Latest Arrival

Call signs:
Eagle - Grandma
Command Centre - PL and PY in Singapore. Latitude: 1"22'0" N Longitude: 103" 48' 0" E
Phoenix - Me

Transmission:
"Phoenix to Command Centre.
The Eagle has landed.
I repeat, the Eagle has landed.
Command Centre do you copy?"

Grandma has safely landed last night at 23:35 hours.

We had a little trouble at immigration as Grandma forgot to bring along a printout of her return e-ticket. The NZ immigration officers of course assumed that every Asian without proof of a ticket flying out of NZ is bound to either 1. over stay, 2. be a refugee, 3. seek asylum. They threatened to not allow her into the country. Someone ought to educate these folks here about Singapore. Yes, we're in Asia but we have it pretty good as compared to most countries around the world. And I'll dare say we've definitely got it much better than in NZ. So all you NZ folks out there, take off your blinders, live a little, travel out of your country (Australia doesn't count) and see what the rest of the world has to offer.

Slangs the Kiwi Way

I've decided to come up with a list of Kiwi slangs that I've picked up during my stay here. I've listed some of the more interesting ones and also ones that I'm trying to incorporate into my everyday use. When in Rome....

Ay - Used at the end of every other sentence. It's the Singapore equivalent of "la". Using "ay" at the end of sentences make a statement sound like a question, and a response is not always expected. For example, instead of saying "The weather is good today", Kiwis say "The weather is good today ay?"

Banger - Sausage. At cafes serving brekkies, you'll find "mash potatoes and bangers" on the menu.

Boy racer - He is basically the Singapore equivalent of an Ah Beng zooming around in his souped-up WRX.

Cheers - Is used in many different ways. It can mean thanks, goodbye, good luck. I've been trying to say Cheers lately instead of thanks. Teehee.

Choice - Very good or best or something similar to its effect. Stephen is trying to incorporate this into his conversations but it comes out sounding completely wrong. Sorry mate, you've gotta try harder than that!

Flash - Swanky or smart-looking.

Jandals - Flip-flops or as Singaporeans call it slippers. The Aussies call it thongs (don't ask me why.)

No shit Sherlock - That's my latest catchphrase! Picked it up from Amy, a girlfriend of mine from London. I love it! Be prepared to hear me say that heaps (another Kiwi slang) when I'm back in Singapore.

Cheers. :)

My poor phone.

First my dog tried to eat my phone but I managed to rescue it before it was totally destroy it. It was working fine albeit it was missing its battery cover and was looking worse for wear. Now I've gone and dropped it in the toilet, it's really dead. There's no reviving it this time. Argh. I feel severely handicapped without my phone.

16/12

p/s: I think I spoke too soon. My phone seems to be coming back to life, slowly but surely. I can now send text messages from it. Not bad for having first survived Cujo and then being drowned in the toilet.

ECP

I have to blog this！

I just heard this ad over the radio:

"It's the time of the year where we go for our office Christmas parties. If you do get a little too carried away at your office Christmas party, head down to XXX pharmacy as soon as possible to buy an ECP... "

I was thinking to myself what in the world is an ECP. I figured it probably is a pill to help with the hangover or something similar. Little did I know...
I soon found out what ECP stands for - Emergency Contraceptive Pill!

WHOA! At an office Christmas party? Which means people end up sleeping with random colleagues?! Can you imagine the embarrassment and the crazy rumours going round the office after that?!! I'm literally cringing at the thought. Or am I just being a prude?!

i carry your heart - e.e. cummings

i carry your heart with me (i carry it in
my heart) i am never without it (anywhere
i go you go, my dear; and whatever is done
by only me is your doing, my darling)

i fear
no fate (for you are my fate, my sweet) i want
no world (for beatfiful you are my world, my true)
and it's you are whatever a moon has always meant
and whatever a sun will always sing is you

here is the deepest secret nobody knows
(here is the root of the root and the bud of the bud
and the sky of the sky of a tree called life; which grows
higher than soul can hope or mind can hide)
and this is the wonder that's keeping the stars apart

i carry your heart (i carry it in my heart)

Goldilocks

It's December, the start of summer and it sure feels like it. I'm feeling all sticky and hot and bothered from the heat and the humidity today. First thing I'm gonna do when I'm home is to hop in the shower. I know what you're thinking - this girl complains way too much about everything. Too cold in winter, too hot in summer, this bed is too hard, that bed is too soft. Tsk tsk tsk. I really should stop.

After all that has gone down the last week, I'm going to try to appreciate more and bitch less. Life is just too unpredictable. I just hope that in time, I would not forget and will still remember who and why.

Promising New Hobby.

