Christmas Party on base

On Friday the Operations Support Squadron (OSS) on base organised a Christmas Party. I wasn't very keen on attending initially because I didn't bring any heels or clutches or accessories for such occasions - though I did brought a dress in case I needed to wear one. But after some consideration I decided to go because this is probably one of the most fun activities here! So I ordered a pair of nine west black suede heels online immediately.

There was a toys donation drive so Ah C went to buy some toys. Ah C said he was so happy picking out the toys because he could visualise how happy the kids would be when they receive them. I am so grateful this is the kind of guy I married. On a side note, we get an additional raffle ticket (i.e. lucky draw) for each toy we bring in. Although we didn't win anything, it was still good giving things to those less fortunate. ( Although I really wanted that spa session! haha)

Picture of me with the toys! (actually I just wanted to post a picture of me dressed up cos I haven't dressed up since I came here! People here wear t-shirts and long sleeve Ts with jeans on a daily basis and I am totally comfortable with that..)

A picture in our house before we set off.
Dinner table setting at the Christmas party. Everything was put up by the key spouses (wives of the commanders, Lt colonel etc).. this is why I said in Singapore, we are so used to paying others to to do things, but I learnt that there are plenty of things which we could do ourselves!

Capt Tay's seat :)

Main course was so-so. But dessert was commendable.

Americans are very enthusiastic when it comes to games. There was a musical chair cum scavenger hunt, karaoke competition and a dance-off, and they were really entertaining.
Check out one of the contestants for the dance-off (not professionals btw).

There was also a backdrop for photo taking...
A picture of two of the guys from Ah C's class and their wives.
The party was fun. But I do wish more that I was in Singapore this December holiday. Because I am missing Christmas parties with my NJ girls and S club. I am also missing the birthdays of Ning, Yingni, Lisa and Huimin. I really miss my girls!

Thanksgiving weekend 2011

So I have been talking about looking forward to Thanksgiving break and I can say is that it was nothing less than expected.

Prior to skiing I have watched beginner skiing videos on youtube because I didn't want to waste money on lessons. It looked pretty easy but it actually was kind of difficult, especially for someone like me who is scared of speed and slopes - I don't know why I am not afraid of rollercoasters (I was before I worked at Cedarpoint) - but when I am the one in control of a speedy situation, it scares me. So the three thours before lunch, I was maintaining the pizza (skis are in a inverted v-shape so as to reduce speed) and my hamstrings and thighs were aching like mad (imagine maintaining a squat for most of the time).

We had lunch at one of the restaurants on the mountains and the only way down was to ski down a partially blue (intermediate) slope or take the lift down, We went with a group of boys who mostly skiied for the first time but they were game to try it. And of cos it was no problem for another couple who were snowboarding for at least the third time. Initially I felt a little pressured to go with them though I know I wasn't ready for it - I still haven't learned to stop properly yet! I guessed Tay C saw the uncertainty in my eyes (even though I said I could go) and reassured me that its ok not to go if I wasn't ready. So after some consideration, haha I decided to be a loser and take the ski lift down. I wished I was more daring but then I know if I were given a second chance I would still take the lift down. I guess in my opinion, sports is not just about having done something, but about doing something well through the right techniques, and I knew I didn't have the right techniques yet. I wouldn't want to get myself injured because I was rushing through something new I have just learned. And it is really all about having fun and not getting stressed over what I dare not do, right? :) I really like having Tay C around when I do all this scary activities because he always manage to assure me that I will be safe and that I will have a good time. He is always my best instructor :)

So after lunch we went back to the beginner slopes and I practiced my accelerating, slowing down, moving right and left. I must say it was a decent accomplishment that afternoon. I wasn't afraid of going fast (which means I do less "pizza" and hence less aching hamstrings and thighs) and could gradually slow down and stop at my desired position. But I will need to work on the cutting stop (where you stop abruptly and quickly by turning both skiis perpendicular to the slopes) before I could go on any blue slopes. All in all, it wasn't too bad for a day!

These are the boys who came for the trip. They are actually in different phases training in different places currently but have in one point or another been in Laughlin AFB for their UPT course. I think its great they are able to get together on this trip and exchange their flying experiences though really, sometimes I dread that all they talk about is flying -_-

Ah C was studying for 4 years in USAFA and hence spent a great deal of time in Colorado Springs and met a lot of great people. So aside from skiing, I think what both of us were even more happy about was to be able to meet these people again.

