17th June 2014 Tuesday

Been a few busy week since I last blog. Visited quite a few cafes :D

I quite like Drury lane, the free wifi is pretty decent :D But the 2nd floor's kinda dark...

Love the waffles in ReStore :9

I like the flourless chocolate cake at Necessary Provisions. Free Wifi there too. Plus I like the quiet neighbourhood. It's near to JI... Brings me right down memory lane. Haha. 

Shortlisted 7 cafes to visit in Bugis area.. New cafes are popping up faster than I can visit them -_-" I suppose thats a good thing?

Finally back on track with my exercise regimen. Back to 5sets for weights ~ Been slacking off with only 1 or 2 sets since I came back from Korea. >_<

Back to focusing on healthy eating. Which means, organic, gluten avoidance and plenty of veg ~ Started preparing my own meals again. Somehow, the food u cook yourself normally taste good. Lol. I guess I have simple taste :)

It's great to be back to shopping in the produce aisle ;) Just got some organic produce today, along with free range eggs. Definitely in love with free range eggs.. Not sure if its my imagination, but they seem to taste better! And of course, they are healthier. 

Trying to cut down on meat, since organic / free range meat cost alot and is not easy to find. Free range eggs are a more convenient option for protein at the moment. Will continue to source around for affordable organic / free range meat. But if can't find, there's always free range eggs :9 

Seriously, even though I love my vegetables, Im dun thk I could  or want to ever become Vegan / Vegetarian. Mainly, also becos I believe that meat is part of human's natural diet. Im not interested in getting a deficiency by going Vegetarian... And I love my fried chicken wingz too much :x

31st May 2014 Saturday

5 mths since the last time I found time to blog. 

I feel busy.. yet not really that busy. 

It's like you know u have alot to do, but you prefer to plonk down on the bed watching old dramas or old movies. Or maybe new ones. Im currently in the middle of too many dramas. Darn. You look at ur desk which seriously needs clearing... and then decide to waste some time on facebook instead. There is always reluctance when it comes to doing the things that should be done. Not good... Not good at all.. 

But its still not too bad. Im getting back on track with my exercise regimen. Pilates followed by weights today. I have a feeling that when I wake up tomorrow, Im gonna pay for those reverse crunches I did just now. HIIT yesterday before I head out for some cafe time. 

I read 6 chapters of  "Therapy" in The Reading Room yesterday. Reading is really therapeutic.. Despite the fact that Im reading about some psychotic murder case.. Lolz.. 

The Reading Room is a lovely cafe.. Its one of those rare cafes that u feel that the staff is in no hurry to get you to leave. The waiter automatically asked if I needed hot water refill for my tea as he noticed I kept the  lid on my cup to keep the tea warm :) Food is so so though. A short distance walk if you exit from NEL exit for Outram Park MRT. 

Been exploring quite a few cafes recently.. So, thats one of the things I put on my list to do for the year.. Checked. 

On a side note, the waffles in Stateland Cafe is yummy.. I might just go back again for another flavour ~ Might go back to Lola cafe to try the chicken wings which I did not try the first time I went.. 

As for healthy diet wise.. Haiz. Not very successful since I have some strange weird craving for laksa recently. Eating alot of laksa. Way too much. And chicken wingz. Lotsa of chicken wingz. Especially korean ones. Doesnt help when you have a fren to go eat chicken wingz with -.- 

Putting salad back into the equation though. Though, the only way I can eat healthy mostly, is to cook. And for that.. I need time.. More time.. 

11st Jan 2014

Reflected on the year gone by... Time flies. Yet another yr older. I feel so old -.-

Once again, thking abt where my life should be going. No new yr resolutions.. just a few things to put into perspective. 

Most important thing, health. Trying to get back into my exercise regime. Been slacking off quite abit. Need to stay with eating healthier 80% of the time, and avoid gluten and dairy whenever possible. And sleep early. Definitely need to sleep earlier. 

Next on the agenda, learn trading. Been busying trying to understand how to trade Forex and Index. Still trying to find a system I can easily use for trading forex.. And maybe I have found something. Need to study further. Been sleeping late the last few nights, looking at the Index -.- Strangely, I seem to feel more alert on 6hrs of sleep, as compared to maybe 7 or 8. Perhaps I should juz sleep for 6hrs from now on... I need more time! 

Third, stop buying clothes. There is definitely no more space for any more clothes in my wardrobe. Im going to wear every single piece of clothing I own, at least once, before I let myself buy anymore. Thats gonna take... awhile... 

Fourth, travel. Other than the upcoming trip to Korea in Mar, Im still pending for the trip in Sept. Where shall I go, that I've never been? Hmm...

Fifth, love life.. Or the lack of it. On one hand, I think its great to have someone to share your life with... But I have yet to find that someone. On the other hand, the idea of giving up singlehood, is scary. If you've been single for a while, you would know what I mean. The taste of freedom.. having alot of Me time. Doing whatever you want, whenever you want, without having to be accountable to anyone... 

The question is, is a RS worth it? Maybe, but only with the right person. And somehow, I've yet to meet him.. yet. 

27th Dec 2013

Time flies, 2013 coming to an end soon. Been busy the last few months... Busy tweaking my life to be healthier... Exercising frequently, clean eating. Added and will be adding more superfood to my diet : Kale, Quinoa, Maca, Cacao, Raw honey, extra virgin coconut oil, cinnamon, sea salt.. etc 

Some thoughts on clean eating and healthy lifestyle...

