After all the Euro fever, I badly needed a break! This road trip has been in the works for the longest time so I was really looking forward to this! I guess I just really like the idea of jumping into the car and just “ride” into the sunset. Road trips are really therapeutic for me It’s the sense of freedom I get cruising down the highway…just me and my batmobile…great music (retro of course )…that’s cruising for a bruising!

I had an added perk on this road tip! I was going with my very good friends Fara and Chi! Plus I didn’t have to do the driving…I was going to be chauffered All my bags were packed, I was ready to go…I was standing there at my friend’s door… I parked my batmobile at my friend’s place and hopped into batmobile #2 Off we went to the Tuas Checkpoint! I was all set for the ride…PSP fully charged and packed with mindless games Unfortunately, I missed out one important thing…clearing my bladder Midway speeding down the North-South highway, I had to kill the momentum for a toilet break First anti-climax of the trip cause we were really flying through (can’t say what speed cause scared kena summoned )

Here’s batmobile #2 at the toilet break! Thought better you don’t see my friend’s “anti-climax” faces

About 2 hours later (from leaving the Tuas Checkpoint), we were entering KL! (Yes yes…do the distance divided by time and you can figure out how fast we were flying )

The toll section was fast enough but upon getting into the town area, the jam started But I must admit with the major fuel price hike in Malaysia, there was a noticeable lesser number of cars on the roads but it was still enough to cut our speed to a fraction Mont Kiara to the left!

My friend’s got a place in KL at Mont Kiara. It was my first time in that part of KL! It was kinda like Holland V…very nice! There was even a shopping center there (Plaza Mont Kiara)! Just 5 minutes from where their home is! It wasn’t like the other mega malls in KL but it had a Starbucks and that was all I need We had dinner planned with some friends in KL so while waiting, I did a little exploring of the place and check out the poolside! I can really live here! Just at the pool! (sorry but my phone flash not strong enough )

Dinner was going to be at Mandarin Oriental at KLCC! Couldn’t have been a better start to the trip! We had our private room and the dinner menu was just immaculate!

First up, roasted duck!

Then its close cousin, the crispy-skinned chicken!

Some vegetables with mushroom to balance it out…

and then killer deep fried grouper in sweet and sour sauce!

Of course we enjoyed the food! See our happy faces! (I was the tourist with the camera )

Desert was next and the Mandarin Oriental was famous for its durian pancake! (Don’t ask me how it was cause I don’t take durians! Only non-Singaporean thing about me )

I had the mango puree…

And my friend Chi (the other dude in the picture) had the almond beancurd…

Stomachs filled and barely able to move, I had to make my way to Bangsar at the Tewali Street Bistro for drinks with my friends from EMI Music KL! No pictures from that cause I was too drunk to even move (not to mention take pictures )! 5 whisky-sodas and 5 champagnes later (I know. I am a cheap drunk ) it was off to the mamak (KL’s equivalent of Singapore’s sarabat stalls) for some mee maggie goreng and kambing soup! Yum scrums! No pictures too cause like piranhas, the food was gone the moment it left the waiter’s hands!

Day 2 of my road trip and I had a date with 2 beautiful ladies (Christabel and Eang) at Madam Kwan’s! I love Madam Kwan’s Nasi Bojari! It is to die for! They’re at KLCC and I only just found out they had a outlet at Mid Valley too! Perfect cause I was intending to check out this toy shop there that had the very limited Kotobukiya Star Wars Snow Trooper figure!

Lunch first with the ladies and the Nasi Bojari was as good as I remembered it to me! You’ve got to try it if you have a chance! My eyes are bigger than my tummy and as usual, I ordered a little more than I could handle I was famished at the start and the ironic part is when the Nasi Bojari came, I was the first to say, “Eh…serving not so much leh…” In the end, it was me struggling to finish! And there were the side dishes as well!

We even ordered desert and I just had to take a picture of this! Goreng Pisang served with ice cream! How “salah” does this look?

Here’s me with the ladies stuffed as a turkey!

