In the Mood to Blog…

Woowee!!

We have 13 blog entries including this in the month of August....That’s about one entry every 2 and a half days. That’s a first I must say….

Here are some random photos…

Caught this pic while on an alligator tour in Everglades National Park, Florida. Did I say alligator?

Who say guys can’t multi-task? YR did it! He cut some pork to make pork porridge while watching not one, but two soccer matches (one on TV and another one from the laptop).

YR said he was gonna strike lottery when he saw me wake up earlier than him to make breakfast on last Saturday morning.

Made mah po tofu for the first time on Sat for lunch. The pic is not very clear but the dish was extremely delicious. We had it with white porridge (bai zhou). Tim finished his big bowl of porridge and even ate some of mine too. What a surprise from someone who hates eating porridge! Tim never even ate porridge when he fell sick while he was a child. He took macaroni soup instead...

And seriously, I dunno why, but I have never cooked snow peas before. I stir-fried it with some extra minced meat for the first time that day too…

That's all for now. Wanted to post the pic of the steamed fish I made today but as Tim is charging the camera now, I can't download the photo.

We are heading to NYC tomorrow evening for the Labor Day weekend!! Big Apple here we come!

Farewell to 2OLEgend.

What a sad day.

One of my all-time favorite United players, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, has finally lost his battle to injury and has announced his retirement from football today at the age of 34. It's extremely sad that we will never be able to see him score another goal again especially since he contributed so much to our Premiership win last season and I was really looking forward to a great full season for him this year.

Many of us will remember him as the Baby-faced Assassin, and rightly so considering he STILL looks younger than Rooney even now! I for one, will never forget the way he came to United as an unknown from Molde, scoring on his debut, and then making a name for himself by scoring many many other goals since then. His retirement will be a loss to United as he embodied everything that was good about Manchester United, and is a Red Devil through and through.

3 Solksjaer goals will always stand out for me in his career:

1) His debut goal against Blackburn in the Autumn of 1996 in a 2-2 draw, scoring the rebound after an initially volley was saved. In his interview, he stated that the very next moment, he realized his dream was coming true when Eric Cantona was the first to run over and celebrate with him.

2) The winning goal against Liverpool at Old Trafford in the 5th round of the FA Cup, January 1999, on our way to the Treble. Michael Owen's early goal made it look like we were heading for a humiliating defeat, but Yorke's 80+ minute equalizer hauled us back and then Ole lobanged Carragher for good measure to win it at the death. Just before I had to book in.

And brag to my Liverpool-supporting army friends. ;)

3) The goal that wrote us into the record books.... as the ONLY (I stress ONLY to all you Liverpudlians) team to have won the Treble. All looked lost at the Nou Camp for 85 minutes after Basler's free kick but being typical United, we never gave up and Teddy made it Even Stevens, before his header from the last corner of the game landed on Solskjaer's right boot.

"..... and Solskjaer has won it!"

2 of these 3 moments can be seen in this video below, the other being the 12-minute 4-goal salvo at Nottingham Forest.



A more comprehensive look at his career can be seen in the following links, split into 3 parts.

OGS Compilation Part 1
OGS Compilation Part 2
OGS Compilation Part 3



"You are my Solskjaer, my only Solskjaer, you make me happy, when skies are grey! Well Alan Shearer, was f*cking dearer, please don't take, my Solskjaer away!!"

Timmy my Teletummy Hubby

Be prepared for what you're about to see....




I want a refund! This is not the same person I signed the contract with just over two months ago. Look at the fats around his tummy!! Come to think of it, it is actually pretty nice to sleep on. No wonder Smurf likes her Mr Blackie’s tummy so much. Check out his cleavage too! Ooh Lala...

Ain’t the daisies lovely? From who else but my telehubby.

WTF!!!

Two weeks and now this! Somebody saaaaaave me!!!

Oh and in case you didn't know, the black toenail on my left 4th toe has been that way for 3 months.

Back to basic

As promised, here’s the long and short about our “it” encounter…..

Had a relaxing time in Florida over the weekend but was also a little traumatized by our voyeuristic encounter. Yes, we had unwittingly or rather intentionally become “voyeurs”.

We were chitchatting about some ladies sun tanning topless on South beach, when suddenly the topic on nudist beach came up. Tim then mentioned that he heard from his client that there is a nudist beach just north of South Beach. Since none of us has been to such a beach, the four of us decided to head down to Haulover Beach to check it out.

We had absolutely no idea what we were in for….

