What sort of life do you lead?

A friend of mine told me today that she worked at a fast food joint for work experience and only lasted a day. It was a pressure cooker. You're on your feet for hours. There's a timer that goes off every few minutes and you have to do everything asap. It's fast food hence, minute after minute, like a factory, food needs to churned out. Well, she returned home that night feeling like a legless zombie. She was exhausted and it was only her first day! She complained to her parents that it was one of the toughest days she's ever had to endure. Period. Her father said something so simple and sometimes, the most simplest messages are the most profound "Good. this means you know what you DON'T want to do" and from that day on, she took her studies really seriously so that she would have the freedom of CHOICE. She's now got some high flying job with an international company with huge responsibilities. She's happy she's not flipping burgers but now that she has the cash, the credit cards etc, she laments that she doesn't have the TIME nor the PEACE of mind due to her stressful job. It's still a pressure cooker. Just a different kind.

When I was in Thailand last week, I was looking at all the street peddlars. There was this guy frying something. He was squinting away from the pan. The sun was torturous making  it terribly uncomfortable to be cooking in this weather. I had just got out of an air conditioned cab myself and I was shocked by the heat. It was one of those moments where I was partly awed and partly humbled by how hard these people were working just to make a living. I can't remember what was in my head before I got out of the cab but I remembered to be grateful for my life. If we all tried to focus on what we have, rather than what we lack, we would be happier with ourselves.

What's so amazing is how those who seem to have so little can give so much. It's not good to generalise but I get more smiles on my travels from simple folk than rich folk (who supposedly have "more" opportunities, more stuff etc so why aren't they smiling more too?) 

When I was in a remote village in China near the Himalayas, I walked past tribal kids giggling around me fascinated by everything. Women stopped sewing just to smile and an old man smoking his opium pipe nodded at me in greeting while I was passing by. They weren't jaded like a lot of us are in this world always searching for more excitement, more of this or that. 

Their lives were so simple. Untouched by the material world. Their homes were made of stone with no doors. I could walk right into them. The air was really fresh at that altitude and the women wore such colourful outfits they probably made themselves. Ironically, they probably had less possessions than the street peddlars in Bangkok but they lived such a good life. And there was no RUSH. No pollution either so what I'm getting at is just stop and think about the quality of the life you're leading rather than how much you have in your bank account! :)

Are you sure it's a recession?

I was driving by SS2 PJ with my girlfriend and the new "Five Stones" condo sales gallery and show unit caught my eye. I like checking out showrooms for new ideas coz I'm so into ID. I did my own home renovations from scratch! So we decided to check it out. You wouldn't believe it!

Five Stones development by Selangor Dredging Berhad has 5 blocks but the first 3 blocks just got launched only last week! I thought we were early but we were actually TOO LATE! The tall block (about 1800 sq feet) still has some units left (not even that many) but the ones I preferred which were bigger with taller ceilings (about 2400 sq feet) were totally sold out! All in a WEEK! and they're going for about RM1 million.

Wow! But the GOOD news is, there's another 2 blocks coming up toward the end of the year (this is if my girlfriend who's been wanting to move out for the LONGEST time decides to take the leap. Do it fast! ;) This is the living room which opens out into the balcony so there was a lot of light coming into the apartment. I found out that the name Five Stones came about from the game we used to play as kids. You know the 5 bean bags you throw into the air which you have to catch in sets? I used to be really good at this game in primary school, don't play play! ;)

I was in love with this door. I had to ask if it came with the apartment. It's huge! Surprisingly, it does. The granite kitchen tops, the oven, even the fridge comes with the place so very convenient. And good quality stuff too.

The oven was from Electrolux! Makes me want to start cooking! Every time I'm in a show unit, I always say to myself "ah, I could be baking this or that" but I never find the time.

It's such a nice thing to have though. Uhmmm...I could make pizza, cakes, cookies dreamy sigh while my girlfriends drags me out of this stellar kitchen ;)

The apartment felt very airy and the living room was huge. Gave me a nice feeling of space.

Another plus point is the spacious wet kitchen in the back. I tell you it's the worst thing to be chopping vegetables without enough counter space. Cooking can be really therapeutic and a nice kitchen makes you want to spend more time there.

