Queen of Style (continuation of the previous post)

The undisputed queen of style is called Voodoomary (nickname).

Link: Voodoomary's Style Diary

I love gawking (yes, it's really a mouth agape look) at whatever she's wearing. Her style is to be worshipped. Her collection--well, let's just say, it can rival Hollywood celebrity standards.
A very tall classy lady with unlimited cash to look fabulous. A modern age tai-tai with an equally stylish husband who brings her out to nice places on dinner dates. Crap. I think I sound so enviously materialistic when I pen down these descriptions.

Oh bother, just shoot me but I seriously desire for such a lifestyle too. Hm...in a couple of years I guess. And casual weekends could be spent karting with the tot in tow. (tsk tsk...)

I wish she can take shots of herself with face included though. I half suspect that she doesn't need to turn up for work on time. What a luxury! And has all the time during office hours to post these shots on multiple web fashion forums. Cool! Self employed perhaps. Way to go. =P

Stylish in cyberspace

Style Diaries, Forum Threads…these are avenues for fashionistas to display their outfits, ensembles of the day and post their pictures up for all to comment and appreciate.

Sometimes, while browsing these sites, I think to myself, “How do they manage to capture their pictures in the morning before leaving for work? Doesn’t it take up at least another 8 minutes of their time to stand around their digital camera (I think they must have placed their gadgets on tripods to capture their full length poses)? Or do they employ a poor maid who has to double up as their photographer?”

How do they manage it is a beautiful mystery. But I do enjoy viewing pictures they put up. It’s like a fashion magazine that updates itself every day and I only need to pay my monthly internet bill to watch these gorgeous but apparently leisurely ladies strut their stuff.

I am not complaining.

My only gripe? I want that dress she’s wearing too.

Wish list 101

Overseas Holiday (I want the sky, the clouds, my wide open road)

I want to twirl in a field full of cornflowers, enjoy nature for all its goodness, sit under a tree and scribble thoughts in my journal. I want to star gaze in the countryside and find the Northern Star once again. I want to live in a cabin and cook pancakes for breakfast. I want to take leisurely walks and listen to the brook gurgling merrily. I want to spot pretty bluebirds flitting from branch to branch and walk amongst the dancing butterflies.

September, the month when wildflowers bloom in glory in the Southern Hemisphere. Go, I should. What a perfect birthday present it will be for myself!

In All Silliness

I was running late for my dental appointment this morning and drove a little faster today on the highway.
Some car was hogging the road and as I drove past, I turned to check out what the driver was doing. Talking to a beautiful companion? Or just trying to be a safe driver?
Unfortunately, that guy had a problem with that. I didn’t notice that he was tailgating me until I took a glance into my rear mirror.
I furrowed my brows in perplexity and realized it was the same car I had just overtaken. “Wassup with that fella?”
Satisfied that he had finally attracted my attention, he proceeded to rev his engine and speed past me.
Ok, point taken. You do know where your accelerator is located.
-_-

A big guy trapped in a tiny car with a huge ego problem.

(N.B. I have nothing against economical cars. Just that I am definitely not getting a Getz now. It is really not a very powderful small car.)

CommunicAsia 2007-Display of Male Idiotism

Went to CommunicAsia 2007 for a trade event today. The contacts and product knowledge obtained from this exhibition are pretty substantial.
The only gripe I have is that there are many pseudo-trade visitors roaming around and they were just there:
a) For the freebies (a couple of middle age uncles and aunties asked me which booth I got a shopping bag from—hello?) OR
b) To snap photos of the show girls

I tried to recall the location I took the bag to store my brochures but couldn’t. It was after all a big hall. I finally shrugged and waved the lady off. I was too pre-occupied talking to a colleague on the phone to entertain another enquiry from the uncle who mumbled unintelligibly to me.

But it was the hardcore shutterbugs whom I simply despise. It was apparent that the products and technological offerings were not what they came for. “醉翁之意不在酒.” They requested eagerly for the showgirls to pose and look in their direction while they went into a trigger happy frenzy.
They were a pain because they got in the way of serious visitors like me and we had to stop in our tracks to let them have their photo opportunity.

LOSERS

Seriously, guys. What do you do with photos like these? To begin with, the girls are still fully clothed. Most of them are just normal looking girls with tons of make-up on. I spotted some past year beauty pageant participants in the bevy of showgirls. A tad sad, but I digress.
Anyway, to cut the long question short, these photos are not even “wank worthy”.
(rolls eyes in mock exasperation). Yes, we ladies don’t get the mentality of some lowly evolved male-like creatures.
Pardon my crudeness. I am really agitated by these human obstructions. They are worthless to the exhibitors too. Apart from boosting the numbers of visitors for the event to appear a roaring success. Can’t imagine anyone dating a guy like one of these salivating primates.
Oh, wait a minute. Perhaps that explains why they had to resort to collecting digitized female companions on jpg files.

