I am very inspired by my friend Quin who at 38 years old, decided to quit her corporate job, pack her bags, leave her husband behind and head to Australia to pursue a nursing degree.  That was three years ago.  Last year she was back to practice nursing at one of the private hospitals but it was not until yesterday that we finally found time to meet up for tea.  And guess what?  She’s heading back to Australia again, to further her studies and maybe attempt a medical degree.

A lot of people and friends I know suffer from mid-life career crisis.  Yet not many have the guts to get out of the rut, let alone make a radical change.  Even a simple step like quitting a job can be a painful decision to make.  It is an extremely hard call to abandon a decade worth of experience to venture into something unfamiliar.  Not to mention learning something completely new, starting afresh, and getting only a fraction of your previous pay package.  I for example, opted for a safer career switch which leverages on my previous experience.

Quin did what most people would deem unthinkable yet she found joy and meaning in what she has achieved.  Hers is definitely not an easy journey.  Nursing after all, is not the easiest work as we all know.  It calls for a certain dedication and definitely a lot of passion in serving the bedridden.  Of course, there are gripes about the system and so on, but she is genuinely happier than she was in her previous occupation. 

I admire Quin for not being afraid of change and moving out of her comfort zone.  I admire her for her positive, can-do spirit. Most of all, I admire her for knowing what she wants and taking authorship of her life. 

Since it’s highly unlikely that I’m going to eat my own placenta to save my skin, I’ve settled for something more natural and non-nauseating.  It’s called Plush! Skin Awakening, a 100% pure collagen formula made in Japan. 

Collagen intake is the rage in Japan and I’ve been looking at ingesting natural collagen since two years ago.  I know Fancl carries a range of collagen products but it’ll cost me around $200 per month to maintain the regime.  The other one I’ve came across is organic but isn’t widely available.  So when I saw the ad for Plush!, I knew I must try it. 

Designed in Japan using a patented batch-extraction technology to remove flavour, odour and fat content of collagen, the product can be easily dissolved into any food or beverage making it easier for consumption.

Collagen is major structural protein that makes up a quarter of all the protein in the human body. The product (derived from animals) repairs and rejuvenates skin, as well as stimulates more collagen production.

The product is available in three flavours of Original, Marine and Green Tea. The Original and Marine collagen is derived from mammals and fish respectively, while the Green Tea formulation contains green tea extract, which include detoxification, anti-oxidation, calorie burning and skin whitening benefits.

Read more in this article here.

What I like about this daily supplement is that it is convenient and is almost tasteless.  Apart from improving my skin condition, the restorative effects of collagen aid in helping to support and maintain healthy joints and bones, which I’m also highly concerned about.  I’ve tried taking Glucosamine for my joints but it doesn’t agree with my body at all.  With this fat-free formula, I would be able to kill two birds with one stone.  Actually maybe more birds because collagen is also supposed to improve brain cells, blood vessels and other internal organs.

I paid almost $80 for a box and that’ll probably last me about half a month or less.  But after the initial intake, I can scale back to one box as a monthly beauty rejuvenation programme. 

My husband asked me why I need to consume this since I’m already doing IPL.  My answer?  I’m taking a two-prong approach: maintaining beautiful skin from within and out.  In Chinese, this is known as li ying wai he! (Read: I’m super kiasu lah!) 

Which cafe calls itself the epitome of urban chic and yet is completely mucked up in their service?   Well, this cafe that goes by the name White Tangerine at Paya Lebar Community Centre.  The same cafe that was recommended by the Makan King food show on Channel U last Thursday. 

I’m not going to waste my time dedicating an entry just to bitch about their uber abominable service.  All I will say is that we wasted our petrol, time and effort travelling to this lousy place and yet I was deprived of my chocolate fondue, honey baked wings and root beer after waiting for 40 minutes.  All this crap after I pestered my husband for days and finally made a trip down yesterday when the boy was napping.  Fortunately, daddy Totoro was in a good mood and did not grouch much. 

In the end, we headed back to the nearby Hong Kong Cafe and was met with efficient service and fairly decent food.  Never mind there was no chocolate fondue.  The Lychee fruit tea that I ordered was so refreshingly wondrous!  So that really helped to extinguish my earlier rage.

Die die I’m going to have my chocolate fondue one of these days.  But it won’t be at that White Tangerine cafe for sure. 

Shopping isn’t exactly one of my hobbies.  I would only say it is a favourite pastime and a frequent needed Prozac to help lift my soul.  Usually I shop alone, except for those times with my husband and my son where shopping comes way down their list of favourite things to do. 

I don’t shop with friends simply because the limited time spent together with them are kept for precious exchanges and gossips.  So it was something out of the norm that I shop hopped with Alyson for half a day yesterday, and surprising, accomplishing more than what I’ve set out to get.

I have to tell you that Alyson is 12 years my junior but I’ve always enjoyed her company.  She’s not a close friend, but I would count her as a good friend and we do share some common interests despite the age difference.  Read: either I’m damn hip or she’s quite an auntie.

Anyway, I met her at close to 1pm and we trotted from Wheelock to Tangs to Heeren to Centrepoint, breaking in between for a lunch and a dessert!  By the time we finished at 5pm, I got more than the Birkenstock shoes which I had set out to buy.  WOOT!  Alyson, who already did her shopping the day earlier, didn’t find anything she like and ended up buying another pair of shoes at Xodus. 

It was so much fun!  I’ve not shop hopped for such a long time.  Plus having a friend to ask for ideas and frank opinions was refreshing.   I wouldn’t mind doing this more regularly.  Well erm…provided my pocket is deep enough.  

If you see a toy car and a USB cable in this picture, you’re seeing things! This is a racing car with a petrol pump nozzle.

Yes it is! According to Gavin.

Lately he has been intrigued with the whole works of petrol filling and has been mimicking that process in his play. “How much petrol would you like sir?” I’ll start by asking. “Full tanks ah!” is what he’ll always reply. Then, we’ll go through the petrol filling motion using my finger. After which, he’ll pay and off he vrooms.

So imagined my surprise when he came to my desk last week and pulled my USB cable to place it at his car. “Pump petrol kiosk,” he said. What he really meant to say of course was “pump petrol”. Haha…what did I know? My USB cable has become a fuel pump nozzle, thanks to his imaginative mind!

I am so amused. Obviously he is of the age where make-believe and other imaginative activities begin to occupy an important place in his mental world. Hmmmmm. I wonder what he’ll imagine next. Whatever it is, it has to be related to his cars. In fact I vaguely suspect he is trying to convert part of our house into carpark lots. Why? Because he has been placing his cars, big and small at certain strategic corners. He’ll even bother to change the cars once every few hours!

Wait till he learns about the ERP system. I’ll like to see which object in the house becomes a gantry then.