Samples Galore

I guess one of the perks of this job is that I get free samples all the time.

My first batch of samples on my 8th day at work.

First meetup with supplier.

Precious Moments namecard folder donated by Mel.

Then HR decided that we have too many samples lying around in the office and came up with the first ever "Sample Sale" for internal staff only.

Was helping Mel tag these last last Friday...

Many full-size unopened samples going at $1-$2... o_O

Baskets and baskets of them. And these are only my dept.

Mel was telling me to take whatever I wanted before we send it to HR for consolidation...

But I felt very pai seh to take so many so I only took 1 Canmake lipgloss, 1 L'Oreal lipgloss, green tea chair pad and the BreatheRight strips that she was thinking of throwing away. >_<"

But in the end, she asked me to bring home 2 new bottles of the new L'Oreal Revitalift anti-aging face cream for my mum. And also dunno wat brand bird nest. -_-"

Strongly recommend the new Bourjois Effet 3D Max lipgloss! Nice!

My 23rd Birthday (Part 2)

Boss treated me to lunch at the tim sum restaurant at Centre Stage. Wah... always walk pass want to try but never try. Now I finally got my chance.

It was my 10th day at work, so I wouldn't expect anybody to know it was my birthday. So when Angela called me to go lunch with her, I was thinking what was the occasion. You know, you don't usually lunch with bosses.

Me: So what's the occasion?
Boss: Isn't it your birthday?
Me: !! Let me go get my camera!

So there. If I hadn't asked her, I wouldn't have these photos...

As usual, she ordered A LOT. And I really mean A LOT. For all 4 of us in the T&C merchandising dept.

xiao long bao. nice!

some egg white thingy. super nice! taste like shark's fin.

spicy and sour la mian

nian gao

bamboo shoots

gui lin gao

dunno wat is this. not bad. think got a bit of tau sa inside.

woohoo! $50 Marina Square voucher.

Later on, when I returned to office, I got a few birthday wishes from colleagues in other dept. Like woah, how did they know? And also a birthday card from John Little, signed off by the HR manager and my manager, Angela. Mum says,"Wah your staff welfare not bad ah?" Hehe.

After work, Kh brought me to this French restaurant at Berjaya Hotel. Think it's somewhere near Duxton Road?? The food is not bad but wayy too pricey.

French bread with olive oil and olives! We so DID NOT eat the olives.

My very tiny piece of grilled salmon with leek and potatoes in parsley sauce.

Think it's $32++.

The salmon is so-so. But very fresh. And I must say that leek never tasted this good.

Kh's tiny piece of beef tenderloin. Fresh and juicy. Think it's $38++.

We would've liked it better if the portion was bigger. Wasn't very filling. Went to Maxwell to share a bowl of fish porridge after that. =.= But overall, good place, good ambience, good service. The waiters are very knowledgeable. They definitely know their wine, their beef, and their Frenchy ingredients. But this is definitely not for the budget-conscious.

Dinner at Dragon Phoenix restaurant the following weekend with my family.

The food is okay. Certain dishes quite nice. But the service needs to be improved not because they serve too slow, but because they served TOO FAST (hence I did not manage to take photos). Hmm.. felt like we were being chased away. $168++ for a table of 6.

Got another $150 Capitaland shopping vouchers from mum and sisters. Woah, $200 of vouchers with my soon-to-be-arrived Robinsons Group staff card? Shopping frenzy!

Just a random photo of Rachel... hehe.

And she's wearing the "Too Cool For School" overall I bought for her. Hehe. Ain't she adorable?

My 23rd Birthday

For 1st July 2009...

I used to always say I wished I was 23. Because when you're 23, you get to enjoy the best of both worlds-working and studying. You'll be old enough to make your own decisions, yet young enough so that you don't need to worry about family responsibilities. Now that I'm finally 23, I'm thinking that I'm getting too old. My manager, Angela says,"You've no right to say that!" Lol.. hehe.

Now for my birthday surprise... hehe... MC was so overwhelmed by the birthday surprise we planned for her that she felt obligated to do the same for me.

First it was dinner at Marche.

Then it was a 5-stage game where I had to complete the tasks in each stage to obtain photos that will spell out a message.

1st stage was the Pepsi game with Jf. =.= ... She may be small but DO NOT underestimate her thumb. Took me awhile there.

