Today would have been...

..the 7th month anniversary if i had not made the somewat-sudden decision to return to Sg..

No doubt..i'm still very 'fresh' from my trip..actually, should it even be called a 'trip'? How about 'journey'? Or 'experience'? Watever it is..these few months have definitely left me with many many memories..In fact i tried to sort out all my notes & photos over the past 2 weeks or so..but everytime i gave up..cos too much of them..duno where to start from..

Logged in to my blog..realised there're quite a few 'unpublished' entries..& while in the process of consolidating all my thoughts over the past half a year..i'll take the shortcut & 'release' such 'never-published-before' notes..

I scribbled this in my notebook while sitting in the carpark the evening before i flew back :

The sunset was exceptionally beautiful today..

..or perhaps it's all in the state of mind..

It was only 4-ish pm..but the sky was already filled wif all these glorious shades of red, orange & yellow..colours tat only Mother Nature is capable of producing..

It's one of the scenes tat i've fell in love with over here..on days when the weather is good & the sky is clear..& u can see this big piece of sky right in front of u..the sunrise & sunsets are simply picture-perfect..the feeling is undescribable..u can't help but be overwhelmed by the marvels of nature..

I was driving back to my place from the town centre..a route which i've become so familiar wif during these 6 months..it was a freezing 4 degrees outside but it was comfortably warm inside the car with the heater on..20 mins later, i reached my house's carpark..

I did not get out of the car immediately..i simply sat in the car and stared out of the windscreen..quite reluctant to let this sunset go away so soon..i started the car again & drove back the same way i came home..guess this particular sunset is especially precious to me cos it's gonna be the last one i'll see in a while..

My fave CD was playing in the background..add the sundown scenery flashing by outside..it's moments like these which make me believe tat watever hardship & misery i've gone thru over this half a year had been worth it..



More photos of sunsets at http://www.kodakgallery.com/I.jsp?c=tthjh81.76p36jmh&x=0&y=8ogejc

*.* -> ^o^

Had something in mind to blog about today..about an encounter this afternoon..but something much more blog-worthy took place 30 mins ago..so..STOP THE PRESS!

(Sms conversation)

Ex-evertoner : u home or busy now?

ZXL : reaching home in 10 mins..wats up?

Ex-evertoner : Want to pass u something i owe u..

ZXL : Oh, u in the area?

(Mobile rings)

ZXL : elo?

Ex-evertoner : u listen to this ah..

Organ music starts playing in the background..

Hohoho(no lah, it's not some xmas carols lah..as tone-deaf as i may be)..it's the birthday song(though i couldn't make out there were 3 different versions..heh :Þ) It's the bd present ex-evertoner promised me when i was back in uk : D Terima kasih..

The morale of this story : It's still not too late to give me my bd present :Þ

Diet..diet..& more diets..

Seems like i'm surrounded by pple on diets these days..from the 2 pax i was sharing a room wif back in London..to the 2 dozens of pple i've met up wif over these 2 weeks..going on a diet is apparently the 'in' thing now..

Detox diet..juice diet..fruits diet..no-carb-no-protein diet..3k diet(lose 3kg by running 3km every other day to win a $3k bet)..anything-goes-i'll start-my-diet-tmr diet(subscribed by urs truly)..u name it, i've seen it all..

Met up with Meng over the weekend..once my ever-reliable supper kaki..she has a new mantra these days - 'kan kan jiu hao'..as she scanned the menus & photo displays outside the many restaurants & food outlets tat we passed by..she almost made me feel guilty tucking into my salmon fillet while she's poking away at her caesar salad..but kudos to her, her once '3 mths pregnant-tummy' has disappeared & her chubby face is now seriously rivaled by my bloated mien..the one thing about her tat didn't changed? She was 1 hour late for our appointment..

Speaking of diets..i was once rumoured to be on a 'white diet'(not too sure wat it is either..ask those who coined this term)..i had since defected to a brown diet(which i blame for my expansion) during my time in uk..

Was checking out a few supermarkets in town the other day..granted they're the classier supermarkets..still, i couldn't help but gasped when i spotted one of my fave bread in uk costing S$8 when it costs only 80p(S2.40) back in uk..it's the same culture shock i got when i found out tat 3 stalks of xiao bai cai in uk can set u back by 1.50pounds(S$4.50)..seems like it's gonna be hard on my pockets maintaining my brown diet..just as well..i might not need a change of wardrobe afterall..

