Sigh

Heard a shocking news today.. my boss is gg to be posted out to a new unit!! sigh sigh and sighs... Gosh.. this news is so sudden.. so shocking.. 晴天霹雳... this was a sudden decision that was made by CDF hence no choice... but den again.. i think boss is the right person to be posted there coz he is such a brillant HR guy.. I gonna miss his "guidance" so much... sianz...



Most, if not all of my colleagues from my branch is so used to military officers posting in and out.. they are 麻木 already.. but this definitely dun apply to me.. i am so so affected by this coz i am a very emotional person... sianz... for that moment i haf no mood to work... felt so lost.. was so saddened by this.. i gonna be very emo these few days... oh no.. i need time to adjust and adapt... adjust to his absence and adapt to the new boss's working style etc...



He being my first ever boss.. and he is the person who gave me the chance and offered me the job.. the person who taught and guided me alot.. the person who i have due respect for.. the person who can give me clear directions... the person who can simplified and explained things with the least army lingo in it.. the person who is so smart and brillant.. the person who is so outspoken.. the person whom is recognized by the higher level.. the person who can control his emotions so well that i nv see him lost his temper b4 (this is really a criteria for a good boss... thats the 最高境界.. one muz reach enlightenment first b4 they can control their mood and temper well.. and not bring any emotions to work).. the person who fetch me to as far East as possible when we had meetings till 9pm.. the person who can see the big picture in a gimpse... the person who is so health conscious.. the person who loves subway... and lastly, the person who is gg to leave us soon..



Haiz.. 天下无不散筵席.. i guess this is life.. not up to us to choose... hope that our new boss will be good and we will be able to build up the great rapport soon... May things work out well



Gwen.. stop being so emo!!!

GS life run

Had our life run around the track on mon... it has been long time since i run... and 2 days later.. my whole body is still aching.. seriously... sigh... am quite proud of myself.. ran 7 rounds x 800m.. not bad ya... considering i hate running and the last time i ran was.. a yr ago??? became very very unfit... haha... but right now... i am like a ah ma.. haha..

"Tai Tai" life

Last fri, I took half day off to experience the tai tai life... wahaha... Jan Nee, Zheng Jue and myself took cab from office to Royal Park hotel for buffet lunch... as there wont any signs of cabbies at the taxi stand, we called a cab and it turned out to be a Mercerzs cab... haha... go to hotel for lunch muz also have the pai chang... hehe... met david over there... food was good.. they served paranakan food... most prolly is coz of the show "Little Noyna".. haha... they oso haf some local delights like mee siam, laska.. , sushi corner and dian xin... the snacks corner had choc fondue.. cakes, kuehs... deserts and ice cream... weekday lunch buffet was 32+++...

Following lunch, we went to Partyworld KTV @ Orchard International Building... k songs from 3pm till 7pm... Partyworld ktv is more ex compared to Kbox.. and there are so irritating.. prog such that the last song is at around 645pm.. ugh... oh btw.. David has such a nice vocal sia... haha...

Confirmation

Whee~~ i got my confirmation letter already.. haha.. a sigh of relief coz the economic situation is real bad... everyday when i flipped over the papers.. i see news of co closing down.. many pple being retrenched.. tts saddening...

Anw, treated mum, dad and sis to Crowne Plaza hotel's Azur restaurant for buffet lunch... The spread over there was terrible... so few varieties and not worth the px!!! its 38+++ per pax if i am not wrong... wont ever go there again...

There is a mini steamboat corner with a few steamboat items... had italian pasta/ linguine... and western stuff... basically, the chef's standard was juz so so.. but the cakes were not too bad.. and the ice cream is from Häagen-Dazs.. not those cheapo kings ice cream... but there were only 4 flavors... when will i see any buffet serving Anderson or swensen ice cream??? hehe..

Accident

Saw a car accident on my way home.. although i did not witness the whole thingy.. but i think it just happened few mins b4 i saw it.. its along PIE and i am on my tpt (coach bus.. so its higher)... the motorcyclist was facing down, with a pool of blood coming out from his mouth... and his leg was already tilted... sigh... it saddened me alot.. and i am very affected and shaken by it.. live is so vulnerable... haiz...

2 days later.. i saw another accident in Tampines... sigh...

hmm.. makes me abit scare n worried coz i am taking my basic theory test on 18 April 09.

