Hen afternoon party

Haha... yes, I just had my Hen afternoon party! For the benefit of those who are Non Singapore, hen and stag parties are parties meant for the bride and groom to be right before their wedding. It's like, the night of a lifetime sorta thing... usually, things can get real crazy, with strippers, truth or dare, getting super drunk and stuff like that...

Thankfully, my sec sch friends know that I'm really not the party sort, they made it a very wholesome hen afternoon party for my sake! =) Haha... HEre it goes:

5pm- Met at Orchard MRT- sat on the floor on the quieter side of the station (something I haven't done in YEARS!)

6pm- Yes, some of them were late for ONE hour. I was made to put on GLOVES, a TIARA, BRIDAL VEIL, and carry a MAGIC wand. I LOOK LIKE AN IDIOT.

Task at hand: They gave me a list of "types of people" i had to look out for along Orchard Road and once I spot them, I have to go up to them, tell them I'm getting married and stuff, and ask to take a polaroid photo with them!!! The task will be considered successful if I manage to take photos with 5 out of the 12 types of people they have specified. My first reaction... OH MY GOSH, I hope i don't see my boss!! Haha... Anywayz, with this group of friends, there's no such thing as NO, so I went.

Victim No. 1- Bald Caucasian man. What a nice Caucasian couple! They kept congratulating me and they were so spontaneous. I hate to stereotype against my own fellow countrymen, but I must say foreigners are generally more sporting when it comes to such things...

Victim No. 2- Couple with matching outfits. Nice couple, smiley and all. Looked bit embarassed, but very spontaneous!

Victim No. 3- A group of 4 guys. My conclusion: Singapore teenage boys are awkward and "act cool" Haha... the first bunch of boys I approach, before I could say anything, the boy went, " I don't know you!" Haha, in the end, I managed to get another group of boys to take photo with me

Victim No. 4- Man with more than 3 shopping bags. I just asked this man with his family who was carrying 4 takashimaya bags to take a photo with. Quite nice and sporting as well!

-Along the way, I tried to complete the task by taking photo with 2 C Fitness employees as they are counted under "2 men wearing singlets"... however, they were so unfriendly and just signalled me to go away, saying "No need" and walked off... kinda spoilt my mood a bit. Later on, they were waiting at the traffic light, my friend asked me to try again... I was like, NO WAY, I HAVE INTEGRITY! Haha...

Victim No. 5- A group of skateboarders. We went to the youth park area and I approached these 2 teenagers who are skateboarders. They didn't say a single word to me but allowed me to take a photo with them. When I saw the photo later on, they were both smiling... awww... so sweet.

After that, my friends treated me to a buffet and we ended the night with coffee at NYDC. It was a real memorable day!

I have known this group of friends for like 14 years (same bunch as the photos in the halloween party). They kept saying how I'm Ms goody-2-shoes etc... I wish I could tell them that I'm just a sinner saved by grace! Sometimes, I wish I have more guts to share the gospel with them... I have shared on past ocassions, but I always feel that I'm not sharing enough, not telling them the importance and urgency of the gospel message. Sigh. I really hope and pray that the wedding message will speak to their hearts and that I can continue to witness for Christ... Our worldviews are so different and they are pretty much post modernist. It's tough voicing out my CHristian views sometimes cos they see me as conservative and myopic... how I wish I can have more one on one time with each and every one of them to explain my faith thoroughly to them. Sigh... so much to do, but so little time!

I'm very glad for today... because it was such a relaxing day for me. I hung out with my mum in the morning, visited XLQ in the afternoon, and met my friends in the evening... I felt almost guilty for not feeling stressed abt the wedding today... STUPID RIGHT? Haha, anywayz, thanks for reading! It's late and I better sleep to wake up in time for church tomorrow... =)

Wedding Ramblings...

HEy guys,

For whoever is still reading my blog, sorry for not updating it for such a looong time... partially it's because my office has put firewalls for many many websites, including any blogspot sites, friendster, even YOUTUBE is blocked!! =( Killed our entertainment in the office! Haha... so I also haven't been able to keep up with pp through their blogs. Plus, I have been extremely busy with flat renovations and wedding preparations. Who would have thought wedding preparation was so time consuming? Sigh... I remember telling my friends that I will NOT be a stressed out bride when it's my turn. I will be cool... hahaha... boy, was I wrong!!

