Travels:Laos. Welcome to the TACKIEST park on earth!!

Vientiane
Day 3
Monday, December 22, 08.

We stumbled upon JoMa Bakery by chance last night and decided to give this one a go. It looks a little bit more swanky than the Scandinavian Bakery but the prices are a little less pricier. It's another local coffee shop, with chains at different locations in Vientiane and Luang Prabang. It is so refreshing to not see Starbucks or CoffeeBeans in Laos!!

The first thing that caught our eyes at JoMa were the pastries. If the French left anything in this country, it was the architecture and the art of making good bread. The choices were enough to make your mouth water. We wanted everything: the apple strudels, the spinach strudels, the chocolate strudels, the muffins, the banana cakes, the cinnamon buns...the list can go on. But boring ol' me, settled for bagels and cream cheese with coffee. Husband J went for the kill: the apple strudels. I caved in after finishing up the bagel; I went in and ordered chocolate strudel. It was heavenly!!! The coffee was better than yesterday's at Scandinavian. We found out that JoMa serves great banana cake and cinnamon buns. Hmmm...Maybe next time, we will try.

After a satisfying breakfast, we hired a tuktuk to take us to Buddha Park, some 25km outside Vientiane. We paid the tuktuk driver 195,000 Kip for a 2-way trip! That's USD23!! J really wanted to see this park, so off we went. Tuktuk rides are by far the best way to see the city. We went through some pretty interesting roads, where we passed the 'Friendship Bridge' connecting Laos to Thailand, the LaoBeer brewery which the driver proudly showed us and, Daisy the Cow and friends taking a stroll down the busy, dusty streets!!

Buddha Park was an *interesting* place. OK, I was being polite.. it was a weird and very tacky experience for us. Basically, this dude decided to build this park adorned by Buddhist statues with this odd domed-shape house, depicting hell at the bottom level, earth at mid-level, and the next world at the top level. But soon after the communist government took over Laos, he was chased away to Thailand where he reportedly build a bigger and tackier park!! Anyway, the park was by the Mekong so the view at the bottom of the park was quite nice. As I walked around the park under the hot blazing sun, I still couldn't get my head around this place. It was just....weird!

Welcome to Buddha Park!!

Earth, Hell and the after-life, all in one dome!

Inside the dome: mid-level, earth?

Buddha Park: I just couldn't get my head around this place!!

We took the tuktuk back and had lunch at Nazim's, a halal Indian restaurant which seemed to be extremely popular with the backpackers. I had rice, alu gobi and some chicken masala dish; J had naan. Imagine, all the way in Laos, and we ate Indian food. I told J, we're not having naan for the rest of the trip!

The evening, as always, was cooler. We picked a restaurant that had bamboo sheds along the Mekong and sat on the floor as we enjoyed the sunset. Dinner was spectacular. Just as you think Lao food couldn't get any better, you find yourself totally enjoying another Lao dish. I had 'hotpot' - water boiled over charcoal in a clay pot, you put in the garlic, chillis, seafood (or meat), vegetables, glass noodles and eggs. And voila!! Amazing hot, soupy dinner on a cool night. And it was only for 30,000 Kip!!

Sunset by the Mekong

This, is the life!!

xoxo,

Travels:Laos. 'Wat' a sunny day!

Vientiane
Day 2
Sunday, December 21, 08

After a surprisingly chilly night (at least it was for me!), Husband J and I woke up to a breezy, sunny morning. The sun was out, and the weather was very pleasant, although I was with my trusted denim jacket when we head out for breakfast.

Breakfast at the hotel was included as part of our room, but the breakfast hall had a funky smell and made me want to throw up, so we decided to spend our Kips on a decent breakfast outside. Just behind the hotel, there were a row of swanky restaurants, and the famous Scandinavian Bakery. The place is almost always packed with tourists. I think I just had a simple breakfast set with toast and eggs, and black coffee, and it was by far, the most ordinary breakfast I've had. I don't understand why the bakery was so popular. I supposed tourists flock to it because it is mentioned in every guide book to Laos. There was nothing Scandinavian about it, the coffee was flat, the bread was nothing spectacular, the eggs, boring and it was a bit pricey. We could've opted for something cheaper, but I guess it was just our second day, so you live and learn!