We parked at a garage which was about 8 mins walk away from Haulover beach. From the parking lot, we couldn’t see the beach at all. We had to go through an underpass before we hit a small, short path surrounded by trees that led to the beach. It felt as if we were walking from Parkway Parade to East Coast with the underpass and all. Everything seemed pretty normal.

I was in front. Zing and Neo walked right behind me. Tim was in his own world talking to Wen on his mobile about what else, but his “fantasy”.

When we were about to reach the end of the concrete path, I noticed a drinks menu board by a make-shift beverage stall. I squinted my eyes to figure out what sort of drinks it sells when in the corner of my eyes, I caught a completely naked man standing right on the beach talking to his friends who were sitting on their deck chairs facing the ocean.

I was a little astonished. I immediately turned around to inform the rest. Everyone was excited and wanted to see that guy. We were all concentrating on “bio-ing” the guy, when we reached the drinks stall. A couple of naked people were buying drinks from the stall. What was even more amazing was that the lady stall owner was selling drinks in buff too!

We were all astounded and embarrassed by the sight. As we continued walking, it suddenly became apparent to us that almost everyone on the beach was in their birthday suits. We decided not to walk amongst the crowd but instead to walk along the stretch that is nearer to the trees. Many guys walked past us with absolutely nothing on them. We didn’t know where to look.

Our original plan was to come to this beach to bum around and take some photos. But seeing so many naked people made us feel extremely uneasy. We seemed to stand out like a sore thumb not only because we were “dressed inappropriately”, but also because we are Asians. Noticing that there was a fence that seems to barricade the nudist beach from the rest of the beach about 10 mins walk away, we decided not to stop but continue walking toward the fence.

All of us had our sunglasses on. As we continued walking, we became bolder and started to look. We saw people that came in groups to sun tan in buff. There were people who came alone too. Most of the people that walked around are men. I could see "it" swinging as they walked. Ladies usually come in pairs or with their better half. Everyone seemed so comfortable in their skin. From afar, we even saw a naked couple holding hands strolling on the wet sand along the beach. How “romantic”!

As we got closer to the fence, we also got closer to the nudists lying around. We noticed people were staring at us. There we were four fully clothed Chinese walking into a territory full of naked ang mos. We felt really uncomfortable. We could sense that our presence was not welcomed. I bet they knew we were there to gawk. Or maybe it was just us feeling guilty which made us more conscious of our surroundings.

Then I noticed a guy lying not half but “quarter” naked on his front smiling at me about 10 feet away. Why did I say “quarter”? B’cos he wasn’t wearing a shirt but instead only had his trunks on which was kinda weird since this a nudist beach. Upon closer look, I saw that he had taken his “little bro” out of his trunks for a little suntan while still lying on his stomach with his buttock covered. I was flabbergasted. I felt as if I had seen a flasher. It is pretty ok to see people lying/walking around unreservedly naked since this is a nudist beach but absolutely not if a man were to do such bian tai thing. It completely grossed me out. I was really disgusted and traumatized by the sight. I couldn’t get the image out of my head after that. I was so worried that I would dream of being crushed by thousands of “bananas” that night.

We soon reached the fence and saw a sign indicating that we were about to enter/exit a clothing optional part of the beach. We captured a couple of photos of the people sun tanning in nude while on the pretext of taking photos with the signs. Tim has the photos. Ask Tim for them.

Oh did I mention that Tim completely lost his train of thoughts when he first saw the nudists. He couldn’t concentrate on what Wen was talking about. Wen’s voice suddenly turned into some background blabber while Tim looked on in shock. He said that that was the first time he wasn’t interested in discussing about his “fantasy”. Ha...

I must say it is really an eye opening experience to see these people so comfortable in their birthday suits, sun tanning at one of the coolest beaches in the world. And no, I didn’t have any nightmares that night.

Long and short of it all

Was my last blog entry long or was it long?!! Must have been really upset with the long wait at the airport to have written such a long piece.

Did I just mention "long" four times in a row? Will blog about the long and short of "it" all in my next entry....

Now back to work...

Air travel in the US

This blog entry was written on Friday, August 17, 2007.

For those of you who have experienced internal air travel in the US, you would know that flight delays are pretty common. The delays are mostly caused by bad weather conditions. Even if the city that you are in has the most perfect weather, if your plane is flying in from another city that is experiencing bad weather such as a thunder or snow storm, be prepared to wait....

