The Right Choice

Life is really about making choices everyday, isn't it? From choosing what to wear to work, what to eat for lunch to what career path to choose...
I had a discussion in Kyoto last Friday with my boss, he gave me 2 choices; one is to go back to the sales office in Singapore and be the General Manager of the Administration Department, two is to help him setup a new Logistics Branch and become the Global Head of Logistics. I chose the later... I am not sure if it's the right choice but the truth is, I do not want to be a GM having to report to a boss who is an idiotic salesman having no other skills except the ability to keep a smiling face at his customers no matter how nasty they are. (That's a skill I hope I will never have to master...)
My boss K is happy with my choice, he will then not have to give me up to the other departments and I will still be under his jurisdiction. K introduced me to the company's president S, he agreed to meet me for dinner and had specially arranged for sushi at one of the top hotel in Kyoto. S was physically smaller than how I had expected him to be but his presence is BIG! He has the aura of a very successful and influential man, he has founded a company of more than 3000 staff in Japan and I think nearly more than 20,000 staff worldwide, he is BIG! And I had the utmost honor to have dinner with him and even take a couple of photos with him! I have made history, in the company and in this humble life of mine... Now I have to buy a beautiful photo frame and put up the photo on my desk!

Suspension of visa-free China trips for Singaporeans

At present, Singapore ordinary passport holders who travel to China for 15 days or less do not require a visa; only those who spend more than 15 days need to produce a visa. But starting 1 July, Singaporeans who travel to China for 15 days or less will also require a visa. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) said it has been given the assurance by the Chinese authorities that the suspension is only a temporary measure. According to the ministry, the visa-free facility for travels of 15 days or less "would be reinstated after the Beijing Olympics", although no exact date has been given. - CNA/ac
http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/singaporelocalnews/view/342799/1/.html

This must be one of the most infuriating news this morning...What temporary measure? For what? To give people more reasons to boycott the Olympics? What are they so afraid of? What about those of us who are working in Hong Kong and needs to travel into China frequently on short business trips? This is ridiculous...

Golf in the rain

Went to play golf at Palm Island Resorts over the weekend with another couple. Had a fabulous time despite the heavy rain on Saturday due to the passing typhoon. Playing golf in the typhoon rain can be quite an experience, something to remember for a long time...

I had played golf while it rained before, but it was no way compared to what we had been through this weekend. Other than the rain, there was no lightning, so it was relatively safe to continue and all 4 of us were good sport even though we were drenched through before the end of the 1st 9 holes. W's wife was really a good sport, quite unlike my previous female golf partner who will never have agreed to play because she would say, "my makeup would be ruined and my shirt will stick to my skin and it would be uncomfortable!" and blah blah blah. -_-
I have always like playing golf as I think golf is such an enjoyable and interesting game. The players are constantly exposed to the natural elements and the results of the game is always quite unpredictable (at least for my case).

I particularly like being away from all the hassle of the urban city and play my golf leisurely, admiring the beautiful greenery, enjoying the natural aroma emitted from the plants and trees. The rain on Saturday gave the course another atmospheric feel which was surprisingly beautiful to me and made me feel romantic.

The typhoon was at its full force that night bringing more strong wind and rain to the resort...but the next morning, it was clear and we had another round of golf before leaving in the afternoon. And when I expect myself to play better, I actually played worse in the clear weather... Maybe I should only play when it rains?

Starting on Photoshop...

Inspired by Xiaxue's photoshop skills in making her own photos look so good and also motivated by how easy hubby makes it look when demonstrating to me, I am starting to learn how to use the Adobe Photoshop software...
And the truth is...IT IS NOT SO EASY! I hate reading user guide books! I think it's going to take quite a while for me to pick up the skills...Give me some time, I will pick up the basics and post my "works" here soon~

Million Blog List

I'm # 499



I've made my contribution, why don't you too?
Simply go to the below link and get started...
http://millionbloglist.com/index.php?title=Main_Page

The Singapore Flyer

Hooray! PM Lee officially opened The Singapore Flyer yesterday! And the best thing is, my family have been on the Flyer exactly 10 days before PM Lee! Yippee!

It was really a wonderful experience as the view of the city from the top (165m) was really beautiful...

This photo was taken from inside the Flyer's cabin at about 7pm on 5th April 2008. See the beautiful sun setting in the background? See the Esplanade? (The 2 beetle looking structures...) The floating soccer field is really cool, isn't it? I would love to watch a match here with hubby some day! Must be this on my wish list...

Other than the ride itself, I found that the man-made rainforest under the Flyer really refreshing. It's beautifully landscaped with small rivers, miniature waterfalls and even little "volcano holes" emitting cool mist to cool the air! I know most naturalists would find this all so "corny" but I think it's the Singaporean way of showing hospitality to visiting tourists to our beautifully landscaped hot tropical island.

