I'm thinking "You are in love." and a little smile flitted across my face. My second thought "You are hot!". Choices are good. Confidence boosters like you always say.

Heart you. Sorry, I'm still being a tortoise. Oops. I mean turtle.

Kelly's colleague was in town with his fiancee so we all met up for dinner then hit club Boulevard 3.

Sidetrack a bit. I think it's crazy to party in countries with cold cold weather. I always see girls wearing short itsy bitsy dresses even when the weather falls below 10 degrees weather and stand in line for a long time just to get inside some club. But that night, I was one of those silly girls. :p


Kelly loves trance which totally puts me to sleep. Whenever we party with his local friends, I just end up drinking a lot. Like how does one dance to ambient music? Boulevard 3 though, was fun for me. It was all Top 40 hits and we dance away while Kelly snoozed.


I love the scantily clad dancers.


The fiancee is one hot Latina mama and she was definitely shaking it throughout. She tried to teach me her sexy moves but I burst out laughing. Undaunted, she kept trying. Embarrassed, I had to keep laughing.


At one point, there was a dance off on stage and this little boy held his own against the men. I swear you could hear all the girls go 'awwww'.


This girl beat the guys at tap dancing!


By right need to pay for bottle service to get a table. But there were so many empty tables upstairs so we just cop one. No one chased us away and we had lots of space to dance!



Favourite pictures of the night. First time I put falsies myself. Didn't do that good a job but my eyes did look bigger. I love the ones from Shu Uemura because they are so soft and natural but also expensive. Need to scout for more affordable brands.

1. You know how the tagline ends! I love some Kit Kat and think the Japanese are so clever in coming up with weird but good tasting concoctions.


When I visited Kyushu, I got their limited edition Yuzu, chilli pepper and wasabi Kit Kat. It might sound like a strange combination in one chocolate wafer stick but the flavours work. Taste-wise, you get more Yuzu and chilli pepper with just a tingsy twinge of wasabi. That slight kick of spice balances the sweetness amazingly.

2. More Kit Kat!


Heart the green tea ones. I asked Kelly to get me 2 boxes when he transited at Narita airport. I really want to try the soy sauce and apple cider flavours. Anyone stopping in Japan then LA?

3. Langue De Chat.


French sounding name aside, you MUST get this if you are ever in Fukuoka! Thin macha paste sandwiched between 2 thin biscuits = yummy! Have you seen this in Tokyo?

4. My latest favourite, Chip! Chop.


I usually don't like salty and sweet together but this, I can't stop eating till the entire packet is gone.

And contrary to what it looks like, I really don't snack a lot.

During the second Saturday of this November, Kelly and I were invited to the Bar Mitzvah of his cousin's son, Zachary. We had attended Zachary's brother's coming of age ceremony last year and it wasn't much different this time round.


Handsome family hor?

Both occasions have opened my eyes a little to Judaism. Mainly, I am amazed at the Jews' tenacity in keeping Hebrew and their customs alive even if they seem to have little relevance and much inconvenience to modern life. Take Shabbat for instance. It is observed from sundown Friday to nighttime Saturday and during this period, believers refrain from a few creature comforts we take for granted. Like working, writing or even taking automobiles. So if you live a distance from the temple, you just have to walk. No buses, no cars, no taxis.


Zachary chanting a passage from the Torah in Hebrew

While turning 13 doesn't seem very exciting for most kids since you still can't legally drink, club or watch movies beyond PG13, the same number means that a Jewish kid has come of age to take on the responsibilities of an adult. In the lead up to Bar Mitzvah, the kid must participate in community service as a form of giving back to society. I think that makes for a more meaningful and significant birthday right?

At the end of the service, Zachary is seated in a chair then hoisted up by 4 strong men out of the room. They do this at Jewish weddings too. I don't know if there is a significance but it all looks very fun to me!


The ceremony took place in the morning and there was a dinner party complete with fake tattoos, disco lights and a DJ spinning. I didn't take any pics at night. In the interim, we visited Kelly's dad. See how prettily their house is decorated for Halloween?


Scarecrows, geddit?


Introducing Buddy! Would you believe that this is a 7 months old Maltese? Though the seller assured Kelly's dad that Buddy is a purebred, we are starting to think that maybe he has a bit of poodle blood in him. That is one big puppy with super long legs!

This is such a ridiculous idea. Why would anyone pay 99 Euros a night to eat hamster grain (terrible food), run in a giant wheel (exercise on vacation?) and sleep in hay stacks (uncomfortable lodgings)?

Ever ordered 大家好 and Clementi at a kopitiam? What?!?

Baffling and head scratching, yups, that's me. I couldn't decipher what they were from the names alone but once their origins were revealed, there is a sense of wonder at the Singaporean's ability to abbreviate so ingeniously. Embrassingly, I also learnt what Siu Dai is. In my defence, I usually just order Kopi-bing or Milo-bing!

