| Randoms |
[Jun. 24th, 2009|11:14 am] |
I never thought I'd say this but I really liked this particular Pomeranian-Chihuahua mix we saw at a Holland Village pet shop yesterday.
It was fluffy and adorable, curious and cautious all at the same time.
I still want a Daschund though.
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I have been pretty inspired lately by some stories I've read, films I've watched and people I've had conversations with - but none at work, sadly.
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I really want to go to Club Med Cherating for various reasons: (a) I've never been to a Club Med before and the Cherating one is rated higher than the Bintan one (b) It's next to a turtle sanctuary (c) I've only been to that part of Malaysia once (d) I just want to chill. *****
I realise I haven't been updating lenscape.livejournal.com for eons. I think I must go practise my photography again.
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| Chicken Cordon Bleu cheat dinner |
[Jun. 17th, 2009|09:51 pm] |
This was one of our weekday dinners last week - super easy to make because:
(a) I didn't actually make the Chicken Cordon Bleu from scratch. It was purchased from Huber's Butchery after work! All I had to do was stick it in the oven on 180 degrees C for about 22 minutes
(b) I also didn't make the pasta sauce from scratch. It's a reduced-price purchase from Jason's. But the saving grace is that it is 95% or so organic and preservative-free. It was deleeecious! Paired with wholewheat pasta which I'm proud to say I boiled myself haha!
(c) I didn't wash the salad greens - came from a triple-washed pack!
Not exactly the cheapest dinner, but still came in at about $8 per person. And I think I overdid the amount of food - this was J's plate, mine was quite a lot less, but still couldn't finish.
(Check out the cheese oozing out of the breaded chicken breast here.)
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| Spotlight "Clean Sweep" sale |
[Jun. 16th, 2009|11:11 am] |
Quickie post!
For all you crafters and stitchers out there - Spotlight is offering a "clean sweep" sale!
20% off all embroidery threads, including Anchor and DMC (usual price $0.85 each)
30% off all pure wool blends
30% off entire range of craft beads, findings and kits
(But you have to be a VIP member tho - just sign up at the counter, it's free!) |
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| Do I dare x-stitch this big? |
[Jun. 9th, 2009|04:24 pm] |
Okay now that I'm in a real cross-stitch mode - but really, I'm in danger of stashin' more than sewin' - I thought perhaps I'll be a bit more ambitious and tackle a nice, big project.
I can't think of any reason other that he's a real sweetie, but Jeff's been pretty supportive and last night, told me that he will sponsor the framing of the finished piece - whenever that may be. Likely more than a year I suspect.
What do you think of this? It's Rosewood Manor's And A Forest Grew. (Model stitched on 32-count linen in cream with DMC threads.)
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| It's time for Life to begin |
[Jun. 9th, 2009|01:52 pm] |
Feel the rain on your skin
No one else can feel it for you
Only you can let it in
No one else, no one else
Can speak the words on your lips
Drench yourself in words unspoken
Live your life with arms wide open
Today is where your book begins
The rest is still unwritten
~Unwritten, Natasha Bedingfield |
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| X-Stitch ME time |
[Jun. 7th, 2009|01:53 pm] |
While running is ME time, so is cross-stitch for me. I got hooked on this age-old needlework technique as a little girl, wanting so much to be able to share in my mother's passions. She used to cross-stitch large, complicated, pieces - our piano cover, small pillow covers, towels and so on. Needlework has helped in teaching me patience - a quality I don't naturally have. And I also love the orderliness of each stitch and how collectively, they line-up neatly together to form a picture. Here's my latest work-in-progress, a small image of a bunch of flowers in a glass. Will probably make it into a card or something. (Because my stupid LJ cut isn't working very well...) Click here to see how it looks like now and here to see what it should look like when I'm done (pic taken from my magazine/pattern). |
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| Reflections |
[May. 29th, 2009|03:49 pm] |
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I met my ex-big boss today and he hasn't changed.
I met the receptionists today and they haven't changed.
I met my ex-boss's PA today and she too has not changed.
They all still remember me, and they're all still so friendly and warm.
I wonder what I have given up and what I have gained.
