"And the walls came tumbling down.....!"

Finally the walls came tumbling down yesterday, Friday 4 July. Approval was given mid week.

I went in to check and found the place locked up. The workers had finished work and cleaned the place up somewhat. There are now piles of sand in the rooms, waiting for the workers to lay the cement screed, before the laying of tiles. We had chosen the tiles only on Thursday, and for the next three weeks or so, the tiles will be laid on the floor and part of the walls.

Other work services have also been scheduled. There will be two air condition compressors running for the three rooms upstairs and two rooms downstairs. I do not intend running all the air conditioners together, but will be judicious about them.

Last Monday, I brought Emma with my wife and the maid, by bus, to see the place. Emma enjoyed herself at the playground which was directly under the maisonette. She also liked climbing up and down the stairs. After that we toured the shops and ate lunch at the Food Park. By the time we had walked to the Cold Storage, Emma was tired out. I had promised her an ice cream treat, but unfortunately the shop was closed. So we had to take turns carrying her. On the bus ride home, Emma fell asleep and the maid had to carry her.

Yesterday, my friend Denis had called me, and I brought him along to show him my new place. We had dinner at the Food Park and shared a steamed fish and claypot tau fu. Quite nicely down and only cost me $21.40. We bought some curry puffs and chicken pies from a famous confectionery shop to take home. Costing $1.00 and $1.20 each respectively, they tasted good.

Today, being a Saturday, I was left alone at home. I went down to Holland Village with the intention of eating my favourite yong tau fu for lunch. At the last moment, I decided to try my friend's shop selling Ipoh hor fun. It was terrible! The soup was tasteless. I ordered the set meal of chicken hor fun with dumpling soup and a barley for $8.50. I regretted going there and spoiled my lunch. I thought of my yong tau fu, but I was already half full. So I bought from the Food Junction, a packet ayam penyet, thinking that I might consume it in case I get hungry later in the day. On the way home by bus, my son called me. He had spent the night in his friend's house. He told me he did not have lunch yet. So I gave him the ayam penyet, which is one of his favourite.

As I am writing this, I was told that we are having a family dinner tonight, which I am looking forward to. That will certainly cancel out my bad lunch. Why am I thinking about food when I should be trying to lose weight????

Till then....

"What the hack....!"

The hacking had started last Wednesday and had stopped yesterday, at my new place. Fortunately I was not there during the hacking but inspected the place on Monday evening and on Wednesday evening. It looked like a bomb had fallen inside with all the dust and debris.

I had a site meeting with the interior designer today, amidst the clearing by the workers. I am now home, writing this on my new laptop, which deleted half of what I had written. What the heck happened??

Unfortunately the walls could not be knocked down yet, pending approval from the authorities, which I hope will be accomplished by next week. According to the work schedule, tiling should commence next week for the next three weeks. I have arranged to move in by 27 August, and will hand over my old place by 4 September.

Lately, I have been shuttling to my new place, getting the hang of the bus connection, and taking the opportunity to try out the Food Park and restaurants there. A new Cold Storage has opened there and the shops are being upgraded. So it is quite a nice place.

Last Wednesday, had some friends over to try out the steamboat restaurant. It was pretty good value for money at $23.50 per person. We had a big buffet spread offering us steamboat, BBQ, Japanese Shabu Shabu. In addition, there was tempura, soft shell crab and even curry chicken and rice as well as fruits and dessert. The steamboat had both spicy and non spicy soup. Unfortunately, there was too much MSG, and I ended up drinking a lot of water. The BBQ mutton was so tough and hard that I had to throw it away.

I had fishhead curry last night with my air conditioning friend, who will instal my air conditioning for me. The curry was not that nice unlike the Indian curry.

The Thai restaurant was not bad, when I tried it with my son and my wife. The pineapple rice and the tom yum goong were nice. I had lunch with my son today at one of the grill meat place. The pork rib was not all that tender. Wonder what their steaks are like, because they are advertising their Angus steak.

