Posted in c'est ma vie
If life gives you lemons, make tequila shots.
Showing posts with label c'est ma vie. Show all posts
Showing posts with label c'est ma vie. Show all posts
Posted in c'est ma vie , photoholic
Brother attempting to continue the same feat from CNY 2009.
CNY 2009
Kill the sun!!
Ashlyn having a ball of fun with the camera.
My most adorable niece, Ashlyn.
Posted in c'est ma vie , hunger management , photoholic
Fresh strawberries, creme, crunchy cereal, cinnamon and almond - all my favourites combined into one mighty awesome dessert!
I lost count the number of servings I had over the weekend. My arteries are probably cursing me mad. Dearie aJ bought a pot of creme anglaise to Cindy's potluck Christmas dinner and since I couldn't stop replenishing my cup with more strawberries and creme... it's highly addictive. To honour her hard work, I volunteered to take home nearly the entire pot of creme. To add some crunch to the bite, I improvised with almond cereal and layered it below the fresh fruit and creme in a champagne flute. Mighty pleased~!
Judging at the results of our culinary skills put to test during this festive season, I say dear Archie now doesn't have to worried about catering food at his store's launch reception. ;)
Basic recipe for Fresh Strawberries with Almond Creme Anglaise here.
Posted in c'est ma vie , hunger management , photoholic
Birthday celebration was part of the Christmas party and being a December baby *ahem* for obvious reasons, I was excited at the thought of... the cake! Dear Lesley my partner-in-crime at work was in charge of the party's planning and she asked me where we should get the birthday cake from.
"The Patissier!!" I squealed. The confectionery is one of my few favourites. It's true. I don't fall in love with cakes as quickly / easily as I do with dark chocolate.
Anyways, a turn of events had us scrambling for alternatives as things didn't work out with The Patissier. We suddenly thought of our good friend Chef Roberto whose Garibaldi group of restaurant recently opened a confectionery shop, DeSte. We were told that Chef Stefano Deiuri was really busy but he gamely agreed to do us a... 10kg(?) cake.
100 points!!!
The November/December birthday celebrants.
I'm still trying to find out but I'm guessing that the cake served was the Piedmont Pave - Chocolate sponge and cream cake with praline and Piedmont hazelnut cream. *Slurp~!*
I am just trying to say... it's damn farking good. It's high time we take notice of better quality cakes, up the standard of our expectations for cakes. Move away from neighbourhood cake shops once a while and venture into the likes of The Patissier and DeSte. It's worth every penny you pay for. ;)
Posted in c'est ma vie , high-jink , photoholic
The Christmas party last night was a blast. Many thanks to Park Hotel Clarke Quay and Chef Derek Ang for the wonderful poolside party!
Posted in c'est ma vie , high-jink , photoholic
Thank you. It is my birthday and you girls worked the floor with me. ;)
Posted in c'est ma vie , hunger management , photoholic
Last evening, the good people at Majestic Restaurant fed me - what could be considered - the best meal in a while. In the name and honour of gourmet cuisine, I ditched my colleagues for plans to meet for late night supper and made Archie wait for an hour plus outside the restaurant while I filled my tummy with sake-infused lobster, double-boiled abalone, fried crab claw with pan-seared scallops in lime sauce and.. annoying, am I?
So I admit, I forget my friends when tempted with exquisite cuisine. Or simply food for that matter. Next stop, Jing at One Fullerton! I was told that Jing serves weekend brunch dimsum buffet at less than $40 per diner. It is time I should visit Jing, and the gym.
Anyhoo, last Tuesday I was treated to a product launch by Marc Jacobs at Klapsons, The Boutique Hotel.
Marc Jacobs' new sexy fragrance, Lola is touted as the more flirtatious, alluring version of Daisy. To celebrate the launch of fragrance, guests were tasked to create their very own handbands with available materials such as pearls, synthetic feathers, rhinestones and etc. To add on to the fun, guests were given the free hand to create their own signature cocktails/mocktails in line with the fun-loving sassy free-spirit Lola.