Shopping next and I went in search for the elusive Snow Trooper! The shop was easy to find (thanks to my mega memory )! A little bargaining and I got it at a steal! The Malaysian Great Sale has started also by the way! Here’s the Snow Tropper in my Star Wars showcase!

My folks had a simple request for my roadtrip. No it wasn’t to drive safe. “Please buy the roast duck from Petaling Street if you can”. Those were my mum’s parting words We just love the roasted duck from this stall that called themselves “4-Eyed Duck” in Chinese. Nope it wasn’t mutant ducks we were consuming but rather I think the stall owners wore glasses My personal tour guide Christabel drove me there in search of the duck but they were sold out already! Damn! Had to make another trip tomorrow morning We found this other “biscuit-bread-cookie” thingy (apparently quite famous) my mum mentioned though so at least got something out of my sweating on the hot Petaling Streets!

There was more eating to come at dinner! This time, it was at a friend’s restaurant around the Mont Kiara stretch. My friends decided this to be the dinner venue cause apparently, they had this killer ‘roasted pork’ and I am a sucker for ’sio bak’ even those done ang moh style We had a couple of other friends join us and we were in for a night full of food, drinks and loads of catching up!

Dinner first talk later! I didn’t need to look at the menu. It was settled even before I got there! The ‘roasted pork’ it shall be! OMG! When it was served, I was already very impressed with the layout! Think high-end ’sio bak’ The ‘roasted pork’ was served with caramelised apple…Mmmmm… I had my first bite and I nearly died from the ecstacy! When Belinda Carlise was singing ‘Heaven Is A Place On Earth’, she was referring to this! I have no pictures of it cause in all my savoring of dinner, photo-taking was the last thing on my mind Anyway, you can never replicate such goodness in pixels. You have to try it yourself! The place is called Providore and the address is 13A Jalan Solaris 5, Solaris Mont Kiara. Go and look for the boss James! Very cool and nice guy who, like me, has a passion for food and you know food prepared with passion is A grade!

This is ‘Ro’. A new friend made! One of the funniest guys I’ve met. Am thinking of offering him a job on Power98FM to co-host with me

It was a great night out with friends! We had a special outside table setting! James is just too nice!

If you’re wondering who’s the hot babe sitting beside me, here’s a close up! Now you know why I’m smiling? (oh yeah, also partly because of the ‘roast pork’ too )

Oh yes…it was a great night out which ended with me intoxicated and stuffed! What a combi

Day 3 and the final day. Christabel picked me up to take me to church but it was quite funny cause when we got there, the service was conducted in Bahasa Melayu! With my ‘baba’ level of comprehending Malay, I was totally lost It was back to Petaling Street after for my ducks and breakfast. The “4-Eyed Duck” was open! Yay! I bought 2 They’ve done this so long for travellers that you could tell them that you were travelling home with the ducks and they’ve got “air-flight standard” of packing

Breakfast was just as sinful as all my other meals in KL! Prawn noodles, yong tau foo, fried kway teow…I must have put on 10kgs from this weekend roadtrip alone! It was goodbye to my lovely tour guide after and we were going to have lunch by the poolside first before the journey home to Singapore! We kept it simple. We ordered delivery (lazy la ) Not fast food though. Some killer ‘zi-char’ and it was most surreal sitting by the poolside and digging into local fare like crispy ‘ee-mee’, nasi goreng, nasi lemak…more yummy yum!

Sigh sigh…time to say goodbye We were all shagged out and real tired (more tired than before the holiday ) and here’s how badly we wanted to just get home and concuss…

What a great roadtrip though! New friends, great food (yes in that order ) I’m already making plans for another roadtrip!

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As Spain lifts their first major tournament trophy in 44 years, we toast to a successful (at least we think it is) run of the Carlsberg Euro 2008 Preview…literally! Every TV project has this. The most anticipated event to culminate hours of sweat, tears and butteflies in the stomach (for me at least )! The wrap party! The best excuse to use up whatever is left from the budget to indulge ourselves in copious amounts of food and alcohol For the Carlsberg Euro 2008 Preview, it was no different! A chance to pat ourselves on the back for a job well done. A night when we just stroke each others’ egos and for the crew, it was more a celebration! Finally they do not have to put up with my nonsense anymore!

