Weird Remarks During CNY

Of Boyfriends and Girlfriend

Auntie: How old are you?
HT: 27
Auntie: When are you getting married?
HT: I don't even have a BF, how to get married?
Auntie: Is your bro dating?
HT: No
Auntie: Are your sisters dating?
HT: No
Auntie: Why isn't anyone dating in the family?
HT: I don't know?

Dad had been visiting Mum's 5th sis for the past 28 years and that sis asked:

Auntie: What is your name?
Dad (in surprise): Tony

Recognising Relatives

Dad: We are visiting 2nd Aunt
Children: Who?
Dad: My 2nd Aunt, your grandma's sister
Children: Who?
Dad: The one who stays in Tmn XXX
Children: Who?
Dad: The one who stays in front of the playground
Children: Oh....yeah....that one

Dad: We are visiting "A Bak Chik"
Children: Who?
Dad: One of your relatives on grandma's side. We always visit them. Remember, the boys are about your age.
Children: Who?
Dad: The one who always serve us mee siam with mushrooms and longans
Children: Oh....that one.

Dad: Next stop is Uncle Cheah's place
Children: Who?
Dad: He was my landlord for many years when I was a bachelor. We visited his house last year.
Children: Who?
Dad: The one who always makes us 'Top Hats (ala Pai Tees)'
Children: Oh...that one.

Hoey Theen

A Stressful and Sleepy Year of the Boar

Of all the CNY, this one is the most stressful one because I drove my housemate's car. The pressure of handling another's car hung heavily over me as I manouvered this giant car. Surprisingly, this car is very comfortable to drive. Got me thinking that I might want to consider a saloon car insteaad of a cute and dashingly striking red MyVi. Dad's car statistic revealed that red cars get into more accidents than any other colour. I wonder why? Still...I'm determined to get the red baby. Anyway, my history of accidents is legendary so...why bother to change that perception though I HAVEN'T GOTTEN INTO AN ACCIDENT FOR OVER 2 YEARS.

I slept a lot this holiday, too. Maybe my body realised that it has been sleep-deprived and knowing that this is holiday season, it just gives up being energetic and decides to rejuvenate. I slept literally everywhere; in the car while waiting for my parents, in my relative's house, at home while everyone is changing clothes for dinner and immediately upon reaching home in the night after visitations. I'm still sleepy now even though I have slept for 8 hours last night.

Back to CNY, here's how it went:

CNY's Reunion Dinner

Hungry people who waited patiently for the glorious feast that was prepared by Mum, Hoey Theen and Hoey Lit. Mum did the curry rendang chicken and fishball soup, Hoey Theen did the kicap manis fish and vege, while Mum supervised the cooking of the chicken pong teh. The cooking went smoothly except for the little beige scavenger who kept hovering near the stove for scraps.

Visitations

Getting ready for our visitations...means we wait and sleep on the bed while mum puts on her makeup and dad waits in the car.

Playing cards with Cin Cau (oops... I mean Chin Hao)... Btw, getting Chin Hao as your partner in the game of 'Bridge' is as good as losing, parents and relatives catching up with each other in English and Hokkien (the part which lost most of us and we zoned out elsewhere), making uncles and aunties serve us drinks and entertaining ourselves.

When Bored

Out of boredom, we took photos of our silhoulettes, played with Cookie and Duchie though they were more interested in car rides, being juvenile and lazing.

That's CNY in Malacca for us. Did I mention that it was sweltering hot there and constantly inadequate food as no shops were open. I was in constant hunger and sleepiness throughout the trip but thanks to my parents' desire to ensure their offsprings are well-fed...all I had to say was "hungry" and I'll get food ASAP.

Hi's and bye's

Come get to know me,
I am waiting,
Let's connect.

I hate merely hi's and bye's,
Be around at least,
So we can be friends.

Hoey Lit

Photojournalism

Director Leon is very happy that war is over!

