what m&m's are you?

if i were an m&m's chocolate candy....
would i look like that? *lol*

create your own m&m's character now - click here ;)

also, check out the new ogre-sized peanut butter m&m's - shrek 3 edition - click through to explore the interesting games and adventures!

sweet surprise

lately i've been working hard, sleeping little for my projects at work. yesterday i had to be on standby between 3am - 6am to wait for freelance web-designer's phonecall to check through/launch the campaign website. then i went in to work as usual 9:30am - 6:30pm - dead tired.

my boss is aware of the crazy hours i've put in for the past couple days, and he knew i had to wake up super early friday morning, so he and his wife came into the office with a special little surprise for me....

this lovely bouquet of fresh flowers totally made my day - so sweet of them.
*smile*.

butterflies in the rain?

just sometime last week, my colleagues and i were on our way out to lunch and saw some yellow butterflies "crossing the road" at the traffic lights. the sky was getting a little dark, so out of curiosity, i asked, "what happens to butterflies when it rains?"

of course, no one really did give that a serious thought... i got some funny answers from my colleagues, some wild guesses, some ridiculous nonsense... in the end, we came to the conclusion that perhaps butterflies have some kind of "sixth-sense" that helps them foretell the weather, so that they can go hide under some plants or bushes before the rain starts to fall.

anyway, this evening it poured cats & dogs as i was making my way out to the bus-stop (heading home). the rain was so so heavy, the brolly didn't even help at all. by the time i got to the bus-stop, my capri pants were already wet up to my knees. and just as i was nudging myself towards the dryer corners of the sheltered bus-stop, i saw a frail white butterfly caught in the downpour! *awww* it was quite a heart-wrenching sight - the helpless little creature fluttering with all its might, struggling against the ferocious rain to stay in mid-air, attempting to find somewhere dry and safe. i watched it for a while, quietly wishing that it'll be able to make it to that tree some 10 metres across the street (wonder if it could see that far?)... then i lost sight of it.

sure hope it survived the ordeal.

since we're on the topic of butterflies, check out this guy - Landersz's amazing photography works on flickr. i chanced upon his pictures on "butterflies & moths", really awesome stuff! try viewing in "large image" option - so intricate, so beautiful! :)

some of my favs. (i) a stunner (ii) leafy-looking (iii) got the blues

workaholic

lately, i've turned into a workaholic... been going into office earlier than other colleagues (i used to be one of the last few to show up), and leaving later than anyone else - working till wee hours in the morning (like now - 12:45am).

i have to admit it's extremely tiring and taxing on myself (i hate that pimple on my forehead) but i know i have to do it. i want to do it well and get the project launched in time with a big bang! it is stressful, especially with the added frustrations of having to work with someone who doesn't turnaround and deliver work on time, but somehow i know my hard work will eventually pay off, and if i put in enough effort, hang in there through it all... things will work out well.

a few more days - i keep telling myself. there are many other projects that i've set aside and have been sitting on for a while, not sure when i'll be getting another restful break even after this - but for now, i'm just fueling myself on the adrenaline rush, the kind that you get when work gets done, when you do something well - or at least, the prospect of it. it gives me a temporary "high"... and that keeps me going.

of course - some loving, some good company, warm words, shopping and cupcakes (i'm getting some from sherie soon *wink*) would certainly help too! :)

hi-tea buffet: carousel (royal plaza on scotts)

it's my 3rd aunt's birthday yesterday, so my gift to her this year, is a hi-tea treat at the newly refurbished royal plaza on scotts hotel. i invited my mum and 2nd aunt along too, so it's a rare and cozy ladies-only family meal. reservations were made for hi-tea today at carousel - quite an interesting, asian-mediterranean fusion restaurant. none of us have dined at royal plaza on scotts before, so this is our first, and a nice experience too :)

my mum and aunts are not very adventurous folks when it comes to food, so i know the asian fare is going to be a safe bet for them. hi-tea serves from 3:30 - 5:30pm everyday (S$23.50+++ weekdays/S$28.50+++ weekends).

when we first stepped into the restaurant, we were pleasantly surprised with the wide selection of food for a hi-tea spread. it's almost like what you can get for lunch, just more of finger-food. i really like the ambience - it's spacious, contemporary, colourful... yet at the same time, warm & cozy. we got a table by the window which gave us some sunlight - i like that too.

