Saturday, February 6, 2010

a happy day


Bonjour!

A good friend of mine gently reminded me that she didn’t see any blog entry in 2010 yet ... so here it is. The first words for 2010.

This year started really busy, with the handover of my current job scope to the newcomers in January. I also figured out some goals for the new year, met up with a few old pals, made new friends (a cat at the bus stop whom I call Merver) and just finished sealing the Valentine’s Day packages that will go out this coming week.

Yesterday began as quite an ordinary day as I went for yoga class, browsed some shops and then headed home after lunch. On my way back, I saw a pigeon struggling for its last breath, and a very old lady at a provision shop trying to recall if she did pay the shop owner.

The owner looked quite pissed as he tried to reason with the old lady who was claiming that she didn’t get any change after paying 50 bucks. He told her she didn’t hand over any money yet. It looked like a genuine case of forgetfulness on the old lady’s part, but still it was a rather stressful situation for the struggling folks in the shop.

Struggles. Everyone has some of them. Most probably our struggles vary in some ways, but we still have common ones like wishing that our bank accounts have more zeros behind the actual number, that we will be zit-free every day, or have less issues at the work place.

Looking at the pigeon and the old lady, I felt thankful that my struggles were less severe. My day was pretty ordinary, but overall I didn’t have to deal with conflicts or hassles. That it in itself made the day lovely.

The day ended on a sweeter note as I enjoyed a nice home-cooked meal at a gal pal’s apartment celebrating two ladies’ birthdays, Valentine’s Day and the Chinese New Year ‘reunion dinner’ in advance. Her hubby cooked and brought out his collection of wine to treat us, very nice of him. Nothing beats having a good meal, engaging chats and hearty laughter with a bunch of friends.

Quite contented with my happy Friday.



Sunday, January 3, 2010

signing off 2009

31 Dec

Hoooooray!!! Time to celebrate the last (but certainly not the least) day of 2009.

Everyone seems to be in a happier and more relaxed mood today. The bus and MRT were less crowded. The office too ... seemed to get lots more "out of office" emails.

At dinnertime, we were at Mr BF's two-year-old nephew's bbq party to celebrate his birthday. His parents turned chefs for the night as they dished out a steady stream of satay, otah, chicken wings etc.

Today I gave thanks for the 365 days that I had in 2009. For every day, I was given the chance to make my own decisions, to move towards the goals I had. Though not every item on my wishlist came true, though Mom still has not regained her memory (still the same since her accident nearly 5 years ago), though not every day was a jump-for-joy day ... BUT I did survive through 2009 with my loved ones still in my life. I thank God for that.

Hopefully in the brand new year, I will live with more awareness, make wiser choices, taste more joy, be blessed more and give more as well. May next year be a worthwhile journey.
kate

the folks at home

30 Dec

Okay ... I must admit that life this week wasn't that smooth-sailing. Having my home pc die on me didn't exactly bring out the best side in me. Oscar the grouch would probably be my best Sesame Street pal these few days cos we possibly talked in the same lingo.

Tired from staring at that stupid blue screen on my pc, I was glad that Mr BF took over and liaised with my Bro (our family's IT Helpdesk), trying to fix the laptop. Happy that the family folks can take over when I am a bit space-out.

Thank God for inventing Mr BF and the family ... and family includes Rufus the pet. Whenever I feel stressed, one look at Rufus sleeping with his tummy facing the heavens cheers me up instantly. Every time without fail.

So hmm ... if only the pc can be revived quickly hmm ... ... ...

(Ok, time to zzz and leave the guys to do their magic ...)
kate

the real presents

29 Dec

Today was the meet-the-girlfriends galore. First up on the menu was lunch with Steph and Audrey. Very sweet of them to drop by my office area to have ramen with me during the busy lunch hour.

Both of them were on leave but true blue friends will still brave the Shenton way traffic to have a nice and frank catch-up chat with one another. Such sassy angels. And guess what? Steph blessed me with a stalk of another of my favourite flower - this time a yellow rose. Love yellow roses cos usually they bloom so prettily.

Dinnertime was a long-awaited get-together with two of my ex-uni hostel mates. We tried to meet up in November for Thanksgiving but everyone's schedule seemed to be jam-packed. But we were determined to have a meal one last time in 2009 and celebrate X'mas (just a little belated).

It's not easy to keep in touch over the years when all of us had our different jobs and life stages. All three of us went towards very diverse directions since we graduated. But our friendship only deepened through the few thousand days since we knew one another. Very precious to have friends who are open with you and who genuinely want you to do well without jealousy clogging the friendship.

Received my X'mas pressies from the gals and am delighted with the practical and thoughtful gifts like the pink polka dot pjs and the bag organiser.

Today I gave thanks for the gal pals whom I got to know at different stages of my life in school and at work. And to be blessed with friends who truly hope for me and my family to be well - that's simply splendid. These gals are the tops.
kate

eustoma on a Monday

28 Dec

Initially I thought I was having lunch with only one ex-colleague. So imagine my surprise when three of them turned up. And a bigger amazement when one of them came with a bunch of flowers. Pretty purple eustoma to be exact - one of my favourite flowers. And just in time cos every Monday I'll put new flowers in the vase at my workstation.

Ain't it lovely when friends bless you with something out of the blue? Today I gave thanks for thoughtful friends who have that knack of making my days sunnier.

p/s: Wanted to post a pic of the fleur, but my pc crashed and was having some trouble getting it revived this week. Still in the recovery process ...
kate

Wednesday, December 30, 2009

my favourite things

27 Dec

I'm simply thrilled by lucky breaks. So you can imagine my audible delight when I chanced upon a winter cap at 50% off on my way to yoga. It was adorned with a cute knitted fleur, no less. I grabbed it on the spot and thanked God, my lucky stars, my angels ... beaming.

Well, just a note on fashion, I am happy to come across a precious nugget of wisdom by Nina Garcia - "Style is a deeply personal expression of who you are, and every time you dress, you are asserting part of yourself …" And in her book, she listed 100 of her favourite things which made her feel fabulous. That set me off to do some wardrobe editing of my own.

Thank heavens for her style tip. Maybe I'll be on my way to enjoy a less cluttered wardrobe and my very own list of 100 fabulous faves.
kate

Monday, December 28, 2009

fete with friends

26 Dec

After a whole afternoon of housework, I met Mr BF to buy some finger food and joined our friends at an X’mas gathering.

Was nice to meet up with my ex-colleagues ... eating and alternating chitchat with our movie critiques of whatever the HBO channel was showing. There was much food and got to taste some turkey and ice-cream paired with bread pudding. Yummers!

And well, the party ended with ... the ... gift exchange. Bien sûr. How could we miss that huh? :)

Today I gave thanks for X’mas parties. Christmas wouldn’t be the same without the annual meet-ups and the spirit of giving, plus getting queer gifts hmm ...