Burning Candles

When I walk around Ikea, I often notice lots of people around their candle section. People often seem to be buying lots of tea lights and pillar candles and I've always wondered what they use them for unless they are planning a party. To me, it's a little messy to light them around the house and I have some concerns about the chemicals those candles will be emitting as they burn.

Crisis Opportunities

The recent financial crisis hasn't been bad for everyone. Although most people are suffering the after-effects of the market crashes, some such as debt collection agencies and loan sharks seem to be having quite good business preying on those who have lost money in the crisis and are looking for other forms of financing. In every situation there are always some who will be making money from others' misfortune.

What is it?

Do you know what mesothelioma is? I've been recently seeing lots of this word all around Google and apparently there are even mesothelioma lawyers in America which specialise in this. It sounds pretty scary and it sounds a little like a disease! If anyone knows what this is, please do tell me! :)

Online Christmas Shopping

Have you completed your Christmas shopping? Today, Christmas shopping has taken a new approach with lots of people doing their shopping online instead of going out to the physical stores. With great sites such as ShopWiki, online shopping is easy as it crawls almost every shopping site in Google to find you the very best Christmas deals! If you are looking for a car seat this Christmas as a present, why not try ShopWiki before you head out to the stores? The choices offered are amazing and best of all, you can do all these shopping in the comfort of your own homes! :)

Happy Christmas shopping!

Keeping Warm

I used to study in Australia and one holiday when my sis came to visit, we made a trip to Tasmania. There, I experienced using a heated blanket for the very first time! It was a rather interesting concept and it certainly kept me very nice and warm throughout the cold night. I think most homes now use electrical heating instead.

Annual Vacations

Its year end in the department and lots of my colleagues have started planning their annual year end holidays or looking for ways to clear their leave balances. One lucky colleague has decided to make a trip to Las Vegas and was frantically researching any hotel in las vegas before she left as she wanted to do online bookings. I hope she managed to find a great hotel that is close to the attractions she wanted to see!

Bed Sales

Recently, I have been noticing lots of great deals on mattresses and bed frames in the newspapers. Some outlets are offering even up to 90% discounts on their bedframes if you purchase a mattress from them! I'm not sure if this is a result of the recent economic crisis or whether these stores are just trying to sell their old stock. However, it is something that benefits consumers greatly especially if you are looking for beds!

Losing Pregnancy Weight

Nowadays, women have tremendous pressure to remain thin. My colleague who recently gave birth about 6 months ago is now carefully watching her diet to ensure she can get back into her previous clothes. Another friend of mine even went to a slimming centre to lose all her pregnancy weight! As long as they do not resort to dangerous slimming drugs such as Decaslim, it should be alright.

MLM Products

I was recently approached by a Multi level Marketer who was pushing a detox product called Orovo detox. Although it sounded effective and good for health, I do have some reservations about using products from multi level companies simply because I do not know how safe they are and what ingredients they contain. Sometimes, false information can be quickly used just to convince people to buy the product which is often very much more expensive than something similar on the shelves.

Job Offer

My friend's husband recently got a fantastic job offer with a multinational bank. Apparently his package is really good and she is now contemplating leaving the job force. Perhaps I should check with her if he will be looking for marketing resumes anytime soon! Considering the recent economic downturn, he seems to have gotten himself a great job deal!

Losing Weight

A colleague in my office was recently desperately trying to lose weight for her wedding. She was even willing to use cheap diet pills to help her shed those unwanted pounds. Although it may work quickly, it is not the best way to loose weight as the side effects of these pills are still questionable. I hope she realises that and accepts her body for what it is.

How The Rich Live

I recently attended a friend's wedding and was surprised to know that he was actually the son of a prominent business man in town. He was relatively low profile all throughout Uni and none of us had any idea that he came from such a well-heeled family. Throughout their wedding, they showed some photo montages and his home was amazing! They even had their own home theater seating for a big screen TV! It's amazing to know how the rich live!

Effect of Financial Crisis

The full impact of the worldwide financial crisis is yet to hit but I believe many have started cutting back on expensive purchases such as houses or luxury cars. I recently read the even developers are starting to slow down on their housing projects and some of the worst hit are those developing luxury homes with Grohe fittings and Moen faucets. It is a good time to be prudent and save.

Football Fever

Are you a football fan? If you are and are longing for some ball action after the leagues have all been played, why not log on to Carlsberg's newest TV at www.partofthegame.tv? This specially dedicated TV channel to football, football and more football is specially targeted at all you football fans out there to learn more about your favourite game and enjoy the latest matches. Catch it today!

Lusting After A Camera

I have been longing after an SLR camera for some time already and recently I saw a really nice Canon camera for sale! Unfortunately, I'm quite heavily committed financially at the moment so I guess that will have to wait!

Cheap Thumb Drive

It's amazing how cheap a flash drive is nowadays. I recall when it first came out, it was in the several hundreds but now you can buy a flash drive for less than a hundred ringgit! Isn't technology great?! I can't imagine living without a thumb drive now!

Interesting Shoes

I like online shopping and find it very interesting looking at the online offers even though I may not purchase anything. Recently, I saw a really interesting looking shoe called the MBT shoes. Unfortunately it was too expensive otherwise I might have considered buying a pair!

Construction Work

Have you ever seen contractors at work? I've seen some near my office before and the industrial clamps they use look pretty scary! I can't imagine working on a construction site and I really salute these workers for the risks they are taking.

Teenage Years

I had a chance to look back at some of my teenage photographs last weekend. Given a chance, I don't think I would want to relive my teenage years are I was overweight and battling acne! Sadly, that acne bout has left quite a few scars I'm still trying to find a suitable remedy for.

Employee Checks

The employment screening service offered here needs to be further regulated and tightened. There have sometimes been stories of maids or labourers coming in with infectious diseases which our country has managed to wipe out for many years already. If not controlled, this could actually lead to a national epidemic.

Products That Work

Have you ever found any good acne products that work? I have tried quite a number before and found that while they work well initially, they tend to stop working after a while which is a real pain! I don't understand why! Could it be because my skin has gotten immune to it?

Body Acne

I really hate body acne and I don't know why I recently have started getting some on my back. I used to have a nice smooth back which means I had better quickly start seeking some body acne treatments fast before it gets worse. Don't you just hate all these kind of breakouts. I really do!

Summer Storage

When I was a student in Australia we used to have to store our belongings in the self storage basement areas whenever we came home for the summer holidays. It was a dark place and I recall hearing horror stories of how it once flooded and spoilt thousands of dollars worth of stuff! Luckily my stuff were always fine whenever I stored them there! It did save me the hassle and cost of looking for a rental storage.

Honeymoon Ideas

I just saw an advertisement for cruises in my mailbox from Sydney to Auckland for less than RM5k! I am guessing that this does not include the airfare of getting there and once that is factored in it will work out more than RM8k already. Still too expensive for a honeymoon!

Vacation Blues

I am so tempted to take a break. Unfortunately, there seems to be talk of a recession all over the world and things have been shooting up in terms of prices. If only I have all the money I needed, I would take a Vegas vacations break to take in some lights and sounds of that vibrant city.

Cleaning Up

I spent the weekend cleaning up my place after my tenant vacated it. It was absolutely filthy and luckily we had some vacuum cleaners with us as there were cobwebs all the way up to the ceiling! I cannot understand how she has lived there with a baby with such mess and dirt!