The GSS 2007...fondly missed

I feel a bit left out of the Annual Great Singapore Sale.

When I read about other ladies snagging great buys at bargain prices, I am saddened. I have yet to partake in this annual 'shop out'. I am always feeling deprived. I am still paying top dollar for online shopping.

Where's the retail therapy that can only be derived from physically scouring the shops, fingering the fabric and looking at one's reflection in the mirrors of deceptively lit changing rooms?

None for me yet.

I am afraid this deprivation will turn into a monster once it is unleased.

Thought of the Day

Just came across this quotation in Forbes:
“People who bite the hand that feeds them usually lick the boot that kicks them.” ~Eric Hoffer

Interesting. Pretty true, don’t cha think?
So, I guess it may be true too if we reverse the saying a little. Bootlickers are often ingrates.

I don’t see the point in bootlicking if you can’t deliver results though. These people have a short shelf life.

Fathers’ Day Celebration

Went to Novena Square 2 for a luncheon to celebrate Fathers’ Day. It was my first time there and apparently, it is a Korean themed mall. Nothing spectacular because there is still a local mix. And the ‘Korean’ apparels and accessories sold in some shops over there seem to come from other North East Asian sources. \(-_-)/

Obviously, we patronized a Korean restaurant on Level 3. But the service was bad as their staff behaved like they were beleaguered and underpaid.
The food’s nothing to rave about and so, I didn’t even bother to remember the name of the restaurant.

To begin with, I DO NOT LIKE Korean food. It’s a little crude for my liking. I don’t know if you get what I mean. My most blatant would be “They look like dishes meant for the pigs.”
The only thing I wanted was the Korean Ginseng Chicken because they stuffed the chicken with glutinous rice—which is the only way I will have it.
Unfortunately, the soup was bland. Sigh.

After that, we went shopping. And Aileen continues to amaze me. She spent Friday in this mall and went home empty-handed save for 2 packets of Korean tidbits. Today, she didn’t get anything for herself too. I told her that if I am a guy, I would marry her cos she’s good and low maintenance, and has nice assets. >_<
Oh, then again, maybe not. I know all her bad habits and don’t think I can live with them.

As for myself, I got a dress, a top and four bangles. And it was speed shopping within an hour.
Ate a cup of Mr. Bean's Soy Ice-cream before we left for home. I like it loads. Tastes like 'Beancurd'--Tao Huay, which is something I really love.

Benefit's Launch In Singapore

Benefit's finally launching in Singapore.

It will be available on 28 June 2007 at C.K. Tangs Orchard. Time to check out their "Some Kind of Gorgeous" to see if it's suitable for my skin tone!

Dare to Defy

I am bloody tired after a day at work poring through technical information on RFID. I tell you, it’s not that difficult to understand but it’s like mugging for an examination for 8 full hours. (Ok, what am I doing online blogging???)
If it’s any consolation, at least I had a wonderful tiramisu during lunch to make up for the energy sapping activity. If only I get to dine at cozy little Italian restaurants every afternoon. Apparently, it appears to be the lifestyle of my immediate superior and he’s treating himself right for his hard work.

Ok, back to the main topic. I was reading through a friend’s newly updated blog entry and she talked about a big regret in her life. And that was to prioritize work over family only to be unappreciated at work and overwhelmed by office politics.
The entry triggered a series of thoughts in my head.
I recalled News radio 93.8 FM asking listeners on their opinion of working in the civil versus the private sector.
I remembered my struggles as I deliberated on joining an MNC, statutory board or a relatively modest SME.

All my life, branding and prestige mattered to me. I remember I chose my junior college for its high profile name instead of the quality of education it can provide for me. It just had to be Raffles although I am sure I would have a more memorable time in Hwa Chong. It was an elitist sort of modus operandi that was reflected in my life choices.

But somehow along the way, I realized that it’s not the prestige of the institution you attend and work for that matters. It’s not about being in the ‘best’ places. Because you may not be having the best of times there. I am glad it did not take me a lifetime to realize this fact of life.
At the end of the day, it’s not the hours you clocked in over the weekends that matter. If you’re slogging your guts out in the wrong place, your efforts will yield nominal results.
In an organization that’s too big, you can hardly effectuate change at your junior post. Everyone’s eyeing the post that the boss above you vacated. What are your chances?

Suddenly, you realized that to get your Lamborghini, you cannot be a worker ant in that nest of a few thousand. You have to be a shareholder of an organization. The sums are pretty easy to do. An MNC with a few thousand workers generates a profit of 100 million. Apply the trickle down effect. What are you going to get in bonuses after the board has taken its lion’s share? Let’s just quote verbatim from a famous phrase, “It’s peanuts.”

