nobody deserves to be treated this way


you're not my favourite person in the world
but that was a low, low blow they dealt you tonight
and i'm sorry you had to go through all that.

i have smart and witty friends


me: "loony, are you heading out tonight?"
loon: NOT IF YOU ARE!
me: "i h8 you"
loon: as long as you don't h1n1 me!

-----
alvin: i thought of you when i heard the news
but then i saw "22-year-old".
you where got so old?!

rofl.

all fall down

singapore just reported our first confirmed case of h1n1 and the lady came back from new york just one day after me! i'd be in aloha by now if she'd taken my flight instead!

the big apple was as lovely as ever. a tad chilly when i first got there but it got progressively warmer and we all turned a little red in the face. managed to meet up with all my lovely new yorkers at least once and my 3day2night trip to the niagara falls was quite a success in that we made it there, over to canada, and back without much mishap. however, as we took up one of those "cheap" chinatown bus tours, our coach consisted of 50% indians, 40% china-ese, and the other 10% were made up of random singaporeans, malaysians, and the odd ang moh. our first guide didn't seem to know much of what was happening, couldn't speak english NOR mandarin properly, filled her sentences with a million "maybe", "actuarry", and "sometimes", and was quite disorganized. but well, an arduous 12-hour bus ride, a packet of curly fries, 2 lousy burgers and minimum sleep later, we arrived and made it in time for the twilight set at the falls so i guess it wasn't all too bad.

stopped over at the corning museum of glass first where we were treated to all sorts of glassware and a live demonstration of how glass is made:


finally, just before 9pm, we reached the horseshoe falls:


the next day dawned bright and early (arhaha like some primary school compo) and we made our way back to see the falls in its daytime glory, caught an imax movie about stupid/courageous/suay people who fell down/travelled along the treacherous waters, and got on the maid of the mist tour that brought us up close and personal with the niagara (and got away drenched but still alive to tell the tale).



desmond had to hold my raincoat down when we were on the boat coz the wind was whipping it all over the shop and, even with his help, most of what i saw when we were near the falls was in a pretty shade of blue. "where's the hole? where's the hole for your face?!"

the guide left the five of us to return to new york with the rest of the group (coz they only signed up for the 2day1night tour) so the rest of the day was spent free and easy so we ventured across the rainbow bridge and WALKED to canada! good thing we did too coz the view was so much nicer from there and the ontario side of the falls was so much more beautiful and civilized (omg cafes! less indians! less chinese!).






a lot of walking, plenty of sunshine, millions of photo-stops, one super cute squirrel, a plate of buffalo wings, and 5 pairs of tired legs later, we'd walked the long stretch alongside the waters from the rainbow bridge to the horseshoe falls and went for a journey behind the falls:


thereafter, we went on another long and tiring walk back to the new york side of things, collapsed on our beds when we finally got to the hotel and didn't get up until 5hours later at 10pm when the boys and i decided to venture out into the dead town that is nighttime niagara falls, new york. found that the seneca casino was the only place open, lit, and with people so we spent the night there watching anthony play cards, and having a late supper.

the next day, our second tour guide came to collect us and, after confirming the pick-up time and place for our ride back to new york, we took the other 2 girls to the casino and whiled away the morning in air-conditioned comfort.

the journey back belonged to a whole new nightmare where a group of 20 indians gave themselves a really bad name and annoyed the hell out of everyone else by always coming late, eating and drinking and moving around the bus the whole time, asking to use the toilet even though the guide already said the toilet cannot be used, refusing to pay the suggested service tip coz they claimed the guide was incompetent and racist, kicked up a huge fit to try to prove their point and ended up just making a fool of themselves (though, of course, they didn't think so and were rather pleased with their behaviour). i don't want to be racist but SERIOUSLY, they don't make themselves very lovable! rah.

anyway, after a lot of head nodding, being bumped about our seats and a stop at a winery along finger lake, we finally reached good old new york, had a "yummy noodles" supper, caught up on some sleep, and spent the next 2 days gaigai-ing (love love my 5th ave and soho), eating (oh my darlings sushi of gari, del frisco's, pinkberry and ruby's) and having not enough time to do more!

