Tomorrow, we will embark on our search for the Aurora Borealis. I think… or rather, I hope we’re all prepared, both mentally and logistically.

For most part of the journey, we would be in Lapland in northern Finland. I’ve been studious in our research, focusing mainly on photography in such extreme weather conditions. Now, I can only pray that 小黑 is sturdy enough to brave through the ordeal and not die on me.

I’m dreading the packing, which I will begin very soon. It’s a logistic nightmare. The consensual advice is - layering. Which means a thermal base layer, followed by a layer of fleece and finally an outer shell. Seriously, I doubt it’s enough for me. In my case, I would go with two layers of thermal (one short-sleeved, one long), one shirt, one fleece and the outershell. That’s not forgetting the beanie, the neck warmer (but I’ll still bring a scarf, just in case), the gloves and mittens (I bought one where I can un-flip the finger part, so that I can still handle the camera and press the shutter). Oooh…and the countless pairs of socks. The advice is against using water-based moisturizer, since it might freeze (imagine our face cracking up! ), so we’ve got ourselves one big tub of Nivea intensive moisturizing cream.

If you want to follow how lucky we are with the northern lights, you can always check this link, which gives a prediction of auroral activity.

Wish us luck!

This would be a dream come true

Introducing my new baby - 小黑!

Ta-Da!

Ok, it’s actually not so new anymore. Got it on our last trip back in December. Decided to get it after realizing how hard it is to ignore the difference in quality between pictures taken by a Compact and a DSLR. So, after months of research, I finally got it, even though that meant crossing a huge hurdle for me - convincing myself to commit to the weight and bulkiness.

I know it’s a bit dumb to get it now, when our zuzuland stint is coming to an end, but it’s better late than never. Plus, we still have… FINLAND!

I’m really excited about the trip. Not so much about the cold, but the chance of seeing the Northern Lights. I know I shouldn’t harbour such high hopes lest I get too disappointed. But I can’t help it!

I’ve already borrowed a tripod, ordered a remote control (this is almost for the sole purpose of shooting the lights), an extra battery and a filter for 小黑. We’ve also bought some extra warm gear. Looks like this trip is going to burn a bigger hole than what we’d expected. But I always tell meself (and of course Mr. Tan) that Finland is somewhere one would hardly travel to from the Far East. So might as well do it here, right!

Anyway, I feel like I haven’t worked 小黑 enough, especially at night, even though I know I should. So far I can only say his best friend is Heidi, who even appears to be getting irritated with his dogged relentlessness.

Winter 2009

Mr. Snowman grew ten times in the span of two years!

Winter 2007

I was reading up on Finland and found the following information:

In Rovaniemi, which is in the Arctic Circle and also the capital of Lapland, on June 1, the sun rises at 02:12 and sets at 00:17. Oh my gawd! Can you imagine… going to sleep when the sun hasn’t set, and after it has, it’s stirring us up again barely 2hrs later!

And at least once per year, the sun NEVER sets AT ALL, hence called the ‘midnight sun’. Of course, this also means there’s another day when the sun never rises at all, which is so sad.

I wished I had a chance to witness the midnight sun. Oh well. I should just be satisfied with the Northern Lights aka Aurora Borealis, that is if we really get to see them.

On 1 Feb, the sun rises at 09:18 and sets at 15:44. The highest average temperature in Feb is -8.6C°  and the lowest is -18.4C°.

Now, I’m hoping Mr. Tan will never read this post.

For the first time in years, I went to work yesterday.

I wouldn’t say that I’ve actually found a job. It’s just that one of the chinese restaurants that I patronised and also at the same time advertised my services for needed some help yesterday.

Honestly, I was rather apprehensive and in fact, pretty scared. The last time I had worked as a waitress was 12 years ago. It was one of the many odd jobs I held while waiting for my ‘A’ level results. I wished I could say ‘Thank goodness for that experience’.

