New Year's Eve ...

Korean drama in the background and three ladies chatting away. Am seated at the living room of Hanwen's home typing away what will be my last blog entry for the year 2007.

The year ended with quite a good note especially after settling one of the more difficult task involved in the wedding process - wedding gown package.

Sandy has selected the gown she'll like to wear at the wedding lunch next June. I'll have to say she looks really beautiful in a wedding gown and I must admit not many ladies can carry that charisma like she does.

Anyway, forget the boasting of a pretty bride. Time has passed us by so quickly and 2008 will come in just a couple of hours. Where will I be at that time? Its going to be at my buddy's place just like on Christmas eve.

You must be wondering what happened to my plans at The Oriental. I guess we made a last minute change because we are expecting the place to be really crowded and expensive as a cover charge will be required should we use Axis Bar for our countdown party.

Its the same wherever we choose to countdown or I'll say, it doesn't matter where we countdown because what matters is the company. Having such great friends for company makes the heart smile especially into the last hours of 2007. Things we did so much together as friends - Lance and Monica's wedding , Hanwen and Clara's HK / Macau photo shoot. All these will be cherished and remembered. Am sure you too have many unforgettable moments of 2007 ... so let us keep them and treasure them as we countdown to 2008.

2008 will be a fresh start for many and the same goes for me. A new job, new friends along the way and not forgetting its going to be a very exciting year for me as my wedding takes place in June and hopefully, the purchase of my new home too.

Happy New Year to all and may much happiness fill the hearts of you and your loved ones ....

Youtube ...

Youtube definitely isn't new to me as I often use it to trace my idol Yoshiki and X-Japan. Bet you didn't know I was still crazy over their music especially after all these years. I am crazy over them and am trying to find out when their next concert is and I sure would love to attend if time permits.

So what's new about Youtube? Nothing new actually but some things old that I happened to find on Youtube. This morning, I decided to do a search on some old Music Videos. Tommy Page, New Kids On the Block, Robby Valentine etc. Its almost impossible to find their CDs now.

I also did a search on some cartoons from my era. My era would mean cartoons like Alvin & The Chipmunks, Smurf, Mask, Transformers etc. Know them? Ah, so we are of the same generation. ; )

Its always nice to reminisce old times and refresh some memories of my younger days. Watching cartoons, playing toys and of course, always trying to escape doing home work. I can still remember those times when I was still the only child and my closest companion was Gregory, a cousin of mine. We would watch TV together, shared toys and best of all, amuse one another.

Those were the days, happy moments and great fun. Should you want to bring back some sweet old memories of you and your childhood, try doing a search on Youtube. It will bring you back in time, at least for that short while, you'll see pictures of your younger life.

Runny stomach ...

This morning, after reading about Benazir Bhutto's assasination in Pakistan, I wanted very much to express my thoughts and views on the issue of violence in our world but I guess it isn't a very appropriate time to write about it now as its afterall the festive season to be merry thus I have decided to write about something lighter and easily digested.

From the title, I am sure by now you know what I am going to write about. Bad stomach.

To be fair, everyone in their lives experience such and surely it isn't like its only once in a lifetime but quite a fair bit more opportunities for such to happen especially when one takes too much unhealthy diet.

Remember the last time you had this terrible urge to use the toilet and release the most potent of liquid and gas. Hey, don't be shy. Its a fact and its usually the watery liquid ones that creates such chaos and turns the mind crazy.

The nearer you reach your needed destination, the more urgent you seem to be. The mind and body gets into frenzy mode and you think you cannot hold it any longer but you squeeze those muscles in the butt and sometimes walk funnily. Don't you even dare try to run. The muscles needed to squeeze the butt will relax if you try to run and you know by then , shit happens.

I am speaking from experience as just this evening after my soccer game, ache visited me in the stomach and what I described above was what really happened to me thus I apologise if its a little too crude but well, that's life! Nothing can beat the speed of rushing bowels.

Singapore .. food paradise

In Singapore, food is a must for everyone. Wait a minute, isn't food a must for everyone everywhere. Let me do it again ...

In Singapore, food plays a rather important part in tourism. Its not only the shopping malls, zoological gardens and Sentosa that contributes to the wealth of the nation but another important factor is the food that is offered in Singapore.

Having lived here all my life, its funny to say that I get every opportunity to sample all the different cuisines offered around the world all in once place - Singapore. A variety of North Indian, Mexican, Sze Chuan, Japanese, Korean, Indonesian and even African cuisines can be found in this little island.

