Finally...

... we've moved in!

come out and play

a little song that popped into my head yesterday just after i woke up. it feels nice to be able to write some encouraging words for the future me, especially since i'm going to be the husband of a beautiful young lady in just under a week's time. 10 years down the road, i hope the child inside me will still be full of wonder, full of joy and hope and beautiful things.

come out and play

don't just stand there
in the corner of the room
please come out and play
i wanna hear you sing

about the rain
about the summer
about the wind
about the flowers
theres so much to see
if you just come with me

and i will hold your hand
you know that home is where
the heart is
you and me
we'll be wild and free

in the night
we'll be bright lights
though we be blind
we'll be all right

if there's a storm
we'll be rainbows after
all
we'll be heroes

so don't be afraid
to let it go
we'll run into the wind
and let it blow your mind
is more beautiful
than you'll ever know

and don't be shy
to let it show
your heart is a book
don't let it close inside
there's nothing you need to hide

for i will find you
if life forgets you
so don't you worry
cos there's no hurry
we're hardly closer

to the morning
the stars are shining
though it's cold outside
i'll be right beside

you

so don't just stand there
in the corner of the room
please come out and play
i wanna hear you sing

Why do we live

...if loved ones fall sick and die
...if love seems like so much wishful thinking
...if happiness is transient and sorrow pervades like a persistent fog
...if God seems to be nowhere

Maybe because we never stop hoping, maybe because we fear death, maybe because we just don't know what else to do.

The best I can muster is to face it all with a smile and to keep telling myself that life is beautiful. And I know it is, just that sometimes it's a little hard to see.

leak

Dear Kate,

seeing paint peeling off the ceiling makes me excited. it makes me think of tangled kite strings, collapsed lanterns, overgrown bamboo, broken lamps -- and there's no one else i'd rather fix them with.

my partner

Dear Kate,

i hope that one day me and minion can be a formidable doubles team. it feels so great to watch her improve each time we play! i'm so proud of her and so proud of myself for stumbling into her sight :)

monsters

Dear Kate,

I want to turn my face up towards the dark clouds, and smile as the rain drenches and blankets my soul. I want to laugh with the wind as it carries the giant waves crashing upon the shore. I want to dance with the monsters, as they sway to that unknown rhythm.

Dear Kate,

I'm 28 but still filled with excitement everytime I'm about to watch a movie. It helps that I rely almost exclusively on the opinions of the heroes at rottentomatoes.com, who can never be wrong. It also helps that every movie date feels like a first date -- and today's one of them :)

Losing weight

Dear Kate,

It surprised me just how much weight XY had lost over her recent stay in the hospital. While massaging her legs, it seemed like my fingers would injure her if I pressed just a little harder. And looking at the golf clubs beside the bed reminded me that she was once such a strong woman, making her current state so painful to see.

For some reason, I was suddenly reminded about my own weight loss concerns. I've never had to watch my weight, but of late, without the daily punishment of having to cycle up a hill to go to school, my body has happily gone about accumulating embarrassing amounts of fats and making me more and more nervous about my impending wedding!

We are both struggling with weight loss, but I fear the day when I have to struggle with the kind that is beyond my control.

Dear Kate,
Today I discovered, over a lunch discussion with my colleagues, that one of the main reasons why I do not break the law is because it can be very hard work. All the effort spent scheming and plotting, when I can instead relax and just lower my threshold of contentment. And maybe the reason why we sometimes get indignant about other people who cheat their employers etc. is that we are jealous of their ingenuity and our own corresponding lack of imagination? I do hope of course that it's because we are good people and therefore abhor evil deeds :)

Letters to Kate

Dear Kate,
Today I went to work on the bus, which meant I had about an hour by myself to just sit and watch the world fly past backwards. I realized that it's been so long since I wrote anything, and that i've let life silently slide past without leaving anything behind. These few months have been so beautiful and happy but soon they are just going to be a distant memory! Well, instead of lamenting, I'm going to start writing again, and hopefully all these wonderful memories can once again have a place to call home! I've decided to write to you because it's nice to have a pen pal and also you remind me very much of the lovely girl I'm going to marry! Ok, I've reached my workplace and must now make myself worth the huge amount of money they pay me.

you

it's you who waved at me
from far away one day
and it's you who got me
worrying what am i to say

to you when all that
i could think of was the way
that you made everything
around you seem so plain

it's you who filled my mind
at the start of everyday
and it's you who painted rainbows
on everything that's grey

and it's you who made it worth the while
to walk a hundred miles
if only just to see you smile

cos you can chase away the blues
with a smile or two
and you can break my heart in two
when you're not around

and there's absolutely nothing
i can do to keep my heart
from falling hopelessly
in love with you

and it's you who'd walk with me
before the morning light
and it's you who'd listen to
the songs that i would write

and it's you who looks at me
and tells me i'm ok
cos you won't ever have me
any other way

cos you can chase away the blues
with a smile or two
and you can break my heart in two
when you're not around

and there's absolutely nothing
i can do to keep my heart
from falling hopelessly
in love with you

and you know i can't wait to
sweep you off your feet
and hold you in my arms
as long as i can breathe

cos you have made it worth the while
to walk along that aisle
so i can always see you smile

cos you can chase away the blues
with a smile or two
and you can break my heart in two
when you're not around

and there's absolutely nothing
i can do to keep my heart
from falling hopelessly
in love
i'm hopelessly in love
i'm hopelessly in love
with you