(Coincidentally, yesterday marked the seventh month of my move from the company.)
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| Running... |
[May. 20th, 2009|11:57 pm] |
...teaches me: • patience
• determination
• humility
• to let go and be free What does it do for you? Posted via LiveJournal.app. |
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| Hong Kong |
[May. 8th, 2009|09:08 am] |
Hong Kong here I come in July! Woohoo!
Well, the trip's actually for work, but I'm sure I can find time here and there to eat dim sum and go outlet-exploring ;)
Any other must-do things? |
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| Vintaged Simplicity |
[Apr. 19th, 2009|05:13 pm] |
I am thrilled - was gifted this pair of very "me" earrings by the lovely ![[info]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif) riendel . (We had a catch-up brunch - with husbands in tow - at Spruce.) I was wearing a patterned pinkish-red top and when I put these babies on in the car, they matched perfectly. :) These are part of her Simplicity range of jewellery under the brand essentials. Check out her store on etsy - very lovely selections and there's definitely something for everyone. |
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| Beautifully imperfect |
[Apr. 7th, 2009|01:56 pm] |
This is a prime example of excellent, excellent scripting/writing and very talented acting. Get your tissues ready.
Jeff and I came across this on the TV while having dinner last night and we were both stunned - enveloped in both sadness and profound admiration at the same time. We were both tearing and reaching for the tissues. Needless to say, the message hit home. |
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| Monday half-time thought: Dinner! |
[Apr. 6th, 2009|11:31 am] |
Heating up some Thai-style minced chicken with basil and chilli for dinner tonight. Will make a light Chinese-style vege with garlic, oyster sauce and maybe, a little ginger if I can get my hands on some. All that on a fluffy bed of white rice, chased down with ice-cold water.
Can't wait!
What are you having for dinner? |
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| (Half) Marathon rant |
[Apr. 1st, 2009|09:27 am] |
ARGH!!
I know I'm late, but I'm now just checking the Army Half-Marathon date and it's Aug 16 - the one day I'm in Singapore, sandwiched between two bouts of travel!! Obviously, there's no way I can run in that - oh well...
Now, should I just forget about a 21km race thingy, just do the distance (and more actually) for training and go straight for the 42km in Dec? |
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| Guppies |
[Apr. 1st, 2009|09:16 am] |
I have my first swim class with Yellowfish tonight - ack, scared! I haven't gone swimming in a few months!!
But the fees have been paid, the swimming gear has been packed and lugged to the office, the mind has been readied, the body has been, erm, running!
I don't know if it's a good thing or not that we're called guppies (the beginner's group) - coach is creative, eh? - but I'll be damned if I don't master the front crawl in 10 weeks!
(One of my many motivations is to beat the little kids - some toddlers - at my condo pool every weekend who can swim the front crawl like pros while I breaststroke it, slowly, away (!!!!).) |
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| Simplifying |
[Mar. 30th, 2009|11:57 am] |
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It just dawned upon me again over the weekend that life is actually a lot less complicated than we make it out to be.
How far do we want to chase success? What is success for that matter?
How much material possessions must we have to feel good about ourselves? When do we stop buying, stop striving, stop aspiring?
How far do we go to please people or conversely, how much does it take for us to be nice to others, really?
When do we say enough is enough?
While I do believe to a certain extent that money does make the world go round, I think life is actually very simple - a happy life lived around core values.
Jeff and I spent the past weekend simply: Having a BBQ with friends, enjoying another friend's traditional prawn noodle dish (made by her father, one of the few guardians of the family recipe), hanging out with the HA girls over a roadside steamboat session on Fri night, hanging out with our dogs, going to the gym, sleeping in, visiting my folks where we enjoyed some homemade bak kut teh, taking care of our plants and reading newspapers.
Okay, food-binge aside, I felt it was truly a super-easy, super-affordable but very enjoyable couple of days. The only big-ticket item was the BBQ, at close to $100.
(Funny note: The roadside kopitiam-like place where we had our steamboat - $18 ++ a-la-carte buffet - was called Paradise on Earth (!!!).)
I am going to consciously simplify and weed out any toxic elements from my life.
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