Walking along the tall white walls of the Presidential Palace, Vientiane

Sightseeing in Indochina is essentially wats, museums and more wats! Our first stop was the Sisaket Museum, which was just around the corner from where we stayed. We walked passed the Presidential Palace, but couldn't see much but white walls surrounding it. We had to pay 5,000 Kip for entrance (each) to look at Buddha figurines if different sizes in glass casings. Just opposite of the museum is the Wat Sisaket, which is said to be the oldest temple in Vientiane. It houses more than 300 mostly Lao-style Buddha images of different sizes, ages and material.

And yes, you have to pay the entrance fee of 5,000 Kip each!

Wat Sisaket

The Hwa Phra Keo Museum was next, where you get to see a little of Lao history. Old money, old weapons, old Lao ornaments..you know the sort National Museums are made of. 5,000 Kip entrance fee each. (As we learnt, almost everything has an entrance fee!)

The sky was very blue in Vientiane, no clouds, so you get direct sunlight. Even during this somewhat cooler season, the sun was quite strong. I didn't sweat much although we did a lot of walking today. It was hot but not humid. But still, hot.

That Dam is a old concrete stupa right in the middle of the road, near the American embassy. It looks quite majestic but a little out of place!! Due to its location, the locals have turned it into a roundabout so, no entrance fee for this one!

The holy roundabout? That Dam

The Patouxai was next. I was a little grumpy (and tired! And hot!) by this time, especially when I learned J wanted us to climb up to the top! The Patouxai (or 'Ptooi' as J called it!) was built from concrete originally donated by the US government for an airport. But as you can see, that never happened instead, up went this building. I didn't think there was anything special at the top. Half way, you can do a bit of shopping, before continuing your way to view Vientiane from the top. At the bottom, the ceiling looked like you could be in a cathedral in Rome, except it is adorned by Buddhist images. Quite stunning. Entrance fee: 3,000 Kip each please!!

Patouxai

We walked back and had lunch by the Mighty Mekong at one of the shacks along the river bank. As expected, food was awesome though we had simple dishes with rice. You can never go wrong with the simple local dishes...

Hot food on a hot day!!

Tomorrow is our last full day in Vientiane before we head out to see the rest of this unique country. But for now, time to get out of the sun and catch some zzzzzzzzz........

xoxo,

Travels:Laos. Sabaidee Vientiane!

Vientiane, Laos
Day 1
Saturday, December 20, 08

The flight to Bangkok took off from KLIA a few minutes later than scheduled, as the airline staff had to unload luggage from missing passengers who failed to show up for the flight. I wasn't too concern, I was going on a holiday!! We flew on Thai Airways, Business Class, and it was nice! Husband J was happy he could stretch his long legs. However, the food at the business lounge was kinda sad. Maybe it was too early in the morning, the flight was initially scheduled to take off at 7.55am.

2 hours later, we were in Bangkok, lounging around at the 'Royal Silk Lounge'. It was a 3 ++ hour transit, and nothing too exciting. The Thai Airways flight to Vientiane finally took off at 11.45am.

When we arrived an hour later, it was a hot afternoon in Vientiane. I got stuck at the immigration because they couldn't comprehend why I was flying in from Bangkok, but didn't have a Bangkok stamp in my passport. And they didn't ask me!! All the officer did was stare at me!! As if I could read his mind!! Haiiya..

*smacks forhead*

After much staring questioningly at me, one of the other officers asked me how long I was in Bangkok. I then understood the confusion, so I said, "Transit!" Confusion ended. I was free to be a tourist in Laos! J had to pay USD40 for Visa on-arrival (which was virtually easy), and we made our way to our hotel.

