Earth Hour

Our family participated in this year's Earth Hour ....


... as our kids insisted that we had to do our share to delay global warming!

... by switching off all lights from 8.30pm. We lighted our tealight candles instead.


... by switching off all the air-con, and used the fan instead.

... by turning off the tv as well. The first for a Saturday night!

... enjoying and playing around in the dark. Little D especially loved it!!


... but we still had our computer on, as my older two kids were training for an important tournament the next day.


By 9pm, we packed everyone off to bed, and called it an early night. Its been a long time since everyone went to bed early. They should do this more often!!

Eating in the Dark

No there wasnt a power outage. Yet we ate in the dark. We celebrated MIL's birthday over the weekend at a "high-end" Japanese Restaurant in one of the top hotels here.

What I cant understand is why the lighting in the restaurant is sooooo DARK. It is the same whether it is lunch or dinner there.



I chose a seat under a light, as I had brought some books to occupy Little D during the dinner. Even under the spotlight, I had to squint at times to read some of the smaller words. (OK - my presbyopia could be a contributing factor!)

If you look at the photo above, it was under the spotlight and the glow from the candles illuminated the photo quite a bit. So can you imagine how dark it really was just two steps away?

I really cant understand this dim lighting!! Why dont they want people to have a good look at the meal they have just served them? or could the reason be that there are people who dont want others to see who they are dining with?

More likely, they want us to miss looking at the exhorbitant amount they charged!! What do you think?

I remember ....

... when I was young, I would always listen out for the ice-cream man's bell in the afternoons and then pestering my grandma to buy me an ice-cream. She didnt oblige everyday, but usually would on sundays. That was the highlight for me. My favourite was the chocolate in between 2 pieces of wafers. My mum on the other hand would not eat anything except the eskimo pie. Occasionally I would have the "blur blob" ice-cream, and when grandma had a wind-fall, like striking lottery or chap-ji-kee, we would all have a drum stick each - what a treat!!



As we grew older, we were given ice-cream treats at the Magnolia snack bar at Capitol or the Cold storage in Orchard road. I would have either the banana split (coz then I would get 3 scoops of ice-cream) or the peach melba!!

Into my teen years, my 2 best friends and I would go out to celebrate our birthdays together. On each of our special days, we would go to swensen's and order one Firehouse Happy birthday! The birthday girl would blow out the candle on the cake and the three of us would then tuck into it!

When I first started work, Baskin Robbins had just arrived on our shores with their thirty-one-derful flavours. And guess what, on 31 Dec, I was told to do the stock take for one of the baskin robbins outlet! What a treat! I was given a scoop of my choice after the stock-take!!

Hubby and I then moved to New York, and we were introduced to the wonderful world of Haagen Daazs and Ben and Jerry's. We talked about bringing the franchise to Singapore, as we saw the great potential it had. But unfortunately we did not have the money nor the right connections to bring the franchise here.



Ice cream is something that we have in our fridge all the time. In these belt tightening times, I have told my children that they have to learn to eat other brands of ice-cream instead of just Haagen Daazs. In fact I find some of the local ice-cream palours here sell pretty interesting ice cream flavours, at slightly more affordable prices. I have even considered buying my own ice-cream making machine. But, I am afraid that it will end up a white elephant!

Ice-cream has always featured in the "good times" of my life, and it is a comfort food for me. I love anything chocolate. What's your favourite??

(PS - This post was inspired by the ice-cream article in a local magazine).

IKEA to take over GM

Business Update: Just Announced - IKEA to take over GM





IKEA HAS ANNOUNCED ITS INTENTION TO TAKE OVER GM, AND TO SELL CARS.



WE ARE IN DEEP S**t..........................

Things my mother taught me

1. My mother taught me TO APPRECIATE A JOB WELL DONE.

'If you're going to kill each other, do it outside. I just
finished cleaning.'


2. My mother taught me RELIGION.

'You better pray that dirt will come out of the carpet.'



3. My mother taught me about GOD

'You are going to die when your father gets home'



4. My mother taught me about DONATIONS.

'You better give that ball to your little brother'



5. My mother taught me LOGIC.

'Because I said so, that's why.'



6. My mother taught me MORE LOGIC.

'If you fall out of that swing and break your neck, you're not going
shopping with me.'



7. My mother taught me FORESIGHT.

'Make sure you wear clean underwear, in case you're in an accident.'



8. My mother taught me IRONY.

'Keep crying and I'll give you some more things to cry about.'



9. My mother taught me about the science of OSMOSIS.

'SHUT your mouth and EAT your supper.'



10. My mother taught me about CONTORTIONISM.

'Will you look at that dirt on the BACK of your neck?'



11. My mother taught me about STAMINA.

'You'll sit there until all that vegetable is gone.'



12. My mother taught me about WEATHER.

'This room of yours looks as if a typhoon went through it.'



13. My mother taught me about HYPOCRISY.

'If I told you once, I've told you a million times. Don't exaggerate!'



14. My mother taught me about LIFE

'You break that glass and you are going to wish that you were never
born'



15. My mother taught me about KARMA

'You break that glass, I break your neck'



16. My mother taught me the CIRCLE OF LIFE.

'I brought you into this world, and I can take you out.'



17. My mother taught me about BEHAVIOR MODIFICATION.

'Stop acting like your father!'



18. My mother taught me about ENVY.

'There are millions of less fortunate children in this world who don't
have wonderful parents like you do.'


19. My mother taught me about ANTICIPATION.

'Just wait until we get home.'



20. My mother taught me about RECEIVING.

'You are going to get it when you get home!'



21. My mother taught me MEDICAL SCIENCE.

'If you don't stop crossing your eyes, they are going to freeze that
way.'



