Still in the Village!

Below are different compounds of the house. Looks interesting? It is really different to see and experience with your own eyes! Especially the toilet!

Of course, I couldn't or wouldn't even stop to take a picture of it. You basically go in, pinch your nose & run out quickly!

Before this trip, I was thinking between Paris, New Zealand or Maldives. The decision? I prefer a rough travel while still young, while Mr Gui prefers a relaxing by-the-pool trip. In the end, we decided on ChongQing which would be rough, and then round it up in Beijing which should be more relaxing. So scroll down for the rough part of the trip first.


So, today Barack Obama swept to victory as the nation's first black president! I remember we were stuck on CNN in Beijing, watching the Final debate in the room instead of heading straight to the Forbidden City as planned.

OK so this is the kitchen - but in a shophouse apartment. Not all homes look like this, this place just got renovated - I think my friend probably had to sponsor his in-laws in ChongQing.

And all these ladies cook a mean SzeChuan meal!

KJ's Grandmother Room - this is really In the Village


Classic! I just went whoaaaaa when I saw the room.

A Old & Healthy Couple

Out of the village photo collection, this was my favourite. Almost like a picture you will only see on TV probably back in the 70's.

Dining Room - with Cool Decoration


Just concrete - & some decorative infomative wallpaper stuck on the wall - not even aligned properly, but turns out to be a rather artistic corner.

Coal Powered Kitchen

Again another room where I couldnt believe my eyes. Check out the wok too.

A rare experience!

how about a simple life?

No lack of mahjong pals in the village.

Lets enjoy some nuts.

Lets get together and crack some nuts - again...

Fresh nuts grown from your own farm.

sometimes you have to think basic and simple. Life in the rural is so. Nut-cracking in ChongQing village seems like a national pastime to me. Delicious... as I cracked open each nut, although I was enjoying the moment - the cool air, staring into greens, I wonder how time can tick so slowly. I could almost notice the minutes that went by. At a workplace, you hardly have time to notice or appreciate how the hour flew by.

You know what? People in the rural look happy. They truely do. Never mind their clothings were not fanciful; nor the fact they look kinda dirty. They look worry-free, they dont care whether its going to be Obama or McCain, they have sufficient to eat just based on the vegetation and farm animals they have reared. My friend M gave S$50 to his father-in-law living in the village. His wife asked why so little. I thought M made a good point - "There's no need to be more since he will only spend it on beer and cigarettes." I mean - there isn't any other real wants that they needed.

Of course, life and pressure in the city is different. Anyway I have just learned about three other Wealth Buddhas.

Lakshmi - The Hindu Goddess of Prosperity.

Ganapati - widely revered as the Remover of Obstacles and more generally as Lord of Beginnings and Lord of Obstacles, patron of arts and sciences, and of intellect and wisdom.

Saraswati - Hindu Goddess of knowledge, music and all the creative arts. She is the mother of Manjurshri (Wisdom). Shifu says wisdom is very important. With wisdom, it brings about understanding.

Buddhism is based on the impermanence doctrine. Similarly, the economic prosperity is not permanent. Especially not permanent because F.I. comes up with innovative financial products that taps on people wanting more than they can afford to. I believe there are more damages to be witnessed...

gloom or opportunity

If you flip the papers these days, whats the buzz word? "Crisis", "Recession". No doubt the governments are stepping in to provide the assurances, we know there's gonna be more job loss, cut in hiring and reduced bonuses. After 15 years of economic growth the party is over.

Went for a morning walk at Botanic this morning, and hehe, bought a Sudoku Puzzle book. Addictive!! & very fun! This evening, I am attending a prayer session which focuses on the female zambala (wealth buddha), especially good for people in business. I am not exactly a businesswoman - but in challenging times like this, why not? ;)

Hot Pot To Warm You

You don't travel to ChongQing without trying the magic of ChongQing hot pot. In fact we enjoyed it so much we went back twice to the same resturant. The broth includes chilli - which you can avoid; Ma La spice - which you can't avoid and it numbs your tongue if you happen to bite into it; and lots of oil. We love it especially when the weather was cool in the night. The heavily oiled and spiced soup boils releasing hazy steam (into my face?!); and we were perspiring a little in the coolness. We had the Yuanyang hotpot on both occasions as I couldnt quite take extreme spiciness.


