. Asked my senior how she manage this kind of lifestyle, and the answer she gave me was 'Well, I'd never thought of this, probably i just got used to this kinda life.'

Studied hard for my actuarial exams. Burnt my weekends to study, make notes, do past year exam questions over and over again. I want my increment and I hope to qualify within the shortest time possible.

Always looking forward to my work assignments for the day and would think whether the things i do justify the pay i getting...

Non-alcoholic drinker. Someone who would order fruit juice at Paulander. Doesnt dare to open mouth in KTV. Suffer from verbal constipation.

Enjoy taking bus rides home from work. Would spend the 1 hour reflecting what i had done for the day on the last row of the bus.

Now,

Stale actuarial graduate. Got a diploma in Actuarial techniques, still far away from being qualified. Starting to wonder if yours truly is cut off for this line. Think that salary is as important as the gaining experience. Wear high heeled slippers to work or walk barefooted in office. Trying to get some work/life balance.

Gotten used to waking up early everyday. Will automatically open eyes at 8am even on weekends. (And of course after realising it's a sat or sun, i'd turn back to zzz...). Still do not have the habit of setting alarm clock.

No longer burn weekends like i do in the past. Spend more effort in finding the motivation lost than writing pretty notes. Think that it'll probably take another x number of years for yours truly to qualify.

Look forward to clear outstanding tasks on my table or on my mind. Just do whatever comes first or anything urgent or important. Will make sure to claim OT allowance every month.

Social drinker, not 酒鬼 (Jiu gui). But sorry i do not drink with anyone, anyhow and at any place. Only enjoy drinking with people whom i enjoy their company. KTV, same thing, works on selective basis. But still suffer from verbal constipation.

Getting less tolerant to the crowd during the peak hours. Stare into blank space or sleep during the MRT ride home. Think that it's important to find a house near the workplace.

Next 5 years... 

So, where do i see myself in 5 years time? I haven't been giving any serious thoughts about this question. Or perhaps, you can say i lack the courage of exploring things beyond my comfort zone. But i know the things that i like to do and excel in and the things i don't.  The little steps i'm taking now, will definitely lead me somewhere, but where i'd be is beyond my imagination. Taking one step at a time and be patient or planning mid term goals and realising them? Which method will work for me? Hmm...let's wait another 5 years...

As some of you might have already known, my customary wedding date is near...in less than 3 months time. So i've been hearing the same question every now and then, "How's your preparations?" or "Do you need any help?" Most (or maybe all) people are shocked to hear i replied, "What preparations?" or "What is there to prepare?" or maybe i was showing too bo-chup face. I dread hearing the question but i do appreciate people who asked cuz i know they are showing concern.

Okie...my wedding is going to be a simple affair or you can say it's the standard kind of wedding that one usually attends in SG.

The groom will fetch the bride early in the morning, going through some of the sisters' tortures or tests before bringing her over to his place for tea ceremony. Groom and Bride will then return to bride's place for tea ceremony (again) and invite some relatives and friends for lunch buffet at Bride's place. The couple will then have a few hours of rest (i hope) before heading for the restaurant/hotel where they can start preparing themselves for the night. Brothers and sisters will help to set up the reception table, bring out the wedding album and guestbook as well as the screen projector to show the wedding highlights or photo-montage. Guests will arrive before and after the stated time on the invitation card. Dinner will start after most of the guests have arrived. A typical banquet will last for 3 hours. The couple will make 2 appearances (or march-in) in 2 different sets of gowns/suits, followed by the typical cake cutting session, yam seng and phototaking session. The whole event will end with the couple expressing their appreciation to their guests with handshakes. Ok...then time for bed...

Now, about wedding preparations...

Once you had booked your bridal package(that typically covers pre-wedding photoshoot, makeup, gown/suit rentals, hand bouquet and car-decor) and venue for hosting the wedding banquet, plus you had already taken the photoshoot, i'd think 50% of the preparations has already been done.

As for the banquet venue, the restaurant will do most of the stuff for you (like decoration of the venue, dummy wedding cake, champagne pouring session, free usage of screen projector plus the most impt thing, invitation cards!) The only thing i'd need to prepare is my guest list and my sitting arrangement. Oh yes, and some 20 bottles of wine for my guests.