26th - 27th Jan: CNY

B4 CNY, on fri (23 Jan), we had our br retreat.. we met at a very scandaleous place... its under the tree, beside the river.. wahaha.. seems like we are gg there to "you hui"... hehee... after the discussions.. we went to cafe cartel for lunch... we were dismissed at around 2 plus.. woo hoo...

Happy new yr everybody.. this yr's new yr falls on a mon.. which is so sianz.. the ideal is on thurs.. den it will be super long...

The new yr was a short and fast one.. dunno why.. this yr's new yr seems boring to me... weird... i am usually very excited when cny is here.. but ever since uni.. my enthusiasm and excitement somehow died down... maybe coz cny is usually during exam periods (during uni).. and this yr coz its real short...

As usual, my paternal relatives came to my hse during chu xi... was so tired as we prepared from morning till evening... mummie was our chef cook and we had to take orders from her.. i will tend to "demote" myself during cny and give up my seat to the chef cook coz this is simply a big day/event! wahaha... after my ah ma and relatives left at 10 plus.. we went to jiu jiu hse.. stayed till around 1.30am... reached home at around 2am after fetching er yi home.. mummie and daddie gave us our ya sui qian... i gave jh one too.. hee..

On the first day, we went to ah ma's hse to bai nian.. den rushed home to prepare and cook coz my maternal relatives are coming over to my place in the evening.. this 2 days are usually very tiring for us.. we are pple who like to "xian1 ku3 hou4 tian2".. haha.. Surprisingly, the adults all left at 12 sharp.. usually chu yi will be till 1 plus.. i have no idea why this time was so so early when cny is already very short..

Second day.. i was ill.. down wif flu.. we were too tired to go anywhere.. juz lazed around at home till late afternoon.. den we went to East Ocean restaurant (At Orchard Shaw tower) for our first round of dinner.. xiao shu and da gu's husband treat... den proceed to san yi's hse for the second round. We left at around 130am..

Third day of new yr.. my flu got worse and i had a cough too... went back to office as usual... was very quiet coz joyce, poh hong, jane and mayling were on leave.. hanyong is still on course.. office is left wif boss, david, adrian and myself... so quiet.. haha.. After work, i went home to bathe and left quickly for Flora's hse... kc gor taught me and amanda mahjong fir awhile (which i regret to say i have completely forgotten everything.. i am so sorrie.. haha).. left at around 1am..

Fourth day... haven been sleeping well consecutively for 5 days.. on top of that, i am sick.. this made me super drowsy and tired... (slept at 2 plus everyday and gotta wake up at 5 plus) esp when i am coughing so badly while holding on tissues to my nose.. tts sad sia.. Worked for awhile and we proceed to Shaw tower.. co had a cny lunch over there.. went wif joyce, david and hy.. we had lunch at Ah Yat seafood restaurant... we lao "Yu Sheng" first.. had the usual ee mee, fa cai, prawns, fried bun wif fillings which i couldnt identify (but was nice.. was abit sweet and saltish)... lunch was alright... we received a mandarin oranges and proceeded to Eng wah cinema @ suntec city for a movie - Red cliff 2. we had a free drink and popcorn coupon.. clap clap... sat wif joyce, b4 tt movie.. we were so worried tt we will fall asleep during the show coz its about war/history.. to my surprise.. i enjoyed the show.. the plot was real good sia!!! Joyce, Jan nee and myself agreed..

Fifth day.. so dun feel like gg to work coz i felt really terrible.. down wif fever, bad cough and my nose was like a running tap water, i lose my voice too.. was so hoarse.. BUT i still pulled myself to office.. see how well disciplined i am.. haha.. i dun wanna take MC (since young, i dun usually visit the doc often.. i will onli see a doctor when i am really really ill till wanna die tt kind.. if not i have my means to recover.. haha... can drink barley, chrsanthemythe tea etc to cure fever etc.. haha.. coz its not good to see the doc.. antibiotics are bad and a nono... tts why touch wood.. i can count the no of times i visited the doc.. anw why did i disgress so far.. haha).. tahan till after lunch.. i so wanted to drag myself to the MO.. coz i was real tired and i had a severe headahce.. in the end, i dint.. tahan till after work and went home for a good rest over the weekends...

Sixth day of cny.. went to san shu shu hse in the late evening for my first round of dinner den to aunt nethelin's hse for the second round.. b4 gg home.. san yi planned to go to sentosa flower festival the next day.. somehow it was cancelled coz most cant make it..

7th day of cny.. went to si shu shu's hse

12th day of cny.. mummy boss treated us to Dragon Phoenix restaurant @ Admiral country club for dinner..