This the the carnage after the meal.

This was our first meal as we entered the village area in ChongQing. Home-cooked. Although we were surprised that KJ has invited quite a bunch of relatives to welcome us - oh well what can be a better way to understand the locals better? ;)


Back to reality @ work, I felt hurt - I admit it. She has decided to change. The angel who used to say words of encouragement has decided to be proactive at attacking so as to secure her new found position. I don't blame her - she had it tough for one year already. But I am disappointed. I hope she wont lose herself, her own values. I know I have to let it go.

In a state of chaos and inequality, I feel a stronger need to go into spiritual practice.

My Yidam: Vajrasattva. By relying on Vajrasattva practice, gross and subtle negative imprints can be purified from our mind stream and we can thus break the chains of negativity that hold us down. Then we can start anew - crystal clear.

Manjushri: The Bodhisattva of Wisdom brandishes a sword above his head to cut away ignorance and the negative states of mind which form the basis of all suffering.

Green Tara: Buddha Tara tilts towards us in her great compassion to listen to our prayers, grant us our virtuous wishes and protect us as a mother would for her child.

Dzambala: He is most well known for being a Buddha of wealth with the rich gold colouring of his skin representing great increase and growth.

My One Week Flashback

First foot into China - Oct 11 2008. Landed in Beijing airport, and took a domestic flight to ChongQing. KJ met us at the ChongQing airport, and basically performed all the bargaining and negotiating with her native locals in her ChongQing language!

Okay, so here's just a small recap of my action packed one-week vacation. First half was spent in ChongQing - a city having the largest municipal area and population in China; whereas second half in Beijing - one of the Four Great Ancient Capitals of China.

We spent Sunday exploring the Chongqing village. This is the pathway to KJ's Grandparents' home. This was by far my favourite experience in this China vacation. KJ and her mum accompanied us throughout the scenic walk which took about 30 mins.

Aha, this is the village home. We spent half a day both in the house and exploring the farm. Can you imagine the inside of the village home in your head? I couldn't. I bascially went Whoo Whoa when I saw the Grandparents' bedrooms, and kitchen, arggh and of course the toilet (if we can call it the toilet)....


The next picture is part of our walk during the weekly Monday market. Basically you see the entire economy of the village taking place on one street. We were lucky to catch the market scene during our stay. The villagers were rather amused with my SLR camera, some were kind enough to smile into it!

Smile~ even if you are working!

Furong Cave

Up the mountain village. This is KJ uncle's family. Large family - don't know who belongs to which family tree.

China's natural beauty, Wulong Karst - another amazing highlight!


Back to City life - This is the Forbidden City - The Chinese Imperial Place of the Ming and Qing Dynasty. The crowd was a little nasty for better appreciation though.

Aha, our non-stop walking and climbing trip was well-balanced in the end. We had dinner at Shang-ri Hotel in Beijing. Had tea at the serene garden before dinner. The buffet selection was also superb with fresh oysters, Beijing duck, and sashimi. After many meals of Chinese food, it was indeed good to have an international selection.

We were so tired out we had to cancel our Great Wall plan. We decided to head back to Great Wall probably in winter - where there would be less people and tourists.

Well, it was a great experience truely. China is huuuggee, and really it has a lot of natural beauty to offer. We have covered three World Heritage sites this round. The village experience was wonderful and enchanting.

More details to follow!

Try Again

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- The Senate plans to vote on the $700 billion bank rescue plan Wednesday evening - two days after the House failed to pass it.

The economy no longer seems self-sustainable. Following a failed vote on a bailout the Dow Jones, posted a record slip of 7% on Monday. I remember watching the news on Tuesday morning in bed and my heart basically sank a little. More than $1 trillion in equity was wiped out by the market fall.

This wasn't the only reason my heart sank. On Tuesday, I experienced one of the greatest sabotage at work. I think I was made the scapegoat - not the first time. Thats how this team operates. They call it "team" but there will be attacks on their own team-member. I wonder how other teams will think of us when they see this self-sabotage? But hey, thats life/ reality in the workplace right? ;) I actually learned to smile despite these undue human inflicted pressure - quite a tough girl isn't it? ;) Not at all pleasant, but I am learning to handle....

