Ariel's Wedding

inkCongratulations to Kevin and Ariel!! Ariel is the first one to get married among the 5 of us. Kevin and Ariel have been together for about 8 years since we were still in Uni. It's really great to see them getting married and stepping into the next stage of their life.

Cindy and I are the bridemaid for Ariel. We need to reach around 7 am as the groom would reach around 8am and we need to finish the ceremony so as to leave the house before 8:45am.

We were supposed to play a few games with the groom to get the process a bit tougher for him. However, the first thing Ariel told us in the morning was to ask for easier game for the groom as he was burning the midnight oil the day before and very tired. Besides, there is time limitation as we need to leave Ariel's house on time. So we only get Kevin to play basketball up to the 2nd floor, answer a few questions and sang a song, whhic were way too easy.

We need to leave Ariel's place before 8:45am and can only stepped into Kevin's place at 10am, but they stay so close to each other as it's only a 5 minutes walk. So we can only drave around the Taipei city for one hour and 15 minutes to kill time.


Cindy actually got tons of serious misquito bites while waiting for Kevin to at downstairs of Ariel's place. It's either those mosquitos were too hungry in the early morning or Cindy is just simply too delicious.

Thanks for Ruby's offering as we went to her place to have some snap. We got up really early in the morning and we got another full evening session to go on. Really need some rest and we fell asleep immediately after touching the bed.


Ruby and Chris were also back for Ariel's wedding. They are another couple since uni time. Our relatioships are a bit extreme; either very very long or just simply very short.

Before the dinner ceremony, Ariel arranged one of her friends to do hair and make-up for Cindy and I.




It's quite different to see myself with full make-up. That's really quite good to have a refreshing me but it's not often to have this kind of occasions


We knew that Ariel was dying to drink some wine as everyone was hoping her to drink grape juice. So we get Ruby and Chris to demonstrate 交杯酒 so to get Kevin and Ariel to finish a full glass of wine.


The dinner vanue is at Grace Hill, a dedicated and very popular wedding venue in Taipei. I like the bride dressing room a lot as it's my ideal design for the living room.


We actually met up for dinner yesterday as that could the last day to have Ariel and Ruby in Taiwan at the same time. Besides, we also want to celebrate Cindy and Ariel's birthday later this month.

Congratulations and Happy Birthday la.. :)

North Coast

Got a message from Cindy last Fri for visiting North Coast of Taiwan on Sat. This is my first time visiting this beach as I don't really go to other places in Taiwan other than my hometown. However, that was an interesting experience as this could be our last girl's trip out before Ariel's wedding 2 weeks later. Besides, Rudy is also back from UK for summer holiday. So we just set up 1pm from NTU main gate.

We arrived around 3pm and either laid on the beach or soaked in the water. It seems to be a popular place for teenagers as most of the visitors are high school or uni students. There are also some families as we saw a cute kid wearing a "honey bee" style swimming suit, which is so cute.




That was really a great experience and I started to think if I should buy a car so that I can go out during weekends. I'm a bit tired of staying in the city for most of the weekends as I do enjoy spending time alone or with friends for a leisure outing.

Anyway, Cindy and I agree to start planing our weekdays after work and weekends together as we can not stand ourselves stuck with works most of the time. We can actually leave the office earlier as long as we have arranged some activities to keep a balance life. It's only about decision and action.

The first activity would be a Symphonic Salsa performance by Klazz Brothers & Cuba Percussion next Fri night. Thanks for Matt's introduction so that I was exposed to this interesting combination of classic music and salsa. It was fantastic when listening to CD and I believe it would even greater as live music.

My First TOS

Today is a special day for me as I finally secured 2 assignments since taking on this position 7 months ago. It was a long way and tough path for me as I'm supposed to secure three assignments for my confirmation within the initial three months. However, it just didn't go like what we planned and expected. Though tough, it is a very solid learning process and a good opportunity for me to learn more about myself.