I just came back from my first tennis lesson. Let's just say I'm no Maria Sharapova and I'm happy just being able to hit the ball, where it flies, well that's another thing altogether. My arm is aching already and I can't type properly. But I had fun! This new hobby is promising plus it's healthy and cheap too! Hey Hey! I might be onto something!

Samoa Part II

Sorry for the erm.. extended dinner break!

Samoa is made up of several islands and in order to get to the different islands, we had to take the ferry. It took us about an hour and a half to get from Upolo to Savaii. I almost passed out on the ferry trip. I wasn't used to the heat plus the ferry cabin soon turned into a floating furnace. I wasn't sure if I would die first from the heat or from suffocation. Stephen had to half drag me to one of the tiny windows.

In Savaii, we stayed in a beach fale. It's basically a raised platform with no walls, just thatched blinds surrounding the living quarters. It's right smack on the beach so you get fantastic views during the day but the nights were tramautising. There were roaches, and lizards and moths, and WORMS (god knows from where) and the only thing between us and them was a very flimsy mosquito net. Brrrr...! Let's just say it was an experience! :)

This is the beach that our fale was on. The beach is absolutely gorgeous and the waters are crystal clear. We had the whole beach to ourselves so we could frolick all we want!

Stephen doing his model pose...

I think I need another holiday already. Next trip, diving! YAY!

Let Sleeping Dogs Lie...

... yeah right! I love teasing the Coopster when he's asleep.

Here's Cooper happily snoozing away, probably dreaming of a land full of doggie snacks and bones and where everyone will take time out to rub him behind his ears.

I just can't help teasing him while he's snoring away...

It's hilarious to watch. I can tweak on his ear, cover his nose, pull on his tail, roll him over and he'll try his best to keep his eyes close and ignore me and pretend that I'm not there. I guess in his teeny doggie brain, he figures that if he keeps his eyes shut and wish hard enough, I'll give up and leave him be.

HA! Fat chance! It's way too entertaining!

Samoa - Pictures (Finally!)

Yes. I've finally gotten around to downloading the photos off my trusty Canon from our Samoa trip. Apart from the drama sage with our stolen credit card, the trip has been wonderful - amazing beaches, (mostly) friendly people and a much-needed break from the crappy Auckland weather.

It was a sweltering 30 degrees and very humid. Actually I think the weather in Samoa is very similar to weather in Singapore but we are so acclimatised to the temperatures in Auckland, we could barely cope with the heat in Samoa. I showered on an average of 2-3 times a day. (Die la! How to go back to Singapore like that?!)

This is us at the beach resort at Upolu.

And more...

(Breaking for dinner. Be right back! Stay tuned!)

Post-Samoa Drama.

As you all know, we took a much-needed vacation to Samoa last week. We really enjoyed ourselves although we didn't take as many photographs as we had liked to. I'll post them up soon. Anyway I'm digressing. How my trip went isn't the subject of this particular blog entry but rather the post-trip drama.

I brought my NZ credit card to Samoa, just in case we run out of cash. The card was placed in a card holder and then put into a messenger bag that S was carrying around most of the time. We only let that bag out of our sight for only a handful of times during the trip. One of times was when we were staying at the fales in Savaii. We left the bag in our fale to have our meals in the restaurant which was aabout 10 metres away.

Some thief actually went through our bag and stole our credit card! ARGH! He then proceeded to go on a shopping spree in Samoa using my credit card! SUCH A BLOODY, THIEVING NO-GOOD BUSTARD!!!

Good thing I have a really low credit limit on this NZ credit card so he didn't get to spend THAT much but still! I've been making an effort to spend less and save more and this lousy excuse of a person is going around buying the whole of Samoa at my expense. It infuriates me! They should reinstate ancient laws whereby the courts chop off the hands of people who are guilty for stealing. I'm all for it!

The card has been cancelled and we're currently disputing these fradulant credit card claims. The maddening thing about the whole episode is that the name on my card is obviously CHINESE and person who has gotten hold of it is definitely NOT Chinese so I have no idea how could the retailers have not know, name - no match, signature - no match but still they let the transactions through.

SIGH.

Samoa

We're off to Samoa today. We'll be flying out tonight and back only on Thursday. Hopefully I'll have heaps of photos and a nice tan to show for. The weather in Samoa better be good. I can do with lotsa sunlight and fine weather. Before you start worrying, I'll be slapping on lotsa sunblock before baking myself on the beach! Doncha fret!

Can't wait!

Tan Hong Ming In Love.

I came across this video clip while browsing through Ken Leong's blog. Ken runs the language school that I went to learn Spanish and that's also where I got to know Chingling. Anyway, I'm digressing.

