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We've seen the memes and watched the reels about how introverts feel so run down after going out with friends or socialising at an event that they must isolate themselves for the next two days (or is it two weeks?). I'm no psychologist or psychiatrist, but this is supposedly because introverts don't want to be around other people. Anecdotally, they do enjoy spending time with friends, but perhaps not with all of them at once. Since I enjoy the company of my friends, perhaps I am an extrovert. So, hanging out with them should be a piece of cake. Or so I thought. Photo: Vincenzo Landino, Unsplash New realisations Last month, one of my wife's best friends (let's call her K) flew into town for a conference, but before that event, she spent two days at our house. Though I don't know her as well as my better half does, we get along fine. I assumed that since the missus and I would be entertaining her, this would be a walk in the park. We picked up K from the airport on a Saturday afternoon and treated her to lunch in Jewel before heading home so we could get her settled. Later, we went to dinner in Jalan Besar. Since our guest had a long day, we headed back home right after, did a bit more catching up and turned in before midnight. The next day should have been easy. Since we all woke up late, we decided to have an early lunch before going to Gardens by the Bay to explore the 'Impressions of Monet' exhibition. Afterwards, we dropped K off at her hotel. 'Exhaustion' sets in My better half and I exhaled sighs of relief as we drove off. "I'm so tired!" she proclaimed. "I need to lie in bed for two hours!" I replied. And that's exactly what we did when we got back. I don't know if there's a name to this (is this even a defined condition?), but all those reels and memes about the 'social battery running low' could not have felt more real. Was it too much stimulation from the Sunday crowd? Was I just tired from the workweek? A bit of both? Whatever it was, this relatively simple hosting schedule was surprisingly taxing. I felt drained. At that point, I would have refused a coffee run. Even if it meant being able to ride my bike. Photo: Kinga Howard, Unsplash Maybe it's not overstimulation I thought I was tired from the crowds. Having to process all that visual and audio stimulation whilst avoiding bumping into tourists takes a lot of energy. Upon further pondering, I surmised that having to continuously carry a conversation is probably what did us in. Being mentally and emotionally present takes a toll. We didn't just sit around and stare at our phones; we conversed and reminisced. We were engaged. You get worn out when you dedicate so much of yourself. It's probably why a lot of folks today prefer the company of their devices to actual people. You can switch off your phone when you're tired of doomscrolling or when the battery runs out. But when you're in someone's company or keeping someone company, you can't just 'switch off' by standing up and leaving. Well, you could, but it would be incredibly rude. Photo: Shane, Unsplash Managing your 'mana' K is neither the first nor will she be the last houseguest. But now that we've realised how much 'mana' it takes to entertain someone and how long it takes to refill, we will have an even more relaxed plan next time. We can schedule longer periods of just hanging out at home instead of going out. And when we do bring our guest out, we will ensure it is someplace that isn't crowded or difficult to access. Meaningful conversations can only take place when there are fewer distractions around you. In such a setting, everyone is also more comfortable, and energy levels are better managed. I sound cold, talking about how I must consciously manage the time I spend with friends. Well, I'm no longer a teenager with boundless energy, able to survive on two hours' sleep and continue going for another day before crashing for 16 hours straight. I'm cognisant that like money, time and energy must be invested judiciously. Also, sleep debt is real. Accrue too much and it takes a long time to pay back. For me, a five-day workweek with less than seven hours of sleep daily requires two straight weeks of proper sleep to repay. Five nights of inadequate sleep demands 14 nights of good shut-eye. I might be wrong but that sounds like an 'interest rate' of 280%.

