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The kids have been arguing to see who gets to use my laptop.. When I suggested that one of them use the father’s.. I only get sighs and negative comments.. My kids just would not even go near Daddy’s laptop. That means, my laptop is always over utilised. I asked Ah Boy to reformat his laptop since it is really so slow. Perhaps getting it reformat will bring a new life to it, just like those cheaper reconditioned laptops sold to students. I think we can do away with all the microsoft softwares since we cannot find the CDs to reinstall. Furthermore, I have been using OpenOffice, which can be downloaded free and it is an excellent software for all kinds of work. I highly recommend this for those who cannot afford to buy softwares for word editing, tabulation work, some graphic incorporation into our average presentations and documents. And if we get the other laptop reformat, I can have my laptop to myself in peace.. without kids hovering over my shoulder and whinning about their online game pets that needs to be fed, wash and play with…hrrmppphh

Living in Singapore means you have to pay through your nose for a home. Property prices are on a high side. You can’t get any flat costing less than S$150k because most of the small 3-room flat (with two bedrooms only), are mostly going for about 280k and above! And if you want to buy an apartment (private land means entrance/exit by the security guardhouse only.) be prepared to pay at least 800k for a small one to $1.5 million. Live within your means, would be the best advice because once one has bought a private home, one will not able to sell their private apt or house in the first 3 years to avoid high property taxes. Of course prices like these are peanuts or pocket change for rich people.. I’m sure these people probably have a comfortable home, nicely done up interior, a lap pool, yards that run forever and a propane fire pit in their backyard for their occasional BBQ parties… Oh well, guess I will just have to slog real hard to even afford to pay up my existing home…

We are all humans so when people make any remarks, however snide it may be, surely one will feel somehow hurt or emotional. Some people actually could shield off feelings because he or she had already built a thick wall that prevents them to ‘receive’ or ‘register’ insensitive remarks or just about any kind of words hurled at him or her. But there will always be a time when one becomes really vulnerable and might not be able to ward off attacks that are personal.

A friend of mine who works in the media wept on the phone the other day because she said some horrid people commented about her weight and height most of the time. Mind you, she is neither fat nor is she anywhere overweight not too short or tall. She is average in built and big boned. As far as I know her she is always active in weight supplements and always, without fail try almost every product available in the market, including internet recommendations. One of the recent ones she kept talking about while having tea with her was some opiate detox treatment which she is very positive to help her keep to her new regime in losing weight… I really do not know the world about every other products in the market but it doesn’t hurt to do some good research before hand. If I would wish for her anything, chances are for her to find the one supplement that really helps her and all the wantings of every being to look presentably healthy, and definitely not matchstick-figure-slim.

Everyone wants to cherish something special in their lives. It could be a child’s Graduation, a Wedding of your own or your child’s, an very special Family Birthday or Gathering, Anniversary or even the passing of someone meaningful to them. These are special moments that can never be repeated again, not like a movie or drama on our silver screen.

Lately, there has been instances where some of these important dates and planned event is being shelved, cancelled or something had to happened, for unforeseen circumstances. I know of a couple who had to shelved their whole wedding plan with much disappointment because the venue where the wedding had been planned had closed down, due to financial difficulties. Not only did the dinner event had to be cancelled, much of their plans and scheduled went awry because their invitation cards had been printed and sent to guests, florists being paid deposits, wedding outfits ordered for delivery for the day, and even the time scheduled for her make up artists and photographers had been pre-planned with much scrutiny! And some of these ’suppliers’ just could not change plans/dates at the last minute and that paid amounts of deposits of services that are charged, if not all cannot be refunded fully at all. Because of these, although we do not want them to happen, we should bear in mind that we can actually defer some of these losses by getting an wedding insurance, something that were rare last time, but not anymore. Consider even getting at least a cheap wedding insurance or other special events could be a lifesaver to cover some costs involved should any mishap occur. It is quite similar to getting a travel insurance and help to defray costs that may have cost you the earth to plan and not having to pay again for the services for another postponed event.

Fashion talks. In Hong Kong, Europe and other metropolitan and cosmopolitan cities, you can’t help but notice how trends are always in. In Singapore, they usually take after Hong Kong and Europe because many MNC companies has employees who travel often to these places to shop. But one thing that I just could never ‘register’ is how some people wear their ‘fashionable’ clothing in a ridiculous way. Can you believe that this young lady wore a lingerie corset OUTSIDE her clothes? I thought it might be a mistake at first but looking closely, YES it is a corset, no joke. Perhaps she is trying to look different? Some people wear clothes of different sex but it may look really good on them. Recently, in the newspaper I saw a male picture sporting a transgender look, with long beautiful hair and feminine clothing, yet looks masculine and very handsome indeed. Would you sport a transgender look if you were a male?

Filling up your gasoline for your car should be done in zippy time. Different cars has different sides to where the petroleum hose goes to. I normally park where the filling staton is on the left side so the petrol assistant do not have to bring the hose around the other side of my car. To speed up further, I normally make sure I make a beeline to the cashier right after I leave the car. In the mornings, the queues can be pretty long. Each station probably can take up to 8 pump stations in each round. Some people can be really inconsiderate when they are in the store. When they browze or shop, some cars park behind theirs may wait a while before they drive their car off. There are times when I wait for ages for the car owner to come out.. Can you imagine if our petrol stations are all independant self service pumps just like in Malaysia? They may take an even longer time! In Singapore we are really lucky or, should I say spoilt.. we still get customer service during filling up although you can do it yourself too if you want. Customer service from petrol attendants means more jobs for people but at the same time, it may not be productive for companies. Which is better? Customer service or self service pumps?

The fishes in my aquarium are not doing too well. They may not survive much longer. I made a mistake of buying this particular fish, three, to be exact. And these three fishes seemed very fierce, violent and is bullying the rest of my other breeds. Some of the mild tempered, beautiful, colourful fishes looked like their scales have been pecked at… They are in such a pathetic state. I have a good mind to put them apart now. Maybe take the three bully fishes out. The bully fishes even pecked at the poor slime suckers. It makes me furious. I may just give these bullies back at the aquarium shop I got them from. Hrrmmmph… Perhaps after that, my other fishes will get back their peace of mind and happy environment.

I popped by IMM Giant the other day on Wednesday, to get some fresh fruits. I dislike to push their trolley carts because their wheels are the most stubbornest of so many supermarket ones. They need to do something about their wheels that is usually stuck in one position and that makes it very difficult to push or maneuver. I wonder if it has to do with their bearings or perhaps the wheels need some oiling. In the olden days, my mom would always have a handy bottle of Singer oil. It seemed like something every household will have, at home. Singer oil cans remind me a lot of the good old days. I remember mom’s old sewing machine, also Singer, of course. The machine at one time was dismantled from the main ‘table’ top to convert it into a ‘lightbox’ for me for use for art! LOL! Although the sewing machine is not a fully automated one, i remembered mom used to attach it to an extra small box pedal and converted it into an automated one. And when she needed to sew slowly she used the pedal like old machines.

I’ve been wanting to send my car for a good vacuum and wash. I get a little bout of sneezing and wheezing in the car if the aircond is turn up too high. I think the dust must be going around and making my nose very irritable. A friend recommended me to get one of those portable ion air cleaners for my car. I saw a few types, very small and clipped on to the car in a simple installation. I am sure it is a good idea, but first thing is to get rid of the dust, as much as possible. Then a good wash, inside out, and get that purifier or cleaner installed. I’ve been putting it off for weeks, so I think I better get it done by the next week! Oh maybe I should also get my air cond serviced too!

I must, I must, I must!