I'm proud to be a nurse

I had bumped into Tina and Cheong (my nursing classmates) early this year and arranged for a meet-up immediately thereafter. But well things happened and the meet-up never materialized. I was thus assigned the task of arranging a 2nd one.

Then recently out of the blue, I received a call from Cheong telling me to go for a meet-up. He says that if they had to count on me, the wait would be indefinite. (Sadly I do have to agree with him. *sheepish*) Hee.... hee..... I had no idea that time flew by so fast.

The gathering happened last Friday in Mt Faber Safra. A quick count down and we realised that's its been a good 10 years since we last left school and the last since I saw most of them. It wasn't some big scale gathering, just a couple of us that we were close to (or rather that Cheong was close to :p). Everyone still looked pretty much the same and all doing very well in their own fields, be it nursing or sales.

There were a few of them that I don't know very well but seen them in the school compound. Problem is that most don't recognize me despite that I do recognize them. Alright perhaps I should clarify myself here, before you mistake them for snubs. The thing is that I am hardly in school and so it's no wonder I am practically non-existent to most people. The only thing that they remembered was my school attire. I was forever in T-shirt, shorts, sneakers and a small waist pouch holding my neccessities for school, which consists of 3 pieces of rolled-up foolscap papers and a pen. (I believe in travelling light :p) Thank God for Constance, if not I would never have scraped it through Poly - for marking my attendance and handing over her detailed notes. Haha........

Inevitably with all gatherings, the group will end up gossiping/ updating about the rest from the batch. I would usually give them a blank stare when they talked about so & so and they would try very hard to jolt my memory by descibing to me what that person looks like. So much so that it prompted them to tease me relentlessly about skipping classes so much and asked me if I'm utterly bored at the gathering since I'm clueless about most of whom they spoke about.

And guess being nurses, we could never stray far from medical topics. Some provided updates on the latest medical techniques and trend. I learnt that resuscitation is no longer 15:2 but 30:2 (pumps:breaths). I felt that I was getting so out of touch with nursing.

And of course we would reminisce about our school days. The things that they (noticed I mention they? I was never there to partake in their activities) get up to was hilarious. Not your imagined stereo-typed geeky student nurses. And hearing about Cheong describe his 1st hospital attachment was enough to send us rolling on the floor with laughter. He talked about how he had to clean a patient's ass and how the smell totally floored him. He had never imagined it to be as such and ended up with 3 masks on his face, trying to keep as much smell out as much as possible. It was then he starting thinking whether he made the right career choice. I guess it was pretty much at the same time that sets most of us thinking if we made the right move.

Hearing him, made me think about the first time that I had to clean shit. Definitely not the most pleasant experience that one would have. However I am glad to say like Cheong, I have improved. From 3 masks and 2 gloves, I am now able to do it without mask and sometimes even without gloves. I can see all of you going eeeewwwwww .......... But I am proud to say I cleaned ass for a living.

None of us ever regretted taking up nursing. I know I'm no longer one now but I dare say once a nurse, always a nurse!

Marchze , Cheong, Constance & me.

Tina, Yvonne (Cheong's wife), Constance, Ai Choo (March's wife) and me. I think it's really sweet that the 2 couples got to know each other in school and are actually married with kids now.

After the restaurant closed, we adjourned to the hawker centre across the road to continue our conversation. (Too ulu to go anywhere else.)

My 'benefactor', Constance with March's daughter - time to get your own gal :p

P.S. To Clifford (in case you're reading this) - Where in the world have you gone to??!! I was searching high and low for you. Give me a buzz !

OUCH!!!

OMG ......... I think my bones are falling apart! I have never knew pain to be a painful as this. Every single step or even as much as lifting a finger sends excruciating pain through my body. If I wasn't allergic to most pain killers, I would gladly pop one in to alleviate my agony.

Well you see ........... I went wakeboarding yesterday :p And I haven't wakeboard in 6 years (nor any intense sports for that matter). I know you guys think I'm being drama mama again but the truth is I'M IN SUCH FREAKING PAIN! What's more, plus my burnt back and arms, OUCH! No joke. I was never the athletic sort and my muscles were always kinda neglected. Coupled with age, wakeboarding I found out, can be quite a deadly combination.

