Food, laughter and work

Had lunch with Samuel Teo at CSC today, and as always, when i'm with him, we eat alot - Avocado salad, Sandwiches, Fries, Spagettii, plus Grilled Chicken for him. Then walking over to Parkway, I got convinced to eat ice cream too!
Met my godmum who cuts hair there and i had another crazy hairstyle in mind which she responded by laughing n telling me to take a walk first before i decide. Went to borders but couldn't find my book, ended up buying another.. waste money man.. Then we popped over at Yakun and ate again! N i so happened to sit beside Andre's mom! lolz... was just at her house having dinner last night. How coincidental. She told me to bring her son with me to US..lolz.

Pretty fun day with lots of food, laughter and also lots of errants done. Halted my CSC membership, activated my UOB acct which involved lots of guessing of passwords and withdrawing and depositing over and over again to activate it. So weird... hahz and i postpone my hair cutting till Wednesday...we'll see...heez


Went out again to meet my best friend Nathaniel at the Hongkong Cafe for supper. THou its way past bed time, and i seldom go out after mid night coz my carriage will turn into a pumpkin... i still went ahead... lolz, coz its been so long since we met with his schedule packed with lessons and exams, and mine packed with slacking and more slacking.. lolz..okiez... not that relaxed for me as well... i had work.

But bro, its so great to see you again... And likewise, i feel really comfortable around you, so much so that i felt like a chatter box this evening... kept chattering away... hope i gave u some air time too... =P 13 years man... i've basically known u for more than half my life hahaz.. and our record on the phone is still unbroken! hahz...I'll miss u so much when i leave again man! But like i said, i'll always be there for u!

Sun, sand and sea...

Just returned from my 3D2N Bintan Trip with Aaron, Andre and Yongchao. Turns out to be not so bad after all, despite hearing all the horror stories from family and friends. Well, the ferry ride there was horrible to start with, and day 1 was indeed pretty boring... other than swimming in the pool, there was nothing that we can do due to the monsoon. No wind surfing, no sailing, no kayaking, no fishing! No swimming in the open seas even! Gheez... So we just rot in the resort... So boring!...and food's hella expensive there...

But we decided to make our trip more interesting after that... so we borrowed a ball and played water polo, following that, decided to leave the resort to go to the local market where we got good food at reasonable prices! The adventure was just beginning...

Day 2, we woke up early to hit the gym, and after a good workout, headed for the complimentary breakfast buffet where we ate both the share for our breakfast and lunch. It was then sun tanning time while we digested our food.

The sea was still rough and though the red flag for no swimming was up, there was another signage that wrote - "Swim at your own risk"... So we decided to make the most of our trip... Getting into our surfer's gear, we each rented a body surf board and went for the waves. Aaron went for the black board saying it was "garang" and when the life guard heard that, he started laughing at him. Lolz... but we made a friend there and he taught us how to surf and within minutes, we were out into the open seas, fighting and riding the waves on our own. The life guard even extended our rental time by another hour for free.

After a whole day of exercise, we headed back to the market where Andre and Yongchao had massage, then we had dinner. Another sumptuous dinner and this time, we even had our own personal classical quartet playing songs for our table. So romantic.. hahz. The restaurant also offered us a ride back to the resort for free, and back there, we played cards, drank, ate peanuts and watch tv... how typical...

Day 3, had a heavy brunch again, then walked back to the beach where the friend we made yesterday let us climb up the lifeguard tower and look through his binoculars! Then we had another short sun tanning session, and it felt great! Bright sun, soft sand, cool breeze... Perfect environment! Soon.. it was time to leave... But this time, the ferry ride back wasn't so bad... All in all, it was a good trip.

