My Hello Kitty Bowling Ball

My Hello Kitty bowling ball (10lbs), the prettiest ball in the whole shop!

Hubby brought me to Causeway Bay after work today in search of my 10lbs Hello Kitty bowling ball and after a long walk from the MTR station, I was a little skeptical about finding the shop on Haven Street. Hubby had searched for this shop on the web and it would not be surprising to me that the website may not have been updated. But we found it somehow and the best thing about it was that they had the exact weight I wanted. I was ecstatic! The very first bowling ball of my own and it's a Hello Kitty! Hubby bought his 3rd ball there too and he can't wait to try out his new ball tomorrow. :)

My Hello Kitty ball at the drill...

Ouch!

My Hello Kitty ball sitting proudly at home!

Somehow, I feel that the ball is too pretty to be thrown onto the bowling lane...

My new addiction...

I am addicted to bowling now...have played consecutively for the past 3 days, 12 games in total and even scored my own personal best at 153. :) It all started about 2 weeks ago when hubby and I decided we ought to do some sports after work everyday, to help me loose weight precisely. So far, other than going for golf practices, we hardly do any other sports. We hate going to the gym, hubby doesn't like yoga and I can't play basketball, so it didn't take us long to decide that bowling will be good for the both of us. Golf practice is boring if we don't go to the green and it's too expensive and time consuming to go to the green often. We can only go once in a month at best? Bowling is different, we have 2 bowling alleys within walking distance from our place and we can also bring D when he comes over during his school holidays.

In order to play a good game, I have sort of perfected my 4-steps but still have to work on the throw. I have decided that I will need a bowling ball of my own and I want to have a Hello Kitty one. ;) We went hunting for the ball yesterday but have no luck. I guess I may have to settle for just anything available at the pro shop and place an order for the Hello Kitty one as a 2nd ball. Whatever it is, I think playing some games everyday is working for me. I am wearing a pair of pants which I couldn't zip up 2 weeks ago...still a little tight though but I think I am getting there.

Talk about loosing weight, I just received a call from one of the slimming centers telling me that they are looking for "slimming ambassadors" from the public as part of their promotional programs. The slimming package will be given to me for free but in return, I will need to attend their promotional events at least 4 times in a year. In the event, I can choose to be filmed or not to be filmed. For eligibility, the lady asked me if I am over 110lbs and told me that I will need to go to one of their slimming centers for assessment with the slimming consultants. Just the other day when I was inside the MTR station, I was checking out the slimming advertisment billboards and was wondering if I would need to go to one of them to help me loose weight. Coincidence? Should I really go for it? Will it be a scam?

Hmm...

Random Thoughts...

Spent Sunday at home cleaning up the kitchen in preparation for the arrival of my personal cook...yes, my mum will be arriving this coming Saturday and she will be using the kitchen a lot to cook some wonderful home-cooked dinners for us. My mum is not that great a cook, to be honest, she just makes good soup but that is good enough for me. Eating out for all meals everyday for most of the year really makes me long for simple home-cooked food, even if it's just steam fish and stir-fried vegetables...

While I was cleaning the kitchen, I kept thinking of how I would like to buy the next door unit to our new place so that I can have a dry kitchen there for baking and have a counter top for coffee. Then it will be great to have a Nespresso coffee machine to make the perfect latte every morning. However, I received a sms this morning from S and she was telling me that the property market is moving up in Singapore. I wonder if the economy is really recovering or is it just a technical adjustment? Will I be able to get that unit? Should I pay whatever the seller want or should I wait and see? Hubby was saying that he doesn't want the anxiety but mum-in-law is confident that the prices will fall after lunar 7th month and I am still in the state of wait and see...

The Other Woman...

Went out with my god-brother C and his girlfriend S yesterday. C is married, his wife and son are in Singapore...yes, S is the other woman. Apparently, they have been having this on and off affair for the past 10 years at least and 2 years ago, C decided to buy an apartment in Hong Kong and live in with S. I have heard about their relationship from my godmother who was very upset about it. As a wife myself, I am of course disapproving of C and S but I was curious to meet S. I wanted to know what kind of woman would an established man like C fall for. I had thought that she must be a very sophisticated career woman who could assist C in his business or something but it turned out that she is just a very simple woman. She is better looking than C's wife though, but she was from mainland China and she cannot understand English. We had to converse in Cantonese the whole time when we were together so that she wouldn't feel out of place.

