We will always learn something out of everything.
So..life will still go on, till the very fateful day that we run out of breath. Summarising the ups and downs of 2016 on this blog so I can look back in the future and say hey, I was strong enough to endure all that shit and I can always do it again!
1. Going for Photoshop Class with W & Creation of TEASE
I love to learn new skills or to enhance my current skills and Photoshop is something that W has been wanting to learn too. However, I think I should go for Ai classes instead of PS! Still, it was quite an experience to be able to wake up early and squeeze with the crowd on the train with W (he usually drives so we can't get to experience it together). The class was held at the CBD area so the weekday vibes were good and always left me motivated for some odd reason. Morning takeaway teas and breakfasts, ending classes with Korean dinners at Tanjong Pagar then taking the train back. Simple joys :) Also, the creation of TEASE this year just proves how overly-ambitious we both are. Struggling with so many ideas in our heads and my entire laptop is filled with all the brands that we churn out at Starbucks each weekend in hopes that someday, one of it will hit it off. I think maybe one of it did...
2. Missed family time; The last CNY with my grandma; Unfortunate events for the family
My maternal grandmother passed away this year, soon after we visited her for the last time during CNY. I will never regret chasing my sister and her husband to come down to our grandma's house on the day this photo was taken. I fondly remember the times when we were young, the entire family from my mum's side would gather together happily at her place to have our annual vegetarian steamboat reunion dinner. As kids, we'd dread the vegetarian prawns and laugh at the vegetarian abalones served. However, now I'd kill to relive in that moment again when everyone is still having that vegetarian dinner together happily, where the kids would always occupy one table and the adults another. My grandma would then go around after dinner to give each of us her carefully packed red packets from her own pocket. The passing of my grandma took a hit on my mum of course, and she'd try not to show it but deep down we could all see the sorrow in her eyes. It was sad how after my grandma's passing, my family and I had a rough time communicating and somehow everything seemed like my fault. It was a really tough time to try to get over, but family will always be family, they will always be there for you no matter who said what, did what, meant what. Family is gold. It's been almost a year since my grandma's passing, but she'll always be in my heart. On a brighter note, things did get better along the way between my family and I. Came September, we received a news that I've been waiting for all along and it got us so excited. But little did we know that a few months down the road, the happiness diminished but the whole episode only tightened the strength of our family bond all together...
3. Bangkok Trip 2016
Went to BKK (the land of smiles!) with my parents, W, my brother and his girlfriend. It was really hard to be the only brain thinking and planning on behalf of a total of 6 brains. I wouldn't say I enjoyed this trip to its maximum, but all the recent happenings made me so thankful for W's existence as he was my only supporting pillar during all these incidents. The only good thing was that Centara Watergate Pavillion Hotel was such a joy to stay in! It's going to be our top choice in Bangkok for now, other than Novotel Bangkok Platinum Pratunam. Oh oh oh, W & I also managed to check off 1 out of 4 trips on our list because we visited the floating market!! *throws confetti* We've always wanted to do it but procrastinated and went shopping instead so that's one off the list! :) We also visited Talad Rod Fai Night Market, Grand Palace (only the entrance though, lol), prayed at Erawan Shrine and Wat Pho!! All the touristy places because it was my parents' first trip to BKK.
4. Japan Trip 2016
I really do want to blog about my Japan trip, which was in Spring lol. I'll try to find some time to do that. W & I managed to visit Kyoto, Osaka, Nara and Tokyo over a short span of 10 days! It was crazy and I loveddddd Japan. I love it more than Korea. Japan felt magical, like a dream that I've now awoken to. Our trip was full of okonomiyaki, takoyaki, kimono, mochi, ryokan experience, Universal Studios Japan, butterbeer (!!!), cherry blossoms, matcha, Tokyo DisneySea, sneakers, sushi, yakitori and Kirin! Will never forget boating down the stream at Chidorigafuchi Park surrounded by full blossoms, W winning a minion plush at USJ, ordering SGD$68 worth of Shake Shack, shopping at Forever 21 till past 1am (and not getting chased out), ... Japan you're amazing and we'll definitely be back for more ;)
5. Daddy turns 60!
I'm glad my dad doesn't look a day older than 60. I appreciate how he's young at heart and always trying to joke with me. On his special request, the family went out for some karoke session at Teo Heng KTV, then we had a special family dinner at Hai Tien Lo @ Pan Pacific (which chalked up to thousands and definitely wasn't worth the moola), and had a cake cutting ceremony over at my sister's place. At times like these, I wish my parents could stop growing old. I love you, I love you, I love you so! ♥♥♥
6. Singapore Gardens Festival
This was a tiring yet memorable event because it was our first outdoor pop-up event! Kudos to W for being a one-man show through and through, while I tried to help as much as I could. During this event, Woo-La-La was born and we also managed to experience for the first time being behind the counter churning out food instead of being the customers purchasing the food! On the busiest Saturday, I was handling 2 menu items myself and I thought my hands and brain were about to give up on me. Never thought that doing an event like that is so tiring, and it felt worse when the stall beside is sold out for the day for their meesiam, lol. Who the heck goes to events and eats meesiam!? Or fishball noodles, or horfun!? Apparently a lot of people that go to SGF...... Anyway, managed to see Gentle Bones LIVE and...ok that's not much of a highlight. Just thankful for everyone who visited us at our little SGF booth!! ^^
7. "The Invincible" Jay Chou Concert Tour 2016
FINALLY. We finally got to attend his concert LIVE. We've been wanting to do this since Opus Jay 2013!?!?! Ughhh, lesson learnt: don't try to rely on others to get your damn tickets. But to be fair, we got our tickets cause of Reg this year. So...LOL. Was so stoked to have seen and heard Jay Chou LIVE, especially with the company of these good people. W and I even managed to get a VVIP view of Jay up close cause we ran all the way to the front from our seats hehe. Wish the concert lasted longer and that he could have sang more of my favourite songs/sang them longer. The funniest part was when they chose random members out of the audience to sing a duet with Jay. Some of them were too nervous, some did well but some were....they made others doubt if they were even fans at all. Jay Chou's concert on bucket list item, checked! And the whole bunch of us went to Zouk after that, so yay at least I stepped into Zouk @ Jiak Kim before it closed earlier on in December.