back in singapore, my brit boys are in town this week so tonight would be seafood paradise + klee + (maybe)mambo and we're wakeboarding tomorrow before i leave for perth on friday. woohoo!

there's something wicked happening outside


it's 5am and i just got woken up by a most magnificent storm.
the sky is taking serious photos of the earth,
accompanied by the low rumble of a fat man,
at times punctuated by the crack of a whip;
the winds seem intent on kicking up a ruckus,
raindrops are battling my window panes.
looking down from my 12-storey matchbox,
i fear for the toy cars passing below.

it's a beautiful world.

old is gold

yesterday was spent catching up with friends i've known for some time - mark and ger from jc times, ting and wanfen from secondary school tuition classes, and ian, whom i got close to towards the end of uni. each meeting took me back to the past and while we've all grown older (sigh), it seems like some things just don't change.

there is comfort and familiarity in being with old friends. conversation flows, words mean more, and even when there is a pause, the cosy silence is never one i feel a panic to fill. i wonder if i'll ever be able to make new friends who will grow old with me this way.

i discovered bar stop last night, after a very yummy meal at suanthai at killiney. we got seats on the second level and had a great view of the band (and the singer's cleavage). the place had a very chill-out, laid-back atmosphere that's great for after-work drinks. it'd be my neighbourhood pub if only i lived in one of those gorgeous apartments opposite. we also went past habitat hostel and i couldn't resist popping in for a look since i missed out on the big stay over last week. mag very kindly gave me the grand tour and i must say, it looks fantastic! clean and friendly, and in such a convenient location. a place i'd definitely recommend.

the off days seem to have flown by and i've got to go to work again on friday. at least i have tomorrow's girly seafood dinner to look forward to and next week, when i'm in new york, i'm gonna go check out that underwater casing for my ipod so that it will no longer be so boring doing laps in the pool!

crossing the line

there has been a spate of sexual harassment cases recently and everyone has been rather careful with his/her actions and words at work (even though we do poke fun at the whole issue sometimes). a common view is that some people are just not mature enough to handle such stuff so when things go awry and they change their minds/come to their senses, they claim to have been taken advantage of.

i'm not saying that all these claims aren't legit - i'm sure there is some truth in a handful of them - i just feel that in many of such cases, it seems as though kids trying to play grown up are crying wolf.

don't play with fire unless you are prepared to get burnt.

that said, i have seen/experienced first hand cases of uninvited remarks and gestures that can be termed suggestive and naughty. while, at most times, they are tongue-in-cheek and mean no harm, there have been instances when people cross the line and it becomes disrespectful. finding out whether another is attached is fine, but asking someone what her favourite sexual position is mere seconds after that is a tad over-familiar, don't you think? especially when the conversation topic wasn't, in any way, heading in that direction. and all these, just a few hours after the guy and the lady in this situation first met.

she was affronted, to say the least. but of course, being diplomatic and not wanting trouble, she laughed it off and wriggled out of answering it.

we may all joke about the issue and most girls just take it in their stride and let the asshole get away with it as long as it's just words, but everyone should remember that there is a fine line between being cheeky and being (c)rude.

one over the other

i've always been hard-pressed to answer questions like "what's your favourite colour?", simply because i can't seem to make a definite choice. with me, it has always been, "well, i like this and this when i'm looking at, say, clothes, but i like that and that when it's other things" or "it depends on my mood, really". or the season. the material. the time of day.

it baffles me when other people seem to be able to answer such questions as if they're so sure of themselves and the choices they've made. in some ways, many of their replies are nearly automatic, like they said, when they were two, that red is their favourite colour and they have to stick to their guns for the rest of their lives.

maybe it's just me but i seldom play favourites. i can't even choose a religion because i feel that every religion has its pros and cons and i want to accept them all and be able to pick what i want to believe in and what i want to learn from each and every one i come in contact with. plus, i feel that all gods are the same god and it's just people's interpretation of things that separate religions.

and i don't think it's me being wishy-washy. i just have broad categories of likes and dislikes and i don't like to narrow things down to one top choice. but it does make me feel rather, alien, because what others seem to be able to do with ease, i have trouble putting a finger on.

on a totally separate, and random, note, it is very important for toilet bowls to be comfortable to sit on. i wouldn't recommend this catalano loo at dubai's traders hotel.