These days I tell myself to look at things from a different angle. That applies to everything in my life.
Sometimes things can look really interesting, even when they usually seem boring.
Try seeing things from a different perspective.
Have a great weekend everyone!
It’s time.
We are leaving New Zealand. And will be moving to another country.
I’m not going to say where we are going yet until it becomes official, but my family and some of my friends have been informed.
Most of them were concerned that we were moving to a country that is notorious for its high crime rates. Their concerns got me feeling uncertain. I googled about it and what I read made me feel worse!
Yet we are also talking about one of the most beautiful countries in the world. It’s a place that I know will keep me and my camera very busy, probably with my jaws wide open and hanging on my chest too.
So, refusing to feel fearful even before I step into the country, I googled on it again and this time, I googled BLOGS instead of the main media stream. And that’s how I read the other side of the story.
The media is a really good exaggerator.
Reading the blogs of people who actually do live/work in the country made me realise that every place in the world has its good and its bad. Every city has its share of good and ugly sides.
Ironically, when I googled on crime rates by country, THIS came up.
If I had read this 2.5 years ago, I would probably never step out of the house here.
I know Singapore is and will always be the place where I feel the safest. But that’s because it’s the place where I grew up in. Does that mean I don’t love where we live now? Of course not! It just means I’m in a foreign country, and I have to be careful and vigilant.
So here I am, shooting a spooky dark alley (it was really dark here in real life), while taking a walk alone in Auckland city, thinking about this topic in my head.
It is unusual for me to step into a dark alley like this, regardless of where I am. I just have to remember to stay that way.
I’m excited about the move. We’ll see if what the media has portrayed is true. =)
Life without change is not life!
Time to start packing. ARGH!
Children, do NOT attempt to do this at home.
Standing in the middle of a road to take a photo is strictly not encouraged.
Besides, to get a shot like that also means you either have to be really lucky to be at the right position at the exact right time of the day.
Or you’ll have to do the koo koo thing (like I did) and stand by the roadside and wait till the sun, traffic lights, pedestrians, cars and buses are all cooperative. =p
One of my fave mommy bloggers, Leonny wrote an inspiring post on “Things Money Can’t Buy”.
I looked at the shots she took with her son, and it prompted me to dig this out from my Facebook page. It’s a shot taken by our gal a few weeks ago.
This is a shot that warms my heart.
It’s a strong reminder of what I have today and how no amount of money can buy it. It’s a reminder of why it has been worth it to give my life and time to my family.
Giving up my job and my spending power for love was the scariest thing I have ever done in my life. But if I hadn’t done that, I wouldn’t have been able to spend so much time with the kids when we have them with us.
They grow up so fast.
I used to think people just said that. But it’s so true. We know we won’t have our kids forever, and it becomes clearer and clearer to us every day. Our little boy is not so little anymore and his wings are solidifying and he will be soaring in his own space very soon. Before long, our gal would follow suit.
We really cherish our time with our kids. We never forget that they are the most important pieces of our lives and every moment that we spend together is a blessing.
Love thy children.
The hubby was travelling for work for a week, and we realised that he’s never left me on my own in NZ for so long.
I think he got a little worried, because the day before he left, he went to the market in the morning and came home with a ton of ingredients to cook a ginormous amount of fried bee hoon for me. ♥♥
And since this is his “signature dish” and everyone’s always asking me to document the recipe, I thought I would do it this time.
Do keep in mind that we usually cook as if we were feeding an army. And we are freaking generous with the liao (ingredients). You may like to cut back some to make it lighter and healthier, but I assure you it won’t be as yummy. =)
And yes, I had enough fried bee hoon to last the entire week. Haha!
Click here for more photos + recipe & step by step tutorial.
Spotted in the Singapore Botanic Gardens.
This is one of the most beautiful flowers I have ever seen. Does anyone know its name?
I can’t wait for spring to arrive in NZ. That’s when all the flowers bloom. It’ll be so beautiful everywhere.
Have a great week ahead, everyone!
Post written by Tomo.
Hi Everyone
I want to complain about Bing.
Why?
Because people keep seeing her photos here but see so little of me, they’ve already forgotten I exist. Hmpf!
While my brothers and sisters get to be attached to the most fashionable and modern handphones, and they get waaahs and ooooohs from other admirers, I am in perpetual darkness.
Why? Coz Bing keeps me in her stupid camera case, in the section where she keeps her spare battery and SD card! No one ever gets to see me, unless she remembers to bring me out.
And when she does, it’s never at a place where there’s plenty of sunlight that makes me look white and handsome. It’s usually in some boring dark restaurant where the light is awful and gives me a jaundice look that no amount of her blah photoshop skills can save.
Ok, fine. This one is an exception.
Why anyone would admire her lifestyle is beyond me. I only get to see her laptop, her kitchen, some sheep and always the same old couple of restaurants. I should be so lucky that she doesn’t put me next to cow dung to snap a shot. She does some crazy things to get a photo, you know.
She says I’m so small, only her Canon 60mm f/2.8 Macro lens can be used to shoot me. #@%@%!$!!@%%@!! Like that die lah! It’s no secret that it’s her Sigma 30mm f/1.4 that is her love and the one that she carries everywhere, not that macro lens. How now?!
I can only pray that I stay white and handsome, and hope Bing will remember to see more of me.
In the meantime, hello people! Don’t forget about me, ok?
And yes, that IS parsley. What else do I get to pose with?
Sigh. This boring life of mine.
♥ Tomo