Diet Pills

I noticed that the pharmacies seem to be selling less diet pills ever since the Health Ministry clamped down on the sale of these pills. Some of these medications do not have proper tests conducted on them and can even be harmful to the health. It could be good that these medications are now controlled to protect the health of consumers.

Furniture Sales

It is sale season in Malaysia right now. Last weekend I went to a shopping centre and saw lots of discount furniture on sale with discounts up to 70% off! We saw a mattress there that was quite nice and going at up to 25% off. I'm still wondering if we should get it.

Legal Aid

Nowadays, a lawyer seems to be required for everything. Buying a house, selling a house, getting into an accident and even for pre-nuptials in some cases! If you are ever in need of a good lawyer, why not call on a Mesothelioma lawyer? They will be able to get the job done in the time you require!

Manolos

I have always dreamed of a beautiful pair of Manolo Blahniks. The very name itself whispers of style and sophistication and never fails to put the image of stylish New York City, glamorous women and Sex And The City to my mind! Unfortunately it costs the earth and isn't something that is within my budget! :(

Planning a Home

A friend of mine has been talking about getting a house for a while already. She has been looking for her dream home and been unable to find one that she likes on the market. She was telling me that she wishes she had the money to buy a piece of land and construct the house from scratch especially since her husband is an architect who is used to drawing House Plans for the rich and famous. Apparently he travels all over to prepare Country House Plans and log home floor plans for the well heeled members of our society who own grand homes overseas. They have been said to be rather difficult to draw the homes for as they can be really fickle and can never decide on a certain agreed design! I don’t think it is a position I envy but I would really love to see her house someday when she gets around to building it. I’m sure it will be something absolutely beautiful!

House Planning

I admit that I used to be an avid reader of romance story books when I was younger. I particularly used to like reading about heroines who get swept away to lovely mountainside homes by their heroes and it was always my dream to visit a lovely rustic country home someday. Well, it looks like my dreams might someday come true as I heard that a previous boss of mine had invested in a lovely country home in France and invited me there should I ever be in that part of the world. He was quite amazing as he supervised all the House Plans from here long distance and entirely trusted his architect there in France to prepare and work on the comprehensive Country House Plans that had been finalized. I guess he must have gotten a really good architect and contractor to be able to trust them from so far. He said that these same people had helped his family member with some log home floor plans in Switzerland previously and he knew the quality of their work.

What fun to own a country house!

Buying Books

The MPH sale was recently on and my sis was hunting high and low for her favourite Terry Pratchett books. She was quite upset that some of the stores didn't carry the particular publisher she wanted as she was trying to build a collection of similar publisher books. Perhaps she should try Amazon books. I hear they have good offers every now and then.

New Laptop

The bf has been looking for a laptop as his current one is really old and he's worried it may give up on him anytime. It's also really heavy which makes it difficult each time he travels as it adds on a lot of extra weight. Recently, there was a computer fair in town. We went to take a look and he fell in love with the Toshiba Satellite! Now he's wondering if his boss will approve his purchase.

Trade Show Vendors

The bf travels a lot for work and his schedule has been really tight this year where he has been away at trade shows almost every month! In fact, he was planning a a trade show in KL not too long ago and was getting really stressed out about looking for suitable vendors for his booth. Being in a competitive environment, it is important that their trade show displays are eye-catching to the visitors to the show.

Whilst researching for suitable vendors, he was really glad to find a great company specialising in banner stands and presentation display needs. They were affordable and had beautiful display stand designs. He was particularly attracted to their truss display design and decided to pick them for his stand. His boss was also really happy with the design and thanks to their innovative stnads, their trade show was a success!

I hope to use the same whenever we have our events here!

Moving In

I'll be moving into my new place soon and as much as I would love to start shopping for modern furniture for my new place, I'm unable to as my silly tenant still hasn't moved out! I've given her the requisite notice and I hope she vacates the place soon. She's a really strange tenant. She doesn't seem to understand the general rules of rental and moved in with huge Modern Bedroom Furniture and other Modern Furniture in her living room and dining area. There's going to be a lot of work to be done in the place!

Good Dermatologist

My brother has been battling acne for a while and he was really relieved when his friend recommended a really good dermatologist in town. He paid him a visit and was given a host of steroid medication for his acne treatment process. It has been approximately 2 months since he first went for treatment and his skin has cleared up remarkably! Maybe I should try going to him too since I've been breaking out terribly!

Bad Debt

A friend works in a licensed collection agency and was recently telling us that commercial collection agencies everywhere are starting to face problems in collecting from their debtors. I guess it has been especially bad since the recent petrol hike and subsequent increases in food prices. Everyone has been trying to keep a careful tab on their spending but that shouldn't mean not paying your commitments!

IT Boom

I am a real technology idiot. Most times I don't understand any techno speak and am usually lost when the siblings start discussing things such as quad cables, CAT6, routers or complex computer stuff! It's a pity I never considered doing a course in Information Technology as they seem to be the ones earning the big bucks in the IT boom now!

Sunnies for You and Me

My family and I have a very bad tendency of misplacing our sunglasses. I used to own a nice pair but it mysteriously went missing after a trip and I have never been able to find it since. Perhaps we should seriously consider buying Discount Sunglasses for the family to ensure that we always have sunglasses whenever we go out which are so important for protecting our eyes and for keeping crows feet away! I found a great site online that provides replica branded sunglasses for a great discount. The sunnies are available at much cheaper price than the original ones and are just as good! They're great for someone who is planning to have a sunglasses business or who wishes to earn some extra money on the side, especially in these times of inflation and rising prices. They also make great gifts for those who wish to give their friends a useful yet stylish gift.

Playing Online

I have been seeing lots of Online Casino links available in the US. However, here it hasn’t caught on so tremendously yet. Many people I know prefer to go up to the hills for a stint at the physical casinos. Some even go after work, gamble the night away, take a short nap in the car then come back down and go to work again! However, with the recent fuel hike, perhaps some of these people might want to consider playing on an Online Casino instead of having to drive all the way up there and incur more in terms of fuel.

Most of the online casinos sites I have seen such as Gamblecraft, give great reviews on the best casinos to visit and which casinos give the biggest bonuses so just a little research will be sufficient for you to decide which is the best casino to play at. They even provide advice to the players as to which are the best sites to pick for the best games or the chances of winning the biggest bonuses! So why play at physical casinos which impose all kinds of dress codes and are expensive to get to when you can play for free right in the comfort of your own home!

Expensive Strollers

I went out for a celebration lunch the other day with my boss and some colleagues. We happened to walk past Mothercare and I saw some really beautiful strollers in the window I would have been really tempted to get if I was a mother! Unfortunately, they all came with a four figure price tag so I guess it will just remain a dream for now!

Lose Weight Naturally

Losing weight is hard to do when we live in a country that has lots of good food! I have friends who have struggled to lose their weight and some even resorted to drugs such as Phentermine. It worked quickly but I do have some concerns about the side effects diet drugs might have on your health. It is better to lose it slowly and steadily.

Hair Styling

I never used to think of hair salon jobs as a career until I came to the city and realised how much people here pay for a hair cut! I found a fantastic hairdresser that I'm regularly going to now but he is pricey as each haircut and wash costs me RM70. I do hope his prices aren't planning to go up in the near future. I have never dared to check what his prices for colouring or styling are! Who knows, in the future, we'll probably be encouraging our children to go for jobs like these which require creativity and talent as they definitely seem to be earning more than those in conventional professional jobs!