Best Friend having fun at it.
I am not afraid to admit this too: I have zero talent in DIY. I completely suck at putting stuff together unless a piece of step-by-step instructions guide of no less than A4 size is placed right in front of me.
Back to the fragrance. I LOVE LOLA! Dominated by heart notes of peony (fave!), rose (fave!) and base notes of vanilla and creamy musk (triple fave!), the fragrance is endearing right from the start. Impossible not to love ;)
Tomorrow's a long awaited holiday (i'm sure everyone's complaining the lack of public holidays in Singapore). I may get to sleep in late but the day is pretty occupied. A new wine hub is opening and with my slightly thicker jacket, I will be braving a temperature 18 degrees in the cellar and learning to 'appreciate' the 2005 Bordeaux.
happy holidays,
Gie
Posted in c'est ma vie , hunger management , photoholic
Apple Tart Tab Tan @ Barossa, Esplanade
The crowd watches with awe as the Bombe Alaska was 'set on fire'.
Bombe Alaska dorsed with chocolate sauce...
The week didn't pass without us thinking that how nice it would be if Victoria didn't have to leave. Albeit a short stint in the company, Vic's been such a wonderful desk buddy. At first you don't know each other, but one look at each other's shoes, you suddenly have tonnes to talk about. We would swirl our chairs 90degrees and start bitching to each other about ahem. Fun times when we share quirky fashion tips and drool over each other's stockings. Halloween, she would ask me for costume advice*. Together with Cheryl, we'd make a band of stockings-lovers. Other days we would simply crackle up during tea break while savouring her gluten-free chocolate cookies. The girl's been fun to work with and I'm gonna miss her.
*I'm may not be big on Halloween, but I can still offer sound fashion advice. ;)
Will see Vic again on my birthday,
Gie
Posted in c'est ma vie , photoholic
My weekend get-up to BlackMarket's first anniversary.
Grey Dress: Max & More
Charm Necklace: H&M, Dubai
Green Clutch: Sisley, Hyderabad
Black Patent Heels: Zoe Wittnerman, Australia
Posted in c'est ma vie
Happy Halloween folks!
Jessie 'Hohoho' reminded me the occasion last night and wanted to drag me out to have some fun. Gah, sorry babe but Halloween cramps my style (or whatever that's left of it). In fact, every day is a Halloween for me. The day could go from freaking to scary to nothing to cranky. Basically it's a mad house. My heart could only take this much from Monday to Friday, and sometimes Saturday. So, no. No additional Halloween for me. :)
A colleague nearly caused me a heart attack when she brought me into the chiller room (yes *winks* we have one in the office to store wine, champagne and whatnots). A large cardboard box was laid in front of me and when I opened it...
King of the Kings of the Crabs!I love eating crabs. It nearly drove me bonkers seeing such a huge (and potentially tasty) crab right before my eyes. Proudly imported by Norge, the crab was in our office for its feature photoshoot. Look out for its debut coverage in the upcoming Lunar New Year edition. ;)
Archie's been dog-gone busy lately with the fashion runway set to take place 6th Nov at Millenia Walk. Everyday it's pretty much him and his partner running about the entire island ala The Amazing Race, meeting manufacturers, seamstresses, searching for buttons, zippers, blah blah and more blah blah. Plus, the amount of time driving on the road takes quite a considerable amount of energy away from him. Driving while you're tired and distracted isn't funny business. Oh well, the price one pays for entrepreneurship and erm... the passion. It could make you alive and dead all at once.
But hey! On the plus side, the business has been featured on several print media. Must count our blessings. The most recent one is today's The Business Times weekend edition, page L4. Heh I've been keeping track of the media exposure the business has garnered. Archie and his partner have been so busy with the runway show and this is the little thingy I reckon I could do.
If you appreciate good, quality yet understated inventive menswear, do look out for the revealing of
Coupé-Cousu's latest collection, inspiried by famous Japanese architect Ando. Alternatively, I'm asking you, fellow homosapiens to join the fan page at Facebook because I know you like to join all sorts of fan pages and groups. Heh.