I guess its true that food is on the top of every Singaporean's 'to-do' list. Before we could step into the office to start our day, we think of what to eat at lunch and even before your lunch gets to settle in the stomach, you think ahead of what to have for dinner. That's how Singaporeans motivate themselves at work.

Worst, at work we sometimes snack on all the interesting cakes and puffs that our different races have to offer. From Chinese roast pork bun to our Malay friend's 'epok epok' ( potato curry puff ).Sinful you may think but its the taste that counts, not the calories or cholestrol.

Look, I am not asking you to visit Singapore for the sake of international food but more for the sake of tasting the food the locals take. Rest assured Singaporeans do not eat bear's paws, fried bats or stewed worms. We eat the less exotic food like chicken, pork, mutton and beef. Of course, not forgetting the veggies too.

Whenever friends visit us from Hong Kong, Canada or anywhere else, Sandy and I will make it a point to see that they eat at least 5 times a day. My motive is to make them put on weight so that they'll have a hard time losing those kilos when they get home and to also share with them the joy of local food.

Local food doesn't mean expensive chilli crabs or sambal prawns. One can find lots of different types of local food fare NOT in fancy restaurants but usually at hawker centres or the 'not so clean' coffee shops. Best of all, the price of food served in such places are really reasonable.

Thus the next time you visit Singapore, tell your local tour guide not to bring you to a restaurant but to a hawker centre and if you do not have a local tour guide, just drop me a note and I will arrange to let you sample the various food I often talk about in my food blog - www.krameats.blogspot.com

A Christmas Party ...

With all graciousness and sacrifice, Hanwen and Clara have both allowed us to use their new home as our party ground and let us thrash their new deco, turning it to an aftermath of war. Kidding.

Minus the santa hats, party poppers and a Christmas tree, everything went well for last night's party at Evelyn Residences, new home of Hanwen and Clara. What else can I say but the food was yummy especially the salad that Clara, Beatrice and Sandy made, sacrificing their time of almost three hours all for a salad.

Talking about efficiency and productivity, three hours is surely a long time for raw food. Nevertheless, thank you all for the preparation of food and poor Clara had to slice of a bit of her last finger to add on some special sauce for the yummy effect.

Food wasn't all the fun. There were the presence of heaps of alcohol,drinking games of roulette shots, snake and ladder and the prized Xbox 360 and of course not forgetting the company of nice people - Hanwen, Clara, Beatrice, Lance, Monica, Edwin and of course my love, Sandy. Oops, forgot the late comers Tsu Jung and Louisa too. ; )

I guess some of the games can be really vicious especially the roulette shots which made Sandy tipsy. I think the next time we'll have a party there, we shall just put that game aside just in case the same happens to me.

Oh, so it's Christmas and its a little surprising that all of us have decided to do without a gift exchange. I find it weird but I respect the decision made by the organising commitee which I believe was Clara and Sandy. What's more important than a gathering of friends and enjoying each other's company right? ; )

Wishing you a Merry Christmas and may next year's party be held at my place which I have yet to find but I know, it'll come soon ....

2007 ...

In a blink of an eye, New Year eve's preparation is on the way and this time we will be celebrating it at the Axis Bar at the Oriental Hotel.

I can still remember clearly celebrating the welcome of 2007 at the Sheraton Hotel with buddy Hanwen, Clara, Sandy and Beatrice. So why Sheraton? It was a last minute location as everywhere was packed with people thus not many choices were available.

This time its different. I made reservations at the Axis Bar in August this year. Yes, kiasu ( a Singlish term that when literally translated meant 'scared to lose') but what to do ? Singaporeans love to party and if I don't make an early booking, we'll end up like last year - lost and frustrated. Not a very good way to spend the last hour of the year right?

So how well did 2007 treat me? I should say very well as its the year where I decided to get mobile by getting a car, gotten a date and location for my wedding and made quite a number of nice friends as well as keeping those that are already dear to me. What more could I ask for in 2007 especially when its almost coming to the last week of it.

All these years and especially this year, I have been blessed to have the company of family. Family outings were more often after recovery of my paternal grandmother's health and am also really happy that my maternal grandmother is also quite healthy except for legs which are causing a little discomfort whenever she walks.I guess that's old age and it cannot be helped that the muscles and bones are rather fragile at this stage.

