It has been a really long time since i partied hard. Had an enjoyable time last friday @ Fly Entertainment 19th Anniversary Party. Forgot to take the cam with me as i left it in J's car. But well, here's some pictures taken off the e-newsletter and website.
It was an Olympics theme party and i represented my company to receive the 'Syncronised Swimming' award (whatever that means). Dídn't know abt it till i was at the event.
Look who's coming in in-style .. Irene carrying the "Olympic Touch".
Fashion show styled by Daniel Boey
Li-Lin goes swimming. It was a sports themed event and yes, she just wore a towel and a swimming cap. Quite creative. Who needs fancy sports gear here.
Mag N Me
Cindy, Colleagues & Me
Finale after the lucky draw.
After the event ended, i headed down to a friend' pub. Have been invited afew times but somehow, just did not get the chance to visit. I guess my colleagues and me just needed to unwind ourselves as we were busy shifting office in the earlier part of the day. It turned out to be a really enjoyable & 'happening' PARTY. Turns out that alot of industry people that i know were there that nite. Each having their own mini-celebration and get-together.
It's great to really hang out once in awhile, and relax after working hard for the whole week. Have not done this for the longest time. But really, for every party ... it's the company that really matters most. Till then, it's back to work, work and work. Ha ha!
This reminds me of my two grandmas. Last sunday was Mother's Day. I asked mom last friday,"Hey Mom, so what are u going to do for your mother on Mother's Day? For me, it has never been quite a tradition to celebrate Mother's Day. First of all, mom's birthday falls on 1 May. So all the celebrations took place on this day. I threw a surprise BBQ birthday party for her on her birthday plus a nice gift. She was really touched when all her sisters, brothers, nieces, nephews etc turned up, including her own mom. And secondly, everyday can and should be Mother's Day. But well, to make her happy on Mother's Day, i gave her a little present with her name on it. Nothing expensive but it's the thoughts that counts.
Anyway, Mom kept quiet for awhile before telling me this: "Hmm .. maybe we should bring your grandma out for dinner. And dad later added. We should bring the two grandmas out since they will be playing majong together at a relatives place in the afternoon.
It was later when mom tried to make arrangements with the two grandma that we found out that one grandma (Dad's mom) was already booked by my auntie and family. Only mom's mommy is available. And that's because my uncle and two aunties celebrated for her one day in advance.
And so, it was a date with Grandma on Mother's Day. And the funniest thing is that while we were deciding where to go for dinner since most of the places must be really crowded, it was Po Po that intro us to this lovely eatery @ Tan Que Lan Street. The food is really good. It was the same eatery which my auntie and uncle brought her to on sat.
Indeed, time spend with them is more precious and meaningful than $ or gifts. And yes, i would be spending this weekend with afew friends plus two of my lovely grandmas and family. While i wish i was away on holiday like afew of my friends, well ... at least, i think i will have a good holiday in town too. I hope!
Following in the footsteps of Paul Potts, this 13 year old kid blows the judges away on Britain's Got Talent.
Britain's Got Talent: Andrew Johnston exclusive By Lara Gould Tv Editor Lara.Gould@Sundaymirror.Co.Uk 13/04/2008
With his angelic voice and cherubic looks, teenager Andrew Johnston looks like he has the world at his feet.
But Andrew, who was the big hit on the first episode of Britain's Got Talent last night, has had a tough journey to the brink of stardom.
A childhood spent in dire poverty saw him surviving on a diet of bread and milk.
And if that wasn't bad enough, he has endured hell at the hands of bullies because of his love of opera.
Prodigy Andrew, 13, was one of a handful of acts, including contortionist Iona Luvsandorj, funnyman Craig Harper and girl group Scala, to make it through to the next round on the ITV show.
His breathtaking performance of Pie Jesu wowed judges and left panellist Amanda Holden in tears.
Mum Morag Johnston, 48, has told the Sunday Mirror how she walked out of the family home with Andrew when he was just eight months old and struggled single-handed on the breadline to raise him and her three other children.
Andrew, the youngest, was in her arms when she left after her relationship with his dad, Andrew Snr, fell apart.
"I had no job, no income and no home to go to." she said.
"The kids had to make do with bread and milk for dinner because there was no money.
"It was the blackest time of our lives. At the lowest point, I had to go without food because there wasn't enough money for us all to eat. When we did have money for food, I had to make it last. I could make a pound of mince last for days.
"All the kids wore hand me-downs or clothes I made myself. We didn't have any heating, and even if we had I couldn't have afforded to pay the bills.
"Instead we had to go out and collect wood for the fire just to keep warm. I went to sleep every night praying life would get better.