Today is public holiday so I am home. Errh unbelivable but I kinda slept my day away. Besides chanting in the morning, writing this blog entry could be my only other productive thing. At 6:30pm, I have not even picked up the Straits Times - argggh forget it...

Good reason to be Away from work? Beginning of My Turn of 2x

Errh, I dont typically scream out loud about my birthday, let alone hold a celebration. Usually it would be dinner and a cake with my immediate family. But this year, with itchy fingers and brains, I decided to host a dinner party.

Guess what, I get a day off from work too! haah thats because I will still have 20 days left after taking one off today.

Still, it feels good, and I feel that my schedule is begnning to be hectic. Woke up at 6:30am, and went to Killiney for breakfast with Gui.

Came home, stuck to the news on TV and online, read up on investments - nothing exciting really, its just unpredictability in the turmoil..best strategy for a prudent investor - do nothing and read and understand for now.

Just made a donation to Thien Nhan, the toddler who survived after being partly eaten by wild dogs in the jungle.

I am attending Hatha yoga at Pacific Plaza and will need to leave the house in 20 mins time.

Ooh, brother just called me from Australia to wish me Happy Birthday too!

Will be meeting my mum for quick lunch later and will walk around Takashimaya. Je Taime is having a 30%-40% sale, will walk in for a feast of the eyes and some education on fine jewellery...

Hopefully a foot rub to end the evening - and then dinner with Mr Gui. More importantly my discipline to chant tonight.

Thats my birthday plan - sounds hectic?? - ;-)

Understanding Confessions

On Saturday evening, I celebrated my 29th birthday with a few close friends at home. Mr Gui planned every detail of the dinner - marinated the lamb four days ago, drew out a menu & pinned it on the refrigerator and basically gave Sumini a briefing on the sequence of the dishes and the cutleries required.

On Saturday afternoon, we went to Great World to pick up fresh tomatoes and a tub of Lemon Sherbet. I remember telling him "Hey, sorry ah, crowds usually give me a headache, and the cold in a supermarket usually makes me sick.. so I'll wait for you outside with a coffee from Da Paolo ;) "... Without much of a choice, he continued scrutinizing through the many different choices of tomatoes on the rack....

Once he grabbed the Lemon Sherbet, he said "Run, Run Run, I don't want it to melt!"

At around 4:30pm, we starting laying the table together. He decided on the choice of the table mats, and the type of glasses and cups to be used. If there is anything that was the best present, it was him - the knight that stood out in the shining apron!

I have not been writing. Not a suprise isnt it? The market is in a turmoil - creating excitment plus weariness in all financial institutions. The investment banking model has now broken down. Bear Sterns disappeared in March when it was bought by JPMorgan. Lehman and Merrill Lynch have had money-losing quarters since the credit crunch started last year. Merrill Lynch is acquired by Bank of America, and Lehman collapsed last week. The last two standing IB - Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley have just been approved to become banks.

Last night, mum-in-law gave us a mini class on our prayer session. "You have been chanting on Confessions, but do you know what it is?"

Here's part I

3 obstacles related to our Body = Killing, Stealing, Sexual Misconduct

4 obstacles related to our Voice = Lying, Slander, Harsh Speech, Idle Gossip

All obstacles connected to our Body, Speech and Mind = Covetousness, Malicious Intent, Wrong View

3 + 4 + 3 = The 10 Non-Virtous Actions

DILEMMA & TUMBLE

This week was stressful and tiring. Whats new right? The work stress, its just getting into me. Its not even about the technicalities of the work. That you can understand - or eventually fully grasp it with a logical mind. The humans make it trickier. As Mr P once puts it, humans are a lot more complex to understand than the financial markets.


Funny enough J is fundamentally going through the exact same phase as me - somewhat in terms of job satisfaction, and liking things that are forbidden. I have not been doing my spiritual reading, but since J commented today "I feel like my life has no purpose." I picked up Dr K Sri D's "The Purpose of Life". I read today:


The Buddha has classified humankind into four groups:

1. One who works for his own good, but not for the good of others;
2. One who works for the good of others, but not for his own good;
3. One who works neither for his own good nor for the good of others; and
4. One who works for his own good as well as for the good of others.