Vientiane is like any other Indochinese city, though it was not as busy as Phnom Penh. The city is littered with little local eateries, with french-influenced architecture, and cafes. At this time, there's less to no rainfall, so the city was a bit dusty. We got to our hotel, Lane Xang Hotel, across from the Mekong River. Lane Xang was the old name of Laos, and the hotel which we stayed in was said to be the meeting place of secret communist agents and high-ranked Soviet and Lao officials during the height of communism. So we were staying in a piece of communist history! But the hotel looked like it hasn't gone through much change, still looked like it was from the communist era! The rooms are decent, although for the kind of money we were paying, I've seen better. J and I were amused every time we entered the elevator, the carpeting had the day written on it! Typical if you are travelling and forget what day it is, just pop by Lane Xang Hotel, go into the lift, and read what's on the carpet!!

The local currency is Kip. And the notes carry many zeros....yeah, one of those. USD is of course accepted, but if you carry Thai Bhat, you're OK too. We decided to change our US Dollars to Kip. And you can only change in Laos. The Kip is not available outside Laos!

watching the sun sink over the mighty Mekong at 5.30pm

We decided to do a walkabout along the Mekong bank, wide-eyed as we passed by the numerous river bars scattered along the Mekong. We took the restaurant closest to the hotel, and it looked newer and swanky, compared to the others, which were essentially shacks. We sat and watched as the sun sink over the Mekong, and the temperature dropped. Vientiane goes dark by 5.30pm and gets quite chilly at night. We had rice for dinner, with mixed veggies in oyster sauce, fantastic seafood tomyam and fried beef in basil with chili that exploded in our mouths! Lao food is super hot!! That dinner on our first night, was fantastic, so we couldn't wait to sample more during this journey.

awesome, explosive food!!

At the restaurant, J and I were amused to find a replica of KL's twin towers at the restaurant next door. Surely not!! Which we later found out that Tourism Malaysia was holding a show at the restaurant next door. Yeah, OK. But bringing the Twin Towers was tacky at best!! We had to sleep through traditional Malay music as the noise was just from across the road from us. It was a tad bit annoying for me... Why couldn't they do the showcase in a proper hall??? In fact, there is a community hall nearby where the locals would go and do group aerobics...

KL's Twin Towers by the mighty Mekong!

J had to sample the coffee, so we stopped by at a swanky-ish local coffee shop called Sabaidee Coffee. I stuck to the safest - a chocolate latte - which was a good call, because I found Lao coffee to be a bit too strong for my liking.

The weather was pleasant, but I guess I would be at least in my wrap or light jacket when walking in Vientiane at night. Tomorrow, we'll do the sightseeing, so hopefully, the sun won't be too hot for us to move around.

xoxo,
puss.inheels@yahoo.com

Travels: Laos, here we come!!

december 19, 08 friday
4:42pm
WOOT!

All packed up and ready for tomorrow's trip.

The flight is on Thai Airways (Business Class - J's work is paying, as part of his contract!!) and it departs KLIA at 7.55am. Which means, we need to have the cab pick us up at 5.30am and send us to Sentral.

We'll make a stop-over at Bangkok International for a few hours, and then off we go on another Thai Airways flight to Vientiane. We should be reaching Vientiane by 1pm. That's not so bad. I think it'll be an interesting flight.

J's coming home from Singapore tonight and then we're packing whatever's left, get some sleep and rise really early tomorrow.

This will be the longest trip I've taken so far. Usually, I'd be gone for just 1 week. This trip is for 2 weeks. I hope the cats will be OK and that brother Jen will take good care of them. I've stocked up on their food and have done the necessary cleaning up around the house.

I'll also be out of circulation for this 2 weeks, since neither J nor I are taking our laptops with us. So the updates will come after we get back on Jan 4th next year.

So off we go on our little adventure in Laos!! Happy holidays!!

xoxo,

New look!

december 19, 08 friday
12:10am
Yeah, the blog has 'new skin'. Lemme tell you, it was hell trying to make sense of the change and the process took me 3 hours!! Just to find a template I liked, and then to download the sucker. I went back and forth, back and forth. I tell you, I am completely useless at this!! Buuuut! I managed to change the layout, although it took me the whole darn afternoon!!

I am mighty proud of myself and love the new look!! Then, it took me the whole night to change the settings until I was satisfied with the overall look. My eye balls are dancing right now, my back is aching and my head is spinning. My throat is dry, as if I have been talking that whole time!! My neck hurts too from looking at the computer screen for soooo long.