The venue was Ice Cold. After a month of fast food suppers after each show, we decided to not break the trend and go for their killer chicken wings! Alcohol was a must as well This was a night, after pulling one month of all-nighters, where we didn’t have to worry about who scored which goal or how many yellow cards were given out or whether the game will go into penalties and deprive us of more sleep

The entire gang showed up! Many chicken wings, pizzas and much alcohol later, the cameras were whipped out to catch our more embarassing moments away from the camera (I’ve already got a lot on camera )! Thankfully, most of us were still sober enough to “pose”

Before the alcohol really kicked in, I went for the ladies…ALL OF THEM!

Then some one-on-one next…here’s Shareen! The other half of Double-S on Power98!

Here’s our field producer Yin! Rarely get to see her cause she’s always out on the streets but from this picture, you can probably see I was glad she came down to the party

“Three-somes now”…Fiona and Victoria…

I kicked out Victoria for some one-on-one time with Fiona

You can see alcohol kicking in as we searched for some inspiration

Then Victoria came back for a “three-some” with the babelicious Shareen! How can I say no?

Ladies then gents…the 4 stooges came together for this one…

Mark and I decided to try a “cool” shot together…came out quite salah

Then Darryl felt a little left out…

Here’s our producer Ryan Lovejoy. I got him a little gift chronicling the history of football in the eyes of adidas!

I got our director Chris a little something as well…

Here’s how much he liked it!

Arrgh….my modesty what’s outraged (or what’s left of it at least)

Here’s Hass with his best “scary” look

One with a little more smiles was with the crew!

Can’t leave out the lady that has been making me up and camera 3 dude Malek!

As Chris and Ryan will be returning to the UK, we thought we leave them a little momento fro Singapore…the flaming Lamborghini! They didn’t know what that was…all the better!

Oh what a night! We wrapped up one last time way past cinderella’s curfew! As we stumbled home (Chris and Ryan having to stumble further…halfway across the world to the UK ), I knew the night wasn’t about saying goodbye but rather, it was about celebrating the new friends I made! Here’s to all on the Carlsberg Euro 2008 Preview, cheers to our next project together!

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The curtain draws on one of the biggest football tournaments in the world…Euro 2008! Thanks to a Fernando Torres goal, the match ended Liverpool 1 - 0 Germany! After all the tyco goals, referee kayu-s and corny one-liners I gave on the show, my first foray into sports television hosting has come to a close I had a blast! The Euro football championships have never been such a big part of my life! My mind still reeks of all the facts, figures and trivia of the entire competition, players, coaches and teams! It should be archived soon but I’ll definitely not forget all the people who helped me so much in my journey through Euro 2008! Everyone from the security guard at the Starhub studios to my directors and co-hosts!

I tried to get as many of them with my trusty N82…

First up, the guy who gave me my big break! Hass the man!

…and big guy Saeed!

My co-presenters babelicious Shareen…

My neighbour Mark Richmond…

Director Chris from the UK…he’s the one talking into my earpiece and telling me which camera I’m on

Ryan Lovejoy (that’s really his surname! )…the walking football encyclopedia! He’s the one giving me all the facts and making me sound smart

From sounding good to looking good, Hazlina’s the one with the insurmountable task of trying to make me look presentable every night

The camera guys who have to put up with the most amount of nonsense from me

See the graphics, titles, fixture tables, etc. on the show? Bernard’s the guy!

Simon with his trusty scooter is behind the cool editing of all the video footages!

Kamele’s our sound man!

Mazlan leaves a light on for me (our lighting guy )!

These 2 beautiful ladies are Hass’s assistants…they solve the world’s problems! Nah, just kidding…they have a hand in everything to make sure it all runs without a hitch including supper after the show!

Sandy from Starhub dropped by as well on our last day

Also all our guests who popped by to spice up the show! Like Darryl David (one of the nicest gentleman in the industry)…

Scott O’Donnell…he drove all the way from his AFC office in KL just to be on the show!