Breakfast from Home

I used to buy my breakfast from the office cafeteria and surrounding shops in the past. However, recently I've started bringing my own breakfast from home. I usually put some bread in the oven to toast while I'm getting ready and when I'm done, it's perfectly toasted. So all I need to do is to pop it into a tupperware and I'm ready to breakfast in the office. Although buying breakfast doesn't cost me too much, I guess every little bit of savings do count.

Wifing the Home

I'll be moving to my own place towards the end of the year. One of the most important things I'll need is wireless and my Wifi set up. Otherwise I can't imagine not surfing from home! I'll definitely need to consult my brother on the best router to buy. Previously he told me that the Linksys router is one of the best in the market but there may be better ones out by the end of the year. Hopefully the price would have dropped as well.

Job Market

There's lots of talk about a general worldwide recession due to the soaring oil prices and inflation. Some have advised that now isn't the best time to job hop and that you should stick to whatever job you currently have, even admin jobs. However, when I was out in the mall last weekend, I did notice several job advertisements in the restaurants and stores. So now I'm a little confused as to the condition of the job market.

Benefits Package

I'm now about 6 months into my new company. While there have been some ups and downs, one thing good about the company is their benefits package. They offer a substantial dental and optical benefits package which even cover prescription eyeglasses and sunglasses. Too bad I have done Lasik otherwise this would be one benefit I could really utilize!

Gold or Money?

I'll be getting married in less than 5 months time! I can't believe how fast time is flying by! My aunt called from overseas the other day to ask my mom if I would prefer gold jewelry or cash as a gift. Personally, I think I would prefer cash but a gold keepsake from my relatives will be nice to have. This is especially so since the gold prices have shot through the roof due to investors clamoring to get into gold investing to hedge their investments. I can't decide...perhaps I should just leave it to them. I know I'll be happy with whatever they choose to give!

Plush Home Theaters

Some people are really rich. I was reading a home magazine recently and was amazed at the grandeur of some home theaters. They are built in a truly luxurious fashion with comfortable theater chairs. Some even have theater rope cordoning off each row to give it a real theater feel! I think I would still prefer going to the movies. That way I wouldn't feel so pressured to use my home theater simply because it's there! I wonder where they get their movies from!

Expensive Travel

If I thought planning for a wedding was hard, planning for a honeymoon is even harder especially with the increasing costs of travel. I've been receiving several email updates from various tour agencies and airlines of good hotel deals but the high cost of getting there is another factor altogether! It seems like the good ol' days of affordable travel is over!

Construction Buzz

I used to work in a construction company and it was truly a steep learning curve for me. There I learnt from the engineers and quantity surveyors themselves how building costs were calculated and what Precast Concrete meant and how important it was for building a sturdy house. In recent times, we have moved from using red mortar bricks to precast concrete simply because precast concrete is a hardy material that is fast and easy to build.

Part of our projects included building some homes in Africa and our engineer originally suggested using Precast Concrete Septic Tanks for their homes as they did not have a good existing sanitization system. However, that idea had to be scrapped as the prices of cement and concrete started increasing beyond what the poor African nation could afford. Although I spent just a year in the construction company, the amount of information I picked up there was really valuable in helping me understand how my own house is built and what questions I should be asking my developer.

Renting Out

I have been terribly busy these past few weeks trying to finalise the furnishings of our new place to rent. I never knew so much trouble went into just getting a house ready from buying of new hoods and hobs to faucets for the bathrooms. Hopefully after all the trouble we have gone through, we will be able to get a good tenant.

Pashminas Available for Less

Pashmina seems to be the current trend now. It used to be very expensive and I used to long for one but they used to above the budget I was prepared to pay. However, recently there seems to be a huge number of them available in the market and for a very cheap price. I believe quite a number of them now are probably made in China which explains the cheap price. Funny...I may be wrong but I thought pashminas were a certain name given to a certain type of shawls available from Nepal! Perhaps this are now imitation pashminas!

Rock to the Music

I have a friend who is a huge music fan. He can’t bear to be away from his radio or iPod for any periods of time and perpetually seems to be plugged in! Sometimes I think these little music gadgets such as the iPod or the new HD Radio Receiver is indeed handy especially if you have a long and boring bus or train journey to take. A friend who recently moved to Singapore told me that her little digital radio is now her best friend on her long commutes to work on the bus. She’s indeed lucky to be in Singapore, land of technological gadgets. The new radio she showed me comes with iPod tagging so she can easily transfer tunes from her iPod to her little radio. Her radio is really quite nice and perhaps I should consider getting one for my office desk to help me pass some boring afternoons. Apparently the signal is really good despite it being antenna-less. Who knows I might just be able to get signals for Texas High Definition Radio stations here!

New Station

In today’s world of technology it seems that hardly anyone ever listens to the radio anymore. I hardly listen to the radio myself unless I’m commuting somewhere in my car. Even then I hardly have a favourite station and tend to just listen to whatever is playing on the radio. So needless to say, I was surprised when I was told that I won a free Polk Audio I-sonic ES2 dinky little radio in a contest I don’t remember entering! It is a nifty little digital radio that plays lots of new country music stations and whatever other station you might fancy. It’s a really sleek little thing with nice funky buttons you can use to change your station to easily. I liked its display panel which had nice crystal LED digits which gave it a very nice look overall. Radios have certainly come a really long way since those I remember during my childhood with their little dials and unclear antennas. Now, with new digital radios, you no longer need to fiddle around with antennas just to hear your favourite Florida High Definition Radio stations.

High Tech Medicating

If you're like me, you will really hate long waiting rooms in the doctor or pharmacist's office just to get a prescription. Or worse if you have a very popular doctor who has decided to take his annual vacation or jet off for a medical conference and you can't reach him to check up on a particular drug. Well, now if you have a Blackberry you can access drug information at the push of a button with the drug guide for blackberry. It is a comprehensive guide to drugs provided by Epocrates which caters to the medical industry. With a quick check, a doctor can easily check if his patient's drugs will give him side effects or whether it will clash with an existing drug he is taking. This has certainly revolutionized the world of medicine and who knows what other high-tech things we will have in the future!

This announcement was paid for by Epocrates

Fine Dining At Home

I've been wondering whether I should get a nice cutlery set now or wait till later when I'm more established and settled into my new home. I saw some really gorgeous Rubis cutlery sets the last time I was in Singapore for their sale. The set was heavily marked down and was quite cheap for the quality and quantity offered. Unfortunately, at that time, I was already laden with some other pots I had picked up and was unable to carry anything else. What a pity! Looks like I'll have to wait for my fine dining set.

Keep Age Away

A friend of mine was just telling me that her colleagues in her new office told her she looked really young for her age. She definitely doesn't look her age and I'm not sure if it's because of her small size or the fantastic top wrinkle cream she uses to keep her wrinkles at bay. She dresses very well too and is usually found in jeans and nice pretty tops which look as good on her as they do on a teenager! I hope I can be like her someday too and age gracefully!