Overall, lady luck wasnt wif me.. so i am the cai shen ye this yr... contributed alot of $$.. wahaha.. but nvm lah... once a yr thingy.. everybody happy can liao.. haha

14th - 15th Jan 09: G1 retreat

Was extremely busy for the past few weeks coz i had lots to prepare for the retreat.. office seems to be my second home or rather i shld say office is my home and my real home seems like my "hotel".. haha.. imagine me reaching office at 715am daily.. left office at 930pm... was totally SHAG!!!

we had our retreat at selatar camp.. the mess aka function room was nice.. we have a good view of the river.. but the way in was terribly long.. half an hr i suppose? haha..

had a presentation topic tt day.. sigh.. killed millions of my brain cells and nearly scared my wits off as usual.. haha... phew.. luckily its all over...

we gave boss a surprise by getting him a cake again.. he declared half day off for us.. but poor adrian and alvin gotta go back for a meeting.. we (me, jan nee, david, daren, andrew, guojie and youjie) went to Jerry's barbecue and grill cafe at Jalan Kayu... i had fish and chips (which is real big in portion).. and we order their specialty - super spicy and mild buffalo wings, and roasted muchrooms... but its very ex.. each cost around 30 bucks gosh... This cafe has limited tables so its kinda sqeezy if one were to come here for dinner.. a weekday lunch wasnt too bad coz its not packed and the ambience was not too bad.. the deco there make me wonder if the boss was an ex miltary personnel.. haha..

Happy 2009

Hmm.... 2009 is here... In this new yr.. i have many new yr resolutions.... many things i aspire to achieve, hope to obtain and wish to try out... dun wish to pen it down coz its all printed deep in my heart... May i fulfil all my dreams and have a fabulous yr ahead...

31/12/2008 : The last day of the yr 2008

I recalled wat happened during the past 1 yr..

Jan 08 to May 08: My last sem in NUS

Mid May 08: Started my job hunting

End May 08: Uni results released... a sigh of relief...

June 08: Embarked on a grad trip wif xiuting.. we went to Taiwan (10 days) and Hong Kong (2 days).. was a happening trip coz many things happened.. haha.. First, upon arrival at Changi Airport, our flight was delayed.. coz hk airport was flooded.. fligth was scheduled to be 2.5 hrs later.. was again delayed but last min they got us a flight.. we ran all the way coz the flight was about to depart soon... as ours was a connecting flight, we nearly missed our flight (from hk to tw).. luckily it was also delayed, otw we would have missed our flight...

Reached tw airport at 3am (suppose to reach at around 10pm..) sigh!! Next morning, we realise our tour group consists of just xt and myself pls the driver (aka tour guide).. woah!

There is a nite where we check in the hotel at a shan zhuang.. onli to realise that the 3 of us are staying in that whole hotel.. the hotel looks ulu~ated.. and there isnt any reception..

We went to Hk's ocean park.. wasted out money coz it was raining the whole day..

Mid June 08: Continue to send out my resumes.. awaiting for calls... by then, i was abit dishearted... Went for a few interviews.. from ocbc, national park, semb corp, mindef etc.. Started blogging also... haha

Early July 08: Graduation ceremony/ commencement... i am offically a graduate.. bid goodbye to life as a student

Mid July 08: Got a job offer (after 2 rounds of interviews and an essay test)!! phew.. they gave me a week to consider if i wanna accept... i rmb clearly it was a tues at 6.30pm.. haha..

Went for another interview on thurs.. coz i already agreed to go for the interview b4 i got my job offer.. went for the interview and essay test.. was told that it will take at least 3 weeks to know if i have gotten the job.. decided to give this up coz i need to reply the other job offer by next week...

Was so surprised when i received a call from the latter co saying that they accepted me... din they say they need 3 wks? haha... (later den i realise its coz they knew i had another job offer, hence they "hasten" the process and inform me asap) but i still need to go thru security clearance and medical check up b4 they can offically offer me tt job...

Tts the problematic part.. its the time when i had to think thru carefully and throughly.. weigh the benefits and costs and make a decision.. to accept the former (which is already confirm)? or wait for the latter.. that is go thru the security clearance and medical.. but i muz reject the former and there is a chance where the latter will reject me if my security n medical aren't cleared... was really in a dilemma...

Both were equally far.. the field/nature i applied for both were similar.. but one is private sector (but a big firm so its recognized) while another is a govt sector.. one offers a high pay than the other.. etc etc etc.. my list of considerations goes on and on..