Have a look at the video clip. Besides the fact that Tan Hong Ming is one sweet kid and I'd like to hug him until he pops, the video clip highlights an important social message - that our children are colour blind, and sadly what racism they know is what they learn from their parents, friends, in school, from society and it's political leaders.

Fresh off the Press!

LATEST: National MP Lockwood Smith regrets causing any offence after saying Asians have small hands that make them more productive and Pacific workers need to be taught to use toilets and showers.

Check out the news article here.

I do admit that his words were taken out of context but that being said, it was not the most politically correct thing to say. An public apology was definitely needed. Bah.

Appeal.

From: Rajasigamany, Stephen
Sent: Tuesday, 21 October 2008 2:44 p.m.

To: Huicheng Chen

Dear Miss Chen

I act on behalf of the defendant, Mr. Stephen Rajasigamany. I also represent the interests of one Mr. Cooper aka Coopy Doopy aka Doopsie Woopsie aka Coop Meister.

Do note that this morning on behalf of the defendant, I have filed for an injunction against your embargo on the grounds of lack of due process and unfair treatment. This submission is currently pending in the courts. As you will be aware, until the completion of this hearing and a determination by the courts, actions deemed simulating an embargo on your part will constitute a breach of current regulations.

We will be in touch in due course with the verdict by the courts - which is binding.

Embargo.

The Huicheng Embargo Against Stephen is a personal, emotional and financial embargo imposed on Stephen on October 19, 2008. The embargo was enacted after Stephen repeatedly ignored pleas from Huicheng to keep her company and not fall sleep before her.

The embargo was codified into law (writing it down in my cute little red diary right now) in 2008 with the stated purpose of “teaching Stephen a lesson for neglecting his Dollface”, and in fact is titled Kick-Stephen-Ass Act. The embargo restricts Stephen from receiving any communication, signs of affection, baby-talk, birhtday presents from Huicheng. The embargo is effective immediately and is lifted only at Huicheng’s pleasure. :))

Shopping Shopping Shopping.

We are officially now in recession and I feel guilty spending money. So I have come up with the perfect excuse to shop. I have decided to buck the trend and start Christmas shopping early this year. Aren't I brilliant?! I have bought my first Christmas present for the year and YQ, it's not yours! You'll be getting a cake. A big one, doncha worry! ;)

Reading the Papers.

We live in interesting times. Lately, first thing I do when I come into work, is to check the online papers. There's almost always something new and exciting that has happened overnight.

In a bid to stay abreast of current developments, I've taken to reading the online versions of The New Zealand Herald and The Business Times (Singapore). It's a lot of working reading the papers, especially when there are 2 markets that I'm trying to stay well-informed in. I never really used to do it before. Did I say it is a lot of work? I'm quite proud of myself for doing it. Erm... but let's see how long this fad of mine will last.

Proudly Singaporean.

I was reading about this survey done by the World Economic Forum and I felt this surge of patriotism. We are ranked at number 5 out of 134 countries in terms of global competitiveness. FYI, US scored 1, Hong Kong 11, Australia 18, New Zealand 24. And in case you're interested, here's the link to all 500 pages worth of survey.

We, Singaporeans, sometimes don't realise how lucky we have it as compared to a whole list of other countries.

English is our first language and that automatically gives us a headstart as compared to other Asian countries. It's so safe in Singapore that you can run out for a midnight snack and not have to worry about your safety. Here in NZ, there has been a whole host of stabbings over the last few months. Just the other day, this young man was stabbed to death just a few metres from the building that I work in during rush hour. Can you beat that? Right in the heart of CBD during rush hour! In AU, it's not uncommon to hear of car chases on the radio. People who are caught speeding actually speed off in their cars when the police try to pull them over, and the police has to give chase. Try that in Singapore, they'll take away your license and throw you in jail. In AU, they'll just slap you on the wrist and tell you not to repeat the offence.

On the news the other day, a dairy owner in NZ was robbed. He defended himself with a hockey stick. (Good for him!) But now the police is charging the dairy owner with assault, saying that he shouldn't have taken matters into his own hands and hit out at the robbers. How bloody absurd. Well it happened. Not in Singapore but elsewhere in the world.

We've got good education system, we have good values where we save, we take care of our elderly, we work hard for our money, we don't live off the state for welfare. We have a competitive economy, low unemployment rates, a sensible government. We have tough laws but safe streets. They call us a fine city but hell, I can live with that if I don't have to worry about someone spitting on my foot in the MRT (China), or peeing on the sidewalk (India) or having to deal with vandalism or litterbugs. We don't have to worry about political instability (since there is only 1 ruling party! Ha!) and coups, we don't have to be afraid of the military massacring the people (Mugabe and his stupid generals).

