Monday night Drama

Let me tell you a little story about a girl who went out to buy a DVD and came face to face with a "non" customer service culture.

She popped out in the late afternoon to pick up something fun to watch that night but alas, the dvd seemed to have scratches on it and would not play. So after dinner, she went back to the store to try and exchange the disk. Unfortunately there weren't any copies of that particular movie left in the store but they did manage to locate a copy at their other store so she drove over to pick it up.

While testing the dvd at the store, they ran into the same problems where the disk got stuck in the same part, making it unwatchable. She kindly asked for an exchange for another movie only to be told that she had to go BACK to the original store for any such exchanges! Driving back and forth in one night wasn't her idea of fun and she decided to try and reason with the salesgirl to make an exception. Finally an hour later, after several calls to seek approval and advice from their manager, they relented much to the relief of the little girl.

Upon selecting her exchange item, the salesgirl charged an extra $3 for the new dvd. Now here's the math as far as she could see it. The original dvd cost $23.90 and she was given her usual membership discount and paid $21. The new dvd cost $24 which was a whole 0.10cents more than the original!! And yet the store wanted to charge her $3 and said no further discount applied. HUH?!?!?!

It just didn't make any sense! Much to her frustration, she tried to gently convince the store that it required only a simple exchange without any monetary complications and if anything she secretly thought she should be the one getting compensated on the faulty dvd in the first place and having to drive around town all night.

The happy ending to the story though was the success of her persuasive influencing skills :) She went home with a new dvd for no extra cost, and had a great relaxing night.

THE END ....hehe!

Code of Silence

I've had quite a few things on my mind lately...stuff that I've been wanting to write about here......BUT I realised something cruciaL recently - my country of abode right now requires me to take a unique "code of silence" !! hehe! This is the kinda thing that you so easily take for granted in western countries - freedom of speech, democracy and all. But that's not the case everywhere and some places simply have their own rules. I'm learning!

I can be cryptic thou :) Well I'll try to be anyway cos some of the things that I want to share are what makes this place so damn interesting! Like last weekend, I was taken to a new place for dinner. That is indeed a big deal cos as I've mentioned before, we're really limited to a handful of cafes/restaurants here. Not set up in any normal err venue, the food had an amazing home-cooked feel & was super yummy and inexpensive. I can't exactly identify the place but I believe I only need to say one thing.....

SALTED EGG COATED DEEP FRIED CHICKEN!! hehe!

Trust me...it's to die for :) And it is what this place is known for. Way better than KFC. I honestly find gems in the most unusual of places - places that are not always fully legit, but who cares! We'll definitely be back...afterall it's only just around the corner. hehe!

p.s Inside my head, I've been working on a list of the Top 5 Must-Dos for Brunei. I believe this just made it to my Top 5 list. More to come so stay tuned. (of course I'm rather slow in my Brunei discoveries so if there are any suggestions out there - do leave a note!)

L.O.V.E

A good friend reminded me from the beginning not to start a blog unless I had something meaningful to say :) So that got me inspired to chat a little on LOVE and plus Valentines Day just passed and being our first one in Brunei, we had to rethink how to celebrate it without the traditional commercialism of the occasion.

I personally felt it was no different to any other ordinary day when jin could surprise me with some flowers he picked from his backyard to brighten my room with. Flowers are flowers - they die within a week whether you pay good money for them or not. It's definitely the thought tat counts!

And romantic dinners....well there are really only 2-3 restaurants that we enjoy eating at (and allow you to bring wine) so once they become part of our weekly routines, it's hard to notice the difference b/w a normal dinner and a V-Day dinner :P

This really made me think! V Day was not necessarily abt how to celebrate with dinner / flowers / gifts etc, but a reminder to be thankful that love comes in other forms too....like making breakfast for me in bed, reminding me to take my vitamins, allowing me to choose which dvd to watch, praying for me when I'm tired or sick.... Jin's good at tat - looking to e cross, seeing the positives & believing in His abundant blessings in our lives!

Gong Xi Fa Cai

This weekend is Chinese New Year. And as it turns out, CNY is a pretty big deal to jin's family. There's been a lot of activity leading up to it; the house gets a thorough spring clean, new cushions on the sofa, front door has a fresh coat of paint, cars are washed & even the driveway gets a special jet-spray treatment.