Friends

Got alot of things done today, starting with meeting yong chao in the afternoon, then going to settle my banking stuff at ocbc and dbs, also got a new chain with a trade in and the aunty was nice to give me a discount seeing that the chain i traded in was one which i had worn since young...
Met Samuel Teo for High Tea at 4pm later, and he look so thin... i guess the accident really took a toll on him... but he really eats alot man! First we had our meal, he had noodles while i had toast... then while walking, he suggested muffins and we got 2... then walking by toast box, he got toast again! My gosh... If i follow your diet, I'm so gonna grow fat! Amazing thing is he's still so thin! But still as cute as ever lah... I call Samuel the big baby, coz he's 1.87m tall man! Yet he has a baby face... lolz
Then met Weiliang for dinner after that, and chatted for a long while... So much to catch up... Also went to Cathay N.U.M to get a singlet... they had no changing rooms, so we had to go to the nearest restroom to try out the shirt! lolz... Bought the $69.90 shirt for $49.90... lolz... another discount... why? i dunno... i guess... I'm just lucky today....
Weiliang, Samuel... I'm soooooooo gonna miss u 2 when i leave for the states...
Alritez... better start packing now... going to Yongchao's house tonight to sleepover then heading over to Bintan early tml morning!

Last day of work

Yup, today was my last day of work! Yay!!! but my boss delayed my pay... say earliest friday then pay... haiz... cheat money onez... lolz...

Received a msg from Samuel Teo today, it wrote "hey i jus realized the hospital cut the basketball shorts u bought for me cos of the accident! i loved tt shorts... hai... sorry man."

Just wanna say, nothing to be sorry about man... I already really touched that u still wear the shorts... I gave u tt shorts like in 2001 rite? 6 years man... still can fit ah? lolz! But what's more important is that you're safe! Hope you recover real soon! And you better take care of yourself while i'm gone! Broken collar bone during army and now this! BUt i guess i should be the one to say sorry... sorry for not being there for you when u got injured...

Night with Samuel

Was supposed to go swimming with Samuel Wong today, but the skies looked cloudy... so we decided to change the plan to... as we both agreed... "eat dinner and grow fat!" lolz... But in the end I still decided to go get some laps done and while swimming, this kid in front of me suddenly struggle in the water asking for help!

I don't know what got into me, i just stood there in a stupor.. didn't do anything. The kid's father got to him first, together with the life guard after... so disappointed in myself... i could have become a hero... hahz... but luckily the kid's safe... i guess my mind was trying to grasp the situation on whether it was real or fake... Went to Serangoon Central after that to buy my favourite chocolate chip bread... always go there so much so that the aunty recognizes me. Lolz...

Met up with Samuel at 7pm as arrange, and he was punctual! Called straight away at 7pm saying "Jonathan Choo! Where are you?" hahz... dunno... i always find it funny when someone calls my full name out.. luckily i was already there.

Dinner was good, western food, thou i kind of settled for all the side dishes due to my being vegetarian. THen after that we went to AMK Hub to catch the movie - Kingdom... wasn't sure it was good at first, but turns out it was hella good! Really worth the money.

In between the movie and dinner... was 2 hours of waiting time where we just walked around amk, chatting about everything, observing this weird guy who painted himself silver, and talking about the ugly side of singaporeans...like how most will watch, take picture, and then just walk away without giving money...lolz...

Anyway, really enjoyed the night, can't believe I've known you for 7 years already... Hope our friendship will last forever! Together with Nat, Lee and Lin... mayb 30 years from now, we'll sitting at some kopitiam drinking coffee and talking about the past... lolz...