Here’re the 3 of us…2 great friends I’ve found!

Oh yes! All the hardcore fans who joined me at the Carlsberg bar!

To everyone who was involved in the Carlsberg Euro 2008 Preview, sorry if I missed out your name…THANKS FOR EVERYTHING! I’m glad all of you were part of my virgin experience! If you have caught the show, I hope you enjoyed it as much as I did presenting it to you (how cliche is that line?! )! Do look out for the Euro 2008 Rewind (wrap up of the entire Euro 2008) which is running now on Supersports (Starhub Channel 22)! Till the next time I hit the screens…

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It was just 19 days ago when I embarked on my virgin television hosting gig for the Carlsberg Euro 2008 Preview! Now, 18 episodes later, I still had the jitters but I was definitely way more comfortable on my throne…the black couch I’ve plonked myself on the past 18 days! Either I was getting more confident or I’ve found the best spot on this most deceivingly uncomfortable couch!

The whole gang was brought together for the final episode! Mark had both Scott O’Donnell and Daryl David in as his analysis guests while Shareen Wong took a break from bringing Euro 2008 to the streets of Singapore to join me at the Carlsberg bar! Yes! The same Wong-ster! My better half from the Double-S Power Cruisin’ show cum Makan Minutes partner on Power98 and now on Power98’s Morning Jam We’ve taken the partnership from radio to TV!!!

1 hour to ‘LIVE’ on-air…preparations underway for the final episode! Better get the facts right (So Aragones is the oldest coach to take a team to the finals, still a chance for Poldoski to take the Golden Boot, etc )! Everything had to be right for the final episode! Spain will be playing Germany in a bid to win their first major tournament in over 40 years but I was more worried I got the clothes right and make-up was flawless I’ve said it before…Vanity. My greatest sin! Here’s Hazlina making sure I “sin” all the way How’s this for multi-tasking?

The fans of Germany and Spain were in as my studio guests at the Carlsberg Bar! Steffen of Germany and Antonio for Spain…still all smiles before the battle began

1 minute to ‘LIVE’ on-air and there was still some time to monkey around

Oh wait! Face starting to “shine” a little! Hazlina!!!!!

Check out my golden adidas shoes and the Euro 2008 T-shirt and jacket from adidas originals! I had to pick a neutral top cause the crew’s been saying I was jinxing every team whose jersey I wore on the show! The crew has even started betting on the opposite teams and they hold their bets till they confirm what I was wearing each night!

And we’re ‘LIVE’! Cue Seb and Shareen!!! Double-S you’re ON!

Welcome to the Carlsberg Euro 2008 Preview!

I’m just astonished at the die-hardiness of the fans

Yes it is all smiles for now…

They’re gonna shave their heads if their team loses?!?!

That will be quite a sight!!!

Seen enough of Double-S yet?

What a bittersweet episode! A sigh of relief that it is finally all over (time to hibernate and catch up on lost sleep! ) but hard to say goodbye to all the crew who’ve basically endured all my “diva” nonsense over the past 19 days! Well, at least there was the wrap party to look forward to! Pictures coming soon…

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Just before the Euro 2008 finals, I was in the thick of more Euro action at Vivo City where the adidas EA UEFA Euro 2008 Football Challenge was taking place! The challenge saw gamers from all over Singapore congregate at Vivo City for a chance at the main prize of a PS3 game console, miadidas customisable football boots (just like the stars’), the offical Euro finals match ball Europass Gloria, more adidas apparel and EA vouchers!

It was a meeting of the quickest fingers in the South! Gamers and wannabes, guys and girls, all went head to head on the PS3! The hottest teams chosen were Spain (eventual finalist), Germany (eventual finalist), France (first-round knocked out! Don’t know why some chose them ) and England (only chosen by the delusional ones )!

It was a Euro football carnival as adidas pulled out all the stops and brought in the HUGE Europass football that is rolled out on the pitch for the actual games! You know the ones where when split open shows the flags of the teams playing each match? That BIG BALL was right there at Vivo (I know, sounds so wrong huh? )

Also on display was the range of adidas football boots through the years. It’s amazing to see how football boots have evolved to what it is now and I remember owning some of those boots back when I was playing football for the school team (Yes! When I was still able to kick and run with the ball without gasping for breath after 10 meters! ).

