Hong Kong Prelude

To accustom myself to facing HK food for the 4 straight days, I've been on the lookout for bagus HK food in Singapore. My aim is to try all if possible. Then I'll have cheap Mac Donald over there.

And guess what, there is a new cafe right in the middle of Tampines Central! And they are also called Central! *gasps*

One thing I can never understand about HK food is why are they so blooding expensive. It can be normal Coke with lemon that costs maybe normally $1.20? But put in the word Hong Kong, somemore the coke with lemon will speak Cantonese and tells you $3.



But I think these kind of restaurant are on the right business track. There's a superbly popular one at East Coast. About same price(e.g $8 for a plate of beef hor fun).

My wife had this nissin noodle(Can't understand their obsession with instant noodle) with a fried egg and luncheon meat.



And you can never guess what's so special about this fried rice of mine. It's called Durian Fried Rice.



I think this bready side dish is the closest you can get to an authetic HK dish at this place.



Still, it's pretty interesting. Worth a try, esp with the extra progress share on hand.

The institution of marriage

Got this lengthy piece from an email. In our pursuit to look for the ultimate happiness and enjoyment, do we sometime forget to count our current blessings?

On my wedding day, I carried my wife in my arms. The bridal car stopped in front of our one-room flat. My buddies insisted that I carry her out of the car in my arms. So I carried her into our home. She was then plump and shy. I was a strong and happy bridegroom. This was the scene of ten years ago.

The following days were as simple as a cup of pure water: we had a kid; I went into business and tried to make more money. When the assets were steadily increasing, the affections between us seemed to ebb. She was a civil servant. Every morning we left home together and got home almost at the same time. Our kid was studying in a boarding school.

Our marriage life seemed to be enviably happy. But the calm life was more likely to be affected by unpredictable changes. Dew came into my life.

It was a sunny day. I stood on a spacious balcony. Dew hugged me from behind. My heart once again was immersed in her stream of love. This was the apartment I bought for her.

Dew said, "You are the kind of man who best draws girls' eyeballs. Her words suddenly reminded me of my wife. When we just married, my wife said, Men like you, once successful, will be very attractive to girls. Thinking of this, I became somewhat hesitant. I knew I had betrayed my wife. But I couldn't help doing so. I moved Dew's hands aside and said," You go to select some furniture, O.K.? I've got something to do in the company." Obviously she was unhappy, because I had promised her to go and see with her. At the moment, the idea of divorce became clearer in my mind although it used to be something impossible to me.

However, I found it rather difficult to tell my wife about it. No matter how mildly I mentioned it to her, she would be deeply hurt. Honestly, she was a good wife. Every evening she was busy preparing dinner. I was sitting in front of the TV. The dinner was ready soon. Then we watched TV together. Or, I was lounging before the computer, visualizing Dew's body. This was the means of my entertainment.

One day I said to her in a slight joking way, suppose we divorce, what will you do? She stared at me for a few seconds without a word. Apparently she believed that divorce was something too far away from her. I couldn't imagine how she would react once she got to know I was serious.

When my wife went to my office, Dew had just stepped out. Almost all the staff looked at my wife with a sympathetic eye and tried to hide something while talking with her. She seemed to have got some hint. She gently smiled at my subordinates. But I read some hurt in her eyes.

Once again, Dew said to me," He Ning, divorce her, O.K.? Then we live together." I nodded. I knew I could not hesitate any more. When my wife served the last dish, I held her hand. "I've got something to tell you," I said. She sat down and ate quietly. Again I observed the hurt in her eyes. Suddenly I didn't know how to open my mouth. But I had to let her know what I was thinking. I want to divorce. I raised a serious topic calmly.

She didn't seem to be much annoyed by my words, instead she asked me softly, why? I'm serious. I avoided her question. This so-called answer turned her angry. She threw away the chopsticks and shouted at me," You are not a man!"

At that night, we didn't talk to each other. She was weeping. I knew she wanted to find out what had happened to our marriage. But I could hardly give her a satisfactory answer, because my heart had gone to Dew.

With a deep sense of guilt, I drafted a divorce agreement which stated that she could own our house, our car, and 30% stake of my company. She glanced at it and then tore it into pieces. I felt a pain in my heart. The woman who had been living ten years with me would become a stranger one day. But I could not take back what I had said.

Finally she cried loudly in front of me, which was what I had expected to see. To me, her cry was actually a kind of release. The idea of divorce which had obsessed me for several weeks seemed to be firmer and clearer. A late night, I came back home after entertaining my clients. I saw her writing something at the table. I fell asleep fast. When I woke up, I found she was still there. I turned over and was asleep again.