I was jolted awake in the middle of the night when I tried to change my sleeping position and tuck my arm under my head. I thought that I had twisted my arm in the process. That's when I came to the realisation that the effects of the wakeboarding had set in, just as everyone had assured me it would.

In any case, I am really glad I went. They told me it's akin to riding a bicycle, once you know it, you never forget. And how true it is :) I managed to take off from where I left it 6 years ago. It still beats me where I found the courage to take up wakeboarding. I'm a big scaredy cat with the hugest phobia of water. Yes in short, I can't swim for nuts. *hangs head in shame* And other than my phobia, I'm also the laziest kind of person you can ever find. I will shun anything that remotely needs me to utilize my muscle.

Now that I'm back in the game, in spite of the pain, I'm going to stick with it. So you can expect a very trim me in the very near future! *winks* Hahaha...........

With the gang from FJC

All aboard!

Jermaine, Chris, Ken, William & Benny

Please pretend that you didn't see the extremely mismatched shorts

Meg loves playing with the water

Ken getting his intructions

And off he goes

He was very proud that he managed to stay on for quite a while

Getting up is the crux

Wakeboarding champ in the making :p

Splash! And down I go! Hahaha.......

Toothless grin

Megan dropped her 1st tooth yesterday! She noticed that it was loose a couple of days ago and found that it had progressively worsened. She got extremely paranoid and was on the verge of crying when she found that she could twist her teeth almost 360 degress.

Then the most feared truly happened. We were taking a walk in Vivio City's Toys R' Us and then she simply turned to me with her tooth in her hand. I think I was in more shock than she is. It was so crowded (extremely packed) and I tried to whisk her away as quick as I can to wash up. She was extremely proud of herself that she didn't cry over it. (I'm so proud of her too.)

That poor girl had everything happening to her in 1 day. She had a flu and was running a fever, and a couple of minutes before her tooth came off, her left eye turned red with lots of discharges (we later found out it's conjunctivitis which eventually spread to both eyes) and now she had lost her tooth.

The dropped tooth became her prized possession and I told her the story about the tooth fairy. When she found a $2 bill under her pillow the next day, she was so astonished that the story actually came true and immediately dragged the maid into the room (whilst I'm still sleeping) to tell her of her good fortune. I think she was really in awe because she went around telling everyone how magical it was that the tooth fairy came to her. Hee hee ...........

My little girl has a small growing adult tooth in place of that baby tooth now. Wow......... adult tooth ........... my little girl is maybe not so little afterall now.

Showing off her toothless smile. Did you notice her sore red eye as well?

Met my family for dinner later that night

So funny ..........

So cute..........

Meg took this pic and insisted on this pose (she came up with it)

Uniz and a shock-looking Leto


Ken's thinking of selling his prized bike (email me if interested)

I think Meg is going to miss those short bike rides around the block

Matthew & Joelle's wedding

Drats! Sick again. My boss calls it the male virus (It took me quite a while to figure that one out.). That's because all the ones calling in sick are females! *shakes head* (Hee.....hee..... kinda hard to figure out his sense of humour sometimes.)

The doctor thinks it's probably because of the haze. I know I'm an eejit but I love the haze. I kept asking Ken whether will it get so bad that we don't have to go to work. :p

Feeling so restless and lethargic right now. Actually I must admit that I worked it (me being sick) to my full advantage though. Whenever I don't feel like moving, I just tell Ken and Meg to 'bring this or that to me please'. And if they refuse, I say 'but I'm sick.........' *looking all miserable* And hey presto, it's in my hands! I just so love to be pampered by them ;)

And before I forget that today's title is Matthew & Joelle's wedding, let me go on to the main topic. Matthew (Jialong) is Ken's cousin and we attended his wedding on Tuesday. Ken had a great time catching up with all the relatives. Only thing is that everyone kept asking when is it going to be our turn. It makes me wonder why this is getting to be so predictable at weddings.

And after the wedding dinner, we proceeded to join guys from FJC for coffee. It seems that our lives are starting to revolve around this group of friends now. And the next time I see them, we're going wake-boarding! So totally can't wait!