(NB: Take my groundless statements with a pinch of salt. After all, measurements of fulfillment and happiness are subjective. I am just applying my standard to this issue.)

Montreal Madness

The Canadian Grand Prix over the weekend was the most eventful one of 2007.

BMW Sauber’s Robert Kubica suffered a huge accident at maximum speed on the run down to the hairpin. Kubica clipped the rear wheel of a Toyota some 250m before the hairpin which sent him headfirst into the inside wall at some 170mph. His BMW hurtled through the air bouncing to the outside wall and rolling several times before grinding to a halt on its side in the hairpin run off. The safety car was deployed again as marshals and medics attended the scene.

More drama unfolded in this epic Canadian Grand Prix as Felipe Massa and Giancarlo Fisichella were black flagged for leaving the pit lane under a red light earlier in the race.

It ended with a fabulous maiden win by Lewis Hamilton and McLaren came away from Montreal with a 28-point lead over Ferrari in the world championship for constructors.

Hepburn-ish Ambitions

There are some women whom I hold in high esteem.
Apart from intelligent and attractive celebrities, I find inspiration in our local womenfolk along the likes of Olivia Lum, Loh Wai Kiew and Elim Chew as talented entrepreneurs and industry leaders to model myself after.



But if there’s one endearing celebrity who captures my unadulterated devotion, it has to be Audrey Hepburn for her timeless beauty, grace and kindness.

Again, this necklace was love at first sight. (Wonder how many times can I fall in love--with inanimate objects no less???!!!) (-_=) Ordered online from: My Girly Affair, if any of you girls are interested.

Online shopping's good for people who can't get to roam the retail shops before closing hours =)

Craziest Buy of the Year (to date)

This pair of designer spectacles set me back at a tidy sum.
It has transition lenses so it turns grey in bright sunlight. A pair of sunnies and reading glasses combined into one.
Aileen rolled her eyes at me and scoffed at my new glasses.
“And who are you, creature?” she interrogated. “Jimmy Neutron?” I sniggered a little. (Jimmy Neutron has an outstanding hairdo. But I don’t think he wears glasses).

“No, I am going to be in the next X-Men team, since Jean Grey/ Phoenix has died. I am the one with the brain power,” I cheekily retorted.
Aileen’s eyes were on the verge of rolling out of their sockets.
“Hey, it looks geeky on you, ok?”

“No, it’s cool. Cool with the Capital C. It captured my heart the moment I laid eyes on it,” I defended my taste fiercely.

“What are these? You need 2 pairs of antennae to receive signals from outer space?” she attempted another dig at me.
“You sure you wanna wear this to work?” she was incredulous.

“Yea, why not? I need glasses when I do work on the computer anyway.”

“Boy, you are weird,” she concluded.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

The next time she saw the glasses on my desk, Aileen commented, “This is the first time I ever saw a pair of standing spectacles.”

“Now, isn’t that something?” I thought and smirked quietly to myself.
Postscript: *Will post a geeky shot of myself wearing this soon.*

The Whitening Trio

I have finally switched back to my Lancôme Whitening products after using a mixture of Biotherm and Estee Lauder’s stuff.
In fact, I have not been using whitening products for a couple of months already.
To debunk all beauty myths, whitening products do not bleach the skin. If you are dark skinned by nature, please do NOT expect yourself to turn into Snow White with religious application.
No, it doesn’t work that way.
What they do is to lighten pigmentation, reduce age and sun spots and even out the skin tone.
So here I am, back to Lancôme’s trio.

Toner, serum and moisturizer.

My verdict:
Overall Comment: Nice texture. Great scent. Non greasy. Smooth application.
Product efficacy: Satisfactory! It makes my skin look brighter and clearer after just 2 days!
Price: 72 SGD for toner, 145 SGD for serum and 125 SGD for moisturizer.
(Although L’Oreal is the parent company of Lancôme, I feel that for the Whitening series, Lancôme’s stuff far surpasses that of L’Oreal’s)

Note:
I feel that it’s not advisable to be product loyal in the case of skincare regime. I know how it is like for us ladies to want to stick to the tried and tested products that work for our skin.
But notice how all brands continue to re-package and churn out new generations of their series of products? For instance, this Lancôme Whitening system is already into its 3rd generation, if I am not wrong.
Why?
Our skin becomes resistant to a certain product with prolonged usage. To prevent that from happening (and consumers realizing the stuff doesn’t work on them), beauty companies have to modify their formulas ever so often.

My suggestion? If you like a certain product, try ‘resting’ your skin after 2 bottles. Switch to another range to treat other skin concerns (e.g. fine lines etc) before returning back to your fave product.