S has come from Chengdu 20 years ago, was once married and has a daughter who is studying in L.A. She is working as a stock broker and is helping C with his investments. The whole time we were together, C held her hand, served her food, referred to her as his wife to the waitress and looked really happy. He also praised her culinary skills and said they will invite us to have dinner at their home sometime. I couldn't help but wondered how would his wife feel if she finds out. Or does she care anymore? I am sure she must know something! Although I do not know her very well, I feel sympathetic towards her...but I think she has herself to blame. How can she let her husband stay oversea alone? Men can't take loneliness and they won't stay lonely, not especially when they are rich.

After saying our goodbyes for the night, hubby and I couldn't help but analysed S. We both agreed that she was quite different from C's wife who is a teacher. So, what makes S attractive to C? Her looks? Her culinary skills? I think it's because they have similar interests which is the stock market and also because she can accompany C on his business trips. I think it is very important for couples to have common interests and also to be together as much as possible. If not, be prepared to have a broken marriage...

Diamonds again

image source : www.debeersgroup.com

I have completed my 4th subject (Managing International Business) yesterday after working 15+ hours for the final exams. 4 down, 14 more to go...The task was to write up a report for De Beers' global business with recommendations on how the company should move forward from now. Last quarter results for De Beers had been badly hit by the on-going economic crisis, the demand for diamond roughs had dropped, pushing the prices down. De Beers had closed the Botswana mine for 50 days and laid off more than half of its staff in UK...So how should De Beers move forward from here? De Beers is involve with the whole value chain of the diamond business from exploration, mining, sorting, cutting, manufacturing to retailing. Each process add value to the diamonds with the mining and retailing being most lucrative for the company.

It was interesting reading up on diamonds, so much to learn about diamonds. It was my 2nd case relating to diamonds, the 1st was Gem Diamonds, a diamond mining company for the Marketing Management's final exams. Did you know that diamonds are at least 990 million years old? And some are even 4 billion years old! So they exist on earth even before life began? And most of the diamonds can be found in South Africa. Before polishing and cutting, a diamond is just a piece of rock but with remarkable craftsmanship, diamonds can become so brilliant! I know most guys will think that diamonds are over-rated but most girls love diamonds. Why? I think it's the famous slogan by De Beers, "A Diamond is Forever" and their concept of the diamond engagement ring that have made diamonds a symbol of love and fidelity. That was great marketing. But anyway, precious gems including diamonds, rubies, sapphires, emeralds have been used to adorn jewellery and all sorts of accessories by royalties and the wealthy for centuries. So, in times like this current economic crisis we are facing, how do you market a luxury item like diamonds?

4 Steps

Just came back from bowling with hubby at the bowling alley in our condominium. There are just 4 lanes and the house balls are crappy, so not many people play there. We had the whole place to ourselves which was good because hubby was able to teach me how many steps I should take before I throw the ball out. I never knew how many steps to take and how to throw the ball out. Bowling to me was just a game I play for fun but today I broke out a little sweat trying to perfect my 4 steps and throw. It is a sport indeed. :)

There is a problem though, I think I strained the back of my left thigh muscle...it is quite painful now.

17 Again?

Watched "17 Again" with hubby last Friday after work. It was quite a funny and interesting movie...the male character of the movie was a heart-throb and a very promising basketball player who was attempting to go to college on a basketball scholarship when his girlfriend disclosed to him that she was pregnant. He gave up college and married her instead but felt that he had made a bad mistake and his life sucks and was hoping that he could "re-live" his life again. Miraculously, he became 17 again! In the end, he found out that he regretted regretting his life and tried to win his wife back. Heart-warming ending. :)

The movie made hubby and I asked each other what we would do if we have the chance to "re-live" our lives again from 17. Hmm...interesting, isn't it? Hubby said that he would probably choose not to give up bowling for basketball. As for myself, I think I would have chosen to go into show business instead. I had a brief encounter with that opportunity and I let it go, opted for the "safer", conventional choice of study and then get a "normal" job. Anyway, I think my life would have turned out very different if I had chosen to go on that path. I may even regret it more then? Some people say that it is all pre-destined, everything happens at God's will but I am one that choose to believe that the decisions I make at each point of my life somehow shaped my life until this day. I have many choices and each choice leads to something different...there will always be many "what if" but it really makes no sense to think about them as what is done can never be undone.

Anyway, although I honestly do not regret what I did, I think it would be great to be 17 again. For one, I didn't have to struggle with my weight at that age. I didn't have to watch what I eat, I didn't have to worry about what to wear because I looked fabulous in anything I threw on my body and even more fabulous wearing nothing! ;p

New Look

I spent half the day updating the look of my blog...like it? Anyway, I have also included photos of celebrities that look like me, courtesy of MyHeritage. It is quite a fun website! By the way, the photo I uploaded to check for look-alike celebrities was a photo taken during my birthday in January this year...so don't think that I have cheated. :)

Random thoughts...