Sweet Kenneth praised my photography skills for Saturday. Apparently, I should switch my course to photojournalism:) with such good talent for a first timer convering the Hall Play event "Letters from the Frontline". I was emcee cum part-time photographer.

On the other hand, my emcee skills are not that impressive, the curtain was nearly knocking me down when it was closing. Who cares? Great show.

Gotham Penthouse's Boys

Po Ling and Wan Yi have been planning a clubbing trip to Ministry of Sound for one year. It was never fulfilled until yesterday. So there was a bevy of girls out on a Wednesday night. Ironic, Po Ling felt guilty and said " Can I bring my lecture notes?" ????? Well, it will be cool to study in a club.

At 12 am, we went into Gotham Penthouse to catch the Odessey - a dance act of 5 hot guys from Johannesburg (imagine a bulkier Backstreet Boys that dance but don't sing). Initially we thought it was a strip show. Thank goodness it wasn't. I would have grossed out.


Hoey Lit

Risk ...Reward

The higher the reward, the higher the risk.


Hoey Lit

The tennis match that we lost.....and that sucks.

Yesterday, Wen Yan and I played tennis doubles against Eusoff Hall. Though we were leading by 8-3 initially, we started making mistakes and gave the match to them on a silver platter. Damn. I should practice more.

My intelligent racquet deserves a more skillful owner.


Hoey Lit

the static age

I like the static age...have been listening to their "cherry red", "vertigo", "blank screen" and etc. Described as a post dance punk band, they are a quiet bunch of people. The music is never loud but it has a pulsing gloomy yet fun melody. Their music makes you reminiscense about the past yet imagine about the future.
Beware, listening to it more than 5 times makes the band intolerable.

http://www.purevolume.com/thestaticage

Han Yang just gave a half-paralysed zebrafish to Po Ling. The poor fish was injected with transgenic gene to induce paralysis during ecology class, the paralysis will last for a few weeks. Apparently, the fish's two other buddies committed suicide by jumping out of the aquarium. Sigh...all in the name of science and education, even small fish are suffering.


Hoey Lit

Be An Al-Cheapo Valentine

NEWS RELEASE
A BORING VALENTINE? I DON’T THINK SO

BANDAR SUNWAY, 18 JAN - Every February, across the country, chocolates, flowers, and gifts are exchanged between loved ones, all in the name of Valentine’s Day. Be an el-cheapo and win yourself a Valentine’s gift for your loved ones without spending a single cent. Steps to becoming a cheapo:

1. See cheap looking 4x8 board beside the Concierge
2. Choose one of the gifts in the board
3. Borrow the pen from the Concierge. Don’t bring your own
4. Mark on contest form provided by the Concierge
5. Remember, fill in all details or you won’t get your al-cheapo gift IF YOU DO WIN
6. Keep the pen and walk off, pretending that you didn’t hear the Concierge Assistant calling you to return the pen.
7. Do not return to the Concierge

By the way, as with all contest, the fine prints indicate that you have to spend a minimum of RM100 in a single receipt to qualify for this contest. Our advice is to dig the rubbish bin to find any unwanted receipts and use that to participate in this exciting contest. Better still, stand by cashier counters and grab the receipt before it is given to the customer.

To the sponsors, you are mentioned because I have no choice but to put your name here. I have no intention of giving free publicity as this is work for me and no benefit at all BUT I HAD NO CHOICE!

______________________________________________
Media enquiries, please contact

Ms Loo Hoey Theen
Senior Public Relations Executive
X Group Sdn Bhd
Tel: 03 7494 31XX
Fax: 03 7492 62XX

Christmas Pics with Cell

Hot Chickies of the Kuku Cell

(Shocker Award of the Year goes to Min Litt for that outrageously HOT zebra-striped dress and boots, Glamour Queen Kim shines in her dazzling PINK necklace)

Me and my little Bro (no doubt the cutest guy in town that night and coupled with the SUPER SMART tie and suit...he is out to melt hearts)
(Kuku Cell Chickies in their Christmas garbs) Lian Khin looks deliciously pretty in that black and white dress. Someone needs to get her a cute guy to match the pretty gal.

