Shaun Chen Michelle Chia Divorced

Shaun Chen is a Negeri Sembilan boy who became an actor in Singapore with his first role in the long-running serial Holland Village.

Michelle Chia is a Singaporean child actress who due to good looks and bilingual abilities survived the entertainment scene is Singapore resurrecting herself as a host and sometimes actress.

They got close to each other on the set of the now defunct Mediaworks produced drama 'Power of Love' in 2004 and after a 4 year courtship registered for marriage in 2008 before holding the wedding ceremony 13 months later.

This is the happy couple.

The wedding was a televised one and a rating hit, with it being the epitome of a fairytale wedding.

However the coupling had always been an odd one.For one, he had always been seen a shy Negeri Sembilan boy with a knack for badminton. The former eye wear salesman had also encountered his fair share of scandals when he first started out.

She on the other hand seemed like a princess who was brought up enjoying the high life. She was outspoken and fiercely independent. In fact the whole wedding seemed to be well planned and focused on the bride with the groom taking a more supporting role.

I was not the only one who thought that the coupling  was a bit of a problem. Read here.

Throughout their marriage though they have never been shy of showing their affection for each other always hand in hand at award ceremonies and calling each other 'baby' at thank you speeches and interviews.

Here is an interview of the two of them during happier times on celebtitea break, here.

News started circulating last year that their marriage was on the rocks and the rumour was further cemented by the fact that there were hardy any public appearances of them as a couple, and that they refuse to talk about their marriage to the media during interviews.

As recent as last month Shaun was interviewed by 8 Days wherby he flatly dismissed all rumours and claimed that their marriage was okay.

However it did not come as a surpise then that after the 'Star Awards' Singapore's most prestigious acting awards, the couple announced their divorce citing 'Incompatible Personalities'.

Clues of marital woes during the Star Awards were apparent.

1. She started dressing weird.

She appeared on the red carpet in a see through frock and what looked like a swimsuit underneath.She still looked lovely though thanks to her pretty face, toned body and always just right hair.

However things just turned a bit bizarre when she came on stage to accept a top 10 most popular artists award in a conical bra suit/dress.

It was apparent the girl wanted to be seen and talked about and the message was clear. She meant business.

2. He was subdued. His hair just wanted to get out of there.

Shaun (far right) seemed subdued despite the fact he was nominated for the Best actor prize. Not helped bt the fact that he was snubbed by Dasmond Koh and Lee Teng on the red carpet. They interviewed everyone in this picture except him, and he was just standing there in a row!

3. Michelle omitted him from her acceptance speech a far cry from last year where she made many references to him.

Divorce seems a bit too common nowadays especially in Singapore where old Asian values are slowly being overtaken by western common sense.

The divorce proceedings are expected to be finalized in October.

Meanwhile Michelle is rumoured to be with a Caucasian boyfriend.

Prince William and 'commoner' Kate's wedding memorabilia

The royal wedding on the 29th of this month is approaching and there is no running away from the royal fever.

Not since the wedding that lead to the birth of HRH Prince William Arthur Philip Louis Mountbatten-Windsor, has a wedding been so anticipated. Expect much pomp and pageantry, with the royal wedding expected to rake in millions from tourism, memorabilia and probably broadcasting rights.

Here are just some of the more interesting memorabilias up for grabs.

The royal comic book chronicling their romance.

Your very own Princess Catherine doll!

If you're the old school type, how about some paper dolls.

Whether you're obsessive or that you just need a new fridge, this one will definitely be a conversation piece.

The royals on your manicured nails? Once in a lifetime opportunity for bragging rights that the royals picked up your garbage.

And for me the cutest memorabilia of all, Wills and Kate tea bags!

I would get my hands on some of these memorabilia if i could. Who knows how much it will be worth in the future? Here's to the happy couple!

Crossroads

There are many cross roads in life. Sometimes the decisions you make during these cross roads determine your fate for the rest of your life. These few weeks have been a tug of war of emotions for me. One day i'm happy. One day i'm scared. One day i'm doubting myself. One day i feel optimistic that everything will be okay. Tell me how do so many people do this?