She brought up her divorce conditions: she didn't want anything from me, but I was supposed to give her one month's time before divorce, and in the month's time we must live as normal life as possible. Her reason was simple: our son would finish his summer vacation a month later and she didn't want him to see our marriage was broken.

She passed me the agreement she drafted, and then asked me," He Ning, do you still remember how I entered our bridal room on the wedding day?" This question suddenly brought back all those wonderful memories to me. I nodded and said," I remember." "You carried me in your arms," she continued," So, I have a requirement, that is, you carry me out in your arms on the day when we divorce. From now to the end of this month, you must carry me out from the bedroom to the door every morning."

I accepted with a smile. I knew she missed those sweet days and wished to end her marriage with a romantic form.

I told Dew about my wife's divorce conditions. She laughed loudly and thought it was absurd. No matter what tricks she does, she has to face the result of divorce, she said scornfully. Her words more or less made me feel uncomfortable. My wife and I hadn't had any body contact since my divorce intention as explicitly expressed. We even treated each other as a stranger. So when I carried her out for the first day, we both appeared clumsy. Our son clapped behind us, daddy is holding mummy in his arms. His words brought me a sense of pain. From the bedroom to the sitting room, then to the door, I walked over ten meters with her in my arms. She closed her eyes and said softly," Let us start from today, don't tell our son." I nodded, feeling somewhat upset. I put her down outside the door. She went to wait for bus, I drove to office.

On the second day, both of us acted much more easily. She leaned on my chest. We were so close that I could smell the fragrance of her blouse. I realized that I hadn't looked at this intimate woman carefully for a long time. I found she was not young any more. There were some fine wrinkles on her face.

On the third day, she whispered to me," The outside garden is being demolished. Be careful when you pass there."

On the fourth day, when I lifted her up, I seemed to feel that we were still an intimate couple and I was holding my sweetheart in my arms. The visualization of Dew became vaguer.

On the fifth and sixth day, she kept reminding me something, such as, where she put the ironed shirts, I should be careful while cooking, etc. I nodded. The sense of intimacy was even stronger.

I didn't tell Dew about this. I felt it was easier to carry her. Perhaps the everyday workout made me stronger. I said to her," It seems not difficult to carry you now."

She was picking her dresses. I was waiting to carry her out. She tried quite a few but could not find a suitable one. Then she sighed," All my dresses have grown fatter." I smiled. But I suddenly realized that it was because she was thinner that I could carry her more easily, not because I was stronger. I knew she had buried all the bitterness in her heart. Again, I felt a sense of pain. Subconsciously I reached out a hand to
touch her head.

Our son came in at the moment. "Dad, it s time to carry mum out," he said. To him, seeing his father carrying his mother out had been an essential part of his life. She gestured our son to come closer and hugged him tightly. I turned my face because I was afraid I would change my mind at the last minute. I held her in my arms, walking from the bedroom, through the sitting room, to the hallway. Her hand surrounded my neck softly and naturally. I held her body tightly, as if we came back to our wedding day. But her much lighter weight made me sad.

On the last day, when I held her in my arms I could hardly move a step. Our son had gone to school. She said," Actually I hope you will hold me in your arms until we are old." I held her tightly and said," Both you and I didn't notice that our life was lack of such intimacy."

I jumped out of the car swiftly without locking the door. I was afraid any delay would make me change my decision. I walked upstairs. Dew opened the door. I said to her," Sorry, Dew, I won't divorce. I'm serious." She looked at me, astonished. The she touched my forehead. "You got no fever," she said. I moved her hand off my head. "Sorry, Dew," I said," I can only say sorry to you, I won't divorce. My marriage life was boring probably because she and I didn't value the details of life, not because we didn't love each other any more. Now I understand that since I carried her into the home, she gave birth to our child, I am supposed to hold her until I am old. So I have to say sorry to you."

Dew seemed to suddenly wake up. She gave me a loud slap and then slammed the door and burst into cry. I walked downstairs and drove to the office. When I passed the floral shop on the way, I ordered a bouquet for my wife which was her favorite. The salesgirl asked me to write the greeting words on the card. I smiled and wrote -- I'll carry you out every morning until we are old.

Laser what?

Hmmm... I just need a rejuvenated smile so how ah?

The one below lagi cheem. Branded(Designer) one. I think they will laser "LV" or "Gucci" there maybe.

Hong Kong coming up

Enough of South East Asia holidays! We move to the north this time.

17/05/06 - 20/05/06

To like minded people who are also planning the same thing, you must go to Hong Thai Travel Services(People's Park Complex). I'm going by Cathay and gets to stay at a 5 star Royal Plaza all for $659 nett 4D3N!

