Doggie-bag It: Rather Lovin' OCBC iBanking

I've been playing with my OCBC ibbanking page today. Being a girl who's really bad with managing my dollars and cents, the features on the ibanking portal are really helpful for me.

No doubt about it, OCBC's ibanking portal has the best 'human touch' to it. This is in comparison with previous ibanking accounts that I held with DBS and UOB. 

I don't get paid for this article.

All the regular features (fund transfer, bill payment, account opening) aside, my favourite feature would be the one on Goal Setting. You start by categorizing your goal, naming it and defining the amount required, then you go into details like whether you have a deadline for it. If you do, then the system calculates your minimum required savings per month to your cause. If you don't, you can play around with the amount of savings you can actually afford and the system derives the date that you will meet your goal.

Personally I've always had a few goals that I know I need to save up for. But because I'm not the disciplined sort, I tend to set aside whatevers I have remaining at the end of the pay-cycle month as general savings, and then I lose sight of how the individual causes should be carved out from this sum.

With OCBC's Goal Setting feature I've now added my individual goals as pockets of funds on to my homepage. I've set rules to direct my monthly pay to the different pockets so no goal gets forgotten. 

Also when I login to my homepage I get to see my total pool of money, split by savings that I carved out against my free cash. This is a very good summary because I can easily know my splurge limits. It is also helpful that credit card transactions that I've chalked up on my OCBC cards are displayed on the same page so I can monitor in case of over-spend.

All in all, you can tell that OCBC had put a lot of thought into making their ibanking portal useful and user friendly, all in the customer's perspective. With the relevant information displayed upfront, it makes people reminded of their saving and spending habits. 

I think the portal worked for me. That's why it deserves a shoutout!
For those out there (like me) who are bad at managing your money, you can probably give OCBC a go. :)
♥

Doggie-bag It: Passiton.Org.Sg

I think the disposal of something, or indeed anything, is an important consideration. It is a topic that most people neglect. 

Disposal of everyday items that are produced as a by-product of frequent consumption is a real waste of resources. Things like extra plastic bags, plastic drink bottles, disposable food packaging, advertisement leaflets or brochures are just examples of how we produce a lot of waste that, to a large extent, can be avoided. 

Disposal of larger household items is equally bad. In Singapore unwanted household objects are often left at lift lobbies or at the ground floor of high rise apartments. It gets in the way and is unsightly. Although there are proper avenues to dispose household items, people simply cannot be bothered to bring their items to the rubbish dump facilities. This is really a deep-rooted behavioral problem. 

Conscious of the issue of proper disposal, I've been searching for a way to meaningfully dispose of my spare mattress which I've used over the last 10 years because I got myself a new one from Maliland that helps me with my bad back. I thought perhaps I could do donation or I could break it down into parts that could be upcycled, recycled or reused. 

What showed up was an interesting online donation portal known as Pass It On.org.

How-tos:
To donate an item, simply fill out a form with your contact details and pictures with a description of your item. Your item will then be listed on the database of donated objects. Representatives of local registered Voluntary Welfare Organisations can login to the portal and search the database for suitable objects needed by families whom they look after. Where there is a suitable match, the VWO Reps will then contact you to confirm item availability and subsequently arrange for pick-up.

To date I've listed my mattress and a spare table-top fan on the portal, and already managed to rehouse my fan with a new family. My fan is now being put to good use instead of sitting lonesomely in a corner of my storage room collecting dust. My mattress doesn't appear to be popular but I will still keep it listed for a few weeks before I go on to Plan B.

If you guys out there need a meaningful way to de-clutter your living space, do give the portal a go. If your items are still in working and reasonably clean condition, there should be no reason to let them go to waste in the rubbish dump!

And you will also receive a personal thank you note for your kind donation!

♥

De-Cumber with Cucumber (with restraint)

Whaaat a relief the pain is marginal/bearable/livable now albeit the cavity which persists in the wall of my throat. If I could, I would like to photograph it daily to show you the progress (much like how ladies document their pregnancy) but it would take a circus performer to do that - and I am oh-ho-hoo surely not a circus performer.