Me, I'm not that keen on the many traditions. I honestly don't understand why one has to wear new clothes for CNY? But then again.... I bet most of my generation are clueless to the significance of this and simply take it as a great excuse to go shopping! hehe! The other part I'm not fond of anymore is the receiving of "ang pows". Call me crazy for not liking the idea of receiving money but I really do feel such an awkwardness & embarrassment about it. Maybe it's got something to do with me being in a foreign country, with a family tat's not my own.

So for the most part, I hope to survive the errrr "duties" of greeting strangers as they visit the house by rewarding myself with some quality DVD time. I have quite a few great titles to get thru....(with or without my bf haha!).

The pineapple tarts are essential of course!

Oh and I nearly forgot.... Happy Valentines Day! I got some gorgeous lillies from jin last night and heading off to "Deals" at the Sheraton for dinner tonight (yes we're celebrating early!).

Burgers anyone?

It's been nearly 12 months since I arrived on the island of Borneo and unfortunately I've not had much luck finding the food that I crave for. The lastest... I wanted to eat a really good burger! And unless you can be satisfied with McDonalds, there really ain't a lot of options here. So I resorted to learning from Jamie. The recipe was pretty straight forward and idiot proof. hehe! Not only am I picking up a couple of handy new skills in the kitchen....but I'm learning to do without some decent furniture tooooo. This is our new dining table featured below! Yes u observed correctly - no chairs.... just making do on our little cushy.

Being Health Conscious with REAL FOOD

Well since I started down the path of err semi-regular exercise and trying to keep fit, I thought I'd take a moment to tell ya about a new little cafe that's all about being healthy. It's called "Real Food" and they've created a small niche of dishing up organic food to the local Singaporean and expats alike. In the chaotic process of globalisation, I do believe the food we eat today ain't as natural as it used to be and especially having to import food all around the world to satisfy international tastebuds, it's not surprising that one has to inject their produce with all kinds of preservatives and chemicals to keep it from dying along the way.

Organic food is just about going back to its roots and keeping it pure. I love the idea of not having excess or additional additives in my food. I also love how my friend has created such a funky yet cozy little cafe to hang out at. oops... did I fail to mention tat at the beginning?! :P

Well yeah this is a mini tribute to a somewhat dream come true for her and her hubby. Their passion & vision to create a space where people can enjoy delish food that's also very good for u.... well i just happen to think tat's awesome! Plus we all know how hard it is to actually be doing something that you love and believe in...RIGHT?!?! It's way easier to sit in a cooL cafe dreaming about it. hehe!

The cafe is known for their very affordable brown rice set at only $6.80 (who said organic food had to be expensive?!?) but more important for me...is an all-day breakfast menu yipeeee! They serve banana blueberry French toast which is also $6.80 and they do an interesting & super healthy spin on the usual big breakfast - it's called the "all in a pan big breakfast" for less than $8 bucks! Bargain!

And once you've had your fill, you can check out the retail side of things and perhaps bring home some organic goodies! You just have to feel good...knowing that whatever you've just eaten or purchased ....is working its magic & promoting a healthier you :)

In addition to their menu, I had a rare treat (featured to the left here) home-made dessert from the chef who was experimenting & I was a willing guinea-pig. Who noes...it mite appear on the menu someday :)

I just wish they had this kinda thing in Brunei!

WHERE TO FIND "REAL FOOD" ?

Located in the basement of The Central in Clarke Quay. Opened daily. Enjoy!

My celebrity fashion Muse

So I gotta have something to work towards - to keep me motivated. And while doing my usual morning online surf, I decided that "something" wld be to adopt a celebrity fashion muse :P

Eva Longoria - petite yet great sense of style, pretty classic but sexy too. I like. Now to reorganise my wardrobe, clear out the unwanted clutter & bad choice purchases and make some effort to dress better with some Eva inspiration! Granted I'm not living in a glam city right now where fashion really matters but at the same time, it's just too easy to let myself go completely and wander around in items tat mite resemble a um... garbage bag?!? (ie comfy, big, oversized to hide my tummy wif no shape - eeks!)

So here's what I like so far....

Who says petite gals can't pull off a BIG gorgeous handbag?!? Also gotta remember e scarf is a great add-on to the otherwise simple jeans outfit.

Hmm...I just picked up a pair of new brown uggs in Beijing. Love them but don't think I can pull them off in such warm climates. I mean it doesn't exactly look very cold in this photo below...but surely my wearing ugg boots in 30+ degree temperatures wld make me look like a complete idiot...no?

And finally - the very trendy summer maxi dress. Obviously the fashion faux-pas to avoid long dresses for petite gals does NOT apply to Eva... nor me! I love maxi dresses...the easiest & most practical item in my wardrobe really.