6 flights in 7 days

I left for Yangon on Monday @ 7am and caught the connecting flight to Mandalay the same day. We arrived at the destination @ 6pm. I left Mandalay @ 8am for Singapore via Yangon on Thursday and got back at 10pm. I had to go to the office before going home so I went to bed @ 1am that “night”.

That’s 4 flights.

Friday morning I picked him up from the airport @ 6am and we rushed to repack so that we could make the 11am flight to KL. The wedding was fantastic and I wad slightly hung over the whole of Sunday. We caught the 3pm flight to Singapore only to be delayed for a full hour!

That’s 2 flights, making a grand total of 6.

Oh did I mention that we had another wedding dinner on Sunday night? That one ended close to midnight!

I’m tired to the bone. No rest for the weary.

Cyber isolation

I’ve been in Myanmar for 4 days and my phone does not work there at all! Apparently they don’t support GSM roaming and everyone carries 1 CDMA and 1 GSM handphone, just in case one or the other does not have reception. More about that another time. Internet was so dodgy to say the least. There was wireless internet in the hotel lobby (did I hear you say hooray?) but it took me 30mins just to download my emails and send one email… yes ONE email.

On the whole, it was not too bad because my phone was silent for 4 days (doesn’t happen often) and I had an “excuse” not to reply the tons of emails I received in 4 days. I still managed to make the few phone calls home to let them know that I’m safe and that I haven’t been kidnapped. heh heh heh

I landed at 9.30pm and arrived at the office at 10pm to drop off my stuff because I’ll be on leave for another day. My man’s arriving from Melbourne at 5.30am (that’s in 4 hours time) and I really should be in bed right now. Unfortunately, I am currently packing so that we’ll be ready to hop onto the 11am flight to KL in the morning.

I’m exhausted but really looking forward to the long awaited family gathering happening tomorrow. Yay!!!

Hang in there mate!

It’s the festive season and there are lots of people moving from one country to another. Many of them will be reunited with their families this time of year. I’ve been so caught up with work I haven’t had time to take a breather and get into the swing of things. With the impending arrival of my loved ones, I’m slowly but surely getting into the mood of thanksgiving and lurve….

MMWong has been busy trying to clean the house before she leaves on her 1 month holiday soon. She’s so stressed out trying to juggle work, chores, shopping and gym she’s not getting much rest at all. She’ll be back real soon but pity I won’t be around to pick her up from the airport. I know she can’t wait to get home and has been struggling to get through the last couple of weeks.

Hang in there mate!

MMWong’s not the only one travelling. My man’s coming home! (insert applause) He also has heaps of chores to complete before he closes up the home and he’s coming home for Christmas. I really need my sounding board back by my side. I haven’t had that feeling of anticipation and family warmth for quite a few years now. It reminds me of CNY from many years ago when family reunions made me so excited I couldn’t sleep for days before we travelled. Just a few more days before we’re reunited.

Hang in there mate!

Missing all things familiar

It’s been 2 nights and I haven’t been sleeping well at all. I don’t know why it is so since I”m usually pooped by the time my head hits the pillow. I kept waking up at the oddest hours of the night. Maybe I should stop drinking so much water before I go to bed. hmmmmm…..

I reckon, the reason why I’m not sleeping well is because I miss my pillow and bolster! More importantly, I miss the space on the king mattress (I had to downgrade to a single) and the person who sleeps by my side. Sigh.

Maybe it’s time to put Andrew Johnson on my iPod before I go to bed tonight.

The good things in life…

I really shouldn’t complain about feeling pooped. After all, I did ask to come back home. I got my wish but there’s a lot of weight on my shoulders right now. I have a notebook where I jot down everything and anything that has been said to me and the 1001 thoughts that run through my mind all day. The notebook is filling fast and it’s only been 3 weeks!

Ok that was the “bad” side. Now for the good things.

1. The Kia has arrived!! WOOHOO! I rented a Peugeot for 2 weeks thinking that the car would only be delivered later. 4 days into the rental, the car salesman calls to say that my car’s ready for collection. Hey I’m not complaining and thankfully the rental agency was nice enough not to penalise me for returning the car early. Odd as it may sound, I was a bit sad to give up the Peugeot because it was a pretty good drive and the small size made it so zippy around town. Ok back to the one that I own… The colour’s light graphite but it looks like a mid gray in low light and has a purplish/blue tinge in bright sunlight. It’s got all the bells and whistles I can ask for, considering I paid under 60K for the car. I’ll post a picture but it’s been raining non-stop since I collected it and it badly needs a wash. Maybe next time eh?

2. It’s my cousin’s baby’s full moon celebration today and we headed up to Woodlands for a lunch buffet. Somehow, we ended up playing mahjong (ie my parents and aunts) till 9pm and I think we might have overstayed our welcome. *teehee* The newborn, as all newborns are, was a bit fussy but slept most of the time. My cousin offered to let me hold the baby but I didn’t feel too comfy about it so I had to decline. Maybe when she’s a few months older…

As usual, I got the “when are you going to have a kid?” question. I answered truthfully “When it is time… but there’s nothing I can do about it right now. My husband’s 3000+ miles away from me!” *shrug* But overall, it felt comforting to be amongst family again and this is one event which reinforces why we decided to move back home. I’m looking forward to the wedding in Dec which would be a rather grand event.