Spiders and Burgers

Watched Spiderman 3 finally! Phew! I was almost afraid I was too late to catch it in the theatres. Overall I like it. It’s great. Effects and plot’s fine. But as usual, I couldn't sit through the movie without fidgeting and it was a sign that it’s a movie that does not require much processing power.

Tobey Maguire’s a fat spidey!

That man’s gone to seed seriously and I just can’t imagine why he didn’t make any effort to go the gym since he’s getting good money and tremendous media coverage for this series. I thought actors have to suffer for their art and make it seem like they deserve all the millions they rake in from each big budget assignment?

Somehow his big protruding eyes remind me of:

Ok, I am a little meanie. No offense. It’s just the first association my brain made.
I always found Kristen Dunst a little “blah” in the looks department but there’s nothing to complain about her acting skills. =)
I am just a little disturbed about the last scene where Peter Parker entered the pub she was singing at and when he reached out for her hand, I didn’t go “Aw…how romantic”.
Instead I went, “Eeeewwww, someone throw Kristen a razor please?” We would have thought that for a multi-million dollar film, they would have the capacity to send the lead actress to a waxing parlor? ARGH!
Don’t "tsk" me. The industry creates and presents flawless characters who are larger than life. Details DO matter.

The supporting roles are eye candy which makes up for the lack thereof in the leading roles.
Bryce Dallas Howard as Gwen Stacy
And James Franco as Harry Osborn
Ok, enough but Spiderman. I love MOS burger’s rice burgers! Ate an Ebi Rice Burger and I almost thought they caught the prawns straight from the freshwater pond and made them into patties before serving it to me. So yummy and relatively healthier than Mac’s Chicken Fan-tastic Burger.
At MOS Burger, testing out my latest camera phone (cheap deal). For a 2 megapixels phone, I am not complaining. I pay for what I get afterall. =P

Starting from the top: Messy hair, Act cute Shot, Making Funny Faces, 'Normal on Most Days' Shot

Friendly Sisters Shot

Kungfu Fighting Michelle Yeoh (Nah, just me. Ivy Yeo). But I can still punch you hard if you make me angry. DO NOT PROVOKE!

来自中国的朋友,你们好!!! (Greetings to My Friends in China!)

大家好! 欢迎您浏览我的部落格!!!

亲爱的杨家帮成员你们好!以上的照片是我在2003年观光乌镇时所拍下的留念照.
嘻! 一点也不像环朱格格里的香妃. >_<

因为我的中文水平有待进步,所以网上日记里的文章都英文篇章.
真不好意思!
但是,我也该多加练习运用华文来写作,才能提高中文水平!
每个星期写一篇? 好吗? =) 写得不好要纠正我的文法哦!

如有自己的部落格, 请和我分享! 在评论(Comments)的项目里留下您的网址吧!
可以用中文和我交流哦!

Not Putting Up with Men’s Shit

Aileen just got home from a day’s out with her friends. She looked tired but was attending to some personal accounting chore. I sat on the couch and decided to ask her for some relatives’ phone contacts to fill up my empty mobile phone list.

I was bluetoothing the numbers to my phone when she suddenly shared with me a sad story of one of her married friends. I shall not relate it here, but the husband in concern IS a male chauvinistic pig who is psychologically unstable. Possessive and paranoid, he abuses his wife verbally, mentally and physically.

I tried to dissect the problem and analyze his actions one by one and Aileen was rapt with attention as I rambled on. I ended off by suggesting the man get some psychiatric help and the woman leaving the man.

The latter recommendation may appear insensitive. I apologize for being unfeeling. (*shrugs*)

But to all girls out there, here’s some food for thought.
True, we have heard horror stories of terrible jerks who roam this Earth. A good population of womenfolk fall prey to them.
The point is, IT DOESN’T HAVE TO BE YOU!

Don’t take crap from shitty boyfriends or husbands. You don’t deserve it.
And as with academic results, we don’t compare the BAD with our mediocre. No.
We should look to the BEST and emulate them. This applies to the type of men we marry.

Only the GOOD, SWEET and THOUGHTFUL need apply.

Postscript: Don’t believe the saying “男人不坏,女人不爱”. It’s a media myth—created to add romanticism to story plots.

If Men Can Choose Fabulous Women to Marry:

Then, I am sure there is a similar book that teaches Women Not to Stay with Jerks. Ok, found one:
Look at this lady!
A Sweet Girl’s Blog
After being married for 3 years, her loving husband still handpicks their monthly wedding anniversary bouquet from the florist, takes her to beautiful holiday destinations and buys her lovely presents. Keeping the love alive and the woman of his life happy. He’s definitely a keeper!

~Remember: Being happily in love should be the norm, not the exception that happens due to a stroke of fine luck.~ I.V.Y.