Yes I agree that we can be rude and ungracious, we not socially conscious, not too environmentally friendly, we don't recycle, we use plastic bags like there's no tomorrow, we're aggressive drivers. We should focus more on a well-rounded education, have better work-life balance, be more aware of our political situation and what's going on in the world. But we're getting there.

In the meantime, we should try to stop complaining so much about Singapore and what it's lacking in. Afterall, we've got it so much better than most countries.

Main Street to Wall Street.

Here's a short paragraph of what I read in the NZ Herald on the failure to pass the bill of a USD$700 billion bailout for US financial market. It made me smile.

"The US House of Representatives has sent the financial markets a simple message.

Main Street to Wall Street: Drop dead."

My sentiments exactly.

I'd be really pissed off if I knew my tax money is going to fund and redeem the greed on Wall Street. That's a whopping 1 TRILLION SGD!!! (Whoa. You lose track of how many zeros after a while.) Those top executives are walking away with golden parachutes (basically a shitload of $$$) for their bad decisions while people on the streets suffer.

However, looking at yesterday's markets meltdown, my bet is that the House will relent and some form of bailout will be issued else the chances of a major recession in the US will be pretty likely. And the effects will rippled down to us.

The selfish question to ask now is - should I keep my money in a bank or should I go bottom-fishing, buy some cheap blue chip stocks and just wait this whole hooha out. How? Any advice???

One Fine Sunday.

The weather over the weekend was fantastic. Almost had me convinced that summer is round the corner and not months away. We initially wanted to head over to Davenport but got lazy and just decided to hang around the beach on this side of Auckland instead.

We put on our shades, popped the dog in the backseat and off we went for a short drive along the beach. It was nice having the sun on my face after going through such a wet and dreary winter.

Here's Cooper thoroughly enjoying himself snapping at the wind and barking at dogs whizzing by.

We ended up at Mission Bay. Had brunch at one of the sea-side cafes. We initially had Cooper with us at the cafe (they're really dog friendly here) but he was harrassing all the patrons so we got fed up and banished him to the car. Ha!

We sat around, had mussels and wine, soaked in the sun and just watched the world go by.

Decided to free the Coopster from his imprisonment and headed over to the beach for a walk. And because I'm the one with the camera, there aren't any shots of me looking all cool on the beaach. Darn.

Spot the dog in this shot.

Sweet-talker

In every weekend edition of the NZ Herald, they'll interview someone new and one of the de-facto questions would be, "If the house is on fire, what's one thing that you would save?"

So I posed the question to Stephen over the weekend while reading the papers. Stephen looked at me and answered, "You."

He sure knows how to score points! Heh!

Family and Friends.

I've been having visitors this Christmas and New Year's.

Grandma will be arriving on her own (first time for everything) on the 20th December. She'll be staying with us for about a month or so and we'll all return back to Singapore together for CNY.

Sister and boyfriend (Cliff) will be over on the 23rd December and staying for 2 whole weeks. So everyone will be spending Christmas and New Year's here in NZ.

I've gotta start planning the intinerary now.

Can't hardly wait!!!

Sushi Party

The weather is turning warmer and the days are getting longer. And it's time to come out of hibernation. We had some friends over and had a sushi party. The head chef and sous chef were Janice and Yuko respectively. The rest of us just stood around and tried to look like we're helping!



Everyone had a hand in rolling the sushi. Looked pretty good eh? Yuko also made miso soup and fried tofu. We even had sashimi but I was too busy eating and forgot to take photos.

Here's Janice trying to cop a feel. Tsk.

We hung around after lunch, sat in the sun, had wine and played Pictionary. I realised that I am not artistically inclined at all. In case anyone is wondering, I was trying to draw Captain Cook.

A Dog's Life.

How hard is a dog's life?
Well, we ran out of dried dog food for Cooper and ended up feeding him leftovers.

Cooper hates the cold so he stakes out the heater every evening. Oh and he even has his own bed and pillow. FYI, we hauled that pillow all the way from Bangkok and just to have our dog lay claim to it.

He tags along on road trips and hogs the entire back seat. He's an extremely well-travelled dog. Very world-wisely. Here's the Coopster at Piha beach.

So whoever said a dog's life is hard obviously haven't met my prince of a dog.

And the jokes continue...

Stephen wasn't feeling too well over the weekend. He had a scratchy throat, was feverish, lethargic and whiny as hell.

I think he might have passed on his germs to me cuz I'm not feeling too great myself today, so i emailed him and told him just that. Called him the Infector.

Well here's his reply. Word for word. No editing involved.

"ooohhh ic i have a cool nickname... much like the terminator! i feel i need a theme song as well...

when you're feeling fine and don't feel like working
who you gonna call?
the infector!

when you're oh so sleepy and wana go home
who you gonna call?
the infector!