Interesting Seeds

It never fails to amaze me how some Western countries are so open to selling drugs. I have been told that Amsterdam openly sells drugs in little shops that resemble our coffee shops. It’s a thought that is really hard to fathom for me as my country strictly outlaws drug trafficking in any form. I’m not sure if anyone here has started planting small plots of cannabis seeds for their personal consumption like how they to in Chiangmai, Thailand. In fact, there are actually sites that mail cannabis seeds directly to your home should you intend to plant them. One popular site is The Flying Dutchmen which offers cannabis seeds which can be mailed directly to your address. They have a whole host of seeds available for those who are interested in varying hybrids and grades. Best of all, if you are a foreigner, this site is now available in 7 different languages to cater to all potential customers. So, whether you’re a German looking for hanfsamen or a French looking for graine de cannabis, you’ll find them all at the Flying Dutchmen!

Sunnies Galore

Since I did my Lasik operation for my eyes, I realized that my eyes are very sensitive to light. I can’t go out for long periods of time without using sunglasses. However, as I am really absent minded, I have a really bad habit of leaving my sunglasses here and there which usually ends up them getting lost. It’s irritating and sad especially since my sunglasses cost quite a bit. Recently, however, I saw a site which sells Wholesale Replica Sunglasses for people who might be interested in running a sunglasses business. The sunglasses are fantastic replicas of branded ones and are available for a relatively low cost! Maybe I should consider buying some for myself and trying to see if I can sell the rest. I’m sure there is a market for these sort of sunglasses in the brand conscious market and the extra income I can receive from it is definitely helpful in these times of rising inflation.

Books as Gifts

Do you love reading? I do and I simply love going for books warehouse sales or seeing a good deal in bookstores. In fact, I have picked out many of birthday and Christmas gifts from such sales as I find it is best to give a book to spread the joy of reading. I also like the idea of books as presents for children instead of toys as it sparks the imagination and encourages them to read further.

Poor Eyesight

I've recently noticed that my eyesight has deteriorated since my Lasik operation. I used to have no problem seeing road signs far ahead but I notice that I do have some trouble making out the signs now. I'm not sure whether it is due to eye tiredness or dryness but I should check with the optometrist the next time I go for my eye checkup.

Kittens at the Pet Shop

I walked past a pet shop yesterday and stopped for a while to watch some little kittens at play. They were kept in a glass area with a cat tree and some balls to entertain themselves with. The poor kittens did look quite bored and some were just sitting by the side idling time. I do hope someone buys them soon and takes them away to a good home.

Inconveniences

I do miss working in a mall. When I used to be working there, everything was so convenient. Whenever I needed to buy something, all I had to do was to pop out to the mall and I could find almost anything there from clothes to shoes and even air tools from the DIY Hardware shop there. Now, I'm resigned to going there only after work which means I end up hardly going as it is already so late.

High Interest Rates

I recently read about a new savings accounts with a foreign bank here that offers really good rates. Apparently they pay relatively high interest rates for the balance kept in the account. I've been meaning to check it out as I hate the thought of seeing my money languishing away in an account with minimal interest. I really need to find some time to go to the bank to check this out.

Monthly Pains

As a woman, I really hate the time of the month whenever I get my period as it always leads to cramps and a general horrid feeling. Once I had really bad cramps and when I went to see a doctor, I was told that they were caused by progesterone hormones which go haywire during this time of the month. He could only give me some painkillers for it and it looks like I'll need to deal with it every month! Sigh, it's tough being a woman sometimes!

Nice ID

We just went to collect the keys to a new property we invested in. It was a pleasant surprise to see how nicely they have done up the bathrooms in this new property. It came with some interior design and had some really nice kitchen faucets in the kitchen as well. It is a pity we're planning to rent it out otherwise I wouldn't mind staying in such a nice place!

Furnishings in Singapore

I was in Singapore last weekend and met up with an old school friend. She had recently moved to Singapore for work and was staying in a tiny little one bedroom place. The place was small but it had really fantastic furnishings. What impressed me most was the bathroom which came with a really nice rain shower and walk in bathtub! Apparently walk in bathtubs are the latest thing in Singapore and most units tend to outfit themselves with that now. How nice! I think it'll take some time for Malaysian developers to catch up.

Designer Watches

Have you ever heard of a Gerald genta watch? I have to admit that I have not heard of this watch before. However, I recently saw a friend wearing one and was really taken in by the colours and design of this pretty watch. They have both sporty watches and dress watches for men and women and each of their watch comes with very eclectic designs and swirly colours. Some of them even have very unique hands in an eye catching design and are a real conversation piece. They come in very nice colours too which range from striking reds and blues which is something very different from the muted colours and simple designs most designer watches carry. I asked where she got it from and was told that she came across it during one of her travels in the airport. Although it is not a very popular brand here, I have heard from her that it is very popular overseas and many people are falling in love with the bold colours and designs of the watches. For a more formal look, choose from their dress watch range or if you prefer a younger and sportier look, feel free to select from their sporty range, including their gorgeous Arena new launch. I am not sure if I can find it here otherwise I’ll be really interested to know what range the Gerald Genta watches come in and whether it is within my reach!

Technology Wave

We're truly in the technology age. Sometimes I really wonder how people in the past did without things like computers, televisions or a flash drive. I still remember using huge floppy disks when I was much younger which slowly graduated to smaller and more durable floppy disks. Now, no one uses that anymore! Most times, you won't even be able to find a disk drive on a computer now. All they have are USB ports. Isn't it amazing how fast technology is changing?

Expensive Parking

I've been lucky enough to get rides out to work recently as my brother is on study leave. However, he will not be having classes tomorrow which means I'll need to find my own transport to work. Driving isn't a problem but parking is and I either have to come in very early or pay really expensive parking rates. A colleague of mine pays almost RM30 everyday just to park in the basement parking below which doesn't have any cap! I don't think I can afford that!

Franchise Business

There was once when I was really fed up with work and considering options I could run on my own without having to work for others. I was impressed with how well franchises here were doing and since we do not have a Krispy Kreme franchise, I decided to find out how much it would cost. I went to their site and was shocked to find that the rights to the brand name alone would cost more than US$1 million! I can't imagine how people set up their McDonald's franchise then! They must have a lot of money to start with!

Expensive Lunch

Yesterday I went for lunch and my lunch of rice, vegetables and 2 pieces of chicken costed me RM4.30! This is a far cry from the days when my lunch used to cost under RM4 for the same food! Sigh, it's a sure sign of rising costs. My sis tells me to bring my own food to work to save money. I might consider that once my lunch buddy goes off on her maternity leave.

Drug Help

Yesterday whilst I was driving along the highway, I noticed a big billboard advertisement for a drug rehab company. It is apparently founded and run by a former drug addict himself so I'm sure he realises the dangers the addicts are going through and their painful withdrawal stages. I think it's great that he has come forward to help addicts break free from their addiction. I would definitely recommend it to anyone who knows someone fighting a drug problem.

Playing Online

I have a group of girlfriends from my ex company. It was quite funny how we got to know each other as we are from very diverse backgrounds and of very different ages. I am the youngest among them and most of them are already married or mothers so it’s quite funny how we find things to talk about sometimes! One of my friends in that group is a real casino fan! I never knew that until she told me about how she and another friend played hooky from work to go up to Genting Highlands for half a day of gambling at the slot machines! She told me part of the fun was going up there and having the thrill of playing although she didn’t win much. Maybe I should tell her about Online Poker which is available online. With online poker she doesn’t even need to leave her house or can even play in the office if she’s bored! They’re flexible and allow payment through paypal or bank accounts and even provide great reviews of most online poker sites available online so you wouldn’t waste your time playing at a boring one. However, despite the online casino facilities available, I’m sure most people still find pleasure playing at a physical machine!

