My dad....

Has been on leave this week and everytimr I go home early, he will nag at me for working so few hours and continually asked me to back to work full load next year.. I think he can't accept that I am enjoying myself at this age when he was slogging when he was at my age.

I am going back full load next year. This year's pay is pretty pathetic. My savings are decreasing by the day. But I am happy and thankful. Money and achievements are not as important as relationships. When we meet God face to face, he won't ask us how many degrees we have, how many awards we have gotten, how much money we have made. He will ask us what is the quality of our relationships- with Him, And with one another.

It has been a good year for me :)
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7 more teaching days...

and I do not have to mark anymore for the rest of the year. I can't wait. The kids will be going for learning journeys to the changi chapel etc. I told them I will teach them how to play the guitar, which means I have to listen to mainstream music. Maybe I shall teach them how to do foot reflexology too. :) I remembered I taught my previous batch of p6s how to fill up the immigration departure and arrival card, and my friends were telling me it's not wise to encourage them to run away from home! So silly! :)
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One minute

makes the difference between having 50 cents or a dollar for erp
makes the difference between having free parking or not
makes the difference between having to pay for the 2nd erp or not

I made that one minute. But what a rush it was!
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Black pepper crabs

Are yummy but the shell cut my left index finger which made it impossible for me to practise and play for tomorrow. It is sad because I always look forward to playing with the worship team monthly. I guess I got to wait till next month. 2 new gals are visiting FCC tomorrow. One is a drummer for her church. How kewl is that :)
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My awesome collection of alcohol..

is getting a bit overwhelming for me. While I am thankful I do not have to worry about not having money to buy the alcohol like I would 10 years ago, I do think I might have gone overboard asking friends to buy alcohol for me whenever they go overseas. I am thankful they could. But I think I shall slow down from today onwards. Just collected a Bling Bling and hoegarden from a friend just now. I have another 2 bottles from 2 CG mates. My ex-bf will also be helping me to get another 2 bottles when he comes back from Australia end Oct.

Why do I want so many bottles? I am intrigued by the different designs of the bottles. The desire to collect bottles started with the different series that Absolut Vodka produced. I thought they were too pretty to ignore. Then when I had about 2 bottles of each flavour, I decided to collect other bottles, both unique and common; unique so I can keep, common so I can mix drinks for friends in future when I get my own place.

Talking about getting my own place, I have been praying for a place of my own where I can open up to people to chill, chat and hang out at. I am glad the SH will be able to get her place in about a month and that she had mentioned that she would love to open up her place to people. It's nice. I like that. :)

Time to get out of the towel!
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Actually...

I am still in my towel. I don't know why I like being in my towel. The SH says I am a nudist. So farney. Well, I prefer to wear as little as possible if possible.. I feel free when I get to do that. :) Strange me.

I was on the verge of booking a trip to HK to visit my old friend and experience winter again! THe last time I was in HK was 10 years ago! Also in December. IT was awesome! My ex and I ate 8 times a day. There was food everywhere.. and the weather was fabulous. My favourite temperature: 18 Degrees Celsius.

I saw tickets at Tiger Airways @ $359. But my colleagues didn't think that was cheap. And I hadn't got a reply from my friend in HK if she was coming back to Singapore during that period of time. Well, she replied a few hours later to say she will be in HK during that period of time. Hmmm... I might drop by. And I want to visit BMCF!!!!
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SH's gone for 4 days

Yesh. She went to KL to attend a course. I wanted to travel up with her but she was going to catch up with a friend/potential business partner in the evenings. Next time then. The course runs for 3 weekends.

Got to spend a bit of time before she hopped on the coach at Novena Sq. Picked her from her place, drove to Novena, collected her tickets had Kenny Rogers (the muffins!!), changed currency and bye bye!

Gonna use this weekend well! :)
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2nd post of the night/morning

inspiration to blah came when I was brushing my teeth. Watch this space. Gonna put on some clothes first.
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I am back!