2nd stage was a series of 4 photos, each containing an object. I had to match the object with the owner. Quite tricky. Only got it on 2nd try. >_<"

3rd stage was sort of like indian poker. I had to guess an object/place/food/person that is associated with each person in our group with the help of 20 yes/no questions. Only managed to guess 3/5. Received Super Pokes for the failed questions as penalty. Ouch.

4th stage was a crossword puzzle consisting of general and personal questions.

• Place where we first met Clarence... Check.
• Jf's fave disney movie... Check.
• Mc's fave thing to eat every morning... Some disputes on this. Some say tau sa bao, some say it's not same, should be tau sa bun. @_@
• Michael ______ Jackson... ??? How should I know?

KH: It's Joseph! You never read newspapers ah!
Me: I don't know what newspapers you read but we obviously read DIFFERENT newspapers!

5th stage was a tic-tac-toe game where each box consists of questions which I have to answer. Correct answers get a O. Incorrect answers get an X. Must get 2 three-in-a-rows to win. I love this game the most. Haha. Super tricky questions! You guys almost got me there. Hah.

It was a really pleasant surprise to see Amy's photo too. Thanks babe. That meant a lot. You were so far away but your presence was deeply felt. =)

I love this "Hallmark" card. lol. Every time I read it I will smile and laugh to myself. Hee. Really sweet of you guys. This birthday surprise means so much more to me than expensive presents.

I will always cherish this memory forever. =)

A weekend of activities

This was on 27th June '09.

Met up with Jack before the Sound crew/MTM retreat at Labrador Park for free private coaching. Hehe. He let me try his Canon 5D Mark II, ultrasonic prime lenses, 580EX I external flash and magnifying lenses.

Hehe... he was my model for the day.

Went to Starbucks after that for indoor shoots as it was starting to rain very heavily.

Sound/MTM retreat at SAFRA Mt Faber

Door gift as prepared by Esther =)

Buffet lunch at the restaurant owned by Esther's friend. Really yummy food. Loved the black pepper beef and rendang chicken. Heh.

Wai Meng getting advice from Jack

Coincidentally, many of us are photography enthusiasists. Kh was like,"Hmph. Also dunno if this is sound retreat or photography outing." LOL.

Bowling after that

Kh gave me my birthday present part 2 early cuz I couldn't wait. Canon 50mm F1.8 II fixed lens. Hehe. Another strike off my wishlist!

Random shots using my 50mm F1.8 lens...

Coco is usually not allowed in the room but she kept knocking on the door so we let her in. ^_^

Puerto Rico once more! Board game marathon with J&J.

Kh's Bdae

This was more than 3 weeks ago... >_<"

When to Xi Yan with his family after JBP outing, and North Border on his actual day-19th June. =)

Xi Yan near Duxton Road

Food: 8.5/10

Service: 8.5/10

Ambience: 8/10 (the place is nice and quiet, decorated with many art pieces, but the temperature is too warm for comfort.)

Price: 7/10 ($55/person for this 7 course set meal!)

Posh private dining restaurant.

Only got 6 tables and they only take in reservations. No walk-in.

The menu even has your name printed on it.

don't underestimate this plain looking ginseng red date and chicken soup

green house tomatoes in wasabi sesame sauce

picked from the finest giant japanese tomatoes- also the chef's speciality. My favourite dish in the menu. yum!

seared prime ribeye with sichuan sauce

pregnant woman's stir fried rice

pork & crab roe lion's head in consomme

stir fried spinach with fresh chinese yam

chef's tofu ice cream on pandan rice with coconut cream

North Border at Rochester Park
Food: 7/10
Service: 6.5/10
Ambience: 6/10 (what could have been nice ambience is ruined by the poor lightning-only 1 candle to light our table =.= -and mosquitoes)
Price: 6.5/10 (Approx $40/main course after ++. Not exactly what I'm willing to pay for something of this quality.)

Complementary Tortilla Chips w/ Salsa

at least this is fresh from the oven

Babyback pork ribs

not bad... but i won't say it's fantastic. probably just better than Cafe Cartel's St Louis ribs

Jumbo prawns and tenderloin in wild mushroom sauce

Jumbo prawns were not so jumbo after all. But the sauce on it was nice. Kh was NOT happy that the waiter didn't bother to ask how he likes his beef to be done.

shirley temple

apple crumble in vanilla ice cream

Sadly, the vanilla ice cream tastes like cheapo Cremo's.