The Gardening Project

We were cultivating a variety of weeds in our garden for the last 7 months or so since we moved in. There just wasn't time to do much and getting a professional landscapist was not at the top of our "To Spend On" list either. Until one day I looked down from the upstairs window and realized we could be encouraging some varieties of wildlife to move in as well.

Hence I decided to execute the plan that had been on paper for a while now. I had sketched some landscaping ideas for our side and back garden a few months back so on a long 5-day weekend, I prepared a shopping list of pebbles, soil, concrete slabs and plants and off I went to several nurseries and hardware suppliers around Miri. All of the usual friends I spend time with were bobbing around in Sipadan for a diving trip and Fabian was in Spain (yes, it was the same trip) so I had the whole 5 days to myself.

And here it is !! Our garden, finally done. Took me four and a half days, countless mosquito bites and a few aching joints. Most people might think, what is the fuss over some wild grass.....but it was driving me crazy! But it's all over now....yippee!

The Big THREE O

I turned 30 on May 5th this year.

The last few years leading to this, I always thought it to be a big deal. I thought I would wake up and feel different, the day might be brighter (or not...), I might feel older (DUH..!), or perhaps Fabian might surprise me with a REALLY BIG present since this is THE year!. Hmm.

Instead, I woke up alone in our home and stuffed a pillow over my face because the sun was piercing through the blinds. The neighbour's dog was going phycho yet again, rattling his cage so loud our little dog was going berserk pawing at the wall that separates the 2 houses (mental note: clean the wall of paw marks-for the 2000th time). That, effectively drowned any pleasant early bird chirping-if there was any. Well, at least it was blue skies - since the rays were literally toasting me in bed.

Then my alarm went off. Eight o'clock sharp. My friend Wid was picking me up at nine-sharp, she said the day before...right....Wid.

Since Fabian was away on the morning of this so-called BIG DAY (he had been travelling around in Spain for 3 weeks....for business <-- wished you had his job, huh?), Wid and Bern had so kindly planned to take me out for breakfast this Saturday. So I got ready and dressed and Wid appeared at about XXX minutes after nine (nine SHARP, she said.... :P) with hubby and whisked me off to the fanciest breakfast place in town - Coffee Bean. It's the thought that counts... To my delight, Bern showed up with a pretty little cake, they sang me a birthday song, I blew out three seemingly HUGE candles and made a wish. Not forgetting I had been craving for waffles all week and it just happened that Coffee Bean was probably the only place in town serving that for breakfast.

In a nutshell, I had a WONDERFUL day! Look at our pictures !! We ate, we talked, we laughed...I didn't need blue skies or a red carpet to greet me on this day. It was the great company I had, that special thought to take me out for breakfast...however small and quiet that 'party' had been-I thought it made my day.

Oh, and Fabian flew back from Spain later that afternoon. It was a wonderful day indeed.

For Mommy

Today we celebrate that special person who is always dear to our hearts - Mommy.

My memories of my mother go back as far as when I was still a toddler, and there are all good childhood memories - how she carried me to my cot downstairs every morning before she went off to work, the paper sailboats she folded for me to launch into the puddles whenever it rained, and all those pinches I received for drawing on the walls (my stick people are still on the walls at home). When I was away in another state for matriculation studies or abroad at University, Mommy never failed to send me a card for each birthday and a good luck card for every single examination period for 5 years.

My brother and I, love our parents beyond anything. And today for Mother's Day, we hope Mommy knows just how much we love and cherish her (despite our bickerings, and occasional misunderstandings..). Wished we were at home with Mommy and Dad today.

HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY MOMMY!

An Inconvenient Truth

I just finished watching the abovementioned documentary and the immediate effect of the film was

G U I L T

I suppose that was what the producers had in mind to achieve with this short barely 120-minute length of audio visual protrayal of a fact everyone already knew anyway.
We always thought (or perhaps still think) that climate change is an article in a National Geographic magazine, or something we watch on Discovery channel. But I suppose you and I never really think of it as an issue just outside our own doorsteps.

WHEN you can, do watch this. If not for immediate action, at least watch it for the hard facts that will hit you and perhaps persuade you to make a little change.

www.climatecrisis.net

For Angel

My friend, Angel, recently received a great offer from the National University of Singapore for a Masters in Public Policy. It's something she really wanted and I think she really deserves the offer. So Congratulations, Angel!
On the other hand, I know by going back to Uni, Angel probably will not be able to make it to my wedding in November since it will be her examinations period then. I will be missing her for sure.

Lammie, I suppose then I won't have to worry about crying during dinner since you will not be there to deliver that fantastic speech you told me about.

The E&O

One day when we were back in Penang for new year, we dropped by E&O to discuss the wedding dinner. Took some pictures of the venue, specially the outdoor area beside the ballroom where the pre-dinner cocktail will be at. Isn't it lovely ? I hope it doesn't rain on that day though. I even checked the tide tables....to be sure that it won't be low tide in the evening during November. Gurney Drive isn't too pretty during low tide....