All the 'cooling' stuff is working. Most remarkably, Mr Cucumber is doing a meaaaan job healing the abyss in my throat. But all this cooling stuff is also doing meaaaan things to my bowels. Subtly put - I have no meat to my s--t!


I acknowledge I have an improvement point to make my 'subtle' be more subtle.


So if you have to have a take-away point from today's brog material, take this:

Cucumber does wonders for reducing swells but when ingested frequently in large quantities make you.. have no meat to the s--t.

Until we meat again..
♥

Doggie-Bag It: Body wash product review - Silk Bath vs Johnson & Johnson's

I don't usually do product reviews - think this is my first. I think the main reason is that I don't like to play the baddie and slam a product for being inadequate. 

However triggered by a rash eruption due to sensitive skin, I really am inspired to do this post today, with my target audience being people with sensitive skin and living in humid climate.

Silk Bath in Rosehip and Peach extract by SilkPro

Description: On a recent mass running event the participants were given a goodie bag with various types of trial-sized products. Included within was a sample sized 300ml Silk Bath body wash in flavour of rose hip and peach. It is enriched with Silk Crystals to supposedly moisturize and protect your skin against harmful UV rays. The liquid is yellow and has observable glittery silky looking precipitate.

Smell: On first use, I took a whiff of the body wash and found the smell to be... awful. I am a 'smell girl' and smells mean a lot to me. I used this Silk Bath concoction, and with each wash, increasingly found it smelling like cheap perfume. The scent of this liquid has an alcohol-like property and is so intense that when I wash my ears I find myself choking. 

Rinse and after: The rinse-off is easy and my skin doesn't feel oily and icky after rinsing. However I don't feel moisturized as well. I think the after-feel was just.. alright. 

Lasting Moisture Body Wash by Johnson & Johnson 

Description: Made by one the most popular baby product brands, Johnson's body wash seemed like a good replacement for Shokobutsu body washes that I previously used when my skin was not irritable like it is now. I coincidentally decided to pick up this from the shelf at a convenience store on one of my chalet stay-over events. Sample/travel size packaging holds 200ml. The fluid is a milky white colour.

Smell: I honestly have tried and liked various Johnson's body washes and this Lasting Moisture series was my favourite. It smells something similar to baby wipes and is relaxing to my nerves. The smell is gentle and pleasant. 

Rinse and after: The rinse-off is easy and similar to the Silk Bath one, my skin also doesn't feel icky after rinsing. The difference here is that my skin feels moisturized and protected. I feel - NiCe. The gentle, pleasant smell is rather long lasting and remains for several hours after showering too.

***

All-in-all, with these two washes being priced similarly, I feel the Johnson's body washes are a better deal. For myself at the least, it is a good substitute for expensive pharmaceutical washes - brands like Cetaphil and Dermaveen, and does not leave an oily after feel. 

I also tried the Johnson's pH5.5 body washes in Original, Almond and Honey flavours and find their texture to be similar to the Lasting Moisture one. Though Johnson may sell its body washes as having different properties, they feel the same to me! All of the Johnson's washes managed to soothe my irritable skin and keep me smelling nice. Think the main noticeable difference is the fragrance.

Just.. I won't recommend you to buy Silk Bath!

Currently when washing, my approach is to use Johnson & Johnson's body washes up to the ears, and Cetaphil or Dermaveen for the face (depending on which is on sale!). It works well for me - for someone with sensitive skin. So I'm happy! If like me, you are seeking a combination of washes for your sensitive skin, hope you are able to benefit from this combination like I did!

Sweet dreams!

♥

Doggie-Bag It: Poser The Piratepup

My KoKo-Blanc allows me to read my ebooks downloaded from the library website and this to me is really cool.


The uncool part is that for HAWT ebook publications I am compelled to put my name on the waiting list because the book is ALWAYS borrowed! This to me, a major inconvenience - the Library people could consider getting more copies of the license on these HAWT ebooks.