i'd brought my camera to take pictures of the spread but got so distracted by the food, only managed to snap a few shots of the first 1 - 2 dishes in front of me *lol*. so, sorry for not being able to post more droolicious pictures here :P

reviews: food-wise, i like the wide selection.. the kind where you can just take a tiny piece from each tray and you'd be full by the end of it (no room for repeats). but in terms of taste, i'd say it's pretty average... ok, but not fantastic, mostly local fare eg. laksa, popiah, chicken congee, fried bee hoon, nasi goreng, rojak, gado-gado etc. there's also a small selection of salads, soup, japanese sushi, sashimi and cold noodle... along with savoury pastries, curry samosa, fried crab-cakes, mini chicken pies, quiche, scones, wafers, hot & cold desserts, ice-cream with condiments, cakes & pastries, fruits/chocolate fondue etc. i would have loved to see more meaty stuff (eg. fish, chicken satay, fried chicken drumplets etc.) but i guess i'm happy enough with what i get for hi-tea. oh, do remember that carousel is a halal restaurant, so strictly no pork/no lard.

my favs. today: salmon sashimi, shrimp bisque, laksa, mini chicken pie, chicken char siew puff (char siew soh), bread pudding, vanilla wafer with honey & ice-cream.

service is good: staff are friendly, cheery and attentive - they'd even sing a birthday song on request (a group of 5 - 8 service staff would clap, do a mini acappella and sing their way from the entrance to the diners' table), really cute.

current promotions: 15% discount off total bill for HSBC, UOB, citibank credit card payments.

all in all, a good and happy meal - my guests loved it too :)

other reviews for carousel:
- asia one
- uniquely singapore
- street directory reviews

tokidoki amore (summer 2007)

well.. tokidoki may not be everyone's cuppa tea, but I LIKE! :D esp. the new tokidoki amore prints... ooohh, so sweet and lovely! *thumbs up*

check out this tokidoki fan-blog - the owner has a pretty impressive collection for almost every single tokidoki print ever launched (since spring 2006). take a peek at her new amore-print buon viaggio bag... oooh, isn't it sweet?

now i wish money would grow on trees.. lol.
i like the amore prints! the lovey-dovey sweet pinkish cutesy (sometimes too kiddish) cartoonish style works for me :) but unfortunately lesportsac tokidoki bags are really pricey for nylon-like material - a regular handbag retails for S$200 - S$300 on average.

the amore collection is already launched at lesportsac DFS - singapore (since last friday). tokidoki bags sell like hot-cakes, popular styles usually sell out within couple of days... so do make your way down early if you're keen. the outlets at takashimaya and isetan scotts should also be launching this collection quite soon.

i ought to drop by for a peek too :P

links:
- more tokidoki @ nordstrom
- about tokidoki
- tokidoki for lesportsac
- lesportsac classic

in the easter mood

it's easter sunday tomorrow, so i wanted to do something nice for my colleagues before the long weekend. saw these cute easter-themed m&m's figurines on wednesday night, so quickly grabbed one in each colour/design just right before the cold storage counter closed for the day :)

i fondly remember those years in primary school, when we'd have school-wide easter egg hunts every year (convent girl school's practice). even though i never once came close to finding "the eggs", it was still a lot of fun.

so i went to office exceptionally early on thursday morning and went around to hide the m&m's at different places - under the desks, in the document cabinets, behind drawers, beside printers etc. after that, i left a note on everyone's desk telling them to go search around the office for their surprise. hehehe...

it turned out more fun than i'd expected. everyone (including boss and his wife) were really serious in their hunt. they went up and down the stairs, rummaged around the house, opening cupboards, sliding drawers.. hehehe.. it was fun for me too, seeing how they enjoyed the little fun - the occasional stress-breaker.

happy easter, everyone!

practise typing on the go ;)

saw these quirky pieces on the online forums the other day.
if you are the type who simply can't stop typing on your keyboards... this is the bag for you - the keybag! way tooooo cooool! guaranteed a conversation starter!

dying to get your fingers (hands) on one?
check out the price tag - US$280 each *gulp*... maybe you wanna try your hand at creating something with your damaged old keyboard first? ;)

vintage chinese tea...

