Noodle House Ken 之 Cold Noodles

Have tried visiting Noodle House Ken twice these few months, but it's always closed. Finally caught it today! But the bad news was they only had cold noodles and rice left because they ran out of soup. Har... it was not even 9pm I think? And they close only at 1am. Didn't expect this.

Nevermind, my sister and I shall give the cold noodles a try. My brother ordered the rice.

The noodles was nice! No soup, but there's enough sauce for flavor. Same chewy noodles. Very big bowl!

We confirmed with the staff that they do not open on Sundays. They do serve lunch till 2pm. And usually they do still have soup left at this hour on a Saturday.

Better luck next time!

Sister's Birthday Desserts

Back from Gyu-Kaku, filled to the brim! But there's still a part 2 for my sister's birthday - DESSERTS (again)!

First, Awfully Chocolate's Chocolate Rum & Cherry Cake. My sister tried to psycho me to buy it for my birthday, but I didn't. My sister's name was on the cake, but I have pixelated it out. Cannot tell if I didn't tell you right? My superior photoshop skills! Ha ha ha!
The bitterness of the exterior was ok. I felt the cake wasn't moist enough for my liking. Not enough rum in the cherry. There are better cakes around. Glad I didn't buy it.

Next up is the egg pudding which my sister took leave to prepare. Actually she bought a mix which came with the caramel syrup and added some orange herself. Then my mum and her dressed it up with fruit slices... took very long.

A shovel worked better.
Nice! I like caramel. But toooo full after the dinner already lah.

After this day, my horrible October started.

Gyu-Kaku

Well this was supposed to be dated 3rd Oct, but I guess it would be lost under that lengthy post below it.

It's my sister's 21^st birthday, which is supposed to be a big deal, but in fact is not, after I went through it myself a few years ago. It just meant that at the stroke of midnight, you are suddenly responsible for your own life, such as bills...

Anyway that's not the focus of this post. Since it's such a big deal, my sister wanted to go to a place she had always wanted to go, so much so that she even offered to treat the rest of the family because we had objected to paying for such a pricey meal in the past. Gyu-Kaku, a Japanese BBQ restaurant. She estimated $60 per head. I doubt she could afford to, but ah, whatever.

My mum tried to share the joy by telling my sister to invite a closer aunt, cousin and her friend. My sister did (without considering the extra to pay???), and the aunt suggested inviting another cousin working in Singapore but never visits. Then my sister not happy lor, because not close to this working-in-Singapore cousin mah. But aunt has said it, how can don't invite? I felt we should have kept it within the family lah... so rich meh? So my mum said she would pay for the whole dinner. Seriously, I can foresee the months and months of grumbling if she did. In the end my sister didn't want to do the inviting - my mum could do it if she wanted. And nobody did.

On the day itself, my aunt said she wouldn't be coming. Back to square one!

Our reservation was at Chijmes. Fortunately, the restaurant was just 10m away from the driveway... because I managed to stop my father before we rolled down to the basement carpark. There were a few steps at the entrance of the restaurant. No problem, father was there. Our table was near the entrance. Very claustrophobic there. My sister said we could have had a more spacious table if she hadn't updated our attendance with the restaurant. O well, cannot be so selfish.

We started looking at the menu. But I wasn't actually looking, because I was busy pirating it. You see, the menu on their website doesn't list the price. Moreover, birthday girl should make the decision!

Gyu-Kaku specializes in beef (explains the 牛角), in particular, Wagyu beef. And different body parts too. They do have other animals too, but they all looked the same to me - red chunks in the pictures lor. Choices of marinade are primarily Shio, Miso, Spicy Miso, with some meats having more options. But... all probably taste salty lah?

After a lonnggg loooooonnnnng time, we finally settled on:

• Botan set, which comes with everything listed as 0.00 in the receipt XD
• US Kurobuta Jowl, because I wanted to eat black pig.
• Kaisen chijimi, a Korean-style seafood pancake for my mum as her menu looked rather empty.
• Lime juice for my mum, who can't tahan caffeine.

Our starters.

The sausages and... Buta Karubi aka pork belly, I think. Walau so much fat can? But I ate it all since I paid big bucks for it. This pork is also very salty. You can chew till it's dry, yet there's still flavor.

The beefs. Wagyu was flagged. I think the white one was my 黑猪. When this plate was served, the waitress introduced all the meats. My brother and I clearly remembered that the waitress called the reddish one "tongue". What a huge, chunky tongue! But my sister insisted it's not. Later when we revisited the menu, we found that she was right. The reddish chunks were the rump cap. The tongue should be a thin slice, probably the only right in front of the camera?

Meat on the grill. Smokeless charcoal with something at the sides of the grill to suck up all the smoke before they even get to you, no need to worry about being your face turning black at the end of the dinner. O and it's air-conditioned of course.

Service was good. The staff was attentive (which probably also meant they had their eyes on us all the time). Our grills were changed twice so as to reduce the chances of us suing them should we get cancer 30 years down the road.

We got too much food! I could only take a few nibbles of the Ishiyaki Bibimba aka Korean 石锅饭. It was cold by the time I ate it. Must have been fragrant and crispy when it was warm.

Time to serve our desserts! Because our set was only for 4, we were only entitled to 4 desserts, but the restaurant was so kind as to throw in a free one for us!

From the top, black sesame ice-cream, orange sorbet, soy milk mango pudding, macha ice-cream and gyu-kaku ice-cream (which is vanilla ice-cream with soy bean powder and brown syrup).