All this typing has made me hungry..now, wat's for supper?

Too much tea..

..is tat why i can't get to sleep?

I did have quite a cuppa(or maybe more)of green tea during dinner just now..dinner was courtesy of the marathon runners..an appreciation dinner by the runners for the runspirators..heh..thanks ah..din think i did tat much..afterall, i wasn't even in the runspirators list..mainly cos my appearance was supposed to be a 'surprise' one :Þ All i did was to hold some meaningless/annoying(& corny, so they said) monologue while running alongside some of them during the last stretch..& oh, appearing in the photos too..heh, paiseh ah..

Surely it couldn't be jetlag..it's been almost 2 weeks liao..

Hmm..it must be weather then (gotten used to blaming everything on the weather) Despite wat many of my frens have been telling me..it's the 'cooler' season in Sg now..(yes, i know tat..i haven been away for tat long lah)..i'm finding it very very hot here..almost unbearable at times..but then again, i'd always found it hot mah..

Met ys for lunch at maxwell today..my first taste of the 'shenton lunch crowd' since i came back..couldn't help but smile at the packets of tissue left on the seats to 'chope place'..how 'uniquely singapore' : Þ Again, i marvel at those who can wear their power suit while eating 'ktt' (for the benefit of my non-colleague frens, it's kway teow teng) at the aircon-less hawker centre..then there are those poor guys in their (sweat-soaked) shirt & tie..ahh, i really cannot picture myself lunching with the shenton crowd everyday..too stressful..

I suddenly recalled this conversation i had wif Wei at Bugis(another lunch hotspot)the other day..one really does dress a lot smarter in temperate countries..but i dun blame sporeans lah..not when it's 24-33/365..i'm not trying to defend myself..but i also dress smarter(ok, maybe 'less lok' is more like it) when i was in uk..afterall, how lok can u be when the minimum u have to put on when u're going out is a jacket..wif long pants..wif covered shoes(though i persisted on my 'berms + sandals' get up till the very end of autumn)

Besides the hot weather..there's also another very, if not more, important reason why i'm mostly in shorts ever since i came back..i cant fit into my pants anymore >o<

Think i'm like 120% of the zxl 6 mths ago..but tat's another topic altogether..need more blogspace for tat..a lot more..

The cat's almost out of the bag liao..

Flashback : 13th Nov's blog - Some changes are taking place in my life..

..I had called the airline company today to change my return flight..it wasn't exactly smooth sailing i must say..got ding-donged back & forth between the Sg agent & the UK agent a few times..in fact, i only managed to secure a flight after a few days..& was placed on waiting list for 3 other flights..

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So yes..urs truly is back in Sg already..didn't want to announce my coming back cos first of all, it was sorta last min, my actual flight was only confirmed 4 days before my actual departure ..& din think it was really tat big a deal..

Sure, i could have stayed on in UK somemore..it was not like i was down to my last penny..& despite complaining about the food, i have no problems surviving on roti & kantang for a few more months..in any case, just like i couldn't ans the qn 'how long for?' when i first went over..i still can't ans it this time i'm back..afterall, my bank acc & NHS status is still open & there're tax issues to settle end of FY05..

Well, as luck would have it, Ms Privacy actually saw me within hours of my touching down..she was in this cab tat went past my house..this 2-sec sighting was enough for her to conclude i'm back..compare this to 0.5..who needed 3 smses & a call from my ST mobile line to convince her tat i was actually standing below her block..even then, it took several mins of conversation & a threat to go up to her place before she believed i'm really back..it must be the cough medicine tat she took..

So..why am i back? Several reasons..

Winter..i dun mind the cold as much as i dislike the short days..don't really fancy spending 3 months in a place which has only 5 hours of (rather weak)sunlight each day(& this is on a good day)..

Fulfilled my personal KPIs..sort of lah..they included going thru the changing of seasons(from late spring to early winter)..being a fruit picker(strawberry picking lor)..experiencing a different culture(the work stint in the TP where i was the only chinese..i spotted another 2 chinese but judging from their accent, they're probably british-bred)..& of cos, travelling around the region..

(my name tag in TP..)

My ear..it's giving me hell lots of problems..never had it so bad before..but it was the hearing test tat really freaked me out & triggered the alarm in me tat i should really start taking care of it..the doc recommended 'lots of sun'..which is obviously more readily available in sunny Sg than gloomy dark London..