It has been such great weather these few days that for the first time the other night, we witnessed the Disneyland fireworks from our 2nd bedroom window! Amazing! And we are situated at least 30 minutes's drive away!

We are putting our apartment up for sale and so far there were a couple of viewings and each time potential buyers came to view our place, I didn't feel like selling it anymore...hubby told me that he has the same feelings. I guess we are quite attached to Hong Kong now.

Today, the "antenna" of my department came back to work after being away for 1 week. We call her "antenna" because she is good at receiving "news" that is happening in the office and reporting back to us. Today, she found out that 3 more of our colleagues in other departments have quit. 1 of them is a sales manager and has worked with the company for many years. He quits not because he has found another better job but just because he cannot take it any longer. He has been posted to work in our Shenzhen office 2 years ago and he is really not happy there. He requested to come back to the Hong Kong office but there is no position for him here anymore. My company has decided to move all sales operations into China and keep only the supporting department here in Hong Kong. It's an organisational change that is not easy for everyone. *SIGH*

Great Weather

We have been enjoying fabulous weather in Hong Kong these few days, especially over the weekend. It has been between 22 to 30 degrees Celsius and breezy. The sky is clear blue and the air is fresh and dry. So, it's warm but not humid and that's the best for me. :)

Here are the photos taken over the weekend~

Orchid-looking flowers I spotted on the way to Olympic City.

View of the garden at our condominium.

View of the container harbour from my bedroom window.

View of Hong Kong Island from my bedroom window.

Mother's Day

My daughter made a few slides for me using MS PowerPoint and sent it to me via email. This is the last slide and I thought it is really sweet. In the other slides, she told me that she appreciates what I provide for her and she looks up to me as her role model. "A strong, independent, beautiful and successful woman". *smile*

Tsim Sha Tsui

For comparison, I took some photos of the main shopping street in Kowloon, Hong Kong. This is Canton Road where major brands like Gucci, Prada, Louis Vuitton, Chanel, Swaroski and so on have huge shops here. Even the DFS Galleria is here. But unlike Orchard Road in Singapore, there isn't any big, shady trees but just 3 small, skinny trees and some pathetic flower pots along the narrow pathway. Notice though that the dustbin/ashtray is also right beside the flower pots.

Only 3 pathetic looking trees along the pathway.

The main feature of this road are the extremely big advertising banners.

Orchard Road

I have not been to Orchard Road, the main shopping street of Singapore for quite awhile but this trip back, we went there for a walk, just to see how much it has changed or hasn't changed. And I am truly happy to see that Orchard Road hasn't changed, there are still so many beautiful trees along Orchard Road!

There are many changes to the buildings along the 2 sides of the road though. Paragon had a face-lift and so did Wisma Atria, Mandarin Hotel is now known as The Meritus Mandarin and Crown Prince Hotel is Park Hotel now. There is also another mega shopping mall under construction right beside Wisma which will probably be opened end of this year? But the trees are still there lining the walkway of Orchard Road.

Everytime I went back home, I get very impressed with the amount of greenery I see in Singapore because I am really deprived of greenery here in the city area of Hong Kong.

Here are the photos of Orchard Road~

At the traffic lights between Paragon and Ngee Ann City

Infront of Ngee Ann City after crossing the road.

Outside Wisma

The view of Paragon across the road from outside Wisma.

Wall's Ice Cream Cart.

King's Ice Cream Cart.

There were at least 4 of these ice cream carts along the walkway between Ngee Ann City and Wisma Atria! Fancy ice-cream on cones, ice-cream in cups or ice-cream sandwiched in bread?

Me and my shoes...the 4th pair

Finally it's Friday and I am wearing the 4th pair of new shoes that I bought at Charles and Keith. It's a casual pair suitable for a casual Friday. 4 days of work this week and a pair of new shoes for each day...what else can a girl ask for? New shoes always make me feel happy. :)

Front view of both feet...I like the band that goes round the front!

Side-view of the right.

Side-view of the left.

Rochester Park

Having lived in Hong Kong for the past 4 years and going back to Singapore mainly for Chinese New Year celebrations with the family, hubby and I have sort of lost touch with many new places-to-go back home. Of course we have our friends to keep us informed and we would always find time to check these places out whenever we went back. So far, over these 4 years, Dempsey Park has changed, new discos and pubs have sprung up near the Vivo City and suddenly, Rochester Park comes into existence.

Hubby has heard so much about it from his friends and we decided to have a look. It was too early in the evening when we were there and most of the restaurants and pubs were still closed but we strolled the area anyway. We liked what we saw and will definitely go back there again for dinner and drinks sometime. :)

All the restaurants are actually refurbished old Colonial Houses (Black & White Houses). These houses are huge and usually double-storey with large gardens. I wonder how much is the rent? It would be wonderful to have a place like this and make a 「私房菜」"private kitchen" which is so popular in Hong Kong out of it. I think this kind of dining concept may hit it off well in Singapore too! Let me know if anyone out there is interested in this kind of business, ok?

