Happy Birdday to Me!

I didn't realise that tonight's dinner was actually a surprise advance-birthday party for me. ;)

I met my former colleagues Chee Keong and Zac at Bugis MRT station at 7 pm, and then we walked over to 廷园鱼头麻辣火锅 (Tingyuan "Spicy-enough-to-numb-your-tongue" Fishhead Hotpot Restaurant) along Liang Seah Street. Chee Kong was already there waiting for us.

The four of us chatted for a while. Before long, Wilson, Ronnie, Nan Yan and Ah Khen and their three children, Zoey, Zoelin and Nigel arrived at the restaurant too. As it was a buffet-style dinner, we ate to our heart's content :)

The kids gave me two hand-made birthday cards, one of which stated "Happy Birdday". I guess with primary school kids, one can't be too picky with spelling :) They also gave me a pair of gray-colored BSN Sports berms :D

My former colleagues also bought me an Adidas sports bag, which was really cool. It comes with a strap, a sturdy clothes compartment, and other pockets in various places. The bag's slightly big compared to me, so that means I'll need to grow bigger in order to complement the bag. :D

After dinner, we strolled over to Suntec City and watched some MediaCorp artistes film a marriage proposal scene near the Fountain of Wealth. Then my pals presented me with a chocolate-ice cream birthday cake, sang me a birthday song and we shared the cake for dessert. :) The kids had a lot of fun playing with the dry ice that came along with the cake. Kids will always be kids. :)

Thanks to my dear friends Chee Kong, Chee Keong, Wilson, Zac, Ronnie, Ah Khen, Nan Yan, Nigel, Zolene and Zoey for remembering my birthday and for taking the trouble to buy me the gifts and plan the dinner. Thanks also to Chris Ang, Audrey and Richard,for your SMSes. I really appreciate it! *thumbs up*

I really miss my former colleagues, and their carefree, sporty livestyles. Chee Kong has started on his fartlek sessions, and Zac will be joining him soon. Ah Khen's making plans to climb Mt Ophir. A number of them are preparing for a 30-km cycling event. They're planning a beach-bumming outing at Sentosa in early May (and I hope I can go for that!).

Darn, I really wish I could have that sort of a lifestyle back - I fondly remember the times when I could dip in the SAFRA pool during lunchtime, go jogging in the evenings, make plans with friends to go on holidays to climb Kota Kinabalu or cycle in Desaru. Now, I simply don't have the time to plan any such leisure activities anymore.