Posted in c'est ma vie , hunger management , le love
Enjoying our brunch at Dome Dempsey Hill...
Colourful lorikeets by the road... And stealing a glance at my dream house at One Lynwood Grove...
I miss travelling and exploring the big big world out there. To travel, is akin to a mental and spiritual rejuvenation for me. I absolutely enjoy filling up someone else's shoes and live life an a local at whichever destination I go.
Unfortunately a few episodes of politicking were on-going at my previous job and I decided that I have to give up the job, and the benefit of being able to travel the better part of the world. Something's gotta give. It's been five months since travelling has ceased. Increasingly I feel the frustration swelling up within me. No longer can I tag my posts under 'Travelogue' nor illustrating my travel adventures to friends like a wide-eyed girl who has visited the Wizard of Oz and returned to tell her story.
Now, everyday, I commute to my new office like any other Singaporean. I stand in line to get into the train; with frustration. I queue to wait for my food at the hawker centre; with frustration. I need to jostle for space in the shopping malls; with frustration. Don't get me wrong; I appreciate my citizenship. However, I also value the freedom to get out there to see the world and experience life which can never be found here. I need freedom to move. Increasingly, I find it tedious to breathe easy as I lead my daily life 'typically'. Yesterday is simply the template for tomorrow. This is driving me mad.
When I'm not working, I do plan in engaging myself in various activities. It cheers me up, quite briefly. Even if it is only chilling out at Dempsey Hill, enjoying a cuppa coffe on a Sunday morning. I like that; it reminds me the times when I would walk down the streets of Sydney alone, find myself a nice quaint cafe to while the afternoon away.
I wonder how this odd character of mine would affect my relationship with Archie. I don't want to be stuck in a relationship so 'comfortable' that we'd spend the rest of our live and times together only to watch DVDs or late-night television and nothing else. I will shoot myself in the head.
I am getting increasingly bored. Perhaps not a very responsible statement to make. But true to the damn bone, I have this feeling of being helplessly bored. In life, in the relationship. Every morning when I open my eyes, and every night before I drift off to the dark, I'd notice my breathing becomes heavier. It's becoming harder to breathe than being trapped in a sauna room. I want to talk to somebody about this, then again, they might just say I'm crazy and ungrateful to the blessings I've received thus far.
I want to get away for a while. I just need to figure how.
Posted in c'est ma vie
I don't mean to be a nag. But the last 10 days have been crazy. Archie's away in Japan, work was piling up and well, I couldn't escape the yak-yak from Mr. Boss. It was a difficult period, especially when Archie was absent.
Archie's returning home tonight. I'm just typing this away while keeping an eye out for him. For all the torment he has put me through for the past 10 days, I'm giving him a big hug then a painful pinch to his ear. It'd remind him not to go MIA while overseas.
By the way, October Fest has started for a number of restaurants! If you haven't decided where to go to get yourself drown with *burp* beer, consider Magma. I was so smitten by its German cuisine on my last visit. A pity Archie didn't join in the dinner. I doubt he could accompany me for any October Fest dinners-drinking sessions. Nor the Mid-Autumn festival. He's flying to Hong Kong on the 29th Oct. Seven days.
Looking forward to the next seven days of boyfriendless,
Gie
Posted in c'est ma vie
Last weekend I attended an invite-only party at Helipad, Swissotel. It was annual epicurean affair to mark the anniversary of the signature restaurants, and also a PR-PR event where the F&B industry come together to savour the finest gastronomic creations by top Masterchefs. The gist is... awesome canapes and free flow of champagne - my kind of heaven.
Right smack in the middle of the Helipad, was the open-concept kitchen with 4 to 5 food stations. One of which was helmed by Chef Andre Chiang of Jaan par Andre. I didn't know much about him until a colleague of mine gasped when she learnt I was attending the event that very night.
"You will see Chef Andre!"
"Uh... huh..." was my reply.
