It's Been Four Months?

Oops, I have neglected this space, haven't I? It's been four months since my last entry and we're two months away from the second half of the year. Now, where did all the time go?!

It's been nothing but busy since we got back from the Southern Hemisphere with CNY, our first wedding anniversary, friends' weddings, work, spending time with family and friends and mostly with taking care of our two kitties (yes, we adopted a second cat but more on that another time!) whom we adore despite them driving us mad on a daily basis with their antics.

So till the next entry (which would highly likely be another few months down the road!), here's a photo of us at my good friend's wedding in Hong Kong, taken by her wedding photographer. It's not often we get a candid shot of ourselves, so this one's a keeper :)

My 7 Links

I first started this space last May, because I was sick of churning out paper after paper and crunching numbers at work. I've always preferred writing to numerical analysis, hence the inspiration for the blog address and title. I desperately needed an outlet somewhere to pen my frivolous thoughts. Most of my entries, as you can see, revolve around the wedding and other random aspects of my life which I adore, like food, travelling and sometimes fashion & beauty.

When Miss Ene tagged me to do up a meme on 7 links, I must admit, I was a little frazzled. This blog (my 3rd one) is less than 1.5 years old. I don't blog that regularly. I hardly open my heart and pen my thoughts, because I don't feel comfortable revealing too much here, but that's just me. How was I going to dig up the posts required to feature in the entry?

But nonetheless, I've sieved through my old entries and here're my 7 links.

1) My Most Beautiful Post - 2010, in retrospect
I don't know about you, but I get a little emotional every year around New Year's Eve when I look back on the year that has whizzed past. This was a rare post where I reflected and revealed a bit more than I normally do.

2) My Most Popular Post - (500) Days of Summer Wedding Inspiration
Thanks to Blogger's stats, I found out that this post had the most pageviews, which I'm sure is because of good old Google.

3) My Most Controversial Post - Confessions of a Bride-To-Be #14: Hey, I'm Not For Sale!
On hindsight, I could have offended some people when I wrote about my disdain for this Chinese wedding tradition.

4) My Most Helpful Post - Confessions of a Bride-To-Be #3 - The Bridal Studio Part 1
Judging by the blog stats, this entry was one of the top 5 entries with the most pageviews. I hope my two cents' worth helped (and still helps) BTBs who were/are sitting on the fence on bridal studios.

5) My Most Surprisingly Successful Post - What's In Your Bag
This entry received the 2nd highest number of pageviews. I never knew that people were so interested to know what's in my bag, hehe.

6) My Most Underrated Post - Confessions of A Bride-to-be #6: Tips for the Pre-Wedding Shoot
Like Miss Ene (who in her case had written about how to store a wedding gown), I wrote this post, thinking it might help BTBs when preparing for their pre-wedding shoot but based on the lack of comments, it seemed that nobody had found the topic useful.

7) Post I Am Most Proud Of - Our Little Modern Resort
It's no luxury beach resort. Heck, we don't even have a sea view! But it is our first home and I'm filled with happiness and pride each time I step through the door.

And now for my turn to tag the next 3 bloggers whom I hope are reading this. Have fun!

The Girl At The Traffic Light Junction
A Fresh Start
The Journey Of Becoming A Mrs

2010, in retrospect

Dreamweaver has done it. So has The Pleasure Monger.

As the year draws to a close (has it really been a year?!), it’s now my turn to take a step back to reflect.

I probably remember more about 2009 than 2010 though.

In 2009, the boy proposed and we commited ourselves to the biggest investment in our lives. We also experienced our first live game at the Emirates Stadium and visited the City of Lights (two items off the travel checklist!).

In 2010, on the travel front, we satisfied our backpacking or flashpacking (to be exact) itch in Vietnam (Jan), enjoyed comfort food and shopping during a quick birthday getaway in HK (Mar) and went on a road trip Down Under (June). I feel most spirited when I travel and I am grateful for every opportunity to see the world a little more.

Workwise, the bigger part of the year was rather painful. I was stuck in a role which I didn’t enjoy. But thankfully, I had two wonderful colleagues, M and S to turn to and I am grateful for their friendship. Just as we entered the last quarter of the year, I embarked on a new job in an organization which I’ve always wanted to work for, in an industry which I am passionate about. I keep my fingers crossed that I will continue to enjoy work satisfaction in the company.

Then of course, there’s the wedding prep which has unfortunately resulted in us arguing a lot more in recent months. It hasn’t been easy, preparing for the big day and a new phase in our lives. To say the stress gets to you is an understatement. Imagine having to manage this logistics of a nightmare while trying to please our families and ensuring that our decisions are not made at the expense of our happiness, all at the same time. But we're almost there and I can’t wait to let my hair down, literally, after the dinner!

And that’s about all to my 2010, really.

I guess it is what I would call a transition year, gearing up for the wedding, the new home and a life together.

Although the year wasn’t as exciting as the previous one, it was decent.

I am contented, in a good place and I can't ask for more.

Yellow Ribbon Run 2010

I got to be honest.

When my alarm rang at 6am yesterday and i saw the rain outside the window, a part of me hoped that the Yellow Ribbon Run would get cancelled, so i could go back to sleep.

After snoozing for 15 minutes, i finally crawled out of bed, got changed and waited for the fiance to pick me up. The rain got heavier as we drove towards Expo, where we parked and took the shuttle bus to Changi Village. We figured the run should still be on, since there were throngs of runners still waiting for the buses.

At Changi Village, we were given ponchos but we did without them because it'd be hot and uncomfortable running with them on.