22. My mother taught me ESP.

'Put your sweater on; don't you think I know when you are cold?'



23. My mother taught me HUMOR.

'When that lawn mower cuts off your toes, don't come running to me.'



24. My mother taught me HOW TO BECOME AN ADULT.

'If you don't eat your vegetables, you'll never grow up.'



25. My mother taught me GENETICS.

'You're just like your father.'


26. My mother taught me about my ROOTS.

'Shut that door behind you. Do you think you were born a cow?'



27. My mother taught me WISDOM.

'When you get to be my age, you'll understand.'



28. My mother taught me about GOVERNMENT

'I am your mother, you better listen to me.'



29. My mother taught me about POLITICS

'You, your brothers, your sisters AND your useless father are all the
same'



And my favorite:

30. My mother taught me about JUSTICE.

'One day you'll have kids, and I hope they turn out just like you!!


What did your mother teach you??




PS:
Mum - if you are reading this , no you didnt teach me all of them ... But most. I actually got it in an e-mail.

Acts 2:38

A woman had just returned to her home from an evening of church services, when she was startled by an intruder. She caught the man in the act of robbing her home of its valuables and yelled: 'Stop! Acts 2:38!'(Repent and be Baptized, in the name of Jesus Christ, so that your sins may be forgiven.)

The burglar stopped in his tracks. The woman calmly called the police and explained what she had done.

As the officer cuffed the man to take him in, he asked the burglar: 'Why did you just stand there? All the old lady did was yell a scripture to you.'

'Scripture?' replied the burglar. 'I thot she said she had an Ax and Two 38s!'

Knowing scripture can save your life - in more ways than one!

Tough economic times ahead

Yes, everyday we read in the newspapers about the gloom and doom ahead. Times are bad, more jobs will be lost, unemployment will reach an all time high, etc

So what are we doing about it??

Should we be cutting down on expenditure? There is a school of thought that says that if we do cut down on our expenditure, the result will definitely be a recession? Why? People spend less, business make less, and that may result in laying off staff, and that in turn will result in people losing jobs and not having the money to spend. And a downward spiral will result with the economy going into a tailspin.

So to cut or not to cut expenditure. If we do not, and the unexpected happens, then we will be in trouble. Especially since hubby works in the sector where they are viewed with suspicion, and in an area where many have lost jobs. So for my family, I guess, we should try to cut back.

As for me, I am basically a low maintenance person. I hardly spend on cosmetics. I rarely buy expensive clothess - I dress very simply. Things like petrol, which takes up a big portion of our budget, are non-negotiables for me ~ I have to fetch my kids!!

The biggest expenditure for my family would be food. That is something we do not stinge on, in fact sometimes I think we spend a bit too much over there. But it is something my hubby enjoys. So in appreciation for the hard work he puts in all week to bring home the bacon, we are definitely not cutting down in that area.

In fact, I am generally fairly careful with most of my expenditure. So how? I guess my little luxuries will have to go ~ the not so often foot reflex session, or the infrequent massage and pedicure. I will have to stretch my hair colouring to maybe once in 10 to 12 weeks instead of the usual 8 weeks.

Are you cutting back?

Hair color

Have seen the ads in the papers and have been very tempted. The ad says that they can treat premature aging of hair colour ... I guess that means that if the hair turns grey before you are old, they can correct the problem.

I would like to think that THAT is my problem. I really hate having to colour my hair every 8 weeks. I think my biggest mistake was colouring my hair in the first place. Coz, after 8 weeks, there will be about 2 inchces of original hair colour (black) whilst the rest is a deep brownish black, not counting the stray strands of partially white in between. IMO, it looks so ugly!! But how to wait it out till all of it is the same colour - that would take 6 months (and the stray whites will still be there)!! Cant imagine having horrible looking hair for that long!!

My daughter made an observation. She said: Did you notice, Mum? The older the woman, the redder her hair!!

Hmmm, some truth to that coz MILs hair is almost burgundy! As for me, I always tell the hairdresser that I want it as close to black as possible. hee! hee! see I am not THAT old!

BTW - what's with these hairdressers - they like to colour your hair as far from black as they can get! Must be because,they want you back 8 weeks later to colour again to get rid of that two tone hair colour!!

So, what do you think? Try out this treatment for premature aging of hair, wait out 6 months, or pamper myself every 8 weeks at the hairdresser?

BTW, My girl wants me to have colour it either purple or green!!

Which year??

I was talking to some friends the other day. These are people that I know through my daughter, Little D. They are the Mums of her classmates.

We were just talking about school, Junior colleges, etc. Suddenly, I asked - "so which year were you from?" (I was of course referring to the year she left school).

One of the Mums said: "19xx".

My immediate response was: "Hey, that makes you 2 years older than me!"
(As all along I thot I was the oldest Mum in the class).

She turned and looked at me in disbelief, and said: "That's my year of birth!"

Oooops! Looks like when I left school, she was still in diapers! And I was right about being the oldest Mum around that group. Must learn to keep my mouth shut, or I will be giving away my age!

Fingers are itching again!

Have not been baking for quite a while. Suddenly, the fingers are feeling the urge to do something again!!

Made brownies yesterday, but it came out a little too crumbly. I also found it a little too sweet, though it tasted really good with vanilla ice cream :D

Suddenly feel like making so many things ... choc cake, stwrawberry whip sensation, muffins, cookies, etc .... which I am sure will make my kids very happy.

Checked the fridge. The mince beef is calling out to me. So I think I will make sheperds pie today. The cream cheese expires in about 10 days time. So will likely make oreo cheese cake this week. Must get down to it before the urge goes away.

Hope this post didnt make you feel hungry. Instead I hope it gave you some ideas on what you can do in your free time.

:D