See Title.
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this is the best article of all. On romance

Though this question sounds simple but it is very difficult to answer. Try it and see if you can say what romance is. Is it something to do with love? Is it togetherness and spending time with your lover? Well no it is much, much more. Romance is the very essence of life. Without romance your love life will not exist.

Romance is the true identity of your love. It brings out your true self and helps you be a better lover, husband and partner. Romance is a celebration of the life you live as part of a couple. It springs naturally and originates from within your heart. It makes you do things that you possibly couldn't have imagined to do otherwise. It shows you who you are and reminds you of the role you play in a relationship. Romance is not responsibility but it is caring about your responsibilities towards your lover and partner. Romance is the appreciation of two people who are celebrating the lucky coincidence that they found each other.

However often in the daily rush and work load people tend to forget about romance and so we have brought for you a list of things that you can do to keep the flame of romance burning in your heart forever.

Lets have a quick checklist, just for fun. At least it will make you available to comment on how far you have reached in your tryst for being a die-hard romantic! We’ve broken it up into several segments for even better testing!

Daily Romantic Checklist
1. Always compliment your lover.
2. Tell your lover how much you love him.
3. Say 'I love u' at least seven times daily.
4. Spend at least an hour together daily.
5. Give surprises or do some unexpected gesture.
6. Always call in to find out how things are with your partner.
7. Hug your partner first thing when you get up in the morning.

Weekly Romantic Checklist
1. Make it a point to spend a whole day together.
2. Do something which both of you enjoy doing together.
3. Cook her a meal.
4. Give your partner a surprise gift.
5. Give one another a good body massage followed with u-know-what.
6. Go out for a movie together.
7. Plan something special for the upcoming weekend.

Monthly Romantic Checklist
1. Plan to go out for a short trip during the weekend.
2. Go out for dinner at least twice every month.
3. Make love more often.
4. Watch at least two romantic movies.
5. Take your lover out for shopping and give her/him a beautiful gift.

Yearly Romantic Checklist
1. Think of an unusual way to celebrate your partner's birthday.
2. Make a new years resolution to be more creatively romantic.
3. Make Plans for your next anniversary.
4. Create a special 'Romance' category in your household budget.
5. Go out for a long vacation once in a year.
6. Plan out your next vacation.
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Sermon today

To be in 2 cgs means having to be around for stewardship 4 months of the year. Not that I am complaining. I was around during service anyway. Do the little I can.

Today's sermon by C was inspiring once again. It's really not the things said during that matters more than the message the sermon carries. For people who hear about sex and saunas during the sermon, that's what they would have gotten out of the sermon. I hear that message behind this question: how does Christ in my life reflect the way in which I carry out my relationships with those that I come into contact with. I also hear that message, that in the people we meet and the interactions we have with others, we should always leave the person in a better state than before they came to us, that at the end of the interaction, they will feel a bit more blessed than before we meet. That is Christian living for me; making a positive difference in the lives of others THAT people will know the reason for our faith.

I feel blessed today. What a great reminder to realign the purposefully driven life.
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I feel loved

when 2 friends leaving for Phuket for the Sayoni Camp texted me to ask if I need any Vodka. So nice to be thought of. :)
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SQ 21

just finished reading it in 1 setting. Amazing stories by amazing individuals. These are people who have come out of the closet. It's kinda sad as well because 2 of them who shared about their lives with their partners had broken up with their partners since. Do their testimony count as much now?

At the back of the book, I saw a summary of a basic model of coming out. I thought that's interesting. Sharing it now:

Self-recognition as a gay person -> Disclosure to people (usually to people who are perceieved to be affirming) -> Socialisation with other gay people -> Positive self-identification -> Integration into life and acceptance of self.