Went to West Mall today to meet up with Jeffery, finally after 3 weeks of changing dates... either he's busy, else i am... everyone's so busy these days its difficult to meet up... Yet i really appreciate all my friends who make the effort to gather once a while.
We just sat there, drinking tea, chatting and listening to music... Love doing those things... Really nice to catch up again. Then later even joined his friends Geraldine and Sharon for dinner! well.. actually only Jeff and I ate... lolz.
Question that keeps popping up is whether I'll be going to the states forever... well... I know at least for 3 and a half years I'll be there... I'll be sure to come back and visit! But just not sure how often can i do that... saw my schedule.. they don't really have much holidays. As the date of departure inches closer, i sort of begin to have doubts again.. about whether it was the right choice... to make this big sacrifice to part with everything here! After the 3 years... will I come back? For holidays or permanently? US or SG? I really don't know... seems like now i have 2 lives... which one to choose... I used to be very certain that I'll want to stay in USA... but after yesterday and today... after realizing what great friends i have here too... It makes it so hard to part... But at least its a direction in my life... and i chose to go with it for now... But believe me my friends, no matter where i am... you guys will always be with me... in my heart... I will never forget...and will always be grateful... for all the wonderful memories that you have given to me...

Life

Went to visit my grandfather with my sisters this morning at the hospital... He just had a surgery few days back to remove a tumor... it's painful to see an elder still having to go through such pains at their age, after struggling for so many years... yet, that is part of life.. old age, sickness and death... Also learnt from Alvin that the national dragon boat team in Cambodia had a accident yesterday resulting in 5 of the members still missing in the river, all between 20 to 30 years of age... Pray for them that they are safe and also for their families who must be going through a tough time now...
On a lighter note... went shopping againg with my sisters after the hospital visit for our house... changing some things coz we realize our contractors were trying to cheat us by marking up all the prices... My grandfather is in the same line so mum's helping us sort out the prices too.
Following that, met up with Alvin who asked if i was free to hang out with some of his friends...Well, his friends turned out to be Samuel, Marcus, Nelson... but also 3 girls... Teo, Shin and D... sorry... didn't really catch your names... We went to Minds Cafe and had lots of fun playing board games there! Lolz...Played: Crainnies, Bluff, Dinosaur Bones, and i guess the most fun one was the Uglies! lolz... a game where u have to snatch monster cards and call each other ugly to win... lolz... Left about midnight... Really enjoyed the night after a long day of serious stuffs

Long Road Home

So i decided to take a walk home from Serangoon Central yesterday... Turned out to be not so far after all... only about an hours walk. On the way, bumped into Ernest, my elementary school classmate, on one of the bus stops. Went back to my broken down home and used my broken down laptop... and chatted with Alvin Phua, who bumped into me about a month back, he said that i didn't change at all, in the 7 years that have transited since before I first left for California back in 2001. Lolz.. same look, same complexion... How i wish it was true... A never ageing me! Lolz...

Left for work at 7am this morning, and on the way there, bumped into Shuxian! a friend who shares the same family name as me. What a small world... seriously... something's going on... Been bumming into so many familiar faces these past few days... Too coincidental to be a coincidence isn't it? Lolz

Had lunch with Yong chao and was suppose to pick up our Bintan tickets after work but i forgot totally about it! I'm growing senile...the signs of ageing..sobz... lolz... anyway, walked home to Jalan Kayu from Bugis today... took about 4 hours... nothing better to do anyway.. thats my life... stopped by my god parent's house in Bendemeer and it so happened my god father just came back from surgery... so i got to accompany him and my god mum gave me a hair cut to tame my unruly hair.. its like harry potter's u know... grows in every direction.. but the harry potter in the movie has very nice hair in the later years.. lolz.. mine's still as unruly as ever...

Meetings

Went back to work today... sleepy... And more projects! I'm so tired... After work, went to Bishan to remove my stitches, while eating dinner, saw Mark Jeremy, another high school friend. Then on the way home, met James Khoo in the bus! Lolz... These past few days, I've been bumming into so many familiar faces... I guess its preparing for my departure! lolz... that since i do not have the time to meet up with anyone coz everyone's busy with their lives, so Coincidence decides to step in and help me out. Really nice to catch up again.