8. Sneaker-fanatic 2016
A photo posted by Woody Hein (@woodyhein) on
I've never bought so many sneakers in a year before, all thanks to W who influenced me. Till date, I can't believe I queued overnight with these crazy people for a pair of sneakers. I wouldn't even do that for a pair of heels. Have been eyeing the Reebok Insta Pump Fury for some time, so why not with the BAPE x mita x Reebok!? Just that we had to queue overnight for these...it was crazy. I'm officially too old for this shit. We even went to Cineleisure to watch Inferno during midnight before queuing and I can't believe I actually understood the movie without dozing off. It was quite an experience anyway, because the queue got really long by morning and it felt good to be the first 5 people in line hahaha!
9. Macau & Hong Kong Trip 2016
We went to Macau for the first time, ever! And then couldn't wait to get back to Hong Kong. Am currently blogging about this trip over here and here. Hong Kong trip was definitely impromptu, and it's the second time we are at Hong Kong to celebrate W's birthday! When we told everyone we were gonna spend 8 days in Hong Kong, everyone gave a shocked look. Hahaha. We ate sooo much, walked sooo much, explored a lot of areas that we did not before. We gambled till 4am in Macau, got stuck in Macau due to Typhoon Haima, struggled to get onto the only ferry ride out to Hong Kong, went to a secret bar, had my favourite Nissin cheese noodles, cafe hopped... Another experience to remember I guess! Overall, Hong Kong trip was great. Other than the fact that CRUMBS closed since March and I didn't get to eat my egglet waffle. Sob. At least we managed to eat Kam Wah for the last time though. Double sob.
10. MBS Staycations
We had 2 staycations at Marina Bay Sands this year. According to my blog, we had one in November 2015. So that marks a year already! We were really blessed with such a pretty pastel-coloured sunset while up in the Infinity Sky Pool at MBS that first evening we were there because the weather during November was totally unpredictable. On the morning after the day of the pretty sunset, it became dark and gloomy again... Also, during the second MBS staycation, we didn't fully enjoy it because we were working till 6am in the morning. Seriously could have just gone up to the pool again to see the sunrise but heck, we were too tired for it. What were we working on during a staycation at MBS!? #11 is the answer...
11. Street Food Circus SG
After Singapore Gardens Festival event in July, we got our hands itchy and decided to try for Christmas Wonderland event. The difference is - SGF was a 9-days event, Christmas Wonderland is 1 freaking month. Shag. That's the only word I can think of right now. Even to the day I'm typing this, the event has yet to end.... W was contemplating against taking up this event because it clashes with Christmas, my birthday and NYE celebrations. But I urged him to take it up as Christmas Wonderland seems like too good an opportunity to give up. So...here we are at Street Food Circus SG! Come find us at Christmas Wonderland 2016 if you haven't..though Christmas is already over. #SFCSG is literally made up of our blood, sweat and tears (and hand cramps for working too much at the laptop churning out the damn artwork). It explains the reason why we were up till 6am during our MBS staycation. Seeing the snaking queue outside our booth and the crowd waiting for you with pleading eyes for their food and drinks to be ready...it is quite a sight from the inside. Went to Christmas Wonderland on the first Friday after my work and that was the first time I saw my artworks being installed and the queue outside the tent, I was moved to tears, literally. I was left mouth agape by the newly installed menus and crowd..really. It was such a surreal and heartening feeling to see all these customers standing patiently outside to buy something that you spent months trying to crack your brain over... At Street Food Circus SG, we had the A team and we couldn't have done it alone as individuals, we were a great team. Special thanks again to every one of our friends who visited us at Street Food Circus SG (especially those who paid to come in and paid for your food), we're sorry we couldn't have entertained all of you better because we were all so busy but it really melts our hearts to have you guys around, really :') As the event comes to an end, it's going to be a bittersweet feeling to see the artwork being torn down and the empty feeling of not having to churn out of food and drinks frantically at the tent with the A team anymore. But I have a slight hunch this ain't gonna be the end...
12. #woodymelo
This year is definitely not the best year for us. Maybe we lost track halfway on the direction of this relationship while working on our own stuff, maybe we were too focused on treating each other as business partners, maybe we got too "busy" for each other, maybe we took things for granted, maybe we stopped putting in as much effort or maybe we thought that the grass is always greener on the other side. When bad things happen, the trust is gone, insecurity arises once again and disappointment is here to stay. No matter what it is, time will tell and que sera, sera. I am however, still always thankful for W's existence in my life and he has been a great pillar of support during good and bad times. He has taught me a lot since I met him, and he always challenges me to be a better person and to unleash my potential in life. I hope we will continue to love and tolerate each other, to learn to respond not react in situations, and to cherish this relationship called #woodymelo ♥
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Now that 2016 is done and dusted, it's time for new resolutions to welcome 2017! I'm guilty of not keeping up to my resolutions for 2016, so 2017 will be different! LOL. I think I should check back in here for my progress every quarter of next year. Resolutions shall be in a separate post with more positive vibes. As for now, good night. X
P/S: Happy birthday to myself :)