Online Gaming

It has been ages since I have written about Online Casinos. Despite the availability of all these casinos online, my friends still prefer driving up an hour to the highlands where there are the physical casinos available for them to spend their money on! Perhaps I should tell them more about the fantastic offers available on these online sites. There are so many fantastic offers given to their members which range from free bonuses to fantastic deals which are only available when you play online with them.

One thing great about Casino Newbies too is the fantastic reviews they provide on all kinds of online casino sites to help you make the right choice as to which site to play at. That way you can choose the most suitable site for you depending on whether you want an opportunity to win at a huge bonus or whether you wish to simply play for fun. They do different deals too for different days of the week so do keep a look out! And best of all, all these sites accept paypal so if you have some money languishing in there and are a gaming fan, do have a great time playing! It is so much more accessible compared to the physical casinos!

Spending on Flowers

I was reading my favourite wedding forum website just before lunch. I've picked up some very good tips and tricks from there, not to mention the exhaustive list of contacts these girls have very generously shared. One thing that surprised me though was the cost of wedding flowers. I never had any idea that flowers for a wedding could cost so much money. One girl mentioned that her church floral decorations alone cost more then RM2k! And all these money spent for something which will die and can barely last a day! Isn't it crazy? Unfortunately I don't have that kind of money to blow on these decorations so I'll need to make do best with what I have.

Lunch Bud

I just got back from lunch and am pleased because my lunch was under RM4 for spinach, chicken and rice. I had a good time chatting with my colleague. She's due to deliver soon and I'll definitely miss my lunch buddy! She'll be away for 2 months after that on her maternity leave. I wonder who I'm going to have lunch with while she's gone!

Good Present

I've got a housewarming cum baby's 1st birthday party to attend this Saturday. And I'm at a total loss at what to get the host. What does one get for a housewarming party? Personally, I find it a bit hard because decorative items are always subject to one's tastes and what you find nice, the recipient might not! Sigh, it's really tough plus I hardly have any time to go shopping to look for something nice!

Buying Gold

Recently our banks here have offered the possibility of investing in gold. Previously, people who wanted to invest in gold had no options of doing so unless they purchase gold coins to keep. However, selling that back was also difficult as there was no ready market to accept those gold coins and there may be some big commissions involved by the goldsmith shops. However, one bank has recently offered investors the opportunity to buy into gold via their gold accounts. That way they are given the full flexibility to purchase and sell these gold investments on paper through the same bank. I was quite keen when I read about it but would like to find out more before I consider investing in it. I think I should take some time off work soon to visit the bank to find out more.

Sick of Work

I have been fighting a bad ulcer for a while already but recently I've been getting headaches and feeling very tired as well. Something tells me I might be coming down with something. But oddly enough I get all these kind of symptoms only when I'm at work! Haha...maybe it just means that I'm allergic to work :p

Rising Costs

The cost of everything seems to be rising these days. The other day, I went for lunch and got charged almost RM5 for a plate of nothing but vegetables! It's crazy! Food is really expensive now, especially around my area where there aren't many choices and whatever existing shops run on a monopoly type of business. Some attribute it to the rising oil prices and others blame it on inflation. Whatever it is, at the end of the day, the people who will suffer are the normal consuers like me and you.

Used Car Market

A friend recently changed her car from a sedan to an MPV as she found that her old car wasn’t big enough to accommodate her baby’s things whenever they travelled. However, she chose not to sell her old car as the second hand market isn’t very good at the moment. The second hand market here has dropped since the prices of new cars have dropped and sometimes even old cars are no longer popular and can’t fetch a good price. It’s a pity we do not have auto recycling services here like the midwest auto recycling centre where used engines and transmissions are traded. That would save a lot of money for people who wish to change their car but are unable to afford to.

Keep Out of Sun

I’m a strong advocate of sunscreen. Since young, my mom has always conditioned us to protect ourselves from the sun as it can be really harmful to the skin. When we were taking swimming lessons, we used to slather ourselves with sunscreen before hitting the pool. Till today, the smell of sunblock is always something I associate with swimming! When buying sunblock, I tend to look for higher SPF sunblocks that don’t clog your skin. I have sensitive skin and sometimes I’m worried that the sunblocks sold on the market can be a bit bad for the skin as they are rather thick. So I was really excited when I found out there’s a new sunblock on the market called Screen, Inc. which is specially catered for teenage skin! This means that it’s light enough not to clog pores and yet strong enough to protect the skin from the being ravaged by the sun. It’s important to always protect yourself from the sun if you don’t want prematurely aged skin!

Detox Diet

I've always wondered how good it is to go on a detox diet. One of my friends recently went on a detox diet and lost tonnes of weight plus she told me she felt so much healthier. Apparently she went on a diet where she didn't eat and just filled herself up with juices and water together with some Orovo detox supplements. I'm not sure if I have the same willpower to pull through it!

Shopping in Sg Wang

There are lots of little ecclectic jewelry shops in Sg Wang Plaza. It's a really popular place for young teenagers to shop for all kinds of jewelry or fashion pieces from religious jewelry to sparkly blings. It's a very popular shopping place for them and they're often there almost every weekend! So now you know where to head when you need cheap fashion pieces.

Invest Wisely

Would you invest in stock options and derivative tools such as covered calls ? I used to study a bit of finance when I was in university and we used to learn that derivatives were one of the riskiest forms of investments due to their uncertainty. However, together with high risk comes high rewards. Many, especially though who are well read about investments, might consider taking that risk especially if market conditions are suitable and if they're prepared to make a timely exit. Personally, I still think I'm risk averse and would prefer to put my money in more stable investments.

Moving

I can't imagine having to move to my own place by the end of the year. I've gotten so used to staying in the parents' place and my stuff are all over the place. It's going to be a lot of work to refurnish and redo up a new place and put everything in order. I think I had better start looking and storing moving boxes from now so I wouldn't be caught without any when the time comes.

Showroom

I went to take a look at a new show unit near my place last weekend. They were promoting it as semi-ds in the sky due to each unit being a corner unit as the building was designed in such a way. However, when I saw the place, I didn't really like the faucets as I thought better quality faucets will be provided for a building with that price. I guess the developer forgot to think of the finer details.

Beautiful Rings

I am a bride to be who will get married in December. A marriage is a lifetime but sometimes the toll of preparing for the wedding can be a really stressful and expensive affair. The other day, I just realized that we hadn’t even started shopping for our wedding rings yet! The fiancé has a preference for diamond rings. I don’t really mind having wedding & engagement rings with diamonds. At least they will both match each other perfectly. However, the cost can be pretty high especially if I want a platinum instead of a gold ring. Personally, I find platinum a hardier material and hence, hopefully, more resistance to the daily wear and tear a wedding ring will be subjected to.

Luckily, I stumbled upon a great site that provides some of the best prices on jewelry online! It has rings for every occasion from Wedding Anniversary Rings to Eternity Rings which are perfect to celebrate your love for each other, whether you have just started dating or wish to commemorate the number of wonderful years you have been married to each other. Their wedding anniversary rings come in many different unique designs from the classic to the unconventional, depending on what your preference might be.

For those who do not really like diamonds, do not fret. There is just as wide a choice of rings which range from Sapphire Rings to Ruby Rings. If your fiancé or fiancée loves precious stones, why not get him or her an emerald ring? Choose from the best range of Emerald Rings available made with the finest emeralds set in beautiful rose or white gold.