You can barely match that even if you fly by Jetstar.

Ching Ming

My mum, Wen Wen and I went to Ching Ming today. From what I know, we are pretty late into this thing. Most people had already get it over with.

But also good lah. I hate crowded places and combine that with joss smoke, that's really a killer.

For those who don't know, Ching Ming is the period where we(the living family members) will pray and make offerings to our deceased family member.

In my case, that would be my dad. He passed away about 13 years ago.

Despite all the many rituals I'd been through, I still have problems remembering them. Not that I'm such a believer but these are the small little things that make growing up interesting. Still, I mostly likely will go through with them when there's no one around to guide me.

Actually today's one is pretty straightforward.

I went through ours at Man Fatt Lam and you basically get a start kit of incense papers, 5 oranges, one chinese cake, one packet of vege bee hoon and a cup of tea.

Below the first item gets incenerated, you need to "ensure" that the food had been "consumed". So most would throw 2 coins on the floor. If they land of different sides, that would be an indication of an "I'm done!"

Food wise I think is quite individualistic. Very subject to preference. To my children, when I'm the one you are making the offerings to, please replace the vege bee hoon with a Mushroom Swiss Meal, 3 pcs KFC plus a Ya Kun kopi gao(thick).

Hey, I only enjoy it once a year.

Procurement

I pretty agree to a certain extent that some jobs are best suited to certain gender.

Take procurment for instance.

Women would make the world lousiest buyers. Why so?

Impulse.

You put a few women together in orchard empty handed and they will come back with luggages.

It is in their blood to buy implusively.

Maybe it's their competitive nature. Ger 1 bought a bag, I must at least get a pair of shoes.

So imagine if SIA procurement team is managed and manned( or womened?) by them. We have stocks for everything? But the straits time is having a discount! We must get like 5 copies for each passenger!

Men on the other hand would make excellent buyers. We always love to buy in bulk and we always do so much research that by the time we wanna get that xbox 360, the 720 series is already been phrased out.

And why would anyone not want to buy all possible things on a single visit? It's like going to the counter to first get your burger, then your fries, then go back again to get your drink.

So when you see things that comes in a pack, or things that has like 10-in-1 capabilities, men created them.

When you see one single thing with 10 over variations with each serving the same purpose(e.g. knives set), you can be damn sure men didn't create them.

And my first attempt at bulk purchase. Enough to last me til I'm 30.

Welcome to the world

A new arrival at Thomson Medical. Her name is Liu En Ting.

So petite. Her height is same as the length of my foot.

Borned on 1559 11/04/06.

Congrats to Father (in green) and Mum (still lying on bad with the bad after effect.

A new phone

Hmmm.. it seemed like yesterday that I gotten a new phone.

Ok, it was like one month ago.

And I think I created record for exhibiting such short tolerance on my MotoBoringRola V3. I thought I could last till end of the year but I failed myself.

But heck, I'm enjoying my Nokia 3250 now. Had it since 12 noon and still amazed by the features it came with. The speaker was immaculate, it plays mp3, radio, 2 mb pixel camera with superb quality.

It even comes with a sound meter, letting you measure what's the noise decibel around you. Good for thieving around.

I simply can't stop twisting the bottom(and my bottom).

It comes with a PC cable so I can, again, post dozen of mindless photos on my blog.. yeah..

I'm a Scorpio

I was reading Missy Claris website and link myself to find out more about my own horoscope.

Many years ago I was quite into this too. Like what Claris said, I also used to deal with individual differently based on their horoscope. Mostly would be girls and understand how to attract them. hehe.

This particular link is really detailed. It even elaborate about why many women have bad impression of scorpio man. I personally had encountered this uncountable times.

The bolded portion are those that pretty much apply on me. The rest mainly make up the numbers I think.

This is the sign of extremes. Scorpio people are variously described as powerful, weak, independent, clinging, passionate, and cold. Clearly, you are a bundle of contradictions encompassing the best and worst in human nature.

The key to your personality is intensity. magnetic, emotional, capable of exerting tremendous force, your strength is hidden in the depths. In the sign of Scorpio the element of water is fixed, an image that suggests an iceberg or a bottomless well. You may appear impassive, sometimes unapproachable, but turbulent passions are always roiling underneath, invisible on the surface.

You need a positive avenue of expression—in career or love or creative achievement—or your feelings turn inward, become imprisoned, at times even destructive. More than natives of any other sign, Scorpios live at a high pitch of emotion. Its negative aspects are brooding, jealousy, resentment, even vengefulness. The positive aspect is your unswerving dedication once your emotions are engaged. The Scorpion energy, drive, and endurance are legend. Above all, you seek to give your life a meaningful pattern, to find a deeper purpose.