My sister ordered an alcoholic cassis soda, which sadly, tasted like soda.

Meat education
The menu looked the same to me because I don't understand the different cuts of meat.
So the rump cap is the bum, which explains why it's so chunky.

From Gyu-Kaku's menu:
Wagyu Beef is recognized as the world's finest, unmatched for flavour, juiciness, tenderness and overall eating quality. High level of marbling in Wagyu beef has a positive influence in eating quality to avoid moisture during cooking and enchance flavour, tenderness and juiciness during eating. Combined with high ratio of unsaturated to saturated fatty acids, the result is more "good" cholesterol and less "bad" cholesterol.
So healthy! Have more!

For the kurobuta jowl, the jowl is a fat cut of meat along the side of the head.

Total damage per head: $69. My brother and I split the bill. Ouch. The most expensive dinner EVER!

All I could remember about the meat was SALTY! Can't recall anything that actually "melts in the mouth". I don't mean the food wasn't good! The fact that I could eat so much meat in one sitting is the best proof. I think that's how the salt helped. But I only need to visit such a place once, for the experience. I won't be back again, unless someone is treating.

By the way, cars that are low should not attempt to enter Chijmes' basement carpark. The unmarked hump at the carpark entrance is a real bumper killer!

I Hate October 2008

It's now phase 2 of the CR mentioned in Some Updates. As usual, it fits the description of a disaster to a T. And much worse.

September
G has written the specs for this part 2. Unfortunately, he had decided to leave, so we had to finish the development before his last day. I was assigned a portion which read (to-the-like-of) "All the above mentioned actions will be logged". Not wanting history to repeat itself, I read through the specs (kept falling asleep while doing so), looked through the existing code to get an idea of what to expect, before approaching G for a discussion. My work would be on screen A. He demonstrated the events that would be logged. Explained the new table structure. Ok, I can do this.

In less than 2 weeks, we finished the development phase. Checked through my part to ensure it was ok. G showed the PM that the program was working before saying farewell and I went on to do my other CRs on hand.

October
SIT time. In what seems to be the rite of passage, there has to be things left out during development. First discovered was something in G's part, which somehow became I who left it out, and also despite the fact that G's part has been handed over to the TL. At first, I refused to fix it as it looks rather complex (it still looks complex to me even now), but I had to, because TL wasn't free. Burnt a weekend doing this at home.

Next, major issues were discovered with my portion. I didn't discover it during development because I had coded according to my discussion with G, hence to me, those weren't bugs. But when the QC (L, again) and PM both agreed that it's wrong, and G wasn't around anymore, and nothing specific in the specs to back me up, not bug also become bug already right? Anyway, the L and PM also made sense. Whatever.

Then, L thought that it's wrong to always display a particular username "CCC" in the Updated By field in my screens. I reasoned that G instructed me to do so as he wanted to "use it as an indicator", but I didn't know exactly what. I had to write extra code to give what G wanted, so surely I would not go through so much trouble to create a bug deliberately? I agreed it was unnatural, but couldn't give a reason why G wanted it this way. Moreover, it's a bad idea to use a username as an indicator in code. Ok lor, remove my special logic in my portion, G's portion, TL's portion, so so so many places zzz. Removing is easy, testing through is the headache.

Then, it was discovered that my portion wasn't implemented on screen B. In my discussion with G, it was never mentioned that I had to do so, but on the other hand, if I had read the specs really carefully and digested like a cow, I would have understood that it's implied. The table structure couldn't quite cater for this scenario too, so TL suggested adding a new column. 1 new column is no joke. I had to give my code a good revamp and make changes in many places that the ripples spread to. Easy to write the behavior on paper, but hard to translate to code. I don't know why, but it's hard to get it right.

It's already nearly UAT and we were still encountering major issues. Very worrisome.

It didn't help that L and TL don't quite like each other. TL merely told L to get off my back and let me code in peace, albeit not in a very nice tone. L got offended and quarrelled with him. Then later they came separately to ask me if I felt the other party was rude -_-;;

Then L discovered bugs from phase 1, done by G, and said that I broke the code. WHAT LOR! Cannot be her venerable idol, must be me right? No point setting the record straight here, because I can imagine L saying "You should have checked through everything first!".

L (and the PM too) once lamented that they wished G were still here. Nice guy, very few bugs, not forgetting the ultra smooth UAT in phase 1. True that he's nice, I like him too, but I cannot thank him for what's happening now.

I was still very 不甘愿 over the username thing. Searched through the phase 1 specs and found a page that describes the special username "CCC" and some special behavior of the screen that I was accused of "breaking". I also had a guess for why G wanted it this way. But I didn't bring this to the PM's attention.
1) I stayed late in office to fix those "bugs". I don't want to stay late again to put them back.
2) Now everybody is happy about the amended behavior. Users also didn't seem to remember what they had signed off in the specs.
3) Sometimes we do not follow the specs 100%. Make changes ourselves that we feel are better. This could be one of them.
4) I don't want to be scolded for "How come you don't know the specs well?", as if I'm the only one who doesn't know the specs well.
So there, I know can already. If the users ever discover it later, it would be a production bug. Can fix later. Not now. No time.

In the middle of UAT, it was discovered that my portion wasn't implemented on screen C. Same thing as screen B, not discussed, but I should have realized it's implied if I had read the specs really carefully and digested like a cow. But this time, it's more complicated because the table structure didn't cater to screen C at all. Jialat lor.