(the 5 bottles of eardrops i've gone thru..)

A reason.. which will remain only known to me..

It's MARATHON DAY..tmr..4th Dec..is a big day for a lot of my ex-colleagues ..they spent hours & hours training for it & i know how much this meant to them..i had missed it last year..& i really³ feel tat i shouldn't miss it again this time round..not when they were so forthcoming with their support when i embarked on my working holiday journey earlier this year..it's my turn to do something for them..i might not be able to do anything to make their run any easier..but at least i'll be there supporting them all the way..& to share their joy(or pain)..

So run, my frens, run for all u are worth..be it 10km, 21.1km or 42.195km..i'll see u at the finish line..

Well done folks!

Despite the cramps..pain..distance(?)..hot weather(& it's my fault again?!) & several threats by me to sing..everyone completed their race..& tat's all tat mattered..

photos at http://www.kodakgallery.com/I.jsp?c=tthjh81.3qijuxqp&x=0&y=hqmijf

TAR - ZXL Version

Well..since today is Wednesday aka TAR day whenever the season is on..i shall attempt to blog in TAR fashion..(Sad to say, they do not have TAR on UK tv..but thanks to my frens back in Sg..i've been pretty much updated on the series..it's a Family edition this season..is it not..?)

*TAR music comes on*

Some of you have been wondering..wat have i been doing since my work at TP ended after they'd closed for the winter..well..besides nuahing (& getting even fatter)..i've been doing a bit of travelling as well..

And so, for some 2 weeks in Nov..i was travelling around England..with 2 other pple..no, not fish..nor her sis..

Anyway, what many of u do not know is tat my parents were in UK recently..I would be the first to admit tat we're not exactly the happy-family-poster-material..without going into details..all i will say is..we'll make good reality tv show.. *.*

I had rented a car for the duration they were here..& I have new-found respect for TAR contestants who can arrive in a totally foreign country & start driving around..

Armed with a trusty road atlas(the one i used previously when i drove up to Rye but ended in Reading, which is in the opp direction) & my good ole LP..i began the ambitious plan of a driving holiday in UK with my parents in tow..with my dad refusing to drive (he says he's not familiar with UK roads) & both parents declaring the wordings on the atlas too small for their 'lao hua yan'..i ended up being the driver AND the navigator..imagine trying to figure out which exit to take on the motorway..while driving at 140km/h..definitely not recommended..

There were also a few driving firsts for me this time round..driving thru heavy fog(finally used the fog lamps for wat they're meant for - fog, & not for 'high-beaming' pple)..wiping frost away from the windscreen after a 30min road break(not quite cold enuf for snow yet..so u end up getting frost instead)..driving into central london..

& i must say it's was quite daunting for me to drive in central london..while i can navigate fairly alright on foot among the main shopping belt, ie. Piccadilly Circus..Oxford Street..Bond Street..driving is a totally different matter..with the one-way streets & dead ends tat seemed to appear at every other corner..and traffice jams even at 10pm(yes, Xmas shopping has started)..it's the same reason why u would not recommend a tourist in Sg to drive to Orchard Road..

anyway, i think i can declare myself to be 'quite a competent' driver after all these..can jio me for road trips next time..(bee, u reading this?)

One major 'roadblock' tat my parents have been facing throughout their whole trip is the weather..they're not used to the bitter cold(i warned them about 10,000x before they flew over)..the ave day temp was in the single digits..dropping to minus on a few nites..it's worse when we're in some confined areas, eg. in the car..where both of them will be wrapped up in layers & layers of winter clothing & asking for the heater to be turned up somemore..& i'll be wearing a single layer & be on the verge of perspiring..(i've always had a better-than-normal tolerance towards cold & i reckon these months had upped my tolerance further more)

And then, there're the mealtimes.. where every meal became a detour..Chinese or Western? It's more comforting to eat Chinese food but they are hard to find(esp out of london) & typically more expensive(with no guarantee they'll taste authentic)..while Western food is abundant & relatively cheaper..my parents cannot accept the idea of eating a chicken caesar tortilla wrap for dinner..@_@

& of cos..there's no Phil standing at the pitstop welcoming us & telling us tat we've won a vacation to XXX, courtesy of XX airlines..only me heading off to the nearest internet station for my dose of ZXL Times..