Contrary to my belief, bears don't hibernate. Instead they go into a state of torpor where the physiological activity slows down characterized by decreasing body temperature and metabolism. I have become a polar bear.

The shorter autumn hours makes the day dull faster. Even the sun doesn't seem as bright. Contributing to the haziness of it is the cosy feeling of K and Hunter being home a lot. It feels like a dream where motion is suspended and each moment stretches into eternity.

And makes me constantly lethargic. Even after recovering from one week of stuffed nose and head that feels like an inflatable castle that kids like to jump in.

This week I have started to spring clean the house. Clearing out clutter to make space for new clutter. Soon I won't have any more excuse to be in a torpor. So excuse me as I slowly make contact with the world.

I so want this. Why does it cost $400 if it's made from 100% cotton? Isn't Topshop suppose to be the mecca of all things affordable and fashion forward?

Because it gets dark at 5.30pm. But I saw a recipe for Indonesian sate and was curious about how it differs from Malaysian satay.


Skewers of marinated meat. The meat is drowned in Kecap Manis (sweet soy sauce), hence the darker colour compared to its Malaysian cousin.


We had to shine a torch on the grill to check if the sate was ready. Most of them ended up with a burnt crust. The sate was sweet with a strong taste of cumin,very Middle Eastern kebabs-like. I still prefer the savoury note of Malaysian satay.

Finished my dad's boutonniere yesterday night! I haven't showed it to my dad yet but it's so darn cutesy that I think he will freak out at having to wear it. Ha ha ha.

I'm darn proud of myself for being able to make this for Kelly's wedding suit!




Heart the White Rabbit charm! Isn't it so adorable?

Incentive to visit US? The Wizarding World of Harry Potter opens in Orlando in spring 2010 which is March to May 2010. Just in time for summer crowds. I have to say though I'm surprised that there are only 3 rides. I'm NO fan of roller-coasters but I imagine that's what most people go for at a theme park.

Anyhow I've never been to Florida and this is one more incentive for me to make a trip!

As some of you might know, the Singapore wedding is inspired by Alice in Wonderland. No good reason for the theme except I wanted something whimsical and nothing with those cloyingly sweet Disney princesses. So it was either Hansel and Gretel or Alice. A candy house won't go very far in the tropical heat so Alice it is.

Don't expect some OTT Lady Gaga craziness. There's no balloons, White Rabbit and gang aren't going to be walking about. It's this little thing called budget. BUT it's going to be a fun and chill wedding inspired by the characters, colours and motifs in Wonderland. Meanwhile, check out this awesome underwater shoot by Elena Kahlis. There's more on her website, you have to see!







Speechless.

I love crowds and bustling places. But recently I have been enjoying the pleasure of a quiet afternoon. Hunter's snoozing outside with sunbeams on him, Kelly's snoozing with a fan that churns so loud I wonder how he does it. And me? I only slept 4 hours today and I need a nap. But I'm savouring every minute of my quiet time.

As long as my eyes are still open which is not for long now. Good afternoon and good night.

I really really really don't want to talk about it. Honestly, I'm pretty sick of talking about it.

And I'm starting to really really really regret my decision. Surely there is something else we can talk about?

Guy's cute and the dashchund's cuter.

Slept 8 hours in the past 2 days combined. Been kept awake by the endless stream of wedding planning. I don't know why my mind keeps rehashing the same things over and over again. Last night, I actually lay down in bed at midnight (record for me) but slept fitfully with a continual charade of Alice in Wonderland characters streaming into my consciousness.

Anyway as I was putting together my wedding day mentally, I realise that my bridesmaids are all so chio! Which makes me wonder, are there any brides who choose bridesmaids based on how photogenic/ugly they are?

Beauty and brains are definite criteria for a beauty pageant contestant. One would assume that in a Miss Singapore World contest, knowledge of Singapore's history and current affairs is also a basic criteria.

Nope. Embarassingly so, some of this year's contestants couldn't answer questions like when the Merlion became extinct, which shopping center just opened and how old Singapore is. Didn't we celebrate her birthday this month?

Diva - How well do they know Singapore?

My summer's never complete without a picnic and movie at Hollywood Forever cemetary. This time, they were showing 'Singin' in the rain'. It's so famous yet I've never watched it before. So I was really excited at the prospect.


The movie stars Gene Kelly who is soooo handsome! They just don't make men with such charm anymore in Hollywood. Did you know he was also a co-producer on the film?



Gene Kelly was running a 39.5 degree fever while filming this famous scene. Initially the cast refused to let him shoot but he persuaded them to do one take. The final cut that made it to the big screen was that single take.

On another note, Kelly tells me that Michael Jackson will be buried in the cemetary that we can see from our house. Although it's too far away to see his actual grave.