Not forgetting close friends around me like Hanwen, Lance, Clara and Monica whom I see very often except for the last few weeks due to their busy schedules managing their renovation of their homes. Many happy moments with them especially at Lance's wedding and Hanwen's photo shoot in HK.

I guess I can consider myself quite a lucky soul with more good things happening to me than bad thus I shall spare you from my rantings of unhappiness in 2007 and allow 2007 to slowly slip away from our hands and become part of our history and past. Let us take time to feel the happiness we enjoyed during 2007 and treasure each and every experience we encountered. 2007 wouldn't last very long more as come 31st December, we will bid farewell and welcome a brand new year ....

My first day ...

Finally, a new chapter in my life has just begun even before 2008 arrives. Not that I have been looking to seek something new and discard the old but once awhile, new challenges can help refresh one's mind as one tries to find bigger challenges.

My first day at work wasn't too bad and I have to say the colleagues were rather friendly. What's funny is I have a colleague within my department that shares the rather unique name Mark. My, how coincidental especially when this name is rather uncommmon.

I cannot help but turn my head whenever I hear the name being mentioned. Just not used to sharing the same name within a department. I think the last time I heard someone calling this name was when I have my weekly soccer at the cage. Yes, another chap there shares the same unique name I have. I guess the name is special in every sense.

I settled in quickly with some rather unfamiliar platform of email reading - Lotus Notes. I kind of thought this program was used during days when DOS were still an 'in' thing. Forgive me as I am not that type who's IT savvy and know my way around the many different platforms and programs to check and reply emails. Guess I have not much choice but to familiarize myself with Lotus Notes.

I was introduced to a number of people at work and as usual, its never easy to remember names instantly but I managed to scribble the names on a notepad and tried to organize my memory bank to fit all of them in. Bravo ...

My biggest worry I have right now at work is adapting to the quiet environment where people hardly talk or laugh. Maybe because most of the workforce are out celebrating the festive season thus the noiseless backgrounds nevertheless, I am determined to spread my joy and happiness at my new workplace just like I managed to do so at Maersk. Am sure I am being missed now at Maersk. ; )

Life moves on. New bosses, new clients. Everything starts anew. Unfamiliar names will turn familiar, new processes will become old processes. All these can only happen after some time and I am sure a time will come whereby I will be almost perfect at what I do.

So wish me well at my new job at Pricoa Relocation and may I find happiness and job satisfaction. ; )

Hair cut & dyed hair ...

My hair seems to grow rather quickly nowadays and its causing me a little bit of a worry as I need to get my hair trimmed every three weeks or so and worst of all many strands of greying hair can be easily spotted.

I am not too sure what causes greying hair but it sure can be irritating. I didn't really bother about it last time and remembered clearly telling someone that greying hair means maturity and wisdom. Maybe its true. Am very likely growing older in age and of course, beginning to be wiser too or at least I hope that's how it is going to be for me. ; )

So while seated waiting for the hair stylist to recommend me some colors for the hair, I pondered and visualized myself in the trendiest of colors and hair styles. I wanted ash grey so that it could blend in with the already greying hair of mine but Christopher, my hairstylist, said that won't look nice on me and moreover, am a working executive and cannot possibly have such a funky look thus the color isn't that exciting now.

Never mind the color, it'll fade anyway later and I'll have to get it dyed again at a later stage. This is exactly what I am worried about - repeated dye on the scalp can be harmful. How often would I have my hair colored? Every couple of month? I have no idea but to hide those greying hair, I might just do it three times a year but likely only during festive seasons.

I heard of a remedy for grey hair that the older generation believes a lot in. Sesame seed is said to be a good tool to fight of greying hair. Not sure if it works but I certainly will have my decent dose of sesame whenever I can grab hold of it. Its black sesame that I am taking about and not those found on the buns at MacDonalds which are white.

Am not sure how related the color of the sesame works for the head but I sure know if your hair stylist were to ever ask you if you prefered it hard or soft, you will get a little shocked at what he or she really meant. It took me awhile this morning when I was posed this question. My mind went a little blank before I could say softly to Chris that I would prefer it soft and thus Christopher decided to use wax on my hair instead of gel as the latter keeps the hair in good shape but leaves a hard and rigid effect. ; )

Again .. what were you thinking?!

A Maersk Farewell ...