(repeats itself)

(sang to the theme song from ghost busters)"

I really should start compiling these jokes and publish a book titled "Jokes You Should NEVER Tell Anyone".

Polka-dotted

Cooper has been a nightmare to live with the last 2 weeks. He has decided out of the blue to pee in his crate in the afternoons after his outing with Michelle, his friendly neighbourhood dogwalker. I have threatened to sell him online countless times and he has called my bluff every single time! And he knows he can get away with most things by just giving us the sad, puppy-dog face and slinking along the floor, looking terribly sorry. That usually lasts about all of 2 mins and he's off bouncing off the walls again. I can't decide whether he's really smart or really stupid.

Difference between Cooper and Nugget, Cooper is smarter, braver, bouncier but Nugget is more sensitive, easier to live with, more obedient and doesn't really gets his nose into all kinds of trouble. Can't decide whether I hate or love dogs at the moment.

Anyhooz, here's a really adorable photo I found online.

p/s: I won't chance putting the Coopster in this pose cuz he'll probably gobble down the goldfish in 2 shakes of a lamb's tail! :P

Crazy Times.

Wall Street seems to be broken.

Lehman Brothers has filed for bankruptcy.
Merrill Lynch sold itself off to BOA.
Restructuring in AIG with stocks plummeting 61%.

I wonder who will be next.

Falling Dollar.

There has been a lot going on in the NZ economy. Financial companies are going bust, leaving poor old men and ladies broke without their retirement money. Property market has gone under. Cost of food is rising, and spending is falling. The Reserve Bank has been cutting rates left, right and centre. To cut a long story short, it's quite a mess!

All these events have resulted in a falling New Zealand dollar. The NZD has fallen 13% over the last 3 months and now sits weaker than the Singapore dollar! I'm mentally calculating how much money I've lost. #%@&$%)*

Currently, the exchange rate is at 1SGD to 1.069NZD. Previously it was approximately 1SGD to 0.9NZD.

I guess now I can go for my $70 haircut here and not feel so bad about it since it's equivalent to $65 back in Singapore. That's a discount of $5! That's my silver lining! Ha!

Stepford Wife.

Being here in NZ, on an expat package or not, is really not as easy or glamourous as some might think. It's really difficult starting all over from scratch.

It takes time to get to know and get used to the way of life here, the culture, the people. Also there is the uphill task of looking for a job, securing a job, learning the workings of a new market, building up credibility within the new company, building up business contacts and relationships all over again.

It is extra tough doing all this without the support network of family and friends. Making friends here too is not as easy as it is as compared to say when I was in Hong Kong. Hong Kong was a blast and a year went by without me even noticing. Here in NZ, making friends and keeping them is extra hard work. To top it off, Stephen is constantly travelling. He's away at least once a month. This month for example, Stephen flew out to Tahiti last Friday and will be arriving back to Auckland on Sunday. He'll be flying out again on the following Monday to Hong Kong for a week and back only next Friday. So when he's away, I'm on my own in this too-large 4-bedroom house. (And please don't even mention starting a family. I can't handle a bawling kid alone with my husband gone half the time.)

Not to mention the fact that New Zealand is so isolated from the rest of the world that flight tickets out are usually really expensive, making even going home for a visit difficult. (Flight back to Singapore will set you back about NZD2000 and it's a 10 hour flight.)

I don't think I'm whining too much about living here in NZ since I've lived and worked in a number of cities around the world. I can honestly say that New Zealand is by far the most challenging of the lot. And it's realy taking a lot out of me to stay on and not throw in the towel, pack up and head on home.

Only Cooper has come up on top of this. The entire house is his playground, and the front yard his toilet! He gets plenty of rubs, hugs and cuddles, and basically gets to follow me almost everywhere I go.

I'm not usually in this mood but it has been a trying few months.

Time Travel

Stephen flew out to Tahiti for a meeting today. Tahiti is one of the islands of French Polynesia. It's a hop away from Bora Bora. I know what you're thinking - that it's not fair right?! My sentiments exactly! Who goes to Tahiti for work?! Bloody smokers, that's who!

Anyway, Tahiti is 5 hours by flight but they are 22 hours behind Auckland, which basically means that if it's 6pm Friday in Auckland, it's 8pm Thursday in Tahiti. The only reason why I'm outlining this in detail is because my very brilliant husband couldn't really get his head around the time difference.

And after thinking long and hard about it, he finally got it. Yes! Well now that he's figured out the time difference, he's completely fascinated by it. He even came up with his own little jokes.