Think I have been rather impatient, snappy, high strung at times these past few mths... and it has been difficult cos XLQ is busy preparing for his exams and is quite high strung too... sometimes we really lose sight of the joy of the wedding itself and are way too bogged down by the preparations. I worry about the details, though friends said they will help me out, I feel so responsible to do all the little things myself... it's really tiring!

Few things went wrong along the way... my kitchen cabinet wasn't what I wanted at all... the guy offered to repaint parts of it, the end product looked like it was half done and I was really upset... the whole process took about 1.5 mths long. He's replacing the doors for us, but they will be really plain, different from what I wanted initially... OH yes, we had the most difficult time with this furniture company (won't name it publicly), but they insisted the dining table we bought was 1.6m long when we were SUPER DUPER 100% sure that in the shop, they showed us and sold us a 1.8m long table! It's really ridiculous... there were some other out of stock/discontinued stock problem with our purchase... the whole thing "ping pong" for like 1.5 months, taking up so much time, calling the person back and forth. It was terrible.. in the end, we returned the table and I bought our dining table over Ebay!! Delivered within 3 days and we love it! Haha... and it was even cheaper than what we originally spent... hmm, what else? our wedding dinner is expanding and exploding! Parents on both sides are adding more than expected... and it's going to be a huge dinner, very different from what both of us would have liked... but it's ok really, cos we know that the dinner is really meant for the parents more than for us. Logistically, it would be quite crazy though... none of those cosy nice little dinners.... Obi has moved to XLQ's house... =( I miss his presence at home... wagging his tail with a cloth in his mouth greeting me... but he seems happy at his place. His dad walks him very regularly and he has many friends! He has 2 border collies and a rabbit as neighbours... he enjoys the sounds and sights very much cos he's kept in the front porch. He gets to see cabs, cars, cyclist, joggers, and people walking pass... he barks more cos he loves the things he's seeing... though I miss him, I'm very thankful that the transition has been really good..

Anywayz, I'm counting down! Slightly more than 2 weeks to go!! Praying hard that I stay healthy... eating multi vitamins every day... =) It's coming so soon, I'm bit scared actually! Once in a while, I wake up with butterflies in my tummy... haha, u know, the feeling you get when you're having exams? Yes, that feeling... XLQ has been having weird dreams abt the wedding too... think both of us are bit tired out by this process. Sometimes, no matter how much friends try to reassure us, I still feel bit anxious abt the wedding... not about the person or abt marriage life, but abt the event... guess that's a good thing huh? At least I'm not freaking out abt the person. Haha.. and for the marriage life, I guess I can't see beyond Dec 10th at the moment. So I'm just taking one step at a time for marriage life. Haha... =)

Do pray for us as we go into the last leg of preparation. Thank God for so many wonderful friends who have offered to help... pray for XLQ's exams coming up next Monday! That we will continue to focus on God. It's ironic... wedding is supposed to be a happy event, but it has unconsciously become a burden... it's so bad. Sigh... and instead of drawing closer to God for strength and comfort, I feel that my walk with God is not as close as before and I'm depending too much on myself, not praying enough, being really snappy, unkind to pp around me... =( feel really lousy sometimes... guess I need to be more disciplined about my time and not be wavered by the circumstances... yeah... thanks so much for reading! =) I will leave you with some stupid photos my friends and I took during our 10 person halloween party! Haha...

Back from hazey Kuala Lumpur...

I just got back from hazey KL! For those of you overseas, just bit of context... Indonesia has been burning lots of forest for agriculture and it has resulted in this horrible haze across Asia, especially in East malaysia... KL is in West Malaysia but the effects of the haze can still be felt. It looks like it's misty and cool, when it's actually HAZEY. BAd for the eyes and nose. Thankfully we were indoors the whole week, if not, I think my sinus would have acted up real bad! Thanks to Dr Leong too, who gave lots of ammunition for the week in KL, in case my nose act up... =)

Anywayz, it was a week long conference with colleagues from 13 countries in Asia Pacific. It's really quite a learning experience. I feel like I'm back in college again, just that the class is made up of all Asians. To be exact, COMPETITIVE Asians. Haha... before my colleagues and I left (3 of us), my director came up to me and told me... "Try your best and do us proud yeah? "I was like *blink blink*.. I hope he's not expecting me to get the top student prize or anything! I'm really not that smart... talk about PRESSURE!!