Chef André is Taiwanese. He trained in France for more than 10 years, working in a few three Michelin star rated restaurant, before returning to Asia and becoming the Executive Chef of Jaan about a year ago. It's André with an accent. I can't help but thought that was pretentious. But what I think doesn't matter because apparently women are pretty crazy over him. His food station garnered the longest queue and the ladies in queue never stopped triggering their camera's shutter. A few more gung-ho ones (probably after a few flutes of bubblies) went up to him and asked for his number. I was told that Chef Andre is 'modestly charming'. Unlike a proud peacock, he is 'quiet, hardworking and mysteriously sexy'.
I didn't fall for him. But as I watched the bunch of men bending their backs, delicately garnish the canapes and wiping the sweat off their brows, I have to agree that men in the kitchen can be quite a sexy lot. Or rather, any man hard at work is a charming one. So a quiet, brooding man who cooks damn well is not a surprising magnet of attraction.
Posted in c'est ma vie , le love , photoholic , workaholic
Me: Good morning, Mr. K.
Boss: Stop smiling. It's Tuesday morning and everybody has to work.
Me: Well... I like to start my day with a smile.
Boss: Yeah right.
That's my first day. A church mate who has worked with my current boss on a partnership level told me not to take comments from ang mohs too personally. I couldn't agree more. In fact, I find my boss a tad hilarious when he flares with anger. Guess I've seen enough white people to know that they're not monsters, aliens or anything really overly superior than us Asians. I am not about to be intimidated by a being who is simply fairer, taller and has a louder voice than me. So friends, if you're worried about me, I'm gonna survive. ;)
The web surfing restrictions at work has made it harder for me to keep up with friends real-time though. I haven't been able to tell Yann how I'm doing, help aJ in her wedding preparations, or talk nonsense with Archie. I can't check how cash-poor I am via internet banking nor CPF-rich I am. I sure miss the sights and sounds at Keong Saik Road. At where my new office is, all I see are loads of fashion-less OLs and yabbing executives. The traffic sure is hell too. I miss Maxwell food centre and Tong Ah kopitiam...
Oh well... something's gotta give. At least I have legitimate reasons to surf food blogs, review restaurants and stare at awesome food pictures. Oh well oh well. Tomorrow evening, I'll be reviewing 2AM Dessert Bar at Holland Village. With my boss. I'll tell you how it goes. Maybe he might murder me for smiling too much after a chocolate high.
Before I sign off to do work (i.e. research on molecular gastronomy), I leave you with a sweet note written by Archie (although I have an unexplainable dislike for sunflowers).
Without food is like a day without sunshine,
xoxo Gie
The web surfing restrictions at work has made it harder for me to keep up with friends real-time though. I haven't been able to tell Yann how I'm doing, help aJ in her wedding preparations, or talk nonsense with Archie. I can't check how cash-poor I am via internet banking nor CPF-rich I am. I sure miss the sights and sounds at Keong Saik Road. At where my new office is, all I see are loads of fashion-less OLs and yabbing executives. The traffic sure is hell too. I miss Maxwell food centre and Tong Ah kopitiam...
Oh well... something's gotta give. At least I have legitimate reasons to surf food blogs, review restaurants and stare at awesome food pictures. Oh well oh well. Tomorrow evening, I'll be reviewing 2AM Dessert Bar at Holland Village. With my boss. I'll tell you how it goes. Maybe he might murder me for smiling too much after a chocolate high.
Before I sign off to do work (i.e. research on molecular gastronomy), I leave you with a sweet note written by Archie (although I have an unexplainable dislike for sunflowers).
Without food is like a day without sunshine,xoxo Gie
Posted in c'est ma vie , workaholic
Aiyo aiyo aiyo... Hello dear friends, I've gone away from my usual surfing, blogging, msning, emailing routine since I started on a new job. A simple reason being, all of the above is restricted at work!
Okay, some web surfing allowed as long as it's food related research. So unlike in the past, I can no longer instantly 'google' stuff for you, reply your emails, nudge you on msn when I'm bored nor tell you the latest sale in Singapore. On a bright side, I have every legitimate reason to stare at food blogs for hours.
