What I learned today...

I went to check out an art gallery in Matthews after work today and learned a new word.

Giclee, commonly pronounced "zhee-clay," is an invented name for the process of making fine art prints using ink-jet printing.
The term "giclee print" connotes an elevation in printmaking technology. Images are generated from high resolution digital scans and printed with archival quality inks onto various substrates including canvas, fine art, and photo-base paper. In the giclee process prints are made by spraying more than four million droplets per second onto archival art paper or canvas. The effect is similar to an airbrush technique but much finer. Exact calculations of hue, value and density direct the ink of 8 nozzles which can produce more than 3 million colors of highly saturated, pigment-based ink. The result is a print that can rival the original in color and detail.

So you pay $100 for an artwork instead of $1000 for the original and the print lasts longer too. Pretty cool eh.

Kids are funny

My two year old nephew, Wrenn wanted to go to the bathroom and sit on the toilet like a big boy.
My mother-in-law goes in with him to make sure he's doing it right.
He turns around and tells her "I don't want you bothering me".

I've been Simpsonized!

Have you ever wondered what you would look like as a character on The Simpsons? Never? Not even once?

D'oh! Well, anyway, I would look like this:
Try it for yourself :

http://simpsonizeme.com

The bleh Sunday

Started out as a bleh Sunday for me. So I drove 30 miles to nowhere and back and felt a little better.
Then I got a call from my friend, Fiona, who just arrived in Denver to do her post-grad and we chatted for a bit and that totally made the bleh mood go away! Friends are the best medicine!
And I'll be here for her when she needs a friend.

Here's my Life-as-it-is Sunday:

Your Last Meal: Shitake mushroom sushi roll
You'd Rather Be: On the mountain
The Future: Unknown
Creature That Freaks You Out: Lizards
Currently Feeling: Lonely
Most Recent Purchase: Superfood Juice
Thinking About: Vacation
Your Keyboard: black
Your husband is: On his computer
What You Like for Breakfast: Fried eggs

Putting the "Gro" in Grocery

Trader Joes has finally opened its doors in Charlotte.
We drove by last weekend and could not even get into the parking lot. So we tried again this evening.
They carry all kinds of exotic and organic foods at reasonable prices. Love it!

What to do when nothing fits

The doctor told me that I am officially no longer underweight. So what does this really mean? It means I need a new wardrobe and am trying to convince myself that I am not fat. Just not underweight anymore. But being short and not underweight can somehow make you look fat. Thanks to my very honest and loving family and friends back in Malaysia who have all generously told me that I have gotten fat since they last saw me two years ago. I totally agree. Two years ago, I was stressfully planning a wedding and stressfully getting all the paperwork done for my US Visa and then painfully stressfully saying goodbye to everyone. All that took a toll on my weight and I remember my wedding gown designer telling me that if I keep losing weight each week, he will refuse to keep altering my gown. He is a sweet talented gay guy and and he was genuinely concerned.
The majority of Malaysians are stick thin. When we were in Malaysia two weeks ago, I kept pointing out to Jason at all the thin, small-waisted mini skirted girls. And I would look at myself and tell him, "God, I look so fat beside these girls!"

So this morning, I went looking through my wardrobe and decided to put on some random pants and skirts that I haven't worn for the past two years or more and realized that they don't fit anymore. Since I work from home on most days now and on the days that I go into the office I wear something really casual, I don't wear those corporate suits and pants anymore. Some of these pants and jackets even have a tag on which means it has never been worn and staring at it totally makes me feel guilty. All that wastage! So, if you are a Size 0, do hop into a Goodwill store next week and you might just land yourself with some nice new pants or skirts!

Then I realized, if I were to land myself with an interview next week (not that I have started job hunting or anything but who knows, maybe I'll get to meet the Queen of England) I would have totally no interview clothes ! Eeek!
I am also in-between two sizes which means looking for something that would fit me is not going to be easy.
The solution : Put on some more weight or lose some weight and be underweight again.

