11 tables bidding farewell

Suen has face. Judges, retirees, trade unions and all ranks/grades joined the party except AO/EO. Friday dinner at 18 Brook. Taxi home - 5 in Sceneway Garden & Laguna City. Cheung KB has joined Regina Yip's group. Very active.

I lost again $80.00. Tam, Agnes & I had lunch at Man Ho.

High security near Grand Hyatt & HKCEC. Hu had come for the 10th anniversary of Handover.

A very quiet Saturday. Went to see "Eye in the Sky" at APM Palace. Yam & Leung Kar-fai are really 1st class actors. Simple plot but all starry performance.

lunch box

Roger bought me a meal box & soup. Talked a lot about business. He adivsed me not to work so hard & with so much tension.

Dined at home with Van.

Talked to Kam & Marga on phone. Kam concerned about my health & advised like Roger did.

Do my bosses know that I work hard & deserve more appreciation?

Min thinks I am silly by always trusting people & expecting their good will or kind words which are not forthcoming in any event.

Suen's farewell dinner tomorrow evening. He will spend all the time talking about his wife. His wife is supreme. He gives her all his money. He holds her hand in our company. He is his godess or queen. What a wonder woman!

Lippo farewell lunch for Suen

13 - 12 to treat 1.

I bought them fruits for the afternoon meeting. Suen is missing the work.

I will retire very soon, too. Time after 2000 runs particularly fast. One after the other. There will come my turn. I will feel more lonely after Min leaves for UK.

I have to tune my emotions well. Otherwise, I may be getting close to depression. Mental illness is not uncommon in citites. Must protect myself.

Dinner with Min. B bought her a set of towels from Lane Crawford. Pink + beige. One big for use after shampoo & one small for face. Lovely things soothe my soul.

Marga is uncertain about the proposed new posting.

Ming Dao

Had lunch at MingDao. Both Agnes & I prefer Zen.

Forgot to bring the wallet. Luckily, I had the octopus.

Dinner by myself.

Min found the French lessons very difficult. She told me about plural, singular, male & female & all tenses.

I should have brought Lorraine & the 2 boys to Chi Lin Nunnery. Next time, I must.

Summer Palace

WK & Betty. He leads quite a leisurely life. Singing opera, taiji, short trips, buying food from market & cooking.

Bought a bath towel & a face towel from Crabtree & Evelyn - a set of mauve. Really pretty. For Min's use in UK.

Helen Wah went to North Point to buy clothes from Mrs Chan.

Busy but smooth-going. A talk by Dr Sonia Ng on interpretation/translation in US. She is the sister of Florence.

Dinner at home with 2 girls. They went to reflexology at Ah Kam's.

caught a cold

Darm darm noodles at Whampoa Garden with Min.

Gone home, tired & caught a cold, sneezes & runny nose. Took 2 capsules & fell asleep. Could not join them to play badminton down in the Club. A, Van Min & Kevin played for 2 hrs. Marga & Pau went to Canton Room, Luk Kok Hotel for birthday party.

Dinner at Porpor's home. Discussed with Gungung Fanny Law's case & Tsang's new cabinet.

Ate a big mango from Thailand. A's parents.

lost $320-

Yesterday, I had lunch, afternoon tea & dinner at Kingsui's home with Helen & Christina. Lost $320.00. The TV kept broadcasting Donald Tsang's new cabinet. Kingsui gave us lots & lots of delicious food, like baked salty chicken, braised abalone with cabbages, fish & soup w/radish + beef brisket.

Lorraine & the 2 boys left by 11:30 am plane.

All our girls study in UK. Many exchanges. I will buy quite a long list for Min.

She wanted to go to HungHom for Wing Lai Yuen - Shanghai darm darm noodles today.

I am more relieved now as she has finished all her HKCEE, got the visa for 2 years, engaged a guardian, booked the air-tickets and hotels. I have had tension during the past 3 months terribly.

I am probably undergoing a physical stage that needs special care. I think I will consult doctor later.

Lorraine is very generous to us.

visa granted for 2 years

Yesterday, went to the British Consulate in the morning. Lunch with Lorraine, 3 boys (including Kevin) & Min in Peking Rest. We took Peking duck, xiao long bao, knuckles, egg white w/conpoy, turnip cakes etc.

Then, I joined Melody, Deneb & Elaine for another lunch in Victoria City Rest. Louisa, Alice & V. So could not come.

Went back in the afternoon & worked a short while. Collected Min's passport with student visa granted up to 31/10/09. Enough for her to stay until her gets admission into U. Relieved. Will buy her a luggage bag later. Then, all settled.