I guess I am at the beginning of the last stage now. Sometimes, I like to be out to others, but I guess I do not yet have the courage to come out to everyone at this moment in time. Sllllloooooowwwwwlllllly I guess.
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Hillsong worship team is amazing..

for the songs they compose. I am totally convinced after hearing their latest album.

Thanks to dear V, I managed to get the CD/DVD set $10 off the retail price. While I was being ministered by the songs, I thought about the people who are anti-hillsong for different reasons; most of them think that Hillsong is a homophobic church with an anti- gay ministry (I heard but have not verified). Then I remembered someone question why we should attend mainstream churches since they can't accept people like us.

The revelation I have is this; In the spiritual realm, everyone is equal before God. No one is looking at one anther. Our eyes are fixed on God. Our focus is on praising and worshipping God and nothing else matters, not the one who's standing beside us, behind us, around us. When we boycott god-loving people, are we not doing what they are doing; Being judgmental of what we think about their beliefs about us?

I saw a vision of everyone in the body of Christ worshipping together, praising God in one body, regardless of our sexual orientation. It will be great if this comes to pass in my lifetime!
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It was heartwarming to see the ex-students again..

How much they have grown. Praying that they will be useful citizens in society. Useful citizens of good character.
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Yeh. ACES Day is over!

No more big projects for the year! Yay!

The kids did wonderfully. They barely made any mistakes and they were on stage alone for the first time in their lives! Wow! I get excitement from giving this sort of first time experiences to the kids! Unfortunately, the morning session pupils were not very cooperative. Some were standing still, not doing anything. Some were pushing their friends. Some did, so that was good. I asked some students and they said they had not tried the ACES Day dance. An email was sent out notifying the video was ready and the system was set up in the hall everyday since 3 weeks ago, I think the teachers who were teaching these classes PE were plain irresponsible. Also, the teachers in charge of these classes were standing behind chatting with one another instead of supervising the kids.. Ah well...

The afternoon session pupils made the day so much better. They were all so enthusiastic that it ended the day well for all of us. It was great. :)
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is sleepy...

but thinks the bible is one of the awesome-est book ever written. Ever.
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I reflected...

and thought I should spend less time doing and more time being still.

Doing God's work and reflecting on His goodness are 2 very different things. It shouldn't be one or the other. It shouldn't even be more of one and less of the other. Both goes hand in hand. Lately, I tend to tip over to the side of doing. Time for that 1 or 2 hours of uninterrupted prayer.

Next week!
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Sometimes I think I meddle too much..

I should try to be less concerned, ask less, pray more and just be available and wait for them to initiate conversation when they want to.

Time to continue my Spanish! :)
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short reflection from last night.

So I didn't get to watch PCK because many didn't want to pay to watch PCK. The gals were nice to suggest another movie so 3 of us played badminton and watched Step Up 3. Awesome moves but poorly planned lines. A bit lame. And........ there were some things that the lead actors/actresses(the good people) did that we encourage kids NOT to do. GRRR... even though those actions were for effect, it's not very good for kids to watch and decide that doing those stuff is cool (running away from the scene after causing trouble instead of owning up and apologising, taking away 2 kids' skatescooters and dropped them on the ground after usage. Jumping into a garbage back, dispersing the rubbish in it and running away from that, stuff like that.. ) What a teacher I am.

We met 4 others for dinner at Food Republic followed by dessert @ Macs. Guess the topic of conversation?

I think it's sometimes good to steer the conversations away from the usuals and talk about more important things in life. Good.
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What a glorious day!

Happy Teachers' Day to me! Happy 10th Year in service!

Woke up early enough to eat fishball meepok, the craving I had last night before I shut my eyes to sleep. Then went upstairs to give tuition. Came home, snacked a lil before giving Cookie her bath. Now blogging while mudding the face. Guitaring lesson at 3p.m. Popping by Lot 1 to get him prezzie from Mel and me. Badminton at 5p.m. Tuition @ 7p.m. Meeting the SH for dinner after that. No marking today. Glorious glorious glorious!
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