Teambonding Event

Today is our team's teambonding event. After lunch, we took the chartered bus to The Mind Cafe at Boat Quay for some games. Firstly, we had to draw a card each to determine our groups. Then as a group, we had to compete with other groups to see who gets the most tokens at the end.

The games were all quite fun and everyone had a good time playing. I liked the last game best as it was really exciting. We played this game in groups of 5. 5 different colored packs of cards were mixed together, and each person will start with 9 random colored cards. We had to exchange an equal number of same colored cards with another person, and keep doing this until one gets all 9 cards with the same color. The person will then be able to take a dog bone from the table and the other 4 people can also grab one of the remaining 3 bones. The loser will be the one who is unable to snatch a bone fast enough. Everyone was shouting to exchange cards and screaming when scrambling for the bones, so it was really noisy haha. My group actually told me that I must not be too gentle or I will surely lose out, but in the end I didn't even lose once :P

After the games, we proceeded to Grand Hyatt Hotel for our buffet dinner at Straits Kitchen. There was quite a wide variety of food but some of my colleagues felt that it was not worth the price, as most of the food like Laksa, Fried Carrot Cake, Satay etc. are available easily and cheaply at hawker centres. I didn't really eat much, partly because I wasn't very hungry, and probably also due to the company. Think the people whom you eat with can really affect your mood of eating :P Can't wait to go home so I left with a few of my colleagues around 8.15pm while the rest continued their dinner :)

The Ugly Truth

小花 and I decided to use the expiring movie tickets from my colleague to watch "The Ugly Truth" today. I guess not too many people watch movies on Mondays, as we still managed to get seats for the second last row even though we only bought the tickets during lunch today. If it were Friday, most likely only the seats for the first few rows would be left.

The movie was supposed to start at 7.15pm but we only reached the cinema at about 7.35pm as we were rushing to clear our work. We knew that the advertisements will last for about 20 minutes, and we arrived just in time so we didn't miss the beginning. Although this movie wasn't as hilarious as "The Proposal", I still had a good laugh throughout the show. The scene at the restaurant where the kid kept pressing the buttons of the remote for the vibrating panties was so funny. Overall, I enjoyed the movie and it was a rather good stress reliever :)

After the show, we went to have dinner at Long John Silver's again. Both of us ordered the 2 piece chicken set with coleslaw. We didn't stay very long to chat as it was Monday and we still have to work tomorrow. Actually wanted to take a cab home but there was no available cabs in the area, so we decided to take the MRT instead.

满月

My cousin invited us to her house for her baby son's 满月 celebrations. The baby was soundly asleep when we reached there. My cousin offered to let me carry him for a while but I declined as I was afraid that I would hurt him since I have never carried a baby before. I just stood around and touched the baby and he felt so soft and smooth hehe.

My cousin said that the baby will not wake up easily if someone is carrying him. True enough, when she set him down on a mattress, he started crying shortly after. My cousin said she will take another 1.5 months leave in addition to the 4 months maternity leave as she needs to clear her leave, so she will only be going back to work after Chinese New Year next year. Wah... so envious of her long leave :P

No movies again

Today 小花 and the rest of the team were back to work after the Away Day. However, as 小花 was very tired from the trip and also had to cover a colleague who was on half-day leave, we decided not to watch movies. We still went for dinner at Subway though. 小花 said the staff mixed up our order with another person's so we ended up having honey mustard sauce with our teriyaki chicken burger instead. Luckily, the taste was still quite good.

We haven't watched any movies for two consecutive weeks... wonder if there are any nice movies? My colleague gave us 2 free tickets that would be expiring in September so we are only left with 3 more days (excluding the weekend) to use them. Hopefully there will be a good comedy that will help us relieve some stress before the closing period starts again :)

End of long weekend....

Today, most of my colleagues are in Penang for an Away Day trip. Ended up eating alone during lunch as the others who didn't go were either on leave or on MC. Actually was also not very hungry so just popped in at McDonald's to have my usual McChicken Burger. There was a woman with 2 kids sitting at the table next to mine. At first I didn't pay much attention to them, but after a while I thought I heard people speaking in Japanese and it was only then I realized they are Japanese :P Perhaps it's because they were rather tanned and don't have the typical Japanese look.