3. Living at home with the parents again has it challenges. My mum’s always on my back to go shower/eat/clean up after myself. But I’m not complaining because my parents have offered me a roof over my head and food on the table. It’s great to be home again!

4. Last but not least, he finally got his working visa sorted out and booked his tickets to come home for the wedding. My baby’s coming home and I’m so excited! I hate being apart from him but what can we do about it? We had already discussed it and this was the most ideal way to deal with the hand we had been dealt. We have lots to settle while he’s in town and the first thing is to tell our tenants we want our apartment back. Fingers crossed it doesn’t get too nasty.

Dinner @ the in-laws

It is somewhat of a weekly ritual to go over to his mum’s place for dinner. It’s been 2 years since I’ve had regular dinners with them and the little girl is not so little anymore. There’s also the addition of a little boy, who is absolutely adorable!

The family is growing larger and I wish he was here to join in the dinners. I think of him being so far away, eating alone and it breaks my heart to know that he hasn’t been getting home cooked meals for some time now. The exception was that he stayed over at Wes’ place on Friday and had 2 home cooked meals. Nice!

I’m at odds with myself today. Don’t know why but I shall not dwell on it. I have to soldier on.

Working 9-5…

Gone are the days when working meant clocking in at 9am and leaving at 5pm sharp. I left those days well behind when I quit the government institution 4 years ago. The job I have now offers me flexibility – to a certain extent but looking at the way things are shaping up, we’ll all be burnt out before we know it. I have had 2 great years abroad but nothing has prepared me for what to expect when I moved back home. In fact, instead of preparing me for what lies ahead, it has made me soft. heh

I’ve only been back a week or so and I’ve put in 12-hour days already. I don’t mind it for now because of my new role and responsibilities. Besides, there’s no one at home for me to talk to so I might as well hang out in the office. When I left at 8.30pm, there were at least 8-10 people still hanging around. Work-life balance? Non-existant. I hope that things would have stabilised once my man moves back home.

Sigh….

Road Courtesy…

… does NOT exist in Singapore.

It’s only been my 3rd day on the roads and I’m already bitching about the traffic. It’s amazing how many cars have hit the roads in the last 2 years and there are road works almost everywhere! I made it on to the PIE today around 7pm and it was a huge mistake. There were to many motorbikes on the road and it felt like an assault from the left, right & centre.

I know I should be thankful that I have mum’s car to get me around but driving her car has additional stress. First up, it’s a CR-V and it feels like I’m driving a frigging TANK! Secondly, the car is like her 3rd child (or so mmwong & I think) so she’s is highly protective of it. I drive so carefully so that I wouldn’t get any scratched or dents on it.

I’m going to need a holiday from the traffic…

No car = no mobility

Ok that’s not exactly the most accurate statement but I’m shocked (not!)by my inability to get around without a car! I have had access to a car (mostly full-time) for the better part of 10 years. To compound the fact, the first place I visited were the car dealerships on Sat morning, 4 hours after I touched down in Singapore.

Yesterday was the first day of work and as expected, I hit the ground running. I was dressed in a pretty dress and killer heels, which were a very bad idea!!! To start the day, the father had to go to the airport for a morning flight so I hitched a ride to the office (5 mins away from the airport) with the parents. After a brief meeting with HR, I headed out of the office juggling 3 bags in an amazingly jerky cab to town for a case. After making rounds to visit a few docs, we headed out to lunch and then to the implant in the afternoon.

After the implant, it was back to the office in peak hour traffic. The trip from town to office cost me $29, which largely comprised of a 35% peak hour surcharge. Who charges 35% of the fare as a surcharge?!?!?! I am so outraged. Anyways, back to the point… I walked enough in 1 day in heels to last me a month. I got a bit smarter and turned up for work in pants and flats today. My feet still hurt but heaps less than yesterday.

I felt so lost, like I had lost my best friend… I need my car ASAP! COE bidding tomorrow. I hope the agent calls with good news.

I’m exhausted. Time to shower and head off to bed. And it’s only 9pm. tsktstsk…

It’s been 2 great years…

I bawled my eyes out as I was leaving. Everywhere I looked there was something to set me off, even as I was driving to and the from the office. The fact that I was leaving was my choice and I’m the only one to “blame”.

The guys at the office had a farewell dinner for me on Tuesday at Seamstress. I hopped into the office for one final round of goodbyes on Friday as well as to hand in the car keys. My trusty Holden, the car that has given me a comfy ride for 2 years.

I will miss my man of course but I know that he will be back eventually (sooner than later I hope). Towards the end, I did have waves of doubt and my resolve did waver as to whether to stay or go. He’s been trying to convince me that it is the right move, for the both of us. Timing might not be ideal but things always have a way of working itself out. There are some hiccups in terms of lodging so we’ll just have to tough it out for a bit while it all gets sorted out.

I cried when I thought about my sister, being in Melbourne all alone again. I have enjoyed the meals we have shared together, going shopping and even getting our nails done together. Most of all I’ll miss the text messages during the day, just to say hi.

As I was leaving, I finally realised why I felt so awful overall. These last 2 years have been like a vacation for me, a break from home, a break from the “real world”. Now that it’s is over, I don’t wanna go home!

p/s: I’ve already hijacked some closet / drawer space for meself. heh

pp/s: I miss you guys too!!