One of the most memorable places was Lemongrass Bistro, where I have eaten the best Vietnamese food to date. In ah C's USAFA days, he seldom left the academy because he was studying hard and at the same time saving money. The only times he was out were usually the time he goes to Lemongrass Bistro partly because he loved the food, and mostly because he enjoyed talking to the restaurant owner Dang. Their relationship was not of owner and patron, but more of a friendship built up over the years. This is also why when Dang insisted on treating on to this meal, we didn't try too hard to reject it, cos we wanted to acknowledged this friendship. Dang kept saying that this was very special to him and he was really happy we came back to visit him and I know Ah C felt the same way when he told me he wished we didn't go skiing and spent more time visiting instead. Though this is only my third time here, I felt really touched by everything that was going on. There isn't much words to describe the bond that they have, you just feel it. When they hugged goodbye and I could almost see it coming, that they will both tear. I know its silly but I couldn't help but teared too. It seems that Dang has had some tough time dealing with his health lately. Its sad when you see people dear to you, whether family or friends, getting weaker with age and acknowledging the fact that they will leave you one day. I wish we will have more chances to visit before we leave next July.


After Lemongrass, we headed to visit the Matheson family, who were Ah C's sponsors while he was studying at the Academy. Being away from family, the Mathesons played important roles in making him feel at home as much as possible. Apart from Lemongrass, he spent most of his time out of the Academy at the Mathesons' home. They are one of the nicest people you will ever meet in your life, and even though they are well to do and have a really big house, they are humble and sensitive and sincere - a family you can pick up many good values from. An unfortunate incident happened to one of their family members just six months back and I was kind of worried how they were coping. But when I saw them on Saturday and see that they are really optimistic and accepting it as another regular part of life, I was in part relieved and at the same time proud of the brave girl. Usually people who you have known for a long time are the ones who are closest to you. But occasionally you meet those who truly impact your life, and the Mathesons are a good example.

Colorado springs - I really wish we would be back again. In part because its such a beautiful place, but mainly because it is a place which holds many beautiful memories for us.

Life is unpredictable, but without plans, it is less

Setting up a cafe has always been my dream. When I was in Junior College, the idea of giving up a University degree and going to culinary school has crossed my life. I love baking and I love cooking, and it is always so satisfying when someone compliments the things I make. But I chose to take an accountancy degree in NTU in the end.

I guess I have always knew since then it wasn't a dream that could be easily attained. Not that I do not have enough passion for it, or that I am giving up on my dream. But there are simply too much at stake - I have more than myself to think of.

Things would have been easier if I came from a more well-to-do family. My parents are not very educated. My mum worked in the F&B industry all her life and became a housewife only 6 years back because my maternal grandma had a stroke and she had to take care of her since. My dad has done many jobs, of these I knew, he worked as a casino dealer, a fruit vendor, a bus driver and now a taxi driver. And he's getting old - he's 62 this year. Before I started work, the furthest any of my parents ever went to was probably Hong Kong - and that was only once, for my mum. Since I started work, I always try to help out financially on household purchases on top of monthly allowance. I pay the bills, I pay for new furniture. This year in March, I paid for their tour packages to Taiwan and Ah C was nice to give them some money for shopping as well. I was really glad that I was able to do these for them and I want to continue doing so.

Ah C can surely support me right now and takes good care of me. But because his family is not well-to-do either, he needs to help out with his family too. And it will be too much on him to take care of my family too if I am not working. I want to be able to give my parents a more comfortable life than they ever have had.

People tell me how envious they are of my life now, not having to work, living in a foreign country and enjoying myself. As much as I am glad that we got the approval for me to move here with Ah C and spend time with him after so many years living apart, sometimes I wish I was back home working and making money. I said this to another pilot trainee's girlfriend I met a few days back and she replied that "she feels life is more than that" - she is staying with her pilot trainee boyfriend in the US now too, I think she didn't really understand what I meant, that for some people, there are just more things they need to consider, and that some people are just luckier.

And as much as I don't think I want to do audit again, I really just might do that, as least for the next few years before I have kids. Because all I really want to do the next few years is to earn and save as much money as possible, bring my parents on more trips before they get older and subsequently dedicate all my time I have to my family when we we have kids. Ahhh.. in the end I am going to do it again.. at least I have this one year break as consolation, right? Cafe oh cafe, you just have to wait.

Well, to me, I am not giving up on anything, its just that at different points of life, there are different things to be done. I don't think this is procrastination, just that when you have less privileges and more stakes in life than others, you need more time than them to achieve some things. True that life is unexpected, but don't we always do things expecting it to turn out some way?