Managed to leave office at around 7pm. I almost forgot that the last episode of Buzzer Beat had aired in Japan last night. I only remembered when I was trying to look for some Japanese songs and saw someone mention about the show. So I tried my luck on PPS and found that it is already available... よし！

Though the ending is rather predictable, I think it fits the show so it can be considered a good one. But the best that I like about this show is the theme song and the tune that 莉子 always play on the violin :P One is so full of energy while the other is so soothing... just like the characters of 直輝 and 莉子. Now it makes me want to search for more Japanese songs to put in my mp3 :)

Grandma's Birthday

Today is my grandma's birthday. My parents decided to take her out for dinner and chose the newly opened Sakura Charcoal Grilled & Shabu Shabu at Marina Country Club at Punggol. They had seen an article in 优1周 and the review seemed good so wanted to give it a try. I guess the area hasn't been fully developed yet as it was rather out of the way and the road leading into the restaurant was quite deserted.

As this was buffet-style, we were shown to our table after paying at the counter. There was a large variety of food available, with all kinds of seafood, meat, vegetables and yong tau foo for you to grill or cook in the hotpot. There was also a $10 rebate per person, which can be used to "purchase" drinks or other more pricey food such as lobster, crab, frog and Wagyu beef.

However, we were rather disappointed that there was quite a lot of smoke coming out from the various tables of people grilling food, which was different from what the article had mentioned. My grandma had difficulty eating when the smoke was blowing in her direction, and my sis who did the Lasik surgery felt uncomfortable and had to put eye drops.

On the whole, I didn't really enjoy the meal. Guess the main reason was that I do not like to cook/grill the food myself. It's not that I'm lazy but I just feel that the food doesn't taste as nice as I usually under/over cook the food. Another reason is that I don't really like buffets as I can't eat much so it seems like a waste of money.

After dropping off my grandma at her house, I took over the driver's seat and drove my family home. This was the longest journey that I have driven - from Hougang to Bukit Batok :) However, think I need to practise my parking skills, especially when there are no cars on either side of a lot as I can't seem to judge whether I am in the middle of the lot or not :P

Finally!

Yay it's finally Friday! Today was also the last day of the training course, so was really glad that it has ended. I don't think I can stand going through another day of the course :P Actually the course wasn't that bad, it's just that I can't keep myself awake and it's really torturous for me. At least I have hit the 5-days training quota so do not have to go for any more courses for the rest of the year \(^_^)/

Although today is Friday, 小花 and I didn't watch any movies as we were rather tired from the course. However, we still went for dinner after work, together with our Taiwanese colleague who was also here for the course. We decided on the あかし restaurant in VivoCity. Though we didn't order a lot, we still ended up very full. Think I still like their Garlic Fried Rice the most. すごくうまいですね...

Monday is Hari Raya, which means it will be a long weekend. やった！！

On course

Today had to reach office by 9am as I had a training course. Actually I didn't sign up for this course but my colleague had to attend to auditors who are here this week, so I became her replacement.

I wasn't very keen on going for courses that involve long periods of passive listening as I always have problems staying awake. True enough, I dozed off several times during the course and was struggling to keep my eyes open. It was only during the games/activities that I managed to be awake. I really wonder what is wrong with me. I can fall asleep so quickly that it's like a computer where the screen saver automatically comes on after 5 minutes of inactivity.

Sigh... there are still 2 more days to go. I really regret agreeing to replace my colleague for the course... 誰が助けってください！

Blooper!

Was flipping through the latest issue of 优1周 (U-Weekly Issue 197) and suddenly saw a familiar face. Yay... it's a picture of 城田优! However, when I read through the accompanying article, I burst out laughing. Take a look and see if you can guess why :P




Got it? The article was actually not about Shirota, but a KAT-TUN member 田口淳之介 haha. I tried searching on google for images of 田口淳之介 and to my surprise saw that one of the results showed an image of Shirota in an article that briefly mentioned about 田口淳之介. And the picture of Shirota was exactly the same as that in 优1周! Hmm... This just shows that the people who made this mistake are actually unfamiliar with Japanese artistes and yet can't even be bothered to check and edit their work.

Wonder if anyone else noticed this blooper?? Maybe I should write in and tell them about it hehe ;)

Out on a Saturday!