To elaborate:
Pt 2: One who works for the good of others, but not for his own good - it is he who encourages others to abolish evil thoughts, words and actions but does not strive for the abolition of greed, hate and delusion in himself.

Pt 3: One who works neither for his own good nor for the good of others - it is he who neither strives for the abolition of evil thoughts, words and actions in himself, nor does he encourage others to abolish greed, hate and delusion.



This weekend, I spent some good time with Mummy getting a hair trim together, and then late lunch and a chocolate cake to follow. Counting on my simple pleasures to tide me through... Having a cold now in fact - I guess I'll be sleeping quite soundly tonight ;)

How do you Manage Stress - Olympic teaches a lesson or two

Well, I was not at work this morning. Out sick and basically slept the entire day. Now I realize how tired I have been. Am I tired? Unmotivated? or Stressed out? Its eating into me :(

Tea @ Trump Tower?

Its often willpower, not just physical strength, that helps an athlete win. (The Straits Times, June Cheong) Indeed willpower is the key to want to suceed in any matters, but what do you do if you feel bruised and down? Where do you tap the energy to pick yourself up again?

Jog around Manhattan Apple Store?

Just be alone?


Be in tune with nature? (Upper East Side, Central Park)

It has been four months and three weeks. Have I really been happy? Enough of me. Today's Straits Times on Under Medal Stress is of relevance. "Olympians like Michael Phelps and Yao Ming may carry the weight of national expectations on their shoulders, but ordinary folk have to contend with other pressures - like looming w0rk deadlines, barking clients or late buses." Here are some tips summarized:

Bouncing back from mistakes

Sporting events are all about being faster, stronger and better than the competition. So athletes have to learn to snap back to form quickly after making an error. They are told not to dwell on past mistakes and to always seek closure.

One method Ms Andrea Furst, head of sports psychology at Singapore Sports Council, uses is to feed cue words to athletes such that when they think of these words, they stop the negative thought stream immediately. She said: "We teach athletes to use their thoughts to dictate their attitudes."

Goal setting

Learn to distinguish between what's within your control and what's not. Whenever pressure hits, negativity fills our mind much more easily. Instead of hitting the panic button, think clearly of what you need to do next and go back to what's within your control.

Learning to concentrate

Prior to the Olympics, China's sports system set up counselling websites, and introduced (among other things) meditation and yoga to help ease the athletes' pressure. Ms Furst: Learning how to meditate or control your breathing is fantastic for training your power to focus. If you can relax your mind, you can switch on and off at will.

Rest today, peak tomorrow

Athletes call it periodisation. They stress and rest their bodies in alternation constantly. People under long periods of stress should look at ways to relax, like running or having a good meal. Rest helps you to keep performing at your best and is not unproductive.

Hmm, rest.. thats what I am doing today...

WHILE WATCHING OLYMPICS

This may be the longest time I take to write an entry. Oh well, having my laptop right in front of the TV, as I became a couch potato today glued to the Gold Medal matches of Olympics - Basketball and Volleyball.

Pictures taken from Times Square & Fifth Avenue stroll in Manhattan.

Why I chose this? Cheesy, but I am having a coke now [the coke side of life..??] while enjoying the Olympic sport [okay that was taken from the World of Disney store]. Donald Trump - do I need to say more -Thinking Big is definitely closely related to the Olympic honours.


The Olympic games - it is not only about watching the world's best clinch their titles. Most memorable to me was the Men's Vollyball Gold Medal Match. I remember how Clayton Stanley from the USA team screwed up the first two spikes in exactly the same manner; but how he was eventually one of the key player who helped the team secured the gold. I remember his expression - how he was unhappy with himself initially, but eventually see the fire, determination and focus in his eyes. Equally impressive (very) was Giba, to me one of the best players in the Brazil team. To me, he played with perfection and wits. He pointed to his head - probably reminding his team-players to not only play with good physical strength and stamina, but with intelligence. What touched my heart most, was reading the news thereafter. The U.S. coach's father-in-law was stabbed to death in Beijing.

