Easy Breezy
13th March 2006, Monday
The title might sounds nonsensical yet the songbird, Utada Hikaru used it in one of her leading track in her recent all English album...and I found it suitable to described the proceedings over the past few days....
First a rather lacklusture Monday morning as everyone' grim expression was enough to describe the mood for the start of the week and apparently like myself, everyone might have a chronic lack of good rest over the weekends...One pleasant note would be the school holidays has began and you don't to see school children scrambling to school, hindering our own journey to work and hopefully the situation in the evening when I make my way back would be as good...
My productive weekend with my lass began on Friday evening as we had scheduled to dropby the IT show 2006 but got there rather late after she had knocked off from work.
Bascially I was down to like half an hour to decide on a suitable LCD monitor that would fulfill my requirements as well as my budget.
My task was made easier with all the major brands on the same exhibition hall but I still had to romp my way through the crowd...
After a dilemma on Samsung, Viewsonic or LG, I decided to get a 19 inch one from Viewsonic due to the fact that I am paying lesser for a bigger screen with much high-end specs that the other 2 could not offer despite in terms of design my newly acquisition looks much heftier, can only move forward and back and came with built-in speakers which was pretty well concealed in the black colored edition I had picked.
We then proceed to the Samsung LCD TV section to scout on a wanted item for our room and despite the fact that it was seconds before the exhibition came to a close that evening, it didn't take long for the sale guy from Best Denki side of the booth to convince us to make a purchase for a 26 inch TV which we had been well captivated for a long while now..Basically the price is right plus additional goodies like Robinson's & Cold Storage vouchers been thrown in as well as the free wall mounting by the Samsung people which is the main reason that caught my attention as a proper wall mounting session would incur a cost of $199 at other instances.
However we had to spend a good amount of time filling in 51 lucky draw coupons to win a trip to Disneyland Hong Kong (wow..so tempting) as well as going for a "spin the wheel" pick for some novelty items to award you for spending with Best Denki...
In the end, my lass who wanted a humongous laptop luggage got 3 of those which meant we had to lug 3 huge bags with my monitor back later...
So with the damage done we went down to Marina Square to have dinner at Carl's Jr Fast Food restaurant.
It was like close to 10pm but the crowd in the joint was undeterred by the late timing since it was Friday and with the free-flow soft drink included in each combo set, each table occupied by groups of friends would be able to chat to their hearty delight while poor us had to scavenge for a seat to alleviate our hunger as both of us had yet a bite since lunch.
The food was great despite the hefty price and that my girl would whine about me not buying the "Low Carbohydrate" chicken burger she had requested nor getting the criss-kruss fries which I was certain I ordered but getting some kind of veggie harsh brown coins instead.
It surely made sense for us carrying such load to hail a cab to bring us back to the comfort our home but on a Friday evening in town you can forget about hailing one with a click of your fingers.
Even dialing for one was in vain, which led us to take a bus ride home...
So from outside Esplanade, we took Bus 857 which supposed to be the fastest bus service from Marina up to Yishun but the waiting process significantly made up for the time saved I'm sure.
It was an ordeal manuveoring in the crowded bus with the load we were carrying but soon we hit Rochor Canal, we managed to find a 2 seaters yet the monitor's packaging box was too huge to stuff into the leg space, resulting in it toppling when the "driver from hell" made a sharp turn during the journey while I was dozing off, and my muscles relaxing from grasping the box in place.
Saturday was a thoroughly long day which began with us proceeding to the bridal shop to confirm the design of her gown and tea dress which under the skillful hands and creative mind of the feminine designer, Ivan (who was spotted tying whatever bunch of hair he had on the back into a minute ponytail) was enough to satisfy both of us, however the embroidery which was crucial for a special one of the kind gown cost a bomb...
The dress for the ROM was a nice sullen pink number which was why Ivan suggested me getting a pink shirt to compliment her.
I had not issue caught donning in pink, however I did felt justifiable to get a shirt which I would seldom need to wear just for the ROM.
