Awful start, brilliant end to a Wednesday

Am feeling much much better after this morning's terrible migraine & nausea and I'm soo proud of myself 'cause I managed to clear 2 huge boxes of old clothes (to be donated) and tidy up my state-of-the-mess room such that I actually have space to not only walk, but spin about now!

And just to get into the festive spirit, I re-decorated my nails using youtube tutorials (though I used a darker red simply 'cause I don't have a good bright, chilli red polish)

Mr Rudolph: Season's Greetings everyone!

"Rudolph steals away with Santa's hat"

Surfing through Christmas deco online. Am in love with all these!!

And finally, doing up some deco for Fri's party...snowflakes & stars hung up so that they don't get tangled up..

Body falling apart

Just when my back's getting better and have recovered from the monthly cramps and diarrhea, I have to be down with...gastric flu: non-stop vomiting, fever, aches & chills the past 2 days. And when I finally seem to be getting better, a superbly awful migraine + nausea has to hit me today (probably from the dehydration). It seems like pain and discomfort are starting to become a part of my life, and my body's really starting to tear apart. And I'm only in my mid-20s!! ARGHHHHHHHHHH.....

Anyhow, I'll just try to imagine that I'm on a detoxification program these couple of days where my body purges everything out and refuses to take anything in. Coupled with the diarrhea which I experienced last weekend, I've already lost about 2kg - about all the weight which I gained after my break from work. Just hope I'll be well enough to enjoy the Christmas parties this coming Fri till Sun.

On a brighter note, I finally managed to catch Arthur Christmas on Monday morning (right before the gastric flu attacked at night) and shopped for a bunch of garb from H&M - something which was impossible to do last Saturday, what with this major overcrowded-with-foreigners city which floods the whole of Orchard Rd's malls & shops. I think the local H&M is just as good as their European counterparts- apparels just like what topshop, mango, river island & the likes carry, but at half the price or less. Let me see, I haven't shopped for clothes in a proper store for ages simply because I can always get similar stuff online at much cheaper prices & not have to be part of any crowd which is a major major issue in S'pore now. I'm really starting to hate going anywhere these days since there's sure to be truckloads of people and half of them aren't even your fellow citizens. It's not that I'm xenophobic or anything but seriously, if I wanna experience mingling around "unfamiliar" people, I might as well migrate to another place...and preferably one where basic manners & etiquette are present.

Decembers are ♥

Excellent latte from my favourite cafe!!















Once again, it's my absolute fave month of the year: December! Birthdays, shopping, gifts, parties, good food and best of all.... festive slacking!- something which I haven't gotten a chance to do since I started working 2 years ago (esp. last year...the memories of how horrible the festive season was still haunts me).

Anyhow, I'm just looking forward to enjoying these 2 weeks before work & school starts again. Really really dread becoming a penniless mugger once again for the next 2-3 years, especially since I really enjoy my current job (the teaching, the kids & the colleagues) and the fact that my earnings allow me to spend freely. I'm not a spendthrift person but you know, when you aren't earning your own keep, you have to fret over how to spend your miserable monthly budget in the best way, think thrice about shopping for knick knacks, splurging on good food and most importantly, traveling during holidays! SIGHS. That's the down side of going back to school after tasting working life but I guess the fruits of my labour will eventually outweigh the downsides...I hope.

For now, it's back to enjoying the lazy & quiet break with stuff like sleeping (I need to lay down ALOT recently because of this bad back problem), watching good old x'mas movies like Eloise, MUppets Christmas Carol etc. and changing the look of my nails every other week..or every other day, especially when I get some inspiration and think of something nice. But right now, it's sparkle and all because it's DECEMBER!

I named this "Stars fall on the dark lake"



















And this..."Strawberry icicles"



















And lastly, "Black forest glaze"

Food posts

Aching neck, thighs, throat etc. Dead beat from the crazy roller coaster riders @ USS yesterday. Below is a collection of yummy food I've had in the recent 2 months:

Laduree macaroons (frm Tokyo) & superb cheese toast (Kyoto)





























And continuing the Japanese gourmet journey back home, Nabeyaki Udon, Hiyashi Chuka:




























Crab meat & roe rice and Cream puffs frm Hokkaido:





























And my all-time fave, Dimsum breakfast:

Loves..

Today is a day to remember. I'll probably mark it down on every organizer that I have. So many good things happening all at once, before I can even register my good fortune. Hopefully things stay this way and not turn into some calm before the storm. And to think that I was actually soo down in the dumps & worrying about so many things just a few days ago..

Rabbits flying...

I've had my little boy for close to a decade now ♥

Feeling nothing

Break's ended, work's started again, so far so good. Trip was actually pretty good, except I developed a nasty flu on the second night which worsened all the way till I came back, went to see a doc, got antibiotics & 2 days medical leave frm work (yes!). Plus, we got caught in the middle of one of Japan's worst typhoons in years, during our stay in Kyoto, which stole the clear blue sky & warmth away from us (a huge pity since the picturesque hills, forests & serene temples would have looked even more stunning in good weather). Oh wells.

Tokyo is just like any major capital city; worse than European ones actually since there isn't anything significantly unique or stunning to see (but way above in terms of hygiene and service- well, everyone probably already knows that by now) so it's no mind-boggling matter that we took a day trip out to Mt Fuji & lake district area for sightseeing. An awesome choice because Lake Kawaguchi is amazing, and it's only 1 out of 5-6 lakes surrounding Mt Fuji. Cycling around the lake for hours while soaking up the warmth & gentle breeze (but cold air in the evening) on an empty stomach and non-stop coughing due to the flu was quite an experience. Sigh. Traveling to wonderful places while on long breaks are such a joy and precious to me. I really do enjoy traveling, even though I'm not a really that great a traveler since I tend to always develop some ailment (nausea, migraine, constipation etc.) or fall ill but who cares. These are experiences in a lifetime and a great way to escape the claustrophobic, senseless, dull, monotonous and fast-changing-till-I-can-hardly-recognize-city-because-of-the-non-stop-invasion-of-foreigners place which I call home. If I wasn't such a creature of comfort and had a family here, I probably would have left for some other country. Or if I could afford taking a few years off to live & study somewhere else.