I think this is why I had so much trouble with my portion. Bad design! Or rather, I suspect that G never designed it for screens B and C at all. So now, they got a 神 to redesign that table and code. I'm now playing adviser to 神 for the business logic, haven't felt so free for so long!

Now my memory of October 2008 is work, work, weekends also work... sigh.

Earthquake!

Was walking to the toilet at work when I heard a very loud bang coming from somewhere near me, like somebody using a hammer to hit violently on tiles. Being a kaypoh, I stopped to look where it could have come from, although I wasn't wearing my specs and couldn't see details clearly beyond 3m.

And I was glad that I did. The floor tiles were cracking and popping up right in front of me! If I had not been a kaypoh, they would have been exploding right under my feet!


The next day, the building management cordoned the area off. But that's all they have done so far. It's been 3 weeks already. Is it so hard to find a few tiles of the same color and texture and stick them back? Anyway, on my floor alone, there were a few other areas with tiles on the verge of popping out. They should just stockpile tiles now, unless they want to renovate the whole place.

Vichy Normaderm Anti-Imperfection Hydrating Care

To be fair, I should write about this too.
Ya same story, my sister brought back a sample. Nice smell. It's a miracle anti-swelling agent! After poking at a spot, I dot it on the red, angry area and the swelling and redness went down right before my eyes!

But it didn't help with oil control at all.

So should I still call it a moisturizer, or just use it as an instant swelling relief?

Cheapo me went online to request for another sample :D

---
A light moisturizer with Zincadone A that tightens pores, helps reduce oiliness and improves skin clarity.
Helps transforms your skin in 4 weeks.

Skin Type/ Concern: Oily and Acne-prone

Results: After 4 weeks, the appearance of the skin is transformed, imperfections are reduced, pore size is visibly reduced, and the skin’s surface is smooth and even.

Galenic Intense Moisturizing Serum

Thought I should write about this although I tried this sample ages ago.

Brought home at the same time as the Refreshing Moisturizing Cream, I tried this first. It's the best moisturizer I have used! Absorbs fast, only need a small amount and my face remains matte for the longest time. But it's a wee bit sticky if I apply too much. Smells the same as its sister product.

I want it, but I think it cost $80 for 30ml the last time I checked. Faint.

---
Product Information

Galenic Soins Hydratants Intense Moisturizing Serum: An extremely hydrating serum for all skin types.

Description: This moisturizing serum contains extracts of wild berries to restore natural moisturizing abilities in the skin. Wheat protein smoothes and softens skin, while glycols provide added moisture. Ideal for all skin types in need of a hydration boost, this serum is suitable for use alone or prior to your day or night cream. The cells become filled with water, skin is smoother and radiance is boosted. The results are immediate and long-lasting, leaving the skin with a soft, fresh finish.

Recommended Use: Apply morning and/or evening to a thoroughly cleansed face, neck and neckline. This moisturizing serum can be used alone or before applying the day cream with wild berries for reinforced action.

Ingredients: Water (Aqua), Glycerin, Bis-PEG-18 Methyl Ether Dimethyl Silane, PEG-12, Triticum Vulgare (Wheat) Protein (Triticum Vulgare), Rubus Idaeus (Raspberry) Fruit Extract (Rubus Idaeus), Butylparaben, Carbomer, Chlorphenesin, Chondrus Crispus (Carrageenan) (Chondrus Crispus), Disodium EDTA, Fragrance (Parfum), Mica, Phenoxyethanol, PPG-1-PEG-9 Lauryl Glycol Ether, Ribes Rubrum (Currant) Fruit Extract (Ribes Rubrum), Titanium Dioxide, Triethanolamine, Vaccinium Myrtillus Extract (Vaccinium Myrtillus).

Galenic Refreshing Moisturizing Cream

Tried out the sample my sis brought home.
Although smell is rarely my concern, it's a plus that it smells nice. Too oily for me. I look oily after applying and my face still got oily faster compared to Artistry. O well, it's not meant for my skin type anyway.

It has been sitting in my drawer for a long time. Oil has separated out. Looks like oily stuff cannot be kept there.

---
Product Information
Galenic Soins Hydratants Refreshing Moisturizing Cream: A soft, rich day cream for dry and very dry skin types.

Description: This luxurious cream is formulated with extract of wild berries which help to enhance your skin's natural moisturizing abilities. Polyols and polysiloxanes add moisture, comfort and elasticity while vitamin E provides exceptional antioxidant protection. Rich and creamy, this silkening formula is ideal for dry and very dry skin types. Tight, itchy skin is relaxed and sagging skin is plumped, leaving it with a supple, soft look and feel.

Recommended Use: Apply morning and/or evening to a thoroughly cleansed face and neck.

Ingredients: Water (Aqua), Cocos Nucifera (Coconut) Oil (Cocos Nucifera), Dicaprylyl Maleate, Tribehenin PEG-20 Esters, Isohexadecane, Mineral Oil (Paraffinum Liquidum), Cyclomethicone, Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride, Myreth-3 Myristate, Glycerin, PEG-8, Benzotriazolyl Dodecyl P-Cresol, Blue 1 (CI 42090), Dimethiconol, Fragrance (Parfum), Methylparaben, Phenoxyethanol, Propylparaben, Red 33 (CI 17200), Ribes Rubrum (Currant) Fruit Extract (Ribes Rubrum), Rubus Idaeus (Raspberry) Fruit Extract (Rubus Idaeus), Sodium Polyacrylate, Tocopheryl Acetate, Vaccinium Myrtillus Extract (Vaccinium Myrtillus), Yellow 6 (CI 15985).

