Hafiz invited me to have dinner with his sister and a friend at

Les Amis; #translated to english: with friends

It was my first time dining in a Michelin awarded restaurant. Such an honor to feast on the gourmet delicacies presented by Asia's 19th best restaurant with top chefs and sommeliers from France.

We were presented with a 5 course menu, all of which are chef's signature dishes. Not only did they serve distinction quality food, the way they present the food is akin to consuming art.

When the food is served, the waiter will explain how it's cooked, and the logic behind each visual presentation.

Homemade pasta with white Alba truffles (Truffles; the objects of desire)

Poached Maine Lobster with sweet corn dressing
Thyme ice-cream; with cookie crumbles, meringues and lemon drizzles

What a gastronomic experience I had ;)

Thank you once again to Hali & Hafiz Yusof :)

Here we are once again, at the bend of 2011’s calendar, ready to depart into 2012. This is the perfect time to recall, recognize, reflect and at the end of it all, give oneself a pat on the back, for the year we’re going to part with. In 2011, I was constantly narrowing down friends. When I was younger, I was spreading a lot of attention to a huge group of friends. But now, I am only focusing on particular friends I feel who are on the same pathways as me. Pathways in terms of thoughts and lifestyles. I am thankful and blessed that the friends who mattered to me in 2011, still very much does. In fact, I got closer to some people whom I’ve a feeling, is going to stay in my life for a long time. Hello Edmund! And thank you Yion, Clovie, Xiaoqian, Rifhan, Fizzo, Denise & Jean for being so wonderful. Thank you Katrina for making me look up to you for being the lady you are. Please, continue to be a part of my life.

And then there are opportunities which required a big leap of faith, but in the end brings you only goodness after goodness. It’s like hijacking into a rainbow and crashing into a big pot of gold. Going to shanghai and being away for some time made me

1. Someone who is more conscious of her finances (budgeting skills)

2. Reflect, reflect, reflect about life/what I want to achieve and where I want to be

Also, it made me foster a better relationship with my dad. It’s the first time he sent me a message which contained the words “I” “miss” and “you”.

The word ‘materialism’ has also opened up a whole new meaning and insights for me. I actually think I am becoming a victim of material pleasures, luxurious suites and villas and fancy restaurants. But thankfully, I am also effectively cultivating this particular trait called SELF CONTROL.

In 2011, I took up an appreciation for aromatherapy, an interest in golf and pilates and became a fan of M Scott Peck.

2011 is the year of which I realized where I envisioned myself to be, the standards I want to push myself towards, and received family support. Two years before I will be stepping into the land of THE BIG APPLE - NYC!

Most importantly, 2011 made me love life and my family even more.

Had an absolutely amazing time catching up with the old clique! We don't usually get together as a group because Denise studies in Aussie so... it's only during her summer vacations that we get to see her. All of us went grocery shopping together, picking up the food we want to fill our tummies! Ed kept walking off by himself to grab stuff (which kept getting crossed out by me awww...) I'm sorry nobody shares the same tastebuds as you do, but I promise the next time we have a steamboat again, I'll chuck what you like in the cart ;)

The rest of the gang kept asking me if I have eggs at home. Hello, who doesn't have eggs at home!!! They were doubtful of my answer and wanted to buy a tray back.

I. have. eggs. at. home HEY GUYS PLEASE!

And then we got into a semi confused state of how many boxes of pork and beef we should buy. We decided that buying more wouldn't hurt. So, we kinda over bought stuff.... *guilty face*

Left to right : Ed, Me, Jason, Denise, Niko, Madz, Nic

xxx

Had another round of steamboat with another group of friends! This time round it was with Peck, Solo and Kai! Weibin joined later. I guess I love organizing steamboats because it's healthy, cheap, and it's in the comforts of my own home ;)

And the best thing is, everybody will help to prepare the food! And i think grocery shopping is fun when it's with the right people ;) I love tossing food into the cart!

xxx

Wenqin came over, and we prepared Beef Bolognese Spag together! I insist that it's yummy! Heh! ;)

Fizz's been golfing recently, so when he invited me & Jeremy to join him. I thought, why not try something new? Went to the much talked about Rider's Cafe. Their pancakes are actually pretty awesome, served with generous fresh authentic berries and honey drizzles.

It's nice to see people trotting along with their horses on a wide, seemingly endless patches of greens. It's a very beautiful and peaceful sight :)

No wonder golf's a social sport, you can actually dock yourself in nice clothes and work out at the same time. Might consider doing this weekly/fortnightly. Pretty effective for toning arms (I know, cuz my arms are achingggggggg!!!) I love muscle aches, cuz the pain would reap my body some good :)

When stitchy's back from HK and when we finally find some free time, we're gonna try squash and tennis!

Can you imagine this brand

in this convenience store?

Well, I kid you not. The impossible has happened. Consumers are purchasing Gucci from the convenience store in Seoul.

Questions running through my mind: Is this a publicity stunt? What is going to happen to Gucci's branding? Is it cheaper in 7-11? The consumers who purchased in 7-11 are happy with the level of customer service? (I mean, after all, it's a luxury product right?) How do they actually display the Gucci merchandise?

Let's take a look at the news article printed.

I have a new habit while reading books or flipping through magazines.

I take pictures of quotes and images and contribute it to my personal visual dairy to remind myself of what once inspired me, what once made sense to me, of what once I could relate to.

And this is something which I snapped, while reading The Teen Vogue Handbook

Quoted by Alexander Wang:

The other day, we were sending my sis off to somewhere in rural India to help revamp a library.

