Neighbour from Hell 2

We thought our neighbour has shifted out. But we heard noises again in the morning and sometimes in the night. As we got home late tonight, we decided to spy on the neighbour.

Apparently, there was a group of weird people... can't make out their profession... but certainly unprofessional movers removing bits & pieces of furniture, old mattresses, etc. The part-time moving out activity ended at 10pm.

You see, this neighbour from hell, is strange. They cannot even coordinate the move to be done during normal hours. The move has to be done in bits and pieces and in the night.

So don't you think they deserve this title?

Neighbour from HELL

We have been putting up with our neighbour from hell for nearly 3 years.
Every night, we can't sleep well as the children are up and running till past midnight. The noise included the bouncing of balls (not 1 but 2 or 3 simultaneously), dragging of furniture, loud stamping, children running the Olympics marathon.

You may ask how bad can the noise be? It's so bad till it caused vibration on our ceiling in our bedroom & to our window frames. So get the picture now. The adults (oh-la-la)... instead of advising their children to keep it down, play ball outdoors, you can see in one of the pictures that the adult was holding a drinking bottle for the boy while he continues bouncing his ball. Headache.

We complained non-stop to the Police, the Town Council & the HDB. Guess what, no government authorities wish to take action or be responsible for noise nuisance. I really think that there should be a noise nuisance division set up in Singapore to deal with such grievances. Eg: have proper sound measuring gadgets to gauge if the noise level is intolerable to the residents involved, have the ability to issue stern warnings to inconsiderate neighbours, educate ill-informed residents that noise nuisance is a no-no in high-rise living.

For the past 3 nights, the neighbour was up and about packing from 12 AM till 3 AM!!!!!!!!!!! They were literally throwing things about in the kitchen, slamming drawers, utensils, etc. Directly below their kitchen, are our bedrooms and toilets. I congratulate the smart HDB architect who designed the maisonette without giving consideration to noise & soundproofing issues.

The HDB officer in charge of my case said that the NEW HDB flats are much better in soundproofing and that he has certification in noise nuisance and engineering. I was so mad. I told him that we are now stuck with an OLD HDB so we can't move to a NEW flat to escape from this noise problem. I added that since he's engineering trained, he should speak with my MOTH who is an Engineer about this matter. But he didn't even ring my husband. Ha!!!

We receive news that the neighbour is due to move. Yesterday evening, I noticed that the windows are drawn shut. In the night when we returned from cycling, the windows were still shut and all was DARK. Yipppppeeeeee. The bloody neighbour from HELL has MOVED!!!!!!!!!!

I slept so well last night. Ah... at least, we experienced peace & quietness.

I pray that the next neighbour who moved in will be a quiet family.
I can't understand how the children can have energy to stay up till past midnight and the adults don't even supervise their bedtime. My 4-year old will usually turn in before 900pm regular nights, a little later during the weekend.

The Geography of Bliss

One Grump's Search for the Happiest Place in the World... by Eric Weiner...

MOTH spotted this book while we were out for our rendezvous. He encouraged me to get a copy of it. I read the content's page & its review. Instantly, I was drawn to the book but I also felt guilty.

Did MOTH read my mind? Did he guess that I harbour constant thoughts to travel around the world for months to fill some empty gaps, feel some happiness and thrill of exploration?

Such thoughts are evil as it will make me completely bankrupt, utterly & bloody broke.

Photos - Macau

Photos - HK, Stanley

The 4-year old

The 4-year old has been repeatedly asking for art class. Before she was colouring so badly (that her teacher had to alert me), her excuse was that she hated colouring. I told her that if she really wanted to go for art class & become an artist, she needs to start from the basics... from drawing to colouring to experiencing various mediums. She took my advise and she put in effort in her daily colouring tasks. I am very proud of her for showing her determination and perseverance. She has convinced me of her genuine interest.

I managed to enrol her in one near our home. She started class last Sunday. We had fun cycling there (in our tandem bike fitted with a child seat). The entire journey from our home to Siglap was only 15 mins! ^^

We felt good as cycling is green, cost & time efficient! The 4-year old had fun on the bike too.

Knock! Knock!

So where the hell did I disappear to?

From 15-18 June, I managed a very successful seminar in Hong Kong, conquered my stage fright of speaking in front of 60 persons, laughed, had fun, enjoyed the meals & shopped. Though the weather was bad, raining throughout the entire days, I enjoyed myself. This is the first seminar that I let my hair down. When I receive negative comments, I smiled and relaxed. I told myself "well, I can't please everyone!" The seminar was held at the Le Meridien Cyberport. Though it was located far from the city central, I loved its insolation. It's surrounded by a moutain & the sea. Every day, I get to enjoy the view of a pair of eagles soaring by. The room was fantastic - large, spacious with a beautiful bathroom.

I missed MOTH & my little one a lot. But I was motivated as he came to join me in HK on the 18 June. I shook hands with all the delegates, thanking them for their attendance and off I went to the ferry terminal to wait for my darling. I was so relieved to see him FINALLY. Hugs, Kisses... and off we went to Macau. It was a 1-hr ferry ride. As it was Wednesday evening, it was quiet, peaceful, and fantastic.

I love Macau. I brand it the "City of Circus" with bright laser lights, overwhelming neon signages, water fountains,... The city brought me a sense of happiness & joy. We checked in Hotel Lisboa. Very traditional hotel but with fantastic view of the city. We love the super shower features - came with steam bath, radio, auto lights, massaging shower sprouts. It was heavenly to step in for a steam bath, followed by a shower. My skin felt so smooth & clean! Sightseeing was fantastic as the weather had cleared up and we were blessed with slight passing shower & sun. The architecture in Macau... hmm... densely populated public housing in the midst of the centuries old architectures of houses, churches, city square of Portugese origins.

We returned to HK on 20 June and spent another 2 days there. Again, blessed with good weather. The tram ride up the Peak was fantastic. The view of HK city was breathtaking. I was lucky to have experienced 2 sights (one with a clear view & the other was foggy, low clouds with rain during the seminar). Don't ask me about shopping. I am ashamed to say that I'm bad with it. We couldn't find any "Lo-Po-Bing" shop. We didn't buy any apparels. So what did we buy? You might laugh. Lots of postcards, & magnets & an entire bag of chewing gums... This trip, we dined, we relaxed, we took afternoon naps, lots of walking... & experiencing the public transport via train & star ferry. I don't know about MOTH but this is one of my best Holiday ever! I love HK & Macau.

As my little one has hit 4 years old, I took this opportunity to mail her postcards from Macau & HK.

Ps. Pardon me, I'm too lazy to upload the images.