Treats These Conditions: Anti-Itch, Free Radical Protection

Suitable For These Skin Types: Dry

Ingredient: Vitamin E, Antioxidant, Dimethicone

White Labbit Candy Also Cannot Eat!

Earlier, 白兔糖 was alleged to contain formalin, but subsequently cleared. But now it's found to contain melamine!

It's a white powder. Definitely can disguise itself well.

Will this candy be cleared by CNY next year?

Mid-Autumn Sin Festival

Last year, I didn't buy any fanciful mooncakes. This year, I almost didn't too, if I had not pia-ed finish my work by afternoon of the last Sunday before Mid-Autumn Festival.

My siblings and I descended upon where all mooncake hunters in Singapore has converged - Takashimaya. Super crowded, could hardly move. So many hotels! Managed to taste some mooncakes fragments, the size of my pinkie's nail. Is superior cutting skills a job requirement for manning mooncake counters?

Some hotels have sold out, like Goodwood Park, no chance to eat.

There's a brand whose core business is mochi, but has ventured into mooncakes this year. Their snowskin tastes like... mochi. How can lidat? Tsk tsk.

I'm more keen on snowskin mooncakes as I believe my parents will buy the traditional baked-skin from neighbourhood bakeries. And my brother koped a box of branded mooncakes from various hotels hohoho.

After comparing prices, wanted to go taste 美心月饼 for a final decision, but stopped at 香港大班冰皮月饼 booth since it's not so crowded. The black sesame is not bad. Decided to get it since it's less than $40 for 8 different fanciful flavors. It's supposedly blast-frozen at -18°C, but of what concern is it to me when it's going to sit in my home freezer at the end of the day? The sales assistant opened up the box for us to inspect the mooncakes before packing it into a cooler bag. Nice! Don't have to go home immediately!

Ok done with mooncake shopping! No more! $40 this year, not as much as I had expected.

After that was dinner and after that, we went to Raffles City, where we found yet another mooncake fair, albeit EMPTY! It was getting late and many of the booths have closed for the day also lah. Got to taste more mooncakes. Mmm~

Explored the building a bit, and came across Swissotel The Stamford, Sze Chuan Court Restaurant's booth, empty as well. We very boey paiseh, still go and taste although I had totally no intention of buying. Tasted ALL their flavors! Haha!

Champagne Truffle & Chocolate Ganache - Couldn't taste the champagne ley. And I don't really fancy white chocolate with nothing much to contrast its taste (to prevent me from thinking it's just vanilla).

Strawberry & Dark Chocolate - Sweet-smelling and tasting strawberry, but somehow I thought chocolate and lotus paste don't belong together.

Baileys Chocolate - Where's the Baileys? Better to pour my own Baileys over some other mooncake.

Rum & Raisin Chocolate Truffle - Nice! Not too sweet, with a rum-flavored raisin to offer some contrast.

After eating and saying it's nice, what's next? Walk away? >.< Sis wanted to get it, but I didn't really want to, so I proposed splitting the bill. Actually didn't really expect her to pay lah. The mooncakes cost $46, but the good news was there's 15% discount for Citibank. The bad news was haven't count GST yet. Final bill was $41.84, only slightly more expensive than 大班!

The 8 different flavors of 大班. The funny flavors means XX mixed with mung bean paste aka 绿豆蓉. I thought what special bean lor, green bean nia.

Cut open the mooncake... this is the mung bean-only flavor.

The Swissotel mooncake box. There's a removable mirror and stand on the box. Can't see clearly one lah.

The white mooncakes. White lotus paste, white chocolate shell and raisins.

Cut up. Seriously, how did those sales assistants do a clean cut?

This year, the Swissotel mooncakes are the best! The skin is more chewy than 大班's. Flavor wise, it's more exotic than 大班, which is more of the fun factor.

For traditional baked-skin mooncakes, I realized branded ones really do taste better than neighbourhood bakeries'. I could munch on them without feeling 腻, which is actually the reason why I only liked mooncake skin in the past. It's less oily (you should look at the oil seeping through the skin of brandless mooncakes), less sweet and smoother. So next year should kop more back!

The main office sent boxes of mooncakes and boxes to us for giving away to our customers. And not even 1 mooncake for us. Sooooo sad :(

After so many years of indoor-only activity (i.e eat mooncakes only), this year I went to Bishan Park to breathe polluted air! Watched those kids throw sparklers into the pond, make fires and explosions, lanterns burn up... while eating mooncakes brought in the 大班 cooler bag and drinking softdrinks. Pure sin! Before that, I had Thai Express green curry laksa for dinner :X

Eucerin Hyaluron Filler Eye

So how did my free sample work?

Well, it DIDN'T! Yup, lines still there.

But how can I expect it to, when I sleep after 0030 without fail everyday, stare at the pc almost every minute I'm awake, stressed by work for as long as I've been trying it?

I need a product clinically tested to work despite all my chronic habits above.

After leaving this product in my drawer at room temperature for about 1mth, oil has begun to separate out from the cream. Yeww.

---
Product Information


Hyaluron Filler Eye (15ml)

Intensive Wrinkle-Filling Treatment.

Instructions:

Apply the product after cleansing to the eye contour areas by gently dabbing it into the skin. Use regularly every morning and evening.

