a leisurely tuesday afternoon

On Monday 30 April, I mused aloud to colleague M, wondering why so many people had taken the day off. M replied that it was a holiday the next day. Yes, I had forgotten that the first of May was Labour Day, a holiday!!! And I had no plans for it!!!

I immediately messaged some friends, and Jaewai replied that she needed to brainstorm for a fundraising project. I said that I could help her, and we could spend the afternoon at some cafe. I suggested Wimbly Lu in Jalan Riang.

So the following afternoon on 1 May, we met at Lorong Chuan MRT and took an approximately ten-minute walk to Wimbly Lu, located in a row of shophouses in a private housing estate somewhere near Nanyang JC.

The cafe was completely full. We managed to get a table within five minutes, cos I had wisely made a reservation but it had almost lapsed by the time we reached the place.

all in a day’s work

Called up a dozen healthcare organizations today to seek sponsorship for one of our upcoming events.

Started by calling their main lines, was then transferred to the relevant persons in charge, and was 0ccasionally further transferred to even more relevant persons in charge. Must have repeated my story 30 to 40 times.

I really felt like a parrot.

eating our way through a saturday

Made a new friend yesterday!

Had arranged to meet Joanne at Marutama Ramen at the Central at 2.30 pm, and she would be bringing her friend Serena. In the end I was half an hour late, and by the time I reached the restaurant, Joanne and Serena were finishing their ramen and extra order of cha shu.

So I quickly ordered a bowl of their the eponymous Marutama ramen!

playful filipino names hard to get used to

AH this is rather amusing!!!

Playful Filipino names hard to get used to

Kate McGeown
BBC News, Manila

Bizarre and often unflattering names are as quintessentially Filipino as the country’s Catholic faith, friendly smiles, former US military jeeps known as jeepneys, beautiful beaches and love of karaoke.

On my first day in Manila, I walked down to the local cafe and was served by a smiling young girl who wore a name badge entitled BumBum.

I did a double-take, then smiled back, deciding it was probably a joke.

But if so, it is a joke that practically the whole country seems to be in on.

Since then I’ve met a Bambi, three Bogies, several Girlies, a Peanut, a Barbie and a middle-aged man called Babe.

These names are found in all sectors of society.

Sometimes they are nicknames, sometimes genuine first names – but they are always what people are referred to on a day-to-day basis.

Even the president is not spared. His real name is Benigno Aquino, but almost everyone here calls him Noynoy.

Two of his sisters are called Pinky and Ballsy. No-one seems to see the need to ask why.

a blessing in disguise

After more than four days of continual trips to the toilet (ie, diarrhoea), I am pleased to announce that I have lost about 1 kg!

(The amount of stuff I passed was amazing. Clearly, I am full of shit.)

Oh I hope this weight loss is permanent. :D

lunch at lenas

My family and I, minus my dad, went to LENAS at a nearby mall for lunch today, on my sister’s recommendation. This LENAS outlet is rather small, especially when compared to their branch in Bugis Junction.

Fried chicken wings!

The fried chicken wings weren’t too bad. But then I think it is hard to go wrong with fried chicken, as long as the ingredients are reasonably fresh and the chicken is still piping hot when brought to the table.

pearl of the orient seas

Just came back from a 2.5 day business trip in the Philippines!!!

一丈之外，便非丈夫

I’ve always found this part rather amusing:

裘千尺一见杨过出洞，便大骂女儿：“你这蠢货，怎地让他独自上去了？他出洞之后，哪里还想得到咱们？”绿萼道：“妈，你放心，杨大哥不是那样的人。”裘千尺怒道：“普天下的男人都是一般，还能有甚么好的？”突然转过头来，向女儿全身仔细打量，说道：“小傻瓜，你给他占了便宜啦，是不是？” 绿萼满脸通红道：“妈，你说甚么，我不懂。”裘千尺更是恼怒：“你不懂，为甚么要脸红？我跟你说啊，对付男人，一步也放松不得，半点也大意不得，难道你还没看清楚你妈的遭遇？”正自唠叨不休，绿萼纵起身来，接住了杨过垂下的长索，给母亲牢牢缚在腰间，笑道：“你瞧，杨大哥理不理咱们？”说着将绳索扯了几扯，示意已经缚好。

裘千尺哼了一声，道：“妈跟你说，上去之后，你须得牢牢钉住他，寸步不离。丈夫，丈夫，只是一丈，一丈之外，便不是丈夫了，知道么？你爷爷给你妈取名为千尺，千尺便是百丈，嘿嘿，百丈之外，还有甚么丈夫？”

金庸《神雕侠侣》第十九回

butter and maple syrup

Pancakes for brunch on Sunday (6 May), courtesy of the mother! I think her pancakes have improved as they were really light and fluffy this time round!

And served with butter and real maple syrup! None of those lousy margarine and maple-flavoured syrup that a certain fast food chain serves with its hotcakes!!! :P

Yum yum!!! :D

a fraction of

Chicken pie for lunch last Saturday (5 May), courtesy of the mother!

It was pretty good. Only thing was that the pieces of parmesan she had mixed into the filling had somehow degenerated into chewy chunks, but they added a nice saltiness to the pie.

Incidentally, whenever someone says ‘a fraction of something’, they almost always mean a small fraction, never a large one! (For example, it would be quite weird if I looked at the pie above and commented that ‘a fraction of the pie is left’!!!)

I wonder why! Perhaps it is because when we start learning fractions like 1/4, 1/5 or 1/10, the fraction pie charts we see always emphasize the small portions, and never the remaining large parts!

你难道还不明白我的心么

杨过踢过两个蒲团，并排放在画像之前，大声说道，“弟子杨过和弟子龙氏，今日在重阳祖师之前结成夫妇，此间全真教数百位道长，都是见证。”

说罢跪在蒲团之上，见小龙女站着不跪，说道：“咱们就此拜堂成亲，你也跪下来罢！”小龙女沉吟不语，双目红润，盈泪欲滴。杨过柔声道：“你有甚么话说？在这里不好么？”小龙女颤声道：“不，不是！”她顿了一顿，说道：“我既非清白之躯，又是个垂死之人，你何必……你何必待我这样好？”

说到这里，泪珠从脸颊上缓缓流下。

杨过重行站起，伸衣袖给她擦了擦眼泪，笑道：“你难道还不明白我的心么？”小龙女抬头望着他，只听他柔声道：“我真愿咱两个都能再活一百年，让我能好好待你，报答你对我的恩情。若是不能，苦是老天爷只许咱们再活一天，咱们便做一天夫妻，只许咱们再活一个时辰，咱们就做一个时辰的夫妻。”

金庸《神雕侠侣》第二十八回

the solitary diner

Last Friday (27 April), I felt like having bread for lunch, so off I went to Drips Bakery Cafe again!

Had a Norwegian smoked salmon sandwich.

Some people got the slit whole tomato (that I got on my last visit), but i only got half of one this time! :S

on broccoli

I do not like broccoli. And I haven’t liked it since I was a little kid and my mother made me eat it. And I’m President of the United States and I’m not going to eat any more broccoli.

George H W Bush, 41st US President

For the record, I love broccoli!!! (And yes, cauliflower too!!!) It tastes really good lightly boiled and mixed with a bit of butter!!!