Broadly speaking, Cantonese food isn’t hard to find in Singapore. Dim sum joints are a dim(e) a dozen. And if we’re talking larger names/chains, Swee Choon, Tim Ho Wan, and of course, Canton Paradise, are the first to come to my mind. Even hawker centre/food court staples, such as wanton noodles, or sweet and sour pork at caifan stalls, have their roots in Cantonese cuisine. Traditional Hong Kong-style diners, however? Those require more conscientious hunting. Also known as 茶餐厅 (cha can ting in Mandarin, caa can teng in Cantonese), these feature a distinct, functional style of interior decoration - tiled walls, rounded metal chairs, etc - and importantly, also a wide ranging menu including virtually every diner-favourite you can imagine. Naturally, we're talking milk tea, bo luo bao, egg noodles, cheese baked rice, toast and of course, dim sum. The perceived rarity of these diners in Singapore is perhaps the reason why I routinely return to one specific spot that I feel captures the magic so well: The original HK Legendary Restaurant and Cafe outlet, housed on the third floor of Jurong Point (which - yes - is confoundingly located at Boon Lay MRT station). For context, I live in Punggol. The length of even three entire blog posts would still not do justice to the breadth of delicacies you can eat here. As such, I'll just list some of the dishes my mum and I got to eat during our most recent visit: Starting out with some iced milk tea (the tea leaves are flown in directly from HK!) and garlic kai lan... My mum loves her sliced fish porridge HK style fishball soup! Everything here - the taste of the soup, the consistency of the fishballs, and of course, the inclusion of yet more kai lan - makes this really different from the sort you find at bar chor mee stalls What would an outing at a caa can teeng be without some har gao? And of course - some proper indulgence! The cherry on top of the icing (or the sweet chilli on top of the har gao, if we want to remain on-theme) is that your orders are taken and filled out via coloured A4 sheets - in pink, green and yellow - which list down the entire menu of options available. In all, as charmingly close to the experience I've gotten from my few trips to Hong Kong. Ruminating - again I started reflecting more deeply on my previous food outing about why certain culinary spaces stand out to me, and in this reflexive process of documenting my weekend adventures, it has increasingly become clearer to me that I tend to associate emotions with the act of eating. As with DMQ Ban Mian and its sleepy Ubi environs, Legendary Hong Kong and Jurong Point both also hold a special place in my heart. (Notably, this isn't the only Legendary Hong Kong outlet. The one at Funan - a cart noodles-only joint - feels like a feeble, watered-down version of the original outlet; a distant offshoot un-seasoned by the franchise's stardust. The one at Rochester Park, while pleasantly quaint, feels too polished.) For starters, you feel like you've been transported outside of Singapore even before stepping into the restaurant. The reason? That entire corridor along Level 3 - also known as Mongkok Street - is decked out in glaring neon signs that evoke the bustling lanes of downtown Hong Kong. Then, the very fact that it takes 40 minutes by car to get here (yes, I know how indulgent it is, and how privileged I am, to be able to drive so far just for a special meal) means that any visit here has already been preceded by a mental state of serenity. When I make the cross-island trek, I am often relaxed; restful in the knowledge that my evening is not beholden to any other appointment, piece of work, or activity. Having found it increasingly difficult to consistently carve these spaces of rest out for myself in recent years, the comfort that the restaurant envelops me in is hard to put into words. There are also the memories that the restaurant evokes: Tea break after fetching my sister from NIE; dining with my mum after finishing my last exam of my final year at uni; and even just transporting the entire family over at last, when business resumed for the first time after the pandemic. Once again, I admit that a lot of this has been heavily romanticised by me. Legendary Hong Kong would just be another fancy dining spot if I were a denizen of the West - its food, too overpriced to be enjoyed regularly; Mongkok Street's neon lights, too garish to evoke any un-Singaporean magic. Yet as mentioned previously, it is precisely these reliable - if irregular - spaces of solace that feel so precious given how mundane and trying the weekly hike from Monday to Friday can be. Incidentally, Legendary Hong Kong at Jurong Point underwent a significant refresh sometime within the last two years. I remember lamenting to my parents that the place had lost a bit of its charm when we returned for the first time after; a part of me fearful that the place would soon befall the fate of every other site in Singapore by relinquishing its old-time allure. I hope the once-in-a-decade round of renovation is the only thing that will befall this place. I'd hate to permanently lose this other world, in which - in turn - I feel the weightlessness to lose my worries in. - Matt P.S. If anyone has any HK-diner style places to recommend, please feel free to do so! (Again, Xin Wang does not count...)

