Happy New Year of the PIGGY!!

Oink Oink!!! Squeal....Snort...Grunt...Oink!

Hahaha...it has been a tired few weeks for me for various reasons, all linked to the Lunar New Year. I'm too tired to elaborate on them, and I find that i'll end up complaining. Just to give you an idea. My sleep time is 4-5am on the average the past few days. =)

But hey! It's the PIGGY new year! and I wanna share this funny clip with you, my friend!

Click on this link, then click again on the new screen to play the video. (your media player will open to play the clip. No worries on download time, it's less than a minute!)

http://video.yahoo.com/video/play?vid=10f491c3e36f608d710bfde6ed3ecac1.95017248f34a1febad66b361ea290198

ENJOY!!!!

Spirit and in Truth

In the midst of cellgroup worship this week, i was led to this passage.

21Jesus declared, "Believe me, woman, a time is coming when you will worship the Father neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem. 22You Samaritans worship what you do not know; we worship what we do know, for salvation is from the Jews. 23Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks. ~ John 4: 21-23

True worshippers...Hmm...it was beyond the Spirit and in Truth...

vs 22 stood out to me,...hmm...we can know who we worship but that doesn't mean we are true worshippers! Yupz...just because we know Jesus, we can't call ourselves true worshippers in comparison with other religions that worship too.

vs23 'Yet a time is coming and has now come'....what a declaration! What authority! It's like declaring a new era! How many can declare that a time "has now come", in such confidence that it will indeed come to pass! -- i had a new appreciation for God's omni-presence over Time and seasons.

Daddy seeks true worshippers...Hmm, worship in Spirit and in Truth...in truth...In TRUTH...IN TRUTH!

What does in truth mean to you? Whose truth? His truth in the word? Your truthfulness to Him? Or what we understand in the phrase: " The truth will set you free?"...or truthfulness to yourself? =)...or do you have a new revelation on truth to share? =P

Truthfulness is a virtue. It dawned upon me that these days we're surrounded by half-truths, till we have fogotten what real truth is. Perhaps half-truths have become acceptable without us realising it....How many of us have hidden how we felt when asked about something?

Hmm...that leads me to another revelation...usually, dont' we hide the truth when we are afraid? Fearful?...of hurt and backlash? consequences....over the years, half-truths may have become a form of self protection without us realising it. I'm not talking about blatant lying...the the grey areas we can't face up to...Hmm...

Maybe that's why He's so wonderful...He invites us to come to him without fear...and.....be....truthful...=)

It's out! Yay!

Meet the Samsung Z720 Ultra Edition Slider (13.8)! It's out!

I was close to getting the first Ultra Slim slider 12.9 in black sometime end of December when i got wind of a Slim SILVER SLIDER coming out! Yippee!! I've always preferred the silver versions of Samsung phones. So far all my phones i've bought from them are either silver or white.

Surfing online, I spotted it's announced arrival...Projected launch was in Feb 2007! That was near! i could wait! Hee...only concernw as that it was a 3G/ HSDPA phone, with one of the latest technologies...Hmm...doesn't that mean it would likely be more expensive? *Apprehension*

Just as a piece of trivia I've learned in my surfing, the Silver version is only released in Singapore/ region! This has been out in the US, Europe and other countries, but so far they have released it in black colour. According to an IT news article, the Samsung spokesperson said that they are going for silver this time round, to differentiate from the black similar version! -- Whatever! As long as it benefits me! WAHAHAHA...=P

Anyway, Singtel announced it's price online first on it's web shop: S$568 with a 2 year plan with Free 512MB mini SD card...

Hmm...I've been saving for it also the past few months amidst the building fund since my phone died in November. The previous black slider was $468 when it first came out. How ah?...Dilemma,..i mean the technology in this one, HSDPA/ Video calls, I'm likely not to use as much or at all...But it's the colour i want! (don't suggest using silver pen to colour! *GRRRR*)...and it looks SO SO GOOOODD!!!

I went to the Singtel shop at Parkway today in hopes to see the actual product! =( thy only had a coloured photo...*growl*...but i grabbed the brochure!

Hahaha...I have a feeling I'll get it...SSSSOOOONNNNNN....need some time to settle other matters regarding my old phone!

Aiyah...have to share lah...can't contain!

Haiya...Couldn't share in cg yesterday. There were too many testimonies (Praise God!) in our cg, so I was skipped, so i put it at the back of my mind must share in the next cgm!

But...I can't wait leh! So i must share here! So if any of my cg members read this earlier, then good for them! Heehee...=)

*Ahem*...basically i want to thank Him for blessing me. Where shall i start?

1) I knew i was going to have a WHOLE WEEK OFF in Chinese New Year about a month ago. It wasn't really confirmed then. But I have a good feeling that it will be coming to pass! That means I don't' even need to take leave or anything! Office is just closed! Yay! (even though i have many things to rush for early March, and this 3 days extra break is not that good in this circumstance...BUT I will still thank Him for this! Hee...) --come on! It's extra rest days!!

