Boxing Day fury

The extended family has eased back into the routine of gathering on Christmas Day, thanks to Cuzzin's Christmas baby boy. As I shuffled through his house yesterday evening to avoid my aunts from capturing me in a vice grip and shoving turkey in my face, I also had the chore of keeping myself sane among all the yelling and screaming and hollering of the throngs of kids. Plus the sight of kids tottering around with iPhones has become a mundane sight; my 5-year-old niece could happily say no to ice cream cake when she cradled her Mum's iPhone on her lap.

And I wonder if anyone ate the following for their Christmas dinner, judging from the spread the extended family had put together last night. And I made it REALISTIC by popping the calorie count in, just to complete the Boxing Day post-binge nightmare:

1 serving of roast turkey (251g) 429 calories
1 serving chicken pie (234g) 500 calories
1 slice chocolate cream cake (28.35g) 104 calories
1 serving mashed potato (210g) 237.3 calories
1 serving pork ribs (224g) 571 calories
1 pork sausage (100g) 339 calories
1 can Budweiser beer (357g) 146 calories
1 serving table red (147g) 122 calories
1 serving dessert wine (103g) 164.8 calories

2613.1 calories

And that's one ONE serving of some Christmas-y chomps. Imagine if you had washed down 3 grilled pork sausages with a can of Bud, dug into that hearty Christmas pudding like a first-grader and hijacked that turkey thigh? *shudders* Whatever it is, it's Boxing Day today, so start throwing yourself onto the threadmill already. Christmas, fyi, doesn't afford binging in my case. It's more of enjoyment in proportion, and having good-quality food with the people you love. NOT bursting your belts.

1 serving penne in creamy vegetarian alfredo (260g) 286.4 calories
Dinner at cuzzin's (benefit of the doubt) 500 calories
1 serving veggie salad with chickpeas (263g) 175 calories
1 glass Brown Brothers rosa Moscato (250ml) 205 calories

1166.4 calories

See? No binging required.

Let the love march in

I was being serious when I told Jack that I'm too lazy to blog for the last few days because there're simply too many thoughts to re-organise and literate in coherent sentences. Okay I procrastinate.

I can fully empathize with those who have been forced by circumstances to live apart from their loved ones for long periods of time, because Dad has been shuttling between Singapore and his work overseas for the past few years. While I've grown, not by choice, accustomed to the absence, it's leaves an unfillable vacuum within the family fabric that has, on many occasions, challenged our bonds. And I wouldn't want to be in Mum's position; to have her husband torn from her by work, to lay on the cold of the bed linen at night and pray silently for that other warmth to cuddle into, and to sit on an indefinite schedule for the next time he comes home. I would go berserk within the week if I were in her shoes. So it's fully justified that they take this week off as a reward for their unwavered perseverance and the love I'm still learning to grasp fully. Looking forward to the family trip next week, even if it means missing out on tuition sessions and time with Jack.

And nothing's insurmountable after all, judging from this semester. I was awoken abruptly by the pull SMS that morning at 7am, deliberated for 30 minutes with my heart in my throat, and let out a hearty cheer that sounded suspiciously like the screeching of a banshee. My gamble has paid off, and I thank those who have stood by me, fed me your trust and empowered me with the will to keep breaking down walls. While I'm anticipating another 2 hectic semesters to hurdle over, the strength you all have given me will keep my engines chugging healthily until the very last moment. Hello there, Honours Year.

I know we're going to be labelled kan chiong spiders when I say this: we went to HDB to take a look at their latest BTO offering and, being the perfectionists we are, we simply couldn't bring ourselves to love 100% of the unit layout. For a start, it doesn't seem to make much sense to nest the shelter room within the kitchen and have its door open outwards, effectively blocking the way to the laundry area. Plus the kitchen simply isn't large enough for my liking, especially when I want to make cooking a great part of my domestic life. So the verdict's a no this time round. Oh well. We had fun anyway. We always do. :)

11 days to sun, sand and the sea. :)

Eat-loads drink-loads Gurlie outing

It's been about a month since we last met up! Popped by Cafe Iguana at Clarke Quay for dinner over the last Friday for some catching up and makan courtesy of HY's first paycheck. :) And I might have Mexican blood in me, considering how much I love guacamole, tortilla and all fare Mexican. That's definitely going on my To-Cook list. ;)

What's love, without more love? ;)

Oh, and I just have to mention this. HY bought us each a bottle of colorful sweet pops from this sweet shop called Sticky, which specialises in handmade rock candy. While sussing out the various flavours in my bottle of bonboniere, I was entertaining myself by deciphering the who-love-who names on the sweets.


What if, one day, you had bought a bottle of assorted Sticky bonbons, and found your partner's name on it, along with a name that's not yours? What if, his/her name wasn't the common kind of name you would find on the streets? Wouldn't you just die of cardiac arrest?