The Wedding Dress

I had to run to the bridal shop today to squeeze into my gown and snap some pictures for the florist in Penang. She needs it to match the flowers to the colors on the gown. So here's a sneak peak at the gown I fell in love with at first sight. :)

Contrary to Popular Belief, the Modern Woman Can Manage Gardening

Since moving to the new house, I've been spending more time in the evenings tending to the garden and adding touches of green to the house. The latest project, which took 30minutes of planning and sketching, 7am shopping at the nursery on a Saturday morning and one-and-a-half days of sweating outside; was to make the front patch of lawn decent. Small area, HARD work.

Having grown up watching my parents tending their own garden, I probably picked up a few tips and managed to keep my plants alive :). To me, a home without a garden is not complete. And when Fabs walked by and said how pretty our front lawn looked, I felt very pleased with myself indeed.

Need gardening tips anyone? :P

P/S. The flower picture is for Angel. Just because it's PINK!

Wedding Date : FIXED!

It has been a while since we last updated this site. Reason being the slight confusion and many details of the initial wedding planning that we had.

The original idea of 2 separate receptions for friends and family is now out the window. After going through the different quotations from a few hotels (Lone Pine inclusive), it came to our attention that the E&O Hotel in Penang gave us an offer we couldn't resist ! Strange it may seem, but one of the most exclusive hotels in Penang is offering us the best package !

For those out of towners, the E&O is housed in an old colonial building (renovated and refurbished, of course) facing the Straits of Malacca. For more details and history of this hotel, check out their official link. A wedding at the E&O will definitely be lovely! Or at least I am hoping it will be. Been looking through the web for pictures of weddings held there and almost all were just beautiful.

Anyway, to sum it up...

1.) Separate friends' reception at the Lone Pine not happening as we will have ONE big dinner together with family AND friends.

2.) The wedding will be over 2 days, of which the first day will only be the bride pick-up, prayers and tea ceremony for family members.

3.) The wedding dinner itself will be the following night. This might sound a tad strange but after many many days and weeks of discussion, we came to a conclusion that it's the best option. Plus less tiring for us as well .

So deposit for the hotel has been paid to secure the date. You can now start looking at travel dates, boys and girls. LQ will send out information on hotel rates that she will try to negotiate with certain hotels sometime early next year.

FABIAN & LI QUEN'S WEDDING

The Eastern & Oriental Hotel, Penang

18 November 2007

Honey, where's your car?

Fabs and I have been pondering over the idea of getting a new car, mainly to replace his 5 year-old Iswara that's been giving him quite a lot of problems lately. So one fine Saturday afternoon, we thought of swinging by the Toyota showroom just to have a look at what budget we should plan for (if we want to buy a new car next year <--keyword NEXT YEAR). So we went, spoke to the salesman and apparently there's a promotional period on...RM3,888 off the price of any new car. Yea..okay. By then, Fabs had this strange blurry look in his eyes as he watched the new car in the showroom. Anyway, we talked talked and talked about payment options yada yada yada...you know, the usual stuff that you talk about with salesman, pretending that you will seriously consider the car within the next 5 days. Then we went home. Later that evening, Fabs came to me and said "Honey, I want to buy the car." Me: "Okay...are you sure?" Fabs: " Yes, I have thought about it and done the finances" <---typical ha ha! Me: "Okay...but we have to sell your car first" Fabs: "Alright...we will look around...put up some ads and see who's interested" Two days later, in office at 4pm.. Fabs: "Honey, there's the salesman downstairs and he has an offer from this guy who'll pay us 10K for the car. He will pick it up now" Me: "But...but....WHAAAAAAAAAAATTT???!!!!!" And so, two days after we went to BROWSE in the Toyota showroom, we were RM10,000 richer, left with one car and awaiting the arrival of our new Vios. I don't understand this guy...... I cannot believe he sold his car!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Fabian has been really busy lately. I hardly see him now without his nose stuck to the company laptop. He does not join our usual circle for lunch anymore (he only takes quick 10min ones) and mahjong nights at our house has stopped. All this because he took up some new work and had to work extra hard - meetings, meetings, meetings and then spends his time at home doing some more work. It really got to me at the beginning since even though he's at home, he's barely thinking of anything else besides the report that's due last week or the contractor's meet the week after. Makes me sad sometimes and even lonely.

But each time I call him for dinner or walks by, he'd look up and smile. And once when I was upset over the looooonnngg working hours, I asked him why he had to give up all our personal time for work. And he said,

"So I can give you a better life"

What else can I say to that ??!

We stopped by the fish shop today to pick up a few more fish before the 2 oscars are due back into the tank on Friday when Fabian spotted a tank with fresh water lobsters.

Fabian: "Let's get those!"

Me: *Blink Blink*... Errr....no la. What for?

Fabian: Because they look cool (oh so typical Fabian)

Me: Are you sure?

Anyway, there they are now scurrying about the bottom of the tank - 2 somewhat bluey lobsters. I didn't know there were such things as fresh water lobsters. Oh well...

I just find it rather amusing that Fabian actually bought something for the fish tank. All these time, it was my hobby and I was responsible for it. It was a nice feeling to have him showing interest in this. Bit by bit, we're both learning to live each other's lives.