2) My boss gave me an increment in salary this year. We had discussed it before over the phone. But we couldn't' remember the exact amount, when we brought it up again recently. (Because my increment takes effect from Feb pay). I could only remember it was within a certain range. So i e-mailed him and told him I wasn't too sure...

God is good! So is my boss! HAHAHA...He picked the highest amount of the range! Hee...

PLUS-- I'm getting an extra 4 days of annual leave! Praise the Lord!

Anatomy of a Fish...

Isn't this Fish cute??? Ironically it's made from the Fish and Chips at Long John Silver's just this past Monday! Creatively made by bro-in -christ Kaishen...LOL...

If you can't picture it, it's a smiley fish with two vertical eyes. The head is on the left and the fries on the right side make up the bones.

I did highlight to the rest that it looked like Shen, I mean after his recent hair colour (quite similar to the golden brown crisp) and shark style of gelling his hair..hahaha..Hey, at least I say he's SMILEY ok...=P

This is called playing with your food..haha..I couldn't bear to eat it. But soon as I demonstrated in front of Anna, after emphasizing it's resemblance to our dear bro,...that WE START eating by POKING OUT the LEFT EYEBALL with the white fork VICIOUSLY WITHOUT MERCY!!!!!...WAHAHAHHA...

OOOOoooowwWWWW!!!!

God vs. Science

My friend Angela was reading this article when I msn-ed her. So i ended up reading it too! Persevere till at least page 3 where the Q&A part starts...yes, my eyes boggled when I was only halfway through page 1! --> Time to brush up on my language ah! Kaishen said it reminded him of General Paper comprehension!...hahaha...

This is a TIME article in November 2006.
http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1555132-1,00.html

On 'God's side' is Dr Francis Collins, which interestingly, was an atheist till age 27 and takes time to advise young evangelical scientists on how to declare their faith in science's largely agnostic realms.

On the Atheist (strictly scientific) front, is Richard Dawkins. Both of them have books that are best sellers. Even Dawkin was a New York Times Bestseller!

I like it coz it's written in a neutral way. Helping me to reason and understand why i beleive what i believe. =) After all, God did say..." Come, let us reason..."

(Part 1) 20th October 2006 - Finding my way

I landed at about 2.30pm NZ time. Almost immediately I have a testimony to share of God's grace. After getting my bag I was to get my car. The airport wasn't very big, with the international terminal next to the domestic one. I was supposed to contact the car rental guy and meet him at this 'wishing well' situated just opposite the terminals.

However, I kept getting static when i tried to call. Oh no...I pushed my trolley a little, and was scanning my surroundings for alternatives. Like a telephone booth, a shop, or at the last resort, approach a local to spare me some of his mobile phone time for a desperate traveller. Hahaha...

Thank God i spotted this Singaporean couple that i had noticed taking the same flights as me all this while. They were waiting at the Well! No time for hesitation I quickly approached them and asked if they had rented a car and were waiting for the 'delivery'. "Yes."....I held my breath.."Is it EZY car rentals?". "Yup!"...What a relief! I explained my situation and welcomed me to wait with them. Truly God at work. They were the ONLY people waiting there, AND they were from back home. Making it easier. =) They are a young couple and they had a relaxed look about them, possibly on a honeymoon.

The lady envied i was on such a long trip on my own, being just purely a holiday. =)


After the rental guy picked up the couple, i had to wait for him to return with mine. So i took a shot here outside the international terminal. It was sunny but very breezy!

My ride arrived - A Nissan Sentra. It looked quite old and smaller than what i was promised. However, i wasn't so concerned about the size since i was alone. However i griped with him that he had promised me a car with a CD player. This one was a tape deck. *growl*

He could see he was close to spoiling my holiday when i told him I'd brought all my music in CDs!

So he suggested i go to The Warehouse where i can get a converter that doesn't cost much, n return i can return the car with empty fuel. I was a little peeved having to spend my first day rectifying this. After all, it was already 3pm and I still had to find my hostel and get groceries! ( I didn't' know the sunset time was very late then)

It was a breeze driving into town. I got a little lost. But with almost everyone keeping to the speed limit of 50km/h (and no one gets angry with you when u choose to stick to the limit) and the roads were so wide, there was a road shoulder on every road and you could swing in and check your bearings. i couldn't believe i was in the city area. HAHAHA...because there was hardly any traffic!

Well, I checked in at the Coachman's Backpackers, which is right behind the famous Christchurch cathedral in the heart of town. A single room at NZ$65 for shared bathroom. (By the way, single room meant Queen size bed!) Nice! It had a charm of old days to it, previously being an inn or hotel long ago. See their site for pictures! http://www.coachmanbackpackers.co.nz/

Everything was clean and comfortable, even the bathrooms felt high class! The TV lounge was comfy with a bar. =) The lady running the place was Wendy, super helpful and friendly. =) She laughed at my 'Once a saint, always a saint' T-shirt and said it was cheeky!