I love clean eating, but that does not mean I dun eat other things. Just that generally, I opt for more nutrient dense superfood whenever possible. I mean, why would you want to eat stuff that does not benefit, and in fact might harm your health? 

And no, healthy != unappetising -_-

Apparently, when you tell people you eat clean.. you start getting those "looks"... Most people equate healthy with unappetising, yucky food. 

EH HELLO... Seriously, if you even think about it : If the food doesnt taste nice, no one wouldn eat it. And if healthy/organic/gluten food really taste that bad? No one would buy it... Those companies selling them would have closed shop long ago -.-: 

The reason why organic / gluten free / healthy food business are still around, its becos they taste good and are healthy.... Just that you probably gotta pay more for it :)

Also, the food that I eat, may be uncommon here in Sg, but its very commonly eaten in other parts of the world -.- Eg, Quinoa, maca... Staple food in some parts of the world. So if healthy means unappetising.. The part of the world where its commonly eaten.. Are they eating unappetising food all the time? Anyone with a bit of common sense should know that can't be true?

There are many reasons that push people to start looking at what they eat. Usually its only when they start having serious health problems, body breaks down, etc, before they would acknowledge that they need to eat healthier.. and start exercising.. 

Ultimately, lifestyle choices are very personal. No one should be judged for choosing healthy / clean eating ;)

And seriously, I love what I eat! Now I just need to add some high grade organic matcha to my list and I will be done :D Yum :9

Other than healthy living, Im learning about fundamental analysis for stocks, Technical analysis, and also Forex. 

Looking forward to 2014! Gonna be a few busy weeks while I learn more about using Price Action on Forex and Stocks. And also my upcoming trip to South Korea in Mar 2014 :D

7th Oct 2013

It's been a busy month, with all the birthdays celebrations and stuff. One more birthday to go, this Thursday, then I'm gonna start on my gluten free/dairy diet. Or rather gluten/dairy avoidance diet.

I had been monitoring how my stomach feels when I eat certain food. Like pasta(>90% wheat), my stomach tends to churn... I had been eating alot of bread recently, which is full of wheat, and my breakout went crazy(I've always been breaking out, but never like this...) stuff like soya sauce, also tend to make my stomach unsettled. I don't get the runs from eating all these food with wheat, just my stomach feels indigestion / churning / unsettled.

Milk on the other hand, gives me really bad stomach churns, and definitely the runs. Definitely lactose intolerant... But not all milk. The milk I had in Japan on my last trip was fine.... And tasted good too. The condense milk in the milk tea I drink, doesnt affect me as well... I really duno why...

Read about gluten and wheat, its really bad for ur digestion. Since Im not really a fan of bread, and pasta is not my staple food, I can definitely avoid them since they do not agree with me. Fried food is normally full of wheat/gluten too. But I rarely eat them, so its fine. Soya sauce, on the other hand is quite commonly used in the food i normally eat, and hard to avoid. But I guess the impact should be minimal.

In Singapore, this diet is not that hard to keep to.. Since I'm not strictly gluten free... The only problem I will face, is when I travel.... Definitely face more problem than a vegetarian... Ha...

Got myself addicted to reading again.. Haha... Started on the first book of the series in September, I think. Finally finished reading the 7th book in the StarDoc series. Another 3 more to go, can't wait to get my hands on them!

The love Duncan has for Cherijo in StarDoc, reminds me of the love Jack has for Rose in Titanic. They both do everything in their power, to save the love of their life. In every way a person can be saved. I wonder if I will ever meet someone like them.

29th September 2013 Sunday

Today marks the 10th yr in my current job. And another yr older since yesterday... Also, mid way through my yearly break in Sept/Oct...

The goal is to spend a day, relaxing. Its been many yrs since Im in Orchard on a Sunday. Firstly, because 90% of the time, im working on a Sunday... And the rest, Im simply overseas or slacking at home :P

I realised, I still dislike weekends in general... Crowded train, slow intervals. Crowded everywhere Else. I don't feel peaceful or relaxed outside.. at all. Given a choice, I would rather work weekends, n have more weekdays off.

Pretty sure, not many Ppl would say this, but.. I really wished for Sunday to end, and Monday to come! :D 

4th August 2013

Its been an eventful month for me. Somehow. Been actively working out, and tweaking my workouts to fit my life.
I really think that there are no reasons for not exercising. Unless it's health related, where you can't exercise. Anything else is just an excuse, seriously.

If you want to do something, u will find time. If you are just not that keen or you don't think it's important enough, you find excuses... Thats just human nature... ;)

In order to fit my exercise routine in my life, I've been waking up real early. Shifted my waking time to 6am-6.30am. Sometimes even before 6... And sleeping before 11pm if possible, Else latest 11.30pm.

I could never wake up early previously. Due to having to wake up real early for a Batam trip last month, I realised it can actually be done... I guess I was always afraid of not getting enough sleep if I wake too early. Imagine trying to get through 12hrs of work when sleep deprived! Nightmare!

Now all's good. Even on Offdays I wake up around the same time.

Next thing in progress, healthy diet. Still a trial and error. Trying pescetarian for this month... Then tweak from there... Cut diary too. Not sure if I'm imagining things, I'm feeling Alot better after cutting meat n diary... Hmm. Not sure if it's the diet, or the exercise.