Celebration Party from 5 to 6 pm. Went to Ah Xing from 7-8 pm. Browsed around in the Great with Lorraine & 2 boys. Dinner at SheungHing - 10 of us - until 10:45 pm. Soy goose w/liver, satay beef, intestines, chiu chow noodles w/soy & white sugar, cold crabs, oysters porridge and omlette etc.

I will go to Kingsui's home to play mj today. Lorraine will leave in the morning. She gives money for Min to buy a laptop for use in UK. Van will buy her a pink game boy.

Fanny Law quitted & Tong Hin-ming to replace her.

Zeng Dou wonton again

This time in Happy Valley, the old shop. Choy sum, vermicelli rolls with fried dough & pig's liver. Fried noodles with beaten eggs + beef slices. Fish skin. Yummy yummy.

Dinner at home with Van.

Lorraine brought the 2 boys to APM. She visited Sogo & Telford shopping arcade.

Min did not go to the French lesson but movie. When will she be more disciplined? Did not inform me about any of her programmes. Inconsiderate.

Ella

Lunch at Zen with Lorraine & Ella. Disappointed that the boys did not turn up. Ordered a table near the glass wall for viewing the square and potted rice w/beef, conpoy + egg. Brought back for them to take as dinner.

Bought a tee & a pr of pink jeans from Mrs Chan, North Point. Ella bought some & Lorraine bought 4 tees & a pr of black jeans w/crystal beads. I liked a few more items but stopped myself from buying. Should not spend so much.

Sent Min to True Light Middle School, Tai Hang Road for English oral exam. All finished. She regretted that she should have performed better. Wait until the results come.

Went to Stella for pedicure. She is a sweet & plump woman of fifties. Jolly, talkative & tough.

Dined with 2 girls.

Dragon Boat Festival

Real hot. I went to the Ocean Park with Lorraine & the 2 boys. No interest in the mechanical games. Only Tower & Atoll Reef & the cable car. Walked around. Nice to breathe fresh open air. Not crowded.

Then Tasty Wonton (Jeng Dao, Happy Valley) in IFC. We ate too much. Very greedy as to try as many as possible.

Marga's place for dinner. Food ordered. Kevin can fry wonderful beef steaks. Min went to A's home for the Festival.

Stomach ache in the midnight, probably due to eating too much.

Zen lunch

YM is forever the gentleman. I know I will be missing him very very much. We had lunch together. Life is easier with nice pals around - generous, polite, good-natured & helpful.

Judy is back. I enjoy her company, too. Similar age, work experience & taste for many things ......

Lorraine would stay with Gungung & Porpor in KT. So we had dinner at our home.

Min likes the nachos with cheese dip so much.

I am indebted to Agnes for all she did to me. Ah Chuen, too. Still remains nice despite some unhappy incident took place.

Kwongloi worried a lot about me.

80th birthday

It is Pa's 80th birthday and the Father's Day & we pre-celebrated the Dragon Boat Festival. Triple happiness & multiplied by the presence of Lorraine, Wenjun +Wenxi. Wenxi is tall, about 5' 8" at the age of 14. They bought Red Hot Chilli Pepper, Mae & sth from HMV. Lorraine bought a cashmere grey scarf for Min.

We had dimsum at Good Luck Rest, Empire Centre, TST East. Then Park Lane - Le Saunda - 3 prs of shoes.

A bought a dozen of longevity buns from East Ocean for Pa.

Took 1A bus from TST to KT. Touring along.

A happy dinner gathering. I met Anson Mak Ka-hei, a handsome & polite boy.

Kwongloi wrote a long email. I am thinking how to reply all his questions. It's true. A bit personal.

I like communicating with Rosana by writing than talking. She is more articulated by letters and more blunt in conversations.

Fantastic 4

Rise of the Silver Surfer. Very entertaining. I like Johnny - handsome & fiery.

Min missed the tennis session as we spent time in the bookshop. Forgot about K's trip to China.


Lorraine & Wenjun/Wenxi have come to stay in Marga's place. A joyous dinner.

Rosana sent along video clips re a 4-fingered Koreanan girl pianist & an armless woman in China. They both struggle hard & can perform better than many others. Yet, I feel sorry for them & their families.

Thursday & Friday

Agnes gave me half of her lunch box - rice w/cod & cabbages. We shared a shrimp roe noodle w/conpoy. Allen gave us 2 goose wings & 2 pcs of beef brisket w/soy. Thursday - meeting in the morning & afternoon. Med appt - everything fine & normal. Will go to UCH for ultra-sound gall-bladder as safety measure. Eastern Hosp. - 13/12. Dinner with Memory, Suen to celebrate Siu Chu's b/day at Prince Edward. Bought Chu 5 prs of socks as present. I bought a twin set - green - from Wing On for myself.