The solution would be getting a pink tie instead.
After the paying for the 2nd instalment of the package which should be close to reaching my monthly credit limit after the LCD TV the night before, we adjourned to the nearby International Plaza where I was to get a pair of stilts..I mean elevated heels so that I would not be totally dwarved by her with her 3 inch heels.
So we came to this small male shoes boutique known as "Men @ Walk" where a rather rotund and hospitable boss, Kelvin guided us through the selection to meet our needs.
I felt weird wearing high heels (and really high with my heel 8.5 cm off the ground!) which the guy from another shopping couple there could testify.
It was abit restricting to the movements but I should be able to get to the hang of it after a few wearing sessions.
So we little hesistation we got what we one, a nice pair of black leather with squarish tips.
Next destination for us would be Orchard where my lass wanted to check what has been hindering her radio set from been picking up from her iPod.
En route, we dropped by "Pepper Lunch" at Isten Scotts where my lass savored nice peppered salmon with rice served on a simmering hot plate which geared her enough energy to carry the remaining of the day through.
So at the iPod service counter at Wheelock, it took a good 15 minutes before we could raise our concern to the vibrant assistant at the counter and as I had depicted it was due to the downgrading of the firmware to enable us to watch video without glitches that was incompartible for the radio set usage.
My lass was satisfied with the explaination and willing to stay tune for further updates from Apple in terms of new firmware which can solve the video problem yet allows her to tune into radio with her set.
The time was past 5pm when we made it to La Tendo where I was to collect a newly-arrived item and Karen and Ferris who were not here last week was seen while Chan not present this time round. Our stint there was around an hour plus which was negligible for my standard but with my poor girl dozing off due to the fatigue from walking from one place to another, I decided to head for the final destination (nothing to do with "Death" finding some teenagers from escaping from it) which is the IT Show once again.
This time round our objective would be a DVD recorder to compliment our LCD TV (yes we are living a high life).
But it was a stopby at the Harvey Norman store at Suntec where my lass had originally intended to get some more vouchers which she owed for Jack's housewarming; but in the end we found a nice slim DVD recorder from LG at a very attractive price.
Thinking that the same item could be found in the show, we were dumbfounded when unlike Samsung, Panasonic and Pioneer, LG decided not to present their selection of DVD recorders and we did not manage to make another purchase on the show.
However it did not stop my lass to get a couple of items for her computing needs before we headed home, once more on the infamous Bus 857.
Sunday was a much toned down affair as after my RT session in the early morning, I joined my parents and my lass to Chong Pang to hunt for another crucial accessory for our nest..the lightings.
Unimaginable that in the heartland we were able to find a rather elaborative selection in this retailer called "Friends Lightings" and once more it didn't take us long to nail on a Zen style ceiling light with 3 light tubes which should endowed me with enough lighting I would need as well as a Japanese style hanging lantern with warm and fuzzy lightning for my lass' work station by the bed.
It's good to have mom around who managed to bargain in her own way to make the price seemingly more fitting to my much-constrained budget.
We had intended to check on the tap, basin and mirror for our toilet but little did we realized that the shopowners too felt Sunday should be reserve for family, lazing in front of TV showing yawn-inducing drama from China and basically not willing to open for business.
Then brunch at the hawker center which is like the epitome for hustle and bustle for the people in Yishun for Sunday breakfast and other groceries.
There was a bunch of people from the Worker's Party, a prominent opposition political party hoping to win some votes before the general election. My dad, being always wretching about the government, took an intricate session going through the brouchure for the rest of the day.
My "brokeback mountain" (the new hip acronym of gays) furnishing contractor came as promised to go through the final details for our furnishing needs.
Basically he got what we wanted the last time round except some adjustment to the measurement such as the height of the bed frame which my lass now wanted slightly elevated to equip the bed drawers with ample space for additional storage.
We also adjusted the side table for her workstation from the bed which at first seemed too small for comfort.