Anywayz, course was REALLY intense! Lots of group work, case studies, questions... the toughest part was working with the colleagues from the other countries. We all have different working style, different communication skills... let's just say it was QUITE a challenge!!! Some funny things happened here and there... on the whole, i must say I learnt a lot but think I would have enjoyed it better if it was held in say Bangkok! Hee... my group had one Vietnamese, one Malaysian, one Japanese, one Korean, one Thai, one Indian and me- one Singaporean! On the whole, my group worked ok together... we didn't win any prizes, but I think we tried our best! Which is the most important...

Take aways from the week:
1. I felt really dumb at points of time during the week! Seeing how fast and smart the rest are, I was like... man, I'm old. It's time to upgrade myself. Haha... but I had to remind myself that God sees us as we are and accepts us the way we are (in terms of personality, not our sinful self)... I guess at work, I should try to improve myself... leverage on my strengths and brush up on my weak points... but it's just that sometimes I feel that there's no end... I guess that's because no one is perfect and there's always room for improvement! Should take it easy... thank God that salvation is not based on how smart we are or how well we perform...

2. The well of fellowship was SO dry... haha. It's not good really! I really appreciate the Christian fellowship I have back home much more now... really cannot take it for granted. Cos the course was real busy, i didn't have much time to read or pray, or rather, sometimes, I make the conscious decision to watch tv and chat with my colleagues.. =( Bad... the only christian I talk to the whole day is XLQ at the end of the day when I call him at nite... and the only real time I spend with God is when I say grace before meals. So pathetic...

3. Sharing with my colleagues... before I went, I was praying for chances to talk about the gospel... I don't know if it's because I didn't try hard enough, but there weren't really much conversations that could lead to gospel chat... was bit disappointed cos usually when I go on trips with pp, I do get opportunities here and there to chat about things... sigh. But I got to know my 2 other colleagues much better and I pray that I will learn to build on this foundation to talk about more in depth life issues with them and challenge them about God. =)

Ok, I will try and post some photos soon cos I realize my blog is a tad boring cos it's all WORDS! Haha...

The best GP & GP assistants in the world! =)

Haven't written for a long long time... cos i've been so busy with work! Also, my computer at home is SO WONKY and unstable, I'm so upset! I think it's time I get myself a new computer... =( Anywayz, I was down with fever, bad sorethroat, headache the last few days... thank God, I'm almost recovered now! =) Thought that u guys are probably bored with my wedding prep sharing, so I will share abt something else. Hehe.

Just wanted to tell u guys abt the best GP and GP assistants in the world! I fell sick on Sun... since my GP wasn't open, I went to another doctor. I wasn't really having fever then, so he gave me regular painkillers for the headache. On Sun nite, my fever got worse, and no matter how hard XLQ tried to put ice on my forehead, the fever wouldn't go away. On Mon morning, I woke up feeling crappy still... so I called my regular GP, who is usually open on Monday mornings and alas, Dr Leong has fallen sick! I felt sorry for him, and also for myself... cos I was thinking, oh no, who should I go to? On the other side of the phone, his assistant, Mr Chin, said," You sound very bad... very nasal. Is everything ok?" I explained my symptoms to him and told him the medicine that the other doctor prescribed. After looking at my history file, Mr Chin explained that my situation is probably complicated by my sinus problem (SINUS AGAIN?!) and told me to go to the clinic with the current medicine I have and to get some medicine to help subside the fever... so I went to the clinic, looking all pale and washed out. He patiently explained all the medicine to me and gave me instructions on when to eat them. So I went home and rested.

I mean, usually, I would expect that my encounter with my GP and his assistant will end at this point... but later at nite around 8 pm, Mr Chin called me and asked me if my fever was better! I was so TOUCHED. "Yes yes, much better Mr Chin. Thanks so much!" Then again, this afternoon (Tuesday), another assistant from the clinic called, asking me if my fever and headache got better! *sniff* almost wanted to tear man... never had a clinic/GP care so much about me before...