That feeling of space and sunlight coming in was very holistic. I like how they are gonna build a yoga/pilates studio and one their gyms will be called the "healing gym" with its own personal trainer so you won't need to go far to get into shape. Oh and you know what I saw on the plan?There were all these lamps over benches in the park and gardens round the pool (how thoughtful) so if you wanted to sit amongst the trees, at least there would be enough light for you to read your book! There's lots of greenery everywhere which is a nice thing to come home to. It would also mean cleaner fresher air...

The floors are made of oak. I feel bedrooms with wood floorings make it feel warmer and cozier than tiles.

My girlfriend said I could look a bit like Audrey Hepburn. No la! But I did this Indian music video last year and the eye make-up was quite heavy. The director said I reminded her of Catherine Zeta Jones and the crew were all nodding in agreement. Well, hope if she hears of it, she won't be offended ;)

I was just imagining what it would be like to sit with a hot drink on a high floor looking out. The balcony is a great place to think.

My girlfriend was saying she could fill the balcony up with plants and hang a wind chime. That's when I realised she was really keen! ;) We both preferred the 2400 sq foot unit which was SOLD OUT in a week. She's looking forward to the next 2 blocks which are going to all be that size.

The study room had these funky chairs. I like making my study space casual so just that dash of colour on the chairs can make a study less formal and corporate looking which would make a nice change from an office. I thought this was a neat idea hanging photos off the metal grille. Such a simple idea but space saving and decorative at the same time.

My goodness, I could wear this for a hair show and everyone would assume it's an incredible avant garde piece but it's actually just a cool show unit lamp ;)

I must say I was really quite impressed with the Five Stones show unit. In particular the bigger ones (about 2400 sq feet). The lift even opens on to your own landing. How cool is that and your neighbour would go out the other side of the lift on to their landing so you don't really share walls. Very private that way. The smaller units didn't have enough cupboard space in the master bedroom for the amount of stuff I have (but that's a girl for you) so I was pleased to see a walk in wardrobe in the bigger units. Ah, now we're talking!


This was the kitchen of the smaller unit but in both, I was amazed how it was a full on German kitchen and they're providing everything down to these amazing drawers. I was fascinated by them. They have this inbuilt system where they close by themselves. You only need to nudge them and they do the rest for you. So high tech! And hassle free for my girlfriend if she moves in. She wouldn't need to put a kitchen together coz everything is already provided. Hey, I hope she buys when the next phase is ready coz we could do yoga together in the Five Stones Healing Gym! Then jump into the pool and lepak at the club house straight after hehe. Wouldn't have to go anywhere else. After exercise, it's so nice just to chill out :)

I see RED!!

When I found out I'll be interviewing redmummy.com on Project Alpha, I thought to myself "interesting title for a blog" but I was quite taken aback when I got to her house. I don't think I've ever seen so many red things under one roof. My goodness.....

Every picture frame on the wall was red!

Her husband (in the middle) who I found incredibly supportive of her in every way was of course in red!

I met her friends and loyal readers who always meet her dressed in.....you guessed it! RED!

Not forgetting her daughter, the sofa, the lamp shade, the table runner, the pillows and curtains

The lady herself who has a full time job, 2 kids and blogs several times a day was of course in red

I was almost surprised to find the cat grey but then again, he has a red toilet!

Just spending a day with her made me realise she's got like 3 jobs. She's a MOTHER who packs her son's lunch every day, she has a full time JOB in KLCC by day and she's a BLOGGER by night. 

She said she earns enough blogging income to afford Louis Vitton handbags and hopes to eventually just stay home and just blog. That would be convenient right? She'd be her own boss, see her kids much more and she could work at her own pace.  

This is one of redmummy's favourite hang outs near her place. It was a mamak stall but it had sofas and everything. I'm not too sure if the mamak stall was happy to be invaded by so much light tho. 

It was so glaring that everyone walking to the bathroom was squinting or shading their eyes from the big lights ;)

It was easier to hold on to redmummy's daughter so that she would stop running into frame but after a while, I think our director Michael was enjoying having her on his arm hehe

It was a full on day and there was total chaos when redmummy's son returned in the morning before going off to school. She had to yell at him to shower, pull his socks up, eat his food. We got the whole thing on camera. Real footage of a mother in action. Don't know how she does it. She said if she doesn't scream at him, nothing gets done. 

