Decisions, decisions...

Sometimes the longer you stare at a word, the more wrong it looks, and the more you wonder, Is my spelling really that off?

But I digress. That's besides my point.

This word in question has been hanging around at the back of my mind for the last few weeks.

Decisions.

It is something we deal with every day. Sometimes it is a difficult struggle between the heart and the head, deciding which should take dominance. Sometimes it is a question of ethics. Sometimes it may be something as simple as whether to sit the Viking Boat a second time.

Yet every choice I make, no matter how small or monumentous, will have an influence on my destiny. Just as the tiniest pebble dropped in still water will create ripples, so the smallest decision has a part in creating who I am and who I will become.

Sometimes the decision is not really a decision because you know exactly where you are headed. You know which path to take. You know what you want, and what you don't. It's pretty clear cut.

At other times, however, it feels like THIS.

Especially when you're talking about young and life-changing decisions.

There is no right or wrong in this case. Just a myriad of options, the various possibilities, the pros and cons, the horizon wide and endless before you, the knowledge that anything is possible if you are willing to try it, and then having to decide WHICH path you wish to try...

It puts you at the edge of a cliff. You don't know what lies before you. Ok, maybe you do know in theory the consequences that the choice will bring, but not in reality. It would be a leap of faith.

And for some - for ME - that's almost scary, because you also know that there's no turning back once you've chosen. You can't stay still in one place forever, you have to make a choice. And once the step is taken, you can only move forward. The bridges behind will be burnt and exist no longer.

And while you're at it, you might as well add in the fact that you are the ONLY one who can decide for you. Sure, you can get advice from mentors and those closest to you whom you respect. But ultimately, it is YOU who is at the road junction of your life. Not them.

Will I regret this choice? Is this the right time? Where would I go from here? What if I don't make it? What if I do?

Both ways, I won't know till I try, will I?

As my friend D likes to remind me, "Life is short. Play hard. If you don't even dare, then how to win?"

I know what I need to do, I know where I want to go. I don't welcome the added stress, but I know the new challenges will be good and a learning experience for me. It will definitely be a step FORWARD.

Now I just need to muster the courage to go through with the whole deal.

**She can't wait for the New Moon Marathon on Thursday night!**

Badminton Rackus.

Aching arms. Flat-out exhausted. Sore muscles. Drenched sports attire. Back aching. 3 hours of hard-core badminton.

I hadn't touched a badminton racket for years (not counting the night before when I was stroking shuttlecocks with Ben at 12 midnight to reacquaint myself), and suddenly last night I was thrown into a group of guys who have been practicing every week for years.

I'll like to think that I was forced into this, that having more than 5 different colleagues ask me to join their teams in light of the upcoming company's Badminton Challenge on 5 Dec changed my mind about skipping the sports event, that I had no choice but go tonight for a practice session with the other team members to prepare for that day...

But to be honest, I have only my colleague to thank for being the first one to ask me about making a team of doubles, and stirring my interest in that almost-forgotten sport, and letting me join the bunch of hard-core badminton folks who meet every Thursday after work to play.

It's crazily tiring and exhausting.. and yet it was REALLY fun! I feel like I'm just a beginner among all the experts (which isn't too far off from the truth, really) and I had so many kind "coaches" who gave me tips and helped me to improve the techniques of serving or returning the balls.

"Focus," they told me. "Keep your bat up, ready to catch any ball any time. Be in a half-crouching stance that is ready to move in any direction at any speed. Don't jump, let the shuttlecock fall towards you. Serve low so that they cannot return as a smack."

The cool part is that they are all inviting me and the other two 'new ones' to the group to join them again, as they meet every week.

The not so cool part is that my partner for the doubles just found out this morning that he has a training course on that Saturday, 5 Dec, which cannot be postponed. Which means that if I still wanna play on that day, I have to find another partner. Bummerations!

Well, see how it goes, then. At any rate, I sufficiently enjoyed myself last night to want to do it again! Just for the workout, I mean. The competition part is not realllllly a factor.

Now let's just hope the aching muscles get up on their feet again soon. You know, you never realize how many muscles you have until every single one of them aches all at once, each time you move. It's like, hey, I didn't even know I had a muscle there!

But yup, believe it or not, it's a good feeling. Shiok.

**She keeps smiling whenever she thinks about it.. randomity is meeting new friends who have actually been working in the same company as you for one and a half years and you never knew. Talk about BIG companies.**

3 Random Thoughts that Visited Today.

:: The words control and relationship should never be used in the same sentence. They don't belong together, methinks. Not unless you're talking about a breakup or an impending one.