Some old friends from the national team and S-league came down as the adidas ambassadors to challenge the crowd at football! Lionel Lewis, Isa Halim, Kengne Ludovick (current S-league top scorer) and Shi Jiayi came down and unfortunately had their a**es kicked at football! Thankfully, it was only on the PS3! The players took on the crowd at the penalty shootout and we found many who could give Lionel Lewis and Kenge a run for their money as goalkeeper and striker! But only on the PS3 of course!

I was there to host the opening of the challenge and there I was, decked out in my Germany jersey from adidas of course though I was in fact supporting Spain! It was all vanity as I figured it was easier to match black and white then red and yellow I had a whole load of Euro 2008 memorabilia to dish out from keychains to miniature replicas of the official matchball Europass and everyone went back with something! Even myself!

Ahh…it was sheer football heaven and the angel who’s been making sure I’m properly decked out in the coolest adidas gear and looking good (toughest job in this part of the world ) every night on the Carlsberg Euro 2008 Preview on Starhub Channel 30 and at the event as well, was there running the whole show! An amazing woman and the cutest also Meet Janice…my adidas P.I.M.P! She’s the one pimping me out

Cool games, good footballing action and great company! What more could I ask for from Euro 2008?

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You would have thought that the closest I got to Euro 2008 in Switzerland and Austria was hosting the Carlsberg Euro 2008 but it wasn’t!

On one of my trips to adidas to pick up clothes for the show, I caught up with Hans. He was packing for a trip to Euro 2008! I can’t believe how lucky some people are! Anyway, as the ultimate tease, he let me take pictures with his Euro 2008 pass and quarter-final tickets!!! :o(

Don’t ask me why I still smile so big! :oP

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Other than Power Cruisin’, Own Time Own Target and SebTurday Night Jive that I host on Power98FM, I am also co-hosting Power98FM’s football show ‘On The Ball’ every Friday at 8pm with Jensen. Just the other day, we had a very special guest…Joe Morrison (Football Channel presenter)! We had worked with him while hosting the EPL Clash of the Titans (Man Utd vs Arsenal) on Starhub’s Football Channel. He was in the Dhubai studios while Jensen and I were in Singapore at the respective fan clubs so we only got to briefly chat over the comms.

That was until the Carlsberg Euro 2008 Preview! He was coming onto the show as Mark Richmond’s expert guest. Have you ever had one of those experiences where you’ve only talked to this person over the phone or emailed only and then you finally get to meet in person? Well, it was something like that for me Joe was extremely friendly and that made the catching up easier On one of the breaks, we were just chatting and me hosting this football show ‘On The Ball’ on radio came into the conversation and he “not-shyly” ask to be on it Ok ok…actually it was the groupie me who thick-skinned-ly asked him if he would like to guest host on ‘On The Ball’

He obliged and for the first time, ‘On The Ball’ had a mega star on the show! He was his usual fun self and it was a breeze doing the show with me. he did most of the talking while Jensen and I added not even our 5-cents worth but rather just half-a-cent’s worth (Mmm’s and Ahh’s)

After that show, Jensen and I are really hoping for me to come back on the show soon! He’s now holidaying in Bali…that lucky bugger! Now no EPL season that’s why so free

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About 2 months ago, I got a call out of nowhere asking if I would be interested to host the Euro 2008 preview show on Starhub. The call was from Hass, a person whom I now regard as the man who gave me my big break in TV hosting While I’ve done my fair share of acting on TV, I’ve never hosted a TV show before, not to mention anchoring a ‘LIVE’ TV show! Of course I was a little apprehensive but hey, life’s like that. You can choose to take the plunge or wonder what could have been years down the road. Luck is all about being ready when the opportunity comes so I convinced myself that with all I’ve done on TV and radio, I was ready and I shall be lucky. I said ok!