Of late my spirit has been going up and down like a yoyo. I am feeling my age. I have been concerned about the renovations and the impending move. I have booked the mover and booked my handover date. Next week, the boxes will be delivered for packing. As I clear and throw my unwanted stuff, I will pack what I want. I am very apprehensive about all these and hope I can cope with the chores. When I look at all the stuff at home, I am confused and wonder where to start. I hope things will turn out well for me.

This laptop is driving me bongers because some of my text went missing. So I better sign off now.

Till then....

My new laptop.

I have done it, I have bought my new laptop. A VAIO, costing me $2,499, from a friend's shop. My friend upgraded it to 3 GB DDR2 and set up for me the OS, XP Pro SP3. In addition, I received a carrying case and a optical mouse.

The problem was that all the laptops now come with Window Vista, which is still full of bugs. I found out that the higher range laptops come with Window Vista Business and Window XP Pro, giving me a choice of either operating system. This will put my laptop compatible with my PC. So that suits me fine.

I spent the most part of today (Sunday), getting used to the laptop and installing my working programs. I am happy with it and will run it alongside with my PC as a sort of backup. It is very neat and whether it will replace my PC, time will tell. Certainly will save space and will enable me to work anywhere with the wireless connection.

Last Saturday, I had a long meeting with Gary, my interior designer and my son. We finally hashed out the renovations contract after going through so many changes. My son had so many lofty ideas and made so many changes that the drawing had to be re-drawn. It is going to cost me a whopping 85k. By the time we add in the lighting, the bathroom fittings, the kitchen equipment and my bedroom, it will hit 100k. My mind boggles, but I hope it will turn out right.

Work will commence next week starting with the hacking for three days. I hope the works will run smoothly and according to schedule. Gary has indicated to me that the schedule is comfortable. I intend to go in periodically to check on the works being carried out.

Last Friday evening, I took a bus to my new place to have a look around. There are many restaurants featuring alfresco and oriental food. Look nice and appetising. I eventually ate at the Food Park. There were jeichar stall, steamboat, Muslim food, nasi lemak, vegetarian, roast meat, pasta and noodles, dim sum and a cooked food stall, which I patronised eating steamed fish with rice and vegetables and tou foo for $4.20. Unfortunately there were no yong tau foo stall. Hope someone will open one there soon. Cold Storage has already opened there.

After eating I took a walk around to check the letter box, as I promised Alfred, I will re-direct his mail to him. I took the lift up to check the place and met the neighbour next door. We introduced each other and I found him to be very friendly. He assured me that the neighbourhood is very peaceful. So I apologised to him in advance that there will be hacking and noise. He dismissed it as being normal whenever someone renovates. When we parted, he told me that he was going to watch football.

Till then....

Time is catching up.

Yes, time is catching up after sitting on my backside for the last few months. After waiting for the prerequisite time period for the process of buying my property, I have now taken over the property physically with keys in hand. The next step will be to finalise with Gary to kick start the renovations.

With three days of hacking as allowed, I am targeting mid August to complete renovations, and to move in by last week of August. Hopefully things will work out well without any cliff hangers.

It is also June school holidays and on a few days when all the three grandchildren were with us, it was p-a-n-d-e-m-o-n-i-u-m!!!! Enough to drive me up the wall. The older kids now do not like me one bit because of my discipline. My grandson hates my guts, because I do not allow him to sit in front of the television from the moment he comes till he finally leaves. Every time he comes, he will ignore me and prefer to sulk in a corner and pander to his grandmother. This has caused a lot of friction with my wife because my wife will always automatically disagree with me

Though the older girl may not be that bad, but she has picked up a lot of bad habits, like talking back and ignoring me when I try to tell her something or other. There is nothing more I can do. I feel sad when I think that not so long ago, she was the apple in my eye.

