Upcoming Purchases

Paid off last month's credit card bills, definitely burned a hole in my wallet from all the hotel and air ticket purchases (still got a small payment due next month for the Melbourne nights).

At the same time, I just realized that in additional to the Aus/HK trip in December, there are tons of stuff that I am planning to get... It would be great if company can start sending out bonuses now instead of the end of year. XD

So far, my list contains:
* New phone - Nexus maybe? I'll find out on the 19th I guess.
* New camera - I think I'll settle for a 5N instead of 7 just for the sake of my bank account
* 3DS
* Kindle - I still need to figure out whether I should get the Touch for now and wait and see if they'll have a 10" version of the Fire later
* iPod - A bit disappointed that the Shuffle wasn't updated since I'll be using it mainly for gym, so a shuffle probably would be enough. On the other hand, I should be grateful that they didn't kill off the shuffle... hahaha
* Wii/DS games - Kirby Wii, LoZ: Skyward Sword, Mario Kart and Super Mario 3D Land for sure.

"Yikes" is the word that came to mind when I looked at the list... :p

So I made it to the 100th...

This kinda came up during one of our team game nights. The original topic was on laundry and how often do one do laundry. Thinking about how many tees/polos I owned, I casually said that shirt-wise, I probably can go on for about 2 months.

Boy did I underestimated myself. It turned out that for short-sleeves, I actually had 99 of them hanging in my closet. Admittedly, there are a handful that I haven't wear for a while (say a year or two), and a bunch that I bought but haven't got a chance to wear them (after all, I do live in the Midwest where it's not always warm and toasty)... but even excluding them I probably would still have 80+ (Note to self: find a time to donate those).

Honestly, I really should cut down on the buying... but reality? I just bought #100 and #101 today.

Um... an interesting combination in front of me right now....

Since with the sub-zero temperature, I have no mood going to the gym tonight, I decide to stay home and do nothing (again! 2nd night in a row.... Gosh, i love the days after a deadline). So in front of me right now on the left is a peanut butter sandwich... on the right is a glass of Sauvignon Blanc. Yeah - not your typical pairing... but heck I am hungry and i need to finish off the bottle of wine I opened on Saturday. I even considered microwaving some edamame, I'll see whether I am still hungry after I devour the PB sandwich.

On the topic of wine, I opened a bottle of Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc and Prosecco this weekend (it's with a bunch of friends). To my utmost disappointment, I like none of them. The chardonnay was okay (but definitely not as good as the one I tried in Napa from the same vineyard). The Sauvignon Blanc was forgettable. And the prosecco... oh the prosecco... It's just too "oaky" and does not have the crisp taste and aroma that I was hoping for. :( I know I should have gotten a bottle the vinho verde instead. Silly me of wanting to try something new.

On a totally different note, some have noticed the increase in number of blog post I wrote this year (for those folks reading from FB, I don't actually write these in FB... I just have FB automatically import from my blog). I guess this is mainly due to the fact that my desktop died a couple weeks ago. Sitting on a couch with a laptop apparently makes it easier to blogs. I'll see how long these updates will last. :p

This Past Saturday...

definitely an activity-packed Saturday. The most exciting part, of course, was finally getting my hair cut - something that has been bothering me since like the beginning of February (Wait, is it normal for someone to be excited about an haircut? Oh well, I never claimed I am normal anyway). However, with the deadline on 2/17 and things were kind of behind schedule, taking a trip down to Chicago for my haircut really wasn't an option. So finally the deadline had past and the weather was somewhat decent (or so I thought), I decide to pay a visit to my hair stylist - No more getting frustrated trying to gel my hair in the morning!!! I also have my hair colored this time to a copper-ish color. Since the "brownish-red/reddish-brown" I did last time was too subtle, I decided to go for something that's "easier to see the difference". I remembered I tried similar color in 06 or 07 and really liked it, and so far I'm loving this one as well.

Oh... might as well do an advertisement for my stylist here then: Headquarter Hair (Norris: will I get reimbursed for this? Hahahaha....)

