DRSS... called into action again

Happy Labour Day! Today is the day that has been set aside as a rest day for all those in the work force.

Unfortunately, for my family, two of us did not have a rest day - my brother (LG) is currently on reservist training and ZT (girlfriend of LG) is working today.

The rest of the family woke up early and met at the Haig Road hawker centre for breakfast. My father's birthday is on 5 May 2009 and as it falls on a weekday, we decided to visit the Columbarium today. Next to the hawker centre is a wet market. We will usually buy 3 stalks of orchids from the wet market and bring it to the Columbarium.

My father's niche is located at the Mount Vernon Columbarium. Each niche comes with a small vase attached to the niche so that flowers can be placed in the vase. The vase is so thin that we can place at most 3 thin stalks of orchids in the vase.

As we were about to leave the Columbarium, my mother asked me to inform my father that LG is having reservist training and that LG will visit the niche another day. I told her that I had already informed my father when I paid my respects to him. Then I asked my mother, "Didn't you tell daddy yourself?". She grinned and sheepishly said that she forgot. *grin*

My family and I managed to visit a show flat near my mother's home on the way back. LB (my brother) and MF (LB's wife) were interested in the 1+1 unit but all the 1-bedroom and 1+1 units were already sold out. It is a small development comprising one apartment block with a sky pool and gymnasium. It looks rather cozy, I must say. The units are not very large but the larger the unit, the more maintenance is required.

Before Da and I went to the home of SC's mother, I managed to potter around in the kitchen for a short while. The chewy peanut butter cookies that you see in the photograph below are very easy to make - the preparation time is about 5 minutes and the baking time is 10 minutes.

Before we left the house, I packed some chewy peanut butter cookies and home-made mixed fruit jam and gave them to the three handsome boys who live on the same floor as Da and I in our apartment block. The youngest boy (who is about the same age as Nining) cried when I passed the container to his older brother (who is in kindergarten). I was wondering what happened when the father of the boys laughed and told me that the little one was disappointed that I did not pass the container to him. He wanted to be the one to receive the goodies and to bring them to the dinner table. What a precocious child! The father handed the container back to me and the minute I placed the container in the hands of the little boy, he immediately stopped crying. He is such a darling.

In Asian culture, it is impolite to visit another person's home empty-handed. I will usually bring some food / snacks when visiting the home of another person unless the visit is unplanned and last-minute.

Da and I brought some chewy peanut butter cookies, corn cupcakes and home-made mixed fruit jam to the home of SC's mother.

You may be wondering why Da and I visited SC's mother today. Well, the DRSS choir has been called into action again, only this time:-

(a) "R" is the bridegroom-to-be (RT is the brother of SC); and

(b) the rest of the members of the DRSS are not required to sing at the wedding (since our pianist is the one getting married).

We are part of the organising committee for the church wedding which is scheduled to be held on Saturday, 27 June 2009. Other than us, WC (the husband of SC) is also part of the organising committee.

Hmm... with our experience in planning church weddings, perhaps we can consider starting a church wedding planner business. It will be a full-service organisation - we can provide photographers, pianists, organists, ushers, choir members, etc. We can also design and arrange for printing of the wedding invitation cards and church wedding cooklets. Last but not least, we can provide an operations manager! Please call 1-800-CHURCHWP for more details... *grin*

When Da and I arrived at the home of SC's mother, SC was using the computer, trying to arrange the layout of RT's wedding invitation card. I learned today that it is easier to design the card using powerpoint (instead of MS Word).

From the minute that Da and I stepped into the house, SC's mother started plying us with food. I have known SC since 1985 and I have been to her home many times when SC and I were schooling. As such, I am comfortable in the presence of SC's mother. She is very hospitable. Today, she had cooked a big pot of green bean soup with dried longan, sweet potato and sago. She very kindly shared her recipe with me and I shall get round to posting her recipe so that you can give it a try.

As the organising committee is not required to sing at RT's wedding, some of us snacked on chilli anchovies that SC's mother had fried (otherwise we may have avoided it in order to conserve our "angelic voices"). I did not try it as I do not eat chilli but according to Da, it was delicious.

The planning went smoothly today. We discussed many aspects of the church wedding and then promptly delegated the wedding coordinator work to 小猪... er... since she is the youngest at age 30.

There were several light moments during the discussion:-

(a) As the church is located opposite RT's home, we joked about the bride and bridegroom walking to the church wedding. I think that this is a wonderful idea because it is unique and everyone will stop and look. What better way to started your wedded bliss with a bang? Unfortunately, this suggestion was vetoed. Our weather is too hot and humid, so the bride's make-up will probably melt by the time she reaches the church and the bridegroom would suffocate in his full suit. Oh well... it was just a thought!

(b) SC's mother mentioned a few times that RT has to date not called the church couple who have been assigned by the church to help guide RT and his bride through the planning process for the church wedding. Hi Aunty RL, do not fret. RT has not called the couple to date because er... he has full faith in his wedding planners (that is, us!) and he did not think that he would need the couple's assistance as the entire wedding planning is under control. Now, does any one of us have time to go for a crash course in floral arrangement? Aunty RL asked me whether I knew how to arrange flowers for the church wedding. I looked at her in horror and said that if she had asked me whether I knew how to bake cakes, the answer is "yes" but flowers... hmm... well.... Have I mentioned how many pots of flowering plants have been "murdered" by me?

(c) 小猪 was delegated to call the church couple. Everyone gave suggestions as to what to check with the church couple (including whether the church required the wedding couple to use the church florist and the church caterer) and the list ended up being quite long. We were stumped when we suddenly realised that 小猪 would need to explain to the couple why she was the one calling them instead of the bride or groom. Several suggestions were raised but we settled for her telling the church couple that she is the niece of RT and is helping RT with the wedding preparations. We thought of asking her to pose as the wedding planner (which, actually, is not far from the truth!). She is actually the niece-in-law (several times removed) of RT but we thought that it may be confusing to the church couple if she were to identify herself as such.

When we left the home of SC's mother, it was past 10 pm. My stomach was growling as Da and I had not yet eaten dinner. WC suggested going to the hawker centre in Changi Village for a meal. He led the way in his car. As we followed WC in our car, we wondered whether he knew the way to Changi Village or whether he was using his Global Positioning System ("GPS") again. Speaking of this, Da and I are thinking of buying a GPS receiver for our car but we are not sure which brand to buy.

Considering the lateness of the day, Changi Village was bustling with activity. The hawker centre at Changi Village is famous for its nasi lemak. We also ordered a plate of barbequed chicken wings to share.

Hi Aunt Peh, Changi Village Hotel is located opposite the hawker centre at Changi Village. The area has night activity (in more ways than one) so it should be quite an eye-opener for you when you visit Singapore this month. Do try the nasi lemak - go for the stall with the longest queue if you are not sure which stall to patronise as there are numerous stalls selling nasi lemak over there.

The next meeting of the RT & H wedding organising committee will probably be the church rehearsal. Hi 小猪, do keep us informed when you have details of the rehearsal date and time.