Define irony

This totally qualifies as ironic.

I've been dying to go on an overseas media trip for work. I mean, it's my freaking dream. Travel for free! Get paid to write about it! Be wined and dined like a king! Free airfare! TRAVEL FOR FREE! Leave on the jetplane for free! Eat! Sleep! See! FREE!

Finally today, I get an invitation to go to Malaysia in July for 5 days, a trip which my boss WANTS me to go on. But guess what? It overlaps with my vacation next week--to Malaysia.

That's freakin ironic.

Quote of the day

"suen la... this world is ruined by morons"

--Tim, via chat

Next time, please remind me...

not to join a chorus.

I am crazy stressed out from work, moving, upcoming vacation and other things, and chorus is such a time suckage. The performance will be this Sunday. Verdi's Requiem. It is beautiful. It is even more beautiful to perform it (than to just hear it). But the rehearsals are such a killer when doing a full-time job and living in a crazy city.

However, this is by far the most professional chorus I've ever been in (Opera Hong Kong Chorus). It's quite an amazing experience.

Call me crazy

but I find this very cool. Super impractical brooch included.

(Just Cavalli)

Really lame line from the Stylista finale last night:

Joe Zee: "Elle covers are known for their wow factor."

Really? Wow. I never noticed.

I'm dreaming... of a dense sticky greasy choco espresso caramel cake topped with vanilla ice cream at Ocean Grill that I didn't think I'd like but o. m. g. can I have all the sugar I want if I turn vegetarian?

Cavil to Boomer:

"You should stay and have a heart to heart with your creator, standing there. You could ask her why she made you the way you are: self-destructive, hyper-emotional, torn apart by conflicting impulses... tell her how extraordinarily happy this makes you!"

--Battlestar Galactica Season 4.5

More adventures in real estate

Have to move again very soon. A few months ago we walked into a realtor's office (but we were "wun bun" actually) near Soho asking to see Soho apartments. She took us to this AMAZING refurbished "tong lau" right on Peel Street (practically above Brunch Club). I was in love with this place. One unit had rooftop terrace. Another had ground floor terrace. It was a dream. This time around, no such luck. We looked in Central and Sheung Wan on Saturday. Some really promising places but nothing wowed.

Moving a lot actually satisfies my character trait of being extremely fickle and unpredictable. The first time around (over a year ago) my priority was newness/cleanliness, cost, seaview, closet space and convenience, in that order. Yup I got that, so over that; this time around, my priority is oldness (I WANT TO LIVE IN A TONG LAU), urbanness and cost. (Who knows, the third time around I might insist on rural white picket fence.) Our current frontrunner is an old apartment with view of a back alley in Central. One sick pad we visited was a SICK 700 sq ft studio, with rooftop, and 1 block from my office in Sheung Wan, and dirt cheap (er, well, by HK standards, $14,500/mo.), but won't work because it doesn't have walls--not good with a Korben.