I managed to get the tape converter and i had to get a CD player as well. The CD player was cheap! only NZ$20 (ie. S$21) and it was programmable! You can't even get a decent one at this price in Singapore! haha...

As an official note, my first meal in NZ was McDonald's - it wasn't fantastic. But i was tired and just needed to settle my dinner for the day.

Was getting exhausted even before i showered for the day. And thoughts of "Why am i here alone...gotta recheck my route for tomorrow...so much to do...no one to talk to.." crept into my mind. As if on time, I got an encouraging SMS from my work friend, Angela. =) So sweet!

This is my room. the top photo i thought it'd be funny to copy the kiwi in sunglasses on the flyer. And below, my mess created and the double bed i have! I slept below. Larger bed!

Lunch time reflections

*burp*... Once again, work until I lost track of time. So by the time i got to the cafe near my office to 'da bao' 'cai fan' there was not much left to choose. But heck i was hungry. Breakfast was a Milo and I'd been running ard the office quite a bit already.

Now is the time for the food to settle in and since i have time from my lunch hour, I'm going to rant. =)

It's already the end of January. Goodness...how time really flies. Last night I read through some goals for the year i scrawled in my notebook 3 weeks ago. I'm still kinda on track. At least for the ones that are applicable this month.

Keeping to my book reading requirements. In fact I've exceeded it. Forgot how much i like to read. Read 4 books since Christmas. My next one should be a strategy/ business book. I've already been skimming reviews/ bookshops for a good one. I need one that can keep me awake!

Anyway, now I'm reading 2 books. I started with Pst Phil Pringle's You the Leader. Its one of those you can't just read once through no matter how hard you try. There's just too much good stuff that makes you wanna stop to absorb or note down. Thus, on top of that, I've started on a story book, Seven Ancient Wonders by Matthew Rielly. Incredibly fun action. I fell asleep with the book on my face last night. =) I read his first book Temple and was hooked since. Hee...

Ok ok...the lunch hour is ticking away. Should try to catch a nap first. See ya again.

(Part 2) 20th October 2006 -- Transit and Destination!

... Wow...

... Clouds and Snow-capped mountains ...

... Tapering into the wild forest greenery...

Skimming flat pasteurs...and if you look real close..you'll see the tiny white specks of sheep!
I was so looking forward to a view of green with white cotton balls! Hee...

~ Breathtaking ~

(Part1) 20 October 2006 -- Transit and Destination!

Tip: if you are travelling on a british Airways flight, you can check-in and choose your plane seat online 24 hours before the flight. That was the announcement made as my flight was taxi-ing. I rolled my eyes. Great! That explains the last row seat. *growl*

While waiting for the rest of the plane to alight, i had time to chat with the BA air stewardess. She was nice and asked if it was the first time I took BA. If she hadn't asked..I wouldn't' have realised it was my first time! haha...anyway, she was really encouraging when i shared with her that this was my solo trip and she said I'd like NZ. She also shared with me that the SIA crew were one of the hardest worked bunch of crew in the industry! The rest time between flights were one of the shorter ones. And she admired their perseverence...Wow..i made a mental note: Wait till Ris hears this! =)

It can get lonely transiting alone, and it doesn't' help that my flight landed at about 6+am Sydney time. I had been a 8 hour flight and Sydney was 3 hours ahead of Singapore. I barely slept on the plane and i was reminded how much slower things were elsewhere when i had to wait to get my ticket for the next flight.

The computer handling the transit flights was down and had to be re-booted takes an amazing 20mins! And there was only one staff handling the situation. Oh, ...i was nice to her. (It paid off coz i got a window seat! hee...) It didn't help that the entire area had no chairs and the floor...well..didnt' look too welcoming. Nonethe less, I was starting to tire and i just wanted to get my ticket and *plonk* my carcass somewhere to rest.

Oh ya, I forgot to add earlier that before take off, some of my cg members so sweet, msg bye-bye to me...hee...Cheryl, Kaishen and Ris...appreciate your Love.

My transit flight was on Jetstar (under Qantas)...FIRST TIME I SIT A BUDGET AIRLINE..haha...can really see the difference. But for short 4 hour trip it's okies...It's those you need to take bus and climb up to the plane...Interesting thing was, I was the FIRST to baord the plane! for a moment it feel like I own it! hahaha...

I quickly took a pic here from my seat so interesting being next to the next plane!:

We had close to a one hour delay to take off. The captain said taht Sydney airport was running on high capacity and had too many flights landing and taking off (meaning--> you have to wait your turn at the air-strip!) It was like being in a plane traffic jam! all on one road...slowly crawling and stopping. To prove how crowded the airport is, check this out!

See the QUEUE of Jetstar planes waiting to turn to the air strip for take off?!?!!? I could only fit half into the photo (my plane has just turned and waiting at the air strip). Behind the plane on the right of the pic had a whole row of other planes!!! Pity the air traffic controllers man...Stress!! hahaha...