some wines are better and more valuable the older they get... the same goes for certain types of cheese.... so, how about some aged chinese tea? :P

after dinner tonight, i asked everyone for their choice of post-dinner beverage. mum opted for 3-in-1 coffee, i wanted 3-in-1 milk-tea, my brother asked for chinese tea. i recalled that we only have a box of japanese green tea but my brother said he'd prefer chinese tea. so i dug around the kitchen cabinet and found this:

a brand new box of rickshaw chinese tea-bags (chrysanthemum). perfect!
out of regular habit, i turned the box around to check for the expiry date.... almost couldn't believe my own eyes!!? hahaha... check this out!
we actually have a pack of brand new unopened tea-bags that's almost 9 years old!! wow! can we enter this for the "guinness world records" or something? :P

my new vintage earrings - i love!

latest addition to my earrings stash :) lovely lovely!!
got this from yesterday's conversation pieces close-door sale event.
for other accessories, check out: www.chillipadi.tk

weirdometer

the blog-tag is a game "invented" by jeff pulver to tag and link people up in the big wide blogosphere. just been tagged by cherie (slightly modified version).. so here's my answers to her tag:

1. i'm a perfectionist...
to some extent. i like things to be in perfect order, so i have the tendency to do things half a beat slower than most people. as a student - i liked my pens placed in a certain order in my pencil case (all tips pointing up); at work - my documents, stationery, mugs.. even the namecard box have to be arranged in a way that pleased me; at home - my bed must be made in a certain manner, pillows and blankies arranged nicely. BUT that doesn't mean my all my personal belongings are in perfect order. in fact, some parts of my bedroom are a complete mess! if i'm too tired or lazy to start putting something in perfect order, i'd just let it get messy and rather not look into the details at all (it's like temporarily switching off the "perfect mode"). guess that's what happens when you have a lazy-perfectionist. there are only 2 buttons to toggle between - "perfect" vs "utter mess" :P

2. i freeze at the sight of cockroaches
ok.. this may not be new to most of my close friends. i am terrified of cockroaches, to the extent that mentioning them eeks me out sometimes. i had several terrifying encounters with them since childhood.. when i had to spend the entire night sweating beneath my blanket on super hot humid nights (i'd rather sweat to death than to remove my only form of "shield" between that creature and me). whenever one of those flying creatures get within my radar, i literally stop functioning - can't move, can't sleep, can't think, can't eat, almost can't breath. just last night, one huge cockroach flew in through the living room door and fluttered into my bedroom entrance. i froze. all i managed to do was grab a towel, throw it over my head and wrap it around my shoulders & body. and since it was near my door, i couldn't risk making a dash out. i ended up using my mobile phone to call my mum (at our home phone number) and asked her to come over from her bedroom to rescue me. NOT the least bit funny to me, mind you.

3. i can eat almost anything (savoury-type) with chilli (esp. belachan chilli with dried shrimp *yummy*)
i love all things spicy. i've already cut down a fair bit in recent years (all thanks to my gastric problem). i used to spread belachan chilli on homemade ham-&-cheese toast, add them into my soup, congee and maggie mee (instant soup noodles) :P i still do that occasionally whenever i need a stronger flavour.. but really, more controlled now.

4. 30 mins - my average shower time
i know it is a long time, but that's honestly how long i spend in the shower. it is my personal time to cleanse, relax, unwind and pamper myself... so i suppose there's nothing wrong, right? my shower routine: get wet - shampoo - throughly scrub and cleanse body (with bath towel) - apply conditioner to hair - brush teeth (while waiting for hair conditioner to set in) - rinse off conditioner with cold water - finally, wash face with cleanser - towel dry - apply leave-in hair conditioner - tone/moisturise face - (optional) apply body lotion :) i get quite stressed when i wake up late in the morning and have insufficient time to shower :P

5. i sleep with...
3 stuffed toys in bed. i even gave each of them a name *hehe*. 2 of them just sit by the corner near my pillow, while the doggie-beanie one (my fav.) - i hug almost everynight (fyi - i "bathe" the doggie in the washing machine together with my bedsheets). too childish for my age? maybe... but i don't care :P

6. i love to take long walks
i am not an athlete, i can't run (lack of stamina).. but i love talking long walks - the kind when you're not in a rush, not under the hot scorching sun. love it most when it's dark and cool, slightly breezy and the night's not completely quiet yet. best to unwind and people-watch.. feel everyone's pace slowing down. that's why i enjoy the 10-min. walk home from the bus-stop every evening after work. recently got bitten by the "walk-bug" again and took a slow stroll all the way from wheelock place (orchard) back home - 40 mins... pretty therapeutic :)

ok, now i'd like to pass the baton on to carolyn - tagged you, your turn!