The time is 813pm CT. I’m writing this on the plane to Fort Lauderdale. Will be joining Tim who has already been there for almost a week, and Zing and Neo who arrived earlier this afternoon as they took the 110pm CT flight earlier today. I was originally scheduled to leave Houston at 345pm. Tim had asked me to try to go on the same flight as Zing and Neo. But because I had to show face at the office for at least half a day so that I didn’t have to use my precious leave, I felt uncomfortable leaving that early.

As luck would have been when I left for the airport at 2pm, the weather couldn’t be more perfect. But soon after I checked in, my flight got delayed for about 25 mins as the inbound plane from New Orleans had not reached Houston. I thought to myself then that 25 mins is still pretty ok, I can live with it. Soon, the 25 mins turned into 45, and at that point an announcement was heard over the PA system.

“Dear passengers, the air travel authority has just closed the Houston airport due to bad weather conditions. At this point, we have no idea when it will reopen. As such, the inbound plane is unable to land even though it is already in Houston’s air. The plane will just make donuts in the air for as long as before it runs out of fuel.”

I couldn’t believe my luck. Just an hour ago, the weather was so beautiful compared to the day before when we experienced tropical storm Erin. And now the airport is closed. There was nothing I could do except to wait, wait and wait to see if the rain would stop.

About 15 mins after the announcement, another announcement came on. The plane has now flown to Hobby airport to refuel and wait out the storm. I thought to myself at least Hobby is just about 15 mins away from IAH by plane so it will not be as bad as if it had flown to Austin which would take even longer for it to fly back. Tentative departure time was 625pm.

At about 5pm, the sky began to clear. The departure board indicated that the plane will only take off at 655pm, 5 mins shy of the departure time of the next plane bound for Fort Lauderdale. I still had 2 hours before departure, so I started doing some work. At about 6, I decided to go get some dinner.

At 615pm, while eating my Wendy’s burger, I received a trip alert call from Continental to inform that the gate has changed from E19 to E17. I was excited. Could that mean that the plane has confirmed for departure? A check at the Departure timing board proved disappointing. The flight was again delayed. 815pm would be the departure time. I was getting annoyed. It would depart later than the 7pm plane which means I would reach FLL past 12 midnight ET. Additionally, it was not even confirmed that the plane would definitely take off at that time.

Upon seeing that the 7pm flight would be on time, I rushed to that plane’s gate to request to get on the standby list. By the time I got there, there were already a few people in the line. Everyone was frustrated.

There was a lady passenger standing at the counter talking to a lady attendant while her two girls were running about. At one point, they even walked on top the chairs. The other attendant, a fifty plus years old man, then told the lady passenger that if her children were to fall, they will not be responsible for any injury. This really pissed that lady off and she shouted for her two children to come sit on the counter which of course didn’t please the attendant. They almost got into an argument if not for the lady attendant who was attending to her. That attendant has an excellent attitude and was really patient with the lady passenger.

When it came to my turn, I was served by the male attendant who told me that there were already 50 people on the waiting list. Also, even though the plane was in the airport, the plane crew was still not in yet. As such, the plane was definitely not going to take off at 7pm. But it was still better than my original flight as that plane had not even touched down at IAH. So I insisted on being put on the waiting list since I had nothing to lose. If I managed to get on to the 7pm flight good, if not, I would still have my seat reserved on my original flight.

While he was putting me on the standby list, the lady attendant served an Afro-American lady. This lady shouted at the lady attendant as she claimed she had been at IAH since 6am this morning. She had missed her connecting flight to FLL as her plane from Sacramento to Houston arrived late. Again, the lady attendant was extremely patient although I knew she must be cursing and swearing at the passenger in her heart.

At about 655pm, the attendant started calling out names from the standby list randomly. The passengers’ faces literally lit up when they were called. Everyone else who was still waiting was secretly happy whenever a passenger who was called did not turn up.

Alas, 20 mins later after about 30 standby passengers had already boarded the plane, my name was still not called. I was about to give up hope when suddenly I heard my name. Oh mine, was I excited?!! I was thinking this is as good as striking TOTO!

After I boarded the plane, I realized that the plane was still not full. Apparently, many of the connecting flight passengers who were supposed to be on this flight did not make it. As such, almost all on the standby list could board this plane. Luckily, I insisted on being put on standby. If not I would have to wait for the 815pm flight which probably would be further delayed with so many connecting flight passengers not being able to make it for this one.

Just as I was all relaxed and comfortable in my seat, I heard an announcement. Being an elite member, I was invited to upgrade to First Class! What a pleasant surprise! At least there is a silver lining from all this bad encounter with flying.