Joke #1:

Stephen: Don't tell me what's on the news or what's going to happen on Friday cuz it's still Thursday here and I want Friday to be a surprise!

me: *forced laughter*

Joke #2:
Stephen: I'm so tired. Time travelling is exhausting!
me: (I didn't even bother to laugh on this one. I just rolled my eyes several times.)

As you can see, my husband brand of humour is erm... very unique and not exactly the funniest. He has his moments though but this surely isn't one of them.

Weather Report (again!)

I know I know... I have developed a perverse obsession with the weather. I just read a weather report online that in the month of July, we have had 22 days of rain. This basically translates to 9 dry days in July and out of which maybe we had 2 days of sunshine in a month!

Now you know why I'm so down in the dumps all through winter.

NZ Model Citizen

I've accumulated 2 traffic tickets for using the bus lanes within the same week. Each fine is NZD$150. I've also gotten a parking fine for NZD$40. That's a grand total of NZD$340. All in a month's work. Thank you.

You should have heard me curse when I received the summons. I swore to hell and back. I'm pretty sure the neighbours heard and probably slapped their hands over their children's ears. I would have made a sailor blush (not to say that all sailors are brutish and uncouth but they are notoriously known for their talent for cursing).

NZ model citizen or not? Well it really depends on how you look at it. On one hand, I have been blatantly flouting all traffic laws but on the other hand, I am contributing to the revenue of the country which is definitely much needed considering the current economic climate.

The traffic fines plus the amount of money I pay in taxes (they have a tax rate here of 33%) will feed a small country. Okay. Maybe I exaggerate. A small island of people. Whatever the case, there is serious outflow of cash here without even me having to spend any.

Queen's English.

I was just threatening Cooper the other day and I told him to behave else he'll "kenna whacked jialiat jialiat!"

I realised I can't be sprouting such Singaporean phrases like these here in NZ since no one will understand what I'm the hell I'm saying. That's 3 different languages in that short phrase. Talk about being multi-cultural! How about that!

Best News Since Sliced Bread.

Here's what I read in the news today:

"The MetService says next weekend is likely to be fine in much of the country, including Auckland, which has not had a dry weekend since May."

*Does a little sun dance*

We have a sunny weekend coming up! Thank the heavens. FINALLY! Hooray! Anymore rain and I'm just going to dig a hole in the backyard and go scuba diving in my backyard.

I'm going to start planning what I'm going to do this weekend. Gotta line those activities back-to-back. It's been so long since we last have had a dry weekend.

Heel and Toe.

For those of you who know me, you'll know that the sound of worn-down heels click-clacking across any surface drives me absolutely insane. What i mean by worn-down heels is when the rubber-bit of cushion thingy nailed to the end of your heels gets worn down and starts breaking off. What you get is the sound of the metal (from the head of the nail) against concrete. The sound simply grates on my nerves. For me, it's the equivalent of someone scratching their nails down a chalkboard.

Anyway, the rubber tip fell off the heel of my boots today so I *HAD* to get them replace else I'll have to take them off cuz the sound just kills me. I took them to Mister Minit just around the corner and had the rubber thingies replaced.

Guess how much that cost me?

NZD$19.90! WAH LAU EH!

That's like a pair of brand new sandals in Singapore. It usually costs about SGD$6 to get the rubber thingies replaced in the CBD in Singapore, less if in the suburbs.

I also have to fix another pair of black heels. One of the heels broke off. Can't imagine how much that will cost. FYI, I got that pair of black heels (really cute patent ones for that matter) at SGD$15. Think the repair will costs more than the shoes. Darn.

NZ Job Market.

I'm still getting these job ads and alerts from my job-hunting days. It's not uncommon to see job ads for the below position.

Farm Park Ranger, Hunua East - Southern Sector Parks

Regional Parks are seeking a Farm Park Ranger for a sheep and beef operation in the southeast of Auckland. This could be the role that you have been waiting for, a role with a difference with an interesting mix of park ranging, conservation and farming. Including park maintenance, animal and plant pest control, managing natural and historical resources, contact with the visiting public, local iwi, community, neighbours and volunteers.

Sustainable land management practices are being promoted on all eastern parks with up to 700 Coopworth breeding ewes, 220 ewe hogget's, 25 Hereford breeding cows and 150 yearling cattle wintered on 155 effective hectares.

The key requirements for this position are; proven livestock management, excellent communication skills and practical park or land management skills. An understanding of conservation and recreational use of natural and cultural resources.

Now you have a better idea of why it's so difficult for someone with my work experience to find a decent job in NZ!

Lost and Found.

About a month ago, I lost my wedding band. Thank god, I thought to myself, that it's just the wedding band and not the engagement ring. If it was the engagement ring, Stephen will flip for sure. Anyway, after turning the entire house upside down, we concluded that Cooper must have ate the ring. We toyed with the thought of either 1. cutting Cooper up or 2. squishing through his poop to look for the ring. Both ideas weren't exactly very appealing.