Growing Pile of Work

After 5 days away from work, I thought I would have a good holiday and break but mana tahu, my neck is already aching by now. I have loads of work to do but somehow, I can't seem to finish my work. How I wish I can just tumble into bed right now and snuggle in the warmness of my comforter. Then, turn on the night light to watch a happy, romantic comedy. I'm not in a mood for any negativity right now because I'm super TIRED and STRESSED!

My ways of DE-STRESSING:

1. A bath tub filled with warm therapeutic essence (rose for feminity, sea minerals to refresh, wisteria for pampering, strawberry for sweetness).
2. A box of Ferrero Rocher and a cold citrus drink in front of a romantic comedy.
3. Lying on the bed with the lights off and a GOOD CD.
4. Harry Potter's 7th book and the handphone OFF.
5. Shopping and actually getting good deals.
6. Everyone disappears and I get the piano to myself.
7. Aromatherapeutic massage (not greedy but 4 hours will be great).
8. Writing articles on topics that I'm passionate about.
9. Cleaning up the house.
10. Rearranging my cubicle.

Shopping For Slacks

Woke up early to jog but couldn’t get any of my sis to wake up at 9am. Looks like I had to wait for them to wake up. PIGLETS!

Finally, I got the last piggy to wake up because we had to get Hoey Sheen a pair of new slacks for her job at the kindergarten. She had lost so much weight that all her pants look too big for her which is a good sign coz she is beginning to look pretty. I can’t wait for the final completion of her slimming diet.

We decided Tebrau City was going to be our shopping destination because MNG, TopShop and all were having sale. After 5 hours of walking, we finally decided on a pair of army pants for Hoey Sheen and she looks great in them! She now wears a size 8 for Dorothy Perkins (which is the smallest size) and I bet a few weeks from now, she will be wearing a size 8 for TopShop (right now, size 10 for TopShop).

Hoey Lit … she got herself a pair of super tight jeans which accentuates her ass nicely. Lucky her. I look like I’ve got a flat ass when I wore the jeans. There goes my chance of getting any other cutting besides Levi’s. Being this thin is no fun when it comes to finding clothes. Whoever said that it was easy to find clothes, PLEASE! Come and try to be me when shopping to experience “depressive shopping syndrome” (DSS) – a disorder that is triggered by the impossibility of finding the right skirt in the right size or the unavailability of size for the preferred design.

Thank goodness I didn’t have to endure DSS this time because I got myself a G2000 blouse (a beautiful and green collared blouse with soft glowing lines and chiffon lining). Can’t imagine what I’m describing? Its just a collared G2000 blouse but I’ve been eyeing this piece since last year and I can’t believe that its going for 50%!

While we trying out clothes, one of us had a brainwave for each to buy the same baby T and wear this for family outings. We never wore the same outfits since we were young and we got super excited over this.

Our aim: To wear this baby T in our individual style and make it look GOOD!

When we got home, the first thing we did was to try out the baby T in different styles and the results – fantabulous!

Hoey Sheen : Playful, cute and cheeky charm with her usual style of “carefree-ness”

Hoey Lit: Casual chic with style

Hoey Theen: Still haven’t decided on the combo because all my clothes are back in Subang.

To see the results of this “Sisterhood Baby T” fashion statement, stay tuned for more updates or better still, catch us LIVE at FGT’s Sunday Service this week.

Countdown to 2007 with CSI

3, 2, 1….zzz…zzz… that was what I was doing during the new year’s countdown. Tired after staying up late the night before and spending a whole day with the family. All of us were watching CSI Season 6 (the whole series in a night) which was quite fun, between channel surfing on our new satellite channels. My favourite which incidentally was also Hoey Lit’ fav is the World Fashion Channel which features the latest trends in fashion. Next was Trace TV, a channel similar to Malaysia’s MTV and Channel V but this is European based. Poor Dad and bro had to endure our endless fascination with fashion, criticism of “ugly” designs and raves about those that we like. I guess we only found out that they were bored when we heard Dad snoring in the background.

