The first day of the rest of our lives

Today I wake up a Miss. Tonight I go to bed a Mrs.


Location: Home
Current Condition: Excited
Music: Wedding bells

Stoneless fairy ain't stoneless no more...

I had some reservations about writing this post. This is something between us which is so special and so precious that I didn’t quite want to share it with just anyone. But then again, as the days went by, I found that the minute details and my emotions were also getting hazier and after some internal struggle, I decided that I would do this post, just to keep for posterity.

Our 3rd year anniversary was approaching and Andrew told me that he had dinner planned. This in itself was unusual cos Andrew is completely not a planner and it takes a bit of nagging from me to get him off his arse and plan an evening out.

Plus we always end up at the same place so when he said that he searched the internet for a nice place and it’s somewhere we have never been to before, my heart skipped a beat. I knew that he’d already bought the ring but he kept insisting that he wasn’t going to propose so early and especially not on obvious occasions like Valentine’s Day or our anniversary.

And so the story goes…


The night before the big date, he drops me off home and tells me that jeans and a nice top would suffice for the next evening.

The next morning, I dress with extra care, taking time to choose my clothes and makeup. I’m still hoping deep down that it might be THE DAY. But then I speak to my mum before leaving the house and she seems completely normal and I figure if anyone would know before me, it would be her. So hopes dashed, I leave for work, trying to cheer myself up with the prospect for a good dinner if nothing else.

We meet up after work, running a little later than schedule as always. He still won’t tell me where we are going and I’m getting disconcerted with the fact that all my guesses are wrong. We turn into the Bugis area and then down Arab Street where we finally park at Golden Landmark.

*Knocked back for six* -- What the hell were we doing here?!!!!

He turns to me with a huge grin and says, “We are going for Thai steamboat and then to the Thai disco for drinks. Since you say I’m always so predictable, I decided to plan something totally different.”

I get a bit worried here but since he is sweet enough to go to such extremes (and I do mean EXTREMES) to plan something different, I decide to gather up my enthusiasm and embrace the evening.

We get off on the first floor cos Andrew wants to have a smoke before dinner. Halfway through, he turns to me and says seriously, “I’m not proposing to you tonight. I just want to let you know in case this is something you are expecting. I told you I won’t do it on such an obvious occasion and that still stands.”

Flummoxed, I start patting his pockets but all I’m groping are his car keys, wallet and Blackberry. No square ring box. Hmph!

“Fine, fine,” I mutter a bit peevish now because my hopes are 100% dashed. “But then are we really eating steamboat?”

He laughs and points across the street to a pretty canopied restaurant called Mietta. “I read about this place in HungryGoWhere,” he says earnestly.

Dinner is great; we order our favourites from the menu with a glass of wine to share since he is driving. The restaurant manager comes up several times to ask us for feedback but I assumed that it was because they are fairly new. In between the main course and dessert, Andrew decides to go out for a smoke and I join him outside. The manager comes out and talks to us for a bit, telling us about the restaurant and stuff. Then he mentions that there is an upper level which they have developed into a cosy coffee lounge. The area is not yet opened to public but seeing that we were the only patrons left in the restaurant, he offers us let us view the place and have dessert and coffee up there. Andrew seems enthusiastic about the idea so we take up the offer. I tell them that I need to visit the loo first and Andrew says that he will head on up and meet me upstairs, which is a bit strange cos he always waits for me especially when my creaky knees and stairs have to make contact.

I’m done and head upstairs where Andrew is draped over a sofa in the corner. Our tiramisu and coffee are already there and I flop down beside him. It seems a little strange that one of the waitresses is at the bar and she has the music turned on but I shrug it off, thinking that they just wanted to us give the full atmosphere.

So all the songs that come on are love songs and I start playing “Guess who sang this” with Andrew who fails every single track dismally.

Then he turns to me with a serious expression and says that after 3 years together, he has done some reflection on our time together and wants to share some things with me. So he starts talking about us meeting and getting together, and how he recognizes the things he does to make me upset, and how he is not initiative or romantic enough and he apologises for all these.

And I sitting there and thinking to myself, why are we talking about this on a supposedly romantic night? But then I feel bad that he is being so earnest in righting the wrongs so I start sharing how I feel and the things I’m sorry for.

But I keep getting the feeling that he isn’t really listening to me and he keeps trying to cut into my monologue. So I shut it and he takes over the conversation again.

He asks me if I remember how I used to write notes for him when we first met. Little notes on scraps of paper which I would hide in his wallet and jacket pocket so that he would be pleasantly surprised when he found them. And he says that we have both stopped doing these sweet things after a while, which was OK because we are more comfortable with each other and busy with work and stuff but he thought that this time round, he would write a little note to me just for old time’s sake.

He takes his wallet from his pocket and I’m actually really touched because I didn’t think he could remember these little gestures and actually reciprocate.