Haha, anywayz, after the long story, I just thought that Dr Leong and his team are doing a great job with the clinic!! =) Dr Leong's Christian and he goes on medical mission trips regularly, maybe that's how he thought of the name for his clinic- Mission clinic. At the common area where patients wait to see him, there is an LCD screen showing christian movies/cartoons. There's this particular cartoon which I've seen probably like 5 times! Haha. But it's really great that he's actively using his gifts to tell others about God. When I first started going there, I thought... Man, he's going to scare off the patients. But no! The queue to see him simply gets longer and longer... plus, everytime a patient goes in to see him, he/she doesn't come out until at least 15 mins later. Some go on even to 1/2 hour!! That's because Dr Leong bothers to explain details to patients, chat with them, ask them about their lives. He also explains the medicine he prescribes, writes down little notes on what foods to avoid to take home etc. It's simple gestures like these that make people wanna go back to him. I've been to MANY GPs where I get out of their room in less than 1 minute cos they can't be bothered to explain too much...

I'm really thankful for a doctor like Dr Leong and his team of helpers! I think even after I move in the future, I will still go back to him. =) Medical students, being a GP is equally wonderful and can be a real encouraging job to both believers and non believers. Lots of witnessing opportunities as well! So, study hard and be a good GP! Hehe.

That's all from me today... sleeping now!

Bridezilla!!!!!!

The other day, my friend asked me… "Huiling, are you a bridezilla?" HAHA. I thought she meant Bridenarexic… which is what I read from magazines, brides who are obsessed abt losing weight. I was like… "Erm, no leh!" I mean, I wish I can lose some weight… haha, which brides doesn't? But I'm really not obsessed with it… I still eat normally, and PUNJers can testify to me eating chips during PUNJ. Not that it's a good thing! I shld really cut out junk food more! But that's not what my friend was asking me… a bridezilla is someone who is obssessed with the details of her wedding and wanting everything to be perfect. I was like… NO way, I'm not a bridezilla!

Later on, as I thought more and more… maybe I'm suffering from a bit of the bridezilla symtoms!! Getting short fused, wanting things to fall into place, wanting nice details for the wedding!!!! But seriously, I hope I'm not obsessed!!! That's just stupid!!! Haha... so friends, pls help ensure I don't turn into a BRIDEZILLA!!!!

The reason why I haven't been able to blog is cos for some reason, I can't log in in the office, but when I bring my laptop home, I can log in! Strange... plus, desktop at home is down... so sad. I feel so handicapped!! My digital camera is also faulty... can't depend on technology too much after all!

I'm rushing work... it's going to be a busy few weeks for me! And I need to go KL for work for 1 week in Oct. By the time I come back from the KL trip, it will be less than 2 months to the wedding... *cold sweat* Am starting to panic a bit... but will not let it get to me!

I just finished the book "Disciplines of a godly woman". It's a very good book and I recommend it to all christians! Easy reading, good sound teaching combined with plenty of life experiences- my kind of book! =) I think it's even suitable for guys who want to know how the females function. Good book to read... I hope that I can keep up the reading... I'm trying to embark on other Christian books...

Ok, enough of rambling... gotta get back to work!! Yes, working at home at 12 am... but feeling productive! Just had a cuppa COFFEE!!! =) Thanks XLQ for making it for me...

Hood, hob, homogeneous tiles, mixer, tempered glass

Terms that had an insignificant place in my dictionary before my renovation works for the house… right now, I have a new found admiration for interior designers and architects- people who have a keen eye for details and coordination. Personally, it's driving me NUTS!!!!!!!! For a relatively indecisive person like me who love to weigh options (as long as I meet the deadline), I'm finding it so hard to make so so so many decisions in such a short span of time!!! It's really difficult trying to juggle family, renovation, relationship, PUNJ, friends, wedding preparation and work all at one time… plus decisions about the house have to be joint decisions, that's where XLQ's personality and mine differ quite a bit. He's the decisive sort, things are sorted by priorities and timelines. Once he makes a decision, he doesn't want to look back and regret. That's where the clash comes in because I love to look around and shop around for options, because I'm afraid of regretting my decision due to the fact I didn't explore the possibilities. However, we are working against Mr Time. We just don't have the luxury of time to explore so many things if we want to get our place ready for the wedding… so I really have to learn to let go a little of things. I really thank God that we both know Him personally in our lives. It really helps because everytime when we disagree on things… because we are always reminded that God is gracious towards us and we really should be gracious towards each other as well. Practically, this means saying sorry, compromising, listening to each other's opinions, to be other person centred… but it's ultra difficult!!!!!! Haha… But at least we have the basis of why we should even bother to try!