Note: Later that night, Fabs found one lobster standing sheepishly by the kitchen door. How or when it got out, not sure. But we know we have a problem now.....

Liq's Aquatic Kingdom

Our friend (and Fab’s ex-housemate) Patrick once owned a wonderful marine aquarium which he then sadly had to give up when he relocated to another country. The poor thing (aquarium) sat outside on the porch of the bachelor house until my brother, all the way from Singapore, talked me into bringing it back home to our new place.

It took me a while to build up my case to convince Fabian why we should take the aquarium:

1.) It’s such a waste. (He would say ‘it’s not your problem’)

2.) It would look nice. (He would say ‘The dining table will do just fine’)

3.) Our fish needs more space. (He would say ‘It is ONE fish…4 centimetres!!’)

4.) Blah blah blah….

Until one night when we were sitting side by side, and he reached over to move my mobile phone across to the other side of my glass of water. And he dropped the phone right into it! BLOOOP!!!! Wide-eyed, I was speechless for a few seconds and then went totally hysterical while trying to fish my precious barely-one-year-old phone out of the water. Fabian did not know what else to say but SORRY, and I just blurted out – “YOU BETTER SAY YES TO THE DARN AQUARIUM NOW!”

And there it is now, acting as a partition between the dining and living room. Of course I expanded the lonely ONE fish to a whole colony of tiger barbs. I am so proud of my pretty aquatic habitat and am spending hours watching the fishies dash about.

Our 2 oscar fish are now in rehab as they kept chasing and eating up the smaller fishies. Uncle at the fish shop said they have very short term memory so by isolating them, they will forget who's boss and stop thinking of the big aquarium as their territory. Funny! Oh well, we'll see what happens when they return.

One thing I truly hope for my wedding is to have a special group of friends with me on that special day. We grew up together through primary, and secondary school. Then continuously kept in touch until today. These are the girls I have known - some since I was 6 or 7 years old. And we have shared so many conversations, so many secrets and heartbreaks and countless joyous moments.

I am glad we kept in touch all these years, even though most of us are scattered right across the globe hundreds and thousands of miles apart. I think we have all come too far to not know that our friendship deserves a celebration. I am thankful that they have been there through all the stupidity and siliness, daydreams and ambitions, laughter and sadness, pain and joy.

I love you all!

LiQ

The Proposal

WHEN.19 September 2006

WHERE.The Datai, Langkawi

HOW (narrated by LQ).A month or two before that, we were planning for a trip to Paris. I was going to fly to Amsterdam to meet Fabian after his training. Unfortunately, due to uncertainties in work commitments, the trip was cancelled.

We talked about a short break somewhere nearby after that and after a few discussions, Fabian surprised me by doing all the arrangements for a week-long holiday in Langkawi. A week!! I was pleasantly surprised and very pleased of course, considering I have not yet taken any personal time off this year. He had everything planned - from accomodation to flight tickets to car rental. It was just like the first time we took a holiday together.

The resort was simply lovely! (See separate posting on The Datai under this category). In the mornings we would take walks along the beach. On Tuesday morning, we went for a morning walk as usual. But it was a particularly hot day. I thought it was rather strange that Fabian insists that we walked to the far end of the beach and back since he usually complains about heat (turns out he wanted us to be out of the room to let the resort staff to tidy it up and place the flowers he had ordered!).

Anyway, when we finally got back, the only thing on my mind was to get out of the heat. We got to the front door and he let me into the room first ahead of him. I noticed a very nice bouquet of white roses and lilies on the bed! It was so pretty! At that moment I did not suspect a single thing yet. I just thought he was being sweet. So in I went and fussed over the flowers and then I turned to thank him. And he was on his knees !

I am not sure what went through my mind then. I kept saying "WHAT ARE YOU DOING??!!". It was actually a state of panic because somewhere in my split second phase of insanity I realized he was proposing!! I recall I kept asking him "WHAT ARE YOU DOING??!". And he held the ring in his hands. And I just hugged him and hugged him.

I do not recall what he asked me...(which he later told me was 'will you spend the rest of your life with me?') but I recall saying "OK...I GUESS SO".

Although it was always assumed that sooner or later he was going to propose, I never imagined I would feel that panicky when he does. For starters, he completely took me by surprise. I went berserk for a while. And then I calmed down and was so happy :)

Then I remember. I have mentioned some time ago how our first holiday will always be something I will always remember. And he had attempted to create that same feeling again in his grand plan for proposal.

P/S. A month before the trip, Fabian also secretly went to meet my parents and asked for their blessing. My whole family was in the conspiracy!

So, here we are...just over 2 weeks into our engagement and I thought we should start a one-stop information site for all the wedding details; specially for our out-of-town friends. Which is quite a good idea considering they're scattered all over the country and right across the globe - US of A through to Japan. We (Li Quen, actually...ahem) will be planning the wedding remotely from Miri - so it is going to be quite a challenge for us in 2007. The fact that 95% of our intended guests are not from Penang, we hope that this site will somewhat keep you updated. Besides, your comments and suggestions will defintiely come in handy and make the planning a whole lot more fun!

So see you all in Penang!

F & LQ