"If you asked me to describe a living hell, that would be it."
Morag - whose three other children Kelly, 27, Jodie, 25, and 22-year-old Daniel are from her first marriage - suffered another blow when her father died a few months later.
"I hit rock bottom then," she said. "Everything seemed to be happening at once but my kids got me through."
Morag kept her family together by taking low-paid jobs. She said: "I've worked in factories, delivered sandwiches, packed eggs at a farm and delivered Indian takeaways.
"Andrew would come with me on jobs because I couldn't afford a babysitter. He would sleep in the back of the car while I took food to people's front doors at all hours. It taught Andrew that nothing comes for free."
Andrew's amazing singing voice was discovered by a teacher when he was seven.
Morag explained: "Andrew has always been very quiet and shy so we had no idea he had this incredible voice. His primary school teacher suggested I took him to the cathedral to join the choir.
"They auditioned him and saw his potential immediately - he is now head chorister at Carlisle Cathedral.
"But I still hadn't heard his voice. The first time I heard him I cried. His voice just blew me away. Even now I get emotional when I hear him sing because it's such a beacon of hope."
But Andrew's success has come at a cost, as he revealed on last night's show. He told judges Simon Cowell, Amanda Holden and Piers Morgan how his love of classical music had brought him problems with bullies.
And Morag said: "Andrew comes home from school in floods of tears and runs up to his room to cry because of the taunts. Kids call him gay just because he's in a choir.
"He's too frightened to go out and play in the street in case the bullies come out and start. He's been physically threatened too, but it's the words that cut deepest.
"Physical scars fade. And as his mum I can help make them better. Verbal comments leave no visible mark but last forever.
"It is heartbreaking to see my own son so upset just because he has been born with a God-given talent."
She added: "Lots of times Andrew has begged me to let him quit singing to stop the bullying. It would be such a waste if he threw away this incredible talent.
"It's easy to fall into the wrong crowd and there's always the threat of drink and drugs where we live.
"Andrew is determined to make something of himself and I hope Britain's Got Talent gives him the confidence to believe he can do whatever he wants in life."
Andrew now lives with his mum in a three-bedroom housing association home in Carlisle, Cumbria. He has little contact with his father, who only found out about his son's success on Britain's Got Talent from his local paper.
Morag, who works as a researcher for the Office for National Statistics and supplements her income with benefits, said winning the show's £100,000 prize money would give her son financial security.
She said: "It would give Andrew the kind of start in life I can't give him."
Last friday was my company's dinner. This is the first time i am working with Chua Enlai as my host. I met him once in my office 2 weeks ago to discuss about the evening program with him.
I don't know much about him except that he is tall, talented and has been involved in numerous theatre and musicals. I last saw him perform at the V Conference in Movida. My impression of him ... not much. But he has a really deep voice.
The dinner went pretty well. For çorporate dinner, there's always games. Mr Tomioka is very sporting and we can all see that he had great fun. Mr Ishizaki-san, his colleague told us that Mr Tomioka must have not too much to drink.
The other "contestants" in the same game. The host got afew people up the stage. He read afew items and the guests, especially those from the same table are suppose to bring the items up to them. The contestants had to do a catwalk with all the items.
'The Jackpot Bingo Game'. The value of the jackpot increases a small amount for every game played. Instead of using the real jackpot, we use REAL people.
Elvis Presley - the King of Rock and Roll performs. The crowd loves it.
My friends from the airlines enjoying themselves.
And i love this the best. It is just so hillarious. In the game 'Deal or No Deal'. Emily was the first to go on stage to answer a question. After answering the question right, she can choose the prize which she wants from one of the paperbags (without knowing what is in it). And guess what ... she won herself an afro wig. She was dead surprised and knew instanly that she was in deep trouble.
She's got to wear the wig and turn on the boggie moves and get funky. She looks really cool! All i can say is that i'm glad i am not the one up there. Ha ha!
My friend Daniel was being pulled up to the stage again this year. None of us saboed him. The emcee pulled him up the stage. Thankfully, he got it easy this time and won a prize by answering a really simple question.
When it's your event and u work while everyone enjoys, the FUN usually begins after the event ends. The close friends and partners will usually stay around and we'll take phtos, photos and more photos. Always relieved that the event is over and RELAX is the word.
And of course, how can we not take pictures together with Çhua Enlai, my host for the evening.
I love to check out new things and places. Enjoys travelling and hope to visit the seven wonders of the world one day. A shoe and bag lover. Love reading, movies, music, musicals, singing, writing, taking photos and many more. Started this blog at a time when I don’t even know what blogging is but have since become a part of me.