Attributes:

* Hyaluronic Acid
* Bioactive glucoside Saponin, one of the most effective Hyaluronic Acid stimulants
* Appropriate for use after Hyaluronic-Acid injections
* Non-comedogenic
* With concentrated Dexpanthenol to support the regeneration process over night

Benefits:

* Instantly visible effect: Hyaluronic Acid immediately restores skin volume to visibly reduce wrinkles.
* Wrinkle Filling effect from the inside: the bioactive glucoside Saponin stimulates skin's own synthesis of Hyaluronic Acid in the deeper layers of the skin.
* The dipped connective tissue under the wrinkle is refilled.
* Wrinkles, even deep ones, are plumped up from inside out.

Ingredients:
Aqua, Glycerin, C12-15 Alkyl Benzoate, C18-36 Acid Triglyceride, Ethylhexyl Methoxycinnamate, Hydrogenated Coco-Glycerides, Cetyl Palmitate, Behenyl Alcohol, Methylpropanediol, Glyceryl Stearate Citrate, Glycine Soja, Aluminum Starch Octenylsuccinate, Bis- Ethylhexyloxyphenol Methoxyphenyl Triazine, Ethylhexyl Triazone, Polymethylsilsesquioxane, Stearyl Alcohol, Sodium Hyaluronate, Silica, Dimethicone, Carbomer, Phenoxyethanol, Caprylyl Glycol, Trisodium EDTA, Methylparaben, DMDM Hydantoin, Propylparaben, BHT, CI 77891, CI 77491.

Retail price:$51/15ml

River View Hotel Buffet and the Storm Before

The department secretary decided that we had too much money in our department fund and decided we should spend some of them. We have been to Penang Place twice in a year, so it's time for a change. I'm so totally bored of it that I wouldn't go there again. But the question is, where to?

First on the radar was Sakura. Near the office, value for money. But it was dropped for reasons I don't know. I'm ok, since I had it so many times these years.

Other places being considered and dropped were Furama, Swissotel Merchant Court for their durian pastries (too ex)... and a few others. The poor DS must have spent at least 2 weeks planning this. Unfortunately I couldn't contribute the places I have been to or lemming to go, as they were either too pricey or non-Halal, non-vegetarian. It's really a pain to think of a place that caters to all groups. I think a place that makes everybody happy doesn't exist. I wouldn't want to be guilty of suggesting a discriminatory venue. If we end up at Penang Place again, I would rather go home. I wasn't the only one. Even a few Indians weren't keen on the dinner because they thought they would be eating laksa and ice-cream only again (what the non-veg Indians ate at Penang Place).

The DS finally decided on River View Hotel, River Garden Coffee House & Terrace which is a non-Halal, non-vegetarian international buffet. What happened to all the dietary concerns?

L couldn't take it lying down. She replied to everybody in the email invitation, appending "NOT FAIR" to the email subject.

...

Are you implying that vegetarians and people who are particular about HALAL cannot attend ?

We are also part of the department. And if this is a departmental gathering please cater to us also.

Wa so fierce can? I didn't respond to the invite, in case they were going to quarrel or change the venue. In my project, Indians are the majority, but department-wise, Chinese are the majority. Because we have always tried to accommodate the lowest common denominator, I have never truly enjoyed the meals we had together. Because of halal alone, Jap, Chinese and Western food are out. Aiyah whatever lah, looking at this department, I'm resigned to eating Indian food or Penang Place for as long as I'm here.

So I will just watch the email war.

The DS's reply:
...

Thank you for your feedback.

Since you've raised your concern, I would now pass the organising baton to you.

Pls be reminded that the following criteria need to be met :

1) Allocated fund $1,300.00 for 50 headcounts
2) Halal certified compulsory for muslim staff (we have at least 3)
3) Indian vegetarian (some take egg, some don't - pls take into consideration)
4) Chinese Vegetarian (no garlic, no onion)
5) Chinese Food with some Pork dishes inclusive (majorty of populations within dept are chinese)

Boss, L will take over from here, pls follow up with her on updates.

Thank you in advance

Eeks L organize is 101% Indian food! Not twice in a week please!

L's reply:
You cannot pass the baton to me. I have raised a concern.Address it if you can
I am not accepting the Baton.

DS's reply:
The answer is, I CAN'T address your concern. Since you felt is NOT FAIR, then pls take up the challenge.

Anyway, I'm hands off for this.

If you not accepting the baton, pls find someone you can passed it on.

We shall stopped all emails from here to avoid flooding the mailbox.

Aiyah end of email war. Nobody did anything then. Bosses all not in also.

The next day, when boss came in, it's time for him to put his conflict-resolving skills to use.

What I overheard:

**
Boss: If you have something to say, you should just email DS only and not to the whole department! What is the meaning of sending to everybody?
L: No, I didn't mean anything! I just thought everybody should know and see if they want a change.
Boss: If they want a change, they will tell DS! No need to email everybody like that!
DS: I'm ok if you email me only. You know how much time I spent on this, trying to cater for everybody? You know how hurt I am when you sent that mail to everybody?

The truth is, I don't think anybody will speak up at all, except L. And she sure knows the power of sending emails to onlookers. She likes to cc the PM when asking me to assist in her official testing, and not cc-ing the PM when asking me to help in things she could have done herself.

**
L: I think it's discriminating against halal and vegetarians.
Boss: All along, we tried to cater to halal and vegetarians. But the Chinese always have nothing to eat! You know the Chinese must eat pork? No pork nothing to eat! If you look, the majority here are Chinese. So everytime the majority not happy when we go out to eat! Now we want to enjoy one time. What you are saying now is discriminating also!
L: No I am not discriminating!
Boss: No, no, no, you are. Discriminating means excluding a certain group!
L: Then the vegetarians have nothing to eat! Even the Chinese vegetarians!
Boss: How many Indian vegetarians are there? You want us to eat the same thing for the few people? How many Chinese vegetarians are there here? DS you are vegetarian right?
DS: Yes, I can only eat salad and dessert at the buffet but I still decided on that place you know.

