being taitai

iOS 7

/ carlenetan / Leave a comment

Here’s my 2 cents.  First things first, I bought an iPhone and I do not want it to look like an Android.

So they’ve lost me on the design.  There’s an elegance in iOS 6 that I much prefer, note the picture on the left … maybe I just like shadows.  Next, I’m not fond of form taking precedence over function.  Transitions are pretty but if that’s all it is without any function, it feels like a percentage of the profits I’m contributing to is going to waste.  My question is this, what’s with the icons flying in each time I ‘open’ my phone?  Like I said, I don’t want my iPhone to look like a Samsung, if I did, I’d buy the Samsung Note 3.  So much for “We don’t add features simply because we can, because it’s technologically possible. We add features only when they’re truly useful. ” because I want to know what is Parallax for?

I also really don’t like when you change gestures for no apparent reason.  Like left to right swipe for Delete is now right to left.  Also, to ‘close’ apps it’s no longer holding onto an icon but swiping upwards.  It really isn’t a big deal but like that pebble in your shoe, it can be rather annoying.  I don’t know if anyone on the design team gave it any thought, which seems to go against the ethos of Apple, when you have to relearn something with no real benefit, it’ll usually bug your user.

That said, I do like some improvements. Like Control Centre, very much appreciated there and Airdrop but why oh why doesn’t Airdrop work between iOS devices and your Mac?  The iTunes Radio, I really like 🙂  As you can tell, at the moment I’m not a huge fan of iOS 7 so I might be reviewing an Android device a lot sooner than I expected or made to eat this post when I find out what Parallax is truly useful for 🙂

Lunch Time Babies

/ carlenetan / 3 Comments

I think I’m going to do this more often, make lunch dates with little young’uns.  It breaks the day up and gives me a reason to smile 🙂

Carlene’s blog world, please meet little Mirabelle.  Niece and goddaughter to my dear angel friend, Gen.  The last time I saw Mirabelle, she was a tiny baby.  At nearly 20 months, she definitely has her family wrapped around her little finger.  She’s a cutie with a great laugh!! Godma Gen is no different from me though :p  It’s boot camp mentality or it’s back home.  Actually Gen and I have more in common than we realise.

Lunch was at Food For Thought Botanic Gardens, which has a branch just opposite my office so I’m well acquainted with their menu.  It’s veggie and kid friendly.  The Botanic Garden branch is a much better location.  Wider spaces and much better parking but the food is better at the Queen’s Street branch.  I’ll definitely be coming back more for my family oriented outings where the kids can run free with a playground to boot.  Mirabelle, her Godma and I had a whale of a time and I suspect we’ll be doing lunch again.

Meanwhile, I’m thinking about my next lunch time date buddy 🙂

New Babies

/ carlenetan / 1 Comment

There’s something about new babies that makes everyone happy.  Ok, maybe not everyone but me for sure 🙂  It’s been awhile since Mummy Shools and I caught up.  Work and life has a way of getting into keeping in contact.  With the occasional text and news from common friends, we’ve managed to keep up to date but nothing beats hanging out for a bit.  To make things better I get to meet her second little angel 🙂

Isn’t she such a cute one?  She has a lovely lovely disposition … kinda like her Mummy and Daddy actually.  Shools and Mos are possibly one of the calmest couples I’ve met in my life.  I’ve worked with Mummy Shools and nothing seems to faze her and I learnt a lot from that 🙂

We caught up over lunch, talked about work, husbands, her girls, work and then some while little Kayleigh potted around smiling, fed a little and took a nap!!  Pretty perfect for a nearly 6month old.

Next up on my to do, plan a play date with Kayleigh and her big sister Kaitlyn 🙂

Initiated Into Auntie-dom

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A month ago today, one of my dear friends made a trip back to Singapore, she hasn’t been back in 7 years!!  That’s like a whole lifetime … literally for my niece :p  Anyway, besides eating her fill of local delights, she wanted to play MAHJONG!!

I am friends with some of the best mahjong players around and my own aunts are very well acquainted with the tiles but I have actually never played the game.  Not until a couple of weeks ago, that is 🙂

We all trooped to All Hail Mahjong Queen Cherry’s place and I was taught to identify tiles, what ‘pong’ meant and no, it has nothing to do with smells, how to game and I even won money 🙂   I have to say, it is an interesting game and I can understand why older people all over the world play it.  I suspect if Cherry lived closer, I’d be playing more often 🙂

Meanwhile, I’ll look forward to our next game, which is probably when Mia comes back … in another 7 years.  Don’t wait too long for your next visit!!!  For now, all I can say is thank goodness for whatsapp, skype and email.

TGIF!!