Also met up with the Chen's for lunch... the little kiddo is definitely growing fast. At 6 months, I felt okay to hold him now as chances of me accidentally dropping him has receded. Hahahaha.. Also went to the MS store afterward at Oak Brook. I guess that's MS's response to the Apple store, but honestly I wasn't very impressed. It's definitely lacking something but I can't exactly pinpoint what it is. To me, it's not much different than simply walking into a Best Buy.

All the above happened in Chicago, which means a 2.5hr drive each way. To Chicago, it was an okay trip but definitely not a good one. I knew this pretty much as soon as I got on the Belt line and I started yawning... 945am? Definitely too early for me to function on a Saturday (And I already head to bed early the night before... at 2:15am)

On the way back it was much worse. Besides the constant need for caffeine to keep me awake, there was also the freezing drizzle which forced to me to stop from time to time to clean up the ice on the wiper blades and the wind shields. Yikes!

Fun continued when I got back to Madison with another night of "Bang!" with the team. In our last two team game nights, it has replaced Settlers of Catan and became the game of choice.

Like I said in the beginning, it was definitely an event-packed Saturday.

差啲唔記得 blog 底...

12 月返 HK 時近距離見到林一𡶶... e+ 諗番真係應該走埋去搵佢影番張相都好... Oh well, too late now~
佢真係真係唔係太高，另外佢個樣，真係睇足咁多年都係差唔多，一樣都係咁 baby face... 直頭係無言啦...

btw, 唔知佢幾時會開 “個人” 演唱會? 好强調係個人因為我對佢個妹冇乜興趣．我成日都話佢真係開嘅話我係會極力撲返黎睇嘅... XDDDDD

有啲歌，係唔可以亂咁聽嘅...

完全係 mood changers...

[Edit: 咁又呃咗一個 blog post... 哈哈哈...]

It's been a long week...

It's been a long week at work due to the development deadline on Thursday. Well, it's been busy ever since I came back from vacation already, but this past week is simply hectic. Basically all my time was split between work and home, with a heavy majority being at work. So it is definitely a relief that I now have my life back... Ha ha ha... Most of the stuff made it into the QA with a few remaining. Considering the state of all the projects on Monday and how many projects made it in, I'd say the whole team did some really crazy job this week. Hopefully this is not happening with every deadline.

Weather

Earlier tonight I was looking at the thermometer and saw that the outside temperature was 30 degrees. My first thought was "Oh, it's so warm tonight". But a second later, my senses came back to me and I was like "What's wrong with me!?" It was still below freezing point and I was calling the weather warm!?!? To my defense, comparing to a few nights ago when the thermometer was constantly displaying temperatures below 0F, tonight is indeed much warmer.

Looking ahead, the weather forecast for the upcoming week is excellent (with high of 52 on Friday). Unfortunately, I'll have to survive the Thursday deadline before I can enjoy any of this...

And so I took a step...

While I think this probably is the right choice, but part of me isn't totally convinced yet. Hopefully this will turn out to be something interesting, otherwise I will have to plan for something else (though that too might not be too bad)~

Like Last Year, I Have a Team to Root for in the SuperBowl

Since Green Bay made it to the Super Bowl this year, this makes my decision very easy. :D

On the other hand, I just realized today that I really don't have much love (like ever) for the Chicago Bears. This is quite puzzling to me. I mean, supposedly, Chicago is the city that I've known/have connection for longest ever since I moved to the States: it was my port of entry when I first moved here; I studied 2 years of middle school in a Chicago suburb before moving back to HK to continue my high school; and then again for 12th grade before I head to college in Indiana; another year after college before I started working in Madison... Yet I was quite indifferent to all the Chicago-based sports team (I was never a sports guy).

My current theory is that probably because I knew nothing about football during those time. Actually the football that I grew up with, you actually kick the ball (hey, I grew up in a British colony). It wasn't until college that I started watching "American football" (courtesy of my dorm-mates/roommates). But of course by then, the team that I cared most about was our college football team. And since I went to Purdue, the NFL team to root for would be the Indianapolis Colts.

