Love

Sorry for the long hiatus.... But then, my dear helped me fill up some gaps.... Oh well, lotsa gatherings, convocation, a wedding, and nice photos of course.... But seriously, I am too busy to upload.... I will do for the convocation ones soon k? So sorry for the people waiting for my brother's zai photography.

But even though I am busy, I am happy. It might not look enough from the facade sometimes, I am actually really contented. Yes, the neverending work has weighed down on my mind, jarring my senses even, but whenever I see her, the grin just comes naturally from within out, and contentment and serenity ensue. I wonder why... *grinz* :P

Have you watched "Sex and the City"? Yes, it's a chick flick. But something common about those very nice US shows, is the witty dialogues; they either leave you introspective or just jokingly intellectual. I always liked what Charlotte said in the movie, when they were asked if they were happy. She said something akin to:"Well, I am happy everyday. Not whole day everyday, but everyday."

Be contented with what you have, who you are. And I think that is food for thought today.

Ripped something off Jinfu's blog, which he got it from somewhere else. Though it's probably the 1001th definition of love, it's probably another something to chew over, while everyone starts finding the meaning of this elusive 4-letter word out there.

What does love mean?

If you love someone because you think he or she is really gorgeous,
Then its not love..
Its' "INFATUATION"

If you love someone because you think that you shouldn't leave him because others think you shouldn't,
Then its not love..
Its' "COMPROMISE"

If you love someone because you can't live without his touch,
Then its not love..
Its' "LUST"

If you love someone because you have been kissed by him,
Then its not love..
Its' "INFERIORITY COMPLEX"

If you love someone because you can't leave him thinking that it would hurt his feeling,
Then its not love..
Its' "CHARITY"

If you love someone because you share everything with him,
Then its not love..
Its' "FRIENDSHIP"


But if you feel the pain of the other person more than him even when he is stable
And you cry for him,
That's "LOVE"

If you get attracted by other people but stay with him without any regrets,
That's "LOVE"

If you let him go knowing that he has to go but he doesn't want to,
That's "LOVE"

Something I read off the Net somewhere N years ago, something I find very meaningful:

"We come to love not by finding a perfect person, but by learning to see an imperfect person perfectly."

与其只一味着寻找那个完美的情人，还不如珍惜眼前人。

〉〉报章读后感：希望我们能彼此互相‘接纳’对方，而不是刻意容忍或姑息，因为这样总有一天会累积成灾。好比你姐说的：互相学习，辅助，成长。

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Ok no ink le... sleep...

Die unerwartete Überraschung Nr. 1

Es ist interessant zu wissen, obwohl sie sie schon so oft treffen, vermisst sie ihn immer noch ab und zu, fast immer - irgendwo und irgendwann.

Making Croissants et Facial =)

JM: I cannot talk...
XL: you can type.
JM: Huh.. I don't want to type
XL: *typing & laughing..*
.
.
.
XL: And then..?
JM: en bloc....
XL: huh?
JM: and blooock..
XL: huh?????
JM: and blooooooooooooooog
XL: oh... and blog...
OH END BLOG! haha...

*waiting for the dough .. dough.... *yawnz*

Some lost time...

The coming of my first paycheck sort of marks my first month at my institute already. It's like.. so fast! I am yet truly amazed at how blessed my life is: integration into the environment was smooth, it's like what one of my colleagues say "I thought you were from another lab because you looked so at home here; no culture shock, nothing!" The initial transition period probably lasted less than a week. I am really really glad my colleagues were nice people, even a smile or a nod suffice.

Work was starting to pile once my upper left. I am thankful my dearest came back and everything's just as where we left off, actually even more. I am just grateful that whenever I need a getaway from work at the end of the day, she is the balm of my heart and soul. =)

The big gathering at K was another big highlight! Bon voyage SW! And it has really been a long time since we all came together, albeit CW couldn't make it.