Hoey Sheen went for her countdown party after our New Year’s eve dinner which was the fabulously delicious “pong teh” chicken and “chai sim” soup. Dad cooked and I was supposed to help but I slept through the afternoon. Must be sleep compensation after all the deprivation earlier this month. Living on barely 5-6 hours of sleep each day and sometimes, less has a very tiring effect on the poor mind.

In the afternoon, all of us went to Willy’s new house in Mount Austin and the house was ideally nice for a couple or young family. Gated, clean, spacious, plenty of parking space, cooling and quiet. The best part – it was superbly reasonable at only RM190,000. Can’t imagine getting a deal like that in Subang – MISSION IMPOSSIBLE! We didn’t get our chocolate fondue as promised by Kok Peng, but we had chocolates instead during our gossip session (as usual for girls) while the guys had a gala time shouting over their Playstation football game.

A Rustic Thailand

Cable TV is supposed to bring the world to your living room without having to step out and spend expensive dollars to see the world. This purpose was achieved when I watched The Lonely Planet on Thailand but what cable TV couldn’t give me was the experience of being in Thailand itself. The air was humid with a laidback and rustic traditional lifestyle which is so different from Malaysia. People were still travelling around in “tuk-tuk” which is a different version of the trishaw and instead of a bicycle, it is motorcycle attached to a cart, which is used to move cart passengers around.

Culture and Lifestyle

The whole city is an oxymoron of cultures and lifestyle. The contrast is slightly unnerving to my pampered senses. Suddenly, I felt ashamed of my “taken for granted” lifestyle which I complained every now and then. People were so poor that little girls as young as my youngest sister were trying to sell themselves to white foreigners to earn that little bit of cash. Competition was so tough among the girls that prices to “buy” one of these girls became very low. Even pregnant women were trying to make a sale. I had to walk past these women who operate at roadside bars every night and it saddens me to see that tourists are actually encouraging this flesh trade. The bars are perpetually flocked with tourists. A very pathetic sight as tourists from developed country is using money for cheap thrills with these destitute women. The older ones show signs of weariness from engaging in this trade on long term basis while the younger ones have to grit their mouths and endure the weird and sadist requests from these tourists. This is only a close-up view of the culture.

In the background, high-rise buildings such as the biggest mall in South East Asia and posh buildings cater for the rich and elite. The malls have brands that even Singapore malls do not carry. One of the malls actually has retailers selling Ferraris, BMWs, Lamborghinis and Porsche. In this mall, people were dressed to the nines and carrying expensive bags while the people on the streets are still very much rooted in tradition and fashion is a luxury that cannot be afforded by the street people.

It was weird to see “tuk-tuks” amidst Toyota Vios and expensive Mercs. The road system is so undeveloped that traffic jams is a world-understood situation in Bangkok. Trying to negotiate the traffic is virtually impossible. To move that few meters take hours, people resorted to walking to save time. Pavements are cracked, tiles missing from the pavement, uneven pavements – these are just part of life in Bangkok.

Despite the prevalence of the poverty, people were comfortable with their lifestyle. The level of complacency amidst the community surprises me. Malls could display their wares without fears of petty thefts. Petty theft crimes is not a societal problem as compared to Malaysia. What makes the people behave this way? Malaysia has better educated people and higher income society yet the crime rate is higher. Theft is usually a crime of destitution yet Thais hold more pride and dignity than resorting to this.

Food

Local fare dots the street as women try to sell their produce to passer-bys. Fried insects, duck mee, beef noodles and pok-pok salad are commonly seen. I had wanted to try some of these foods but the hygiene level killed my appetite. Food sellers used bare hands to handle food and I doubt they clean their hands each time they handle something apart from food. Squatting by the roadside, putting the bare hands into baskets to pull out a handful of mee and washing the used bowls in basins of used water don’t appeal to my normally hygienic self. My stomach churned at the sight of the clogged drains by these vendors. I ended up not trying any street food.