A stroll through this rainforest really helped to refresh my body and soul. It was the sweet smell of the plants, the soothing sound of the waters and most importantly, the non-polluted air that had made my day so wonderful. I love Singapore!

Wonderful Weekend

I had a wonderful and eventful weekend starting with a nice romantic dinner at R66 with hubby. It's a revolving restaurant at the 62nd floor of Hopewell Center, not the tallest building in Hong Kong but on a clear day, the view should be rather good. Unfortunately, the sky was pathetically foggy that evening, so we really couldn't see very far...but with hubby so handsome beside me, I didn't really need the view. ;) The restaurant reminded me of Top of the M, a revolving restaurant at the Meritus Mandarin back home where I used to bring Japanese tourists for dinners. They had set dinner courses, also buffet Hi-teas and lunches.

The buffet spread at R66 was just okay, nothing fantastic but the ambiance was nice and quiet. At least where we were seated, I didn't have to hear strangers' conversations coming from neighbouring tables all night because for a change, all the couples sitting near us were talking softly. I am sure everybody who have been to enough restaurants in Hong Kong would agree with me that the conversations these Hong Kong people hold over their meals can be ridiculously loud and annoying. I mean I will usually be forced fed all sorts of grievances, juicy gossips and maddening opinions while trying to have a meal! I'm beginning to wonder if all these "forced feedings" had caused me put on so much weight ever since I arrived in Hong Kong...??

Anyway, back to my weekend...so Friday night was dinner date with hubby... then Saturday was the most interesting day...so proud of hubby. He was invited to attend a marketing event by Marriott Vacation Club and the catch for us was a HK$800 gift card to be spent at any restaurants in JW Marriott. I had been to events like these, I know there will be real hard-selling and I also know that we may not be able to leave the venue without spending more than the gift they give out. But hubby had determination made of steel, after about 3 hours, we walked out with our gift, our pockets untouched. *Phew!* I was almost lured into joining the cheapest package they offered! Yeah, I am weak...no doubt about it...but I like the Marriott a lot, I would recommend anybody with extra cash to spend to join the club as I really think that it's a good deal. At the moment, it's just not the right time for us...too many uncertainties and too much commitments.

With the gift, we headed to JW Marriott for hi-tea and spent the lazy afternoon there eating cheeses and crepes. They were really good! Of course there were more than just cheeses and crepes, but they were my favourites from the buffet spread. (Now you know the real reason that I am putting on weight? Buffets...) :D

At night, we went for the Duran Duran concert held at the open space beside Elements in Kowloon. It was a great concert! The audience were ecstatic! Nobody sat down for the whole 2 hours of the concert! So different from those concerts by local artistes. I had liked Duran Duran since high school days and hearing them sing live was really something for me. Memories, memories...I felt young again! I was dancing all night and the passing rain didn't dampen my spirits. I got wet alright but I was still happy. It would have been perfect if not for my aching feet after the concert...Hubby had to piggyback me some of the way home!

Then Sunday was spent lazy at home...no makeup, no heels, no push-up bra, just a 100% natural state me bumming most of the day away. Now that's a really good weekend for me~ :D

Jetstar Experience

It was my first time on a budget airline last weekend when I flew back to Singapore with hubby on Jetstar Asia. Hubby had taken it a couple of times before and definitely wouldn't recommend it to anyone who is on the heavier side because the seats are really narrower and the plane is really quite small. Anyway, other than the plane being small and that there wasn't any entertainment, there was some happening during the departure from HK which caused the flight to be delayed for slightly more than an hour.
We arrived at the departing gate 45 mins early, knowing that we would have to take the bus to get to the plane. It was gate 11 and the plane was due to departs at 20:15. Everything seemed normal, so hubby and I took our seats at the waiting area and played our NDS games. After about half and hour, there were people crowding at the gate and some angry shoutings...I started to get curious, so I went to check things out. What happened was, the flight which was suppose to depart at 11am that morning didn't make it due to some technical problems and the passengers were left stranded without proper arrangements. Of course they were angry and they were also determined to get on our flight home! The shoutings and scoldings went on for an hour before the airport security and the HK police arrived. I do sympathise with their plight, they were waiting for 10 hours and all, but I was quite pissed with the fact that they tried to jeopardise our flight too. One of the protestor was saying, "If we don't get onto the next flight, nobody gets onto the flight at all!" Shamefully, I think he was a Singaporean...In the end, the airline had to open the next available gate which was gate 13 and started the boarding process. The angry protestors went to gate 13 too, of course but the police declared that they will arrest anybody who will continue to create problems for the passengers and the airline. So, finally at 9:15pm, we go onto the bus and then at around 9:45pm, we departed from HK. *Phew~*

I'm not sure if it was the chaos before the flight or being 1st time on a budget airline, but I was rather happy and excited when I got into my seat. Immediately I decided on the souvenir from the shopping brochure. (I don't usually buy anything on flights, I bought the teddy bear because I don't think I will ever want to take this airline anymore.)