So whether you are looking for your wedding rings or whether you are planning on surprising your loved one with a beautiful anniversary gift, do make this jewelry store your first stop and be prepared to be dazzled with the choice they have to offer.

Alternative Health Methods

Have you ever heard of the colon cleanse method for health? Apparently it has worked wonders on those who have tried it and celebrities everywhere swear by it, even the late Princess Di! It seems that the discomfort is a small price to pay for the weight loss and health benefits that come from it. I don't think I'll dare to try it though!

Exercise at Home

I was surprised to hear from my boss on Friday that he was doing quite extensive renovation to his house. Apparently, he has been trying to get more exercise into his daily life and has decided to convert a section of his house into a gym filled with all kinds of exercise equipment. That way he figures that he can get some exercise without having to go out of the house. Innovative!

Keeping Wrinkles at Bay

Women are indeed vain and as we grow older, I find myself turning more and more to products which promise anti-wrinkles and pore tightening. That way I hope to keep age at bay and to continue to remain youthful looking. So if anyone has any idea on what the best anti wrinkle cream is, please do let me know so I can try it out!

Picture Perfect

I was in Ikea the other day and I found that they have a really extensive selection of picture frames in all shapes and sizes. It is very useful for those who are looking for something to frame their precious paintings or even their little bits and bobs in nice 3-D frames. Nothing brightens up a house faster than photo and picture frames!

Starhill Gallery

I like Starhill. It never fails to instill a sense of calm and awe in me whenever I stroll down the expensive shops. Their showcase is always full of luxury items from luxury watches to designer bags which always look so tempting! Needless to say, they all come with a 5 figure price tag so it is something to just admire from afar!

Losing Weight

A friend of mine is planning for her wedding and like me, she got very worried about her weight and not being able to fit into her wedding gown. She told me about some top diet pills she found on the internet and asked if I would like to try it. I told her I wouldn't as I do not know what's inside which could be detrimental to my health. It's better to lose weight the normal way!

Dream Bathroom

The swanky pad I talked about in my previous post really had everyone's idea of a dream bathroom. The bathroom walls were knocked down to create more space and for the owner to put in a walk in tub right beside the window where they could look out to the scenery below. One thing good about staying in a condo is that one need not be afraid of Peeping Toms who might be trying to sneak a good view! That is, of course, provided there are no helicopters in the vicinity!

Swanky Pad

While our condo keys were being handed over, we were actually invited to take a peek into one of the units which was undergoing some renovation. The owner had engaged and interior designer to design his kitchen and bathroom. Needless to say, it was beautifully done, right down to the Danze faucets in the bathroom and kitchen. I was shocked though when I found out how much the renovations costed. It was almost as much as the price of the condo itself! Some people really have all the money!

Bachelor Pad

I paid a visit to a friend's newly renovated apartment recently and came away very impressed. I do not know which interior designer he engaged or how he managed to design it but he actually managed to fit in a home theater system complete with home theater seating into his small little living room! It was truly a bachelor pad with the highest state of the art entertainment and music equipment. We definitely had great fun there!

Pesky Insurance Agents

How much life insurance does one really need? I sometimes get so tired of insurance agents who keep calling me up and pushing their life insurance rates. I have heavy commitments every month as it already is and I do not really need to over burden myself further by buying more expensive life insurance policies. After all, reports have said that as long as you have no children of your own, there isn't much point in stocking up on life insurance policies as no one would really stand to gain from your policies.

Possible Business Ventures

I was discussing over lunch with a friend about various business ventures and we agreed that some of the best businesses to go into were those concerning weddings or funerals! Unfortunately, that is the case as people are less likely to bargain when it comes to these important events in their lives. In fact, some people even go to the extent of buying funeral insurance just to ensure that their next of kin will be able to give them a proper funeral. It is sad, however in these times of rising costs, sometimes there isn't really a choice.

Diet Supplements

I have recently been putting on weight which is not good at all! I have been really lazy to go to the gym as well. I know I should but where the spirit is willing, the flesh is weak and I usually end up doing something else instead. A friend who lost a lot of weight on a diet supplement recommended me Orovo which she claimed helped her get back to a slim figure just in time for her wedding. I don't think I dare do that for health reasons!

Good HR Policies

My current company is a big multinational company. It initially took me several months to get used to the way they do things within the company. They have lots of processes and procedures. However, one good thing about them is their human resource management. They have good talent management and retention programmes designed to help staff grow and be retained within the organisation.

Lost Swiss Army Knife

I used to have an authentic Swiss Army knife which I made the mistake of bringing to Phuket with me when I went there last year. Ever since that trip I have been unable to find it. I checked with J if it was accidentally left in his luggage bag and he said he hadn't seen it at all. It's really quite upsetting as it was very handy especially for travel. It had all kinds of nifty gadgets which made it the perfect traveller's tool. Now I've got to start looking for another one. Hopefully there'll be a sale soon.

Packages for Less

There has been a bit of a price war between the airlines of late. The budget airlines offer some rock bottom prices or free tickets and the national airlines scrambles to meet it. I guess the people who benefit the most are the consumers, especially if you have access to great hotel deals. Put that together with your free or heavily discounted ticket and voila, you have a wonderful holiday for a really cheap price! :) It's time to go shopping for tickets again!

Setting up Home

There are quite a number of cheap furniture shops around town. After all, Malaysia is one of the main furniture producers in the world. I have actually seen bed frames going for a really cheap price of less than RM200 for a solid wood one. However, the mattress usually costs a lot more as the cheapest mattress will usually be more than RM500 already. Having seen some of the prices available, I am starting to realise that setting up home will cost quite a bit of money!

Mother's Milk is Best

I have several friends who recently have had children. I was quite amazed that nowadays most hospitals and doctors actually recommend breastfeeding over feeding babies formula milk. It is said to be much healthier for the baby as mother's milk contains natural antibodies and vitamins that are essential for baby's health. These nutrients are somewhat different in formula milk despite the many advertisements advocating a whole host of all kinds of brain development food in formula milk. Many of my friends have chosen to feed their newborns with their own breast milk. Granted, it takes quite a lot of effort and several of them have told me of their frustrations when they initially did not have enough milk or when the baby did not know how to suck properly. Another friend who had a big baby said her baby often got frustrated because the milk flow was not fast enough for his hungry stomach. Some of them have resorted to using a baby feeding bottle instead so the flow is faster and their babies get full faster. They express their milk into the bottle then feed their babies with it. While this method has worked quite well for them, some doctors have also cautioned against this as the baby will no longer want to breastfeed due to the slower flow of milk. I guess ultimately, the choice of bottle feeding or not will be the mother's choice, with proper guidance from her doctor.

Melaka, Historical State

Have you ever been to Melaka? Melaka is a very historical state towards the south of Malaysia and is hugely popular with the tourists. Melaka was previously under the Portugese and Dutch many years ago and they have left a legacy in the form of beautiful red buildings, interesting designs on shophouses and lots of historical spots. The rich Baba and Nyonya heritage from the Straits settlers too have their own history and uniqueness in the form of beautiful homes and household items. One of the most popular streets there is Jonker Walk which is filled with antique shops and a rare coin dealer at every other shop. If you have never been to Melaka, you should definitely pay it a visit. You never know what you might find there!