The ability of SMU students to plan, negotiate, source and churn up an well-thought itinerary solely by themselves makes me applaud. I don't know how they do it but they seem to have pretty good ties and relationships with airlines, financial policies, and strangers 2,200 miles away.

So anyways, my family (minus my dad. *sigh* work is stealing him away from us) took this opportunity to have dinner together at the airport. My mum asked me about my plans after polytechnic life. And it led to this conversation

Me: I have been doing research on my part and I have already decided on a particular university. It's in New York though. (And then I told her about FITNYC, credibility, school fees and living expenses,

Mum: Why not study in local or private unis?
Me: Because I want to be where the opportunities are. When I say opportunities, I am talking about networking, people, jobs, course structures and the fact that New York IS a fashion city.

You have to be where the opportunities are, and you should only learn, and study from the very best.

And guess what my mum said?

My mum later, uttered these words, which has since been became my source of motivation for doing almost anything and everything.

However, I'm keeping a mental note that anything and everything can happen in the premise of 'now to then', but I'm hoping, that this will eventually and ultimately iron itself out. With consistent effort and passion on my part, of course. Not forgetting the big 'D' i have to tuck daily into the left pocket of my shirt.

A song which channels me into the right energy and mood in the first part of my day ^_^

Made a little pact with myself to try and wake up early in the morning everyday because I realized I am wasting so much time by sleeping in till the noon!

Gonna head to the country club for some working out plus breakfast!

Good day ahead sunshines ;)

Just came home from my Sat morning lecture.

A few directors of established companies came to speak to us about entrepreneurship.

After the forum session, I went to approach the director of PropNex.

Me: Hi sir, can I ask, how do you cultivate self discipline?

Mr Ismail: Let me give you an example. Would you want to lose weight?
Me: *nods*
Mr Ismail: If i can grant you three wishes, whatever you'd like them to be. It might be a million dollars, or whatever. But I have a request, and that request is for you to lose weight. And I'll grant you the three wishes. Would you lose 10kg in 3 months for me?

Me: Sounds pretty tempting.

Mr Ismail: There you go. Discipline people usually have a driving force behind them. You have to find the driving force for yourself. You need motivation, but you don't cultivate it, you FIND it.

(Credits to The teen vogue handbook)

Posting snippets of the interview. This is too beautiful not to be shared :)

Mycoskie: I was in Argentina on vacation In Jan 2006, and I noticed that a lot of local farmers and polo players were wearing these slip-ons called apargatas. I bought a pair and really enjoyed wearing them. Around the same time, I met some volunteers in the area and they told me about a shoe drive they were running for the local kids who couldn't afford shoes. I heard stories I will never forget- one was about two brothers and a sister, and they had only one pair of shoes, so the kids would alternate every third day to go to school. I thought, this is crazy. As an entrepreneur, when you see something that seems broken, your brain immediately goes to "How can we fix this?" The name TOMS come from tomorrow - the idea is that you buy one today, we give one to a child tomorrow.

Best, ever.

Ahhh, I almost forgot how refreshing the night air can be. It was a beautiful night with perfect weather for my skin to be glowing with sweat.

I was showed a new running route (which I will be sticking to!)

Hougang -> Sengkang -> Punggol.

The longgggg stretch of track is beside a canal which ultimately leads to the new reservoir. And beside the reservoir there are stretches of al fresco dining, little kids running around with sparklers on their tiny little hands and plants docked in purple lights. The finishing point seemed like a beautiful image to run into.

So ... I ran 10km today!!!!

I love the fact that my pores are opening, contributing back to the entire water cycle my sweattttttt ^_^

(I know, not exactly the best image to form in your head..)

Had awesome dessert with an awesome individual too.

And now, it's time to recharge myself. Long day tomorrow. Nights sweethearts! :)

Ah, accessories...

Finally, I am able to look at all of you goodies at one glance. Tossed away are times digging through endless knots and frustration.

What I need for my table now is a Moroccon lamp, speckled seemingly fragments of colored glass which resembles the inside of a place for worship to complement my accessories and to give my room a little more mystique vibe.

Some fresh white daises too, to fill the insides of an empty Dolce & Gabbana perfume glass container. It seems like it would serve it's purpose as a little vase well.

I don't think I deserve something so beautiful.

Thank you for your effort, and love :)

To: You

You probably won't be reading this but I'm holding on to the slightest glimmer of hope that you will. I will try to make my sentences less corny because i know you will be rolling your eyes in disgust because in your eyes, I am a hypocrite.

I admit, I am, because I have no courage to face up to certain things.

Do you know in Shanghai, when I spoke to you, it was because it was egged on by my brother? I told my brother I missed you, missed the times we had, and that you are one of my biggest regrets in life? I was very afraid to click on your name. Talking to me has became very awkward hasn't it? Especially after what happened to our families. I try to stop thinking about the good times we had but you treated me so genuinely, and that, is so difficult to forget.

Anyway, the main purpose of this post is from me to you, telling you how proud I am of you. Comparing the you in the past, and the current you, I can see a difference. And you know what that difference is? You are finally living, for yourself. You are more fulfilled now, aren't you?

Your adventurous spirit has found its way through, around the planet.

I am very happy for you, genuinely, from the bottom of my heart.

I hope your Mount Everest trip will be a success. Please remember to keep yourself warm.

Lovingly, Me

Overgrown la lang plants bouncing off sunlight.

Mmmm. I can almost smell the musty scent of memories.

Lastly, the thirteen year old protagonist is such a pleasure to watch because she's just plain stunning.

So, I heard... H&M next collaboration would be with Marni.

Now the question is, When will H&M have an alliance with Givenchy?