If I had to do it all over again (touch wood!!), I don't think I am able to. I still have no idea how I got this far!!

I am so tired! And I think my butt has fallen asleep too!! haha

xoxo,

Puss@Work

december 18, 08 thursday
2.25pm
Ever since I cleared out the cobwebs from this corner of my room, I've been spending most of my free time at this table. In a previous blog, I talked about how I turned this corner into my 'beauty corner', where I added a few plastic drawers to store my collection of makeup.

But lately, I've noticed how the small orange plastic drawers I had were getting too small for my growing beauty stash, so today, I went out and bought bigger drawers. My makeup items are now sitting comfortably it their respective drawers without having to squeeze for space!!

So here's an updated look on my work station:

(Aiyah! I forgot to include the mirror in this picture! Oh! Well!)

This area has turned into more than a vanity table - it's where I do most of the banking stuff, jotting down notes, budgeting, surfing the 'net, etc. And yes, most times, it is this tidy!!

So it's more than a beauty corner, it's also now my work station!

I bet you Husband J won't even notice!! He's in Singapore, by the way, and will be back tomorrow night.

And then, we're off on our little adventure in Laos!!

*yaay!*

xoxo,

Moon's bigger!

december 12, 08 friday
10.32pm
Was out with Husband J and good friend Robbie tonight, and was told that "the moon is bigger tonight".

Huh??

Tonight, the moon moved out of its orbit by 10%, therefore it is closer to earth than usual, so it appears bigger. The last "big moon" was sighted some 15 years ago. And the ocean must be very choppy tonight too - great night for fishing out crabs and prawns!! Not that I am anywhere near the sea to do so!!

The moon does appear larger tonight, and brighter. It was awesome!! So beautiful!!

xoxo,

Travels:Laos Weather? Oops!

december 10, 08 wednesday
11.17pm
OK. Here I am, excited as hell over my impending trip to Laos. I really like that husband J and I have started travelling during the X'mas and New Year holidays. Sure beats spending the hols in KL. Go to a place that is far removed from the craziness of the holidays.

So I have put aside all the clothes I want to bring to Laos, mostly tank tops and my 'backpacking' pants, when J rung me up this evening and told me to check on the weather. The weather!! I keep thinking South East Asia = hot and humid all year round. WRONG!! An ex-colleague warned it could be chilly. Dang! I don't want to lug sweaters around!!


Apparently, from November to February the temperature is cool and humid, it gets as high as 30 degrees Celsius and drops to about 14 at night/late mornings. This is the best time to be visiting Laos. So J suggested, one (or two!) jeans, and a light jacket/jumper. I can still run around with my tank tops during the day!! Slight adjustments with the clothing arrangement, nothing too severe!! I think I can live with that, for now!!

xoxo,

Travels: Planning for Laos!!

december 9, 08 tuesday
6.10pm
When Husband J and I were tossing names of countries we'd like to visit, Laos was not even in the list. There were Cuba (too far!), Maldives (for some unknown reason, J's never keen on this island), Mumbai (thought it would be cheap now after the terrorist attack!), and Sri Lanka. Out of all that, Sri Lanka looked like a possibility. Then, we checked the weather. Monsoon. Typhoon. Politically still unstable. Sigh. Back to the drawing board..

Laos was casually thrown in during a conversation. Yes! Laos!! Why not?? J and I had so much fun last year in Cambodia, we thought it would be great to do it all over again this time in neighbouring Laos!! Plus it's nearby, it's cheap, and I don't need a visa!! WOOT! I love hassle-free travelling. (J has to get his on-arrival for USD40). J has been to Vientiane a few years ago. It would be great to go back and see how much development Laos has gone through. Like Cambodia last year, J was in awe at how much the country has progressed since his last visit (about the same time he visited Laos).


We are going to spend 2 weeks in Laos. 2 weeks on the road with J. Hmmmm...Buuuuut, we'll be alright! We always survived! More like J always survived me!! tee hee This will also be my first time backpacking. Well, maybe not 100% backpacking, but we reckon some places are catered mostly for backpackers and budget travellers.