As i had already taken my photoshoot in Taiwan 5 months ago, plus I'd gotten the album almost 2 months back, all i need now is an Actual day photographer plus videographer. The bridal package which i had signed up with this bridal shop called, Volans Couture is inclusive of an actual day PG. As for VG, i'd already booked one from Vocare media. These bookings were made in July. I visited around 4 bridal shops (Went to Divine Couture, MyBridalRoom plus a little shophouse in Bugis, as well as GoldenHorseAwards @ Marina square on a fine Saturday afternoon with my dear sisters. Then, I got introduced to Volans by a good friend of mine, who's getting married a month earlier than me. Reason for signing up the package with Volans is that the price is reasonable plus i fell in love with one of their gowns (not sure if they reserved it for me though, haha~)

Food tasting was carried out just last Sunday (that's 5 months after we made the booking, haha). 210 invitation cards will be sent for printing, once we confirm the wordings on coming Tues. Guest lists had already been prepared separately by my father and father-in-law. As for ours, i managed to put them into writing on last sunday as well. There'll be around 25-30 tables and i can confirm the attendance just 1 month before the actual day.

Got 3 brothers who agreed to lend their cars for the day. Confirmed 5 brothers and 5 sisters to help us on the actual day. 2 Emcees yet to confirm as they are in Europe for their honeymoon now and it's a last min change(Hee~). Had a mini discussion on the colour theme, ranging from blue to pink and then purple plus some xmas related colours like green and red (since our wedding is 3 days after xmas)

So, by now, i'd think i'm 60% prepared.

The remaining 40% shall be gown fitting (Groom already got his tailor suit, so no worries), trial makeup, getting the guo da li stuff and buffet caterer (which my dear mum will prepare most of it), wine-shopping and sending off invitation cards. Oh yes, and getting brother Gary to do the photo montage. Plus getting my mum her dress? Haha~

Back to my question, what's there for me to prepare after i had done and plan all above?

These are all left for me to prepare, which i think can be done in a fast, smooth and relaxing way. Why do you need to bother yourself with small stuff when things will be prepared by the experts? Haha~

A friend just asked me, "Don't you have a dream/ideal wedding?"

Of course i had. But all the dreams and excitement were already shattered long time ago when we talk about going through the customary wedding. "It'll be done in the traditional way. Dun try anything funny or go westernized." This is what i guess my mum would say. "Let's keep it a simple affair or better still...". this is what i expect the other party to say. Ok~ i'll have no say in my OWN wedding. So we'll keep it small, simple and relaxed manner, Get It Over and Done with, OK?

It's just a ceremony. What matters most is the marriage life after that. True~ I agree totally. One can hold a luxurious wedding ceremony which will become a bubble when one gets a divorce later on. So i dare not bear any more hopes or imaginations. I dare not read any more bridal magazines. I have to suppress my envious feelings when i attend other people's weddings. I dare not hope i'd be able to do the same things as other newly-weds. I wonder what i should say on the banquet apart from "Thank you for taking time out of your busy schedule to attend..."  I just hope the whole event is a peaceful, non-chaotic and joyous event. I think I should be glad that i'm able to hold a wedding banquet to invite some relatives and friends to share the joy of us going through this important process of our lives. 

Why am i feeling so indifferent / bochup now?

To me, it no longer matters to me right now...I just feel tired.  All enthusiam and anticipation had been dissolved by 1.5 years of confused status (officially Mrs Huang, Traditionally Ms Lee) added on by some unpleasant and insensitive discussions. And why should i be bothered when the closest ones just can't be bothered? The whole event, i start to feel, is beginning to be pointless and meaningless. I do not want to be seen as some hot pan sticking onto some cold stone base. You wanna be cool, I'll be cool too~

Just that my mum wants to see her only daughter getting married off in a way which is deemed proper, traditional and one that would gain others' recognition and blessings. "No bridal car, no ceremony, it'll be meaningless"  I'd think that she hopes that i'd feel wanted, feel belonged, feel accepted by another family in this way? I think i'm still lucky that i have my buddies who help to rekindle a bit of excitement hidden somewhere inside me...esp when we were going around looking at bridal gowns. Yeah~ I'd encourage any brides-to-be to go gown shopping with some gal friends (Without the groom) first so that you'll face little pressure to sign any package on the spot.  ;)

Who doesn't want to be a princess waiting for her prince to bring her to the castle on a white horse?

Though my name is the name of some royal princess, it doesn't mean i'll really be regarded as a princess. Face the reality and prepare to be 黄脸婆。

Last few thoughts

To any brides-to-be, it is normal if your groom is bochup with the preparations. Some reasons i can think of:

(1)Really heck care or lazy  (2)He doesn't wan to mess up your dream wedding  (3)They are going to be puppets on the actual day and have to be responsible for you for the rest of your life, so dun add any more pressure to them  (4) Totally ignorant/oblivious or not receptive to norms and traditional practices

Wedding, is a ceremony in which 2 different individuals come together to exchange their vows and rings, which are symbols of love and commitment.  To keep it low or keep it high profile, it depends how the couple perceive the importance of it. Most important thing is, quoting my mistress, "Both of you must stand on the same line..."