Aug 08: After considering everything.. and seeking many advise, i decided to reject the former and wait for the latter... i am living in a constant fear and worries for tt 3 weeks! finally, my efforts and hard work were paid off.. i managed to get the job offer!!! woo hooo~~~

End Aug 08: Embark on a new challenge where i started on my working life.. a new phrase of life... My colleagues were nice to me.. Got so shocked with the thousand and one acroynms and army lingo in Mindef... (we have a gig-normous bank of acroynms over here.. dun be surprised)The 4th day of work.. boss treated us subway and bought a cake coz there were 5 Aug babies (including me). Considering there were onli 11 peeps in my br.. 5/12 is high ya.. jh bought me an Awfully choc cake... really is gu ming si yi... it looks awful but taste real good.. heee...

Sept 08: Celebrated G1 32th Anniversity @ Yishun Safra. Got my first pay check for the mth!! was so excited... haha.. treated mummy, daddy and sis buffet dinner at River Gdn coffee hse... food was so so, spread wasnt alot. kinda disappointing...

Oct 08: Been to SAF camp for my first time..

Nov 08: Embarked on the Singapore flyer.. went to Le Meridien hotel for buffet Breakfast (first time having breakfast @ our local hotel.. haha).. Treated cousins to Jack's place for lunch... was chit chatting at Jack's place after our lunch but was so called being "forced to leave" coz the waitress simply dun have the basic courtesy. she just placed the bill on the table when we did not ask for.. practically wanting to chase us out.. when there are still many empty tables around... errr... I oso treated yh to Eighteen chefs @ east point (for dinner coz she cant make it for lunch)... This cafe was highly recommended by amanda but i dun really think its nice.. haha.. yong's mango baked rice tasted real funny.. mine wasnt nice too (forgot wat i ordered).. haha.. but the salmon baked rice with cheese is nice (yh, tts wat u ordered rite..) haha..

Dec 08: Make use of my pathetic pro rated leave for my Europe trip... scenery was excellent... real geogorous! Got my pro-rated bonus.. first time getting "extra cash".. wahaha.. treated my family for a buffet lunch at fumara hotel's the square. Both Jh and myself love this place coz the ambience was great!!! food was tasty.. spread was juz now.. not really tt many variety but all are delicious... hee...

As usual, we went to amanda's hse for a gathering cum christmas party.. of coz we did exchanged gifts.. also did go to xiao shu's hse to celebrate xmas... we had lots of fried food, pizza, kfc etc... and a log cake from prima deli which tasted real good... hehe

31/12/2008

Day 9: 12/12/08

Day 9: 12/12/08

We bid farewell to Switzerland and proceed to the capital of France, Paris. we spent the whole day on coach to reach the fashion city, Paris.



Day 10: 13/12/08

Our city tour of Paris starts with the glorious Arc De Triomphe, erected by Napoleoon in 1806 as a memorial to his victorious battles. it was a national monument of France.

Next, we visited the sights of the Notre Dame Cathedral and Louvre Museum famous for its glass pyramid...

Next, we ascend up to the 2nd level of Eiffel Tower (by lift), where spectacular view of the Paris city can be seen.. it was very cold up there.. about -2 degrees... we had choc waffle and hot soupy up there.. taste great!!!

Lastly, we went to Champs Elysees and Grand Lafaya... embark on our shopping spree... went to various boutiques like LV, Gucci, Ferragamo etc... saw a nice wrislet from Gucci which cost S$500 plus.. gosh... saw a nice long wallet which cost S$800 plus.. and a handbag which costs S$2k... tts maddness...

i was determined enough to not get anything coz i juz started working... these are just too luxurious... my hard earned money are "peanuts"... i cant be so extravagent.. i shall wait till my next visit to Europe to sweep all the branded designer bags..

Day 11: 14/12/08

Its time to go back... took a 14 hrs flight back to my beloved Singapore... home sweet home!!! Missed all the local delicacies... and oso.. i actually missed work (i am not a workalcoholic definitely)... and i will definitely miss Europe.. esp Switzerland...

Day 8: 11/12/08

This morning, we drove to the beautiful town of Engelberg for a series of cable cars to Mount Titlis for a panoramic view at 10,000 ft above sea level.. we took a total of 3 diff types of cable car to reach the peak.. of which the Titlis Rotair is the world's first revolving cable car (takes up all the way to the summit of Mt Titlis, where a breathtaking panoramic mountainscape awaits us...