Beach Bum.

"The view from my room after work."

It's times like these when I feel really glad I'm working in Houston. Or Fort Lauderdale, Florida, for that matter. ;)

Not so positive news on the weight side however, as I've finally broken the 60kg mark. And there doesn't seem to be any sign of my weight increase slowing down!!

"Record high! Unheard of!"

Thank You Mama for a wonderful life....

For those of you who may not know, my grandmother passed away on Monday night Singapore time. My granny, whom we affectionately call Mama, was the one person who helped to take care of my sis and I when we were young and both Dad and Mum had to go to work. That said, being the disciplinarian that she was, she moulded the both of us into the people that we are now, and I am very proud and thankful for that. I still have vivid memories of her using a cane on us and scolding us like there's no tomorrow, but deep down I always knew, it was because she cared so much for us.

She leaves behind a great legacy, with my relatives, cousins, nephews and nieces being some of the nicest people I know, and I am sure she must have been happy to have had such a great family around her. I, for one, know that we ALL were really lucky to have had her around us.

Those of us who were close to her always knew she had a hot temper and seeing her smile was a rarity. That said, I would like to thank God that one of her last memories will be one of happiness on my wedding day. I can honestly say that I have never EVER seen her happier than this, and I am glad that the occasion helped to bring a big bright smile to her face for the entire day.

I have always heard that when people pass away, we should never be sad because they have passed on, but rather we should be HAPPY for the wonderful lives they have lived. Let's all appreciate what a great life she's led and what an amazing lady she is. God bless her soul.

"Mama, thank you so much for being so good to me. Thank you for taking care of me while I was growing up. Thank you for teaching me to be filial to my parents. Thank you for loving me even though I was never at home. Thank you for the kinds words you had for my wife, Sharon. Thank you for being your most cheerful self on my wedding day. And thank you for being the most wonderful and amazing person that you are.

May you be happy always in a place where there's no longer any pain and suffering. I love you and I'll always miss you, till the next time we meet."

What's up, doc?

Darn.... it's been more than a week since the day I chao genged but until now I still haven't fully recovered. In fact, my cough seems to have worsen....

Tim has been nagging at me to go see a doc in case it becomes pneumonic. But seeing a doc in the US is so troublesome. It is not as convenient as consulting one in Spore. Over here, an appt has to be made way in advance. The doc usually will not entertain walk-in patients. Furthermore, they are usually not opened after working hours or on weekends. For emergency cases, one has to go to the hospital.

In addition, unless you have medical insurance that covers the medical fees, you can forget about seeing a doc as the expenses is exorbitantly high. And even with the insurance coverage, you would still have to co-pay part of the expenses although the co-pay amount is nominal (between US$10 to US$30). As such, I have been self-medicating whenever I fell sick ever since I came to the US. Never have I seen a doc here before. But with this prolonged cough, self-medicating is no longer an option. Have already made an appt to see the doc this week.

Oh did I mention that I am home alone again for the next two weeks. Tim just flew off this afternoon to Fort Lauderdale. Bet he'll be frolicking with some bikini babes on the sparkling beach as soon as he touches down.

Wonders of Nature

Check this amazing video out:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LU8DDYz68kM

A battle between buffalos and lions. At one point, even a croco joins in the fun...

Sushit.

For those of you who have ever doubted my eating powers, here's a pic of my last dinner when I was out at Shreveport. When you're lonely and left with nothing to do on a nice Thursday evening, nothing beats Sushi. Especially if you've got THIS MUCH.








That probably partially explains our toilet troubles that Sharon was complaining about a few posts ago. For those of you that have no idea about what's going on, I suggest you leave it that way.

Seriously.






Don't say I didn't warn you.

Chao geng, chao kuan, chao nua...

UPDATED

Woke up today and decided I am feeling a little under the weather. So I asked Tim if he wanna be sick too. Being the ever chao geng Tim, of cos he loves the idea. So here we are at 10am on Thursday morning still lazing around in the house. Come to think of it, it's been a while since we last chao geng. Hope we dun let the day goes to waste by sleeping it away.

p/s: I am really having a sore throat although it's not so serious that i cant even go to work. But beta to rest before it worsen, right? So technically, Tim is the one that is really chao genging. Not me!



UPDATE: Argh, I really fell sick after going for lunch buffet with Tim and Yiren at Kim Son, a Vietnamese restaurant. Be careful what you say or wish for, you might really get it.