Like Sarah Brightman's familiar tune of 'Time to say good-bye', today ended with my last day at work in Maersk. Am having mixed emotions about my departure and I know my mind cannot think straight. Perhaps its the letting go of the responsibility that makes me feel lighter and also the fact that I know I am going to miss a number of people at Maersk.

Its a rather tearful farewell for me because of the numerous friends I made during my work stint with the locals and expatriates alike. Everyone I met at Maersk has given me some sort of an opportunity to learn something new. It doesn't matter its a big or small lesson, what's important is that I learnt something.

I am not a person who likes parting ways because it somewhat pulls those emotional strings of mine that well up those eyes with tears. I guess that's me, the cry baby and I cannot believe my colleagues were snapping photos of those eyes as I gave my 'thank you' speech.

I guess what I'll miss most would be the people around me and not so much the work I am tasked to do. At work, however tough the challenges are, its always the people around my department that cheers me on and keep my spirit up. I am glad that all these while, I have been given lots of encouragement and words of support and of course, not forgetting compliments too.

To all of you at Maersk who have helped me during this journey, I thank you much. I believe even though we are no longer colleagues, we can still meet up for a drink or two. This way, it wouldn't be much of a farewell at all as I know I'll have a friend in you afterall.

Back to School ...

Its always true what mothers tell us, especially when we were still young in school.

" When you start working, you will know that school is still the best time of your life. "

I guess we often look back at those good old days of school, everything about school is fun all except homeworks and examinations. Right?

Just last friday, Maersk held a department dinner themed 'Back to School'. I thought I was going to be one of the few to actually search for something appropriate to wear but who knows, almost everyone turned up in school uniform of sorts. Be it their sister's, brother's or even if it meant buying it, my colleagues just went all out to blend with the theme.

A funfair kicked off the 4 hour party at M Hotel with various funny games like darts, a rat race etc. Seriously, I didn't see all the games because I was one of the chaps who had to take care of a stall. Not too sure why I was given the dangerous booth - Dart the card. My, the men were surely better at darts than the ladies. I almost shed some blood when darts didn't pierce through the board but bounced off the board instead. Thanks to my reflexes that I never got shot by straying darts.

Like all department dinners with themes, a best dress award would surely be given to the person who took time to dress him or herself up. Too bad, I didn't get anything at all because I was only wearing a t-shirt from a previous school. How boring can it get right?

Anyway, do check out my photo pages on Flickr to see more on how adults look like. You can find the link on the right of my blog. Enjoy....

Present wrapping ...

So its the time for gift exchanges, surprises and whole loads of fun during this festive season. A friendly reminder from your neighbourhood police post - Drink don't drive, drive don't drink. Be merry but don't be sorry.

This time of the year sees more trees being chopped down for the use of wrapping papers or at least, that's what I think. Can you imagine all the paper that is used on the many presents we open during Christmas? Terrible isn't it? I believe there are a certain percentage of wrapping papers that are made of recycled paper so please use those or if not, newspapers can make innovative wraps too.

I cannot remember when was the last time I had to wrap a present. Firstly, I was never good with craft work. Give me wrapping paper and I can only do a lousy job by placing all the ends together and tapping it, hoping it'll not fall apart. Believe it or not, I cannot even us the scissors to cut a paper straight.

Thankfully at all department stores, a wrapping counter is available but the queue can be really long. Sometimes, a half an hour wait might be required for your turn to present the gift for wrapping and if time isn't on your side, perhaps you can do what I always do - bring it home and force someone to wrap it for you. As usual, Sandy is the only one around who has the gift of the craft - present wrapping. ; )

Gym ...

Wednesdays have been assigned as the day Sandy, Beatrice and I do our weekly routine of workouts at the gym. Well, it actually started today, so we thought.

I woke up this morning excited.Afterall, its my first visit to a gym after a long time. Its something to look forward to when you know that after work, there is something worthwhile to do. I was well prepared with towels and a change of cloths, all ready to face the various machines that will help keep me in better shape. I even planned a routine of sets.

So after work, I picked up both ladies and while we were on the way to the gym, there were lots of talk in the car that sort of hinted the reluctance of visiting the fitness facility. Upon hearing all these talk, I was a little disappointed but what can I do? Despite what was said, I didn't want to give up driving to Keppel Country Club.