Didn't really feel like going out today but was persuaded by my mum. We went to Clementi to collect photos that my sis had sent for developing. She went Hong Kong only for a few days and had more than 300 photos! I was suddenly reminded that I have yet to sort out my photos since the Switzerland trip with 小花 2 years ago... I'm so lazy :P

Later we went to the nearby Sakae Sushi for lunch. Haven't really eaten there for some time but we were a bit hungry and there weren't many other choices. They were also having a promotion where all coloured plates sushi, except for red and blue, were only $1 each, instead of the usual $2.29 each. We actually wanted to order some bento/ramen set to share but in the end only ordered sushi. We ordered 30 plates in total and were very full :)

My mum showed us a newspaper advertisement that there was a book sale at Funan. However, I noticed that the books were also on sale at the warehouse in Ang Mo Kio so I suggested going to the warehouse instead as I thought there would be more books. The address on the newspaper was "438 Ang Mo Kio Industrial Park 1, Ang Mo Kio Ave 10". As we were not very familiar with the area, my sis used the GPS on her handphone to give directions to my father, who was driving the car. We were rather puzzled when we ended up at Blk 438 instead. Then we realized that my sis should have searched for "438 Ang Mo Kio Industrial Park 1" instead of "438 Ang Mo Kio Ave 10" and we all had a good laugh :)

Soon we reached the warehouse but it was really quiet. Either not many people were interested in the books sale (since Comex was held at Suntec on the same day), or most people went to Funan instead. My youngest sis had wanted to look for Harry Potter books but she was disappointed when she couldn't find any. As the books were not arranged in any particular order, it was rather difficult to look for what we wanted. I could only randomly pick out books with interesting titles and read the synopsis at the back to determine if I would like the stories. In the end, I only managed to pick out 3 books, which cost $5 each. At least managed to get something so that the trip was not wasted :)

G-Force

Another week has passed and it's movie time again :) Today 小花 and I watched G-Force. We had actually wanted to watch it in 3-D but felt it was a bit expensive as it would cost us $13 each, while we could watch the normal movie at $7.50 each.

The movie was very fast-paced and highly entertaining. I especially enjoyed watching the guinea pigs escaping from the FBI agents and making them look stupid, and the scene with the fireworks was very beautiful. The guinea pigs are all so adorable, but I think I would probably freak out if I hear a real guinea pig talk to me haha.

After the movie, we decided to go to Long John Silver's for dinner. However, on the way there, 小花 had a craving for fish and chips from Carl's Junior so we headed there instead. It was rather crowded but most people were already finishing their meals. We managed to get a table after a while and 小花 went to order. She was disappointed that there was no more fish as that was what she came here for. Anyway, 小花 felt it would be troublesome to go to Long John Silver's instead, so she just ordered burgers. Both of us were very full as the burgers were rather large, and we couldn't even finish the fries. Hopefully, 小花's craving can be satisfied the next time ;)

Sleepy... 寝たい....

Think I have been going to bed too late for the past few day. Felt really sleepy at work today, especially after lunch. I probably dozed off at least 10 times... not sure if any one saw me :P

I'm struggling to keep my eyes open so shall sleep earlier tonight... おやすみなさい　（＾＿＾）/

Family Sunday

This morning I was woken by the doorbell (Actually it was already almost 11 am but I was still sleeping :P). Found out that my sis had actually ordered McDonald's breakfast delivery. Not sure if it's because I haven't eaten the Sausage and Egg McMuffin for quite some time but I felt that it tasted good :)

After the rather late breakfast, we decided to head over to VivoCity to do some errands plus shopping. My youngest sis drove us there and she was quite excited as this was only her second time driving after she had obtained her driving license. The carpark was very full so we went to B2 to try our luck. We saw someone about to vacate a lot so my sis drove to the front to wait. However, another car behind parked into the vacant lot immediately after the previous car left. I think that driver saw my sis is a new driver so he bullied her... So bad... Luckily, a few cars started to leave the carpark so we managed to get another lot soon.

At around 3 plus, we decided to have some food. I suggested Coffee Club Express, since there were quite a variety of choices and my parents and youngest sis have not tried the food before. The place was rather empty, probably because of the odd timing and also its not-very-prominent location. We even sat at the table that 小花 and I sat on Friday hehe.