I should count so lucky in my previous jobs. I'll share why with you personally (if you know me). I'm now more cautious of what I write online pertaining to work. Heh. Anyway something's gotta give.
I'll miss the time I could frolick at Bondi Beach, Australia and so much more. Those for another time.
Long day ahead. But today will end with a boat party to celebrate the company's annivesary. Rumour has it that Chef Michelangelo will be cooking for us. ;) Till then!
Posted in c'est ma vie , le love , photoholic
Old-school self-timer needs a lil' getting-used-to. 
Dreamy. 
This must be how the photo would look like if we were in the 60s.
Kampong boy.
Archie does Mexican Ceviche. I must jot this down in my recipe book...
Still dreaming about the quiche pie...
I thrive on hopeless useless romance.
Shutterbug set free.
We spotted a humming bird. =)
Lone orchid nestled among the roots & moss twining up the wall
Betcha you've never seen twirly orchid before. :)It's a shame I can't show you what Archie took with his vintage SLR. The films have been developed and I have to praise Archie's for his good picture composition. Pity, I don't think his scanner would do the pictures justice. So I'll only share the ones we took with my Sony Cybershot. ;)
By the way, Archie makes tantalizing quiche pies too. Pretty awesome for a first-timer. Man, this guy surprises me sometimes. I gobbled up the rest of the ceviche and quiche pie for supper later that day. Heh.
We set our picnic mat before the morning dew settled. A little humid but still bearable (Singapore climate, ain't a surprise). About three hours later when the sun starts to glare brighter, I checked myself in the mirror and I nearly screamed in horror. Humidity killed my hair. My nicely dry-dryer-blown hair was frizzing and flying in all directions. Even with a sun hat on. Horrors!
Anyway if you should visit Botanic Gardens, don't miss the Orchid garden. Admission fee is $5 for adults but you won't regret it. The number of orchid species is mind-boggling (i.e. totally worth the money). Take a stroll around the gardens and individual mist houses and absorb as much antioxidants as you can. Haha! The trail is well-thought and almost every flora and fauna is carefully tagged so you know what you're admiring. I like the mist house the best for the most practical reason - it has cooler fans.
I have decided not to hold a Christmas party this year. But Archie's quiche pie and ceviche is luring me into holding one so i can get him to make me more. What a lousy reason, I know. ;)
Xoxo,
Gie
By the way, Archie makes tantalizing quiche pies too. Pretty awesome for a first-timer. Man, this guy surprises me sometimes. I gobbled up the rest of the ceviche and quiche pie for supper later that day. Heh.
We set our picnic mat before the morning dew settled. A little humid but still bearable (Singapore climate, ain't a surprise). About three hours later when the sun starts to glare brighter, I checked myself in the mirror and I nearly screamed in horror. Humidity killed my hair. My nicely dry-dryer-blown hair was frizzing and flying in all directions. Even with a sun hat on. Horrors!
Anyway if you should visit Botanic Gardens, don't miss the Orchid garden. Admission fee is $5 for adults but you won't regret it. The number of orchid species is mind-boggling (i.e. totally worth the money). Take a stroll around the gardens and individual mist houses and absorb as much antioxidants as you can. Haha! The trail is well-thought and almost every flora and fauna is carefully tagged so you know what you're admiring. I like the mist house the best for the most practical reason - it has cooler fans.
I have decided not to hold a Christmas party this year. But Archie's quiche pie and ceviche is luring me into holding one so i can get him to make me more. What a lousy reason, I know. ;)
Xoxo,
Gie
Posted in c'est ma vie , photoholic
Picnic @ Botanic Gardens
New Harry Potter specs (@ Haji Lane)
Shopping is better than psychiatrist.
Catching up with Karen @ MOF
Best Friend treats us to a chocolate buffet @ The Fullerton Hotel.
Archie gets behind the counter and play chef. ;)It's mid-week already!!! Argh, so fast. So many things done, but so many others not yet. Got extra time?
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