I really need to thank for my mentor, Maggie, who taught and guided me along the way. I have been very lucky to have good and kind people around me. Thank you very much again. Though it might be the last 30 days that we would be working together as Maggie would be leaving for another stage in life. I would always remember every single thing that she told me and all the best to you, Maggie!!

Happy Father's Day!!

Yes, I kept my promise to spend Father's Day and Mother's Day together with my parents from this year. This what I promised myself from last year. It's my first time staying together with my parents for these 2 special days since I left for Singapore on 8th Aug 2001. Though it's just one of the days in a year, it's dedicated to all the fathers and mothers.

It's clearer and clearer to me that we are stepping into another stage as we got more and more friends getting married or having kids. Still can't imagine the day when Mother's day is dedicated to me but that should be quite a different feeling.

Company Outing - Fishing

Last weekend, I organized a company outing to fish at Keelung. We have about 20 people joining this event and we did catch quite a lot of fishes though we have tried a few different spots that night. Besides, some of the colleagues stayed at my grandma's place that night so that we can climb up some hills to see the Pacific Ocean.


Besides, we also have a BIG BIG SEAFOOD lunch. Daddy helped me pre-order 7 dishes and all of them are high-end material. I can only say this is one of the best meal I got this year so far.

Gathering

After Ariel's engagement 2 weeks ago, we had another gathering as Tina can't attend the engagement on that day itelf. We went to a small and nice cafe stores. I always like this kind of stores in Taiwan because of the unique design and style each shop has. Those are nice places for a good afternoon tea either alone or with friends.

I wished to have this kind of time slot once a week to consolidate what I've been in and planning for next week. That was really enjoyable.

Lonely?

I haven't got the "lonely" feeling after I came back home this Jan. However, it just punched into my heart just now as I do not know who to turn to share my feelings. I could be a bit more sentimental because of my relationship lately but I do not like this kind of feeling at all.

The last time I got this feeling should be the time I decided to change my life and leave Singapore so that I can have a fresh start. Though I declared a "new year" just now, it seems that I haven't really change my mindset totally so far.

I'm not sure how important this relationship is to me but I felt really bad when I saw him on skype but not on MSN "NOW". It meant he just doesn't want to interact with me. I hate this kind of unclear situation. I do not see any reason why we can't speak openly even though 'breaking up''. I really don't know what he is thinking right now though I have always thought he is a direct person. It seems that I'm a more realistic and practical person now.

New Year! New Start! New Life!

You guys must be wondering why I would have a "new year" now. In fact, we just started our new financial year today. That's the reason why I said it's a new year for me. I've spend almost half a year to get myself into this new line and "perform". To be frank, I wasn't doing well in the past a half a year as I haven't bought in any new business. Of course, I did feel frustrated sometimes but I would rather have a difficult start to really sharpen and equip myself the necessary skill and capacity needed to succeed in this line instead of getting business in by luck.

I do see myself start to perform from this new financial year and I want myself to start flying off from this quarter and continue. Of course, hard work, time and efforts are all needed to achieve this but that's the commitment I have to myself.

So new year, new start and new life in all the different aspects of my life.

- Achieve at least 9 times of my pay roll cost.
- New life style to get up early so that I have sufficient time to have a good start of my day.
- Open myself for possible interaction with different people.
- Achieve my fitness goal.

Last but not least:
- ENJOY MY LIFE!!

Ironic

How ironic it is!! The first relationship I have ever announced publicly seems to be the shortest I have ever have. Though we have not really talked about it directly, I do not see the possibility and reason to continue based on the situation lately. I still have quires in mind about what have changed the situation though I have no problem to accept the fact that we are just not for each other. Hopefully, we got the chance to talk in person so as to clarify the situation and my quires in mind.

Though it could be my shortest relationship so far, I still see myself improving in the past three months. I do enjoy the process to learn more about myself, to open myself up, and to look at myself from another angle. Besides, if not for this relationship, I might not be able to walk out from some negative feelings so easily three months ago.

Furthermore, I also understand the reason why people said "women just can't live without love". Being in a relationship really made myself life more interesting and enjoyable. The interaction with others and with the inner self simply make my life full of fun. I can only probably say I would try different methods to have this factor in my life so as to enrich myself further though the current one won't work any more.