Shopping

Having visited almost every mall in Bangkok, I could safely agree that shopping for variety in high-brands is a must for elites. I loved the white, clean and spacious design of the malls – conducive to my already ‘finely-tuned’ shopping instincts. However, I was not in Bangkok to shop for high-end brands, I was there for the al-cheapo produce. Having battled sweaty people on the streets and balancing on the uneven pavements, I finally had my chance to visit MBK and Patpong for these al-cheopo stuff. Sadly, the regular influx of tourists has already acclimatised the locals to the bargaining skills of these tourists. Thus, inflated prices make shopping a bit pricy. Much bargaining to bring down the price does not justify the effort taken purchase the item. Moroever, due to the limited time frame to shop, I couldn’t shop much.

Thailand, I will be back but for the cultural aspect. Looks like shopping for me will be in countries such as the Americas, Europe, Australia and not this cultural-rich country.

Christmas Dinner 2006 @ Sheesh Mahal

After watching A Night At The Museum, I have to declare that the movie is funny in a Ben Stiller way. Expected yet he makes you feel that it is unexpected. Who would have guess that wax statutes would have hearts of gold. Anyway, after the movie, we (me, Lian Khin, Mel, Daphnie, Mike and Joel) decided to take our Christmas Dinner at a Pakistani Restaurant, "Sheesh Mahal" which was Sheesh! This is not that mahal after all.

We had Palak Paneer (killer minced spinach with cottage cheese), Beef Vindaloo, Lamb Masala (I think), Almond Kulfi (ice-cream with spices), Gulab Jamon (which was too sweet for my taste - Mel loved this sweet dessert).

Jo - being his first time at a Pakistani food was kinda hesistant when food was served yet he plucked up the courage to take the first plunge (must be out of curiousity) and fell in love with the Palak Paneer immediately. It was funny to see Lian Khin and Joel enjoying the food. Must say it was a good and fun Christmas dinner. Jo was so "in" to his food that he pushed his glass and drink to my side (talk about liking the food - he ate so much that he couldn't stand straight).

Christmas Dinner on 23 Dec

That's Baby Marcus whom I have been trying and trying to seduce the whole night but unfortunately, he prefers the "hamster" aka Jerrica to me lor.


Happily, I wore a party dress to Elinor's house for a Christmas dinner, after work. Didn't expect to be one of the few rare cases who wore a party dress coz everyone was in work wear or casuals. Belot lah!

Worse case, this was a couple Christmas Dinner which made me feel VERY ODD coz I am the only one who didn't have a partner. Though I came with Shi Han - that doesn't count because he has a girlfriend. So malu-fying.

Anyway, had a fun time laughing at Mama Jo's animated jokes and stories. I tried to carry Mama Jo's son, Marcus SO MANY TIMES and the kid just keeps on rejecting me! It's like I have this word "STAY AWAY FROM THIS CRAZY WOMAN" on my forehead!

Kuih Lapis

Layer One ~ On The Outside

name : Charmaine Loo Hoey Theen
birth date : 10 Nov 1979
current status : Single, Available BUT NOT DESPERATE
eye colour : Brownish but not that dark (I love my eye colour)
hair colour : Brownish black with blonde highlights (though the blondie part is fading out)
righty or lefty : Lefty rules!
zodiac sign : Scorpio (the most mysterious of all though I think its not mysterious but just that people don't understand me)

Layer Two ~ On The Inside

your heritage : Chinese Nyonya (I don't practice any Nyonya traditions)
your fears : Deadly afraid of butterflies
your weaknesses : Ferrero Rocher (very difficult to say NO to this lovely round babies)
Incompetence (this irritates me to the max)
"Peng", "Leng" and "Cheng" shopping
SALE
Beautiful shoes & handbags
your perfect pizza: Loads of cheese, bacon, pineapple, pepperoni and mushrooms!

