Warmth {away from / at} home

[Note: This post has a lot of photos!]

I didn’t expect it, but being in Singapore and Bali for the past three weeks has provided me a profound perspective on life: It’s okay to be lost, be patient, things will be figured out.

For the past few months, I burdened myself with questions of existence and death, and identity. I have thought about these a lot since adolescent, but having more time on my hand now allowed me to have more conversations in the head. The recent changes in my lifestyle begged me to understand my purpose in life, but what I managed to fluff up wasn’t sufficient and I ended up frustrated.

Fortunately, there are family, friends and food! These are the vital factors which helped me come to terms with myself…

Immediate Family

The change has been apparent and I’m glad my parents and sisters have taken the positive path. It’s possibly the foundation which assures me that things (which seemed damn impossible then) are possible.

My favourite thing to do when spending quality time with them is definitely devouring Mum’s yummy yummy food! It was something I looked forward to before flying to Singapore and I was absolutely satisfied! Hopefully I’d be able to gain as much skill as her to cook these dishes which look as delicious as they taste…

In-Laws Family

The dynamics of my husband’s family never fail to amaze me – they are possibly the most chill and happiest people I’ve known. Living back at my parents-in-law’s place meant that I got to learn more of the family’s histories and haha, some of their stories were hilarious! It made me certain that I want to build similar, if not better, relationship with T to tell our future kid(s)…

My mother-in-law also cooked awesome food during our stay! I guess food always taste a lot better when it’s made with love 😀

Extended Family

We don’t meet up very often, but it’s always a joy meeting my aunts and uncles and cousins 🙂 Some interactions were light and cheerful, others heavy yet stimulating. Either spectrum was enjoyable! Plus, I’m looking forward to December/January for the new addition 😛

My Girls

The notion of commitment was strong in most of the conversations with my closest friends: Marriage. Heartbreaks. Food. Joseph Schooling. Work. Babies. Food. Pokemon Go. Hen parties. Food.

I hope they’ll still be my girlfriends in the many years to come. #staycommitted

My Nak Makan Ape Boys

The news came when we dug deep and while we guessed it right, we were still shocked. It’s the sort of thing that shakes your world upside down, inside out ’cause you think you know, but you don’t. My spirits were dampened.

But on the brighter side, Il and Ya have an awesome crib and they prepared awesome-licious dinner! I really love their Korean fried chicken wings! And Fa introduced Monopoly Deal and they saw the worst side of T… Haha! T was thrash-talking all the way, it didn’t help that he was winning throughout too.  Hurr hurr.

T’s Boys & Secondary School Friends

Hanging out with these people – especially the ones I’ve not met in years – was refreshing. Most of them are older than me and they’ve all taken different life routes, and it was interesting to learn what they’ve done for themselves and their families. Like, one of them is now taking care of parrots. Haha, I don’t think I’d ever do that, but it was pretty cool to hear the beautiful creature greet back, right before my eyes!

And hehe, here are a couple of adorable snaps of T with his boys’ kids:

My Secondary School Babe

Some things don’t change, like us being bloody competitive when playing games. This time round, they taught me how to play Monopoly. Yes, I’ve not played this classic game before, heh heh. Anyway, the boys were being bullies as usual, but it was fun nonetheless! Too bad RH had to work early the next day, or we would have played one more round…

T’s Ace 

I lepaked with the both of them briefly on one of the nights but even from that short hour, I could tell why T sees so much in him… You know how your partner would tell you about his friends and you hear better stories about some? Well, they are the special gems who’d shape your partner to be a better person 🙂 I didn’t drop by to meet Ni and Bo, but they are two other friends whom I’ve heard great stories about too…

R

What I got out from our Bedok Corner dinner is that nobody is normal. Sure, the level of deviance varies, but most, if not all, do wtf acts. Undeniably, the discussions we had stirred an element of fear in me, learning about how the law works in Singapore, how some crime-breakers get away with probation and not serving any time nor getting criminal records. It is frightening, really. But reflecting again, I guess everyone deserves a second chance. Right?

Forever Eating Friends

These four friends have exciting things happening in their lives – two of them have recently started new jobs while the other two are on their way to become parents – and I’m super stoked for them! We updated them of the possible locations which we may head to and if we were to be sent there, I want what Ma stated to be true, i.e. It takes 4 days to get used to the new environment.

YM Friends

Hearing updates on the things that are happening in my old office were intriguing, especially on the three new “colleagues”. When I was working there, I hear so many stories about them and I actually wanted to see what they can do, but never had a chance. I joked that maybe I’m the worst, hence my missed opportunity, but I think my joke isn’t really a joke. Sigh. But hey, my real ex-collegues have became friends and that’s all that matters! 😀

FR

Every time I meet a friend who plans to get married, I get all enthusiastic! My view on marriage took a really positive turn once I started experience it, so naturally, I am very supportive of friends who intend to tie the knot with someone they’re absolutely sure they want to spend their life with. So, learning about his engagement, wedding, and getting a flat plans were heartwarming! They helped me get over the fact that we did not get to go to our usual makan spot ’cause of the distance (which didn’t matter in the end, heh), haha!

JC Classmates

I’ve no idea when I met this bunch last, but I had a good time catching up over dinner. I was lucky to be in town when Sa organised the gathering. It’s funny, thinking back about all the silly things we did when we were 17/18, like copying homework, late-coming, truancy, playing pranks, and more. We’re all so grown up now, discussing about work and future and Pokemon Go.

PF

Surprisingly, I did not take any photos during our meet-ups. But I guess that’s how things are because of the way it is. We chatted about a range of things over dinner and breakfast, trying to figure the situation out. And y’know, it seemed like what we uncovered eventually was necessary at this point of our lives. It definitely made me appreciate living more…

Favourite Family

Of course, T was the one who knocked the most sense in me. Spending most of the 21 days straight with him let me articulate my disarrayed thoughts to him better, and he reminded me to calm down and be content. Not worried, not grateful, not confused, just content. Only after a week of further reflection (and maybe over-thinking), I think I finally understood what my husband meant.

That said, it was terrific that T and I had the chance to make the trip back to Singapore and squeeze a short getaway to Bali! (Perhaps a post on the 5-days beach holiday will be up soon.) We went on many dates to eat at our favourite hawkers/cafes and drink the best bubble teas from Koi 😀 And haha, we actually flew on first, business and budget flights within a month! It’s been a blast, and I couldn’t ask for a better way to celebrate our 7th anniversary…  ❤