Upon arriving at the summit, we stroll to the Glacier Park Ice Flyer... its so windy.. the cold wind slapped right onto our face.. its -10 degrees... but the unique glacier paradise experience was cool.. we enjoyed ourselves in the midst the the snow... its oso kind of misty and foggy.. so we cant really see far..

Next, we went to the photostudio.. took a photo outside.. we had moment pick ice cream.. u muz be thinking we are mad right.. eating ice cream (again) during winter when the outside temp is -10 degree.. wahaha.. went to the ice palace after tt.. was disappointing.. nothing to see... while taking the 3 diff types of cable car down, i took more photos...

After lunch, we continue on to Switzerland's largest city, Lucerne.. we visited the lion monument.. this is to commemorate the bravery of the Swiss guards during French Revolution. If you look carefully, you will see that the lion's expression is very sad and solemn and there is a broken spear protuding out of its stomach... they did a great job in cafting out the lion monument from the limestone cliff...

Next, we visited the 14th Century wooden chapel bridge which depicts the local history.

In the evening, we have an hr or so to shop round.. we went to Bucherer and walked around to get some chocolates...

Day 7: 10/12/08

Today, we took an optional tour to Junfraujoch (top of europe) by a spectacular train ride... this cost us around S$300 each.. It is 3454m (13,333 ft).. Its freezing cold up there.. at around -8 degrees.. grrr... we took many photos as the train ascends up the mountain.. where we could enjoy the scenic feast if snow-capped peaks... woah!!! thumbs up... but as it ascends.. at around 3160m (10368 ft) I could feel that the air (oxygen) is getting thinner and thinner... mummy wasnt feeling very well due to the lack of O2...

We first visited the Ice palace... its kinda like an igloo wif ice cravings.. wasnt very cold in there.. After tt, i start to feel giddy and abit uncomfortable due to the lack of O2 esp in the enclosed area... we gotta slow down our pace... dun talk so much while we are climbing up the flight of stairs etc...

At around 11.45am, we had our lunch at the restaurant.. its a 3 course lunch set wif a soup, spaghetti wif huge sausages and lastly an ice cream.. i din set high expectations for this meal.. considering that its a restaurant which is so inaccessible coz its so high up... but to my surprise... it was fantastic!!! It taste delicious man... (saliva dripping).. haha..

As there are strong winds.. we are not encouraged to go out to explore the snowy white place... so we stayed around for awhile and left.. half of my tour mates were already "half-dead" by den... many were giddy.. feeling naseau.. pale etc etc...

We took the train down to the Eismer station (which is 3160m, 10368 ft)... by the time we reach there.. we were all feeling better.. a drop in 300m certainly made a lot of difference... we saw many experts skiing... i tried the sledge... we enjoyed ourselves.. was fun.. i saluate my daddy sia.. he actually sat on the sledge and go down the steep snow slope... initially i wanted to try but i backed up in the end.. it was way too steep and scary esp when u haf nothing to grip onto.. no handles, hand rails etc... haha.. juehui and myself found a gentler slope to try our sledge.. hehe..

See.. this place is like heaven ya.. so beautiful... tan4 wei2 guan1 zhi3 sia... so peaceful.. i juz simply immersed myself in such a shi qing hua yi (glories of nature, great scenic splendor) place... our hands were real cold... and it was chilling... but we really did enjoy ourselves.. out in the snowland.. playing wif snow.. making snowman.. etc.. b4 departing... we went to the cafe beside to have a warm drink as mummy was abit cold.. daddy tried their expresso.. mummy tried the latte.. jh and myself tried their hot coco... these HOT drinks juz tasted so nice as it went down my esophagus (even though it was juz normal).. we spent a good 2.5hrs over there...

By den, its time to say goodbye to Jungfraujoch.. we so dun wanna leave this peaceful and gorgeous place.. took more photos as we ascend down the train...

Reached the hotel in the evening.. we went to the supermart nearby and walked round for awhile.. btw.. our hotel (oberland resort) is at Interlaken.. which is situated between 2 sparkling lakes beneath Jungfrau.. its a spectacular holiday resort situated in the heart of the Swiss Alps.. This time round.. the lake were frozen and covered wif snow.. i vividly rmb seeing the 2 lakes during my last visit... during my last visit, we spent 8 days in Switzerland.. this time round.. we onli spend 2.5 days here.. i would certainly love to visit this place again!