Post Bali

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I’m back in the thick of things at work but my muscles are still aching for the amazing massages I had in Bali 🙂  Suffice to say the Tan Cousin getaway was a success!!  With all things Tan, there were things that didn’t quite meet our expectations but the company is all we needed to have a great break and enjoy celebrations.

In my family there are 12 cousins, 6 boys and 6 girls.  1 lives in Zurich, 4 in Perth and the 7 in Singapore.  With our other halves, this generation has grown to 18.  So 8 out of 18 made it for our inaugural Cousin Getaway.  With 3 still under the age of 18, I say that’s a pretty good turn out 🙂  Maybe when I’m in my 70s, we’ll be able to do a complete 24 Cousin Getaway.

Meanwhile, in Bali we basically hung out,got massages, ate, hung out some more.  It’s been a while since we hung out like that and it’s nice to know, we enjoy each other’s company enough to be locked up in a villa altogether.  I do take that for granted some times – the fact that I get along with my cousins.  Sure, we have our disagreements and we aren’t all crazy about each other idiosyncrasies but we’re proud of each other’s accomplishments and can genuinely be happy hanging out with each other.  That doesn’t happen often.

Life can get complicated some times but I have it good most of the time.  We’re planning to make this trip an annual one and now we’re thinking about next year.  Some say Phuket, another is enticing us to make a ski trip to Zurich.  Some are thinking of going back to Perth, which is kinda like home for most of us.  Wherever we decide, I’m sure we’ll have fun 🙂

Post Phuket

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Yet another overdue post that was written but was waiting for the pictures :p

I’m no longer a Phuket virgin and the first time was a little surreal, like most other first times, I guess.  Didn’t really feel like I was in Thailand because I didn’t get to eat my mango and sticky rice!!  Yes, tell me about it!!  Who goes to Thailand and doesn’t get to eat mango with sticky rice?  Me over the last weekend (Oct 15-16).

Other than that, I had no complaints.  We were at a lovely resort and barely left it.  It was great company and I’m looking forward to what we decide to do next year 🙂

So I can’t really comment on Phuket.  I think I’m still more inclined to Bali only because we’re more familiar with it.  The thing I always find strange about Thailand is this, for a land of Buddhist people, vegetarianism isn’t as common place as you would expect it.  Nonetheless, I don’t have any problems.  Actually being vegetarian nowadays really is quite easy and no one bats an eyelid any longer 🙂

I’m really lucky when it comes to friends.  People who try their darnest to be good people.  They aren’t many and those who are, are my friends 🙂  And that’s exactly what you need for a good getaway, good company.  Everything else pretty much falls into place.

Till next year!!

Phuket, Here I Come!!!

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Someone was really surprised that as a Singaporean I’ve never been to Phuket.  Well, neither has my parents, so there :p  All that changes in a couple of days though coz come this weekend I’ll be off to Phuket, Thailand!!  Nope, my husband isn’t back and it isn’t a romantic getaway.  It’s with my beach bum crew – Zack, Miss Chan and Resh!! That just means it’ll be a very decadent weekend of eating, chillling, massages and a whole load of FUN FUN FUN!!

And if the water is as blue as this picture I got from the web, I’ll be a happy camper 🙂  Can’t wait to update from there.  It’s been slightly over a year since our last getaway in Bali so we’re so due for another beach getaway.

Well, at least I am coz my beach bum crew had a Bali getaway that I couldn’t be a part off in May >.<

In case you’re wondering, we’ll be putting up at the Westin Siran Bay Resort and Spa.  Did I mention there will be massages?  Oh yah baby, I’m so looking forward to this weekend 🙂

National Day Eve

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My munchkins got a room at the Marina Bay Sands … Their father, my cousin was the one who got the room and that’s the view from our room. Needless to say, I’m excited about the fireworks tomorrow. If it isn’t explicitly clear, I’m enjoying my long weekend quite a bit 🙂

Nissan GT-R R35

/ carlenetan / 3 Comments

Left to my own devices I most likely wouldn’t be driving but I have a Daddy who loves me very much and so I do drive a nice car, a very nice car.  I wouldn’t trade her for anything in the world but if resources weren’t an issue … this is the car I dream about.

I’m not sure about you but that video … nearly orgasmic and if the GT-R could transform into a talking ass kicking robot, resources aside, I’d devote the rest of my working life saving to buy one.  Since it doesn’t and I’ll probably never be able to convince myself to give up my flat and buy my dream car … coz that’s what I’d have to do.  I live vicariously off videos online.

Now everyone knows what keeps me awake on my iPhone when my husband is away :p

Italian in Bali

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One of the best Italian places in Seminyak is Ultimo. It’s along the Laksmana area and usually packed with people. Why? It’s food that’s good at really really reasonable prices. So it’s no surprises that yesterday we found ourselves there again 🙂

So here’s the string of photos that I took with my iPhone and it’s cool photography apps.

It was a fun fun night.