Layer Three ~ Yesterday, Today, Tomorrow

your first thoughts waking up : I need to jog or do my crunches
your bedtime : Usually 12 to 1am
your most missed memory : Being with my family

Layer Four ~ Your Pick

pepsi or coke : Coke (it is more gassy, less sweeter and superbly addictive)
single or group dates : Group (more fun)
adidas or nike : 3 stripes anytime (funkier design and definitely much more variety)
lipton or nestea : Nestea with peach/lime/honey/lemon (make it ICE COLD)
chocolate or vanilla : Vanilla (with orange - yum yum)
cappuccino or coffee : Cappuccino please...make if foamy hot and loads of choc powder

Layer Five

do you smoke : No
curse : Yes but seldom nowadays (intending to be more God-like)
take a shower : Duh! Who doesn't? We don't live in the Artics
have a crush : Can Hugh Jackman be a candidate?
think you've been in love: Yes, I still am very much in love with God
go to school : Yes
want to get married : Yes if God decides to send me Mr Right. Till then, I love my current life
believe in yourself : I think people who know me will know the answer
think you're a health freak: More like a vain freak

Layer Six ~ In The Past Month

drank alcohol : Yes, Christmas' eve
been on stage : Biasalah
eaten sushi : Don't really fancy this
dyed your hair : Highlights, dye, perm, rebonding - you name it, I've done it

Layer Seven ~ Have You Ever...?

played a stripping game : Maybe when I'm married (hehe)
changed who you were to fit in : Not really. Only if it is bad habits

Layer Eight

age you're hoping to get married : 30

Layer Nine ~ In A Guy

best eye colour : Any colour as long as its mesmerising and definitely, puppy dog eyes
best hair colour : As long as it looks good on the guy
short or long hair: Short (unless that guy looks like Legolas)

Layer Ten ~ What Were You Doing?

1 minute ago : Typing this blog
1 hour ago : Having lunch at KFC with Ah-Chear
4.5 hours ago : Work
1 month ago : Barely alive from all the work
1 year ago : Working?

Layer Eleven ~ Finish The Sentence

i love : to SHOP
i feel : a little tired from lack of sleep and wish my media monitoring will end
i hate : newspaper now
i hide : any fatty bits bulging out from my body
i miss : MY WARM BED
i need : rest

Layer Twelve ~ Tag 5 people

Joshua, Grace, Gloria, Mel and Fibi

Christmas Eve's 2nd Round @ Fibi's

Touch down after running around Sexy Lai's house and Subang Parade to grab Mel's white blouse for Christmas' choir performance.

Got stuck to the TV to watch some bikini-clad assassins in a complicated story line of incest (this is a Hollywood movie and not some Chinese drama). Took loads of photos in the short 45 min of being there. Drank a can of coke only coz still too full from the earlier session of eating yummy crispy mushrooms, spaghetti meatballs, snowfish, roasted lamb and red wine at Auntie Yin's place.

Going to Thailand

I'm excited! I'm going go to Bangkok, Thailand for a 3D/2N business trip. Usually, business trips are boring but this one is superbly cool! I get 2D of free and easy shopping and only 1D of actually shopping research. My hours may be long and tiring in this line BUT I get to work in a shopping mall and what do I do? SHOP!!! Such a perfect job and ideal for me.

I haven't even researched where to shop when in Bangkok. Hopefully, my colleagues are shopaholics coz I have no idea where to shop there.

TEEN TITANS

Having lunch at the first Tony Roma's in Malaysia and the BBQ Chicken is superb! I wanted second helpings but was on an eternal diet to ensure that I do not bloat. Been binging a lot recently. Must be the hormones.

TEEN TITANS GO! I walked into the office happily wearing the new Crocs that Mak gave and someone had to comment, "Hei! You look like one of the Teen Titans character with those shoes". Probably, my colleagues are not used to seeing a more dressed-down me.

If you can't see our eyes - that's understandable because this was taken at 1.50am during the rehearsal. Poor Cyborg, he can't sit because his pampers will break if he sits.