Through my lens » C’est la vie

Summer’s delight

Yen — Sun, 26 Jun 2011 17:59:40 +0000

I went for cherry harvesting the other day at a colleague’s place and I came back with a modest 2kg of cherries. We (actually I) finished most of them in just a couple of days. There’s this inner voice in me which reminds me come every spring/summer to make something yummy out of these seasonal fruits but up till now I so seldom come close to whipping up a cupcake, sorbet or anything close to complicated out of these lovely seasonal fruits. Well, honestly I seemed to be collecting more recipes for strawberry cupcakes than trying them out because I’d usually finish them up sooner than I have time to pick up my mixer. Ooops. And before I know it, the season has ended and I’d have to wait till next year for some fresh strawberries or cherries for those cute-looking little cupcakes.

Merry Xmas!

Yen — Sat, 25 Dec 2010 08:56:13 +0000

Ho! Ho! Ho! Be merry. Be jolly. Be happy. Wherever you are.

The colours of summer

Yen — Fri, 24 Sep 2010 15:23:21 +0000

The last few days of summer have always been precious. They say summer appears to have more magic near its end and it always seems to end before you’re finished with it. Warm days, and cloudless blue skies were perfect for rides high up in the sky. The late summer breeze kissed my face as I soared, cherishing those few seconds of giddy freedom. Weekend getaways, biking trips and occasional shopping sprees kept me busy. And sane. I never knew how much those summer days can seduce the senses, up till now, that autumn is here with its elements, which left much to be desired. I could remember clearly the scents from the garden that clung to the air after a short bout of rain. The clashes of colours from roses, fuchsia and daisies that shouted of summer. Indulgent smells. Cook smoke from the grill. The buzz of bees. The jolly laughter on a balmy night and the shower of fireworks that lit up the sky. One can easily be dazed and lulled by the spell of summer.Long walks in lush, green parks that thrive under the generous dose of sunshine and silent murmurs of appreciation that it was indeed beautiful to be here and behold it all.The summer has been good. As I rode my bike, cruising along the lined vineyards, enjoying the last light of the afternoon of one of the last days of summer, the warmth in the wind carried a tinge of promise that it’ll be back, soon.

Letting loose

Yen — Mon, 13 Sep 2010 19:48:19 +0000

I still remember the moment when I sat on one of these thing. As soon as the safety harness was in place, snug against my waist and shoulders, all that I could think of was that this was a mistake. A part of me wanted to get the hell out of there while another part of me was trying to be cool and enjoy the ride. Where else can you let out a good, throaty scream, sans self-consciousness while having a healthy dose of adrenaline pumping through your bloodstream? Going on a roller coaster ride once in a while might give the emotional department a well-deserved break after all.

On a subdued Sunday

Yen — Sun, 15 Aug 2010 11:58:51 +0000

There was a time when I was seventeen but fervently wished that I was twenty-seven and all grown-up. But when I reached twenty-seven, there were fleeting moments when I wished that I could be that seventeen year old girl again, whose life’s canvas was all but unpainted. It was a fine summer day in the city when I came upon this little girl jumping up and down the trampoline doing somersaults in the air, laughing and reaching high and higher, as if having the time of her life. The sky seemed so close within reach. I was drawn towards her excitement. It was contagious. Her laughter was totally uninhibited. Oh, I did wish then.

Thirty six degrees

Yen — Thu, 01 Jul 2010 20:00:04 +0000

Summer is emanating its irresistible charm on me. There are blue skies to warm the heart and ice cream to cool off the heat. Plenty of juicy red strawberries to sweeten the days and succulent cherries to tease the senses. The ecstasy of feeling cool water on the skin in the pool under the scorching evening sun with the peaceful stillness of balmy summer nights to wrap up the days. All bundled up in a complete package called happiness-from-within.

Forever, together

Yen — Sun, 20 Jun 2010 09:30:27 +0000

I was to be the maid of honour of a best friend’s wedding. It was wonderful, a day filled with tears of joy and laughter. The night before the wedding, I was looking for a poem to dedicate it to the newly weds. I googled up in the Internet and found this one from Goethe which I liked the most.

Nach der Trauung
Ihr seid nun eins, ihr beide,
und wir sind mit euch eins.
Trinkt auf der Freude Dauer
ein Glas des guten Weins!
Und bleibt zu allen Zeiten
einander zugekehrt
durch Streit und Zwietracht werde
nie euer Bund zerstört.

I thought I was tough enough to hold back the tears but it was a darn bad idea attending a wedding without waterproof mascara!

Sunny side up for summer

Yen — Tue, 01 Jun 2010 09:10:33 +0000

It’s funny how with just a little extra dose of sunshine can work wonders. Cities and towns all over the country are bustling with life and everywhere around Germany, people are in the mood for celebration. Once come spring and summer, you can find all sorts of celebrations and festivals going on all around the country just to welcome the warmer days because nothing beats the pleasure of sitting (or lying) in the open air feeling the warmth of sunshine while grooving to the beat of music in the background with a cool beer in the hand.

My stroke of luck

Yen — Tue, 05 Jan 2010 23:08:17 +0000

A couple of days ago,I was traveling to Frankfurt by ICE, a kind of high speed train in Germany. As usual, I bought my train ticket online, which is normally cheaper (yeah, train ticket in Germany is pretty expensive). However the online ticket is only valid when you have your credit/debit card along with you to show it to the train conductor as a proof of purchase or else the ticket is not valid (tough).

I usually have my credit card in my wallet all the time. However, I sorted out my wallet the day before so that I don’t carry too much unneeded stuffs and my credit card was also sorted out along with my other cards, safely tucked away in my desk drawer while I broke out in cold sweat when the train conductor asked me for my credit card!

I’ve totally FORGOTTEN that I needed it for the darn train ticket!

The train conductor gave me two choices, either I buy a new ticket or I type in my credit card number in his portable credit card machine. The first option wasn’t an option at all because I was not gonna fork out more money for the train ticket (if I have a choice) so I tried my luck by entering my credit card numbers by memory. I don’t know whether it was sheer luck or I had a real good memory because I never tried to memorise those numbers (I have better use of my brain cells), I entered the twelve digit numbers correctly . The conductor was rather impressed that I know my credit card numbers by heart. Ah, well, I think that’s the side effect of doing too much online shopping .

Happy New Year 2010!

Yen — Fri, 01 Jan 2010 09:55:10 +0000

2010 is here! I’d like to wish you a very happy new year filled with joy, lots of love and plenty of good luck! I had a fun time ‘drawing’ with my fireworks while bf had his fun time igniting fireworks. We stayed in for the new year celebration and played board games over warm mulled wine until the clock struck twelve. After draining our first bottle of sparkling wine (it’s tradition) of the year, we used the empty bottle for fireworks. It drizzled after our fireworks session, the winter chill descended upon us but we welcomed the new year with summer warmth in our hearts.