Online Shopping

Before I started online shopping, I never realised what fantastic bargains some online shops had until I found a chemise on this online lingerie store at a fantastic price. It was even cheaper than any shop I have ever seen and came with a beautiful wrapper and box which was complimentary with every order. They even gave free camisoles with each order when I paid with a certain bank account! I'm a huge online shopping fan now! :)

Managing Money

I have just made my life insurance payments recently. I always tend to forget to budget for this in my monthly payment schedule and never fail to get a rude shock whenever it is time to make annual premium payments! It is a real pain especially when I am running low on funds that month! Apparently there is a system which allows you to make monthly payments instead of a lump sum annual payment but it comes with a small interest attached to it. I guess I'll have to manage my money better.

Spas to Relax

Spas are fast becoming popular now especially amongst the urban crowd. I guess as work pressures grow and people become more affluent, they start learning how to pamper themselves as a getaway from the pressures of work. There are so many spas in the city now that spa jobs are a dime a dozen. Lots of girls from small towns make their way to the city to work in spas which can give quite decent returns. However, some of these spas tend to be rather seedy. So if you are looking for a good spa or if you know someone who is looking for a spa job, be sure to only approach those that are reputable and have a decent premise. That way, you can be sure that you getting proper spa services and massages instead of "extra services"!

Bit of Lie-in

I got to sleep in a bit later this morning cos Sis sent me to work. I never thought sleeping in was such a luxury until I joined this new company. Parking is a huge problem here and in order to get a car park I usually have to arrive around 6.30am which means getting up at 6am! It is a real torture especially when I sometimes sleep quite late the night before. I wonder how long this will need to last!

Going Home

Sis will be picking me after work today. We're going home to be a busybody in the coming elections. This weekend is nomination day so we will be there with our cameras to take lots of pictures! The candidate that was finally announced was a great disappointment but oh well, we will just have to see how things turn out. Just about 2 more hours. Hurrah!

Flowers for the Wedding

I'm currently trying to plan my wedding which is scheduled to happen at year end, amidst my busy work schedule. I've been trying to draw up a budget and was really at a loss at what to budget for wedding flowers. The amounts I was told by friends who have gotten married before varied greatly, from a few thousand to just a few hundred for some. I guess a lot of it depends on which florist you use and what sort of wedding flowers you want. I am really quite at a loss as I do not really have a favourite flower I was planning to use. On top of that, my wedding will actually be held in my hometown where I am not sure what sort of flowers and arrangements they have. I think I need to do a lot more research on this!

Buying Jewelry

Apparently in the Chinese custom, the bride must be presented with at least a gold bangle during her wedding by the groom's family. So recently, I went to a goldsmith's shop with my sis and dad to take a look at the gold bangles they had. Some looked rather old fashioned but there was one that looked quite nice as it was a mixtured of yellow gold intertwined with white gold. I thought that made it look more funky and was something I could probably still wear on a daily basis. Hopefully they have some new stock coming in towards the middle of the year.

Patient Care

When my late grandmother was hospitalised, we used to visit here there almost every day. I noticed that some patients there couldn't really move and used to wonder how the nurses bathed or washed them everyday. A kind nurse later explained to me that they actually use a bath lift to help these patients bathe so they can still remain clean and fresh. I think it is quite important as these are still people with dignity even though they may be ill or immobile. So it is only right to continue to treat them with dignity.

Dream Come True

Have you ever heard of the Riviera Maya Resort? If you haven't then it is time that you did! It is a superbly luxurious resort smack on the pristine white sands of the Mexican Riviera Maya or Maya River. It has been immaculately designed to provide wonderfully luxurious accommodation for the discerning traveler, honeymooners and people who simply want to have fun but come back to a wonderful room with its personal butler! They even provide a wedding chapel for lovebirds to get married in their dream wedding. For scuba enthusiasts, they have a fantastic scuba clinic just waiting for you to gear up and take off into the deep blue sea! Even the food is fantastic as everything is made by hand by scratch so the bread you are eating was home made, right on the premises of the resort! What a dream! Hopefully I'll get a chance to visit there someday!

Wedding Costs

My grandma told me that my aunt in New Zealand called her over the Chinese New Year holidays. She has planned to come home at the end of the year for my wedding and was discussing with my grandma whether I would prefer cash as a present or a gold item such as a gold coin , gold bracelet or earrings. According to her, the things in New Zealand are very pretty and would make very good gifts. However, now with the wedding costs escalating, I think I would very much prefer cash to help us break even on our expenses. Things are all in the thousands, even for our photographers and I am getting really stressed as we have still not been able to finalise our vendors. Time seems to be running too fast and I know that if we do not finalise them soon, we will not have much time left to plan for the year end event. I hope we will be able to get a good photographer soon!

Travel Insurance

Recently I got a call from our budget airline here, Air Asia, offering me some free travel health insurance. I do not know how they got my number but it could have been from the online booking I did for my sister when she recently went to Bangkok. I am not sure how it works though as I do not know if I need to fly before I can get that insurance policy.

Furnishing A New Home

In about a year's time I will be moving out to my own place to stay from my parent's place. It is a big project to work on especially to furnish the place. Luckily I was involved in the furnishing of my parents' place so at least I have an idea of where to go to look for my LCD TV, sofa and other furnishings. However, since I have a limited budget, I will need to look harder for bargains!

Pantry Novelties

My current office has quite an interesting feature in their pantries. Each pantry is equipped with coffee makers dispensing coffee, tea and hot chocolate for the staff. I was initially quite impressed with it and used to start my day with it until I realised that it was too sweet and probably bad for me. Now I hardly drink it anymore. So much for a novelty item!

Home Theatre

I visited a friend's house over the Chinese New Year holidays and was impressed to see a nice big sound system there complete with Bose headphones! It was a room that was specially built simply to watch movies with a good theatre effect. It was really interesting and something that would have been perfect for big family gatherings or parties.

Breathtaking Hotels

A friend who recently came back from her honeymoon was full of praises for Las Vegas where she visited. She stayed in some good Vegas hotels such as Excalibur and Caeser's Palace and could help telling us over and over again about how beautiful the hotel was. Apparently, the lobbies of these hotels alone were enough to take your breath away as it was beautifully done with even changing ceilings!

Building Mansions

Our house in USJ finally got sold. The keys have been handed over and it is no longer part of our property. We were lucky in the sense that we managed to get it sold without having to incur any real estate agent fees. Our previous neighbour was interested in expanding his property and offered to buy it from us. While the transaction was done relatively easily, we were still a little sad to see it go as we know all the nice renovations we have done to the house will only be broken down by him when he starts to build his mansion.

Tankless Heaters

One thing I like about our new place is that the hot water was installed before we moved in. This avoided the problem of having to install outside hot water heater units which can look a little cumbersome. However, I recently read about a new product called tankless water heater which you can install easily into your bathroom without ugly tanks sticking out of your wall. Maybe I should find out more about it and install it into my new place when I take it back from the tenant.

Cold Weather

I used to think that living in cold weather and being able to change in and out of lots of jackets and warm volcom clothing was good fun. However, when I was staying abroad while studying and on holidays in winter abroad, I realised how troublesome it was to have to put on thick and heavy jackets before going outdoors and the terrible cold against your face which is unprotected. I guess we're never happy with what we have, whether hot or cold!

High Premiums

I've recently paid my insurance for the year and was shocked to see how high the premium was. I guess I had forgotten about it when I signed up for it a year ago. As such, I forgot to make allowances for it in my monthly budgetting and ended up having to draw from my savings to pay for it. This is the last time I'm listening to term life insurance quotes whenever any agent approaches me. I think I have enough insurance policies for now.