My main qualm was having to use my under-utilized German. Thankfully, it was a wedding dinner, which meant a few good things - I didn’t have to familiarize myself with the menu, didn’t need to take orders, and the guests were all in a good mood. The serving was easy too. I only remember washing the dishes half the time; that’s what you get for working for a typical Cheena boss who’s too ‘giam kana’ to even buy a dishwasher for the restaurant. ‘Cut cost’, they say. Hmm, I wonder how much cost they cut by paying someone 19 Francs per hour, who spends half her working time doing the dishes.

Yea, the pay is equivalent to SGD 26 per hour. If I were in Singapore, I’d say ‘Wooh Lala!’ In zuzuland, this is the average (for the relevant industry), if not below-average. In total, for 6.5hrs worth of work, I brought home 125 Francs. Sounds ‘Woo Lala!’ again? Not if I tell you that’s about enough for two dinners for two, in an average-priced restaurant here.

But I’m not complaining. At least I know I’m contributing to our ‘Go Finland to see Northern Lights in February’ fund.

Sorry, I had problems embedding the video. So just click on the link below to enjoy, ok?

http://en.tackfilm.se/?id=1262771994658RA33

Happy 2010 one and all! It’s hard to believe that it’s already been one decade since the whole world was worrying about the Y2K bug and the IT people made fortunes out of the frenzy.

I suppose you’d also find it hard to believe that I was in lalaland as the clock struck twelve last night.

Zuzuland celebrates the New Year traditionally with a 45-min exhilarating display of fireworks at the Zurich lake.  In all our three years here, we’ve never joined in the celebration. Yesterday was no exception.

So the last night of 2009 was spent like any other - Mr. Tan fiddled with the computer, I read my book “Twilight”. I don’t know when, but I dozed off sometime before the turn of the decade. Five minutes past midnight, I jolted up, threw a glance at the clock and exclaimed, “Aahh, why didn’t you wake me up!”

“For what?”

“I want to watch the fireworks!” refering to the mini display of fireworks from all the different towns on the other side of the nearby lake, which we could see from our window. It was nothing fantastic. Just sporadic bursts of colourful fireballs, in a scaled-down version. But it was a feeble alternative to the actual thing, which I could only imagine…

“What’s there to see? Every year also same thing…”

Disregarding his nonchalence, I ran to the room, glued my face to the window, and indulged in whatever was still being presented. Meanwhile, he hung around and peered out every now and then.

The display was to continue for possibly another half an hour. But barely five minutes later, a voice behind me let out, ” I want to sleep already.”

Exasperated, I was at a loss for words.

No countdown, even if it was just between the two of us. No exclamation of “Happy New Year!” No hugs or kisses. Not even a tinge of emotion, not to say excitement.

Is the man beside me an Edward Cullen?

While Father Chualie was sending me to the airport, we had a little conversation, which left a big impression.

蔡爸爸：你明年三月回来做工时，就会已经拿了几年的假啊？

stone: 差不多五年吧。

蔡爸爸：哇！五年了啊！很好哦！

stone: 哎，也不懂是好事还是坏事。

蔡爸爸：当然是好事啦！怎么会是坏事呢？

stone: 因为比起我的同辈，我已经慢了五年，而且还少赚了五年的薪水咯。

蔡爸爸：开玩笑！那又会是什么坏事？一辈子能少做五年工有什么不好？钱是永远赚不完的。反正赚回来的钱也都得花掉的嘛。

All these years, as I’ve been enjoying my carefree life, I’ve also brushed aside comments made by friends about how I would have lost out in my career

True enough, when it comes to ambition, I’ve almost zilch. I don’t strive to be a HOD or P. Neither do I yearn to make big money. If I were someone who believes in life’s calling, I’d say my calling is to be a teacher - just a normal teacher, who is able to help her charges directly. Full stop.

I recall another conversation that I had a friend earlier this year. As with most conversations I’ve been having nowadays, he asked how long I’d been out of the service for. Then he asked if I felt I had lost out in my career. Without thinking, I said ‘no’. In fact, I recall telling him matter-of-factly that I’m a person with no ambition. ‘Just give me a stable job, let me be a teacher all my life and I’d be contented.’ Following that, he said I was ‘the perfect civil servant’.