So I proceeded through the gate of the club and parked the car.Knowing that they were reluctant to exercise, I still went on to take my bag of attire, ready to change into my exercise kit. As I walked away from the car, Sandy finally gave up and asked to postpone the gym session, giving excuses on how tired she was after her cruise etc. Beatrice as usual, had that evil grin on her face and said it didn't matter whether or not we worked out tonight because she has her own exercise schedule tomorrow doing 'Pole Exercise'. Sounds vulgar huh?

Anyway, since Sandy opened her mouth and said to postpone, I agreed and decided to walk back to the car for dinner. What went right into my mind at that point was to have Nasi Lemak (coconut rice) for dinner as it was only a short drive further down the road where we were. Irony isn't it? An evening set aside for gym ended up in a faraway place eating food that were not at all good for the body.

Never mind that.Best of all was before we headed out to the coffee shop where we supposed to have our dinner, Beatrice suggested visiting the Jackpot room. My, this naughty lady sure know how to have fun. Without contemplating, she whipped out a fifty dollar note and changed it to one-dollar coins.

Very unlike me, I merely sat at the sofa while she searched for a machine that could help her with a little bit of windfall but as usual, in less than 15 minutes, the machines swallowed all her coins, wiping her clean. That's what the machines were made for anyway if not, did you think the country club would have survived for so long just by attracting golfers? I doubt so.

Nevertheless, we happily drove towards our next destination of unhealthy food where a particular someone had to foot the bill. Why? Its because we previously set a rule stating that whoever chooses not to exercise on the assigned day without valid reason will have to buy dinner. So right now I am just wondering if its going to be the same person again the next time footing the bill ...

Choosing a present ...

So its Christmas, the time for gift exchanges. Like everyone else, I face problems, never knowing what to buy for friends.

We know some gifts are just bought for the sake of signifying the Christmas joy but think again, isn't it important to buy a gift which the receipient truly would appreciate and use. That's where the head starts cracking from the inside.

I have friends who are fortunate to have almost everything except for those big ticket items which I can hardly afford even for my own use. Forget HDTVs or IDTVs (latest), Nintendo Wiis or Playstations. Something more practical and affordable.

Books and music CDs are pretty common gifts and sometimes its difficult to tell whether your friend already owns the latest compilation of music hits or finished reading The Secret.

Maybe cufflings or ties for male friends and spa vouchers or aromatherapy sets for the females. Am sure these items can come in handy for lifestyle seeking friends. Ok, not original enough some may say.

See, that's why I say its always difficult to choose a gift. Am sure you agree with me on this but should you want to buy me gifts, here's what I'll need and want.

1. Laptop with multi media funtions
2. Electronic Keyboard with music export abilities
3. Hip looking bag for work
4. A brown belt
5. Book vouchers
6. HMV vouchers
7. Nike Running shoes
8. Sports bag for my Wednesdays and Fridays workout
9. Gloves for gym

The list can go on till probably number 40. Afterall am looking to purchase my future home next year. That's what is important for before my wedding.

Nevertheless, a gift comes right from the heart. It doesn't matter the price tagged to the gift, its the thought that counts but whatever it is, a pet is never the right gift for someone. To own a pet is a life long commitment. Should you on impulse decide to get your friend or child a pet, think twice as I am sure you know its irresponsible to dump your pet at a later stage thus should you really want to give your friend a pet, try getting a pet Rock.

Cruising away ...

Two nights its going to be without Sandy. She has been assigned to some foreign cruise that is visiting our port and cruelly leaving me alone stranded in Singapore.

As usual, you know how much I depend on her to survive. She is practically my everthing. From a live-in maid , to a secretary and most importantly, my inspiration. How many times have you read about her in my blog? Hmmm, not as often as I thought it should be but never mind, she still inspires me someway or another.

As I type this post of mine, I believe she is probably wandering on the deck of the cruise ship thinking of me, looking at the moon and perhaps, hoping I too will be watching the moon. Crap. She might just be seated at the casino tables waging her every dollar away. Crap again. You know her, she aren't like me. Losing head over heels with decks of poker cards and spinning wheels.

Whatever she may be doing, I hope she is enjoying every minute of it, taking note of every detail that could help her with the report she will be required to churn before submitting to her bosses on the good selling points the cruise has to offer a holiday-goer.

Two nights without her and I have yet to make any plans for dinner dates. Again, if you followed my blog closely, you know I'll never dine alone especially after my McDonalds incident. In fact, I tried calling a few friends to arrange for dinner tomorrow but it seems everyone is suddenly so busy. I guess its the Christmas season that influences everyone to adopt the sharing of gifts and exchanging of presents.