Life in Del Rio

I know it seems like all I ever do here is cooking. That is true to a certain extent - sometimes to cook something more elaborate, I can take up to half an afternoon eg. I made Nasi Lemak (first attempt) for four of us last Saturday and it took me like 5 hours - preparing the marinate, marinating the chicken, preparing the ingredients and making the sambal belacan (which failed so I used the commerical bottle of prepared belacan in the end), making the ikan bilis and peanuts, frying the egg omelette and cooking the coconut rice. But other than cooking, I have been keeping myself pretty occupied with other things I enjoy doing as well.

People here drive everywhere they go, because most of them can drive and have their own car. Well, both doesn't apply to me (since Ah C drives the car to work) so I walk to wherever I need on base, which are mainly the commissary (minimart) and fitness center. They are really not that far, about the distance from my home to the train station back in Singapore.

The walk home from the fitness center. Its a leisurely walk but becomes not so enjoyable when the weather turns cranky to 9 degrees and u have too cold a breeze blowing in your face.

This is my home from outside! To the left is the car pouch (or they call it garage here).


Last week we made a trip to Austin and went shopping at the Ikea. We bought a couple of things to "decorate" (or rather, just to make it less empty) our home a bit.

Ah C had some of his F16s photos pasted on the wall and I decided to beautify them a little with these colourful frames we got. Did you note the colour matching? It was unintentional because we didn't really know what pictures we wanted to put in the frames when we bought them. I am glad the frames served their purpose :)

We also bought this floor lamp for $20 (bulbs another $8) to give our living room a softer feel..although the effect it has on the camera doesn't seem so!

We go bowling about once every 1-2 weeks here. I really like the bowling facilities here cos they are very well-maintained. Sunday is our favourite day to bowl cos its family day and a game costs only a dollar each!

Fri and Sat nights are great for bowling too because there is cosmic bowling - glow-in-the-dark bowling with a dance club atmosphere with some wacky music - very fun too! Just half an hour drive from the air base is the huge and scenic Amistad Lake where we can go fishing, windsurfing and wakeboarding etc. We have been there once for a picnic but I would really want to go fishing or wakeboarding one day. But its just too cold for it now.


Other than myself time n couple time, I have been hanging out with some of the other spouses here too, and more frequently with those whose husbands are in the same class at Ah C. We get together for some fun activities once in a while. Among these, we had crafts night whereby we each were supposed to bring our own project to work on. I didn't bring any craft because the only "craft" I know is cooking and baking, so I brought a tray of cupcakes :| But these girls are so amazing.. I realised that they do alot of DIY furnishings, decorations and ornaments for their homes. That really inspired me and make me want to do up my house when its ready in early 2014! Just last week, as the guys were having a night week, we gathered at one of the girl's houses to make pizza. So one of the girls prepared the pizza dough and each of us just brought our favourite pizza topping. It was fun just talking about lives and learning about each other!

The left one is mine.. not very pretty but delicious!
I would really like to talk more about each of the amazing ladies who I meet here but I guess I will save it for another post. With pictures too i hope :)

Thanksgiving break

Because its Thanksgiving break this Thursday and its official break for everyone here from Thursday to Sunday, we will be heading to Colorado for a short ski trip with another 4 Singapore trainees who are here. It is the first time I am skiing and I am real excited! We booked this relatively new holiday house up on Breckenridge to accommodate all 6 of us and it looks like a really nice place. Hope the actual place is as nice as the pictures on its website..



And I am also very excited to be going back to Lemongrass Bistro in Colorado Springs for the best Vietnamese food I have ever had in my life!! (http://bakeandbrew.blogspot.com/2011/07/vietnamese-food.html)

World's top 50 restaurants 2011

http://www.theworlds50best.com/awards/1-50-winners

Setting foot on Europe, FINALLY!

I am going to SPAIN!!!


But as you can see, Spain is huge and we will only be covering two regions over the 7-day trip - Basque Country in the North (mainly city of San Sebastian) and Catalonia in the Northeast (mainly city of Barcelona).

Basque (Pai Vasco in Spanish) and Catalonia are two of the autonomous communities in Spain, which is the way Spain is politically divided. The autonomous communities were created by integrating provinces with common historical, cultural and economical traits, hence one is would expect varying experiences when visiting different parts of Spain.

San Sebastian is renown for its food and has a high concentration of Michelin star restaurants. We are lucky to secure a reservation at Arzak, a three-michelin star restaurant which I got to learn about on American celebrity chef Anthony Bourdain's tv program No Reservations. I am so excited!!!