At the entrance to Rochester Park.

In the beautiful garden of "One Rochester"

Another restaurant with a beautiful pond in the garden.

The one and only Chinese Restaurant "Min Jiang" (Back).

The beautiful setting of "Min Jiang" (Front).

Me and my shoes...the 3rd pair

How will most of you shop for clothes and shoes? Buy the outfit first then shop for a pair of shoes to match the outfit, right? But I always do the opposite. I will always buy shoes first and then think about the outfit. Like this third pair of shoes I bought from my 20 minutes shopping spree at Charles and Keith, I didn't even think what I wanted to wear with it! Yesterday night I had quite a hard time trying to find an outfit to match it. I have a dress which match the shoes perfectly but it is too sexy to be wearing it for work...so I had to choose a pale pink suit instead. Anyway, I realised that I do not have many white or light-coloured outfits as I have been putting on weight, most of the clothes I buy these days are black...you know what I mean. *sigh*

Front view

Side-view of the right.

Side-view of the left.

Me and my shoes...the 2nd pair

I bought 4 pairs of shoes in 20 minutes at the Charles and Keith store in Changi Airport on the day of my departure for Hong Kong. It was 10am and the shop was empty; I was probably their 1st customer that day. The sales assistant who attended to me was very fast with bring out the shoes that I wanted to try and I tried on about 10 pairs before deciding on 3 but the total amount was a little short for getting that VIP card so I chose another pair making it 4 pairs! :)

Here's the photos of the 2nd pair of shoes that I decided to buy...it's a simple black one...

Front view

Side-view of the right...I love the heels!

Side-view of the left.

Sungei Buloh Outing

One of the highlights of our trip back to Singapore this time was the outing to Kranji. We had actually wanted to go to the D'Kranji Farm Resort but upon reaching the Kranji area, my hubby the navigator, decided that we should detour to get something to eat. The detour took us to the Sungei Buloh Wetland Reserve instead. :)

At the entrance, we didn't know what to expect but it turned out way more exciting and fun than going to the zoo! It was really nature at its best! I would definitely go back there again next time with better equipments such as a better camera, more suitable outfits and maybe a pair of binoculars too. I realised that I liked this kind of outing! So I am not only an urban girl afterall!

Here are some of the pictures taken on that trip...

A fish which looked like a piece of wood in one of the exhibition tanks near the entrance...

A Monitor Lizard swimming in the pond...

Another Monitor Lizard climbing up from the sea...

We were really not dressed for that kind of outing...

A view of the swamp when it was low tide.

Another beautiful view of the swamp...

N feeding the fishes...

My resolution...

I made a resolution this year for not buying handbags, shoes and clothes, especially branded ones...but I broke my resolution this trip home. I was at the Charles and Keith store in Changi Airport prior to my departure for Hong Kong and I bought 4 pairs of shoes. :D

I had kept to my resolution for the past 4 months but I really couldn't resist buying shoes, especially Charles and Keith shoes as they are fashionable and very reasonably priced. And best of all, I didn't have to pay GST at the airport! So, I indulged myself and made myself really happy. My passion for shoes is indescribable...Here the photos of the 1st pair of shoes that caught my eyes.

From the front top view

Side-view on the right foot.

Side-view on the inside of the left foot.

Singapore Again~

Construction site of our new place~

Went home again over the May Day weekend which was just 2 weeks after the Easter weekend home. 2 weeks ago, we decided that we want to buy the next door unit to our new apartment for extension and this time back, we made the offer. The greedy owner wanted S$80K above the bank's valuation but we offered to give only S$30K. We couldn't close the deal of course as the owner is still trying to see if he can get a higher offer. The apartment will not obtain its T.O.P any time soon...they are just starting the 5th storey and the whole apartment block is 10 storey tall, so no real hurry for him and neither for us. I have a feeling that we will be able to get it the next time we go back in July. Hopefully my dream will come true~ :)

Nevertheless, it was still a very satisfying trip home. We managed to fixed up the children's internet connection, fixed up mum's skype cum landline telephone and also the TV. Then we also went for a day trip to the wetlands area of Singapore for a hike and also visited some farms. Didn't know there are still farms in Singapore...There's a farm resort which offers spa treatment using coffee beans produced at the farm; there are also some orgainic farming, agro-cultivation of vegetables, dragon fruit plantations, koi and tropical fish farms, goat farms, etc. Quite an interesting trip. (Will post pictures of the trip in my next few posts...)