Emma is now the cream in the cake while she is still young. When she starts growing up, she will adopt the same attitude and I will be a nobody. Might as well enjoy her while she is young now and go my way when she grows up. The legacy of a dying old man.

Emma celebrated her third birthday on 10 June, as I am writing this. The family gathered for dinner last Saturday night. I guess at three, Emma is at the epitome of her cuteness. I took 160 pictures that night and will be compiling them into a musical slide show. I hope she will appreciate this when I am long gone.

I have also just bought a new laptop, a VAIO VGN-SZ75GN. This is my first laptop as I have been using PC all the time. I bought this from a friend, who pulled out all the stops to give me a good deal. He even got the Sony guy to come over to explain all the details to me. Instead of the Vista OS, I wanted the XP Pro, because Vista has all the bugs. So my friend is now setting it up with XP Pro and getting the necessary drivers. I told him to take his time and let me have it in a few days time. I am touched by his good gestures.

I have been eyeing a laptop for some time now, but could not justify buying one as my PC is still running good. What prompted me, was the possibility of getting one with XP Pro, while this is still possible. I will use this as a back up and in the future, it might take over from my PC all together. My main interest is on multimedia for use with my photography and videography. In addition, I still surf, email, do my internet banking and other IT functions. Moreover my new work station may not have the space and the laptop is very compact.

My PC was giving me problems, due to the power supply shutting down periodically. While working on this posting, the PC shut down on me. Very frustrating. Luckily my friend Chow called and said he was on the way. He came and within five minutes, changed and installed my new power supply of 500 watts, which I bought for $79. Seems to be working well now.

Had news from Gary through my son, that Gary will be sourcing the material for the renovations and tying up loose ends this week. Hacking will start next week and the time frame is realistic enough.

Also had a call from my agent this morning that we will get together with the seller, Alfred, who suggested we have a sort of farewell meal to mark the handover. Alfred has since become a good friend.

Last Monday, he collected me in his car and drove round with me to take over the property and also to the various agencies making arrangements to pay the conservancy charges and car parking. Funny thing was, a car pulled up and thinking it was Afred, I opened the door to get in. I was so embarrassed when I startled the driver, who was not Alfred. In doing so, the door knocked against my spectacles and sent it flying. It took me a while before I found it under the car. Luckily the spectacle was not damaged. When we left my new property, I noticed a sadness in Alfred, who lingered a while before leaving. After 23 years, he must have felt nostalgic leaving his old home for the last time. Anyway, I have a standing invitation for him and his wife to visit us, after we moved in.

I am getting long winded. Better shut up for now.

Till then....

Things are looking up.

Things are certainly looking up. I completed the sale of my new property at the Hub on 28 May in the presence of the agents and the seller Alfred.

I was pleased, that Alfred told me he can hand over the keys to me by 8 June, instead of 15 June. He had asked me to give him an extension of two weeks to enable him to move out. Nice man Alfred, and we have now become good friends. He has suggested that we have a farewell lunch or dinner with our wives and the agents, when I take over the keys. I find Alfred and his wife to be very pleasant and friendly.

Taking over the keys one week earlier, will enable renovations to start earlier. This is expected to take two months. I am targeting to move by end of August avoiding the September rush when everyone will want to move. All the more so, because August is the Hungry Ghost month, when people avoid moving house. Since I am a Christian and not superstitious, this suits me fine.

At our meeting with the interior designer last weekend, we trashed out many things and agreed to many suggestions. The invoice was a whopper. I will leave that to my son to negotiate with Gary to bring it more down to earth. As mentioned in my previous posting, we have modified many items and Gary has clarified his ideas. The living room will now have timber floor instead of tiles. The kitchen and dining will have homogenised tiles. The downstairs toilet will have a bit more space and will cover the ugly pipes. The final drawing has been done subject to final approval by us. All is set except for the final costing.