Well-said boss! I know you are carnivorous, standing up for your own rights now!

**
Boss: Since you have objections, why don't you organize?
L: I can't, it's not my responsibility.
Boss: Then you shouldn't make noise! If you organize, you can go to a place you like.

Ya, so I don't make noise also hehe.

So we still stuck to River View and DS still had to organize. She asked the hotel for directions. She was told that the nearest MRT is Clarke Quay, followed by a 10-15min walk or 2 bus stops away. They even showed us a map on their website.


When I looked at their map, cannot be lor, trying hard to make Ngee Ann City look like it's only 1 street away! I checked out the street directory. At the default magnification of 6, I couldn't see Clarke Quay. 5 also cannot. 4 then can see lor!
Does this look like a 15min walk at all? If I used to take 8min to walk to AMK MRT, this would easily take 30min.

Anyway, I wouldn't be walking there. Good luck to the rest!

Most people took 30-40min to get there, plus losing their way. The record was 1hr. Some gave up and wanted to take the bus, but they saw the buses but no bus stop. Many taxis cruising around, but too expensive at evening lah.

We were assigned tables at the alfresco area. Not warm lah, the Singapore longkang river and Robertson Bridge are right outside. After eating, still can go jalan jalan for digestion and come back for next round. If you like, you can even walk and never come back. How thoughtful.


No soft drinks in the buffet. Must pay $3.50. Don't think their coffee and tea are included too. Not interested also, it's Thursday.

Their Coffee Pork Ribs looked interesting, but some commented there was no coffee taste. So... it's coffee-colored only? And it looked too tough, when a colleague was trying to cut it but made noise instead.

Things I didn't eat (and can remember):

• Prawn mee, laksa, sushi. Too filling.
• Roast pork, chicken and duck. Why, don't I eat them often enough? Except the pork.
• Ordinary-looking ham. Yawn.
• Smoked salmon. Not a fan.
• Marinated octopus. I strongly feel I might get to eat it at a coming wedding.
• Deep fried money bags. Not a fan of fried food.
• Cold seafood like scallops, mussels and prawns. Where are the oysters?
• Chilli crab. Not there to dirty my hands! Don't eat chilli crab anyway.

Things I ate:

• Prawns fried with meat-floss-like thing, which felt overcooked.
• Chawanmushi, which has corn in it.
• Chicken satay. Meaty with peanutty sauce, nice, but a bit cold.
• Sashimi, but as usual I was stuffing myself silly with salmon sashimi, which can hardly go wrong.
• Fruits. Got papaya, dragon fruit UNPEELED (how dare them!), apple, melon.
• Chendol drink and chin chow soy bean milk. For the chendol, they just put glasses of coconut milk with 料 in them and my colleagues took them just like that. Chendol what, where is the gula melaka and ice? Funny one haha.
• Various cakes, but not many varieties. The best was a warm pie, something like a watery Portuguese egg tart.

So I'm still quite a picky eater huh. Many warm dishes, but mostly not special enough. It's $28+++ mah, what to expect.

There was a handicapped live singer. Boss went to xian1 his minder and found that they are members of the hotel, so we got 15% discount!

By 9pm, people started to leave. 5 of us were going to lompang the bosses home, but they were still happily chatting, like don't want to leave! We waited a while more, but by 9.30pm, we couldn't take it anymore. So much to say meh? Or was it because the bosses' boss was there?

Me: How, they talk until 依依不舍.
K: Don't know ley, go and tell them?
Me: B, you go ask ley, PM more convenient!
B: Huh don't want, big boss is there!
K: Or I drive you all back lah! Boss J left his car keys with me.
Us: Huh why he gave you his keys? Men a lot of pockets one right.
K: Don't know ley, he gave me lor. Wallet also gave me lor.
Me: Maybe pants too tight.
(Anyway it's not the first time Boss J did that. Last time at xx event also throw his bag to a lady (again) and don't want to take back)
K: Can lah! You all got buy insurance right?
Me: Wallet also here? If out of petrol can go pump! And tomorrow morning can come pick me up!
Silence
E: How?
Me: K, we share cab lah.
E, H: We go first lah. Bye!
B, K, Me: (Shouting) Bye! BYE!!! BYEEEE!!!
E, H: Bye!
B, K, Me: (Shouting) BYEEEE!!!

Then the bosses said it's late and the girls wanted to go home, so they stopped! YAY! They caught the hint!

O this Boss J so cheapo, say don't want to eat buffet, want to drink beer only. In the end still kop the dessert to eat! At least he did lah, better than a drink-driver on an empty stomach.

In all, just slightly more than half the department turned up.

Khansama Tandoori Village

G is going to London (a change from the usual back-to-India after marriage), hence L volunteered to organize a farewell dinner for him at Khansama Tandoori Village. The public transport directions sounded nightmarish. Take bus/MRT to Buona Vista MRT, then take 92 and drop off at the last stop. Haha I bet everybody was super turned off after hearing that! So near, yet so far.

Out of the blue, R is leaving as well (and paying for his notice), so it became a farewell for 2.

