DIY and Recounts

Hard at Work - In preparation for the folks coming, we decided to buy some chairs from Souq.com, and then, realised that they were actually ikea chairs and we had to fix them ourselves. :0 We had bought stuff from souq.com several times already, but... haha, this time, had we known, we would have just gotten them from ikea, and with points too.
But nonetheless, the DIY part in me got down to action. To make it fun, we played a game and see who could complete each chair faster. And... wow, he is 4 times faster than me. 😱
My poor hands are tired now. Kenji also thinks it is a game to him.



We have been meeting different ones these few weeks, and I kinda muse a little about these.
Because in SG, we would never really have gotten together so deliberately just to eat a meal together. Haha, and even to meet my friends' families??
Still, it is a good thing to get together and have a meal, fellowship, talk and laugh.

One of those - we did a day trip into Dubai and ate at the Mall of the Emirates. There's a skiing facility just right in the mall. Skiing in the desert - how creative and oxy-moronic. We were at Cheescake Factory and could see the ski slopes just right by our window.
Talking about Dubai, I thought it felt very much like SG, and the modern facades, super skyscrapers, bright lights and big malls - while very man-made, speaks of how there has been thoughtful planning and how much a country can progress, in just a matter of decades. Reminds me of how 2 years ago, we could have been living in Dubai instead. For now though, I really like Abu Dhabi - it is quieter, more spacious, less harried and more nature. Anyway, we had a great time with XY and her mum. So cool to be travelling with mummy at our age, I thought.

See the ski slopes by our window. It looks... unreal.


And to travel to Dubai, it takes just about 1.5 hours each way. 说近不近说远不远。So, I drove.  And, I still find it pretty exhilarating to drive and really, thank God for this opportunity for re-doing my driving after 15(?) years? I still need to be careful though on the road. Steve snapped this while I was driving and said I looked so tense. Haha... the outside world is a whirl. Of course I must concentrate on driving.


And makan with Kawan, and makan with Safrah and family at one of the Chinese restaurants here. Maybe I go there a bit too often... I have become the 常客。While home-cooked meals are still undoubtedly the best, it is so convenient to have "Noodle Bowl" (as they are called) just right by our apartment.


I met Martin too... new-found respect for those in the business world. While we previously met in church and meetings weekly, again, like I said, we had never sat down together and ate a meal, just the 3 of us. Maybe being away somehow brings people closer? He was here for his car business and for F1.

Yas Mall - 2nd biggest mall in UAE. :)) Beautiful place where Ferrari World is too.
And oh, we deliberately tried to capture into the photo a local feel. I have met several locals and found them to be very open, chill and friendly, even towards Kenji. One of them lives in the same area and has a dog herself too.


And then his friends went back to Dubai without him first, and so, Steve and I did a midnight adventure and sent him back to Dubai. Spur of the moment. How fun. How blessed it is to laugh and just spend time together. Whirlwind night adventure. I miss the leaders group, the weekly spending time together, that injection of faith, that journeying and serving together.



December is a time of consolidation, thanksgiving, catching up, spending time with family and loved ones. I think about my mum and sis, the church and cg, the office folks. In the midst of all the busyness, time slows down a little in December.
Christmas 2017 too shall soon come. May the love of Christ continue to shine in all that I do. :)