Finally a sunday with some sun... immediately grabbed my swimming bag and went for a swim, after that, was driving past hougang point when i decided i should just drop by to buy lunch. What a good decision it was! While coming out, the person holding the door for me was actually Alvin Tee! One of my best friend during OCS. We didn't recognize each other at first until when i thank him then i was like "hey... Alvin!" lolz... Been so long since i met him coz he's a pilot and is seldom in town and i lost his contacts when my phone crashed on me... We once went Jalan Kayu for Roti prata together till like 2am and he walked me home from there before walking all the way back to hougang himself... crazy... So we're both the same age and my good friend's married! And here i am... still as lonely as ever... lolz... Anyway, really glad to be able to meet u again before i fly and before u fly too! lolz
Went at night to St. James for dinner with my family, and guess what, the supervisor of the restaurant so happened to be Jason, one of my men during national service! Lolz.. so we had discount for the meal!

Today's my sister's birthday, but ended up, she said she's busy and will celebrate tml... oh well...Went with Aaron and Yongchao this morning to book our Bintan trip-3D2N.. not sure wat to expect, exciting lolz. Then went to pick up Royston in the afternoon to go to Tanah Merah Country Club for our company's annual gathering - turned out to be a big mahjong session... hahz... i went for a swim instead before dinner. THen rushed over to Swami home, as they were celebrating baba's birthday in advance, met many old faces whom i have not met for over a decade... And there was Arovin, whom i went to India with back in 96. I was 12, and he was 6 then. Now he's 16... how fast time flies... Then i had 2nd dinner there... I am so gonna have to watch my weight...
And in the midst of all my driving, i found this place, in between yishun and seletar, a secret link hidden among the old residence... I've lived here for over 15 years and never knew about it... Its pretty scary to drive thru alone, but the place was quiet, and it faced the sea... i never knew in the 15 years living here that i was actually so close to the sea...

I'm sorry Jeff

Had promised with Jeffery to meet up this Weekend since weeks ago... then everything must happen on this weekend too... My sister's birthday, my company's gathering, a reunion with 2 kids whom i went to India with about 11 years ago, some prayer session... And to top it all, I have but what? 3 weeks before i fly for good? Why must everything always be like this... I'll be like left alone for a whole week.. then when i finally get something to do, everything else pops up and i have to make difficult choices... I'm so sorry Jeff... if you're seeing this... promise we'll meet before i fly... Not that the meeting was not important to me... i was really looking forward to it.. just that... Ive spent most of my birthdays alone.. so i think... even if my sister doesn't show it, its still good to have her family around on her birthday... yah... Unless you're up for meeting for just a few min? i don't mind.. =P...
Went for dinner with mom today after work even thou I was so tired... the food was great, but even better was the company... been quite a while since i met my mother.. At the end of it, she sent me a thank you message for spending time with her... then it struck me... so thats where i got it... the habit of always sending thank you messages to my friends for no matter how small a thing they've done... some people may find it irritating i guess, but i think its important to show gratitude to others for the slightess things and to show your appreciation for those around you, for nothing is permanent... Treasure what you have at the moment... And i thank you mom, for this great lesson on love...
Back at home, its still in a mess, renovation... went to use the restroom and this huge ass lizard fell right before me! Hella fat! Damn... I hella hate lizards... they're yucky... don't know why they always like to fall before or on me... happened so many times... yuckz yucks yucks!!!

Can you see that fat ass lizard? Yuckz!

Heroes

Oh, and the tv series Heroes is finally showing in Singapore.. after 1 long year... And just when i am about to leave the country... Gheez.. First saw it in the states sometime last year... Its about ordinary people, discovering extra-ordinary powers due to the evolution of men. Sort of like x-men huhz! Lolz... just that this is more real life like - no special suits. Think there're lots of writings going around in those psychic circles also that the world will be heading in that direction... True or not, who knows... Hmmz... i wonder how it'll be like to have special powers... If you can have 1 power? What will it be? I think I'll choose teleportation... so i can save on all those air tickets! Lolz

Work work...