I'm not obsessed with losing weight. I'll just find a gown that fits me and makes me look good. So, i'll not worry that i couldnt fit into the gown. Muahaha~

I think i was a lot more excited when i was searching for a bridal studio to arrange a pre-wedding photoshoot in Taiwan than to prepare for the actual wedding now.

Marriage is like a partnership, not just sleeping partners.

P/s: I'm supposed to copy and paste my conversation with urnice into this blogpost. Sad to say, i'd accidentally close the chat window before i can Ctrl+C and Ctrl+V. Hope i'd covered most of it here. Aahaha...

I'd missed out a few places which we visited when we first arrived at the southern part of Taiwan. Mr Huang's aunt drove us in her little orange car to one of the harbours in Kaohsiung, a fish market as well as the beach.

Lover's Wharf, Jiading (茄萣鄉) Kaohsiung County (高雄縣)

Fish market at Jiading.

We had the freshest sashimi we had ever tried at this little stall. The tuna sashimi tasted so different from what we always eat at the Japanese restaurants in SG. The texture of the fish slice is not powdery at all, or in fact it has a smooth texture. And the best part is, it's cheap! Around NT$200 for (Forgot that's 3 or 4 kinds) around 20+ pieces!

Aunty buying some 烏魚子 or Karasumi in the leftmost photo. Karasumi, or preserved fish roe. A delicacy in Taiwan and Japan. I'd tried it baked and cut into thin slices. Eat it with mayonnaise sauce and it simply tastes oiishi!! Yumyum!

Went to the one of the beaches after lunch at the marketplace. Weather in the southern Taiwan is quite comparable to that in Singapore. But but...when i first step onto the beach...omg...the sand is scorching hot! The beach is covered with such fine and hot sand. To make it worst...i was wearing slippers. Flat slippers. And I had to walk briskly to the water to sav my feet from being barbequed. Fortunately, there isn't much for us to do there and we decided to drive back to Tainan for Grandpa who has been awaiting our arrival. Hee~

Next...on Hualien (To be cont)

As Mr Huang's grandpa has moved to stay with his aunt in Tainan, we made a trip down from Taipei the following day we reached Taiwan via the high speed railway (高鐵). The whole journey took us 1 hour plus and the fastest speed the train can go is 300km/hr. It has cut short the travelling time by half. Travelling from north to south is so much easier for us now compared to taking the 台鐵 from Taipei to Kaohsiung 3 years ago.

Tainan city, like his aunt had described, you'll get to see a little temple in every 3 steps and a big one in every 7 steps (三步一小廟, 七步一大廟). Haha~ It's a place full of temples, shrines and historical sites and buildings. This is due to the fact that it is one of those places where the people from Mainland China first settled down in the Formosa. In fact, it was the capital of Taiwan from the mid-17th century(when Koxinga or well-known Ming admiral Zheng Chenggong drove away the Dutch from the island and set up his kingdom there) to late 19th century under the Qing dynasty. Today, it remains the 4th largest city (oldest as well) in Taiwan (after Taipei, Kaohsiung and Taichung) and is a city rich of traditional flavour and culture. Food in Tainan definitely tastes different from what you can find in Taipei (though i have not finished trying all the local delicacies) and the weather is so much friendlier (i.e. warmer) than that in the latter.

Historical sites in Tainan are divided to different grades, ranges from First class to second class and third class. (一級古蹟, 二級古蹟, 三級古蹟). As photo has shown, we went to Chih-kan Tower (First class) aka Fort Provintia, esta in 1653, has 300 over years of history.

Sidetrack a bit, the sashimi served at this mini stall opposite the tower is cheap and good~

After the sashimi lunch, we headed to The Sacrificial Rites Martial Temple (First class) nearby. (Esta around same time, is situated opposite the Chih-Kan Tower)

Followed by The Confucian Temple (First class), esta 1665

and the Koxinga Shrine, (First class), esta 1662

Eternal Golden Castle (built in 1874 to protect Taiwan from the Japanese army) and Old Fort of An-Ping (est by Dutch in 1623 as a Trading Port)

Some other sightings in the city.