Have you gotten mine? Rephrase, have you gotten me a present? Not yet? Wait no more. You can buy CDs online for me from Yesasia.com or Cdjapan.com. Just drop me an email and I will give you the titles I am looking for. This will cheer me up a bit when Sandy isn't around ; )

Let's hope Sandy managed to take some nice photos on board the cruise for me to post it on this blog. I happen to become a huge fan of taking photos. Something which I never really liked until I explored the technology of blogging.

Anyway, enough said, am patiently waiting for Wednesday to arrive so that I can pick Sandy from her office in the evening again. Wednesdays never felt so good ..... ; )

Blink of an eye ...

In another twenty one days, 2007 would have become part of our past. I have to say time flies and surely it waits for noone. Rich or poor, 365 days is all we have and managing it well solely depends on the individual.

For me, I am not too sure if 2007 went well at all. In the course of any journey, there are always obstacles that stand in the way. Sometimes we succumb and yet sometimes we also prevail.

This year went by rather quickly and I know I shouldn't be complaining too much about my life as it has been pretty smooth sailing all these while. I managed to make new friends, create new opportunities, brought smiles to people and most importantly, I confirmed my wedding date and venue.

Of course, like everyone else, there were wrong decisions made on certain occassions but let's not brood over it. The usual saying goes, what's done cannot be undone so just make do with the triumphs and forget the regrets.

Mapping the course of 2008 can be a little tough especially when I am about to start a new role with a new employer. Definitely a percentage of risk and uncertainty lurks in every new opportunity but I believe after carefully weighing the odds, I will make every stride with no regrets.

The first couple of months will likely be spent on the wedding preparations. I know along the way, arguments will arise on what's good and what's bad for the wedding but I know too that it will be forgotten. The arguments I meant, not the wedding.

Walk with me as I share with you some of the triumps, disappointments and friends I have made in 2007. It could be you that played a part in my 2007. ; )

Happy birthdays ...

December seems to be a birthday month, lots of friends are celebrating their birthdays this month at dinners and drinking sessions. I think I know a total of twelve December babies.

I would say parents of these December babies sure had lots of planning done to such that the birth of their precious gem coincides with the festive seasons of Christmas and the New Year.

The gift of life is perhaps the best present one can have for Christmas. What is it that a father can give but Santa can't? The all important seed.

During these birthday celebrations, I had some thoughts that ran through my mind. As usual, I think quite a lot. Some can be silly thoughts while some brought me tears.

Let's do a little visual playback in your brains right to the day your birth came as a huge celebration for your parents and relatives. (Forget your friends, cause you never knew them then)

In your video playback, you see anxious faces waiting outside the delivery room. While your grandparents, close relatives are pacing up and down the corridor awaiting the arrival of you, your father could just well be in the delivery room with the person whom you owe your life to for braving the pains and nurturing you to who you are right now - your mother.

As your father can only go on with words of encouragement, your mother is fighting a long battle after nine months of preganancy to push you right into this world. The first cries were heard and the doctor congratulates your mother, telling her how beautiful the baby is and that she did very well mustering the strength to carry on despite the pain experienced at childbirth.

That very day, you were born.

As days turned to months and months to years, every day was a new experience for your parents as they learn about you as they see you grow in height, teaching you the principles of life and hoping you get the best of things that you liked.

When its your birthday, your parents shower you with the most surprising gifts and to return in kind, you tend to peck them on their cheeks with a kiss, thanking them for the presents and reminding them how much you love them.

All the scenes above could well happen to you when you were younger but you might have forgotten them, like I did, especially when you reach the years of adolescence. where you experience physical and psychological developments, from puberty to maturity.

During this perioud, you seek independence from your parents but usually not given as you want to find an identity of your own. To find who you are, you make friends and more friends, with the tendency to hang out with friends more than spending quality time with your parents and siblings.

Bit by bit, you slowly pry open the grip of the hands that once held you so tight when you learnt how to walk or cycle.You rebelled when the grip tried to tighten and you cried foul when you were reprimanded from returning home late at night. You quarreled and shouted back at your parents when they asked about your friends. You pleaded with them that you wanted freedom and more freedom. Afterall, you just celebrated your 18th birthday with your friends yesterday and you are now an adult.