While the undulating terrain was challenging, the rain cooled us off constantly and made the 6km more bearable. It was so cold though! Wish i had worn a windbreaker.

Along the way, i overheard a mother explaining to her daughters on why they were participating in the run, and the significance of giving second chances for ex-offenders and unlocking "the second prison". Nice to see parents like her take the kids out to educate and inculcate in them the right values :)

The highlight of the run was probably the last part, where everyone would run into the Prison Complex as you approach the finishing line. Quite an experience, i must say. I highly encourage everyone to sign up for the run next year, if you can!

Mid-week Musings

I like Wednesdays because you know you're halfway through to the weekend :)

And speaking of the weekend, i am looking forward to the coming one - there's the NATAS fair where we hope to snag a good honeymoon deal, his Grandma's birthday, our anniversary lunch and Joash's 2nd birthday.

Now that things are winding back to normality at work, I hope to have more time to sit down and resume my remaining Aussie entries (YZ, i'll fulfill my promise to blog more often!)

Dried Chillis FTW

A colleague told me that every year, the NDP organising team would hang dried chillis to ward off the rain.

I'm not sure how true it is, but come to think of it, it rarely pours at the National Day parade. Just like how, it's extremely hot and humid today.

Maybe i should hang dry chillis for our photoshoot and wedding! ;)

Photo of NDP rehearsal taken on Benjamin Sheares Bridge

My Comfort Food

I'm a Teochew girl at heart and on this dreary Tuesday, i just feel like having my comfort food.

Some sweet potato muay (porridge), fishcake, salted egg, steamed fish, braised duck and kor lei chai (braised cabbage).

What's your comfort food?

No More Dreaded Mondays

Mrs C is probably one of the most inspirational women i've met. I'm honoured and thankful to have had the chance to work with her.

About 2 months ago, she gave me this book, together with a card, to thank me for my help with an event and to serve as a form of motivation, as she had heard from another colleague that i have been feeling disheartened due to some challenges at work.

An excerpt from her card goes:
"....Sometimes our work gets tough and at times we may feel discouraged but if we see this as a mission and not just a job, we will find the work worthwhile..."

I haven't touched the book as i've been distracted by magazines and chick lit. But with the recent 11 hour work days that i have been putting in AND the insane, unwelcome amount of number crunching at work (i loathe numbers and never expected this to be part of my job scope), i think it's time to start my bedtime reading.

No more Monday blues? We'll see.

It's a small world after all

Just a few days ago, i found out that one of my oldest friends is attached to my husband-to-be's cousin.

Which makes us, almost family? Haha.

But on a serious note, I'm really happy for her. Can't wait to see her at future family gatherings!

Dazed and Confused

I always feel out of sorts when i come back from a holiday. This only happens when i travel for more than a week though. And each time i return, i hate the humidity more.

Anyway, the trip was really lovely. I will try to blog about it soon but er i think it will take me some time. Right now, my body's still living in Aussie time (we slept at 7-8pm SG time every night) and i think i want to head to bed soon.

Confessions of a Bride-To-Be #2

Beware, this is a sorta ranting post.

We had dinner with some friends on Sat night and were asked about our wedding preparations.

Friend: "So have you chosen your gown?"
Me: "Nope, will only start the design process in Sept."
Friend: "How about your photo shoot? When is it?"
Me: "It's in early August."
Friend: "Hmmm. Doesn't that mean that you won't get to wear your gown for your photoshoot?"
Me: "Yah, but that's fine with me because we are doing a casual shoot."
Friend (frown on her face) : "But don't you want to take photos in your wedding gown?"
Me: "No not really. I'd have some shots of me in my gown on the actual wedding day anyway."
(awkward silence)
Friend: "Ok, so when will your new place be ready?"
Me: "Somewhere early next year."
Friend: "Oh that means around your wedding. Are you going to stay with him, before the house is ready?"
Me: "No lar, we'll stay separately first."
Friend (surprised look): "Hmmm ok. But don't you want to stay together?"
Me: "I think it makes more sense to stay at our individual homes, especially when it comes to commuting to work."
Friend (about to say more, but was gently told by her husband to not say more).

In another conversation with colleagues last week,

Colleague: "So where are you holding your wedding?"
Me: " in Sentosa."
Colleague: "Oh, which hotel is that at?"
Me: "It's a restaurant."
Colleague: "How many people are you planning to invite?"
Me: "About 100 guests?"
Colleague: "Wah you can fit everyone?"
Me: "Yah it'll be a small cosy dinner with close family and friends."
Colleague (deep frown on face): "Hmmmm ok."

From the above, I guess you can say that the fiance and I are not your typical couple. We knew from the very start that we wanted a small affair so we could have the chance to mingle with our guests. We also decided against studio wedding shots and taking photos in our suit and gown because we wanted the photos to capture us being natural and ourselves. We are also perfectly fine with staying apart because it's only for a few months at most.

I guess my point here is, everyone has different views and ways of doing things. You can't expect the whole world to think like you. I don't ask for people to understand our rationale for our choices, but i would appreciate for others to respect our decisions.

A Moment In Time

I love photos.

A photo captures a moment in time. An event. A memory. Fleeting emotions, frozen in time with the click of a camera.

A friend uploaded some old photos from our Work and Travel trip on Facebook. I chanced upon this again. It is one of my favourite photos because it was spontaneous. We were having a picnic a Lake Lucerne and after our bbq, were fooling around with the camera. We each struck our unique pose within seconds. I will never forget the fun we had and how happy we were when we took this shot.


Certainly brings back wonderful memories of my time in the US of A.

Nobody said it was easy. It's such a shame for us to part.