Worked on my project till past 1am last night... Thats the price to pay for procrastination. Went back to work at 8am this morning and basically felt like a zombie... dark eye rings, messed up hair, pale face and slow movement.. i was the walking dead... And to top it all, the wound on my gums started to hurt.. The hours dragged long. My job was supposed to have ended on Oct 26. Yet now its already Nov 13, and i'm still working.. And today, my boss asked if I could extend again and work till the end of the month! I dunno... its good pocket money.. But... I'm tired..... (ok... i'm whining... lolz)
Had lunch with Royston at Bugis again, love the vegetarian laksa there! Lolz... so gonna grow fat =P... then went to STA to search for tickets to Japan and USA with what's left of my lunch time. Planning a free and easy trip to Japan with my sisters this december before I fly back to the states. Back at work, was also discussing with Yong Chao, Andre and Aaron regarding our Bintan trip online, settling air tickets with my sisters, while doing 2 different projects at the same time all in the same computer screen! Lolz... ThAT's what you call multi-tasking man!

Family time

Dad bought nasi lemak for everyone yesterday.. and as for me, i have to stick to my vermicili... unfair.. then after, brought my sisters out to shop for our house... its undergoing a major overhaul after 15 years of staying in the same place. Renovation time. Tiring process thou, chooising every single tile, from the W.C to the kitchen to the rooms, the taps, the sink etc etc. Went out dinner with dad and grandma later. Been a long time since i saw my grandmother and she's grown so much more thinner and her leg's giving her problems again. Told her that after I complete learning my TCM course, i'll come back and give her treatment!

My house is now in ruins, and other than my room, which is left untouched since i'll be gone, the rest of the rooms are reduced to rubble and here am i living in the midst of all the bricks, with no proper washroom nor kitchen... feels like living a refugee's life...


Here's our lady boss (my youngest sister) choosing the tiles

Pratas & Family

Today, my sisters went out to buy roti prata back home for dinner! Of all days, they choose the day after i extract my teeth... so all i could do was watch and salivate as i slurp my plain congee... Now i want to go out and eat roti prata! Muz eat before i go to the states!
But it was so nice to see everyone gathered around the family dining table for dinner. Its been a real long time since we did that, since our parent's divorce, and since going overseas. We're planning a trip to Japan together this December, just us siblings... Hopefully we'll be able to get the tickets.
Keith came over today rather early today too, about 8am, and just watched Naruto the whole day as I was busy doing my research and project for work. Poor guy, when it came to dinner time, he was so tired that he just slept through dinner. But i guess it works out, coz it gave me private time with my sisters which i seldom get these days...

Sleepless in Singapore

Just lost lots of blood from the tooth extraction, so by right, i should be really tired and sleeping... but my monkey mind is running like crazy, thinking about meaningless stuff, keeping me awake and giving me another sleepless night...
Here's a rough preview of the nonsense thats running along.. Thinking about...

- Ppl u wan to be with, but don't wan to be with u...

- Ppl u wan to be with and who wan to be with u, but just don't have the time or are not in the same place...

- Ppl who wan to be with u, but u just dun have the energy to keep up with them...

- Ppl who wan to be with u, but u dun wan to be with, at the same time, ppl u wan to be with dun wan to be with u... How ironic isn't it...

- Ppl u wan to be with and who give the impression they wan to b with u, when actually they don't... how misleading...

- Ppl who are just out there to suck your life away...

- And of course, the ppl who just happen to pass by, but gives your life so much more meaning to continue living for what you believe...

Ah... the complex intricacies of human relations... in the end, all arising from the monkey mind... Why must this mind differentiate so much? How stupid... Yet i'm trapped in this ironic life myself... So which category do you fall into? Lolz

Sometimes its just so much easier to run away into the mountains and live a peaceful, carefree life... I miss CTTB!!!! Lolz...

And just when i was writing all these complicacies (no such word.. i know)... Here's my friend Gerald Tay creating a post in his blog dedicate to me... Orrhhh... so sweet... hahz... Thanks Gerald! ->

Pain...

Ok warning... Gruelsome picture following this post.. If you're pregnant or easily nauseous, please skip the picture or something liddat... Lolz...