Well, lo and behold, while we were cleaning the house today I actually found my ring!!! It was under the bed in a dark corner. I had to use a broom to sweep it out. Cooper must have knocked it off the bedside table and played with it under the bed.

Here are our wedding bands. On the rings are inscribed "A distance relationship ends, a life together begins."

Spill and Tumble.

I hate the bloody Auckland weather. It's constantly raining.

Well it rained early this morning too and the pavements and streets were wet. I usually park my car two blocks from work cuz the carpark rate is significantly cheaper than my office building. I pay about $230 per month as compared to $500 per month in my office building. Anyway, I was walking downslope to work and because it was so darn slippery, I slipped and fell.

My shoe went flying in one direction and my bag the other. In the middle of CBD. With people around me rushing to work. So bloody embarrassing and painful as well.

Finally picked myself up and realised that I scrapped my pants (oh my pants! sniff) and that my foot was bleeding, from the abrasion against the damn pavement. Ouch. Hurts like hell.

So not a great start to my day. I'm Miss Grouchy Pants today.

Culture Shock.

I started work on the 28th July but spent 2 weeks in Sydney. Work hours in Sydney were from 8:30am to 5:30pm. Work days were sweet and short, just the way I like them. Thought I lucked out.

Monday was the first day in the Auckland office. I got in at 8:30am as expcted and was happily tapping away at my computer when at 4pm, my colleague stood up and announced that he was leaving for the day! Holy macaroni! And today, he did the same. The rest left at a more respectable time - 5pm. So what about me? Well, when in Rome.... I left at 5pm too!

Aren't you jealous? Talk about work-life balance. Yoohoo!

Sydney and My Pacific Friends.

I had to go to Sydney for 2 weeks for a business trip. The 2 weeks in Sydney was like a breath of fresh air as compared to the terribly crappy winter we are having here in Auckland. I didn't realise how much I miss being in a real city until I arrived in Sydney CBD. I'm a true blue city girl. I would gladly exchange the huge expanse of space, the big houses, the peace and quiet of Auckland for a crazy, noisy, cramped city anytime! Ha! A little masochistic you might say, but hey, whatever makes me happy eh?

I caught up with a handful of friends in Sydney whom I haven't met in years and years. Met Sunny for dinner, drinks and we even caught Batman together during the week. I first met Sunny in HK and we used to party together. He knew all the door bitches so no standing in line for moi to get into clubs and access to VIP areas. Crazy times. I've met him in several countries thereafter since he usually travels quite a bit for work. We've caught up in Beijing, Singapore (of course) and now Sydney.

Hung out with Liza and Prata (well his real name is Andy Pranatasupra, i think!) over the weekend. (FYI, Prata is Liza's love of her life and she his.) They basically played tour guides and took me all over Sydney, brought me to all the yum restaurants and asian eateries. I had more asian food during my 2 weeks in Sydney as compared to my 4 months in Auckland. Unbelievable!

We hit the typical touristy spots like the Opera House, Circular Quay, Darling Harbour, King's Cross (ok this isn't typical tourist area but hey you can't visit a city without passing through it's red-light district right?), Bondi Beach etc. Had a fantastic weekend! Thanks Liza and Prata!

Liza and I at Hurricane for ribs.
Prata and I posing at Darling Harbour.

An obligatory photo of the Opera House.
Sunday at Bondi.
I even managed to meet up with Michiru for dinner and drinks on the last few days I was in Sydney. We went to Ivy. It's the latest hip bar to be seen at. I haven't seen Michiru since I left HK and am really glad to find her so happy and in love!

Can't believe how fast the years have gone by. I miss my friends!!! I have to start making some here in Auckland for me to call it home for the next few years.

Back to Auckland

Just a note to say that I'm back in Auckland. Took Air New Zealand and not Qantas so the flight went well. No weird glitches! Ha! Had a smashing 2 weeks in Sydney. I'll post a new entry on about my trip soon with loads of pictures.

I miss Cooper!

House seems awfully quiet without the little rascal bouncing off the walls. *Quiet sniff*

Work Tomorrow.

So I'm officially starting work tomorrow. Flying out to Sydney early morning and will be there for 2 weeks. Cooper will be left at a friend's place but she's got 2 other dogs so I don't think he'll miss us much. I'll be missing him heaps though.

Also I have to apply for an Australian visa, which I did but apparently my visa is one of those that needs to be approved by the Australia Visa Office, so I have to check back this evening (12 hours later). If I don't get the visa approved (why won't they approve it anyway?!), then I'm staying in Auckland. (Yay! Heh! But I'll probably get yelled at at work. Not yay.)