The above was written some time back and thankfully, things are better now… =) Maybe cos most of the major decisions have been made. Maybe we will end up with a weird looking house, but it's all ok! My friend said maybe I should have gotten an interior designer to help me with the decisions. According to him, "An interior designer could have saved your marriage!" Haha, I thought that was really funny! Anywayz, I think God has really been humbling me through all these… telling me, "Hey, you're not as patient and loving as you think!", "Where is the other people centredness?", "Why are you snapping again?" Sigh, it ain't easy being Christian.

To be single or to be married...

Don't worry! I'm not regretting my decision to get married... but I've been reading this Christian book lately and I'm very encouraged by the author.

Quoted from "Disciplines of a godly woman" by Barbara Hughes
The relationships in the family of God are eternal, unlike those of our earthly family. Mary Lou Bayly, a widow in our church, reminds us that earthly marriage is temporal (Matt 22:30). After years of serving the Lord as a wife, Mary Lou was comforted by a more enduring reality when her loving husband, Joe, died. She called her "assignment" as a wife and mother of 7 children "richly rewarding." "But I'm no longer a wife," she said. "There's wonderful security in remembering that my relationship to Jesus Christ is my real identity, and no one can take that away from me." Mary Lou has voiced an important spiritual truth. Our church family relationships will never end. Our relationship as sisters and brothers sharing the same Father will exist for eternity.

How sobering! In light of preparing for my wedding, I'm reminded that earthly marriages are temporal. It's kinda sad but yet comforting at the same time. Once, I heard Christopher Ash talk about marriage and how all of us start out as singles, most end up married, and most end up single again. Because in life, one spouse always die earlier than the other. Therefore, we really cannot pin our hopes and identity on our other half, or our marital status (be it single or married). We have to realize that our identity first and foremost comes from God. Does God have a special calling for us to be single or married? Babara Hughes refers to it as an "assignment". God has assigned us to be either single or married at different points of our lives, but whatever it is, the most important is to be living for the Lord in whatever state we're in! This is real encouraging to me… I hope it encourages you too, no matter what state you're in! =)

All the best to you Flops!

Floppy has found a new home… he will be leaving me tomorrow… after having him for 2 weeks, I've kinda grown slightly attached to him… it helps that I knew from the beginning that I will not keep him. Cos of that, I think I have not grown as attached to him... Nevertheless, it's really nice these 2 weeks to come home and instead of seeing 1 enthusiastic doggie greeting you, there are 2! =) Whenever I see Obi and Floppy, I will go "Hello boys!!" And they will come towards me, wagging their tails happily and wanting me to pat both of them. They've been getting along slightly better… there are times when I see Obi licking Floppy on his face. So sweet. =) But the 2 of them hanging out have made them bit smelly. Haha.. Think they play too much. I'm going to give him a good nice bath before he goes off with his new owner!
I wonder if the new owner will give him a new name… Floppy sounds so.. Loserish, defeated! Haha… me and my bad choice of names… maybe he can be called Yoda, or Jedi or something more macho, like my OBI. =)

More about Floppy

Here are more photos of Floppy! Obi and Floppy have a love hate relationship... let's say like-hate is more appropriate. Floppy is quite a domineering puppy, snatches Obi's food and bullies Obi at times... Obi, though he's SO huge, is just a harmless yellow looney, ADD, seeking-to-please, gracious dog... yeah, they don't really get along. After days of observation, few points I note abt Floppy:
- domineering personality (best if he's the only male dog at home)
- independent
- fun-loving
- smart (he already knows how to sit! Only after 3 days...)
- generally calm doggie

It's amazing how God creates even dogs with such different personalities! Pls help me find him a home yeah? =) Thanks!

Floppy needs a home... =(

I just decided to name him Floppy for now... cos he has real Floppy ears for a Lab/ Lab mix! I found him while XLQ and I were jogging with Obi on our way home. He looks very healthy.. I'm not sure if he lost his way or if he was abandoned... We have put up posters all over the place and I really hope that someone will call me up to collect the doggie. Really praying for that...

I can't possibly keep another dog when I already have Obi. And it doesn't help that Floppy doesn't seem to like OBi cos Obi is huge and I think he scared Floppy... if no one claims him, I will definitely put him up for adoption. Usually it's easier for puppies to find homes. But DO remember the committment required in keeping a dog. Once he's your dog, he's family. Cannot give up so easily! He will prob need a private home because he's going to grow quite big. If you know anyone who may be interested, pls let me know k? =)

Breed: Lab/Lab mix
Age: looks like 4 months to 6 months old
Colour: Cream
Gender: Male