My challenge I'm throwing to myself this holiday, is to stop the drama and be an enjoyable travel partner to my poor husband. So, we'll see how this goes..

I am so excited that I've already planned out the clothes. I took out all the tops I want to wear for this trip, and from there, started trimming. And it ended up looking like this:

Does that look like travelling light?? I think so. I don't know. I always over pack. I always end up with clothes I don't wear. I doubt I'll do much shopping, so hopefully all that (above) is enough. Just a couple more undies and my toiletries, than I'm done. Err...I hope!!

We'll find out how this all progresses. Though I suspect J will shake his head at the sight of my planned wardrobe!! And he'll say: there's laundry, babe!

eheh.

xoxo,

Beware of the 'M' Bear

december 3, 08 wednesday
4.03pm
Just for sh!ts and giggles...

It's the Masturbating Bear!! I first saw him when he was somewhat a feature on Late Night with Conan O'Brian 12 years ago, and I still loved him 'till today. The bear was hilarious, obscene, rude and crude. But of course!

That's why he's my favourite bear!! *LOL*

xoxo

Smiling Moon

december 1, 08 monday
10.41pm
It's the first day of the final month of the year, and as usual, there will almost always be some kind of disaster to close the year. This year is no exception. The end of 2008 saw bloody attacks on civilians in Mumbai, India, locals and foreigners. It is so sad.

But today, the first day of December, the moon is smiling. Thought it would be interesting to document this. I didn't take a picture, because it was too far (or I am too short!), and my camera is not able to do it justice. But it looks like this:

There were also 2 bright stars at the top of the 'smile', making it look like a smiling face!!

Perhaps the worst is behind us? Here's hoping that we can look forward to a happy 2009!

xoxo

Hi! I'm 'DJ Wanker'!

november 30, 08 sunday
2.40pm
OK, first thing's first. I HATE being called "DJ XXXX"!! I don't know why or how that term came about but it made me sound like a wanker! I was on radio for 12 years, but I was never a DJ. I was an announcer, because I never spanned discs. I produced and prepped my own programmes and was a paid working professional on payroll. I didn't work on a gig-to-gig basis. This was a full-time job. I cringed whenever people add the moronic term "DJ" before my name. Eew!


I have been unemployed for almost 6 months now (groan!), so imagine my surprise when Adek's girlfriend Haidi rung me up asking if she and some of her classmates wanted to interview me, as part of their celebrity assignment. They are students of fashion designing. I almost barfed. Celebrity?? I thought out of sight, out of mind. But Haidi assured me I am still remembered. Hmm. I said OK and set the date.


All 7 of them came. Shy. Quiet. Tongue tied. C'mon! You get to meet a 'celebrity', here's your chance - talk! Ask questions! Something!! It was so typical of Malaysian students. This whole 'being shy' b/s is old! Why can't our students talk?? Present themselves? Have confidence?? I was a bit annoyed that they were under-prepared as well, besides being shy. Only Haidi spoke. Even that she was quite unprepared - kept asking her group what else to ask?? I forgot. I remember when I was doing interviews for projects at college, and later on-air, I always had 10 questions prepared. Most times I never finished all 10 questions, because I'd go with where the conversation was taking me. But when I got stuck, I had that piece of paper with me. I was never unprepared for an interview. The whole thing made me feel I wasn't important enough for them to research and to prepare.

Good luck to them on their project. There were so many questions I thought they could've asked. They were fashion-related, they could've gotten a lot out of me.

Haidi came back in the evening and gave me a box of cupcakes the group bought for me, with "Thank you DJ XXXX" scribbled on it. I thought that was sweet. If only they didn't add the "DJ" before my name...The cupcakes were adorable, but sickly sweet, as I was never a fan of icing, and it was all icing!!

What a great idea for a gift!! I will certainly get this if I needed to buy food for guests or the host.

xoxo

The BIG Weekend Project

november 29, 08 saturday
10pm
Although this project was 3 weekends ago...