Must try food in Tainan city. Chou's Fried Shrimp rolls. I love their almond pudding topped with red bean paste. Had 2 in 2 consecutive days.

Night markets are not to be missed in Tainan too. We visited the largest night market in Tainan on our 2nd night there and you can find almost everything there, from local flavoured food to clothes, bags and accessories. Their preserved fruits (can't remember what i ate) are delicious too.

Some interesting sights of the streets at night in Tainan-city. Huge wall paintings and traditional row houses along Shennong-street 神農街. Somehow it just remind me of those conserved shophouses in Chinatown.

    Famous street art along Hai-an street.

Hello~

Same artwork in daylight. (It looks nicer in the night) We spotted a couple doing their wedding photoshoot here.

Went to Cigu 七股 to visit the Taiwan Salt museum and the salt mountain on our 3rd day in Tainan. The museum introduces different methods of producing salt (the oldest method was the solar/evaporation method) and their uses as well as the history of the salt production in Taiwan. The salt production has ceased in Taiwan today and the country imported its supply from Australia.

Tucheng Luermen Matsu Temple. (Largest temple in Southeast Asia consecrated to Matsu and copied the structure of Forbidden City in Beijing)

Spotted one of the staircase well that is covered with thousands of wedding photos. Apparently, these people went to pray to the God of marriages and got hitched after that.

Flowers flowers flowers. There are a few patches of vacant land, grown with my favourite flower, Sunflowers! However, a lot of them have already wilted and it's difficult to find a good spot to take 'the perfect flower sea'. So, I tried to focus taking on a few stalks.(Don't they look smiling to you?)

Love these as well...

Hope to visit Tainan again soon~ (To be cont)

Referred websites: http://www.tncg.gov.tw/ and http://www.taiwan-salt.com.tw/english/intro.html

Aw...Finally i have time to update on my 2-week long Taiwan trip. Mr Huang and I travelled to four places this time round and our itininery was like this:  Taipei (10/5)  -> Tainan (11/5 to 14/5) ->Back to Taipei (14/5) -> Ilan (15/5 to 16/5) -> Hualien (17/5 to 19/5) ->Back to Ilan (19/5) -> Back in Taipei (20/5 to 24/5)

Day 1 (Taipei)

No photos taken on my first day in Taipei as it was my 3rd time there. Haha~ We reached the Formosa at around 1pm. His uncle came to fetch us and brought us to Mr Huang's old apartment in Shipai 石牌. The apartment was 6 storeys high and there is no lift. This is not my first time staying there and i have to bear in mind not to bring too heavy luggages as poor Mr Yellow has to carry them up 6 floors. Fortunately his mum dropped by a few days to clean the house for us before she returned to SG, else i'd have to spend the whole afternoon to clean up the place.

However, i realised i'm not satisfied at all. There's no TV in the house (his uncle moved it away). I can survive without internet, but my next impt entertainment is unavailable. Aw...The whole house is so quiet. And as usual, the water heater is not working at all. If the climate is similar to that of SG, i should be able to bathe without warm water. But the climate in Taipei is almost like winter in mid-May, which is totally unexpected (I only brought short sleeved shirts and 3/4 pants for the 2 of us). So, we spent almost 1 hour to use the electric flask to heat up enough tapwater (4 times the volume of the electric flask) for us to have a warm bath.

Enough of complaints, i should be happy enough to have a room to stay. Like Mr Yellow said, i'm too pampered. I almost want to get a hotel room but the thought that his mum had cleaned the house for us to have a comfort stay puts the idea off. After we dropped off the luggages at his place, we took the MRT to the famous Shilin Night market for an early dinner. Wah...the first thing we ate is the oyster omelette with sweet sauce 蚵仔煎,  smelly fried beancurd 臭豆腐 and my favourite Ru Rou Fan 魯肉飯(minced meat rice). Yum yum. I missed 魯肉飯 a lot~ The next thing i missed is the breakfast stall near his house, that sells 肉圓 and 四神湯!

Finally had this for breakfast on my 6th day in Taiwan (after we visited Tainan and before we went to Ilan). Doesn't look that great huh? Apparently, this is the Zhang-hua Rou Yuan 彰化肉圓. It's starch with meat filling, covered with special sweet sauce. See...that cloudy white thing is the sweet sauce. I find the soup goes well with it as it has a light and quiet taste and the intenstines are springy. Oh i'm salivating now...Everywhere has 肉圓 but the tastes can be different cuz I had one in Tainan and it tastes different from this.

See...Even the looks are different. This one was served together with clear soup, which is not to my liking...

Next part will be on my Tainan Trip~