You have a philosophical turn of mind and may become interested in religion and the occult. Your sixth sense enables you to intuit things before they happen. You are blessed with a native understanding of the human heart and a great awareness of life's secrets. All the water signs (Cancer, Scorpio, Pisces) tend to be psychic, but you Scorpios delve into the powers of the mind that others are afraid of. This is the zodiacal sign of birth, sex, death, and regeneration—areas of human existence in which a person confronts the mysteries of the universe. Many Scorpio natives are brilliant doctors, surgeons, scientists, and spiritual leaders. Jonas Salk, Christian Barnard, Marie Curie, and Martin Luther are among them.

The complexity of your mind makes it difficult for you to skim the surface; you must uncover what lies beneath. Whether you are studying a new subject, learning a language, hunting down a fact, or just reading for amusement, there is a quality of penetration in the way your mind works.

Your relationships are usually complicated. this is not surprising when you consider that you can be simultaneously generous and affectionate, violent and unpredictable; in your sunniest moods there is always a hint of an imminent change in the weather. You are deeply loyal to friends but are also intensely jealous and possessive. You cannot tolerate the thought that anyone you love might have a yearning, or even a simple yen, for anyone else. With you, it is usually all or nothing at all. Moderation and restraint are not in your emotional vocabulary.

You never forget a kindness and try to repay it handsomely. Conversely, you never forgive an injury and will wait years to get even. In fact, most of the time getting even isn't enough—you want vengeance. It is strictly not advisable to do harm to any Scorpion. You make a dangerous enemy, for you are as subtle and deadly as the symbol of your sign.

You are a fierce competitor, though often you manage to conceal this from others. You file away pieces of information, facts, names—and don't hesitate to use what you know if the occasion arises. When you spot a weakness in a rival, you move in quickly for the kill.

You are adaptable, able quickly to channel your formidable energies into new paths and to embark on an entirely different career. Confronted with disaster, you will try to turn it into success. Practical and shrewd, you believe in tangible immediate goals, and your single-minded concentration on getting what you want is formidable.

Clever with money, conservative about spending it, you have an excellent chance to amass wealth. in business, you tend to accomplish things first and announce them second,. By the time an opponent is aware of your progress, it is a fait accompli.

Your nature makes you subject to obsessive drives which can be resistant to reason. You will dominate and control anyone who lets you. Suspicious and wary, you are reluctant to trust your heart to anyone. But once you do, you love deeply.

Too many astrologers, in describing the sign of Scorpio, forget to emphasize how loving, generous, kind, loyal, even gentle a Scorpio can be. Many idealists who adhere to high principles and are a great positive force for helping others are born under this sign.

What all Scorpios have in common is intensity of feeling. Emotion not only rules, it characterizes you. You are passionate in love, and passionate about everything in which you become involved: work, relationships, hobbies, causes. You are an individual painted in vivid colors; there is no such thing as a pastel Scorpio

Phuket Day 3

Time seems to pass awfully quick after we retire for the night. Coz again, we managed to wake up after the sun is right on top, grilling our lazy ass(That's 12.30pm)

Still in half-sleeply mode, we had a light branch(as usual)



And headed to Patong Beach to soak in some sun rays.



That's Star Virgo out in the middle. We plan to hop onto it in Oct.

One thing I feel good about being in Phuket is that no matter how fat I gotten from all that bbq shrimps, someone else would surely beat me to it.. haha.



And Phuket must also be the land of Hondas and Toyotas



Brand new somemore.



So to all who keeps compraining that I should not have gotten a Made In Korea car, please bear in mind your Hondas/Toyotas are Made In Thailand. :)



We couldn't decide how to waste the many hours we'd left so we went to the Spa.... to relax..



We opted for the Heavenly Bliss Package at 1,000 baht each. Close to 3 hours of foot massage/thai herbal massage combi.



But I think my masseur don't really like me, or she must have worked as a butcher before. She was pounding me like a piece of meat. And the hot towel she placed over my feet must have cooked it coz I think I'd smelled something.

I love the clothes they made us wear though. I feel like a nurse.



A familiar sight in Phuket



To all future Phuket visitors, have your meals here instead of the spruce up restaurants by the beach. You could save a few hundred bahts. They are located the street behind the beach.



The whole stretch were filled with similiar setups. We had the 2nd one, the one with the most customers.

Here's a closer look at their signboard:



The food was the best of our entire trip.




And the interesting nightlife of Patong..


I think she's asking for a Subway sandwich

And Muay Thai!



And whatever Thai baht we had left, we sure didn't keep them:

THE END