As we were not extremely hungry, we decided to just order 3 promotional set meals and a Caesar Salad with Teriyaki Chicken to share. 2 of the set meals were exactly what 小花 and I had on Friday, while the other was a Chicken Baked Rice. We were all satisfied with the dishes.

Caesar Salad with Teriyaki Chicken


Chicken Baked Rice


Fish Pasta


Soft Shell Crab Linguini



After buying some groceries at Giant, I drove my family home. I hadn't driven for a couple of years and I have not driven an auto car before so was a bit nervous. Luckily, the journey went rather smoothly so I feel more confident now. However, I think my dad was very stressed when either my sis or I drove as he kept reminding us to brake earlier and drive slower. But I feel that he will make us even more nervous by doing so. My mum suggested that we take turns driving during weekends to get more practice and experience, which is a good idea provided I won't feel too lazy to go out :P

Buzzer Beat

Stayed at home today and decided to continue watching the Japanese drama Buzzer Beat. I was really curious to know if 上矢 and 莉子 would be together so kept on watching till episode 8. I totally forgot that this drama has not ended and is still airing in Japan :P Did a search and found that there would be 3 more episodes. Sigh... I want to know the ending (though I am pretty certain that they would be together).

Yesterday 小花 and I were talking about this drama and she asked if I could recognize the actress for 菜月. I found her familiar but in the end still got my guess wrong. She is actually the female lead in another drama 絶対彼氏. I'm really bad at recognizing people :P However, I really dislike her character in this show as she is so scheming, which also makes me want to know what will happen to her in the end.

A new episode will be airing tomorrow night... hope the subbed version will be out soon. Can't wait to watch the rest! :)

It's Friday!

This afternoon we had a team meeting. Was rather shocked to learn that one of my colleagues might be asked to leave at the end of the year as her role will be made redundant. Sometimes I really don't understand what the company is thinking. From the day I joined, they have been undergoing restructuring almost every year. Some departments just seem to be hiring and retrenching people every now and then, it's almost as if they can't make up their minds what they want to do. I feel that this can be very disrupting as sometimes the handover might not have been done properly and new staff have no idea what to do. In the worst scenario, no one takes over the job and you don't know who to turn to.

The management always say that our performances lag behind our competitors but have they really given a thought that it maybe their own fault? Having restructuring so often is so damaging to employee morale. Who would want to do their best when your role can be made redundant so easily, irregardless of your performance? Of course they could tell you that if you are a good performer, you could be redeployed elsewhere, but who is to say that your new role won't be made redundant again? The worse thing is that even if you are good, you will not be automatically redeployed but have to go for interviews again. So how would one have a real sense of belonging in the company?


Tonight, 小花 and I watched our second movie of the week - Time Traveler's Wife. I enjoyed the show and was touched by the deep love between the Henry and Claire. Claire was willing to try to have Henry's child even when it could endanger her life. And Henry underwent vasectomy because he didn't want Clarie to be pregnant and thus put her life in danger. The ending was not bad but of course would have preferred if both of them could watch their daughter grow up together.

After the movie, we went for dinner at Coffee Club Express and ordered the special sets that came with a free 99% fat-free fruity drink each. I chose a soft shell crab linguini with black pepper sauce, while 小花 ordered a fish pasta with lobster sauce. Both were delicious and we were so full that we couldn't finish our drinks, which tasted good too. Shall come and try some other dishes next time :)

The Final Destination

Our company organized a movie event for "The Final Destination" for today with subsidized tickets, so 小花 and I decided to go and watch the movie. I had watched the previous installment "Final Destination 3" and vaguely remembered that the characters in the show all died in a gruesome manner, so was prepared that this show would be similar.

Unsurprisingly, I was right. The scenes were rather gross and the characters seemed to be competing to see who can die in the most bizarre way. However, there was one scene that I felt was weird -- the one where one of the characters was being sucked into an escalator. Can't understand why black blood flowed out from her mouth when her legs were crushed by the escalator!?!?

After the movie, we went to Long John Silver's for dinner. Think we haven't eaten there for a while so kinda missed it. Ended up with a very full stomach before going home :P