LOLz. Julie is random is the most annoying ways.

Geyao outing to ECP!

I actually forgot exactly when we last had a Geyao seniors outing, but it has definitely got to be more than six months ago. We decided to veer from our conventional activity, i.e. karaoke and makan, and went outdoors instead. We prolly damaged Jia Hui's car by squeezing 5 in the backseat from Parkway Parade all the way to ECP. :P



It's either that I've not been to ECP for yonks, or the prices for bike rental has dipped real drastically due the increase in competition in the business. We each got decent bikes at $6 for 3 hours! I sound like a country bumpkin. : Plus my cycling skills were really rusty.

Jetty! Plenty of people fishing despite the drizzle, and the spot's really scenic with the late afternoon sky's rosy hue. Raymond brought his kites, so we decided to have a shot at flying them. The parafoil kite was incredibly difficult to fly, especially with the drizzle. Then it started to shower so we were forced to retire to a pavilion nearby, where we spent an hour playing a full round of Saboteur and picnicing. And the rain turned out to be those long-drawn kind of heavy drizzle, so we were forced to cycle back to the shop, which was probably 1 km away, in the rain. I was secretly congratulating myself for foreseeing the probability of it raining and reminding Jack and myself to bring an extra shirt to change out of, as well as baby wipes to clean up. We wound up cycling harder than ever, and my arse and thighs hurt from the fervent peddling, my eyes stung from the relentless pelting of the rain and the back of my shirt and jeans was splotched with sand and grit kicked up by the rear tyres of the bike. I felt uber yucks by the time we all arrived back at the shop, all drenched to the bone and spotting the same brown patch on the back of our shirts. It was hilarious in a super sick manner. But we had fun, didn't we?

Trotted back to one of the hawker centres near Parkway Parade for dinner, and Jack told me that there was actually a KOI shop nearby. Strangely, it was like lighting a matchstick and then watching it burn out real fast. The craving started and stopped just there. There's a reason why I love my sense of self-control when it comes to craving sinful food.

Hopefully it won't all end after the outing yesterday, because I've had so much fun with this buncha, I want it all over again (minus the rain and sand in my hair). And I kinda miss the camaraderie, even though it may mean on different levels with different individuals.

(P.S.: Prior to meeting the rest of them at Parkway Parade, I was actually having a hissy fit about wearing long jeans to the park, when all of them had been decked out in shorts. Blessing in disguise after all. :) I've got Jack to thank for that.)

Despicable you

To gain via despicable means is like throwing a boomarang -
just wait for the day it returns to hit you in your right eye.

I wouldn't head over to People's Park Centre if I didn't need to accompany Mum on her round of errands; it's like getting caught in the middle of a crowd in a war ration centre. Man, do those aunties shove and push like nobody's business. Not to mention that I got shoved by an auntie owner of a small apparel shop into its changing room along with a Zara-inspired sundress and ended up buying it. Psshhh. Aunties can be such horrific manifestations. Please please please never let me become one when I grow old and wrinkly.

Trip to the tour agency reaped some useful information. I'm excitedly fiddling with my fingers thinking about what's to come within the next 6 months. ;) Time to load up the bank account and quit all decadence!

22 days to sun, sand and sea. :)

Knots and Tangles

Spent the last few days packing up stuff. First on my side, then on Jack's side. My to-throw list has doubled since the last packing, while Jack threw out 7 bags of whatnot from his room. It's comforting to see that his desk is no longer strewn with letters and gifts from a light year ago. Hopefully the Virgorians in us will continue to chug hard. :)

Rupunzel! Disney's 50th animated film, A Tangled Tale, features the fairytale character in an adaptation of the original film, but with a slight twist to the plot. It might have been unconventional, predictable, blah blah blah, but who cares? At least it made everyone laugh and the 'happily ever after" stuck. Isn't that what Disney is lauded for? If you love Shrek, you'll love A Tangled Tale. Just don't forget the Grimm Brothers' version, if you even remember it in the first place.

Ops Trash-Out

Massive Ops Trash-It.

Following my cranky CPU, I excavated years of dusty ten-year-series, JC and secondary school books for the garang guni man. Plus my JS module readings, purely out of angst. Thanks to my immaculate organisation over the years, I cleared out three whole stacks within the hour. The trashing process was strangely therapeutic, especially when it involved throwing out those unhappy memories along with my secondary school notes. Thankfully, it was also during then that I found the best gems of my life - my great clique and my Gurlies. As for the rotten eggs and the heartbreakers and the fantastically plastic laughter... let's not go there. I've thrown them out already.