For those of you who have only started following us along recently, you might not remember that our office used to be located at the Automobile Megamart in Ubi. It might be nostalgia speaking, but our immediate food options were much better back then (compared to where we are at New Tech Park currently) - with one of the highlights being this special ban mian stall. The mere mention of good ban mian is sure to send the mind to the thought of L32 Ban Mian first - and there are certainly days on which I relish the experience of fighting through Geylang’s traffic to plonk myself down at the original store’s blue tables. But from past experience, long waits and a sizable crowd always accompany any visit. This is even more pronounced if you try the Tampines 1 branch (I cannot speak on the Aljunied one as I haven't visited it). All that is a long-winded way to say - if L32 is too far out of reach, DMQ Ban Mian makes for a great alternative too. The food Like L32 - and unlike you bog-standard ban mian stalls in Food Republic or Koufu - DMQ Ban Mian also comes with a variety of ‘sides’ to match your order. Of course, you get to choose exactly the sort of handmade noodles you want too, whether it’s ban mian, you mian, or mee hoon kway. From this amateur’s point of view, a marker of bad ban mian is if it gets soggy or soft too quickly. Conversely, good ban mian should have a certain level of chewiness to it, without feeling too flour-y. Other professional food critic sites have lauded DMQ’s noodles for having a ‘QQ’ (springy? I guess that’s how I’d translate it) texture, and that’s exactly what I feel - and enjoy - about them too. Then there is the soup: Rich, thicker than you’d imagine, and ostensibly true to DMQ's claim that there is no MSG inside. You can tell when a soup's flavour has been artificially tinkered with because the satisfaction of drinking it wears off very quickly. I cannot remember a time I’ve left the stall without slurping every last drop up. In fact, I’ve never bothered ordering my noodles dry, because the soup is just so fantastic. Bonus points, too, for the vegetables inside, which surprisingly, mix hints of sweetness and bitterness for a very tasty result. Finally, the saltiness of the thin ikan bilis and sweetness of the fried shallots balance each other out very well. Back to the sides: As a fishball-lover, and as a person content with eating something I enjoy repeatedly, that’s usually what I gravitate towards. I’m not sure about how exactly the fishballs here are made, but they don’t taste overly artificial (i.e. the frozen sort that clearly lack freshness on your first bite), and go well with the soup. As any self-respecting specialty ban mian stall would do, however, the highlight of DMQ’s menu is undeniably the la la (clams) ban mian. I also order these when I get the chance to drop by, and they are chewy, sweet and fresh. But the bowl of noodles itself isn’t where things end. Ban mian is incomplete without chilli - and the sort that is made in-house by DMQ is perfect: Sufficiently spicy, yet also savoury and tangy. Again, I dare anyone to try finishing up their ban mian here without going through at least two saucers of chilli. Ruminating I’ve mentioned it before, and will continue to do so to make it clear: I am no food critic, and these culinary adventures I write about (as with the previous one at McDonald’s) will probably take on different forms depending on the significance of each meal. And this particular visit to DMQ on a Saturday morning has somehow set me… in a wistful mood. It’s not always the food itself, but also the environment in which you eat that matters. Having lived in Punggol for most of my life, Ubi somehow feels delightfully stuck in the past - unbothered with hip cafes, slow-paced on a weekend, and bearing the unmistakable design of a HDB estate built prior to the 2000s. I put my phone aside and whipped out a car magazine to read after I was done with my meal - just because - and there was no immediate pressure for me to vacate my table too. It's not that these sorts of serene environments don't exist in Singapore... but to have them combined so seamlessly with a space that serves reliably good food feels rare, at least with my normal routines, and within my normal radius of movement around the island. I am also sentimental to a fault - and with all the fear, excitement, frustration and sadness interwoven into it, my first work location after graduating from uni will always hold a special place in my heart. Some will argue that L32 still makes better ban mian - and there will be days when I want to fight the traffic in Geylang for a good meal - but I know I will always make time to return to DMQ too. Address: 304 Ubi Ave 1, Singapore 400304 (Parking is pretty easy to find, but instead of entering the carpark right next to DMQ - which is a never-ending nightmare - drive further along Ubi Avenue 1 to the next entrance instead. Keep going left after that, and you’ll find yourself behind the estate centre, after which a short five-minute walk will land you back in DMQ anyway.) - Matt

lai lai lai ... mai tu liao ! plan ahead to avoid mother father jam at custom but no matter how you plan ... double confirm, stamp and chop sibei jam till cock stand la ... . . . CNY when is the best time cheong msia ar?

What kind of weekender are you? 1. Go out on Saturdays and stay at home on Sundays. These people will continue to have fun after a 5 day work week and continue their surging energies into the Saturday. They will go out the whole day on Saturdays until late night since Sunday no work (or work half day and go out till night) and then rest the whole day on Sundays at home to prepare for Monday, e.g. sleep, spend time at home with family and hobby. 2. Stay at home on Saturdays and go out at Sundays. These people will rest, sleep, stay at home with family on Saturdays (or go home straight after half day work) and recharge after a hectic work week. They will go out on Sundays for some fun and return home early to get ready for Monday. 3. Work on Saturdays and Sundays or either one. These people have to work full days on weekends. Either whole weekend burnt for work or only have one day of weekend for rest or fun. 4. Go out on both Saturdays and Sundays. These people either have that energies or have only these 2 days for family and friends, so they make full use of it, like driving around exploring places, meet up with their wide circles of friends, movie marathons, etc. Each day is precious to them and they don't waste time at home sleeping. 5. Stay at home on both Saturdays and Sundays. These people are too tired to go anywhere after a hectic work week or want to save money after spending a lot during working days. They rather stay at home to recharge for the new working week, than going out because it is too tiring to go out, too expensive to spend on weekends, too crowded and boring to go anywhere during weekends. They prefer to stay at home, sleep, surf net, play with kids, cook and eat, watch TV, etc