What followed was a whirlwind as we counted down the days to the BIG opening of Euro 2008. Meetings with the directors and producers (specially flown in from the UK) to discuss the show concept, the show’s main sponsor Carlsberg (who backed this unknown and untested DJ to host their Euro 2008 Preview) and my wardrobe sponsor adidas (BIG hugs to Janice, Hans and the guys Ben and Andy at adidas @ The Cathay for decking me out impecaably! Totally color coordinated! ).

Not a day went by without me wondering…is this really happening? Closer to the opening date, I visited my next home for the entire period of the tournament. Here is the ‘News Desk’ where Mark Richmond will be hosting his panel of experts under construction.

My lounge area looking nothing like the end product

Just days to the first episode, everything was completed and voila! Like magic…here’s my lounge area now!

Mark’s ‘News Desk’ all spiffed up…

And the Carlsberg bar where we host fans and let them be part of the game!

The BIG day arrived and to be honest, I was going to p** in my pants! Thankfully, I was backed by the most professional crew I’ve ever worked with in my 13 years in the entertainment industry! I don’t have all their pictures so let me introduce you to those I’ve managed to convince to skive off their work for a quick photo

The man who makes me sound intelligent is Ryan! He prepares the entire show and gives me all the facts, numbers, trivia and whatever else to impress on the viewer that I actually know what I’m talking about Hahahaaha… He’s from the UK and he is a walking football encyclopedia. At his fingertips, he knows everything in the football circle and is even able to tell you how to pronounce all the names and its different variants according to which part of the world you’re in! He has the most unique of surnames. Lovejoy! I’m not kidding! I always tease him how that makes such a great pickup line for the ladies In fact, ever since I found out his surname, I’ve never called him Ryan Guests on the show initially thought there was something going on between us when I called him Lovejoy! Hahahahaha

The lady who has the toughest job is Hazlina. She’s our makeup artist and she makes me look good…well, at least tries to! Know now why she has gotten the short end of the stick? Seeing her work is like watching a painter brush out his latest masterpiece! Sometimes I don’t even recognise myself when I come out of the makeup room

The wonders what some make up can do

The guys handling the cameras form the 3 amigos on set! They’re the ones making sure I’m caught at the most flattering of angles Aside from my other co-hosts, they’re the only other ones in the studio when we go ‘LIVE’ so often enough, they’re doubling up to make sure that I’m totally comfortable

Here’s Ryan-migo on camera 1…

RJ-migo holds camera 2…

I haven’t caught Malek-migo, Roslan-migo and Andrew-migo but soon enough, I’ll grab them from behind the camera

With everything all set up, it’s time to go ‘LIVE’ and on the first night, I was just a BIG bag of shivers! If they zoomed in on my fingers, you would have seen them trembling and on closer look, there might have even been a wet patch on the couch! But all in all, it was so surreal! I kept having to pinch myself to remind myself that I wasn’t dreaming The adrenaline rush is like no other and thankfully, I prevailed! 10 shows down now, I’m way more comfortable and way more concussed too Here’s a snapshot from the first episode! The 3 hosts…yours truly, Shareen Wong (Yes! The other half of the Double-S Power Cruisin’ show on Power98FM) and Mark Richmond.

It is super shag though doing this gig especially with a day job My day at Power98FM starts at 10am. I go on-air at 5pm till 8pm then it’s a rush to the studios to prep for the show. We go ‘LIVE’ at 10pm till 11pm. Then it’s a debrief…more like a Carlsberg drinking session and a stroke-each-other’s-egos session I leave the studios close to midnight. Get home in time to catch the matches. Last match ends at 4plus in the morning and by the time I get to sleep, it will be just 4 hours of shut-eye before the cycle repeats But the funny thing is, I am totally not complaining! It has been so much FUN! I might even consider giving radio up for this! Any TV producers out there looking for a presenter?

Mark has different football experts joining him at the ‘News Desk’ and Football Channel presenter Joe Morrison popped by from Dubai for a couple of episodes! He just rocked the set the moment he arrived! He’s a Newcastle fan also (I know…so sad ) while Mark and I are with Liverpool so we just kept giving each other hell (ok…more me la ) but he was just such a sport!