OK. Here's what usually happens on the weekends, be it Saturday or Sunday (because one of the days we get to sleep in!) :

9am wake up!/mandi/clean up and feed cats/wake up Husband J
10am pick up cleaners
11am in Bangsar/Kiara/FAM for breakfast and/or lunch
1p home

Pretty much a routine. So husband J's 'light bulb' switched on. Why not we re-paint the room!! OMG! What a brilliant idea!! NOT!

Anyway. I found myself at the DIY store nearby refusing to committ picking out colours. After all, I am completely clueless where interior designing (?) is concerned. Plus, I don't want to make-over the room! That means changing things around and I am never too crazy about changes. I'm like a cat, changes make me feel....ermmm...unstable. OK. That didn't sound right, but you get what I mean.

So the whole (late) afternoon, I pretty much stayed out of the way while J filled the cracks and sandpapered the walls. Now, J said it would take him the weekend to get the job done. Well, if you start work, like, at 4pm, it would be impossible to finish the job, no?? J started grumbling to the tune of: if 2 people do the work, we'd finish faster. Eh?? Didn't we agree for me to stay out of the way? The room was in a complete mess with dust, paint stains, newspapers and furniture everywhere. For a bit, looking at the state of my bedroom, I was beginning to think this was a baaaaad idea.


I picked up a roller and rolled new coat of paint on the walls. That was my first time ever painting walls. I was not optimistic. It didn't look like we were going to finish it over the weekend. We spent 3 nights sleeping in one of the rooms upstairs (thank God this house has many rooms!!) and were struggling to get the room finished as soon as possible.


We ended up finishing the walls and cleaning up the room in 4 days, which included pushing the furniture back where they belonged.

I was initially upset that J painted the window grills as well, as I wanted them to remain black. Buuuuut..it turned out quite...classy.

Now, we have a room with clean walls with some colour! We had white walls and they were awful! I HATE white walls!!

Hmm. J did a good job! Whaddya know! Our room really looks like.... a room! Nice!


xoxo

Sleeping Beauty

november 27, 08 thursday
7.08pm

What a beautiful sight!

That's Raisa. Russian Blue. 16 years old. Female. Smart. Graceful. Loyal. We adopted her when she was only 3 months old. She is the first cat in our family after a long time, and has since outlived almost all of the other cats we had. The fat male cat, Mok is her great great grandson, and yet they can't get along. Well, the truth is, Raisa is terrified of Mok, and Mok just wants to play. Being too old for childish games, Mok gets hissed at, or worse, slapped!! tsk tsk!!

During her younger days, Raisa has mysteriously disappeared for a week, twice, and up until now, we still have no idea where she went. But she's managed to find her way back home. Unbelievable! I think Raisa thinks she's a dog!!

She's fiercely loyal to my brother, Jen, and knows who loves her (a.k.a feeds her). I am always greeted at the door by this graceful lady. And she waits up for brother Jen to come back home.

At 16 years old (human years), she's still as graceful, polite and obsessively clean. She can spend hours grooming herself!

This lady sure ages gracefully.

So when I grow up (*ahem! old*), I want to be just like Raisa!!

Mirror Mirror on the Wall

november 20, 08 thursday
9.44am

That was the exact question when I looked in the mirror these past few days! Ever since my facial session with my long-time facialist, Faza, a week ago, my skin has been acting up. I hate to think that Faza's amazing facial kills are not so amazing for my skin anymore. I've been trusting my face to her for 7 years now, and have never had a problem.

But I did slap on my new BB Cream from Etude House I bought recently. My skin went amok after that. I'm trying to console myself: maybe it's the BB Cream, because as much as I want to jump in onto the rave on BB Creams, maybe it's not for my skin. So after the third attempt at slathering on BB Cream in hopes of better skin, I am passing on the tube to Haidi, Adek's girlfriend. Maybe it'll work better for her since she's young.

This morning, my skin looks a little behaved. The big red zit on my left cheek has subsided, the small pimple-scar below the right side of my mouth has calmed down, and the other smaller pimples which were about to flare up, scattered above my lips and on my nose seem to have shrunk. Thank God!! My skin looks a little smoother today. All thanks to mum's aloevera gel and that marvelous calamine lotion!!