為你我受冷風吹

剛躺在床上聽到廣播在放這首歌
老歌就是有他一定的韻味
所以聽起來就更有感觸

為你我受冷風吹
詞/曲:李宗盛

為你我受冷風吹 寂寞時候流眼淚
有人問我是與非 說是與非
可是誰又真的關心誰 若是愛已不可為
你明白說吧無所謂 不必給我安慰
何必怕我傷悲 就當我從此收起真情 誰也不給
我會試著放下往事 管它過去有多美
也會試著不去想起 你如何用愛將我包圍
那深情的滋味 但願我會就此放下往事
忘了過去有多美 不盼緣盡仍留慈悲
雖然我曾經這樣以為 我真的這樣認為

為你我受冷風吹 寂寞時候流眼淚
有人問我是與非 說是與非
可是誰又真的關心誰 若是愛已不可為
你明白說吧無所謂 不必給我安慰
何必怕我傷悲 就當我從此收起真情 誰也不給
我會試著放下往事 管它過去有多美
也會試著不去想起 你如何用愛將我包圍
那深情的滋味 但願我會就此放下往事
忘了過去有多美 不盼緣盡仍留慈悲
雖然我曾經這樣以為 我真的這樣認為

為你我受冷風吹 寂寞時候流眼淚
有人問我是與非 說是與非
可是誰又真的關心誰 會關心誰誰會關心誰

最近的心情有所曲折
所以聽到這首歌會開始回想一些過去發生過的事
我其實是一個很會調整自己而且不會讓自己持續在負面的情緒裡的
或許就因此更不容易示弱或交心
但這首歌讓我看到幾個不同階段裡的我
總有人說往事不堪回首
但我覺得那才是成長的過程
只希望我的智慧是真的有所以成長
否則那些時間跟心力可能就有點白費了

Ariel's Engagement

Ariel was engaged last Sun, 24 June. She is the first one to be engaged among my NTU gangs. Cindy and I would be her bridesmaids and this is my 2nd time. I was joking with Cindy that I got only one more time left so my girlfriends should all bit for that.

I'm really happy for Ariel as they have been together for almost 9 years starting from our 2nd year in uni. It's really a long time and we have been through the up and down of their relationship together.
We all happy to see that they decided to tie the knot and step into the next stage of life together. I was really moved during the ceremony and my tears almost came out at that moment.

The wedding ceremony would be in mid Sep and we would have another gathering again though Tina won't be able to make it. Hope our gang got chance to gather at the same place again real soon.

Singapore ≈ Home

Went "BACK" to Singapore for 4 days during the Dragon Boat Festival long weekend. I did not take any pictures this trip though I used to use pictures to record my visit to any place, but I decided to use my "HEART" to record this trip this time.

I actually had a very funny feeling when I was taking MRT to town from airport. It felt like I was going back "home" though I have been back to Taiwan for 5 months. It seems that I'm more familiar with Singapore than Taipei. Guess I have some confusion on where my "home" is now.

I actually applied for Singapore Citizenship last year and i got the approval letter this time. I would really need to think over again and decide if I really want to convert as I need to give up my Taiwan nationality.

Nancy's Visit Back Home

Nancy was back late May after 2 years studying in Singapore. We have not yet seen each other after I came back for GMAT in late 2003. It's been almost 4 years and now she is a "WIFE", which was a surprise to all of us. However, I can see her with a different mindset and direction. I'm really heppy for her. Besides, I also met up with a few friends that I haven't seen for a long long time after graduating from university. Gues this is the best thing to be back in Taiwan so that I got chance to see some other friends.

Things are happning!!

Things are just happening around me one after another. This morning on my taxi ride to office, I happened to touch my right ear and realized that my diamond ear ring was missing. It's my first diamond accessories that I bought for myself three years ago. It just went missing this morning. I was a bit upset at that moment as it's very meaningful to me.

