Service standard in Singapore

Poor, I must say, after this incident that happened to me @ Forever21 in Wisma Atria.

Rude Salesgirl ("RS"): (knocks on fitting room door)
Me ("ME"): Yes?
RS: Did you get a number tag?
ME: Yes.
RS: Please hang it outside.

(As I was in the midst of changing and had only 1 item left to try, I decided to ignore RS' order. I was almost done putting on my own clothes when......)

RS: (hammers on door)
ME: (opens door and walks out, slightly irritated) Yes?
RS: Please hang the tag outside the door in future.
ME: (blood starts to boil) If you had wanted that tag outside, you should have informed me right from the start.
RS: But I knocked on your door!
ME: (smoking at the ears) Yes, and I was changing! (turns to leave)
RS: Whatever!
ME: (loud mutter) Bitch!

After hurling an insult at her, I was all ready to leave the store and never come back. But I also wondered why I had to suffer such bad service when I was the paying customer. Isn't customer always king? Appalled by RS' attitude and rudeness, I requested to speak to the supervisor and related the story to her. She, being a matronly and kindly lady, apologized and chided RS, telling her that the job of hanging the tag on the door is hers, not the customer's. Feeling slightly appeased, I decided to drop the matter.

Trust me, I'm not proud that I lost my cool. But faced with a rude salesgirl like RS, anyone would be fuming mad! Why can't our sales people be warm and friendly like in the US? That would make shopping a whole lot more pleasurable!

Gone to meet her maker

It's indeed saddening for me to announce that Scarli, the black goldfish is dead.

We bought Molli (another black goldfish) and Scarli in July 2006 at the Qian Hu fish farm. Sadly, Molli could not live past the first day in her new home. Scarli survived 5 months and passed away peacefully on 24 November 2006 (Friday). Cause of death is unknown but no foulplay suspected. Here are the possible causes of death:-

1. Cancer - A white tumour seemed to have manifested itself onto Scarli's spine 5 days before her demise.
2. Bacterial infection / parasites.
3. Black Molly disease - A common disease among black goldfishes and characterised by white patches on the fishes' body.
   

Here's a tribute to Scarli, the beloved goldfish who came, saw and left.

Goodbye Scarli
You've gone to heaven
Where you'll finally meet
Your best friend, Molli

We named you as such
Due to your white scar
But you've been a strong girl
And even outlived Molli

We're sorry if we've neglected
To change your water daily
We'll miss you Scarli
You've been a great fish

REST IN PEACE (R.I.P.)

Special day gone awry

Every morning, I drag my tired body and unwilling mind to work. Though time hardly stands still when I'm in the office, I am counting down every minute of it, waiting for time-to-go-home to strike.

What happened to my sense of motivation? Truly and honestly, I used to enjoy most aspects of my work. I am certainly not a bum or couch potato who can stay home all day watching drama serials or playing computer games.

I was chatting to a colleague about how ironical things can be on hindsight. For example, when I first joined the company, I truly and sincerely believed that everyone in the office had a kind heart. The percentage of likeable colleagues stood at an all-time high of 95%. At this very moment, it has plunged to an all-time low of 50%.

In particular, I am put-off by so-called friends who gossip about you behind your back. If you people happen to be reading this, you can cut out the pretence now. Feel free to put on that double-headed snake mask of yours as often as you like in front of the bosses, cause some of these creatures are really depraved and screaming for attention, but I don't need you, so get off my back, won't you? If you wanna gossip about me, go ahead, I don't give a shit, but it shows on your ugly, hypocritical face and I know what you did, ok? So don't try to chummy up to me after that, 'coz I'll hate you even more.

Right now, I've never felt lonelier and I regret not accepting my friend's invitation for drinks at the bar. You don't know what a blardee bad week I've had and how long I've waited for today to come so that I can spend the most of tomorrow in the company that I enjoy. You think I'm wallowing in self-pity, but why can't you be there for me when I need you? Why are your friends so important when I could possibly be the one who'll be there for you for the rest of your life?

Hello fats!

I stare at my naked reflection. A sense of discontentment sweeps past me. I no longer see the quite-toned body I used to have. My dimpled skin appears to be smirking at the unsightly appearance. I pull on my clothes and find difficulty in buttoning my pants. I take a deep breath, fingers working frantically at the button. I thank god I am wearing a black knit (read: stretchable) top today.

The indulgent pleasure of eating plus lax exercise regime has finally found its way to my tum-tum.

My 30-something classmates console me (and themselves), saying this is just natural progression. Everybody gets fat as they grow older, 'coz the fats retain better. They have long given up on their own bodies. Even the skinniest one has something to complain about.

I refuse to accept the new, rotund me and resolve to visit the gym 3 times a week to whisk myself back into shape. You wait and see!