It's definitely trying. I'm probably most scared of the unknown. Will i get violent headaches the moment i stare into a microscope? (I've gotta go check out at my local lab first) How do i drive in the most notorious roads in Malaysia? Where will i be placed? Can i pass exams? (I gotta i gotta) And the biggest question of all.. how long will i be away from my husband and what detrimental effects will it have on me?

My husband and i have established a rather symbiotic relationship. At the risk of sounding lame and corny, we need each other to  survive. Okay i don't mean we NEED each other, it's just that we give each other a lot of emotional stability. We balance each other, we are outlets to vent frustrations, we bring things into perspective, i clean sometimes, he drives all the time, i bring him food...

Being apart for a short period like a year is okay, but 4 years is just pushing it. Hopefully things will work out.

What i've come to realize is that there is no point in planning too far ahead. We've just gotta do it and see where it leads us.

I'm glad i'm in Jb clearing my head. The biggest reason i'm trying for this is my family. But then my dad told me 'Our ancestors came to Malaysia from China because there was no work back home. Now you people have work.. so why the problem? Whatever work just do it.'

Ha ha ha that is one persperctive i really did not think about.

I should feel really lucky i have a job.

How is it all going to turn out, i really do not know yet. Somehow i feel now that i should have opted for the closed system just for my hubby's sake.

Whatever it is, i'm waiting for the letter to tell me my next move.

Handheld electronic games of the 80's and 90's

If you are in my age bracket you would probably remember a time where there was no such thing as 'Playstation', X-Box', or 'Wii'. Rather every other spoilt brat would be surgically attached to a handheld electronic game beeping incessantly as other children crowd around trying to peep at the action.

I was definitely not one those kids. Being a girl, i was more into My Little Ponies, Barbie Dolls and various other creative children games like that. For my brothers though it's a different story.

So if you are nostalgic like that , then i may just have the site for you.

First though you have to ask yourself if these pictures look even remotely appealing to you.

If they are, then you are most definitely a boy. Otherwise you're a very nostalgic or just plain curious girl.

Then head to this website i found where you can play retro handheld games from the site. It's called Pica Pic.They currently have 23 games and it promises lots of beeping sounds of the past. As a girl, i played one of the submarine games for 5 minutes and totally lost interest.

Only for seriously nostalgic gamers.

Uniqlo x Franche lippee and Cath Kidston

In Japan there is a charity drive by Uniqlo and Cath Kidston in aid of Japan and it is near the end of the charity drive where they release collaboration uniqlo tees in batches. They are up to the third and last batch already with many of the tees in the first and second batch being sold out.

Cath Kidston prints are gorgeous and here's sharing with you some of the tees from the third batch.

In Malaysia we don't have the Cath Kidston line going as it is a Japan exclusive for now.But what we do have is the Uniqlo x Franche Lipee line which is whimsical and quirky and perhaps under appreciated? The line had been out for ages now but there is still loads of stock available in stores. So i guess its a good time for me to create some brand awareness.

Franche Lippee is a Japanese apparel brand . The french name means 'Truly special treats made with love'. The brand focuses on detail, fun and patterns featuring animals and nature motifs.A quick check on its official website here , shows many of the same whimsical pattern and hues albeit with a much dearer price tag. So this uniqlo collaboration is a much affordable way to add some whimsy to your life.

Here's the line available in Uniqlo (in abundance i might add in the KL store).

There seems to be 3 disticnct cutting for the tops. The normal lenght tee with puffed sleeves, longer tee with 3 quarter sleeves and the super long tee (which looks like a dress on me) with puffed or 3 quarters sleeves.

Some of the patterns are seriously bright while some are in muted hues. I loved the patterns but wearing it out depending on the situation and type of company you might risk looking like you are wearing your pajamas.

My husband does not seem to think so, so for now i am wearing it out regardless.The reason being its so super comfortable! I can't be bothered if some people have no eye for fashion.

I bought the top in the last row at the far right.

If you're interested here's uniqlo's Malaysian site and this is the Japanese site.

Laura Ashley. Roberta Di Camerino, Tsumori Chisato mook

These are the latest mooks coming to a Japanese bookstore near you.