Matthew & Joelle

Luring his nephew with a glass of orange

Ken's cousin, Melissa

Ken's cousin, sweet Anabelle

And finally the man himself

The phone and Meg

Megan has a serious aversion to talking on the phone. I know there are some mummies out there who will make it a habit to call their little ones at home at least once a day when they are at work. But I've learnt not to do that with Megan.

She always makes me feel that whatever she's doing then, is more important than coming to the phone. So either she just refuses to pick it up or tell me that I am disturbing her with her play/TV or whatever. The only time that she will speak to me is when there is a specific request. So if I went into casual talk mode, like ask her how's her day, she will promptly tell me she needs to go.

I have no idea her aversion was so bad till recently when her classmate Joanna got hold of my mobile number. Joanna will call and the first thing Megan says to her is not even "hello" but "I have nothing to say to you Joanna!" Alright to be fair, Joanna does call quite a fair bit and it frustrates Meg no end.

Afterwich I will admonish Meg sternly and tell her to speak nicely to Joanna. She makes a half-hearted attempt.

Meg: "Hello Joanna......"

Joanna: "................." (since I don't know what Joanna replied.)

Meg: "Alright say you'll hang up now."

Joanna: "................." ( I would assume she said no.)

Meg: " Say YES!"

And so this would go on till Meg could take it no more and she throws the phone back to me, then she stalks off leaving me to entertain poor Joanna. -_-"' (And this scenario would replay itself a few times over the next few days.)

When I sat Megan down and ask her why doesn't she like to talk on the phone, she replied that she has nothing to say to her friends and besides (get this) her ear gets tired. Hahaha.........

Ken says we should record this conversation and play it back to her in another 5 years. Yah so true ...............

'Grand Old Dame' of Kallang

We were up bright and early on this Sunday morning (and this was after an extremely late night of karaoke with some of the FJC guys) for a noteworthy occassion. It's the Fit Jazz Club's annual photoshoot. However what was significant about it, is that the backdrop is the soon-to-be demolished National Stadium.

The idea of having a national stadium began about the same time when Singapore gained independence in 1965. 3 million bricks, 300,000 bags of cement, 20,000 pieces of plywood, 3,000 25m-long hexagonal concrete piles, 2,500 tons of steel, 2,000 tons of timber scaffolding later, the National Stadium first opened its gates on 21 Jul 1973. After 33 years, the National Stadium will be torn down next year to make way for a new Sports Hub. I don't know about you guys but I definitely have my share of memories of the National Stadium - the Kallang Wave and the Kallang Roar :)

We reached the stadium at 10 plus (we were very late due to last night's karaoke) and most people/cars were there already. By the time we end the shoot, it's already 2pm. It's definitely no mean feat trying to coordinate so many cars and it's made worse by the bad haze and humidity. But everyone was really patient and things were made more bearable by the cheerful bantering. There's so much good vibes around!

Definitely a memorable day.

DID YOU KNOW?

• That there is a time capsule containing newspapers, specimen coins and bank notes buried beneath the foundation stone of the west entrance steps laid by Dr Goh Keng Swee in 1970.

• That the 1st game to be held at the stadium was an international hockey match between Singapore & Australia in June 1973.

• That the last time of the Singapore-Malaysia Cup (Singapore & Perlis) was held at the stadium in 1975.

• That the first National Day Parade to be held at the stadium was in 1976. (Year I was born!)

• That in 1986, the late Pope John Paul II preached to a full stadium.

• That the stadium hosted the 17th SEA Games in 1993.

Forgot to bring my trusty camera to the Karaoke last night and had to make do with my handphone (but quality is awful cos of the dark). We've got a huge room with a projector! It's almost like a personal concert. Raymond in the limelight here. Got a hiliarious video of the guys but decided to let them off the hook and not embarrass them here :p They are so fun and spontaneous!

Gave up after taking a just few pics with the handphone

FJC Stadium photo shoot

An arduous project

Check out our ride - 3rd from the left

Going in for a close-up

We were walking up the steps of the stadium to get a better view when we noticed them walking up too and asked them to pose for a shot.