The bank has very kindly sent me a stack of cash vouchers worth more than a thousand dollars. These together with the vouchers I received and won previously, will help us shop for the kitchen and other items like bedsheets, curtains and other utility items. I feel like I am starting a new home for the first time. To cut cost, we are also looking around our home, salvaging what we have, and using them again. (See my previous posting on 'Rosewood furniture'.)

Till then....

My Rosewood furniture.

It has been one week now since my last posting and I thought I might as well start on another new posting.

The last few days have been quite relaxing for a change. My renovations plan for my new place has become clearer since the meeting with Gary, my interior designer. I have now decided to keep some of my Rosewood furniture after being told that they are now very scarce. If I had told my wife that I had wanted to keep them, she would have automatically objected. Since I told her that I wanted to sell them, she now wants to keep them. Reverse psychology at work!

We have engaged somebody to restore and repaint the furniture by August. When the job is done, they will deliver them to our new place. This way, we do not have to move them ourselves. I have allocated space for them in my new place.

The Chinese man saw my furniture and told me that they are now hard to find. There are fakes in the market. 'Mother of Pearl' inlays are only done in China. Local carpenters lack this expertise. Some pieces are from Kwangtung, China, and the coffee table was carved by a young Shanghainese locally. The carving featured the 'Dream of the Red Chamber'. I remember seeing him doing the carving as his workshop was near where I lived previously. Every evening I would walk over to see him and talked to him. We chose the scene mutually. To cut cost, as I only had limited funds at that time, I did not order the six stools, which would sit hidden under the table until you want to use them.


There is also a display cabinet which houses all my expensive micro magic apparatus. I must now find another space for my music box collection. They will probably be displayed as part of my library. Problem will be to keep itchy fingers away from them. And then I also have my religious paraphernalia collection. Ah! my mind boggles.

When Emma was a tiny baby, I used to carry her and showed her my religious collection consisting of statues, glass Rosary beads, bell including some music boxes and whistles. She would love to wear the Rosary over her neck and ring the bell. Unfortunately the glass panel fell one day, due to strong winds and it is now replaced by a plastic sheet. The Ikea cabinet houses my hi fi set, DVD's, LD's and the glass cabinet displays some interesting nick nacks. This cabinet will be left behind when I move, unless someone wants to buy or take it over.

So I now have a clearer picture of what I will move to my new place. My new bedroom will have everything new. I will need to relocate my grotto (miniature water fountain) dedicated to Our Lady, which I made for my wife's birthday sometime ago. Maybe my moving expenses will not be that high, given I do not have that many heavy items except for my son's bedroom and the many cartons. Anyway, we are meeting Gary this Saturday to sort out the renovations.

Last Friday, Emma came in the morning. For a three year old kid, she can be very sensible when she wants to be. Last Monday, I was playing with her at the lift landing, when she suddenly charged at me. I fell to the floor as Emma's head hit me hard on my left rib. I felt the jolt and pain and luckily prevented Emma from hitting her head on the floor. The pain stayed with me the whole week. When I told Emma about it on Friday, she quickly came and hugged me and said how sorry she was. The pain naturally went away.

When Emma left early with her grandmother and the maid to look after her other two cousins, I felt very lonely at home. I went downstairs for my fast walking exercise. For dinner, I tried out cooking sayur lodeh with yong tau foo and noodles. It was successful except that next time, I will substitute the coconut with low fat milk. I enjoyed the meal in the quiet of the kitchen.

This Sunday afternoon, I will be doing a retreat in church for all the Extraordinary Ministers of the Eucharist. This will be followed by our commissioning at the 6 pm Mass. So it is going to be a quiet and sober Sunday.

Till then....

A ticklish affair.

After a Korean 'Bibibhog' lunch with the family a few Sundays ago, I found myself in Qian Hu Fish Farm.

It was the first time I visited the place, and saw the myriads of aquarium fishes being bred and sold, even exported to other countries. The cute baby koi swam into my hand as I placed it into the water. So tame and friendly. Seeing the tropical fishes, reminded me of my young boy passion of keeping an aquarium. (See my post 'Rasbora Heteromopha').

