How losing your glasses can help you to see

27 02 2008

I lost my eyeglasses in Singapore. The good news is, I have a very minor prescription, so I can see pretty well sans lenses (passed the driver’s license exam without).

Now that I’m back at home in NYC, I don’t know if it’s the glasses, the absence, or the other things I’ve seen on the flip side of the globe, but the NYC I know looks delightfully the same — if not stronger than my memory made it out to be.

The colors, even though it is a gray, winter day, are brighter. The cold, winter air is crisper. The friendly new yorker smile and wave is warmer (really). And when the city welcomes you back with a snow storm … well, you get up a little early and find the fun in making snowballs in the city. It’s good to be home!





Housing market sucks … except in NYC

3 01 2008

This morning’s Herald International Tribune (my morning read) contained 3 noteworthy reports:

1. Iowa caucus is today … and I found myself a little sorry that candidates don’t work that hard to personally introduce, listen and explain themselves in all states. I almost feel like the voters in Iowa actually have it easy: they can chose to avoid the information, but at least it’s all out in front of them. Good luck to everyone … we certainly need some new leadership with a thinking head, a heart in the right place, and some new ideas and the gumption to pursue them. What? That shouldn’t be too hard to find, right?

2. Singapore dollar is UP … second strongest currency in all of Asia. Well whoopty freaking do. Not so good for those of us here exchanging the crappy dollar for the super-strong singaporean cent. Ugh.

3. (The icing) The housing market in the US is falling hard and fast … except in NYC where condo prices are up 51% year on year and co-op apartment prices are up 21%. WHAT!? Conrad, this pipe dream of ever buying inside the 212 is exploding before our eyes. On the positive side, I learned why — foreign investors. How nice of them. They can’t buy co-ops though, so that’s a + for us … of course, we can’t afford to buy co-ops either. Ah, such is life. Didn’t someone wise once say, “A fish and a bird may fall in love, but where would they build their nest?” If anyone hears of a fixer-upper on the UWS for about $200K I hope you’ll let us know!

Yet I continue to read the paper in the morning to find all its uplifting news … like the atrocities in Kenya, the “welcoming” North Koreans now offering guided tours of (one specific, some-say fake) town , searching for Ms Bhutto’s assassin, global warming … and the pretend “environmentalists” prospering from it (see Fiji water’s latest), and round and round. What a way to start the day / year.

Speaking of news, there were no updates about Japan’s latest whale-hunt or the terrible oil spill off South Korea, guess they’re saving those little gems for the weekend edition.





Think twice about the Christmas cookies

1 01 2008

It was so nice to come home and see the little red, felt stocking dangling from the door knob. In a move of taste and kindness, my little Singapore apartment consortium left all its holiday residents a little present.

Unfortunately, and all hotel / apartment / corporate housing peeps, please note: talk to your cleaning crews. If you notice that said residents are not home within 2-3 days to collect & eat said goody bag, kindly remove.

Returning home to a little hand-tied bag of Christmas cookies is only a nice thing when it is NOT crawling with teeny tiny ants.





Tommorrow … what a word!

18 12 2007

Popped out of bed this morning and realized …

I leave for home tomorrow!

 

Yay!! Now I just have to finish work, finish christmas shopping, pack, do some more work, repack, clean the apartment, call for a taxi, work some more, try to fit everything in suitcases again, how did I get so much stuff, why is there still so much work to do, yay TOMORROW!

:-) So excited. So ready!! :-)





Herman’s ready too!

17 12 2007

Conrad sent me an e-mail today… apparently he’s been decorating the house. Normally our house-gargoyle (“Herman”) looks quite demure & pensive:

But apparently, even Herman is getting excited for my homecoming and is exhibiting serious signs of a Christmas make-over (or a CCIE-procrastinating, excited husband):

Just cannot wait to see him in person (Conrad too) … 3 days to go!!!





“Stevie” homemaker bakes…

17 12 2007

Christmas cookies… and it’s not even an easy-bake oven! I love that my little engineer also made his own templates (note: the blobby ones are snowmen I hear). Let’s hear it for the boys!! (Even the ones in their 30′s)!

As my love-mentor Kelly would say, “I love this little guy.” And in the wise, wise words of my godfatha, “And how boy, and how!”





Yay sunshine!!

13 12 2007

So happy it’s sunning today. I hope it lasts through the weekend so I can arrive home tan enough to look like I’m living in a place where 80 degrees is a low.  It’s definitely a turn in the spirits of the week. The beginning of the week wasn’t so great, but today is definitely better.

Plus, I heard that scottandkristi got the call and are off to the birthing-room at the hospital. Prayers and good wishes you two as you expand your family yet again. Man, now another face to visit in Raleighwood!

In other news … 8 days to go till plane-time!!!! Did I mention I’m flying home business class on Singapore air! Man, we shall see if I have the guts to take photos or not, but from what I hear, this is living large and will make it hard to travel any other way. Consider a little Christmas present from big blue (the flight is 24 hrs and 8 minutes, so I’m figuring I’m worth it)!





I’m official!

15 11 2007

Well, I’m official. My business cards arrived in the mail this week, and I’m now in the 1-bedroom loft apartment I’ll be calling home through February. I could complain that the beautiful 2-story giant windows are on the 1st floor and so overlook the bus stop (as its waiting passengers look over me), but I’m not going to. Instead I’m going to be happy that I can *finally* unpack my suitcases and begin to feel a little more settled in this temporary home.

But I miss my Conrad! I miss NYC! I miss our friends and family. So that whole “absence makes the heart grow fonder” thing is totally true. I’m happy to be here and have this work experience, but I’ll be even happier to go Home when the time comes.





New digs!

6 11 2007

View from the balconyWell, it’s official. I have a temporary new home at the Orchard Parksuites Serviced Apartments in Singapore. Best thing about this place is it’s about a 1 minute walk to the local subway (“MRT”) and even closer to the “Times Square of Singapore” (aka Orchard Road), so I’m right in the heart of it here. Pretty good gig all in all. And I owe it all to the big boss for pulling some strings.

For anyone who’d like to send flowers or chocolates … :-)

Rebecca Reyes
c/o Orchard Parksuites
11 Orchard Turn
Singapore 238800

I’m temporarily in a 2 bedroom while they wait for a one bedroom to open up … so if you want to visit …………. ok, ok. No pressure.

Speaking of visiting. I’m coming home for Christmas! Well, to our old home anyway. Conrad and I will be in the Raleigh area celebrating the holidays with the Osmon-Reyes families … and we hope with some of the 919 fam of friends too … watch for the evite!