Downtime

Another one of those fall-into-the-abyss moments; it dawned upon me that I could barely count the number of friends whom I could dial for in an emergency with both hands. Depressing passing thought, considering the number of people I actually wave ‘hi-byes’ to in school. Ironically, I’ve repeated this moronic routine of convincing myself that I don’t need to paw at people who don’t put me in their minds because it’s not worth the brain cells. And yet I’m fervently drilling at the painful spot again, tonight.

You must be cursing me for lamenting, given the fact that I’m blessed with a relatively normal family, a particular Mr. Jack whom I can’t tear myself away from, my bunch of three girlfriends and my secondary school clique who have stuck by me all these years. I’m blessed, I’d admit it. I love these people more than anything else in the world. They are the ones who would never say never. They are the ones who would never leave me in the lurch to die. They would never say ‘hi-bye’ and fade away.

Because I realized that, having said all that, many of those who have made grandeur promises and crossed their hearts on them, never made any of those dreams come true. It’s always the unsung heroes, my heroes, who have lit the correct paths for me in all altruistic fashion whenever I set foot in the wrong places.

Tonight, all I think about is the love and strength you all have given me, and it’s more than enough to tide me through this downtime.

Hols bore

We ditched our original plan to get free Starbucks, after all.


Jack had to get on with his preparation for his FYP presentation tomorrow, so I decided to stick by him, with a James Patterson novel as good company. I never understood how Patterson made it look like a no-sweat job as he churned out each of his masterpieces. I downed Double Cross and Lifeguard within 3 days, and I'm definitely going back for more.





We never learn to stop at one, do we?

Megamind, I'd reckon, is a kindergartener's definition of a blockbuster. I sat through the first 30 minutes wondering if we did justice to our wallets by choosing this movie over the others we wanted to catch, because the plot seemed so predictable and most of it had already been shown in the trailer. But I loved the great twist in the middle and the kind of message it brought to the little tykes sitting in the cinema. This movie actually reminds me fondly of UP, if anyone remembers. I like such clean-cut, profanity-free movies once in a while to cleanse our usually-heavy diet of violent and gory films.


Oh, and I made some cheese tarts yesterday afternoon purely out of boredom. I'm the go-getter, not the sit-here-and-wait-to-die kind. And I like how my December calendar is filling up with activities everyday. Concerts, boardgames, tuition, the Malaysia trip and, most importantly, having Dad back with us for 2 weeks. The gruelly study routine in school has, unfortunately, made a fervent workaholic out of me.

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part I

I vaguely remember myself rambling over how bad the previous installation of Harry Potter was, and I actually told Jack that it was the director's fault for that. Apparently, they hadn't changed the director for the last three movies. Bimbo moment. While we've heard from a close friend that the movie was (still) a letdown, we needed a proper closure, and skipping the last parter was equivalent to tearing out the last few pages of a storybook and throwing them into the wind.


Few reasons why I think Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows is probably the best of the 7-parter epic story about the boy wizard:

One. The cast. It's like Chinese New Year's Eve all over again, except it was as though everyone returned to the screen just to die. And Potterphiles would already have, at their fingertips, the names of those who'll be dying in the final movie. Besides, it's a movie both lovers and haters who have grown up with Harry Potter would want to watch, just to find out how our bespectacled protagonist fare against his blood seeker.

Two. 5 hours. That's how long I believe Movie 7 will be, including 2.5 hours for the first half. And if you've read the book and watched the movie, it would dawn upon you that alot of intricate details have been delicately removed from the original plot without harming the harmony of the entire movie. This was unlike the previous movies' plots, which have been lifted from the book so haphazardly that they hardly formed a coherent picture with non-readers.

Three. Those boys and that girl. Look what time has done to them. Do you even remember how our darling boy wizard and his sidekicks looked like in the first movie?

... not something I'd go gaga over. But 9 years changes alot of things. Alot. 9 years ago, I just stepped into secondary school. *Gags* 9 years ago, there was an order for one bespectacled ebony-haired boy, one gingerhead sleepyhead and one little girl with a bushy mane. They were nodescript kids of other people, until they got fished out of their big pond and into this huge Potter phenomenon. Lights, camera, action.

Rupert Grint (who plays Ron Weasley) put on so much bulk in the last movie, his biceps looked bigger than his head. While he didn't look anything like Taylor Lautner, he put on just enough to dwarf his co-stars. Daniel Radcliffe was... apologies, but he's not my type. But there's a common consensus as to how Emma Watson (who plays Hermione Granger) has metamorphosized into a beautiful young lady. While she was already developing beautiful curves and teasing male teenage minds since Goblet of Fire, she's got the men now. Even when she's chopped off her signature locks for a short crop, Watson's still every inch the man-eater, and with the Ivy League brains to boot. So can we safely say Harry Potter's finally a movie for everyone in the family now?