When it comes to your turn on the waiting list, you receive an email to inform you the book has to be checked out within 3 days of receiving the email. By then I usually would have already maxed out my 4 book limit because I borrowed other things in place of the HAWT book! Plus I don't see an option on the Library website that allows me to return my book in advance...............


Often I find myself stuck in a situation where I'm entitled to borrow the book on my waiting list which I have long awaited for, but I can't borrow it within the stipulated deadline because I can't return existing books!


That sux.


Then after you actually get to borrow the HAWT book, you find that 3 weeks is not enough to complete reading your ebook. And you realise you have to undergo the entire painful waiting list process again.


That sux big time.


This is where I jump in. Today I will share with you a method that works with audio ebooks.


First, go to the App Market and download an app that does voice recording.
Second, turn on the voice recording app.
Third, turn on the audio ebook.
Fourth, let the audio ebook run its course.
Lastly, turn off the audio ebook and save the voice recording to your phone.


Taa-daa!
Now you can read the book with ease.


Now, don't go around telling people I told u this!


♥

Doggie-Bag It: Bounce me the Doggie-Bag!

Bounced back today from my emo-yesterday and now feeling perkier. Two events that helped largely to pull me back into the light are what I will speak about today.

Previously I blogged on this adorable looking pair of teeth by Inhae Lee. That apparently sparked a wave of interest for Miss Lee's little creations that she decided to compile her short stories into a book! 

My Milk Toof - The Adventures of Ickle and Lardee.. 

Is now available!

Being such a fan of Miss Lee's creations I had to GRAB a copy of course! As soon as I got wind of the book being published, I rang my secretary (let's call her 'Daisy') to arrange my flight to California so I could meet up with Miss Lee and get a copy of the book plus her autograph. I had just returned to Poserland for 2 days to tell this story.

And.. the above was the fake story.

The real story was - being a fan I successfully influenced my friends to coo-and-ahh over Ickle and Lardee. The biggest influencee was Shinn, who regularly kept herself updated with MyMilkToof issues. She spotted the ad for the book on Inhae Lee's brog and immediately reported it to me. I still remember it was past 11.50pm when I got her call (the next day was still a work-day, not weekend). Super hard-core follower. At that instant I was asked by Shinn to make a decision on whether or not I would be taking a copy. 

"Yes I will" I said - for fear of Shinn's meticulous nagging that would have befallen me if I gave a response that fell short of her expectations. Shinn was seemingly satisfied with my reply for that moment and bade me goodbye so she could ring another unsuspecting soul.

My positive answer apparently didn't give me an immunity to Shinn's meticulous nagging. The next day I was made to confirm my decision first thing in the morning. Disoriented, without my coffee dose, I would have said 'Yes' to Shinn if she asked for my kidney that morning because I was way too delirious to meet head-on with Shinn's level of meticulous nagging. Fortunately she did not ask for that.

The next few moments went past in a blur that day, and the next thing I knew, Shinn completed the Amazon order and I had the softcopy invoice delivered to my inbox. Talk about efficiency.

The next 3 weeks was a gruelling wait for my precious MyMilkToof book. During this period I had to absolutely Kill time by hopping on a jet plane to Taipei and mope around the shopping malls so waiting would not have been so painful.

Now, now, now.. I have my book! Already browsed it only 500 times, back-to-front and front-to-back. 

If I have convinced you, there are multiple options to buy this adorable book,

- Chronicle Books

- Amazon

- Barnes & Noble

- Borders

- Kinokuniya

- Kyobo

- Powells

- Urban Outfitters (huh?? why do they carry books.. o well.)

If you're not yet convinced, you can check out the intro vid by Inhae Lee.

Also there's the option to preview the book from Amazon, you can check out how the first few pages of the inside looks.

Disclaimer: I get no commission from this marketing pitch. I wish I did so you guys can make me rich.

