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Friday...
I had a quick dinner with my good gal pal, Swong (sorry - gotta encode it...she's as paranoid as Ed), at Nanbantei - our fav Jap BBQ place at Soho. It's basically grilled items on a stick. It's a famous restaurant chain in Japan. Yakitori ryori - Japanese grilled food from chicken pieces to vegetables. Goes well with beers, especially Japanese brewed, which Swong got since she was super duper tired and "work-frustrated" already to get the weekend started. She really did have a rough and busy week...she had to wear a suit, instead of being in casual attire, that Friday to meet a client who insisted of coming to their office...guess what - the meeting only lasted 15 minutes! Oh...she was not happy...especially since I was in t-shirt and jeans that day...casual day rocks! :P
We had one stick of each: the ox tongue (don't let the description get to you - it's very very nice and tender), the lamb chops (cooked to perfection), the soft-boned chicken (which I only learned how to eat it here in HK...you everything - bone and all!), the sweet potato (my fav...maybe because the butter that is brushed over it is just too good!), and the chicken wings (2 pieces per stick). Yummy! Too bad, Ed doesn't like these things...this is one bad loving habit I picked up with Swong. :) It may seem small but we were pretty stuffed after that.
**Side Note: Did you ever notice that a lot of the cosmopolitan cities have an area called "Soho"? Interesting since I know there is one in NYC, London and I believe somewhere in Toronto also...I could be wrong. This gives me a good reason to just quit work and travel to confirm this "fun fact". Hahahaa!
Quick dinner because we were going to watch a movie...supposedly it's for Miss Potter but since all the theaters pre-empted their showrooms to accommodate only Spider-Man 3 for the whole weekend - we had no choice but to watch Spider-Man 3 (SM3)...which we weren't complaining and luckily, we found decent seats.
We finished dinner early and there was still about an hour to spare before our 9pm show time so we went to a local Chinese dessert place,源記 (yuan ji), in Sheung Wan. I had the old fashion Chinese walnut cream dessert, 清香合桃露 (qing xiang he tao lou), It was super nice - light and not too sweet and not too heavy! Swong was telling me that the turnover rate of this place is really fast. We got our desserts only a few minutes and we were done in less than 10 minutes. :P It has survived this long on desserts alone...amazing...Chinese is just so amazing. "They would charge very low prices on very labor intensive items...like our desserts - did you know that the almonds are grounded up on a per order-basis...all hand-made...this is the last lap-of-luxury (comparing to Hermes versus LV leather items) for desserts. You see, the French, they learn to charge more and not worry about the quantity while Chinese would rather sell more than charge more. Different ideas on making money...I'm sure the French love their free-time compared to the Chinese, who would worry about idling time more than the pain that they go through each day." ~as per Swong
After our "quick dessert", we headed off to Cyberport to catch SM3. Packed house as expected. Seats were okay...got worried since we were on the 2nd row but it didn't bother us once the movie started since it was a pretty good movie. I was worried since the last installment was only so-so. I guess I was able to manage my expectations thus it was cool. There were funny parts and some slow ones - ones that I believe my mom slept through when she caught the same movie with dad in Manila a day or two before. This is so my parents. :P