As you turn 28, like I did earlier this year, I look back in time and asked myself a question. For the past many years, with whom did I celebrate the very day my father and mother gave life to me? Simple. It was friends.

Its a sad answer because my friends didn't give me life, they did however walked with me but my parents, they carried me when I was tired, fed me when I was hungry and gave me education so that I could lead a better life. It was my parents who took many years of pain and love to make me who I am yet I cannot remember when was the last time I sat with them for a simple celebration on the anniversary of my birth.

I couldn't control my emotions as tears filled my eyes and streamed my cheeks when I typed the last few paragraphs of this blog of mine because I feel ashamed of myself for not making time to spend with family on the very day of my birth date. Its often the excuse that it's a work day and that everyone is busy but I am sure no matter how busy, as loving fathers and mothers, they will surely take time out to celebrate one of the most important days of your life - your birthday.

I will now make it a point to celebrate each of my birthday with my parents, brothers, godparents, grandparents and of course not forgetting, my beloved wife-to-be, Sandy. I hope everyone too could do the same as I am sure all parents will love the time given to them to celebrate that all important birthday of their precious gem.

Never give up ...

This evening I met up with Rich, a long time friend of mine since junior school days where we used to perform in school together, playing and making music together.

Our friendship is rather special. Its about nostalgic times of younger days where we both dreamt of having our own Private Investigation company and started our own music band that went with the name 'Image'.

We got together creating songs for fun and sometimes for competition. Rich was the Music Director because he was very good with various instruments while I was only familiar with the piano and thus provided backup to song arrangements.

We made mainly Chinese music as local English music was never popular in Singapore.Its not as if that with the Chinese language, we managed to release an album but I guess there was a certain level of satisfaction when we performed on national television and winning some awards in a local songwriting competition.

Rich went on to pursue his dreams while I left mine to seek things that I felt was more important - bread and butter. Not that I found a pot of gold but I tried finding but found nothing but mud. Nevertheless, I tried.

Rich too tried hard and worked hard to accomplish what he set out to do - film and music. He never gave up despite the rough rides as he believe in what he did. He liked the arts. Despite family protests, he never wavered. He fought strong

Yes, you may say his family is well-to-do but he started everything on his own with minimal help from his family. He and his wife Kat fought side by side to start Richman Club Studios , the brainchild of Rich.

Two or three years back, Rich was nominated in the region's Golden Horse Awards for successfully using special animated effects on his short feature film he did for his alma matar, Singapore Management University (SMU).

I am very proud of this friend of mine and he will always be a role model for me. He believes in everything he fights for and has a never-say-die approach on whatever he wants to achieve. I wish him well and hope he finds what he has been searching for and perhaps some day give us Singaporeans something to be proud of in the Hollywood dominated film industry.

Color match ...

I get a little confused whenever people seek my opinion on whether something is nice or not. Being me, i dont really know what to say because I have the weirdest taste.I might just give the wrong answer.

Just look at my color coordination at times and you'll know my sense of colors. Friends often walk up to me and tell me that my tie doesn't match my shirt or my socks don't match my pants.Who cares anyway.

I sometimes wonder who set those rules on color matching. Must black necessary match with grey while blue and green is a mis-match. Is the phrase 'beauty lies in the eyes of the beholder' no longer valid?

In my opinion, I do what I think I fancy. If matching pink and blue makes me sissy, so be it. I like it that way and I won't change. A leopard never changes its spots thus I won't change mine too however, if only you paid me for what I wear, I might just consider dressing the way you want me to. :)

Dog attacks ...

Just recently, the news reported on five ferocious rottweilers that attacked a young Jack Russell and its owner while they were strolling along their neighbourhood, causing them to be emotionally traumatised and injured.

It seems the law is now finally catching up with errant dog owners who refuse to keep their precious pet on leash when taking walks at the parks. The penalty could be a hefty S$5000 fine.

I do know of many dog owners who fail to keep their dogs on leash and I have to say, I too sometimes fall into this category of dog owners who walk the dogs without a leash.

Being owners of Jack Russells, Sandy and I sometimes allow the dogs to run freely in open areas such as a deserted playground or any open field at East Coast Park. We believe that dogs, just like us humans, require frequent exercise to keep the heart and other body parts healthy and fit.

Before releasing Rain and Sun, we often would survey the area for a few things - fellow users of the park especially Muslim friends, other animals such as cats or dogs and park rangers. We will make sure that none of these listed are in close proximity as we too do not wish to get into unnecessary trouble.