I'm not a fan of Indian food. Coupled with the fact that it's not a department-sponsored event and I had a slight sore throat, I contemplated flying plane. What's worse was that all bosses aka drivers were not in office by evening, which meant I would have to spend on taxi to eat something I didn't fancy. But there were 3 more people willing to share with me, so I went lor.

Before we set off, I checked the street directory as evening is a bad time to lose your way in a taxi. Wa it's located in the depths of Science Park I lor! Exit AYE at Buona Vista, turn to Science Park Drive and drive till the end of the road. It's good in a way, because it's easy to remember.

The taxi fare was $12. Ouch.

The restaurant deco is very cosy and Indian. The place was rather quiet, save for a few tvs screening Bollywood MVs. The food was surprisingly palatable to me. It's not exceedingly loaded with spices that go up my nose. The curries are not too spicy.
The only thing I couldn't take was a baked cracker.

1 of the guys was breaking fast. I think he really made up for all the 3 meals! O_O For me sure cannot 1 lah, miss already, that's it. Can't make up for it later.

A: How come the movies they playing are all so short?
Me: They are MVs lah.
A: Is it? Look like movies ley.
G: It's MV but taken from the movies.
Me: O... so clever can save money.

Since it's a farewell, after we were done eating, must have some interaction. But G and R didn't say much, their bosses didn't either, and people who usually are very talkative also nothing to say. It didn't help when we couldn't hear very well with the tv above us. When my father came and I got up to leave, they all too the opportunity to leave too -_-;;

It could have been better if we ordered catering instead, since all of us without our own transport took taxi.

Since 25 people accepted the dinner invitation, excluding the 2 we were treating, the restaurant suggested providing us with a special buffet costing $522. But 6 people flew plane, hence we faced the grim prospect of paying for all those we didn't turn up. Weird lor those people, at the end of the day still said coming coming, in the end disappeared. Some informed beforehand that they wouldn't be able to make it, but most didn't. Fortunately, a PM stood up for all of us and made the pilots pay. If not really boey tahan!

Think we will all be wary of farewells in future. Luckily I still went! If not never go but still must pay!

Purchases and Freebies

New stuff for this month!

Drugstore
My favourite mask was running low, so had to restock from a Drugstore spree. Was damn lucky to come across a spree where the organizer was going to use drugstore dollars to offset shipping!

My sister bought Aveeno Lip Conditioner, USD3.69.


My Queen Helene Mint Julep Masque, USD3.79 each. It's so good and cheap that I foresee myself sticking to it for the next 1 year. Decided to buy 2 of it in one shot to save on postage.

Spree organizer placed the order on 16 July and my parcel landed on my desk on 19 August. 1 month's wait! But it's totally worth it man, because on top of the drugstore dollars, the spree organizer even had 12% UOB discount for Vpost shipping, and don't forget the low exchange rate! Therefore, the USD->SGD conversion rate for this spree is 1.807.

In conclusion,
Aveeno Lip Conditioner SGD6.67
Queen Helene Mint Julep Masque SGD6.85 each

Yay!

Beauty Credit
HSBC sent me a mailer to redeem a free Travel Pack from Beauty Credit. (Got other stuff that required spending lah, so forget them)

CoQ10 essence, keratin shampoo and conditioner, and brown rice mask.

I thought it would be travel-size facewash and stuff, so was quite disappointed. Haven't use yet.

Fr3b
Joined the online free sample site, Fr3b and redeemed my first sample, Eucerin Hyaluron Filler Eye.

Haven't used it yet!

Well, I was charged 80 cents for postage, but the stamp on the envelope read 50 cents, so they overcharged me. I noticed it's flat postage, so next time I should redeem more at one shot or get potentially heavier items.

Monistat

Monistat's Soothing Care Chafing Relief Powder-Gel, $10 secondhand.


This thing is actually meant for relieving and preventing chafing in the inner thigh and bikini area, but those American women found a wonderful alternative use for it - as a makeup primer. My nose gets oily real fast and nothing helped so far, so I got this to try.

Tried it on a normal day to work. (No, I don't wear makeup to work, I'm a lazy sotong) It did work, but my nose still shined. Still, a vast improvement from Care Pre-makeup cream from last year. So... thumbs up?

Fish & Co Swordfish

Ken Noodle House wasn't open, nothing exciting to eat at Centrepoint, so it's Fish & Co after n years.

Ordered their swordfish which took ages to arrive. O boy, it's HUGE!
With sweet and spicy sauce.

The meat.

They were having a Nescafe promotion where we could get a free can of their new can coffee, but it's out of stock although the promotion was only 3 days old. And not many people around on a slow Sunday night. Waitress said it's crowded on Fridays. *rolls eyes*

Express Citizenship

... the China-born lass first caught the eye of the Singapore Table Tennis Association early 2007 ...

She was then coaxed into joining the Singapore team last March ...

... made a Singapore citizen in January this year.

So that's what, 9 months? :O

Takuya Did a LKY

Even Japanese tv wants to copy us.

j Must Be Followed With sp

I wanted to name a photo's extension to .jpg, but ended up with .jsp instead. *rolls eyes*

Of Reservations and Oily Cake

Thanks to KB for organizing the SWSNG gathering!

Our original plan was to dine at Square2, Pasta de Waraku. I volunteered to make the reservation.

1) Called if ask if they accept reservations. They do, great, so we can fix the venue there!