Laura Ashley Spring Summer 2011 mook comes with a tote and pouch made of canvas and reversible to show the print which is exactly the same as the small pouch.

Tsumori Chisato 2011 mook. Check out the alien patterns!

Roberta Di Camerino Spring Summer Collection 2011 mook.

Breakfast and dinner in Johor Bahru

I'm going to share with you my absolute favourite breakfast in JB. I have to have it every Saturday if i'm back cos thats the day there is Pasar Tani in Larkin.

And the gourmet breakfast i'm talking about is..

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Nasi Lemak Daun Pisang with fish for RM1.50 .Yum yum..

Ha ha hope you don't feel too cheated.. But seriously now, it still is my favourite breakfast/lunch/dinner. This humble meal of coconut rice, a slice of cucumber, egg, fish, chili paste is enough to satiate a hungry stomach while bringing back the warm fuzzy feeling of home.The humble nasi lemak is the closest we have to a national food.

Accompanied by some mee hoon (vermicelli with chili) and sardine currypuff .. omg salivating..

And of course a half boiled egg to round things up.

I'd rather have these than any bulls**t hotel gourmet buffet.

Just so that you don't feel so cheated i'm  going to introduce a nice quaint and nostalgic hawker haunt in the heart of Johor Bahru. I remember ever since i was 6 or 7 we would go to the hawker centre in the heart of JB town to buy dinner. The hawker centre was then relocated when i was in secondary school.. (2000- ish) and we thought that was the last we would see of our favourite hawker food.

Who knew then that this year we rediscovered it in Jalan Meldrum JB city. They have sadly been reduced to opening stalls in the back alley between old shop houses with chairs and tables set up next to drains. But that did not stop diners from coming. And the whole gang of hawkers are still there, each looking as they did many years ago.

And this is what we bought. Porridge (it's a favourite of ours) , char kuey tiao , and oops i forgot what it's called. What do you call the soup with lots of intestines that you eat with flat noodles aka kuey tiao? 

Anyway these are some of my homegrown favourite eats. Whats yours?

Bye bye paediatrics

I go to work everyday, as if it were my last day of work.I try and picture every one of my patient's faces and smiles. I go to every standby and attend to every patient and try to remember every moment. I will greatly miss them when i leave in just under a month to pursue a master's degree in pathology. Yes, a jump from paediatrics to pathology is definitely sudden and severe, but i do hope i will love pathology as much as i have loved paediatrics in Slim River.

I will miss setting difficult iv lines in the middle of the night. I will miss dealing with bossy parents who ask for admission only to ask for discharge the very next day. I will miss seeing the DKA kid who almost said 'bye bye; to the world twice no thanks  to nowhere to be seen mother, running around the ward happily and flashing his dazzling smile to the world as if nothing of the sort had ever happend and despite the fact we have to prick him with a needle at least 8 times a day.

I will miss the wide-eyed, sleepy-eyed and plain bo-chup faces of the children aged 0 to 12 that i see every day sometimes at 30 hour stretches a day.

Heck, i will even miss my regular thallasemia boy who once shouted 'babi' at us when we set a line for him for his monthly blood transfusion.

I will miss them , but i know i will not be able to stay in Slim River the rest of my life.Perak was never my home. And i know with all the miracles and great care given in Slim River every day, it is not the case in many other bigger centres.Things are not so rosy out of my darling hospital.

Bye bye intubations, bye bye chest tubes, bye bye UAC's (even though i have finally mastered you), bye bye UVC's, bye bye suprapubic taps, bye bye in- outs, bye bye ordering nurses around, bye bye accompanying patients in the middle of the night, bye bye countryside home.

I will miss you.

More magazines

Sigh.. i am at the crossroads of my life at the moment. In a few months all that i have become used to in Slim River will change. Life and work have become very comfortable for me here and soon i will have to leave this comfort and venture into the relatively unknown but possibly very enriching part of my life.

I'm excited yet sad to be leaving behind all that i love here.

Sigh.. Don't worry babe, we'll be reunited soon.

Pardon me then for a half hearted blog post. I'm in no mood to elaborate on the magazines.

Let the pictures do the talking then.Here are some of the latest magazines in store, or coming soon.