Not sure if it's a signal to me as things are just happening around me. I did believe things are happening for a reason. However, I tried to think from a positive angle. Maybe it's just time for me to buy a new one. Anyway, I decided to check if I can find the exactly the same one to match the other left when I'm visiting Singapore two weeks later. I still want to keep them as their are just my first set of diamond ear rings.

He's Just Not That Into You!

Was browsing another friend's blog and saw her blogged about the same topic as I did 2 years ago: He's Just Not That Into You! Then I went back to my own post and read through it again.

1. He's Just Not That Into You If He's Not Asking You Out
2. He's Just Not That Into You If He's Not Calling You
3. He's Just Not That Into You If He's Not Dating You
4. He's Just Not That Into You If He's Not Having Sex with You
5. He's Just Not That Into You If He's Having Sex with Someone Else
6. He's Just Not That Into You If He Only Wants to See You When He's Drunk
7. He's Just Not That Into You If He Doesn't Want to Marry You
8. He's Just Not That Into You If He's Breaking Up with You
9. He's Just Not That Into You If He's Disappeared on You
10. He's Just Not That Into You If He's Married (and Other Insane Variations of Being Unavailable
11. He's Just Not That Into You If He's a Selfish Jerk, a Bully, or a Really Big Freak

Again, this makes me recognize the reality. Yes, I want someone really "into me" and want to share my life so that we can grow together. This sounds simple but not really as first of all, he needs to be someone that I would look upon to. It seems to be a difficult criteria. Other than this, the most important part is "inspiration" so that I can learn something from him and so dose he. The best part is we can grow together and build a better life. Sounds simple but a big challenge still.

Funny or Wired!?

It's a funny day or I should put it "wired". Yesterday night, I went to one of my girlfriends' place and had a girl talk with her and another girlfriend. We talked about our life, career, future, relationship, family and things like that. That was quite a long and interesting talk as all three of us are having a turning point in our life I would say. So we are all facing new challenges and searching for different direction and path. We left almost 1am in the midnight as her boyfriend already made 5 phone calls during our chat for their regular evening talk. In the end, we all have some sort of conclusion for our next step.

My next step is to make a trip down to Taichung this morning to give my BF a surprise as we have not seen each other for two weeks plus and he would only come up to Taipei late next week. So I took the 8 AM fast speed rail to Taichung.

During the train ride, I was sorting out my SMS message and accidentally I delet all the SMS that i archieve in the past one and half a year and this made me start to feel wired for the day. After reaching the station, I took a very "expensive" taxi to his place. That's supposed to be a surprise to him but the result turn out to be a surprise to me instead.

The reason why I decided to go down is because I got a feeling that something is going on or I should say something went wrong but I can't really tell. I suppose I would have a better idea when I'm there with him. At least, we can talk and tell from the facial expression and body language.

However, the thing did not go like what I hope though we did meet up. That half an hour was a bit suffocating and it's just not like what we used to be. Then I took the 11:30 am train back to Taipei. I'm still thinking what should be my next step. It should be quite clear as long as my mind and heart are clear as well but that should not be a problem for me.

Family Acticities

One of the best and most different thing I got after back at home is FAMILY ACTIVITIES. Previously, I spend most of my weekend working, shopping, exercising, and pampering myself like SPA, facial, manicure and pedicure. In the past 4 months, half of my weekends are with my family - my big family.

The first weekend of this month, we had a gathering to celebrate Mother's day though it's supposed to be 2nd Sunday of May as my cousins who are married need to be back with their in-lows. Besides, that Sat happened to be my father's birthday. So we really had a big gathering and the best thing back at home is the FOOD, the fresh seafood that I can't find anywhere else.




That Sunday, we visited a osmanthus fragrans farm at Shr Ding (石碇) and tried the Osmanthus Fragrans meal which is quite interesting. My two nephews really had a lot of fun as it's so much fun to have a big group of family going out together.


Last Sun, I met up with another group of cousins. Time really flies. All of them to me are my little younger brothers and sisters in my memory but now all of them are all grown up and mature. Guess that's life I would say.

Though I still need to work most of the Sat, I would still try to arrange time for myself and for my family. 24 hours are just not enough!!

