They start with Es and they end with Ys... and they have a draining effect on pockets.

I once lamented the lack of retail outlets here. This statement remains true but I've discovered the joys of eBay and Etsy.

These days I vegetate on the couch surfing for designer bags. My obsession began after I lost out on a bid for a very, very cheap, authentic Dior bag over a AUD2.50 difference at the very last second.

Since then, I've been cruising the website, in search of another underpriced bargain. This exasperates X to no end, as he associates shopping with the featherbrained, shallow female.

After losing out on another couple of other bids, I finally made my first eBay purchase, a lace Qi Pao, also known to most Malaysians as the cheongsam. I have a beautiful, hot pink kebaya sitting in my wardrobe. I spent my teenage years in a standard issue white and turquoise baju kurung combo, yet I've never owned one of these things before.

For those who have not (yet) gotten addicted to eBay, one usually makes payment via PayPal. Mine is linked to my bank account, therefore the money goes out in the form of an eCheque, which like a normal one, takes a couple of days to clear. You do have the option of linking a credit card to the account, wherefore the funds will clear immediately. Seeing as to how I can only pay my credit card bill in Malaysia (damn you, HSBC!), I opted not to.

Once the funds clear, the merchant will ship the package. I'm quite happy with my cheongsam, though the shipping cost more than half the price of the item.



While lurking about Etsy in search of a pin or two, I came across several noteworthy ones and ended up giving into temptation.

Alfresco (though we did sit inside)

We had a craving for Italian so X and I stopped by Surfer's Paradise where he's heard of a great ristorante from a friend of ours.

X: Peter says this place is really awesome.
Me: Peter also happens to be Swedish. They eat meatballs and raw herring. Do you really trust his judgment?
X: ...

Alfresco was packed. There was a table for two outside but I was freezing so we huddled near a heater and (im)patiently waited for an inside table to be cleared.



I had the Risotto Pescatore (AUD26.50) and X had the Fettucine Cabonara (AUD17.50). Both were pretty good. The seafood in my risotto was incredibly fresh, though the baby octopuses were a little rubbery. X's fettucine was incredibly eggy and satisfyingly al dente.



We both had hot chocolates which were yummy, but tummyache inducing. The service was swift, competely negating the need for garlic bread (most risottos I've had require 20 minutes or more of cooking time).

This park named after a guy with a German/ hotdog sounding name

X and I took a little stroll in this park nearby the other day. It's tucked (though "tucked" isn't the perfect verb - the place is probably 5 acres big) in between Elanora and Tallebudgera. Unfortunately my memory fails me on the actual name of the place.

It was just so beautiful though. A sprawl of lush green against the blue, blue sky, with numerous ponds/ lakes/ streams scattered across... I guess the only reason it wasn't packed with picnickers was due to the amount of free-running dogs and random plops of dog poo.

The other patrons were pretty friendly too. At least by Queensland standards.

For doggies to do a wee against. The place had an elaborate little canine playground installed. Momo and family will have such an awesome time here. Sigh.

At the office today...

Direct Superior: *gestures* This is Jan, she's the most important person in this building.

Very Important Visitors: *peep into room* Hello.

Me: *waves* Hello! I'm the most important person in this building.

VIV: ......

Direct Superior: If you don't take it from me, you can take it from her.

Anyone need a hanger?

Authentic Louis Vuitton coat hanger, roughly AUD2,035.00, possibly the most ridiculous item I've seen on eBay so far.

Time = Money

I'd originally made a vow to publish at least ten posts a month (barring terminal illness and broken digits), but it looks like I'll be breaking it this month. I've been swamped with work as my assistant conveniently decided to set up house in Melbourne during induction week.

200 confused and fickle minded students + inexperienced staff + lazy idiots
= me having to redo everything

Yet in spite of how I spend sleepless nights fretting about how things need to be done and how little time we have to do it, it's nothing like audit life back in Malaysia.