So I'm hoping for better skin tomorrow. Or else I won't be able to face the mirror tomorrow!!

Fingers crossed!!

Smile!!

november 19, 08 wednesday
9.02am
Some people have commented, ever since I left radio, my face is calmer, my demeanor is calmer and I seemed to smile more!!

I was aware I hardly ever smiled at work, because my ex-colleagues told me. I always looked pissed off. That was why I was never really popular at work, or deemed friendly by my ex-colleagues. I don't know why. That place never made me happy. The people never made me happy. I didn't find any reason to smile I guess.

But these days, my life is a little less stressful, and I don't have to deal with primadonna morons anymore. So I think that's a reason to smile. I'm still quite the ice queen, mind you, but the 'ice' has slowly melted.


I also found a whole new reaction when I do smile - people are more receptive towards you! The world seemed a friendlier place. OK, I know that's so cliche, but it's true! Take it from someone who hardly ever smiled!!

So smile! It doesn't cost a cent!!

*The chesire cat - one my favourite cartoon characters. Love his smile (grin?)!*

Gurl Pow-wow

november 18, 08 tuesday
3.42pm

There's a reason why I don't have very many friends, particularly female friends. We tend to back-stab each other, and the politics among women take a whole new meaning. I've had a learning experience when it comes to having close female friends...when there's more than 3 in the group you confide in, there's bound to be trouble.

It's no secret having close female friends whom you get to see every weekend, is a joy. The bond shared between women can never be compared with. We understand the challenges women go through, at work, with husbands/boyfriends, with kids, with the in-laws, etc. There's nothing like having a gaggle of girls who really understand and sympathise with what your going through. A little different than the boys...They just go, "Relax bro! Come, have a beer!" Where else with women, you get the undying emotional support you fail to get from the guys.

I've been in that situation too, where I thought this couldn't be any more perfect...I have lots of girlfriends, and I'm never short of love and support. Who needs men when you have your gurls?? During my difficult years, I admit my girlfriends were my strength. Hanging out with them made my life a little bearable and the challenges in my life at the time a little easier. As the years passed, other men entered the picture as boyfriends....and that was when the "all-girl pow-wow" slowly turned sour. Especially when your not too keen on the guy your girlfriend is dating. Or when she keeps bringing him along to the pow wows. You're thinking, him again. Doesn't he have his own friends?? All of a sudden there's all you girls...and one guy. And there goes the fun. When you tell your girlfriend, she either sulks or decides not to bring him the next time. Eventually, she stops hanging out with you girls too.

What's worse, is when you start bitching about your other girlfriend(s). Women are worst at keeping secrets. We must tell. The stories will come out, and the back stabbing/politics begin...she says you, you say her. And you stop hanging out together. What started out as a close network of girls having a good time, ended up turning into a group of girls who loathe each other. This is why most women have little friends. Unlike guys who can hate each other but still go out for drinks together. They're not emotional creatures, and don't take anything to heart. Unlike us women, we bruise easily.

I was having lunch with my long-time friend Ain today. She's one of my very few girlfriends I can trust and depend on, and she is fiercely loyal to our friendship, which I truly appreciate. She's recently re-connected with a bunch of girls from school (whom I know too) and they have developed a strong friendship over a few months, sharing even their deepest secrets with each other and getting unconditional support. Two of the girls popped by, and as they yakked and laughed away, I couldn't help thinking how long this new found closeness is going to last. They have repeatedly invited me to join them for lunches/dinners/holidays etc. I keep coming up with excuses mainly because I have never been comfortable around new people. It takes me a while to warm up. I am reluctant to be a part of this group, because somehow, deep inside I know how this is all going to end. I don't want to be part of that anymore. Though I love to see women like them together, I have lost faith that they will be close friends forever. Family will get in the way. Or work will take you away. Or the internal politics I see in so many female circles, will destroy the friendship. And soon, you drift away, and eventually become strangers.

I am happy they have found each other. But I am also happy to have lunch/dinner/coffee with just one or two girlfriends, at a time.