SINGAPORE — There will be at least seven long weekends next year, according to a Ministry of Manpower (MOM) release on Tuesday (April 5) that shows a number of public holidays falling either on a Friday, Saturday, Sunday or Monday . The seven long weekends for 2017 are high by usual standards, though still one short of the record eight seen in 2009. There are six long weekends this year (2016), compared to seven in 2015 and four in 2014. New Year’s Day in 2017 will fall on a Sunday meaning that the following Monday will be a designated public holiday. Meanwhile, Chinese New Year will be on Jan 28 and Jan 29 (a Saturday and Sunday). Other public holidays that will result in long weekends include Good Friday (April 14), Labour Day (May 1, Monday), Hari Raya Puasa (June 25, Sunday), Hari Raya Haji (Sept 1, Friday), and Christmas (Dec 25, Monday). Under the Employment Act, if a public holiday falls on a Saturday, an employee who is not required to work on a Saturday is entitled to another day off or an extra day’s salary in lieu of that public holiday, said the MOM. In its statement, the ministry added that employees are entitled to an extra day’s salary at the basic rate of pay if he/she is required to work on a public holiday. Alternatively, the employer and employee may mutually agree to substitute a public holiday for another working day. An employer also has the additional option of granting managers or executives, earning up to a basic monthly salary of $4,500, time-off-in-lieu for working on a public holiday. The time off should consist of a mutually agreed number of hours, said the MOM. http://www.todayonline.com/singapore/singapore-public-holidays-7-long-weekends-expected-2017

chope your leave early guys!

Viable??? http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/sin...1257452/1/.html

and allow p platers to rent?

What's your ideal weekends, what things you will or have enjoyed doing most? (not counting holidays overseas) Mine: Start from Friday (maybe even thurs nite), fill my mind with things i am going to enjoy on the weekends, planning for them etc Then have a makan or kopi with friends or family on Friday after work (weekend starts after 6pm on friday once i get out of office ) Doing things i like (mainly outside, not at home) on friday after diner out.... but wont stay out too late, and have an early nite in bed by around mid nite. Get up early on Sat morning, do some exercise/brisk-walks with wifey..... then go for good breakfast usually at favourite kopitiam / hawker centre.... By about 9am, wife goes do her things, i go hang out at kart track or somewhere with my karting kakis... Finish karting about 2pm, go home read newspaper or nap..... lazying at home doing nothing much and then diner out with family and my mother. Sat nite doing nothing much at home, surf internet, tv shows... until my eyes cannot open, then koon ZZZzzzzz

Singaporeans can look forward to five long weekends in 2012, after the Ministry of Manpower announced the dates for the 11 gazetted public holidays for next year. This includes a four-day weekend, with Chinese New Year falling on January 23 and 24, which are a Monday and a Tuesday. The other long weekends will be due to New Year's Day (January 1, Sunday), Good Friday (April 6, Friday), Hari Raya Puasa (August 19, Sunday), and Hari Raya Haji (October 26, Friday). For the holidays that fall on a Sunday, the following Monday will be a public holiday. Plan early guys! =o)

Any suggestions ? Any nice place to visit ? Cheers

Received this SMS: Get Shell V-Power at Formula98 price for 7 weekends to celebrate SG Formula One! Friday to Sunday, 21 Aug to 4 Oct 2009, 7pm - 11pm. Terms & Conditions apply. (Tip on remembering time slot: 7-Eleven runs the stations for Shell) Hope that during this period of crude oil price volatility, there may be some instances of pump price reduction as well.

Starting on 21st August Friday nite. for V Power fans...............

Received SMS from Shell that they are offerring V-power fuel at the price of UL98 for 3 days from 27 to 29 March 2009 during the hours of 7.00pm till 12 midnight ...... V-power here I come this Fri plus the $3/- off coupon ........

