I hope she likes this. Because I very much do.

That was when all hell broke loose. Especially when we found out (unfortunately) that the louder you are, the better your grades were.

So my pals went from singing..

To squeezing every ounce of breathe they had in their pathetically puny lungs.

It was loud. Really really loud.

A-gal’s domestic helper packed her bags and threatened to leave the house for good. A-gal’s dog dug a deep hole in the garden and flung himself inside. It was that scary.

But at least someone was happy with his performance.

Life has been crazy these weeks, with company auditors whipping my arse and boxes waiting hungrily at home to be packed. Packing to move I can understand since it’s inevitable but which masochistic person invented this company auditing system anyway?

Back to packing. Oh gosh, where do I start. And I’m not even a hoarder in the first place.  It is a horrible, painful and back-breakingly tiring task. Except that I found some of these pretty crockery which once belonged to Grandma.
……… ok so I AM a hoarder. Happy?

But how can you throw away something as pretty as this?

or this?

or something as airy fairy as her?

I thought these were so cool too, in a kitschy but decent way.

I like old hand me downs because I like to imagine the stories behind them. Who used these before? Did granny throw parties then with these? What had she served in them? Who ate them? When? Where?

Seriously, who needs fine china and exquisite porcelein if you have these oldies that tells you stories as you eat. :)

It’s new! It’s exciting! It’s finally up! K-gal’s webshop has some of the most unique, interesting stuff out there. She has painstakingly taken many many months (or was it years K?) to scout for indie artisans around the world and their creations, and putting it together all by herself.  The end result is a delightful mix of fun, quirky, handmade-with-love crafts that you probably can’t find elsewhere.

Happy shopping!

I think A-gal’s a natural at sports. She’s getting ready for..

a somersault…

then she does a cartwheel..

She can also do volleyball serves…

and she touches her toes on the trampoline..

just because she can!

Definitely a happy sports.

I am back! You must have missed me terribly, haven’t you?

Hello? hello?

Anybody out there??

Yooooohoooooooo…….

*crickets chirping*

Anyway, this trip to Shanghai had been quite amazing. I had the funnest time I ever had with the girls, ate the best pizza in Asia..

(the zagat rated Kitchen Salvatore Cuomo), and learnt more than I ever did in a short week. Shanghai charms like she always had, with her old..


and her new..

(a Gaudi wannabe?)

K-gal and I also found quite a few interesting indie designer shops at An Fu Road.

Among them this cute, whimsical cafe named after the owner’s daughter, Mia.

We visited the gallery when we had time..


before immersing ourselves in plotting for world domination.

Until I met him, who took my heart away…

But unfortunately, I couldn’t handle this amount of cuteness.
And so I ran back to..

where my heart really belongs.

I heard there is a sale at Mah Motors for those who are interested. Especially if you’re a hardcore Triumph fan like me Daddy.

We went back to the old hometown last weekend. Every trip back has always been an exhilarating one and this one is no different. Catching up with my folks over overflowing tables of food, I noticed that while some things are not the same anymore, there are others that have thankfully remained the same.

My favourite aunty for instance, has despite her age continued to deliver her mind blowing array of gastronomic delights. Every dish is painstakingly handmade herself, with every gram of food passing the most stringent of inspections. If there is a Malaccan version of Nigella, it has got to be her. Only better.

My run down kampong is still as run down. We ate half of our dinner in the dark and without ventilation, because the electricity had tripped. The staff in the restaurant were totally deadpan about it as well. I can only guess that we were considered lucky because at least we had lights and fans during the first half of dinner. Things like that would have put me off before but as I look back, it’s all but part of the charm of village life. It’s these uncertainties that made us thankful for the times when we had running water and food on the table.

As I watched my cousins’ kids playing with their own cousins, it dawned upon me that not so long ago (or at least it seems), that was me and my cousins. Every chance to get together was one precious opportunity for frolicking in the outdoors, with no recollection of responsibilities nor restrictions. I remember that holiday when we “harvested” vegetables, “cooked” them in a makeshift hawker cart, and forcing the rest to “buy” our culinary breakthrough. Good thing I was not evil enough then to force them to eat it as well.

I might now. :)

Thankfully I did not poison them then. How else could I witness such cute things that they fathered.

My brother loves to hold kids hostage.

Speaking of kids, they love us.

See, what did I tell you about kids loving us…

Aunty’s organic garden. Yum!

Bad Pitt and his retro but trusty C70.

Badgelina spotted in the kampong.

Evidently not anymore. My soul feels disturbed and unbalanced as I see this whilst I drag my weary body to work this morning.