So here's my NFL team allegiance at the moment:
1. Any team that Drew Brees plays. Purely for sentimental reasons. Did I not mention that I learn the rules of football by watching him play at Purdue? I also remembered rushing down the field (twice) in the year he led us to the Rose Bowl - once against Michigan or Ohio State and the other against IU (Great memories - but surprising my football watching roommates didn't go to any game that season even though they have the season ticket).
2. Packers - I do live in Wisconsin now
3. Indy - I did go to a school in Indiana for 5.5 years after all

There's tequila in it? Even Better

Ever since the cupcake place opened in Hilldale, it's always hard for me to not stop in after a Saturday/Sunday lunch at HK Wok to pick up a few. The problem? They're not cheap at $3 apiece. However, since I haven't had them for a while (as I was not in the States last month), I figured I'll pick up a few today and bring them to work for snacking purpose.

Baker: So how many of them would you like?
Me: Um... 3
Baker: Alright. Are they for here or to go.
Me: To go
Baker: So you said you want the Strawberry Margarita, right?
Me: Yes
Baker: There's tequila in it, you know?
Me: Even better.

Definitely looking forward to it. On the other hand, I am still waiting to try their lemon one.

Vacation Planning for this Year

This past vacation, a number of people were surprised that I still haven't took my sabbatical yet (since I've been telling them about it for like a couple years). Well, people shouldn't be surprised. After all, it's me and it usually takes forever for me to decide on anything.

Anyway, the sabbatical is probably going to happen this year. One main reason is that I've been working at the same company for 7+ years, and that means my 2nd sabbatical opportunity would be coming up. Need to use up the first one first. :p

So the option right now is either July to Europe or December to Australia. December in Aus has a certain appeal - summer in December! And that would also mean that my annual trip back home would like be in July. So two summer vacation in a year - that's definitely a big plus.

There will be a gathering in Chicago in August with buddies from college. We'll be celebrating a cutie's 1 year old birthday as well as meeting another new baby for the first time. Since it's only in Chicago, chances are that I probably don't have too much planning to do for that.

Another benefit of taking my sabbatical in December is that I can use my flex holiday (or is it floating holiday) on the Friday after Thanksgiving. That would give me a long weekend in November. Since my parents most likely won't be in the States this year during that time, I probably will be free to travel. Current plan - Orlando. Earlier today it was Hawaii, but Orlando might be a better fit right now.

So all these trips are back-loaded: July, August, November and December. Now I just need to find something after Feb 17th. :)

P.S. And this makes post #3 this year. Hey I'm not too far from meeting my New Year resolution!

Blog

Looking back, I really didn't blog that much last year - a mere 3 posts for the whole year. Hopefully this year will be different and there will be more posts (shouldn't be too difficult considering that this is already post #2 for this year).

I really think that i need a quicker method of blogging. There were numerous occasions where I had something that I want to blog about, but when I finally have the time to sit in front of a computer and log into Blogger, I no longer what to write about whatever I wanted to blog about earlier. Maybe I should switch over to twitter... Mwahahahaha...

Anyway, let me make blogging more often one of this year's resolution. Let see how long before I give up. :P

新一年就挑戰!?!?

邊本星座運程書批我今年工作上會有轉變？ 如果有咁批嘅話就中了 （雖然唔係轉工咁大件事）。

A curve ball is definitely thrown my way this past Friday and I'll need some time to think about this. 感覺上會係一個幾大嘅轉變, 尤其係要放低做咗咁多年嘅 product。與止同時，我亦唔可以否認佢係一個非常吸引我嘅 proposition ﹣ 尤其係當依家做緊嘅野基本上上咗軌道，人手上亦唔似以前得我一個人事咁。

難以取捨嘅選擇，等我再慢慢諗諗...

P.S. 睇得明嘅朋友唔好係非死不可留 comments... 基本上咁大篇都係中文係有原因嘅... XD