Life without the Internet

Yes, that’s been the case over the weekend, and I foresee a couple more days to come.

A technical glitch has caused us to be without internet at home. And I am only blogging and replying to emails at work… wait, AT the office AFTER work. Heh.

And what an inconvenience it has been!!

Forever Young

In need of another adventure…

Hawaii? New Zealand? Japan? Melbourne? Fiji? Northern Territory?

Gah, this country is so far away from everything else!

The French House

I debated for quite awhile before deciding to put up this post. You see, I really like this coffee house, so much so that I want to share it with a bunch of people. BUT, it has a “No Photography” policy. And in all honesty, I took photos BEFORE reading the signage.

So what happens? Do I post the photos up against the wishes of the cafe, or do I keep this little secret to myself?

Tokyo Treats II

Alone Time

About a Boy

Journey Down Under

This is a public announcement. Transmission has resumed from Down Under.

Dear 16-Year-Old Self…

New Years and Old Years never really mattered to me. Not in the way it did when I was younger anyway (how old do you have to be to utter that?). 10 years ago, I was sitting in my living room, counting down to the new millenium with my three best friends.

We stayed up through the night and watched the sun rise. We watched the ‘live’ telecast and saw how Sydney was one of the first cities in the world to welcome in the millenium. The fireworks went off the Harbour Bridge and lit up the Sydney Opera House. Who would have thought 10 years later, I would be living in the very city that mesmerized me at the turn of the century.

I’m hardly (no longer?) in touch with one of the three best friends. How loosely we used the term. And this was before Paris Hilton popularized (bastardized?) the acronym “BFF”. Which perhaps goes to show the simplicity (naivety?) and innocence of the younger years. Who would have thought that ‘best friends’ could still appear later in life?

I married one of the new ‘best friends’. 10 years ago at Macdonald’s in the Orchard YMCA building, the girls projected that I would be the first to get attached. I wasn’t. In fact, I think I was the last. But I ended up being the first to get married. 10 years since then, and I’ve already had my first wedding anniversary.

As you grow older, you learn to have less expectations, more acceptance. You learn what matters, and when to let go. But when does being laidback become indifference? And when does indifference become cynicism and resignation?

I used to keep diaries. It was cathartic therapy. One day, I tore off the pages and threw them away. I suppose my writing was too vivid for my own good. And then I stopped writing altogether.

It’s Britney, B*tch.

This one’s for you, V2!

So it was a big hoo-haa when Britney came into town. I was half-considering when I found half-priced tickets. THEN, I seriously considered when it came down to $50 for Diamond reserve seats! 2nd best in the house!

Unfortunately, I only managed to grab Tuesday tickets instead of weekend tickets. Which means that the likelihood of being stood up by my date was close to 100%. Still, a girl has to have hope.

I arrived at Acer Arena 15 minutes before the concert was scheduled to start at 8pm, only to be met with about 500 people in line to pick up their tickets! It seems that the organizers had underestimated the lure of $50 tickets to see Britney, and were absolutely unprepared by the onslaught of bargainers. It took a good 45 minutes to reach the front of the line. Thankfully, I was lining up with a bunch of lovely concert-goers and time went by much quicker. There was this girl who had travelled all the way from Wollongong (more than an hour away from Sydney), and she had called up Acer Arena beforehand and confirmed that Britney was only going on stage at 9pm. No wonder nobody was freaking out.

All hope of my date showing up was lost when, at 8.50pm, I inserted my tickets into the barcode scanner and entered the concert arena alone. *insert pitiful music*

So voila, I was left to enjoy 2 diamond seats all to myself!

Buon Ricordo, Paddington

Besides Rockpool, this is probably the most highly rated restaurant we are heading to thus far in Sydney. Awarded Two Chef’s Hat in the latest Sydney Morning Herald Good Food Guide, we were having some great expectations for the restaurant.

After spending the day walking around Paddington, we headed to Buon Ricordo where Thad had made a reservation the night before. I was really looking forward to it!