Motion capture

This is to me the most beautiful part of marina bay sands. The shimmering curtains made up of small metal plates that flutter in the wind and literally make the air currents visible. At night, they turn into golden flames, licking the facade in slow motion. Haven't seen anything quite like this!

found!

because i needed something to read while having supper, i decided to do some advance reading of Chapter 3 from "Saving Your Marriage Before It Starts" (sorry bee i will still read with you!)

One little bit of treasure i found:

"The most important characteristic of a marriageable person is the habit of happiness"

So true! Especially the word "habit". Because instead of endlessly searching for happiness, all we need to do is to BE happy!

just like the old days

my mum fetches me to work everyday now. and so each day begins with joy, because i know i am loved.

As I find myself drifting closer towards that very important "next stage" of my life, I realize that I haven't really stopped to ponder long and hard about the question of being ready for this commitment of a lifetime. Or maybe there's no need to ponder? Perhaps after my series of failed relationships, I've finally come to understand who I really am and what I really want out of a long term relationship. And maybe I've really found someone whom I can happily love and cherish for the rest of my life! :)

Sent from my iPhone

Crazy bamboo

> This was our new bamboo shoot that peeped out of the ground one Sunday morning. See it? So small and cute! Guess what... Within a week, it has grown to become as tall as me! That's like, over 20cm a day! We now officially have an alien in our garden.

Last minute lantern festival

We almost didn't make it! But glad we still managed to walk one round around our estate, and also got to chat with llyn gardens' Cat Woman, with her army of really gorgeous kitties!

Blogging in a taxi

Used to be rather horrified about the prospect of having kids, but maybe it's really just a phase after all!

...can't wait to go kite-flying again...

maisie

i have so much to be thankful for, not least of which is that the ordeal of trying to appeal for our cpf grant and our housing loan finally appears to be over! Thank God for keeping us safe!

and thanks to all the people at HDB who handled our case, for restoring our faith in our wonderful government!

Krabi '10

It's been a wonderful year for me and bee, and what better way to celebrate than to go for a sweet little vacation in krabi! what an awesome vacation it was. from turquoise blue waters, to complimentary birthday pancakes, to nostalgic massage parlours with old hokkien music... but nothing beats being able to experience all these with the loveliest girl in the wirl!

doggies chilling in morning sun

tourguide chilling in morning sun

morning sun!

amazing magic carpet jetty


a pretty girl ran past me...too fast!

what beautiful scaffolding

longtail boat


how can this be real!?


i must get my tan!

even the rocks are turning turquoise!

the beach from "the beach"


monkey island's resident

ice milo

look at the water!!

he's going to have weird tan marks on his face

i'm so loved


i can train anywhere!

makes me wanna drink it all up

it's quite amazing how strong ropes are...and how light boats are in water

sulky looking rooster

look what the tsunami did to the trees...

finally we see our hotel room...and it's amazing! i recommend amandari krabi to everyone!

minion is excited to0

bee's complimentary bday banana pancake!

we had ice water cos we thought we should start being healthy, after drinking like 6 glass bottles of pepsi on the boat

cholesterol never tasted so good

papaya salad! my new essential thai dish

the rain stopped, and gave us a wonderful sunset

aww... hope the kiddos grow up like this

pretty flowers

so poetic

naming FAIL (meant to read Loma....)

front row seats

day 2! here's our cute hotel receptionist. very chill, like she's having a holiday everyday

ginormous shoulder pads

we are happy bees!

the tiny hole in the centre is the home of a tiny white crab

many tiny white crabs died in the process of making this photo :(

tropical paradise...

conversational rocks

i can kayak with one arm!

alien rocks

baby mangroves!

anti-social frogs :(

juicy looking lotus bud

which immediately bloomed for us!


lunch at a thai italian restaurant. we were hungry!

i can still taste the tom yam in my brain

giant calzone with pretty girl backdrop

sexi taxi dudi

minion was exhausted from cleaning up our room

we only managed to take a few photos here before it rained big time :(


check out time! goodbye awesome bed!

snow bunny on a tiny taxi-van

peace laguna resort. omg. i'm sure our hotel is better... but omg...

job satisfaction

awesome zhnged taxi!

best massage place on earth

this was our second visit cos we couldn't get enough yesterday!

feels like home...

our friendly masseuses!

the hotel food was cheaper than outside food

snow bunny was very satisfied

back to singapore to start our brand new 2nd year!