P/S: It does seem kind of bimbotic complaining about being fat etc etc but wait till you realise your clothes don't fit anymore and you have to "upgrade" into another size. And you can forget about the brand new ready-to-wear-as-soon-as-I-lose-weight dress you bought in anticipation of slimmer days (yes, there are actually people who buy clothes which do not fit).

Quirky finds

Here's the final instalment of my Hong Kong adventure!


P chided me for taking this photo, calling me 'suaku'. According to him, such signs abound in Geylang. He defensively averted my question on what he was doing there with this reply: "Who never go Geylang before?!"

Protesting against the demolition of the mechanical clock tower, following the relocation of the monumental Star Ferry from TST to Central. To be replaced by a digital clock at the new pier @ Central. Read more about the relocation @ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Star_Ferry.

A tribute to the former Star Ferry pier at TST. Adieu!

Sin #3: Party like there's no tomorrow

Okay, okay, to be honest, there was no late night partying as P and I were exhausted from all the shopping we were doing earlier. But we did enjoy 2 bottles of beer each at the uber-cool Armani bar and 1/5, both in Wan Chai. We tried to get into the very exclusive Dragon-i at LKF, but were turned away because we were not good-looking enough....ooops, correction: I mean, the place was spilling with models and VIPs, that's why they didn't let us in!! All in all, an unforgettable night!

THANKS KARINE DEAR!!!!

P/S: Did I also mention that I was enjoying this droolicious eye candy in the form of a bartender and his bewitching eyes? Yea, I noticed his eyes, despite the darkness. Don't ask me what colour they were, though.... hehe.

Sin #2: Excessive compulsive shopping

From the departmental stores.....

Time's square

World Trade Centre

To the roadside shops @ Tsim Sha Tsui & Mongkok





PS: I loved the shops in this 5 level building at Granville Circuit, TST! Lots of cool and hip stuff! The place was thronging with local dudes and babes when we went!

Sin #1: Gluttony

Dim Sum @ Maxim's, HK (Excellent!)

Writer's note: You may have noticed that the food are all "half-eaten". That's because the greedy photographer was so absorbed in eating that she forgot to snap!


Lunch @ Cafe de Coral, HK (Cheap & Good)

Writer's note: One of my favourite fast food chain (the other would be Fairwood) with a wide array of delectable dishes. The honey pear tea rocked!


Dinner @ Macau Restaurant, HK (Roasted pigeons to die for!!)

Writer's note: Yum yum! The pigeons are tiny, so you might want to order 1 per pax. While you are there, try the beef curry as well!


Lobster Termidore @ Platao Restaurant, Macau (yummy!!)

Writer's note: Initially, our order was for the cheese-stuffed crabs (cheaper of course), but the waiter got our order wrong and out came the expensive lobster termidore. But we had no regrets! :)



Needless to say, I must have put on at least 5 kg over the past few days. But it was all worthwhile!

Shop, eat, shop, eat!

In just a couple of hours, I will be off to Hong Kong! Yayyy! The much awaited and needed trip. Needless to say, the hazards of my job required me to slog for the last couple of days to ensure that all outstanding work is cleared so that I can leave with peace of mind. And slog I did, working till the wee hours of the night and even over the weekend. I really take my hat off bankers and auditors, I'm sure late nights are peanuts to them.

It's time to stuff myself silly with dim sum and shop till my pockets burn! I am happy as a bee! :)

Missed me?

The week has flown by so quickly...it's quite scary how time has this tendency of catching up with you, no matter how fast or slow you run. It's like your shadow, always tagging along no matter where you go. And paradoxically, the older you get, the faster time runs. I can still remember vividly what I was doing around this time last year, and last year certainly doesn't feel that long ago.

Here's a low-down of my activities for the past week:-

THE GOOD

1. Caught "A Good Year" on Tuesday. I must admit that Russell Crowe, being the male lead, was quite a put-off initially, and I briefly contemplated giving the movie a miss since I got the tickets free. But I must applaud Mr Crowe this time, for he was un-stereotypical in his role and very fun to watch. I might even add that this movie is my favourite for year 2006! It fulfiled my criteria of a good movie: it was simple, witty and classy. The romantic setting in a French vineyard, of course, was a plus point. So if you're in a quandary over what movie to watch this weekend, go catch "A Good Year"!

P/S: I noticed that P drifted off to sleep less this time, which speaks loads for the movie! :)

2. The long awaited musical, Notre Dame! I give it 4.5 stars. The cast was amazing, singing and dancing were top-notch! Bravo! Bravo! The only flaw was the ultra loud music (my ears are still ringing!) and the erratic subtitles which "hanged" or changed too quickly. Also, having to split my attention between the stage and subtitle screen strained my eyes and gave me a slight headache. I vow to brush up on my French so that I can appreciate and understand a French musical without having to rely on the lousy subtitles next time!

THE BAD

1. I hate my job!

2. I hate my job!

3. I hate my job!

You know it's time to move on when your good friend reminds you to buy the Saturday papers tomorrow.