Payday Debt

My previous company used to sometimes offer its employees payday cash advance or payday loans especially around the festive season. Many of them used to take advantage of it and opt to have their salary reduced as payment for the advance. One of my friends used to take it although he didn’t need it as to him, it was available money at a low interest rate! Everyone has their own personal view of money and to me, I would try to stay out of debt as much as possible. So aside from my big loans such as my housing and car loans, I would try as much as possible to avoid taking further debt and try to live within my means. While that sounds good, it really isn’t as easy as it sounds especially since the cost of living in the city is increasing everyday and the prices of goods keep going up. Our inflation rate has shot through the roof and while single people like me can survive, I guess those with families may have no choice but to take a payday loan to help them bridge their expenses over the month. Whatever form of cash aid you decide to take on, it is important that you do not become overly dependent on it.

Perfornance Evaluations

I had it rather easy in my previous company as we didn't have fixed performance evaluations. However, this has changed in my new company. Being a multinational, they have very detailed employee performance evaluations carried out every year which will actually determine what your bonus payout, increment or promotion will be. I'm sitting down with my boss tomorrow to discuss what my tasks are for the year. Hopefully I'll be able to meet them at the end of the year.

Snorkel Gone

The other day, I was driving out of our condo unit when I noticed a big truck which was parked outside was missing its snorkel! I guess this is what happens when you buy lots of swanky truck accessories for your monster truck and park it outside. It's simply tempting thieves and vandals who sometimes steal these stuff simply for fun. Poor guy though! I hope the snorkel didn't cost him too much!

Credit Card Debt

I got a shock when I received my credit card statement this month. I did not realize that I had put so many transactions on it last month. One huge transaction was the deposit for the design and tailoring of my gown which I thought would only hit the following month. Now, I’m not sure how to pay it off! This is the reason why I can’t understand why some people are so happy to be offered credit cards. Sometimes, they do not realize that credit cards could actually pull them deeper into debt. This is the reason why it’s always good to compare the credit cards you’re offered on a good Online Credit Card site. That way you’ll be able to choose the best deal.

Net-less

I've never felt so net-deprived before :( Granted I can at least access my Gmail and the occasional blogs but gone are my blog-hopping days. Plus the open cubicles don't really give much privacy. Now, my surfing times are limited to what I can do at the end of the working day in the comfort of my own home. I do miss some elements in my old company.

One Month Old

I'm officially one month old in my new place. How do I like it? Well, it's very different from my old office. I no longer have the privacy of a room and we have to use shared cubicles here. Plus, parking is really difficult which results in me having to come in the wee hours of the morning at 7am simply to secure a parking lot which is in the open and apparently not very safe to walk to in the evenings or early mornings. Food is also a bit of a problem as there aren't that many choices around. It's especially obvious for me where my previous office was right in a mall with designated parking lots and dozens of food choices! Oh well...we all have to make adjustments and choices. Hopefully this was for the better.

Playing Rugby

I have never been much of a sports fan so I could never quite understand the fever that gripped my friends whenever rugby season rolled around. They would be waking up at the wee hours of the morning to watch their favourite rugby games, complete with their team’s colours and headscarves! It was actually quite an amusing scene to watch especially when their teams were winning. They also used to go online on their favourite RBS 6 nations website to track their winning teams’ statistics on the Europe premier international rugby tournament. It is a great site they used to find out more about the tournament news, results and podcasts. What they loved was also the interactive games they could play while it was not rugby season! They were really quite an amusing bunch and I found it quite funny to see how excited and passionate people could be about their favourite sport! I guess it’s to each their own!

Playing the Market

The stock market here has been on an upward climb and several people have actually encouraged us to try our hand in option trading. It’s rather interesting but being a bit of a non-risk taker, I would rather find out more about it before jumping into it with my hard earned money. This is especially since the options market here isn’t as widely developed as it is in the West where specialized programmes such as PowerOptions are even available for your ease in researching and obtaining the essential data you require to make the most money from your options. If there were such programmes here, I’m sure we will all be able to benefit greatly from options too!

Hone Your Skills

I used to work with a construction company and sometimes it was scary knowing how unqualified immigrant workers who were literally fresh off the boat were responsible for building your home! I used to wonder how these new workers will know what to do and was told that they were usually taught by a previous employee who had been on the job for some time already. In fact, my colleague told me that in some cases, the site foreman had proved to be even better at reading the plans and planning the construction compared to the trained engineers! As good as experience is, it is equally important to have proper ConstructionSkills. There are lots of avenues for obtaining the right construction skills from engineering school to even online sites such as Cskills. It provides comprehensive information on the construction sector right down to health and safety rules which are often neglected in some courses. So if you’re in the construction line, be sure to ensure your employees are well-trained to avoid unnecessary accidents.

Four Eyes

Nowadays glasses are no longer something that's really ugly. I remember how people used to call me four eyes when I first wore glasses. But today, a Great Discovery: $ 8 Zenni Optical Rx Eyeglassess provides a fantastic array of swanky glasses for every face shape and fashion style. Best of all, you can buy the glasses from them at a cheap price as they sell it straight to consumers without the middle man, hence saving customers lots of money. So remember where to head the next time you're looking for fashionable glasses!

Protect Your Home

I just received our annual invoice for our home owners insurance policy. We didn’t use to invest in home owners insurance. However, after reading up more about it and doing more research, we found that it was worthwhile investing in it as the premiums weren’t very high but it provided sufficient coverage over our home and possessions. In fact, it comes highly recommended nowadays especially as people become more affluent and own more possessions.

Effective Communication

I recently changed jobs and am just a month old in my new company. I do miss several things about my old company such as the traveling we used to do and my internet flexibility and independence. I guess the nature of our work then involved more face to face meetings and I had a tremendous amount of exposure to some of the most important people in those countries. However, here, in my present company, I notice that they tend to rely on conference calls between their various subsidiaries instead of physical meetings. This is the way the world seems to be going especially for multinational companies which have offices all over the world. From a cost point of view, it’s definitely cheaper to make calls than to fly halfway around the world just for a meeting.

As a result, it is very important to have a good and reliable telephone system such as the Talkswitch telephone system sold by Neobits.com which my company uses. It’s a marvelously compact all-in-one telephone system with all kinds of sophisticated call handling features such as VOIP. Its reception is very clear and good which makes our conference calls almost as good as physical meetings. Plus it comes with easy installation and a free PC configuration software so setting it up is really simple. It’s a great phone and I’ll recommend it to any company seeking to reduce their communication and travel costs.

Betting on Football

Summer if just a few more months away and soon it will be football season again! I remember how excited everyone was during the last World Cup. I actually went out to the local stalls to join everyone in the excitement of watching the matches till the wee hours of the morning which was definitely something new for me as I have never been a football fan. The town was also full of people who were making all kinds of bets about which football team was likely to win and in some cases, the stakes were pretty high! In our small town, the people don’t really have much access to the Internet otherwise I’m sure they’ll be really interested in the online football betting available at Bet365.com during the football season. There, they can put in their online bets, not just against the people of the town but with practically anyone and everyone who is playing in the Bet365.com online betting facilities! Perhaps it is lucky that they don’t know about this online facility! They might end up losing more money if they bet on the wrong team!