happy birthday to a dear ole' friend

HAPPY 22ND BIRTHDAY ENGHUI!!

yz waving away the "billowing smoke" from the diffused candles in her characteristic AUNTIE-manner

while i was reading with an unsuspecting engsin in JE lib, kwa & yz secretly made their way down to EXCITING CAFE GALILEE! what an apt place to surprise her on her birthday- the LIBRARY!! :p

a contented sinnie posing with my handmade card! :D

sometimes i'd like to reflect on the blessings in my life to de-magnify all the trivial problems which are really not problems after all, and one of the biggest blessings that first comes to my mind is sharing a genuine friendship with one of the most beautiful-hearted people around- enghui :)

despite the fact that i'd wish for her to be less easily-bullied by others, i seek solace in the fact that she's one of the extremely few people i can simply ask out without a justifying activity to do so, e.g. shopping/movies/eating etc., or feeling like a lonely loser who has nothing constructive to fill her time with. i like that i can arrange to meet her just on the pretext of 'let's meet up!' and she'd gladly do so without ever contemplating her potential boredom when i don't exactly have anything exciting planned in store. this, to me, is what a true friend is about- not feeling paiseh about wasting her time; doing nothing together but feeling it was time fruitfully spent; baring your most petty/trivial thoughts without fear of being judged- and that is what enghui is to me!

and so on this special day, this blog post is dedicated to my very best friend :)

friends are like cupcakes in my pantry of memories

my little collection of cupcake photos from my recent UK trip.

saw another quote -"you can't look at a (pretty) cupcake without smiling"- which i think it's rather true! :) pretty cupcakes are ALWAYS a popular subject for photography purposes; i guess they naturally bring about a fairytale atmosphere which makes all girls' hearts flutter!

hehe random post, just wanted to prettify my boring blog a little :p a little disappointment, but my volunteering stint with ASD was postponed to start this sat instead..they said 16 oct was not good for them..still can't wait though! jingkai's bro says he wanna volunteer wif me too!

egg-cited!! :D

i'm finally injecting new meaning into my life! just received a reply from Action for Singapore Dogs & i feel so excited about starting my volunteer journey with them every Sat...but that'll mean that i won't be able to go for sessions too..i know rspid is in good hands though :) will still go own to help out if they are short of volunteers or if they need any other kind of help!

this is the reply i got from them:

Dear Deoborah (typo)

Thank you for expressing interest in volunteering at our Adoption and Rescue Centre (ARC). We'll explain some of the kennel duties so you can have a better understanding of what is required of you.

Your responsibilities include socialising and walking the dogs. A number of the dogs at ARC are quite fearful of people so your job is to interact with them and draw them out of their shell. If you are able to help train them to understand basic commands, that would be a bonus.

If you see any pee or poo, you are expected to pick up the poo and clean up the pee with a mop. We strive to maintain a clean and spotless environment so volunteers are not encouraged to wear footwear into the premises.

We have mainly medium to large size dogs at the ARC so you must feel comfortable being around them. Dogs can detect fear and will take advantage of the situation if they sense that you are afraid. Our dogs are generally not aggressive but they can bite if provoked so care needs to be taken by the volunteer.

Besides interacting with the dogs, volunteers may also be asked to help with other tasks such as painting, gardening, moving funiture and other heavy items as well as cleaning and tidying rooms.

ARC volunteers are expected to help out at our kennels every Saturday from 12 noon - 3.30pm on a long term basis. The ARC is located in Lim Chu Kang and is quite inaccessible if you don't drive. Getting there by public transport involves taking an MRT to Kranji station and either continuing the journey by taxi or taking a bus and walking a distance in the sun or rain.

If you can only help out on an ad hoc basis or if you find that you cannot handle the responsibilities we have mentioned but are still interested in volunteering with us, please sign up on our website (www.asdsingapore.com) to receive our quarterly newsletters and other updates. We occasionally call for volunteers for ad hoc events (as puppy minders for example) so maybe you will have the opportunity to help out with our dogs in future.

If you are still interested in becoming an ARC volunteer, please let us know when you wish to start.

Thanks and best regards
Wendy Low
Action for Singapore Dogs Society

reading it just makes me more passionate to start! the only thing is transport arrangements, but i guess i'll work it out somehow :) i replied that i'll be able to start this coming sat (16 Oct), will update you all on how it goes! :D

to my (few but) loyal readers...

just wanted to say thank you for continuing to visit this measly, often-stagnant, space :) i think my blog is one of the most boring/non-sensational ones around, so only true friends will bother coming back to update themselves on my updates! ♥

replies to comments on my tagboard:

oeh: engsin! haha i think you're the ONLY person who will notice the FONT on my name plate?! but i think you're right! it looks like garamond..

pei: you and your 'wao'..you surely can one, it's super easy! just develop some nice photo shots, get a ball of twine & some wooden pegs and you're ready to go! i can provide the supplies! hehe

di: hehe if you gimme a photo frame with a photo of both of us, i'll surely place it on my table! :p

kez: hehe if i can be granted access into your office i can help you dear! but yea i heard now you all don't have fixed desks right..when can you get your own desk then?

my office desk

had more time on my hands yesterday, so i cleared my desk of all its mess & decorated it with photos i developed from my uk trip! had wanted to decorate my room wall like that, but mummy didn't allow me to cos she said it'd collect dust (!!).

but a prettier desk does make me look forward to going to work more, & it helps lift spirits! my buddy phebe, who sits on my left, told me as we were walking to the mrt after work, "deborah i feel very happy today because you decorated your table"..so silly right!! then when i offered to help her decorate hers cos i had extra photos she refused! she said she likes her table empty, but she likes that i decorated mine..hahaha cannot understand..

it's performance evaluation period now..i've seen some office politics come into play..because after all, compensation is what everyone is most concerned about at the end of the day..it reflects if all the hard work you put in is being recognized by your manager, and if it is not, it becomes a potential source of dissatisfaction & eventual turnover in the department. it's a tricky issue to deal with here.

will update more soon!