I used to always look forward to going to the dentist... liked the sound of the drills, hahz.. makes me feel like my teeth are getting cleaned..my friends say i'm a masochist thou - some one who likes pain... lolz. But today... fear's getting a hold of me... I'm going to finally have my wisdom teeth surgery... So afraid of the pain that is to come... Why must I have 4 wisdom tooth... Its so unfair... Lolz.
And why must the sun shine so brilliantly on a day where i am bound to be stuck at home...Gheez... makes me feel so much more gloomy...

Anyway, went for the surgery which took a whole 2 hours... the wisdom tooth's out and i'm left with 4 stitches in my gums. The process was almost painless, unlike the first time i went for a wisdom tooth extraction and stupid me told the dentist not to use any anasthetic... Well... the pain came only after where I was spitting out blood for the next few hours... Then I used my own herbal lore of taking some sage powder and i guess it worked again, the swelling and bleeding stopped. Just that the pain's still there... guess i'll be rotting at home for today... recuperating from my injuries... and wrestling my computer...

There you go... the 3 white things are parts of my wisdom tooth, and the bundle of hair is what i had to give up when i entered the military... I miss my tail...

Hugz...

Another gloomy day with the rain pouring outside and myself stuck at home trying to figure out the forex thingy, reading the news, and my laptop crashed on my twice! Gheez... and now its lagging like crazy... I'm sooo gonna get a macbook next... and can you believe it? Several schools in the US and London are banning hugging! That's insane... its become like a norm in the states to greet your friends with a hug and now they're banning it? So its ok to bring weapons but not ok to hug? What is the world coming to man... I think a hug is a beautiful thing. I still greet my relatives and close friends with a hug everytime i see them... Even gave hugs to a bunch of strangers at orchard road once who were holding signs asking for free hugs Lolz... Think this world needs more love and understanding actually... Free Hugz anyone? Lolz...
The rain finally stopped in the afternoon, so i took the opportunity and ran out for a swim! Too bad no sun... cloudy skies again...sux... but better than nothing.
Then went J8 alone to do window shopping... a very dangerous thing to do.. end up buying a $43 shirt... its quite nice... but... there goes my pay again! Gheez... i really need to start saving... But i guess this shirt is also part of my growing old gracefully plan...lolz! Need to start learning how to groom myself better... My mom always complains on how i go everywhere in tattered clothes... =P
Met up with Aaron, Yong Chao and Andre for dinner at Serangoon Gardens after that and just hung around there, reading newspaper... We're trying to find a place to escape to... Anywhere out of Singapore! hahz...

So there's Aaron and Yong Chao seriously perusing the newspaper for ideas


And here's Andre and myself goofing off at one corner =P

Parting...

Postponed my wisdom tooth operation today... So that i can enjoy Deepavali celebrations! hahz... got invited to one of my sergeant's house to celebrate.
Also, submitted my name for the US diversity lottery today... If i get it, it means I'll get a green card... Hopefully I'll get it too... Its the next step up from my F-1 visa. Pray for me!

Also... pray for my friend! Just spoke to my good friend Samuel Teo and learnt that he is just recovering from a real bad car accident where he was hospitalized for quite a while... Seems like lots of accidents happening on the roads these days... Better start driving safe now... Hopefully he'll soon be fully recovered and up and running agian!

Been real busy lately balancing work, research, applications, packing my house and catching up with friends. Its always sad to leave a place knowing that it'll be quite some time before you come back again. THere's an opportunity cost to everything - by choosing to go to the US, i think the greatest cost is giving up the time which i can spend with my family and close friends in Singapore... But everyone has their own path to walk, and i know by doing this, I'm creating my own... And some sacrifices indefinitely have to be made.

But i promise thou, that i'll try and grow along this journey, and return a stronger and better person.

To my friends who take the time off just to spend some time with me, truly I thank you all... for making this sacrifice on your part.