Then came the crucial part which my dad who might not be Kevin Spacey in the "Negotiater" managed to ask for a better price package and after almost no tussle nor bloodshed, the spouse of the contractor whom I had commented been a shrewd assistant agreed on a reduction of $300 (though we had intended to go for yet another $100 discount) which was pleasing to my ears...
Now as Dad suggested to them to begin the first stage of the renovation beginning with the shoe rack and my display cabinet for the living room area before we go work on the rooms which make sense as my parents as well as my lass unanimously agreed upon the fact that the migration of my army of miniature figurines would take much more time and effort than the whole moving process itself.
It's amazing how smooth it had been with getting the outstanding issues for my wedding to come into place especially with my lass almost certain to fly to Italy mid next month... now I am just geared for the realization of all these issues which I believe should be able to satisfy both of our needs.
Well a rather short week for me with a mid week break which I was compelled to take to submit the documents to the registry before our actual solemnization next week.
Then Eriko and Sou hiting town in the weekend..should be fun especially with the fact that we are still clueless about going to the places we had intended to bring them..and 20 bucks for a visit of the Night Safari definitely seems a wee bit too obvious to sap visitors' money...
Also caught up with some of my close friends over the weekend...
Cheryl had confirmed her spring trip to Japan and it is scarily resembling my 2000 trip with a flight on ANA, hotel stay at Sunshine Prince Hotel at Ikebukuro and a proposed visit to Mount Fuji.
TW is gearing for his truimphant return in May...not really...just a short return for his sister's solemnization ceremony and had been an eager beaver in wondering if I wanted anything back from Japan..especially a C2 version of Kasumi from Max Factory for just 2000 yen (around $28)..
A steal definitely but will act pressure to the little display capacity I had at the moment for sure...
Well basically I would be glad to just have him back...
But yet another member of my wrecking crew went missing once more...yes Pepsiman is AWOL once more after no answer of my calls on Friday and no reply from my question via SMS on Saturday...
I believe my friends like myself might have a great "easy breezy" weekend as well...
The title might sounds nonsensical yet the songbird, Utada Hikaru used it in one of her leading track in her recent all English album...and I found it suitable to described the proceedings over the past few days....
First a rather lacklusture Monday morning as everyone' grim expression was enough to describe the mood for the start of the week and apparently like myself, everyone might have a chronic lack of good rest over the weekends...One pleasant note would be the school holidays has began and you don't to see school children scrambling to school, hindering our own journey to work and hopefully the situation in the evening when I make my way back would be as good...
My productive weekend with my lass began on Friday evening as we had scheduled to dropby the IT show 2006 but got there rather late after she had knocked off from work.
Bascially I was down to like half an hour to decide on a suitable LCD monitor that would fulfill my requirements as well as my budget.
My task was made easier with all the major brands on the same exhibition hall but I still had to romp my way through the crowd...
After a dilemma on Samsung, Viewsonic or LG, I decided to get a 19 inch one from Viewsonic due to the fact that I am paying lesser for a bigger screen with much high-end specs that the other 2 could not offer despite in terms of design my newly acquisition looks much heftier, can only move forward and back and came with built-in speakers which was pretty well concealed in the black colored edition I had picked.
We then proceed to the Samsung LCD TV section to scout on a wanted item for our room and despite the fact that it was seconds before the exhibition came to a close that evening, it didn't take long for the sale guy from Best Denki side of the booth to convince us to make a purchase for a 26 inch TV which we had been well captivated for a long while now..Basically the price is right plus additional goodies like Robinson's & Cold Storage vouchers been thrown in as well as the free wall mounting by the Samsung people which is the main reason that caught my attention as a proper wall mounting session would incur a cost of $199 at other instances.
However we had to spend a good amount of time filling in 51 lucky draw coupons to win a trip to Disneyland Hong Kong (wow..so tempting) as well as going for a "spin the wheel" pick for some novelty items to award you for spending with Best Denki...
In the end, my lass who wanted a humongous laptop luggage got 3 of those which meant we had to lug 3 huge bags with my monitor back later...