Pei and I are having an epic Facebook message conversation at the moment (I get free mobile access to Facebook until end August). She's looking for her first proper job and is disappointed about the salary situation in Malaysia. When I started corporate life 2 years ago, the 4 figures banked into my account every month excited me. I was able to buy things I couldn't before, eat at places I'd always deemed too expensive, fly to exotic locations (albeit on AirAsia) and generally, have a reasonably good life.

Yet I never managed to save any money. I lived with my parents. I contributed virtually nothing - in fact my mother was forever having to pay for household items. I didn't have an asset to my name, not even a hand me down car.

Here, it's a little different. I chip in to pay for day to day things, groceries. I fork out hundreds every month on transport (travelling 200km a day to and fro work involves a lot). I don't have as many friends, so I don't tend to go out as much. I've hit 20% in the tax bracket (hurray for tax refunds!). I don't fly overseas every 2 months or so anymore. Queensland's retail options are piss poor, so I hardly buy stuff (though it's sale season now and I just got the most awesome bodycon dress on sale and green heels that have put identical blisters on my big toes). And X and I just got smacked with the council rates, which at AUD997.00 for 6 months, is pretty darn horrifying. Renting is starting to look like a much better option.

In spite of the outflow, for the first time since I was 19, I'm saving money. Modest amounts really. A recent survey showed that only 40% of Aussies have enough money to survive beyond a month should they lose their regular source of income. True enough, TD expressed absolute horror when told her sick leave was unpaid as she was only a recent addition to the company.

How do Malaysians do it? I'm in absolute awe. I don't know how my parents managed to raise my brother and I, tertiary education and all. Mind you, we both went to semi-private schools too. How on earth does the average Malaysian, on a monthly pay packet of MYR3,000 - 5,000 manage to buy a house, two cars, raise 3 kids and ship them all overseas (with no welfare help too)? Just unbelievable really, considering the outrageous exchange rates.

And another point of contention is OT (I just read Jenny's latest post). I personally believe having to work overtime shows a failure somewhere in the system, be it the company culture, the processes in place, the resources allocated or the workers themselves. When I was in audit, I used to take a lot of shit for leaving "early", which would be 5.30pm, nevermind my employment contract stated 8.30am to 5.30pm as my official working hours. I mean, I always completed my work in time without having to resort to staying late, apart from a few occasions where changes were made last minute, resulting in stuff being reworked.

This whole "working overtime means the boss thinks I'm super hardworking nevermind I came in late and took a tea break, 2 cigarette breaks on top of an extended lunch and am now Facebooking while pretending to be researching stock quotes and then I leave at 8pm after working 5 hours effectively through the day it doesn't matter because I've been here almost 12 hours I hope I get a bonus" (the lack of punctuation is an effect of reading Susan Minot's Evening) concept is complete nonsense and is widely used in all parts of Asia.

At my current workplace, I get in at 8.45am and leave at 4.53pm everyday. My bosses do not admonish me. In fact, I'm appreciated for the effort I put in. I don't take coffee breaks and often am found having lunch hovering over my keyboard, whilst constantly being interrupted by a stream of receptionists and students. My workload is crazy and significantly worse than audit life. Yet I'm happy, because I get to compartmentalise my work and personal lives, 100 km away from each other.

It's a sad fact professionals in Malaysia work ridiculous hours. And it's a fact unlikely to change unless people start becoming more assertive about their (currently non existent) work rights.

How to wear pearls in a gazillion ways

... also known as I seriously wasn't taking this opportunity to take numerous photos of my chest. Not that there's much to take anyway.

So on my last trip to Sydney, I got a luscious string of black pearls from a lovely lady at Market City. The iridescent black pearls were uneven and oval, carefully stringed and knotted. I fell in love.

I shall pass on her How to Wear Pearls in a Million Ways kungfu to you.

Ingredient: Long string of pearls. Not sure how long because I'm too lazy to measure and I'll have four guests to entertain in the matter of minutes. It reaches my navel when worn in a single loop anyway.


Double loop.


Uneven double loop.

Um... super uneven double loop?


Triple strands. You might want to check first if this will be applicable to you. The lady told me I have an unusually slender neck.


Double knot.


Single knot.


Short single strand...