:: The smallest hope ventures where reason dares not. But then again, love does not always consult common sense before taking the chance, so perhaps there is room for just a little hope...

:: Never make a promise you cannot keep. Give people the valuable gift of being able to trust what you say. Or at the very least, don't make enemies out of people by not standing by your word time and time again. Disappointment and Anger are willing advocates of Resentment, ma' dear.

Philosphy aside, I met some of my Bestis for an all-girls chillout on Sunday afternoon. It had been months since our last meet, and there were tons of things we needed to catch up on! So trust us to come up with an ingenious way of updating each other on the ins and outs of our busy, crazily jammed packed lives...

Kim, Deb, & I, having fun as usual

Sarah choosing her dessert, oh-so-seriously ;)

MOF @ Raffles City

Ice cream galore~~

I {heart} u, Deb :)

An interesting concoction...no wonder Sarah took so long to choose from her menu...

The sisters, Sarah & Leah, excited over their ice-creammmm

Deeb + Leah = crazy times

Kim & her Espresso Affocato (or something liddat)

Our gal times always ROCKZ!!!

So here we are. Our "Truth or Dare" Game. The Rules - Share a recent personal incident according to the colors chosen. DARK BLUE = a disapointing moment. BLACK = a mysterious secret. RED = matters of the heart. YELLOW = a happy memory. GREEN = something/someone that made you envious or jealous. And for ORANGE = (contribution from Leah) how about...a 'gay' moment?

Deeb & Kim officially kicked off the story telling time with Deeb's Russia Trip and Kim's Personal Details.

Leah sharing her heart out to attentive listeners

For each person, we got to choose one color, and the person had to spill the juicy details amid the laughter or sympathetic nods. It was F-U-N.

Deeb kept herself busy with interesting pics while we exchanged stories.

Sarah showed us pics of her recent Switzerland honeymoon....sweeeeeeetttt.

OUR table.

Poor S couldn't help falling in love with this awesome babe!;)

Lurve u gals :)

**It has been 10 days, and the nagging cough is still harrassing her. She is worried that it might not clear in time for her to properly train for the upcoming 10KM SCM...**

Just “a little bit” of Shopping

Don’t ever trust those words. Especially when they come from my Mom. And she’s referring to grocery shopping.

While we were finishing lunch today, she announced, “Girls, can yal help me? I need to do just a little bit of shopping after this to stock up the cupboards. Totally empty already.”

For the two of us sisters who are not fans of any kind of shopping for starters, grocery shopping ranked first from the bottom of our ‘types-of-shopping-we-enjoy’ list. Not that we don’t have fun whenever we go shopping together, for sure. We still somehow manage to make every shopping trip a time of laughter and teasing as we walk through the aisles, basket in hand. But the thought of doing grocery shopping on a relaxing Sunday afternoon just didn’t go down well. And we wanted to support our two bros who were playing in a soccer match later.

“Isn’t Sunday supposed to be a day of rest?” I groaned.

“Yeah, must be today meh?” Kim chimed in, looking for options.

“Don’t worry, we do a chop-chop one,” Mom reassured us, as she got up from the table. We just shot her disbelieving looks.

An hour later, after having strolled through the entire supermarket with Kim and gotten the required items, I went looking for Mom. I found her standing at one corner, a basket filled with food at her feet, typing an SMS into her phone.

“What happened to your chop-chop?” I inquired.

Her head popped up. “I was just SMS-ing you!” She exclaimed. “Can you help me carry that basket to the counter? I got no strength to carry it. I just pick up some meat and then we can go already.”

Resisting the urge to roll my eyes, I picked up the heavy basket. After all, mothers will always be mothers. “Meet us at Counter 11 ya,” I called back to her as I trudged away.

15 minutes passed. We are finally queuing up at the counter to pay. Stepping back, I took one look at the counter and shook my head.

“And you call this ‘a LITTLE bit of shopping.’”

We still made it in time to watch our bros play the second half of their game, though.

Penalty shoot out…

It’s a goal!

My cool brother who scored one out of the 3 goals! Final score: 3-0

Oh no...thunderclouds...crossing fingers that bad weather won't disrupt our exercising plans..

It doesn't! And I still think ECP is one of the best places for blading.

Pretty sunset @ Bedok Jetty

My sis, my best friend ;)

**She is feeling the onset of a bad cold. UH-OH."