So with the damage done we went down to Marina Square to have dinner at Carl's Jr Fast Food restaurant.
It was like close to 10pm but the crowd in the joint was undeterred by the late timing since it was Friday and with the free-flow soft drink included in each combo set, each table occupied by groups of friends would be able to chat to their hearty delight while poor us had to scavenge for a seat to alleviate our hunger as both of us had yet a bite since lunch.
The food was great despite the hefty price and that my girl would whine about me not buying the "Low Carbohydrate" chicken burger she had requested nor getting the criss-kruss fries which I was certain I ordered but getting some kind of veggie harsh brown coins instead.
It surely made sense for us carrying such load to hail a cab to bring us back to the comfort our home but on a Friday evening in town you can forget about hailing one with a click of your fingers.
Even dialing for one was in vain, which led us to take a bus ride home...
So from outside Esplanade, we took Bus 857 which supposed to be the fastest bus service from Marina up to Yishun but the waiting process significantly made up for the time saved I'm sure.
It was an ordeal manuveoring in the crowded bus with the load we were carrying but soon we hit Rochor Canal, we managed to find a 2 seaters yet the monitor's packaging box was too huge to stuff into the leg space, resulting in it toppling when the "driver from hell" made a sharp turn during the journey while I was dozing off, and my muscles relaxing from grasping the box in place.
Saturday was a thoroughly long day which began with us proceeding to the bridal shop to confirm the design of her gown and tea dress which under the skillful hands and creative mind of the feminine designer, Ivan (who was spotted tying whatever bunch of hair he had on the back into a minute ponytail) was enough to satisfy both of us, however the embroidery which was crucial for a special one of the kind gown cost a bomb...
The dress for the ROM was a nice sullen pink number which was why Ivan suggested me getting a pink shirt to compliment her.
I had not issue caught donning in pink, however I did felt justifiable to get a shirt which I would seldom need to wear just for the ROM.
The solution would be getting a pink tie instead.
After the paying for the 2nd instalment of the package which should be close to reaching my monthly credit limit after the LCD TV the night before, we adjourned to the nearby International Plaza where I was to get a pair of stilts..I mean elevated heels so that I would not be totally dwarved by her with her 3 inch heels.
So we came to this small male shoes boutique known as "Men @ Walk" where a rather rotund and hospitable boss, Kelvin guided us through the selection to meet our needs.
I felt weird wearing high heels (and really high with my heel 8.5 cm off the ground!) which the guy from another shopping couple there could testify.
It was abit restricting to the movements but I should be able to get to the hang of it after a few wearing sessions.
So we little hesistation we got what we one, a nice pair of black leather with squarish tips.
Next destination for us would be Orchard where my lass wanted to check what has been hindering her radio set from been picking up from her iPod.
En route, we dropped by "Pepper Lunch" at Isten Scotts where my lass savored nice peppered salmon with rice served on a simmering hot plate which geared her enough energy to carry the remaining of the day through.
So at the iPod service counter at Wheelock, it took a good 15 minutes before we could raise our concern to the vibrant assistant at the counter and as I had depicted it was due to the downgrading of the firmware to enable us to watch video without glitches that was incompartible for the radio set usage.
My lass was satisfied with the explaination and willing to stay tune for further updates from Apple in terms of new firmware which can solve the video problem yet allows her to tune into radio with her set.
The time was past 5pm when we made it to La Tendo where I was to collect a newly-arrived item and Karen and Ferris who were not here last week was seen while Chan not present this time round. Our stint there was around an hour plus which was negligible for my standard but with my poor girl dozing off due to the fatigue from walking from one place to another, I decided to head for the final destination (nothing to do with "Death" finding some teenagers from escaping from it) which is the IT Show once again.
This time round our objective would be a DVD recorder to compliment our LCD TV (yes we are living a high life).
But it was a stopby at the Harvey Norman store at Suntec where my lass had originally intended to get some more vouchers which she owed for Jack's housewarming; but in the end we found a nice slim DVD recorder from LG at a very attractive price.