Rumours had been spreading in UK that RB will be leaving Liverpool this weekends and betting on RB next to be sacked had been suspended by the bookies in UK ...... RB denied this rumours but stop short of commenting it after the 1-0 winning at Champion League against Real Madrid this morning...... ESPN Soccernet report : Benitez bullish in the face of Liverpool job rumours Rafael Benitez moved to end speculation over his future as manager in the aftermath of his side's impressive 1-0 win over Real Madrid in the first leg of their Champions League last-16 tie at the Bernabeu. The matchday build up was however overshadowed by rumours that Benitez was set about to walk away from the club due to the ongoing stalemate over a new contract between the Spaniard and Liverpool's American owners. "My lawyers and advisors have been talking to the club's owners today about the contract and I believe that problems we have can be overcome," said Benitez. "I was very surprised today to hear rumours from Liverpool that I was going to resign. Benitez has been locked in talks over a new four-year deal for several weeks, and it is believed owners George Gillett and Tom Hicks have balked at some of the Spaniard's demand. But Benitez remains certain an agreement will eventually be reached.

Good news. Out of the 10 public holidays in 2009, 4 are on Fridays, 3 are on Sundays (following Monday will be a public holiday), and CNY is Monday and Tuesday. So in all we will have 8 long weekends next year! If that's not enough, 01-Jan-09 is a Thursday, take Friday off and you'll have another one. http://www.mom.gov.sg/publish/momportal/en...c_Holidays.html

Received a SMS from Shell Company that from 26 ~ 28 September 08, refuel V-Power for $50/- and above and you will receive a Ferrari model car. Collector's item those die-cast miniture cars.........

Its Friday afternoon and another 1 & 1/2 hours to go.......... So.............., pubs, hawker centres, shopping, car detailing & weekends EPL matches, here I comes......

What a weekends of matches we had so far since the begining of the EPL matches. For a while, I had missed all those attacking and smooth flowing matches thats made you glued to your seat watching all those exciting moment. Match 1 : Liverpool Vs Fulham - 2-0 For the first time, I really saw an attacking and flowing football produce by Liverpool. A total of 21 attempts (on goal) against Fulham but unlucky to add more goals to their score. Also for the first time that Rafa stick to the first 11 that played in the ECL (8-0) in midweek. Match 2 : Man U Vs Blackburn - 2-0 Another non-stop matches where we see exciting exchanges and end to end excitement from both teams. Unlucky for Blackburn Rovers to loose 2 goals in the first half scored by Ronadlo. The only poor performers in this match is the referee on the number of borderline decisions and a red card to David Dunn. Quote from ESPn Soccernet: "If Hughes was unhappy before half-time, he was positively fuming seven minutes after the restart when his side were reduced to 10 men by Dunn's dismissal. The former England international had already picked up one harsh booking for hauling back Tevez, so once Foy had deemed his late tackle on Saha as deliberate, a red card was automatic." Match 3 : Chelsea Vs Everton - 1-1 Was watching this match in the first half and later switch in between this and ManU matches. Everton did give Chelsea a run for lives in an evenly contested match. What a great missed by Drogba when presented with an open goal to score but mistime his short. I was hoping that both could end in a draw and it did until the last minute where Cahill's spectacular overhead scissor-kick beat Carlo Cudicini from six yards. Other exciting matches and results: Sprus 4 - 0 Wigan Derby 0 - 5 West Ham Birmingham 1 - 2 Aston Villa Way to go.................... Now, waiting for tonight match between Arsenal Vs Reading.........

This weekends will come down with a bang with 2 exciting games in hand. The top teams are playing against each other. Firstly, it's Chelsea vs Man City on Saturday and second, Liverpool vs Arsenal on Sunday. For my view, Chelsea will beat Man City by 2-0 and Liverpool will handed Arsenal first defeat by 1-0. What your picks.....

What do u usually do during weekends?

Well, my neighbourhood, as quoted, are very homely people. Most of them owns a car(some households i know of have 2-3). And we have both open space and multi-storey carparks. Common Scenario : 1.Open space carparks are usually full before 10pm(almost everyday, around 12midnight on fridays). Alternatives on 2 MSCPs, one is only up to deck D2(4 level a side). And on saturdays especially, top level is occuppied more than 50%. 2. Expect a new ride(can tell from the make and number plate, of course). Frequency: 2-6 new cars per month UNCOMMON Scenario : Just yesterday, in the whee hours of the morning (4.50am 22/07/07), the owner of a new punto(i figured from the moonroof or was it called skydome?), probably too tired, decides to suggest to our town council for a new parking space... *note: pics looks small cause i live high. i zoomed in thou.

Since we got 3 long weekends coming up (including this one), anyone has plans to do any DIY? I thought of removing swirl marks on my car (certain areas only). Will pop by Autobacs or DIYgurus to see what are the tools I need. Feel free to recommend me if you have any. BTW, it be purely handiwork (no machine involved).