He is rummaging through his wallet a little more frantically now and says, “I don’t believe I didn’t bring it. I think I can’t see it cos its too dark.”

He stands up as if to get more light, draws out something which is definitely not a card from his wallet and suddenly gets down on his knees in the tiny space between sofa and coffee table.

He looks at me with so much love and excitement in his eyes and he says these exact words,

“I love you very very much. I promise to love you and only you for the rest of my life. I hope you'd want to spend the rest of your life with me. Will you marry me?”

I look down at this wonderful man on his knees, looking so uncomfortably squashed but so earnest and sincere and I am caught between crying and laughing. Crying because I am so touched and laughing because he is and always will be so adorable.

But I laugh instead and he laughs with me, and this I will always remember because laughter is one of the foundations of our relationship.

And I finally say yes and I try to pull him up but he refuses to get up until I say yes without laughing and I finally do and we laugh again. He makes to put the ring on my finger, stops and asks, “Which finger ah?” which gets us giggling uncontrollably again.

The ring eventually goes on the right finger and it is possibly the most beautiful thing he has ever given me. When we went scouting for rings, I saw one with a twisted crown and I told him that I really liked that. So he fashioned a ring matching my entire wishlist:

- Twisted crown
- 6 prongs
- Thick band
- Not yellow gold

The waitress (I now understand her role in all of this) comes over to congratulates us and takes some photos of the “sweet newly engaged couple” (her words not ours).

We spend some time messaging family and friends and I realize that my parents are completely in the loop since he went over a few nights ago to ask for my hand in marriage. Too incredibly traditional and so sweet.

As we head on home, he tells me everything:

- He got my friends to organize a dinner so that I would be distracted when he went over to my place to ask my parents for permission

- He called up the restaurant and told them that he was planning a proposal and the manager offered the lounge upstairs

- He had this whole speech planned out and memorized but then I threw him off when I cut in with my monologue (he didn’t anticipate that I would feel like I needed to say my piece and apologise for my bits of wrongs too.. )

- And that got him a bit anxious cos he didn’t know how to pick up his speech train after I was done (or if I ever was going to be done – such a rude boy!)

- He planned exactly which song to ask me THE QUESTION but of course since I gabbled and gabbled, we completely missed the song and he ended up asking me to marry him with Jeremy Jordan singing “Right Kind of Love” in the background. Which was cheesy and unplanned but still apt as I told him.

So this is our story, captured in essence and immortalized for when we are old and grey, to look back on and share a laugh and a kiss and a special smile.

Sorry for the delay

I know I haven't been keeping up my end of the bargain. It was initially due to the change in career and then Gossip Girl Season 1.

But anyway while I wait for S to produce Season 2, I figured I should make an entry of sorts.

So... life is good. Work is stressful but when is work ever a breeze and most importantly, I'm actually happy despite everything!

Now if only losing weight could be as easy!

Happy Valentine's Day, y'all!

Location: BF's house
Current Condition: blissful
Music: None

Is there such a thing as too much alcohol?

Tonight the FILs had a community drinks party and BF and I were invited to go along. FBIL left early but BF and I stayed on to hog the free bar and make the most of the S$10 entrance fee we each were charged.

While I would say BF was def more embarrassing than me, sprouting nonsense at the end of the party and acting a la Merlion the minute we got home, I must say that 7 drinks got me sufficiently talkative and FMIL and I had a good time to catch up and have a heart to heart conversation about life, marriage, friends etc.

It was great but I can't help but cringe and wonder if I did anything out of character or embarrassing. All the time as we were walking home, I was reciting one mantra in my head, "Walk in a straight line. Walk in a straight line."

However, methinks if I can type this out with no gross grammatical or spelling mistakes, then I shouldn't have much to worry about. Dear readers, please let me know!

P.S. Bartender was a really nice and friendly chap so if anyone out there is looking for a freelance one for a party, let me know!

Location: BF's house
Current Condition: talkative
Music: none

Singing in the Rain

It's been such a long time since I lasted posted and so many things have happened.

There's just not enough time to go through everything but in a nutshell (*takes a deep breath*): Left my previous job, started a new chapter of my life, managed to squeeze in a short trip to KL and made some invaluable friendships, had some experiences with love life family and friends and possibly have become a stronger better person, lost some weight and possibly put it on back again, friends have returned and some making plans to leave, started watching 3-hr Hindi films and bonded more with mum, in a blink of the eye, my dad's due home again which is great news. (*Exhales*)

I guess what I feel right now is that no matter how bad the storm is, things will always get better. Life is getting exciting right now and I'm really happy career-wise. Looking back and comparing, I would say good experiences some good memories but shit am I glad to be out of that!

So all in all, I would say that other than some niggling worries, life is great! Thank you Jesus!

Note to Stinging Satire: Hang in there girl. Lots of love and we'll catch up next week!

Location: the BF's house
Current Condition: happy
Music: singing in the rain