...with the rest running down your back. Good for fully backless evening dresses. Were I to demonstrate wearing the aforementioned garment, my (ultra conservative, extremely Chinese) mother would fly to Gold Coast in an instant to admonish me on matters of public indecency.


And as a hairband! It's surprisingly comfortable and stays on well. (Please ignore my fat arms. Winter clothing is too forgiving.

If you happen to know any other way to wear it, let me know!

Jan can cook! And manly short shorts stories.

X and I juggle pretty crazy schedules so our main form of sustenance is a giant pot of soup, which will last us three dinners. It's also the only thing I can make (apart from Indomie). Just fry chopped onion and garlic, then dump in loads of vegetables. Celery is the main ingredient and 2 carrots lend a sweet flavour to the broth. Potato and pumpkin and other leafy greens can be added to. Also soup bones (I like beef better than lamb) or chicken thighs. Oh, and not forgetting two stock cubes and some mixed herbs and pepper.


I missed orange poppyseed cake and find most Australian cakes too rich and sweet. My past baking attempts have produced many inedible husks so I decided to rely on a cake mix from Coles. X didn't have an electric mixer, so I melted the butter in the stove and mashed everything with a fork. After 5 minutes, I got fed up and dumped the lumpy dough into the greased and lined saucepan (he didn't have a cake pan either). It turned out pretty darn amazing, considering the makeshift-ness of the whole project.


My colleague, RP and I decided to be twins for the day.


WT and I went to Thai Orchid on Logan Rd for dinner. Sadly I forgot to take pictures of the rest of our dishes. This Seafood Tom Yum was pretty good though. Just the right amount of spiciness.


That's our inhouse Italian's manly pose and glutes. I'm shifting into the greenhouse-like room next week. The other builder wore shorts so short LL spent the entire time with her eyes glued to his butt, anticipating worrying he would inadvertently flash something.

Day 3: Sydney

The training was held at the Sydney Masonic Centre, just a waltz down Goulburn St. It was nice not having to commute 2 whole hours to work. I checked out and left my bag with reception.

It finished at 1pm or so. My flight was at 4.55pm so I headed to Circular Quay to do the tourist thing. It was getting pretty warm so I stopped at Anderson's to get a hazelnut ice cream cone. I paid quick homage to the Opera House, whose steps were crowded with visitors squinting their eyes in the afternoon sun as they held poses whilst makeshift photographers fumbled with gadget buttons.

The Botanic Gardens served a pleasant enough walk. I wandered about the pathways, admiring the vegetation. If you haven't ever been there, look out for the bats. Guano on your head wouldn't be how you want to remember your vacation.





I kept walking past the ducks, cranes and ibises towards The Domain. Springtime, you might spot a flock of noisy cockatoos. The birds are inured to human presence and so long as you keep your movements steady, won't fly away.

I passed St Mary's Cathedral on College Rd (strange name, considering how there are no colleges there).

I got back to the hotel about an hour and half before my flight and after a minor heart attack thanks to the hotel's reception (they misplaced my bag again), patiently sat at the lobby awaiting for the airport transfer van. For those who wish to use this service ($12), as opposed to the Airlink ($14.60), I'd suggest you give plenty of leeway, timewise. These vans cruise around the entire city, checking out hotel by hotel for customers. Although it was fun for me as it covered parts of the city I hadn't checked out, I did nearly miss my flight. To his credit though, the driver noticed my panic and sped up to get me there in time.

One of the highlights of my trip was the hour long conversation I had with two delightful people on the plane. We talked about everything under the sun, about books, racism, about how Gold Coast was really a town masquerading as a city, about how Sydney folk were heaps more friendly than their Queensland counterparts (very very true) etc. They were Russian/ Polish "relatives" (they wouldn't tell me how they were related), who had resided on the Coast for twenty years or so. We're supposed to meet up for dinner this week.

Sydney was great fun, but it's an expensive city. I wouldn't choose to live there unless I was earning at least double of what I'm getting now. The rich areas are lovely, but there appears to be no in-between. It's either gorgeous or really crappy.

At the end of the day, I was just glad to be home in X's arms again.