Striking a Balance

i just chatted to my ex-PwC manager on msn and he told me to not make a decision to leave audit so soon as he thinks I am a capable worker. That I should remember that I am an individual apart from being someone's wife, and to consider if this is the most i can do. It kind of got me thinking. Will I be able to strike a balance working on a job i can relate to, yet be a supportive and understanding wife and a good mum (in the future) at the same time?

Happy Birthday Mum

Today I am missing my family badly. Today is my mum's birthday.. and its the first time I am not celebrating her birthday with her. And to make things worse, my bro and dad is not with her today too - My bro is working in Guangzhou, China currently and my Dad is traveling with his brother in China right now.

I miss you mum, Happy Birthday.

Getting out of the Rat Race

This week I have been feeling kind of lethargic and for two days, I actually took 2-hour nap in the afternoon despite have 8 to 9 hours of deep, undisturbed sleep at night. Also, I have been getting these neck/shoulder aches, which I always had when I was still working probably due to the long hours at the computer.

So yesterday I went for the yoga class with Anna whose husband is also in the same Class as Ah C. I have done yoga before when I had gym membership with California Fitness and True Fitness but yesterday's session was somehow the most relaxing one I ever had. They concentrated on breathing techniques and simple stretching moves which can be easily mastered by anyone with a few sessions while the yoga lessons which I had in Singapore tended to have some rather challenging moves which I felt can be too tough for beginners. I feel that yoga was never meant to help lose weight but to improve our flexibility, relax our muscles and joints (especially for people who exercise a lot but don't stretch enough) and helps improve our respiratory system. So I decided that I shall go for all yoga lessons, which is held three times a week :)

This aside, I feel very fortunate and lucky to be given this chance to take time off work, to reflect on my life for the last four years. I worked hard for the three years in the big four accounting firm, though not the hardest among my peers, sometimes even on weekends, having little time for personal hobbies and activities. Some nights I wake up trying to recall what I had to accomplish the next day and how much of my work was still outstanding. And I remembered during a inter-CPA futsal competition, I had to asked to be sub out during a game because I couldn't keep up with the game due to my fitness. That was the first time in my life I couldn't keep up with a game. Having been a very sporty person all my life, I felt like shit. Its not just about the looks, but most importantly, its about my health. We keep our bodies fit so that we can defend our bodies from sickness and diseases. And diseases doesn't just come with fat people. I have seen some peers who have lost weight I can tell you its not always healthy. The lack of muscle mass eventually makes injuries easier, weakens immunity system and makes you tire out easier as you age.

After I switched company (still working as an auditor), the better working hours meant I had more time to myself - time to read, to meet up with friends after work etc. But still I felt tired and fatigued. I still suffered from insomnia. Then I realise it was the job - the people and things that I had to dealt with on the job. I can tell you auditing is one of the most stressful job in the world. Not the toughest, but one of the most stressful. And its worse if you are not deriving any job satisfaction from it. And job satisfaction is not something "you get by with", but that you know you are working for a cause which you agree with or supports.

I see friends and peers consistently complaining about their job on facebook. Many end their week downing alcohol and breathing second-hand smoke in bars and clubs - need I mention the adverse effect alcohol has on our liver and the increased likelihood of cancer? Many of us probably does not realise the impact our current lifestyle have on us in the future - cos everyone is just doing the same thing. Just like everyone is in the rat race - but what are we exactly after?

I am glad to be given this one year time-off. Not because I can slack and do nothing. Not working does not equate to doing nothing (and come to think of it, working does not equate to something). But because I can now start being healthy again - I now exercise 4-5 times a week. I haven't drank alcohol for three months partly because i am on medication but mostly because I don't feel the need to drink to take my mind off something. I sleep 8-9 hours a day. I read so as to know more. I cook because its my interest and its what I like to do and also cos cooking home is healthier and cheaper than eating out.

Honestly I have no idea what I am going to do when I am back. But I know what I don't want to do - I don't want to be auditor ever again. If Ah C gets posted overseas for F16 training, I will follow. If he stays in Singapore, thats when i need to think. The "worst" scenario is that I will remain unemployed but we figured that we would still be able to live comfortably on Ah C's pay by our standards. Afterall, who's to determine what's enough?

I know not everyone has this chance, but if you could and you need to, take a break from work and figure out what you really want in life. Get out of the rat race, even just for a while. Because before you know it, you will be doing this for the rest of your life.