Friday - Lunch at Man Ho with Tam & Agnes. Delicious. Very relaxing environment. Min visited my office after her French lesson. Bought Mrs Fields cookies + muffins. Dinner at Wanya, Central with Pau, A, Van & Min. Marga was caught by an urgent meeting from 7:30 pm to 9:10 pm. Did not come as the rest had the last order at 10 pm. Too much hurry to have 30 mins - wasting money.

Very comfortable this morning. No work. Lorraine & 2 boys will arrive in the evening. We will dine at Marga's place.

Min would like to have a movie in the afternoon.

Pamela Stevens will be her guardian. A very good choice.

deep-fried fish

Recently, my taste for food has changed a bit. For example, I had deep-fried fish for breakfast & boiled bitter gourd for lunch.

Regular lunch at Wanchai. 3 retirees joined. Grudges seemed softened. Anyway, nice to chat together. Blah Blah Blah!

Yvonne said they had 4 new mothers who requested for a place to squeeze milk for reserve to feed their respective babies.

Martin came to visit us. He is looking for a job.

Min is greatly interested in learning French.

charm or drunk?

Am I charming or was the Japanese drunk? He kept on saying I am kawaii & ho leng & duck yee. He asked about my age & how many boys/girls do I have. He asked me to visit him in the shop and talk to him often.

I was so scared that I hurried to check the bill. I don't know what his fokis think nor other customers. Perhaps they thought he was only befriending a customer.

He told me he had a grandma aged 118. 3 daughters.

I had a beef steak in apple sauce & Van had sukiyaki. We shared a board of uni. It is a pity that I would not go there for a certain time to avoid embarassment.

Arranged a farewell dinner for G & YF on 11/7 and a dinner for G on 13/7. Before that, we will farewell Suen on 29/6. So many good-byes. I feel strongly about the departure, retirement, old age & sickness ..........

I must love all the more while I can.

Min prefers a black camera.

Van is sick. Gastric illness. Vomited, tummy pains & fever. Poor girl.

Ocean's 13

I did not see Ocean's 11 but this time I have gone to see 13. AMC Festival Walk. All handsome faces & cool guys. Smart games. Geroge Clooney, Brad Pitt, Matt Damon, Andy Garcia, Al Pacino .........

Coloured my hair as the whites are coming out. Visisted Porpor for dinner.

Min started her French lessons today. 2-4 pm for 20 sessions at Wanchai. Hope she can gain from it.

Lunch at Lippo.

Min had her eyebrows over-picked to become too thin. She does not like the shape.

relieved Saturday

Brought Michelle to Dr Tong. $1,000.00. Glad that he had liaised with Dr Lui in QEH. They will have a joint treatment plan and surgery.

Went to Yunmei Japan. We ate 3 toro sushi, one beef rolls and one grilled daily fish - today a snapper. Coffee & tofu ice-cream.

Then we bought a pr of sandals from Le Saunda. Blue with floral pattern. Min insisted I changed my beige one at once.

Bought 2 dumplings & herbal jellies to Su Chong's home. Played mj with Fu & Daniel. Won $590.00. How wonderful. I seldom win. Taxi home with Fu.

A bought me some ham & white truffle pate. They had pizza at home for dinner.

Hope the weather is fine tomorrow so that I can take a walk in the park. Will colour treat my hair. Too many whites appearing.

See if I can book tickets for Ocean's 13.

Concert - Teresa & Lam

Bought 2 sets of meal from the Great - 1 rice w/ham and 1 rice w/roast chicken + grilled vege. I like the bell peppers and zucchini. Shared with Estella in the office for lunch.
Settled all the travel bookings.
Xiao Nan Guo for dinner before the concert. With the Pau family of 3.
Marga was unhappy with the app. report. She said it was the worst she has ever received.
Must maintain composure. No need to be hurt any further. Another director is offering another acting appointment for her. Wait & see.
Very enjoyable evening until 11:30 pm.
Wenxi & Lorraine were curious about the food in the Repulse Bay Hotel.
Gungung is weak.

Had dinner with B & F at Victoria Rest. The rich men's canteen. I will bring Lorraine & Wenjun/Wenxi there.

Kwongloi is an interesting pen-pal.

I will go to Dr Tong tomorrow morning and YauYat Tsuen in the afternoon to play mj with Su Chong, Ah Fu & I don't know who.

Van has not come home. She will buy me some Godiva choco.

I want to buy a shirt from Alain Figaret.

grilled pomfret

Jap food - good coffee & sesame ice-cream.