After reading the incident on the Rottweiler attacks, my opinion on allowing Rain and Sun freedom to rein the empty fields has changed. Firstly, I do not want my dogs to be attacked and secondly, I do not want to be slapped a fine. Hey, its no joke having to fork out S$5,000 for freedom. I aren't William Wallace from Braveheart.

I think it is only fair and responsible that dog owners take preventive measures, keeping their dogs at bay with a leash and if its a bigger or ferocious breed, a muzzle is definitely a must to have on. This way, it helps reassure fellow park users that they will not fall prey to scratches and bites but then, something else these users might have to look out for is the poo-poo left behind by irresponsible owners. Fortunately, Sandy and I are always armed with tissue paper and plastic bags all for the purpose of picking gold and placing them in the right places - bins.

Nothing left ...

So the long awaited company event has just ended and after my shower, am typing out my thoughts right here. Photos to be uploaded only later.

Nothing special really happened but have to say the emcee for the night, Adam, sure did a good job in making the crowd participate in the activities lined up for the night. It aren't easy to involve your audience but I can tell that everyone of the attendees sure wanted some fun and of course,the prizes were attractive.Too bad I didn't get the chance to claim any despite holding on to a nice ticket number - 8288.

Seated with the HR team that were dressed to the occasion, especially Audrey's pink hair band and Gek Lian's hairdo. The team only interacted when we played a team game where all of us had to contribute and consolidate a string of items the emcee requested for. Items like Eunice's diamond ring was sacrificed,a fifty dollar note which Michelle had lots to spare, a Nokia phone that Audrey's bought a week ago , Anne's right heel shoe and my pair of prescribed spectacles. My, I was the only person not using contact lens there so I was forced to stay 'blind' for awhile. What to do? I can't say no when others have sacrificed right?

Of course there were many moments of laughter, there was a performer supposedly from Australia who impersonated Michael Jackson, Elvis and Taiwanese singer Teresa Teng. We were also given a good workout when we had to form a human train. Can you imagine a long line of colleagues running through the ballroom to the music of YMCA. It was tiring but it was the fun that mattered.

The night's theme was Dance of an Era so how can we not forget the wonderful music that were played. It was like Zouk's Mambo night right at the Pan Pacific ballroom. Only difference was the variety of age groups on the dance floor.

A pity when we were seated together as a department, there wasn't much to talk about. For me, I tried hard to mingle within our table but I guess everyone else had their own agenda and mine just didn't fit in. Maybe because our boss VJ wasn't around. What to do, she's suffering from bad cramps and resting at home.

I wanted to take as many photos with the many people I came to know when in Maersk but there wasn't much opportunity. Perhaps I didn't ask, that's why but thankfully, I did manage to take with the closer colleagues of mine and a group photo of HR.

The evening ended with me sending Eunice, Noorsia and hubby and of course not forgetting my partner for the night, Michelle. She has been great company all these while when I am in Maersk and she has promised me that she'll invite me to next year's event as her partner once more. Thanks Michelle!

Let's hope the friendships I have forged in Maersk will carry on its journey despite my search for greener pastures elsewhere. I will remember every individual I have worked with as nothing will be left forgotten as I walk my remaining 17 days in Maersk.

My Last Dance with Maersk ...

Tonight I will be attending my last Dinner and Dance event held by Maersk. Themed Dance of an Era,am not sure what genre of music will they play tonight but I shall let loose and do the bogey tonight, trotting all the dance moves I ever learnt from my teenage years.

It will surely be a memorable evening for me as in another 18 days, I will part ways with my Danish employer. I guess I am sure to miss many of my colleagues there, afterall at least most of them treat me nice.What more can I complain.

Perhaps I will be able to show off some salsa moves tonight. Afterall that's the only dance I was formally taught. Don't laugh! I attended lessons with Audrey, Michelle, Antoinette and Eve.

Forget those other dance items I performed in primary school - Dancing and singing to the music of 'Step by Step' by New Kids on the Block. Hey, I always had the interest to perform on stage. I guess I liked being on stage. Too bad I have to miss an opportunity to perform some piano pieces on 14 Dec this year because I have yet another department event on the very same day my teacher organised a charity concert.

Anyway, tonight's event will be held dear in my memories as I party with my colleagues. Hope all goes well with my dance moves tonight and be sure to visit my Flickr site to check out some photos next week. Cha cha cha ....