All said, I think I'll go get myself a Krispy Kreme fresh hot donut now. That would solve the problem and I'll get to go shopping.

Happy Birthday, Lo Kong!

Jason's birthday today.

Back in Queen City

After 36 hours of being in the air and in between airports, we are finally back in Charlotte in one piece but totally exhausted.
The airport in Stockholm is a pain. It is definitely not built to cater to crowds or a full flight.

Not looking forward to going back to work tomorrow.

Hibernate mode has been turned on.

Vacation almost over

The last week of our trip was indeed pleasant, except for having a flat tire on Thursday night. But it happened at a good spot where we were able to change tires at a well-lit parking lot with accessible restrooms. If you have to have a flat tire, this would probably be considered a blessing.

Jason had a surprise early birthday celebration early in the week. The look on his face was priceless.

We also managed to meet up with some dear friends on Tuesday for a long tea and followed by dinner with an aunt. Spending quality time with friends and family always makes coming home to Malaysia worthwhile.

Back in Melaka, we managed to meet up with Adeline and family for a short while. Aidan is growing up fast. Unfortunately, we did not have enough time to stop by to say Hi to some old co-workers of mine. That would have been nice.

My uncle also surprised us by driving all the way up from Johor for a brief afternoon visit. That really touched me. It made me realized that it will be awhile before we will be able to see everyone again.

We left for the airport on Friday. Aunt Shirleen, Uncle Victor, Adrian and Nicholas stopped by to say goodbye and we later had a farewell dinner with my parents, Aunt Annie and Kathy and Yat Onn. I was teary eyed when they left.
Stayed a night at a hotel close to the airport and we took a shuttle to the airport at 5.30am. I had a feeling my parents will show up at the airport and they did.

Yet again another long flight.

If I could have one human superpower, I will ask for the ability to teleport.

Cousin weds

Here are some pictures of the beautiful bride and grinning groom. The wedding was last Saturday in church and a reception was held the same evening by a lake amidst the beautiful sunset at the Palace Beach and Spa Resort. Aunt Patsy performed the hula, a few crazy people (including yours truly) did the chicken dance on stage and then the highlight of the evening was a fireworks display! That was totally awesome!

Bleh Bleh

Still sick.
Jason is starting to feel better after two visits to the doc and I am on my last day of antibiotics but my cough is getting worse. But being sick did not stop us from going out and sticking to our plans. Just got back from Genting Highlands. Big BIG mistake going up there on a Sunday. It was CROWDED. Total mad house. There was a line of atleast 500 people ahead of us standing in line for the cable car to take us up. The ride up was 3.4km.
Then, trying to walk through throngs of people from the skyway station to the hotel was another mad house. But the craziest part was having to wait three hours to check-in to our hotel. We had to stand in line to take a number, then having to wait for our number to be called in order to get our room key. Our number was 845. The current number being attended to at that time was 569. My uncle and aunt who had arrived 2 hours ahead of us was only just now getting their number called. It was ridiculous. So we left our bags in their room and walked to the Arena of Stars to watch the World Lion Dance championship. The US team won 3rd place. Pretty impressive.
When we walked back to our hotel about 3 hours later, they were attending to number 1035. So we missed our turn which was totally fine because we just have to walk up to a counter assigned for people like us who had missed their number and we got our keys.
Skipped dinner and all we wanted to do was crash.
Next morning, we went down to the casino. Stood in line to apply for a slot card, and when it was our turn, we were told we needed to fill up some membership form and was told to go back and stand in line again. How stupid is that.
Anyways, I lost RM14 and Jason won RM13.60.

I might post some pics later. Just realized that we did not take enough photos especially of the wedding because Jason and I were too busy with our assigned tasks.

This has been the most stressful vacation ever. I'll have to put myself in hibernate mode for the next couple of weeks.

bleh

Vacation + sick = no fun at all