No call on hotline. Terrific.

Min went to Ch oral exam in Tai Kok Tsui - CCC Ming Kei College. 6-8 pm. Had a shampoo nearby & read magazine/book. Then, we went to Langham Place to have congee w/liver and noodles w/beef brisket in Chi Kei.

Cream puffs from Beard Papa Sweets - 3 vanilla & 1 chocolate crispy.

Min said her performance should rank 2nd in the group of 5.

Will go to Eastern Hosp on 14th for check-up. Then celebrate b/day for Chu. One year has passed again.

The red tie from K & C is really pretty.

The dinner buffet last evening costed $680 + 10% service charge.

lucky me

So far so good. Will go to Winston Tong this weekend.

Planning hard for Min's schooling & everything which follows. I must remain healthy so to support the little girl.

See if we can play mj this Sunday. Awaiting reply from Kingsui & Christina.

Fish slices and noodles for lunch. Bought a coupon for Lippo dumplings for 3.

One call today from India delegation for a bag left in the conference venue. No problem. Resolved.

Dinner at Repulse Bay - buffet with wonderful band and all the goldies. A lovely evening. I am glad I had joined. Never been there for dinner. Allen gave me a lift to Fortress Hill MTR station.

only one call

So lucky. Touch wood. Only one call for conference venue. That's all for today. Yvonne got the phone at 6 pm.

Lunch at Ye Shanghai with Fanny.

Hong Thai after work with Van. Spent 2 hours booking tour package & air-ticket.

Dan Ryan at 9:30 pm until 10:30 pm. Cippino, Caesar's salad & stuffed mushrooms + iced lemon tea.

I am glad that I am able to discharge all the duties one by one.

Min attended her grad dinner at Nikko Hotel. Not yet home. She wore a pretty dress and high heels. My fair young lady!

Will go to buffet dinner at Repulse Bay Hotel tomorrow. Never been there for dinner.

CJ's Conferrence

Shampoo & set. Tel for urgent swap of duties.

Wore a suit (skirt) with tiny white dots on black. The little red bee brooch from Swarovski. Very cute. Nina Ricci black shoulder bag with gold chains.

So hot & sticky. Had a tea with Patrick in Cafe de Coral Wanchai. Worked until dinner at Super Star with Tam & Patrick.

One Harbour Road in Grand Hyatt Hotel. Body guard & 2 G4 men.

Everything fine. Nice experience though with lots of tension.

Marga will resume work tomorrow. Just best wishes for her well-being.

Min remained at home watching DVD with Karin while Van & A dined at Porpor's home.

a hot Sunday

It is so hot. Nita got a big box for despatch to the Philippines. We give her many unwanted items. She likes them all. Clothes, shoes, electricals, stationery, books, old or new and many other sundries.

Van got 7 tees from Dymocks. - 40% off. She is so pleased and wears one today. A & she will go to visit Porpor and dine in her flat. Porpor will be so happy.

Many activities in APM. A landmark in KT.

Vista is good-looking.

I will meet Patrick at 3 pm at Wanchai.

a chat with Min

Nice to have a chat with Min. She is maturer than I notice. Children grow day by day. She enjoys music and singing.

She has shared with me some of her thoughts that I find inspiring.

Quite tense to prepare for a week's reception & hotline tasks. Keep my fingers cross that everything should go smoothly. Events are always exciting & bring along tension.

Co-op amongst so many people to serve another so many people from different cultures is really challenging. Different points of views and countless communication and thousand changes just drive one mad.

Tea at Dan Ryan. Fresh orange juice & apple pie. Cippino (1/2) brought home. Min likes it.

Worked in the morning until 1:30 pm.

wenxi no longer baby voice

Glad to hear Wenxi on phone. Exactly like that of Wenbang. No longer baby or girlish.

Agnes resumes work after exam. Lots of grumblings. Why is life so difficult?

Lunch with usual group at Wanchai.

Went to Shamshuipo to order for name tapes for Min - $300.00 for 50 doz. White tapes with black words. She does not like blue, pink, brown or purple. So hot & dusty. Then went to Haven of Hope to visit Gungung. Poor airpipes. Porpor cooked rice for him. Criticism as at home, salty, too chunky, too what what what .... Tremendous patience from Porpor. Great love is sometimes in the form of smile with tolerence.

Min went back to school for graduation ceremonies. Hot-pot with school mates in San Po Kong.

Dry clean for winter clothes so costly.

Last evening, I told Hou Laushi to be the last lesson of PTH. I am not sure when we will employ her again. I gave her a used handbag - Nina Rici - brown leather. She is fond of it.