Venturing inside, my grandchildren were catching longkang fish for a fee. Then there were these groups of adults sitting with their feet inside the water. I discovered that they were letting the sucker fishes nibble at the dead skin on their feet. Sounded very unhygienic.

After some persuasion from my daughters, I decided to give it a go. After paying $10 for half an hour, I rolled up my pants and sat soaking my feet underwater. Moments later, a swarm of dark grey fishes charged towards my feet and started to nibble away. Keeping very still, the fishes were all over my feet. I felt ticklish. I was hoping that they will nibble away my painful corns.

There were some young ladies seating nearby and they were giggling away like little girls. Both my wife and daughter were seating next to me and they had their fair share of nibbling. After a full 30 minutes, we got up and dried our feet with the towel provided. It was quite an experience.

Mothers Day eve, the whole family gathered for dinner at the 'Mushroom Pot'. I cannot say I enjoyed the dinner because I do not eat Chinese mushroom. Ever since I was a child, I can not stand the smell of Chinese mushroom. I have tried to eat them but threw up everytime. I have accidentally ate them in very small amount, and had to immediately eat something strong to overcome the smell. But I do eat the lesser smelling mushroom like the white ones you eat with the salad. Despite the smelly mushroom, I enjoyed the company of the whole family. That saved the evening for me at least.

Had a pleasant meeting with my interior decorator and contractor, Gary, for my new home. He presented to us, my wife and son, his ideas for the our new home. He had some very good ideas and we had a lively discussion. He showed us his drawings and I quite like his ideas. So now we have decided what items of furniture we will retain and can visualise what the new home will be like. The idea of having timber flooring in the balcony, living and dining area and special tiles in the kitchen area is very good, except that it may be too expensive. However, I will have to see the costing before deciding. The upstairs will be timber or parquet.

At last I am going to have a work station. I will have my PC there with shelves for my files and books, and doors to close off the whole section. By the sides, there will be library shelves for my other books and objects of interest. I can finally sit down and write or do my own things. I will also retain my rosewood display cabinet of my micro magic collections, and his will now sit on the landing outside my bedroom upstairs.

My bedroom will have everything new, with two single beds and a walk-in wardrobe leading into a new bathroom. I have already been 'allocated' my bed which will be right next to the wall. So watch out for me when I get off the wrong side of the bed! My bathroom door will be special. Gary told me that it will be a 360 degree door, which opens one doorway to close another. This is to save limited space. My bedroom will have a sliding door. Reminds me of the Japanese woman kneeling to slide open the door, then shuffling inside to close it.

Permission has been granted for us to instal a toilet downstairs. So this will be enclosed next to the kitchen. A separate kitchen will be built inside a glass enclosure facing the windows. A centre island will be where we also cook, eat and entertain, incorporating some of the new kitchen concept. My son wants the wine cooler inside this.

The dining room will have my present round table and chairs. Against the wall will be my rosewood cabinet. Blocking the staircase will be my work station and library.

I always value my privacy. To stop people from looking inside, Gary has suggested to have the lower section of my main window fitted with fixed metal louvre. Above this, the louvre can open and close to let the air in. Good idea.

All in all, Gary has worked on a semi colonial decor and we still have many things to tie up before the final drawing. We have bought the sofa set of leather seats with recliners with option for an additional single or double recliner. Slowly the new home is taking shape and the renovations will start in a month's time. Given only three days for hacking, the whole process will take two months to complete.

I always welcome friendly and constructive comments from readers to my blog. It is meant to be light hearted and I am happy if readers enjoy reading. By these comments, I know that at least someone is reading my blog. Unfortunately, lately someone from the Philippines has been posting remarks and advertisement in my blog. I had to delete everyone of them. I hope whoever it is will stay away from my blog.

Till then....