Saturday...
I came home late after the movie and my body refuses to get up - the point that I missed my hearing doorbell when the Fedex man came around so I had to reschedule the delivery to Monday evening...hay...the hassles! I woke up with my mom calling my mobile - that normally works unless my alarm is on...but since it's a Saturday - I get to sleep-in as much as I want! Mom and I caught up on some news
I had an assignment this weekend...a co-worker, MW, of ours' unexpectedly...or maybe didn't tell us that she was getting married till it a day before the wedding day itself. There were no invitation circulated since I guess she didn't want to jinx it again...she was suppose to get married last year - December 09 but it all fell through due to complications and they broke up in the process. Before I know it, they were getting married again...this time May 03! I thought I would go to Causeway Bay(CWB) and find MW's gift . By the time I getting ready to head off for lunch, I got the news that I've been waiting so long...since November!
Gigi from the bstore rang and told me that my dress just arrived today! She told me that I can comeby to give it a try...my very 1st fitting (!) but other work and alterations will have to start around 4th quarter of this year so as to do it all at one go. Oh JOY!!! I finally get to see what mom picked me..."live" than "on-paper". :)
I quickly prepared my shoes...to make sure that that color is perfect and will reconfirm that I will not need to find another back-up shoes since it's quite hard to find the right color and design!I set my appointment at 2pm since I wanted to have a good lunch at Tasty...and after checking out a bit of my errand that took me at IFC and Prince's Building. I made a list of things that would be nice but I'll put it below to not overshadow "the great news". :P
At 2pm...excited as ever, I got to the store and requested for Gigi. I checked out some of the dresses on display but I still love my own. After a few minutes, Gigi came and brought out my dress and prepared the fitting room. I got into the room and she explained to me the "extras" then I was set to get dressed. This was all too surreal for me...but great to see them all laid out and ready to be put on.
Some parts of the gown like the bs was a bit weird at first since it was pretty tight and didn't seem like I wore it correctly but after a question or two, Gigi zipped me up...with still some hesitation on my end that the size is correct. After I got the real gown on, it all made sense and it worked well together! There are alterations needed but minimal in the end. I didn't realize how "antique gold" (golden) it was though I can say that it's the exact color that was on the magazine...I guess it would all be okay since I know I don't want to be in white so this sort of ivory works...I love it! A bit of a concern but I'm sure that my mom will comfort me and reassure me that this is a great gown and the color is as perfect as the day that we decided on it. It's amazing to see and feel it right there and then!
After such a long wait...and anticipation was building by the days!I love all the accesorries and they all worked and came to place coherently. It is a total work of art even if it is tougher to put on due to "a lot of assembly is required". :P Good thing Gigi was there to help me out. I hope I remember to arrange some help to get me all dressed up on the day itself.Initially, my main concern about the gown is that the beading or design in front might be too plain but when I saw it today...all that totally disappeared and it was nicely embroidered and with beading/sequins. If only I knew that there were more important problems/concerns to be tackled on. I'm still floating whenever I think about this experience...too surreal but definitely in a good way. :)
I got some photos on my phone since I forgot to bring my camera...good though because I don't want to happen to the initial gown style that I wanted wherein I grew tired of it since I went back almost every other day to try it on! I don't want this to happen to "my gown now" also so as not to jinx anything. The next fitting would be when my mom comes but not until we find my undergarment for it. Mom plans to maybe come next month instead since she might have a problem getting a ticket in May - vacation time in the Philippines and everyone wants to get out before school starts. For now, what it looks like will be a secret since I want everyone to see it on the day itself...element of surprise if you will indulge me. :)
Thanks for sharing my joy on this blog though!
Everything's coming to place and I rewarded myself with a high tea treat at the Mandarin's new coffee shop, now known as Café Causette ~ I totally love this place! It's a nice "getaway" for me from the grime and stress of the city. Whenever I feel down & beaten up, I would just go there, get a table for one and just not have a care in the world (till the bill arrives...but who cares when you already had a bad day!) I love their scones - too divine actually! I wanted to experience a real high tea even if it would mean doing it alone! Freshly baked scones, petite fours, small cake samplers, and the SCONES with whipped butter (the good stuff) and freshly made strawberry jam. I was in total heaven. Oh, and my mom called up a few times to check up on how the "dress session turned out. It was a great experience...I wasn't rushed and everyone was very hospitable. I gotta bring EW there...it's a wonderful and relaxing place...this and Agnes b Le Pain Grille again...:P
On a normal day, I would have their Phad Thai which is also their speciality.