無法平凡

五一勞動節放假
原本不覺得我也屬於勞動階級
不過想想我們心力上的勞動程度
是也該放個假休息一下

雖然放假不過下午還是進了辦公室處理點事情
傍晚回家路上
就繞進了那我許久不曾造訪的誠品信義店
做了我久違了的書香之旅

其中有本書挑起了我的注意力
韮沢明子的"我承認我心動了"


無法平凡

見到我的人,
應該會說我是個女強人吧!
但你見到我,
應該會說我是個弱女子吧!
在你面前, 再怎麼樣,
我的舉止都無法像平常一樣,
你是喜歡上那個我呢?

取捨

人生是由一連串的決定與取捨所組成
而決定就是一種取捨

沒有任何事情會是完美的
套個經濟學的術語
衡量輕重及取捨就是希望能夠取得最高的效用
因為這其中變動的因素不少

而近來因為生活上的轉變
我也開始思考一些取捨的問題
很多事情跟我原本想像或計畫中的很不一樣
不能說這樣是不好
畢竟之前的我可能只侷限在一定的框架中
而沒有想到一些不同的可能性

但就因為這些轉變
我必須開始思考我原本設定的東西到底是不是最好的
改變就代表著幾個因素的異動
當然這其中有好有壞
需要思考的就是這些好壞最後的總合會是怎樣
還有哪些是不能被改變及犧牲的原則與因素

或許因為年齡的增長及考慮的範圍及因素的擴大
我發覺腦袋裡思考的東西越來越多
但我覺得這是個好現象
因為這代表了我的成長及邁入人生中下個階段的預先準備
是該好好思考一下了

The Inner Me

This could be a very new experience for me as I'm not that type of people to share too much about myself most of the time. However, it might be because of the age or the life experience I got so far, I want to be more open to myself, which means releasing the inner me so that I can express how I really feel directly instead of wearing a mask to cover up the true "ME".

Therefore, I decided to go into a relationship where I can see the inner me trying to come up to take over the other "ME" cultivated by the family, education system, work and society. Yes, I'm officially attached and this could also be the first time for me to announce it this way.

We actually have known each other since my high school time. However, we were in totally different fields as I'm in business and he was into music at that time already. Yap, a MUSICIAN!! What a surprise, isn't it?! However, I think that could be the major reason actually as he is so true, real and direct in terms of expressing himself which is totally different from me. So I can see myself changing to face the real me and start to find this little girl adorable.

I visited Taichung last weekend as he lives there actually but travels up and down for classes and performances. We drove down on Sat and had the delicious meal at the town nearby Taichung. I always prefer this kind of local food than restaurant as it made me feel so real.

Then we went to Taiwan Banana New Paradise which is an interesting dining place with the decoration like Taiwan back in early 1900. The food is nice and the fruit tea is fantastically great.




Then on Sun afternoon, we went to a nice cafe to enjoy the nice weather, breeze and cafe at Taichung. I always find Taichung very comfortable in terms of weather and the pace. It's always sunny without so much raining like Taipei. The pace there is just slower and seems everyone is enjoying their life.


Actually, I can see the challenges ahead because of the different personality, work nature and my family in particular my responsibility for my parents. However, what really brought me these fresh thinking is also because of the difference. We can only put all our efforts to work the things out and NEVER TRY NEVER KNOW.

SIA Raffles Class

I was taking SIA Raffles class back to Taiwan this Jan. It wasn't my first time taking business class but definitely first time on SIA. I actually upgraded with my points as I have almost 60KG luggage and I thought I would rather pay for the better service which would also allow me to bring extra luggage.

That was a pretty enjoyable experience as the space is really much bigger and the service is also more customized and delicate. Most importantly, the food is also much nicer. As you can see from the pictures here, it's really a full set starting from starter, salad, main course to dessert. I finally understand why people are seriously making money so that they can afford for this kind of service. Though I'm not so materialism in a way, this would be one of my goals to reward myself from time to time to enjoy this kind of service and nice traveling experience.