I'll update the post this evening on my visa application...

Update 8:11pm - My visa has been approved! Phew! I'm all packed and will be off to Sydney tommorrow. I'm quite psyched up about it now.

Crazy 3 Weeks.

This is our schedule for the next 3 weeks or so. It's crazy and we're trying to move things around so that we can spend our weekends today in the same country.

24 Jul (Thur) - Stephen flying to Wellington in the AM and Christchurch in the PM.
25 Jul (Fri) - Stephen flying back to Auckland in the PM (Yay!)

Weekend of 26 Jul is ours in Auckland!

27 Jul (Sun) - Drop Cooper off with a friend for 2 weeks while we travel.
28 Jul (Mon) - I fly off to Sydney in the AM and will be there for 2 weeks til 8 Aug.
30 Jul (Wed) - Stephen off to Melbourne til 1 Aug.
1 Aug (Fri) - Stephen flies in to Sydney to meet me and we'll spend the weekend in Sydney. Yay!

Weekend of 2 Aug is ours in Sydney!

(Update 27th Jul - Scrap weekend in Sydney. Mr Raja probably has to go in to work that weekend. *sulk*)

3 Aug (Sun) - Stephen flies back to Auckland.
8 Aug (Fri) - I fly back to Auckland.

Weekend of 9 Aug is ours in Auckland!

11 Aug (Mon) - Stephen flies out to HK til 13 Aug.
13 Aug (Wed) - Stephen climbs onto the plane for the 14-hour flight back to Auckland. (Isn't it madness? How bloody far we are from Asia?)

And thus ends a very hectic 3 weeks. Think poor Stephen will hate the inside of an aircraft after all this is over. Hopefully after this period, we'll both be in Auckland for a few months before any of us has to travel for work again.

P/S: HJ - for your vacation, you can meet Stephen first in Melbourne, then join me in Sydney and follow us back to Auckland if you like. xoxo

When should we go home?

Stephen and I are deciding when we should return home to Singapore for a vacation. Now that I'm gonna start work, my schedule isn't all that flexible and I haven't have that many annual leave days this year. So after much deliberation, here are our options:

1. Last week of October for a week. Looking at 24th Oct to 1st Nov.
2. Christmas week 19th Dec to 3rd Jan.

When we come back will be largely dependent on whether you guys will be coming over at the end of the year for summer. Because if you guys are coming over for summer in Dec, we'll go with option 1 and stay in Auckland for Christmas and head home to Singapore for CNY. Else if no one is coming over for Christmas, we'll be heading back to Singapore.

So let us know if you're coming over in Dec, so we can go ahead and book our tix home. That goes for you Huijie, Cliff, Mom, Dad, PL and family.

Mugshot of Canine Criminal.

All remorseful and giving the wide-eyed i-didn't-do-it-it-wasn't-me look.

Back in the Rat Race.

As many of you know, I've been job hunting for the last month. Days were spent sitting in front of my trusty laptop, sending out resumes after resumes, and going for a string of interviews. Well the search has ended. I was offered a job and after some fruitless negotiation, have gone ahead and accepted the offer. I'm due to start on the 28th of this month.

I have mixed feelings about going back to work. I'm definitely looking forward to being financial independent, meeting new people, learning but then again, there'll be always be the inevitable jerk at work, office politics, the unavoidable Monday blues...

Anyhow, I think I'll do okay. I'll be in Sydney for two weeks for a buisness trip and am hoping to catch up with a couple of friends there, shop around, do some sightseeing. Hope I'll be able to get back into the humdrum of working life again without too much of a shock to my system.

Auckland --> Raglan --> Waitomo

We took a road trip a couple of months back before dreary winter descended upon NZ and we came across some nice waterfalls, lots of farm animals and gorgeous scenery.

We were on our way to Waitomo but made a detour and pulled over at Bridal Veil fall, simply because of its name. There's a nice hiking trail that leads to the falls but unfortunately we didn't see any tragic brides moaning and haunting the trail and were a tad disappointed.


Carried onwards to Raglan beach. This is one of NZ's many surf beaches. What's special about this surf town is that the beaches here have black sand (just like Lembeh Straits in Manado).


We drove towards Waitomo where the area is famous for it's glowworm caves. I couldn't take pictures of the caves nor the glowworms but managed to get nice shots of the area instead. I am constantly amazed at the vast expanse of space in this country. It goes on for as far as the eye can see.


We found this farm with enough animals to put Old Macdonald to shame. That's a pet goat by the way. He even has his own little kennel to sleep in.

There was a bison standing by the fence but no way was I going to go near enough to take a photo. I want to keep all of my limbs.