Bibimbap with bulgogi chicken

I realised that I haven't been eating much vege lately, partly because I only know how to cook vege with oyster sauce and I can't eat that all the time, and even back in sg, other than vege in oyster sauce, my other source of vege was mainly yong tau foo, which I can't really make due to the lack of fresh fish here.

I always thought bibimbap is one of the healthier korean food options due to the amount of vegetables that goes into it - carrots, beansprouts, cucumbers, spinach etc so I decided to make bibimbap with the gochujang (hot pepper bean paste) I bought from the korean market the other day!

So first, marinate the chicken meat (I use chicken thigh) in
1 tbsp of gochujang
1 tbsp of soy sauce
1 tbsp of sesame oil
1 tbsp of chinese cooking wine
3 cloves garlic
1 quarter white onion
1 tbsp sugar
for 1-3hours.

Different recipes you find online will ask for different ingredients (spring onions, honey, red pepper flakes etc) but I just made do with what I have. It still turned out great!

Gochujang

In the meantime, cut the vegetables (carrot, beansprouts -which is freaking expensive here, cucumber and green cabbage) into thin strips..


Once the meat is done with the marination process, heat oil in frying pan and stir fry the marinated chicken till fully cooked.


Now time to arrange all the items on the plate! Scoop a portion of rice into the centre of the plate and arrange the cut vegetables and cooked chicken around the rice.Top off the chicken with a sprinkle of toasted white sesame seeds. Finish up the masterpiece with a fried egg on top of the rice!


Serve with extra gochujang and sesame oil if desired. Its yums! :)

New Orleans

New Orleans is located in the South of USA, in the state of Louisiana, and is often referred to as the "most unique" city in America.

It is well known for

• its distinct French Creole architecture
  
• its cross cultural and multilingual heritage
• its cuisine (creole and cajun cuisine)
  
• music, particularly as the birthplace of jazz and
  
• its annual celebrations and festivals, most notably Mardi Gras (French for "Fat Tuesday", referring to the practice of the last night of eating richer, fatty foods before the ritual fasting of the Lenten season, which begins on Ash Wednesday. Popular practices include wearing masks and costumes, overturning social conventions, dancing, sports competitions, parades, etc.

Taking the St Charles Streetcar and moving along the Garden District and Uptown area, we saw beautiful and large mansions of the wealthy population in New Orleans. And as Halloween is round the corner, several of the houses had some really interesting and spooky decorations!




It is not uncommon to see musicians and dancers performing on the streets.

The days that we were there, there were these lighted parade trucks that were moving around every evening, and the people on it (appears to me like they are tourists) would throw strings and strings of colourful beads to passerbys. It was interesting but I still have no idea what it was all about.


Cafe Du Monde is an extremely popular and CROWDED coffeeshop and is opened 24/7 (except for Christmas day). It has a very limited menu - which is not a deterrent factor for people to stop by, because everyone is here only for their famous beignets (french donuts) and cafe au lait.


I kind of thought the texture tested like our butterfly fritters in Singapore, just with additional confectioner's sugar on top - a close "taste of home".

Louisiana Creole cuisine is a style of cooking originating in Louisiana which blends French, Spanish, Portuguese, Italian, Greek, Asian Indian, Native American and African influences, as well as general Southern Cuisine.

Fried oyster and shrimp po-boy
traditional submarine sandwich from Louisiana. Consists of meat, usually roast, or seafood, usually fried, served on baguette-like New Orleans French bread, known for its crisp crust yet fluffy center.


Crawfish etouffee
on base of roux (cooked mixture of wheat flour and fat as thickening agent) dark brown in colour seasoned with cayenne pepper, paprika, white pepper, garlic, parsley, salt and others. Served over rice.


To the wetlands for a swamp tour of American alligators!


Raccoon vs Alligator (over marshmallows)

Alligator feeding - not for the faint-hearted



A glance at the Audubon Insectarium and Audubon Zoo

At Audubon Zoo, the animals seem particularly lazy on the day of our visit..






Except this young orang utan He's so cute! Holding a rubber tub with his feet and swinging around!
We also visited the World War II Musuem and enjoyed the 3 hours there. I love history and always prefer a history museum to art museum. Art requires the skills or mentality to be able to appreciate it, while History is something that easily relates to everyone.


Amidst the flourishing tourism, I can hardly imagine New Orleans as the city which was worst-hit by Hurricane Katrina in Aug 2005. 80% of the city was flooded and and it is still on its recovery to pre-Katrina days.