She has to threaten him with cutting off his favourite cartoons on Astro to get him to listen. It was nuts! Cameras were rolling but I became an observer in her house, just like you would be when Project Alpha sponsored by Adidas Action 3 comes out. The footage makes you feel like you're really there. I can't wait!!  Every blogger on the show is so different in every way. Really funky, diverse footage covering their different lives. Project Alpha kicks off on Sept 18th which you can catch on nuffnang.com.my OR hitz.fm

We finished off in the park. Somehow, on top of all the things she does, she manages to go jogging in the park with her kid. Her husband said she has amazing time management! In order to get that much done in a day, you really need this skill coz she has deadlines to meet right, left and centre. Even the advertorials she writes for clients need to be posted on her blog at a specific time so "time management" becomes crucial.

"Is it easy to be a paid blogger?" She said it's a lot of hard work (I can plainly see that from her crazy schedule) and traffic is not built up overnight. It has taken her dedication and hard work to get to this point. However, she enjoys writing so it's not a chore to update her blog.

It's a hobby that has led to another source of income. A happy problem if you ask me to get paid to do what you'd be doing anyway coz you enjoy it! :)

They're loving it!

Woke up today excited to be taking the dogs out. If they could read my mind, they would've heard me saying "Guys, we're going on a road trip today woo hoo and we'll be picking up your good friend Chopper on the way! You're gonna love it!!"

Funny thing is, moment I got to my friend's house and the Doberman saw us, his usual killer instincts went out the window. He started wagging his tail coz he recognised us. Chopper usually scares the living daylights out of people with his bark but the pugs are his friends so we get to see the other side of him. Phew coz I wouldn't wanna cross him. 

He's an incredibly well-trained dog who would do anything to protect his owner from harm. He's been trained for protection. He's basically a 24/7 bodyguard (well, almost, that's until he sees my pugs he's off duty!) 

My pugs are his smallest friends and incredibly, they all get along. Even drink from the same bowl when they're out tog. Quite a strange foursome but they click :)

Well, I'm not sure where I got the idea that all dogs swim coz the doberman was freaked when he went into the sea and was kicking up water faster than a wheel to stay afloat. Ok, calm down Chopper...shhh, it's ok. Moment he settled down, we took him back into the sea so he'd get used to it. He got better at it, no doubt but sorry to brag (bit of owner's pride here) but my lil Pickle was like a ballerina compared to the Doberman and my other 2 pugs combined! 

Harley and Ruby came out looking like drowned rats. They were paddling vertically in a panic. It was hilarious! 

Only Pickle glided around gracefully as though she'd been swimming all her life. We tried to teach them how to swim without being in a frenzy. They were like small kids. They got scared when you took your supporting hand away.

They were running up and down the beach. You could tell they were really excited. They were fascinated by everything. 

What a great day spent with my four legged kids. The dogs are loving being out here in Port Dickson. Nothing like quality time with the fellas outdoors. They're "LIVING THE MOMENT" I'm having fun just watching them! :)

Beautiful guys

Well, I had an awesome massage on my last night in Bangkok. They used heated herbal balls on my aching shouders, lower back...hmmm, was def transported into another world. Was so incredibly relaxed that it was hard to get off the bed when it was over. I had to smile when the therapist said to me "sir, ok now we are finid" ;)

I saw some "beautiful guys" on the way back in their glitzy dresses. When I used to model here, so many of the transvestitite make up artists had beautiful breasts and immaculate false eye lashes and were really good with make-up. Impressive considering they're all men to begin with.


I've forgotten how many he-she's there are in this country. There was a really attractive one at the airport, very slim, dressed like a corporate executive and much nicer to male tourists than me at the internet lounge haha ;)

Can you imagine, I read somewhere that there's a school in Chiang Mai which has 3 toilets! For Boys, Girls and ? Wonder what it says on the third door? Can you believe there's even a beauty pageant in Thailand for transexuals called Miss Tiffany Universe, i think. One of their contestants was saying "most people can't tell because I'm very petite, but when I talk, they know" Bizarre isn't it?

Oh, really funny. At breakfast today, the waitress asked me "you wan toes bucket?" and I said "sorry?" trying to keep a straight face when I realised she was trying to ask me if I wanted to "toast my baguette" I love how they say things. So cute and I speak a fair bit of Thai so when I don't know how to say something, I just say the English words in a Thai way and I'm usually understood. Like I was asking the hotel if there was a safe in my room for my "pass-a-port" and when you wanna ask what time something closes, they'll get you right away if you said "you clowe wat time?" coz they don't really say the "s" :)