While reading the Heart Sutra comic, here's one that striked my mind: Although we have not changed, we cannot deny changes in external factors. The essence of living is to continually dissolve into space and time in which we happen to be. Therefore, we should face reality instead of fooling ourselves in daydreams.

Easier said than done. Is this a challenge I have to go through now? Accept whatever is presented to me? Dissolve in it. If I succeed in dissolving in it, am I a success (even though I am unhappy? or am i supposed to find a way to be happy dissolving in it?)?

Also, why did you have to contact me? I succeeded well for three days (oops only three? seems like a long period of time)...

Dissolve...[easier said than done!!]

Relaxing Sunday Morning at Botanic Gardens


Sumini is off today, so Irwin and I decided to take Bobby to Botanic for his morning walk. In touch with nature, nothing can be better. We walked for an hour, and then settled for brunch.

Feeling a walk was inadequate for weekend fun, I decided to go for Yoga in the afternoon!

While waiting for class to start, I had a book in my hand while I warmed up. I think this paragraph has its truth, although I could not help giggling while reading and warming up.

Mortals are healthy or unhealthy, happy or unhappy, strong or weak, alive or dead, in the proportion that they think thoughts of health or illness, strength or weakness. Your body, like all other material things, manifests only what your mind entertains in belief.

In a general way you have often noticed this yourself. A man with an ugly disposition (which is a mental state) will have harsh, unlovely features. One with a gentle disposition will have a similing and serene countenance. All the other organs of the human body are equally responsive to thought. Who has not seen the face become red with rage or white with fear? Who has not known of people who become desperately ill following an outburst of temper? Physicians declare that just as fear, irritability and hate distort the features, they likewise distort the heard, stomach and liver.

I wont explain why I giggled. But think about it, have you not had such thoughts and wonder? Humour aside, consider what this book is trying to explain.

Finally, and seriously, consider taking up Yoga - I think it really helps to focus and strenghten the mind - and at the same time quieten and calm down the mind! After yoga, I was happy and rejuvenated.

Our Morning Visit

Well I have not visited Shifu in awhile. This morning, Irwin and I drove down to Lucky Heights, munching Old Chang Kee curry puffs and spring rolls on our ride down.

It is always calming to visit him. When we first sat down, I didn't even have to open my mouth.

"Your work is currently very tough."

He went on to say that sometimes the unhappiness can be self-created.

Similar to what I have thought through - this is the current culture of the team... very different to what I have been exposed to, but I should focus on the responsibilities given and think of nothing else.



After I have been doing this for long, it will get better... thats what Shifu told me when I first chatted with him on whether I should change to a different product line back in January 08.

It is important to learn from the people around you.





Build the experience.

At this point, even if I made mistakes, it is okay.



I don't deny I feel tired from the current workload and high expectations. But I guess I chose this path myself. I gave up my cushy role to learn something new from the bottom. I have to learn to enjoy this new stress - life is about evolution and progression isn't it?

That is the price I pay for hating anything static. Yes I did progress =). Met a very good yoga teacher yesterday.



Today, Irwin and I took a jog to Chancery Lane. When we came back, we were hungry, and I (hee hee hee) picked up cooking! Cooked my first dish in Sg! Well, I didnt exactly cook. I was in charge of cutting up the onions, chilli and canned pork (not bad!! onions and chilli are a challenge for a beginner!). I think I can like cooking after all. Gonna start trying - pick up a cook book and explore a bit every weekend. Wish me luck ;)

The WRAF WRAF week and How I deal

This entry is an update of my rough week and how I kinda survived. To start with, it is month end week (from a controller's perspective).

Month-end, I have developed a luff-hate relationship with this process called Mark Review (where you assess your traders' positions and see that it is valued in line with market and other documented methodologies). It is a teeeedious process, yet extremely interesting - and there is no better way to learn and understand a commodity's value than going through this Mark Review process. Its tough - I had to learn the process under crazy conditions before my team-mate went for maternity leave.. but here I am - I have sorta survived this second round. Late nights, early starts, lots of starbucks, teh ci xiu dai, 100 plus - all to focus for building the curves and understanding how the new Gasoils traded in July are valued.... and did I mention - the stress of the Access database not functioning as well as you would like it?!!!