At that point in time, I was still feeling genuinely nonchalent about the so-called ‘loss’ in my career. As the time came for me to go home drew nearer and after engaging in more and more of such conversations, I couldn’t help but started feeling somewhat affected.

Thank goodness. As I was on the verge of getting truly disturbed, Father Chualie came as a knight in shining armour and saved me.

Wow wee! I can’t believe it’s been almost a month since I last blogged. Somehow, time always flies by whenever I’m back at home.

During the few weeks that I was back, I’d accomplished lots. For one, I’d signed the most expensive contract in my life. Yup, we’d found a interior designer, firmed up plans, and committed ourselves. Work is slated to start after Chinese New Year. On top of that, I was busy scouting around for stuff that would be needed for the renovation, since we wouldn’t be around when all the drilling and hacking start. The air-con units (kindly sponsored by Mother Chualie ) have been ordered, lights, toilet bowls, basins and other accessories have also been bought.

Looking back, even I am impressed by how I’d done all these single-handedly. Well, maybe not quite. I was on the receiving end of valuable advice and tips by kind friends. My dear Lau gong and hubby Foo even sacrificed a precious Saturday afternoon by bringing me to Balestier for some initial lights recce-ing. In those few days, IMM, Balestier, Jalan Besar and Geylang became my playground, and varying images of toilet bowls and basins temporarily resided in my brain. When the all-important dotted line was signed on and all the invoices passed to our ID (just the day before I left), I heaved a huge sigh of relief.

It’s been five days since I came back to zuzuland. As usual, it’s a vague impression how the days passed by. Like most other Zurchers, we spent Christmas eve stocking up on groceries, since shops would remained closed for the next few days. Christmas day was spent on the slopes, and Boxing day was football day. On these few days, anyone walking around around our neighbourhood and on the streets would feel like they’ve entered a ghost town.

By the way, I’ve yet to share with you what I’d been enduring since I stepped into the house five days ago.

Giant octopus in the house!

Yes, there are 18 of such holes around the house

Even the toilet is not spared

Apparently, the entire area under our floor has been flooded with water from a leaking pipe. As the pipe is under the sink and kinda concealed behind the enclosed dustbin, we had no idea of what has been happening. In early November, our neighbour downstairs complained and that was when we first became aware of the leak. So, we had the pipe changed and thought everything had been resolved. Subsequently, I went back to Sunnypore and Mr. Tan joined me soon after. It was only after he came back that he was notified of how bad the situation had became. Immediately, big machines were moved into the apartment, 18 holes were drilled in the floor, and the suction to remove the water began. It’s been a few weeks and we’re not done. Even after all the water’s gone, another set of machines would be moved in to pump hot air under the flooring. All these are happening 24/7. If it irritates you just by the look of it, imagine the noise. Even moving to the room at the end of the corridor and closing the door isn’t enough to get a peaceful sleep. Urgh, I’d rather have back the deafening silence, anytime! To make things worse, I can’t leave the house and get away from the constant whirring cos’ my keys have been given to the technician, who came every few days to check on the progress when Mr Tan was out working.

So much for a quiet Christmas.

Oh yes, and merry belated Christmas.

Back at home, I feel inhibited about calling people over the phone after 9pm, even though I know it is perfectly alright here.

I compact the rubbish and squeeze them all to the bottom of the bin, trying to maximize the volume of the trash bag, even though we don’t have to pay a fee per bag to dispose of the trash here.

I get flustered when I know I’m going to be late for appointments, even though I know whoever I’m going to meet will most likely be late as well.

I savour every bit of green leafy vegetable here, such as scrapping out ALL the leaves from the packet of wantan me, even though they cost ten times less here.

I feel I’ve committed a crime when I throw a plastic bottle or an empty box made of cardboard into the rubbish bin.

I was dreaming about my Bedok South fishballs on the flight home yesterday, but because Father Chualie had already prepared dinner, I gave it a miss.

So I thought I would have it for lunch today instead. Guess what! When I eagerly popped downstairs, I realized the entire hawker centre was closed for cleaning… until the first week of December! For a second, I actually felt the world crashing down on me.