Thinking that the same item could be found in the show, we were dumbfounded when unlike Samsung, Panasonic and Pioneer, LG decided not to present their selection of DVD recorders and we did not manage to make another purchase on the show.
However it did not stop my lass to get a couple of items for her computing needs before we headed home, once more on the infamous Bus 857.
Sunday was a much toned down affair as after my RT session in the early morning, I joined my parents and my lass to Chong Pang to hunt for another crucial accessory for our nest..the lightings.
Unimaginable that in the heartland we were able to find a rather elaborative selection in this retailer called "Friends Lightings" and once more it didn't take us long to nail on a Zen style ceiling light with 3 light tubes which should endowed me with enough lighting I would need as well as a Japanese style hanging lantern with warm and fuzzy lightning for my lass' work station by the bed.
It's good to have mom around who managed to bargain in her own way to make the price seemingly more fitting to my much-constrained budget.
We had intended to check on the tap, basin and mirror for our toilet but little did we realized that the shopowners too felt Sunday should be reserve for family, lazing in front of TV showing yawn-inducing drama from China and basically not willing to open for business.
Then brunch at the hawker center which is like the epitome for hustle and bustle for the people in Yishun for Sunday breakfast and other groceries.
There was a bunch of people from the Worker's Party, a prominent opposition political party hoping to win some votes before the general election. My dad, being always wretching about the government, took an intricate session going through the brouchure for the rest of the day.
My "brokeback mountain" (the new hip acronym of gays) furnishing contractor came as promised to go through the final details for our furnishing needs.
Basically he got what we wanted the last time round except some adjustment to the measurement such as the height of the bed frame which my lass now wanted slightly elevated to equip the bed drawers with ample space for additional storage.
We also adjusted the side table for her workstation from the bed which at first seemed too small for comfort.
Then came the crucial part which my dad who might not be Kevin Spacey in the "Negotiater" managed to ask for a better price package and after almost no tussle nor bloodshed, the spouse of the contractor whom I had commented been a shrewd assistant agreed on a reduction of $300 (though we had intended to go for yet another $100 discount) which was pleasing to my ears...
Now as Dad suggested to them to begin the first stage of the renovation beginning with the shoe rack and my display cabinet for the living room area before we go work on the rooms which make sense as my parents as well as my lass unanimously agreed upon the fact that the migration of my army of miniature figurines would take much more time and effort than the whole moving process itself.
It's amazing how smooth it had been with getting the outstanding issues for my wedding to come into place especially with my lass almost certain to fly to Italy mid next month... now I am just geared for the realization of all these issues which I believe should be able to satisfy both of our needs.
Well a rather short week for me with a mid week break which I was compelled to take to submit the documents to the registry before our actual solemnization next week.
Then Eriko and Sou hiting town in the weekend..should be fun especially with the fact that we are still clueless about going to the places we had intended to bring them..and 20 bucks for a visit of the Night Safari definitely seems a wee bit too obvious to sap visitors' money...
Also caught up with some of my close friends over the weekend...
Cheryl had confirmed her spring trip to Japan and it is scarily resembling my 2000 trip with a flight on ANA, hotel stay at Sunshine Prince Hotel at Ikebukuro and a proposed visit to Mount Fuji.
TW is gearing for his truimphant return in May...not really...just a short return for his sister's solemnization ceremony and had been an eager beaver in wondering if I wanted anything back from Japan..especially a C2 version of Kasumi from Max Factory for just 2000 yen (around $28)..
A steal definitely but will act pressure to the little display capacity I had at the moment for sure...
Well basically I would be glad to just have him back...
But yet another member of my wrecking crew went missing once more...yes Pepsiman is AWOL once more after no answer of my calls on Friday and no reply from my question via SMS on Saturday...
I believe my friends like myself might have a great "easy breezy" weekend as well...
Japanese word of the day: 簡単~kan-tan~(Easy) Somehow or another I feel everything is going on too easy for us, but I am definitely not complaining...
posted by Kei at
10:59 AM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home