From the menu : Suzuki coffee, mineral water, Snickers and potato chips.

Entertainment : NDS

Learning to accept disppoinments...

My eyes are so swollen...I look like a goldfish today...I know shouldn't have cried so hard before I went to sleep last night, but I just couldn't control myself. I was overwhelmed by emotions, I miss my children, I am disappointed with daughter N, and then I started to self-blame...
Disappointment came from daughter N, she was totally nonchalant about my returning home for the weekend, she lost her report book but she didn't give a damn about it, she was constantly SMS-ing her friends,...she has become one of the typical terrible teenager. She has become a stranger to me...not my darling little girl anymore. Maybe it's because I am not around enough to be able to get used to her change, her change might have been gradual but to me, it came as a shock. I started to think if it was all due to my fault and I started to be critical to myself. Maybe it was the broken marriage, maybe it was the fact that I am working here in HK, maybe...there're just too many "maybe".
Then I read gweipo's blog about Two Bad Bricks this morning...I really shouldn't focus too much on N's bad points, I shouldn't put my expectations too high and most importantly, I should not be too critical about myself. There are so many things that I have done RIGHT!

Going HOME~

Going home to Singapore this 3 days weekend and really looking forward to it. We will be going up the Singapore Flyer on Saturday with the kids and grandma. I'm sure it's going to be fun for the whole family. :D Tickets have been bought online and camera ready for taking many breath-taking photos from the top. As of now, it's still the world's tallest ferris wheel!
This week has been quite tough for me as hubby was going through some moody moments. No, he didn't vent his frustrations on me or anything like that but he was sulky for a couple of days and it sort of affected me too. I can understand his feelings, he's a proud man; not proud in the bad way though and I can really relate to it. We talking about his feelings the whole time (mainly me asking him why and being super nosey; I can't help it, I was really concerned) and last night he finally sorted things out inside and I think he's feeling better today. Going home tonight will make him even happier, I hope.
"Darling, love is not about me looking at you and you looking at me...it's about us looking in the same direction! As long as we focus on the same goal, everything else along the way won't bring us down so easily. I will be with you always...you will never walk alone again...hahaha"

Working mothers' pain and dilemma

I was reading gweipo's blog post today about how she felt sorry for her young son waiting for her to come back from home at the elevator hallway when she worked unexpectedly late. I wanna tell her, I understand this feeling only too well. 4 years ago when my son was only 5 and my daughter 8, I was very busy at work because of a project. For more than 3 months, I had to work very late and even through the weekends. I left for work early in the morning while they were still sleeping and arrive late when they were already asleep. So I practically didn't get to meet my children but only saw their faces while they were sleeping. Likewise, my children didn't get to meet mommy. One night I arrived home late again even after promising to be home by 10pm earlier over the phone. I walked into my sleeping son's room and tried to give him a peck on his face when he woke up and gave me a blank stare. I told him I was sorry but he said "I hate you, mommy; you lied..." and went back to sleep. My heart cracked and I burst out crying so hard and my eyes got so swollen that I couldn't put on my contact lenses the next morning... I was a single-mother then and I had to work to make ends meet, I had no choice.
Then 3 years ago, I was relocated to Hong Kong for work, my kids didn't come with me because my posting was suppose to be for only 1 year at first and I thought that I should not disrupt their school. I tried to go home every 2 months for the weekends and they come over during their school holidays. After 1 year, my contract was renewed for another 2 years, so I asked if they would like to come over. They both rejected the idea, saying that they would prefer staying in Singapore with their grandmother. Somehow, my children have got used to not always having mommy at home. They have a wonderful grandmother to look after them well and they are very busy with their own lives at school now. I still feel sorry for not being with my children as much as I wish I could but I think it's the quality of time spent with them that is more important. When I do get to spend time with my children, we are either having good dinners or having a holiday trip. We take as many photos as possible and I try to document them in my blogs.

I got married 2 years ago to a wonderful man, he loves my children as his own and they love him too. On our wedding day, my children walked me down the aisle, handed me to their step-father and gave their blessings. It was definitely one of the happiest day of my life! (The other happiest days of my life I can remember so far was when I gave birth to my daughter and then when I had my son.) Hubby and I have plans to relocate ourselves back to Singapore in at most 2 years' time to be with the children and maybe have a 3rd one too. I will still have a career but maybe this time, I will try to spend more time enjoying my child's growth as much as I can. Children grow up so fast...