2) Called to reserve for 11 at 8pm, but the reply was that the latest time for reservations is 7pm. Why wasn't I told the last time? I asked KB to ask around who could come at 7pm and sit down first and order first, but only KB and I could. When only 2/11 has arrived, I felt there was the possibility that PDW wouldn't let us in. I didn't want to ask PDW about my fear lest I gave them ideas, like "wow, ya thanks for reminding, we won't let you in since only 2/11 are here!". Our final decision was to book anyway and play drag with them.

3) Called to reserve for 11 at 7pm. Now, the reply was that they couldn't accommodate 11 as they had to leave some tables for walk-ins. However, if we walked in, it's very likely we can get a table. What bloody logic?? I understand their concern, but if only they had been more upfront with me. But maybe I gave them ideas with my previous 2 phonecalls :\ All these goes to show that PDW doesn't have a clear reservation policy.

On the day itself, even with people arriving before 7pm, they couldn't secure a table for 11. We would have to wait for at least 20min and even then, PDW couldn't guarantee that the tables would be together. So what to do, find an alternative lor.

My sister passed by Secret Recipe just now and found it rather empty. GOOD! It's been long since I was there, 2006 I think.

Speed and pacing of serving the dishes were ok at first. Salad and drinks came before the mains, the way it should be. Unfortunately for M who came late, his Vietnamese noodles took too long. We asked them about it, no reply. Continued waiting long long. Either they truly forgot, or it's coming via MRT from the Bishan branch.

A number of items on the menu were unavailable despite the prime dinner time. The waitress explained that they only ordered limited quantities daily. Come on, we were easily the first round of dinner customers that night, run out so fast? But well, considering that we were also the last round of dinner customers, and in the first place, we were not even supposed to be there, they were forgiven.

No free iced water is served. They charge 50 cents for bottled water with a glass of ice. To maximize your 50 cents, order hot water. You will get a mug of hot water + the bottled water!

My sister and I ordered:
Their new Oxtail Stew. The portion is not big actually, because the bulk of it is bones. Due to the irregular shape of the bone, it's hard to eat cleanly. Gravy is nice, not too salty. Mashed potato is good considering the pricing, unfortunately nowhere comparable to Paulaner Brauhaus.

Picture koped without permission from... somewhere.

Not wanting to pay 50 cents for something that should have been free, we ordered Apple Katsuri, which is green apple with 酸梅. Nice!

Picture koped without permission from... somewhere.

Ok this is my own picture. This is the moist chocolate cake. A huge disappointment. My sister didn't know it would be served warm. I was ok with it being warm, but not ok with oil oozing from it! Walau gross can! I have accepted the fact that cakes are fat-loaded, but no need to show that the cake was so oil-saturated that oil come out! The cake wasn't moist as the name has claimed. Ok lah, it's more moist than your regular pandan cake. It's too 腻 for me; after a few mouthfuls, had to drink my Apple Katsuri. My yardstick for cakes must have crept up unknowingly, no thanks to July's feast. We left much of the chocolate alone.

Somebody ordered pasta. The longest strand was no more than 10cm, mostly around 3cm. Machiam leftover scraps!

My sister commented that the dinner wasn't nice. Ya, when my brother when I have been feeding her exotic food.

I don't know if I'll ever be back there again.

Sotongs is Surrounded by Aunties

What can turn ladies and taitais into aunties?

SALES!

For unknown reasons, I assumed the Triumph Warehouse Sale would be an annual affair. I waited and waited, and finally got the news that it would be back from 1-3 August! The venue has changed to Chevron, which is near my workplace. I should rejoice, but I wouldn't elaborate on the reason for why I didn't feel so. Moreover, it meant my mother and sister would be unlikely to join in the madness.

Nevertheless. I shared the news with a colleague, who in turn broadcasted it (expected :P). She offered to help me buy, but I declined since the fun in a sale is to chiong and pick on your own!

On 1 August, the first day of the sale, the ladies in my office all chionged during lunch. I couldn't resist and asked them to help me get a design that I really really die die must get :P They all returned happy with their 战利品, but couldn't find what I wanted. Nevermind... :\ Some even went during office hours. All came back to describe the horrendous crowd, having to 捞鱼生 and emerging triumph with their desired design and size and comparing buys. And watching people who look so 斯文 morph into an auntie once inside the sale.

Went home and thought about it. Making a trip down specially on Saturday morning wasn't a hard decision to make. I would have to forgo some sleep, nobody would be with me to help me 捞, but it shouldn't be a problem if I reached earlier than opening time, grabbed and be off right away, right?

So I was there 30 minutes before the stipulated 10am opening. Dismayed to observe people sneaking into the sale and being sent out. The mass of people outside the door burgeoned as time went by. When the doors opened, people appeared from all corners of the building and streamed through it :O Waa jialat ah...

The operation of the sale was similar to last year. We were handed clear plastic bags, no bags allowed. The workers quite nice ley, asked me if I needed a chair. No need lah! How to chiong seated? :P I headed straight to the design I wanted, but don't have my size ley! So hard to 捞 myself also T_T. A sales assistant came to me to promote a type of panties called "Lilac" that prevents leaks during periods, going for 5 for $15. I was kind of looking for that, but it's low priority, so I asked her to help me find what I wanted. She directed me to a trolley that she thought was more worth it. Ehh the seamless T-shirt bra! Wa 3 for $30 only! So found some for me and went back to tend her Lilac trolley.

I tried to walk around a bit more, but found the place getting challenging. After my father finished his phone call, he was starting to look like the numerous bored-looking men standing at the perimeter. I've gotten the essentials I wanted, not worth to tire myself over optional items. Forget the panties, and looking at the Lilac! Bye!

Total damage: $30, but still happy :D