79 gathering last week was cool too! Although only 7 turned up, I thought it was a good catchup! WJ looked ever so chirpy, E, though sick so radiant and all, TC looks the same haha, the same ueber yet humble person whom I admire during JC, SJ, a bit subdued I felt, but vivacious nonetheless, ZY turned FAIRER (OMG!) haha, YJ same reserved person... All looked and felt the same, but with an additional sense of fatigue, that probably discerns us from our more bubbly and naive selves years back.. Hope to catch up with people at TC's wedding definitely :P
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(L to R) K, T and I

Pink cab!
Victory Monument - near where our condo is
ZH and my room; look at the sparkling floor!!
Chinatown at night!
(L to R) KM, YY, T and K - guava chewing
This little boy followed from streets back!! Well cos he wanted some cash.. which our generous ZH gave..
Bird's nest soup - YY immersing in her dreams..

Bangkok trip must definitely be one of the nicest trips, all because we have T and K with us!! I am really glad we met years back, cos they are still the T and K I knew back then: vivacious, ever so willing to help, ever so playful and ever so terrific people... Thip got us 2 rooms, which are actually CONDOS!! I thought it would be hostels lo... But they are condos!! OMG!! Damn nice!

Multi-coloured taxis are everywhere!! There are even pink ones!! Took specially for XL to see haha :P

First day in Bangkok, T and K brought us on a FOOD TOUR!!! Chinatown's food is terrific!! ANd the watermelon juice, oh manz, I melted in that.. qooooooo....

Ok some randoms...

Did you know Thais like sugar in their fishball noodles?!?!?

I wonder...

Had a little online msn pep talk with SW... I believe this is the first time we ever had such a tete-a-tete with each other. The feeling's like back to JC... But let's just say we got to know each other a little better.

But before that was our penta-K-box session: CW,SW,YC,TP and ME!! Damn cool la!! When the K Box kakis combine power ahz, it's damn fun one lo HAHA!! It's been quite a while since we come together to sing le and I am glad to see them manz... CW came in formal, although I am working I went in my normal tees and jeans... A bit off, and YC as usual has to point it out HAHA.. O well, then there's the ever so vivacious SW and TP hasn't seem to have changed LOLX... Wonder where's yz, haven seen her for a while too... O well, but K was really fun, more yelling and screaming than singing, really... haha, well the beauty of it all is the connection I guess :P When everybody starts to work, then hard to meet up also le... CW ends late then I might OT, then YC too far to centralise, TP prob too much stuff also, SW rush projects and stuff, so I guess hold on to whatever there is ba...

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Anyway, last stop Hanoi!! Met up with the sweet couple, Ph and her fiance (ok I admit I forgot his name, so sorry!!). They brought us around and even paid for our food!! So paiseh but when we tried to alleviate some financial burden, they said it's part of the Vietnamese custom that guests come they will treat... Then well nothing to say lo, but THANK YOU!! And we visited the Ha Long Bay with the stalactites and stalcmites, and its natural beauty. Well, no wonder it is a candidate for the natural wonders of the world.

Tennis at NUS

Tennis is really a sport I haven't got a chance to really explore. Well it seems I might just have a chance to play it every week now that my colleagues are pretty into it! Today tennis is at NUS, but 1 hour's a little too short.

Shit, I forgot to take picture... NVM next time i will try to take... Gotta know lots of my colleague's AD's friends. They seemed a pretty closely knitted bunch of friends, maybe cos they are from the same church. In any case, it was pretty fun time hanging out with them and playing tennis with J and PT.

After our short tennis matches, with me the most clownish of them all, we even went for a 2.4km run!! Ok more than 2.4km cos we ran the outer rounds; damn it was good!! The power of having people to run with you is amazing!! Being no longer in Redhill, means I lost YC as my running partner; not that we run regularly together anyway, in fact it was only once, but nonetheless... And the 3 of them can really run - JJ, HJ, AD!

After which we went to an Indian restaurant to eat Indian food.. duh... Got introduced to Naan, smaller and supposedly healthier version of prata, and Dhal, the soup and some other wholemeal pratas (?!?) Couldn't rem the names haha! It was really cool chilling out there, where I listened to them talk about their past, their current jobs and current situations etc...