Sunday...
Here's a few of the gift finds that I found from yesterday's "MW gift hunting":
SWAROVSKI:
- flamingo so for a pair, we would have to buy 2 - double the price; Designer: Gabriele Stamey; Article #289733; Size: 3 3/8 x 5 7/8 inch
- budgies pair; Designer: Michael Stamey; Article #680627; Size: 3 1/16 x 2 1/8 inch
- Swarovski crystals picture frame; Designer: Sharon Weinberg; Article #626600; Size: 5 15/16 x 5 inch
- cool new edition/Spring 2007 heart frame; Designer: Eva Ried; Article #889229; Size: 5 9/16 x 5 5/8 inch
OR
LLadro:
- love nest (dove pairs #6291); Issue Year: 1996; 24 x 25 CM; 9½ x 9¾"
- couple of doves (dove pairs #1169); Issue Year: 1971; 12 x 19 CM; 4¾ x 7½"
- everlasting love (#8274); Issue Year: 2006; 23 x 12 CM; 9 x 4¾"
- endless love (#6585); Issue Year: 1999; 13 x 27 CM; 5 x 10¾"
**fyi - love the courting cranes; Issue Year: 1989; 28 x 18 CM; 11 x 7"
OR
- chopsticks by ERCUIS (set of 2)
OR
- Handpainted Japanese Tea Cups, ranging from an etched white 5 cups and one tea pot to a nice blue cherry blossomed hand-painted 5 cups with pot. The price ranges higher for better and hand-painted cups by known Jap artists. I think these things are fit more to a museum than a home...but I guess as long as there's a market - it will sell.
While I was deciding since my brother told me that he would leave it up to me, I was heading out for Sunday dim sum with some good friends - Lex (Ed's brother), Kim and Donna at Metropole. We had only a few dishes...sad...I expected more. We ordered less than 10 dim sum dishes...that was how many Ed and I ordered before...and we were only two people! :P William came a bit later to chat but didn't stay to eat since he thought that we were all to meet before 12pm. We bumped into Lucy & Adrian also...small world!
After lunch, Lex went off to play tennis; Kim, Donna and I walked around Pacific Place to help me decide on the wedding gift. I learned from Kim that certain wedding venues and if you attend the wedding banquet or not, there is a set standard red packet (li si) amounts for the following as long as you received a wedding invite:
- banquet is at a restaurant and you attended = HKD500/600
- banquet is at a restaurant and you weren't able to attend = HKD300
- banquet is at a hotel and you attended = HKD800/1000
- banquet is at a hotel and you weren't able to attend = HKD300
**very interesting...I ended up getting the Swarovski Spring frame...since it was cool and had the crystals work like a heart at one angle. There were having a promo and I got another more simpler frame for myself or future gift.

Monday...
Computer's mic was going hay-wire just when I was telling my mom of what we (brother, SIL, jerbie and I) decided to give to MW, my gown (as expected) and other chick chats. It was quite upsetting to have my side fail...I'm so going to have the Computer Guy (CG) at work check up on this. I'm dying here since my mom's using her Skype credits while I'm using my call card credts just so we can talk. Very frustrating...GRRRRRR...

Tuesday...
Heavy computer...so heavy...CG got to have this fixed up at one go else I'm not going to bring it back home till he does.
Good though since CG got fixed within the minute! Even before he tackled it on, he already knew what to do and told me that it will only take him a few minutes. No - he fixed it within the minute! It was amazing! Simple to fix but you really had to know where to go and what to click get it done. Thank God for CG!

Wednesday...
Caught up with Lammer and he educated me about FaceBook though it was Vince who introduced this to me.
This is very similar to Friendster but is a bit different at the same time. There's the Wall-to-Wall postings that I find very intriguing since you can post messages like post-it notes to your friends and reply to things directly. There is a lot of Canadian friends of mine there and it's really a nice sort of network. There are a lot of people who I found here that don't use Friendster so this is an alternative mode of communication to friends of long ago. You can say that I really got emotional in all this since these were the people who made my past a blast and my future as rewarding as it was. I got to reconnect with so so many...and have been getting as many updates as I can.
Found out one of our classmates and good enough friend of mine in BNSS/BNSS (Wikipedia), is into the movie/soap opera industry, Antonio Cupo. I can so see him do that - the suave Italian guy. Thanks Lammer for the info! This is a great add-on to this blog. Now, we can all say that we had some contact with him too...I know we had some classes together but only briefly since I remember in English 10 but we did have more contact through extra curricular activities like certain plays, Night of Nations, and other committees around I have a photo of him in high school together for our last day...it was really great to see him do well for himself. Couldn't have happen to a better (and good looking) guy!

...on a side note: I plan to scrap something this weekend. Mojo's gone missing!
I hope this won't be for long. I want to do scrap (aside from loaded layouts to do) so badly...but I know that if I force this, it will backlash badly.
Okay, maybe not as bad as getting nothing out since I managed to get one out for this week. Love the papers and had problems in making it be simple with the immense cool papers that I wanted to slap on the layout! :P See below.

Paper Pack: At the Beach Paper Pack
Alpha Pack: Turtle Dumplings Alpha Pack(coming soon!)
Tape:
Tape'n It To The Max
All are by Mikki Livanos for Scrapbook-Elements
Program: PS7.0
Note: Macau bonding company trip last year...tons of fun...those were great memories!
TYFL!