During this week, I also received two rather shocking news. My
university mate's dad has just passed away - and so did one of my colleague's mother. Hey, we are talking about a generation above us (now!!) It used to be Grand - something, but now its starting to be just a generation above us. Due to the late nights @ work, I couldnt even attend the wake...

The friendship with I seems to have died off a little. He is either very very caught up at work, or put off by the fact that I speak about Gui and my in-laws, or feeling guility hehehe... ooh whatever, let it be. This is a situation which I have anticipated as one of the outcomes when I embarked on the friendship. But at least I felt I have learnt a lot too from this friebdship. Be it from books, music, sports, leading a balanced life-style, unwinding tips, good sleeping habits etc.... During the work week, I almost felt like giving up on the job again - but when it comes to weekend, it feels that everything is A-ok... I can do it, I can probably survive another crazy month-end round. I probably learned more in the past three months compared to my entire two years in the bank!


This morning, Gui and I took the makansutra book and decided to explore the Havelock road area. With a book in my hand, we explored 22A Havelock road for some simple fares. Always nice to feel a bit like a tourist, be curious and exploratory.

Its Saturday afternoon now - I know - its a bit too early in the weekend to be reflective? But yes I am feeling so - not much of an energy to look at investments (after the wraf wraf week)... I think I will leave. Was supposed to look at the performance evaluation process this year for my job - Ade has been chasing me to be more proactive about it, but I am exhuasted and I guess I'll leave. Weekend time - its too precious to spend it on matters that matter - but doesnt add a relaxing, unwinding touch to it... (or am I lazy?!!)

The Olympics opening ceremony was a WOO! The chinese athletes are also all nervous about competing on their home grounds. What some of their coaches are doing is to prevent them from speaking with the press, and that they do yoga. Yes, thats what I will do later. Stroll to Great World - and its time to take a more serious approach to yoga - it has to progress!

What are you working for?

Its hectic during the weekdays. Seems to be fighting fire daily. An ex-colleague called me twice this week and asked if I was interested to join his company - promising a very attractive pay package and work hours. Pondered, but no at this point, I do not feel like stepping back into audit. Working in a bank has its perks. You are near the market movers - you see and hear their market perspectives, and hear from the best brains - their problems/ issues. Nope, $ cannot be everything.

Had a really balanced weekend this time. Swam in the morning on Saturday; and in the evening, with a touch of more culture, went to attend a song concert at the Drama Centre Theatre @ the National Library. It was a performance mainly put up by doctors - they can sing!!! We went specially to support Dr Loh - the tickets in support of her goes to charity - so it was a culturally charitable evening. That aside, it was really enjoyable to bask in live music.

Sunday - Gui and I went for McDonalds breakfast along Scotts Road. Was a quick one by the roadside since he had to returned to work. In the afternoon, I went to buy two more CDs. Coldplay's new album (for Gui) and High Society - Jazz in the city 2. Was not that cheap since these are new releases. But music to me is like life's simple pleasures. Hmm, I enjoy it and I feel a certain high when I hear music I like - Do you??!

Took a cab and then went for wall climbing. This time I climbed (nearly) non-stop for two hours. Fun and I learned to tie the knots these time. Not something I will usually do but you goto know if you wana explore this sport. I also had to learn to support my climbing partner who is probably more than two times heavier than me?? I flew up when he was coming down (we did a trial) - eventually I had to be tied to the gate behind (like a dog's leash) so I wouldn't fly. It worked, although I was still lifted slightly mid-air (with legs off the ground) when he was coming down... Took a short swim after that to cool down and to enjoy the sunshine and breeze.

So, what am I working for? Apart from job satisfaction (which might slip from time to time); trying to survive the stress - came up with a new motto "No fears, No worries" which my team-mate laughed at me (but hey I think it works; To paraphrase Thackeray -- "The world is a looking-glass, and gives back to every man the reflection of his own thought.") -- its also to afford my life's simple pleasures. I feel fortunate at this age that I dont have real financial burden to worry about - no debt, no loans, parents are also not asking for financial support -- At this point, its to afford my life's simple pleasures -- without a worry.