I, as a fresh graduate, realised I am in league with (other than married men and women) experienced people who are willing to share their working experiences and life and I am glad I am so blessed once again to be meeting such nice people. Reminded me of lunch today where guy colleagues, think almost 12 of us, sat in a coffee shop and talk rubbish and lunch at the same time. Though they are much older, I was having so much fun listening to them talk. They are VERY entertaining indeed. And realised CB's a running fanatic, jio-ed me to run Standard Chartered *faint*.. Let me consider... HAH! Anybody else wanna join?

AD's planning to get married, stepping into the Hall of Fame for married men at our level 3, HAHA! Seriously, everybody's either married or married with kids, even J whom I thought looked so young (but much older) actually has a 2-yr-old daughter!! Gosh!
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Last day in Hoi An brought us to the late kings' mausoleums, 2 of them only actually, the supposedly more representative ones. Forgot the names, think they were Tu Duc (cos I think the Vietnamese pronounced it very intriguingly nice haha) and the other one dunno father or son of Tu Duc. One representing the romantism, the other forgot wat LOLX. But both are pretty nice la just that they probably have become worn out after years of war and rampage and disuse, and of course nobody actually uses them.. But it took us half the day to actually finish visiting the places, with the guide giving a lecture on both. SERIOUS! A LECTURE! Well ok nvm. HA!

YT with El's work of art haha!!

Our lunch!! nice hoh..

Seriously 古色古香, an obvious influence by the Chinese

tour guide said this was a true replica of a man then - a bit vertically challenged hoh..

another statue

Subsequently we embarked on our final destination in Vietnam - HANOI! Where we will meet Ph!! And of course her fiance, who is her legal husband now as we speak. Woohoo! Overnight train was the same arrangement... Somebody commented I got a tummy... I never knew I had one HAHA! Ok well, at least given the amount of exercise I do, I hope I would never get one... So I showed her my waist pouch under my shirt... zzzz... but it's quite funny cos nobody has commented that on me before. Something to think about.. HA!

train station
Wonder what's the ice for? Anybody can answer me?

Reminiscence

Was finishing the last batch of stuff from my drawers. Saw the 3 autograph books there. One from each phase of my academic career: primary, secondary, pre-U. They definitely do bring back fond memories. As I read through the entries and recall how my friends were back then and how they are now, and I recall all the good old days in the classrooms or class benches, I realised how circumstances have changed. Perhaps many of the friends would have changed here and there (well even I have) the basic personality might not have? It's funny looking at the comments your friends wrote about you back then, then u started asking yourself "Wow, how much do they still hold true now?" I wonder... But well whatever the case is, the books do bring back good memories :P

But I am grateful I got to know the people I have met throughout my life. Like my dear's fav quote "Everything happens for a reason, even if it doesn't seem so now..." I suppose it does and will in due time, at some points in life. Oh well, time for bed.
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Ok "today" we arrived at Hue, the ancient capital of Vietnam, hence has some of the UNESCO world heritage preserved sites as well. Enroute, we passed by the Thuan An beach! Supposedly one of the most beautiful beaches in Vietnam. So we wouldn't miss the chance of seaside photos, would we? Still remembered some weird people wanted to get free notes from Singapore out of us...

老翁垂钓

Compbio 到此一游！！

And also my apologies, the previous post,Perfume River, is actually from Hue!! psps... LOLX... My bad. Arriving in Hue, we took a cruise down the river to this Thien Mu pagoda, which is the symbol of Hue, and the Imperial Citadel, which houses the Purple Forbidden City (sounds like 紫禁城, but a bit far off in terms of stature) and the ancient royal palace, which was torn to dilapidation and ruins by natural disasters, wars and revolutions. They were preparing for the Vesak Day celebration, so they even brought elephants!! Cool!

Thien Mu Pagoda

(Hungry) carps are considered auspicious...

Imperial Citadel
The Palace

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Lonely footprints, care a walk mit mir?