Then they unabashedly rallied for more people to join them - Ken rushed to join in as well

And out of the blue I see everyone running from different corners of the carpark to gather here (their action is sure very fast) and I suddenly have many cameras thrust at me to take photos for all of them. -_-"'

Yet another group photo

Now's our turn

Now let's play 'where's Esther?'

A bird's eye view

And the final result of today's hardwork ........

.

.

.

.

.

.

Ta Da!!!!!

.

.

.

.

.

Simply breathtaking

Aunty Mary's birthday

We celebrated Aunty Mary's birthday last night in the Thai Village Restaurant in Changi Village. And as always, I always enjoy myself when out with Ken's family.

I want to take this opportunity to say a big thank you to Aunty Mary (and of course Uncle Thomas too). She's one of the most amazing lady (and one amazing cook) that I have ever met. I don't think I will ever meet anyone with as big a heart as hers. Aunty Mary has helped me in so many ways and I will forever be indebted to her kindness. I am grateful that she has never judged me and instead welcome both Megan and me with open arms.

Happy birthday Aunty and I wish you all the best the world can give you because you deserve nothing but the best!

When I first met Ken, I thought that was one of the best thing that has happened to me but unbeknownst, there's a bonus to meeting Ken - Aunty Mary and rest of his family (extended families included). But well, some girls have all the luck! :p

Aunty Mary looking very radiant

Cutting the cake

A beautiful family

Growl!

I am having a full blown PMS. This is PMS at its worst. (You have no idea.........., you wouldn't want to cross my path right now.)

Other than the usual traits like extremely bad pimply skin, I am also unleashing my anger at every opportunity I get. It doesn't take very much for me to snap and I turn into one ugly snarling monster. I haven't a clue that I'm actually such an angry person. The worst part. The anger doesn't dissipate. It stays inside, a boiling rage, waiting to erupt again.

In retrospect, I am actually quite happy in fact, when someone steps on my tail and I get to bite that person's head off.

Mid Autumn Festival and Megan's birthday

I almost wept when I opened up blogger today. All the pics that I've spent a good hour uploading last night was all gone!

I had meant to post last night but find that I'm about as good as brain dead by the time I completed the uploading process (almost 2am) and couldn't write a single word. Therefore I saved as draft and now *sob* it's there no more!

And so here we go again ........ I wonder why it feels so much like Deja Vu.

Went to our regular Mid-Autumn Festival haunt at the playground

Look at all the toys that Meg brought with her

Imah took the photos for us and inspite of numerous attempts, this one turned out best

Imah & Meg playing happily with the sparklers

Up close & personal

Celebrated Meg's birthday in McDonalds' on Sunday. She was absolutely thrilled. But with 30 kids in the house, it nearly drove us crazy.

Gwen, her bestest friend
Playing musical chairs - it was so chaotic that that was all the game they got to play throughout the party. (Norm is 2-3 games)

The kids were really competitive - Joanna (extreme left) refused to budge from that chair throughout the game despite being scolded by her friends. Then those kids who were already out of the game kept rejoining the game (neverending). Finally when it was down to 3 chairs, all kids abandoned the game as non wants to lose. So all of a sudden, there's not a single kid partipating. We had to just drag 2 brothers out to complete it and name one winner.

Finally peace when they settled down for their food

Megan & Megan

With delightful Tricia who blends in with any crowd

Highlight of the day - a 3D Aurora cake (Handpicked by Meg of course)

Noticed they're all looking at one direction with a peculiar expression? Right - looking at a girl that was poking her finger into the cake. (Meg expressed great displeasure over this and stared daggers at her afterward :p)

Meg was so overwhelmed by everyone shouting around her that she totally clamped up and remain sullen during the cake-cutting

Singing the birthday song

Moved to the front to blow the candles

Cutting the cake (she refused to let me hold her hand while cutting)

Oops Erica's not in the picture cos she's the camera woman - completely forgot

We simply adore her despite that very sullen face

Now all cheered up at home after opening all her pressies (which is alot!)

Nothing better than a heart warming pic to end the post. (I have no idea how they took this without help, only discovered this when I uploaded everything)

P.S. Sorry dear Mar & Ju, I was an awful host on Sunday.