Goodbye and enjoy the swim

This is severely delayed... I was back home in SG for a week. Why?  I flew home for my grandma. 

She passed away in late May at the ripe old age of 88. Got back just in time to say a final goodbye, though logically speaking, she was already gone. 

I used to be terrified of my grandma when I was a kid. I had this impression that she was super strict and fierce. An impression created by my parents... when I bit my nails, didn't finish my food, procrastinate over homework, picked on my brother, refused to go to bed... the threat was to send me to my grandma's house. Never happened of course. But it effectively made me think of her as the Dragon lady.  

Only in recent years did I discover that she wasn't that "dragonly". True, she seemed a little grouchy. But I think most old folks are like that. She was in fact a person who was very determined to live life on her own terms, determining what she ate, wore, shopped, prayed and which maid she got stuck with. Some of the stories my aunts and dad tell me of her antics are just hilarious. The underlying message I got from each story though, was this was one tough and crafty lady who didn't care what others thought. She held firmly on the reins of where life was taking her and she wasn't gonna take no order from her 7 children.  

I admired her for that. She lived the way she thought best, refusing to become a burden to anyone and retaining a rather wry sense of humor that I only learned to appreciate in the last few years. She's gone now, ashes scattered in the sea and all as per her instructions 9 see... even to the last, things had to be done her way ). I just want to say her feisty spirit will be missed. 

Flashback

My sis goes home tomorrow... boohoo... 

Here's a "now vs then" moment: 

 

The monkey on the left is my bro....who now towers above all of us at over 1.8m tall. Sigh... so sad to be short

2 mins for myself

It's a crazy week at work. I almost ( only almost) feel like crying from frustration. Last evening I had a pounding headache after a full day event. I still had a pile of work to finish but the throbbing was too much. I went to bed. 

Woke at 6.30am this morning to try and complete the work ( an impossibility) . Stupid deadline's Friday morning. I still haven't finished it of course. Just taking this 2 mins for myself to vent my frustration somewhere. Guess I'll have to work late again today cos there's no way of completing 3 proposals by Friday with 4 meetings today. 1 of which I am sure is going to be long and useless. 

My consolations this morning - eating one of my precious ang ku kuehs and hugging the cats. 

Airflown kueh delivered by mum, dad & sis

My parents & sis arrive in Beijing tonight! Yay! I hear my dad's bringing bazhang for Dan. 

I have instructed my sis to bring ang ku kueh. That seems to be the kueh I miss eating most... nothing like a piece of ang ku kueh from the little shop across from Queensway shopping centre... the old Teochew aunties make super kuehs!  Dan likes their soon kueh and that pink thing stuffed with rice ( i can't bring myself to eat that for some strange reason). We used to drop by the shop on weekends cos it's near our place, and have kueh for tea, followed by an evening run around our estate. 

Oh to be able to jog outdoors again! 

Calm

It's occurred to me that I haven't actually lost my temper in a long long while. That's a good thing I guess. I get irritated, annoyed but not angry.  The thought struck me earlier today just as I was informed of a last min meeting. I was mildly irritated. This client seems to take it for granted that we're at their beck and call. Doubly annoying because they aren't paying to have us work full time on the account but expect us to. My other account then suffers a little. Thank goodness I have a great team working on that other account. 

Anyway, back to anger. Obviously I can't get angry and scream at a client :P. Now that would be the day! I think the last time I was truly angry was over 5 yrs ago and i can't even remember what I was angry about. I used to snap at the smallest things, like my siblings moving things in my room, talking loudly in the morning, misaligned press releases, rescheduled meetings, no coffee in the morning... anything would set me off. I would get snippy, bang things around, yell at someone, give bad attitude. These days, I've learnt to relax. Think its thanks to Dan who's always calm and logical.  

Workwise, its inevitable that some clients try to "abuse" you. Instead of getting angry and stewing inside, Dan has taught me to think " Heck it. I don't need this shit. if you're being unreasonable, then don't expect me to put up with it.". i have to agree with Dan. heck it. 

A palette of wines at Palette Vino

We read about the new Palette Vino in City Weekend recently and decided to give it a try. The food reviews weren't that great but what attracted us  was the extensive wine list. 

So off we went. If you haven't been to the restaurant, then looking for it is quite a hassle cos it's located within a very local hutong. Our cabbie stopped us on the wrong end of the road and we spent the next 15mins meandering through a dusty hutong with tonnes of construction. On the bright side, it was interesting being a voyeur and looking into people's homes :P

The restaurant was a tiny place with seats for about 20 people ( including seats in the courtyard). Any more and I'm sure we'll be sitting along the walkway with the old men and their chess sets. The food was reasonably priced at 98rmb for a 3 course meal or 118rmb for 4 courses.  At 3 courses, you get to choose a salad, a pasta and main course. The fourth course is dessert.  I had the bacon wrapped grilled chicken with greens, shrimp pasta shells and grilled lamb chops. Food was alright. Not something to bowl you over but definitely tasty. Dan had the beef ribs which seemed a little bland. And Miss Qoo had grilled salmon which she said was ok too.

What I really liked was the large variety of wine by the glass. Allows you to try several different types of wine without breaking the bank. You could get a glass for 35RMB or 40RMB.  There were at least 5 reds and 5 whites to select from. The list of wines by the bottle was truly quite extensive- prices started from 190RMb for a bottle. 

I liked the fact that all the wine was on display in the dining area. Feels as if you're dining in a cosy wine cellar. Dan was like a kid in a candy store, examining all the wines, seeing a few that he hasn't been able to get previously in Beijing. You can almost see the thought bubble above him, " Where to start? Where to start? So much wine, so little time (and money haha)" 

Will I come back? Yes I would just to chill out and enjoy the wine and good company. It's a great place to hang out in summer. 

Address: 5 Dong Si Shi Yi Tiao 东四十一条5号

Tel: 6405 4855 

Where is H&M Qianmen??

Tried to find it today after lunch. Failed. Was with a very irate Daniel who hates shopping, hates heat and hates it even more when you can't find a place. So we got off the cab at some weird place and took the subway home.  

Miss Qoo said I should go to the branch at Joy City but I figured, Xidan is an even worse place to go on Sunday. Lousy traffic and you can't even get onto the subway.