Darryl David’s our current expert guest right now. Let me try to get a photo with him before I let you in on more ‘behind-the-scenes’ from the Carlsberg Euro 2008 Preview! Don’t forget to catch the show every matchday night ‘LIVE’ at 10pm on Starhub Premium Channel 30! Till the next time, have a great Euro 2008! I defintiely will cause hosting it has been a dream come true for me

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Guess what I stumbled upon recently? A relic from the past! At least 20 years ago! It’s a packet of Kaka!

No this is not the Brazilian football player Kaka though the name is the same One thing’s for sure, the Brazilian is not chicken-flavored

I actually found this treasure in the office! Considering Power98FM is only 14 years old, this packet must have been purchased recently (that’s my CSI instincts at work )! Check out the impossibly colored chickens and the cheesiest of taglines…”A snack for everybody at anytime”

I remember when I used to down packets of these back when I was in primary school! Yeah I know, explains my size now But it was only 20 cents a packet and there would be a surprise toy inside! Ok, not so much a surprise since there was always a toy inside Guess the surprise would be how cheap that toy was going to be But still…at that age, easily excitable, even a cheap ‘plastic-ky’ and ‘obiang-colored’ toy would provide endless hours of fun

What a blast from the past! Brings back a whole load of memories It’s so retro that I have no heart to open the packet Unless I know where I can get a replacement! Anybody knows which ‘mama shop’ still peddles Kaka?

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I’d like to share this quote I picked up recently. It’s not the years in your life that count, it’s the life in your years. How true! For me, I must admit, on top of God and my family, it’s my close friends who add and really enrich the years in my life!

One of the gang, Alan, was posted to work in Shandong, as part of a new job, a couple of months back, so when his ‘wifey’ Cecilia called and said he was back in town for the weekend, I sent out a mobilization alert for the entire gang! You may or will realise that the older you get, the harder it is to arrange such gatherings. Everyone has their personal commitments and the older you get, the heavier those commitments are so it was very heartwarming to have everyone readily confirming our tea gathering for Sunday! It really goes to show the priority we place on this ‘gang’ that goes over 10 years back!

We decided on PS Cafe at Dempsey cause Cecilia and I figured that would be a nice place to just hang out and catch up As usual, everyone still had ‘rubber timing’ When I got there, Alan and Cecilia were already there! OMG, Alan is slowly developing a ‘Shandong look’!

My bro Edmund came shortly after in his usual ‘old skool’ T-shirt (this time the red Kallang Roar one ). The soon to be married couple of Eugene (the true inspiration behind the radio character ‘Beng Suah’ that I created) and Shuping strolled in much later, totally unperturbed by Cecilia’s earlier warning SMS that the last one to arrive would foot the bill

Maybe they were just banging on the gang’s notorious ‘rubber timing’ True to form, Jaime came in last, decked in bright pink, after running some errands (she’s tying the knot soon too! )

It was endless catching up after! How was Shandong? What’s the food like? So what do you do there actually? Where you staying? ‘Siong’ or not? We fielded the questions and Alan gamely answered all of them The last time to gang came together was for Alan’s farewell (see earlier blog entry) so you can imagine there was also much catching up on the sides as well between each of us! Unfortunately KJ was still in Shanghai and Yvonne (the only mummy in the gang) was at home nursing her little boy who was sick She’s relying on this blog to find out what happened

Lots of coffees and teas, brownie after brownie (no gathering is complete without food for us )…It was such a lovely way to spend Sunday! Those who’ve been blessed with such close friends like I am will know what I’m talking about It’s the perfect dosage of chicken soup for a soul that’s tired from work and the daily hustle and bustle. Hanging out with the gang was just what I needed I was actually starting to miss them

The guys are now looking forward to the next big thing! Eugene’s stag night! But in our case, it will be stag NIGHTS! Since it is the first stag night in the gang, we concluded it has to be huge so we’re planning an overseas expedition filled with copious amounts of booze and debachery! Check back here for updates on the mother of all stag nights!

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