Women can be your best friends...but they also can be your worst enemy. I sincerely hope these bunch of girls prove me wrong, and be best friends forever.
*smirk*

xoxo

War wounds. NOT!

november 15, 08 saturday
It's a wonder how I constantly attract mosquitoes. Old Malay folks say it's because I have "sweet blood". Whatever. I looked it up - it's either because of your natural scent or some scent your wearing. Usually, at home, I go au natural. So it must be my natural scent.

It's annoying. And I have the tendency to scratch and scratch.... and before you know it, I've ripped out the top layer(s) of my skin. And what do you have?? Little scabs on my legs the next morning!! Gone were the days when I had smooth sexy legs. I have only pictures now to serve my memory of what gorgeous legs I had. Sure, they were not long, but damn! They were tanned and flawless!!

These days, my legs look like I've gone to war and come back!! They're so ugly!! I remember when I had to do a promo shoot for the radio station, I had to wear a short-ish coat. My legs were bare. And my co-host pointed out I should wear stockings or put body make-up on to camouflage my scars!

Tonight, I did it again - scratched like there's no tomorrow. Husband J is right here with me, and I don't see him being bitten by the nasty mossies. I do! It's unfair!! And I have once again added another "war wound" on my legs!

How do I instill fear in these mossies?? (I sure know how to do that with kids...)

Or how do I "unsweetened" my blood??

Mercyyyyyyyy!!!!!

november 3, 08 monday
Oii!

Have mercy on me!!

Today was my first day back at the gym. This time, I am at a new gym, so Trainer Ela helped me out with registration, which was virtually no fuss, and paid Ela in full amount for 12-sessions training this month. Had to update his paperwork as well, since I did undergo surgery.

So I was as gung-ho as ever. He took my measurements - I didn't 'expand' too much, took my weight....whoa! That's all?? I know I've put on weight, so I must've have been skinnier a month ago. Eew. This is the skinniest I've been, and I know it's because I've lost all my muscle mass. Sigh. My body fat percentage is normal. Hummmpphh. I wished I could see some positive changes in that! I did my flexibility test - struggled! That was kinda hard. And painful!! I am so stiff!!

And then Ela put me on the bike. Level 2, by the 7th minute I was huffing and puffing. By the 15th, I wanted to drop and die. This is torture! Ela had to drop to level 1!! I was determined to complete the 20 minutes. And so I peddled and peddled, and huffed, and was sweating...

My mouth felt dry. Need water... need water...Oii!! Help!!

How did I do this 2 months ago?? Ah yes....I was fit as a fiddle!! By the time the timer hit 20 minutes, I was ready to drop on the floor!! I can't believe how unfit the 2 months of recuperating has made me!! What's worse, I had to peddle for another 2 more minutes, on level 1, to cool down. That was like a total of 22 minutes on the bike!!!! Oiii!!

The whole session took about an hour, stretched myself and my legs felt like they've been pulled in many directions!! I got home, and on the bed I stayed! I am so tired!!

My next session is on Wednesday, and that's when we start the programme. I am appalled at my fitness level. So I hope it won't take too long for Ela to whip me back in shape.

For today, I am just going to chill...and hope that I won't get up with aches and pains tomorrow.

Dang! I feel like I just ran a marathon!!

Ready, Set...

november 2, 08 sunday
It's been over 2 months since my surgery, and honestly, the recuperating period has seized almost all activities that kept me busy. Now, I'm back into most of them again, and tomorrow, I'm starting my first session again at the gym with Trainer Ela.

I. Can't. Wait.

In my 4 years of gym-going, this is the longest break I've taken. I've shrunk. Put on fat around my belly (where else!) and have gotten back my 'chicken wings'.

sigh

Tomorrow is also my first day at the new gym. Sister Maz is quite happy with the machines and such. Anything is better than Clark Hatch Hilton PJ, I suppose. So I am looking forward to tomorrow's session, although Ela is just going to do an assessment and show me the machines. Will take less than a hour.

I'm happy to be back.

I feel like a pot-bellied pig.

Any longer, I'll look like a pot-bellied pig!!

sigh

I want my toned body back!!