And.. I'm running out of battery and need to type fast !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

The next thing that cheered me today was, a little chat with Genie. Genie speak wise words make Posey humble Puppy. My brain, mind and soul are now 'get set, ready to go' mode. Thanks Genie! 

♥

Doggie-bag It: The Faceshop Vitamin E mask

Continuing to loiter online while waiting for my The Faceshop Vit E face mask nutrients to be osmosized into my skin. Note osmosized is wrong in spelling/grammar because there is no verb for 'osmosis' which is Quite Interesting to me. You can try googling it if you refuse to believe me. 


The mask smells nice and feels nourishing. I don't know how to define 'feel nourishing' but I just manage to feel so. I think it might be due to me liking hard boiled eggs in my salad. Gah I'm feeling hungry now talking about hard boiled eggs.


This is how the Vitamin E mask looks like on the packet.

Tip on applying face masks - refrigerate them before use coz it's really a nice feeling to have something nice smelling and apparently nourishing and cold on your face. Feel relaxed now. Well even if it's not as nourishing as marketed, at least it smells nice and makes me happy,


Tip on applying face masks II - after you put the mask on try to lie down and not walk about too much. You want the nourishing fluid to be evenly distributed and not pulled to your chin by Gravity eventually dripping on to your t-shirt. Less you want a very nourished t-shirt.


Other tips on applying face masks can most probably be found on the back of the face mask packet so I will not bore you with the obvious details.


Cheers & time for bed.
♥

Every end is a new beginning & new Doggie-Bag It topic

That totally didn't make sense.


Did you know - I have recently discovered the FTW-ness of the Esc key. The Esc key is so powerful and wonderful my little left hand pinky will never feel the same without it.


Esc is a quick and convenient way to exit a Windows function window or drop-down list. Conveniently located within reach of my left pinky, I realise it saves me the time and effort to reach for my mouse and locate the X button to close windows that I accidentally open up or need for quick reference. 


Linux users.. Not sure if it works for you, maybe you can feedback and let everyone know.






And did you realise the Poser blog lull is tapering to an end?
Hurrah for sanity! 


XOXO
♥

Cranberry juice gives you bad breath

So I've been having some problems with my little pearlies these days, and spent quite a bit on dental visits. I'm now very paranoid about dental hygiene.

One thing is for sure - there is no getting away with not brushing your teeth at least twice per day. Especially so if you like to snack on Pringles, nuts and muruku.

Hey by the way if you haven't been introduced, here are some awfully cool teeth.

Their names are ickle and Lardee. Did you hear 'bout their fishing trip? Sounds like they had a lot of fun. Didn't manage to get any fish though, poor guys.

Earlier in the evening where I had been there was a jug of cranberry juice. Those who partook in it developed bad breath after that. Hm, I'm not suggesting that cranberry juice be boycott. I think we should drink cranberry juice with a straw and wash down the cranberry traces with water. Drinking sweet stuff with straws protect your teeth ya.. Sipping water after cranberry juice also helps prevent bad breath and washes away the sugared saliva which again protects teeth.

So there you have it. All 2 cents worth.

Ending off with another cute picha (actually a series of cute pichas). G'night.

♥

Doggie Bag It: The lazy laundry-person

There is something therapeutic in the smell of freshly washed clothes. I get a sense of satisfaction when I hang up my clean laundry and see them blow in the wind.

However there is just one thing about doing laundry that I cannot stand. I cannot, I just cannot hand-wash my clothing.

As a member of the 21st century, I grew up on home appliances. In my mother's generation, they didn't have much of these stuff. In my generation, we were usually surrounded with computers, televisions, fridges, air-conditioners, and most relevant to wat we have to say now - The Washing Machine.

In this era, I find it hard to believe that people are still hand-washing their clothes. It is a rather stupid idea as well. With the exception of the low-income families, all others who so much as to suggest hand-washing deserve a tight slap on the cheek. What's the point in hand-washing your clothing? Want to act humble is it?

Go get lost!

Now that we have come to a concensus that hand-washing is dumb, let me raise some pitfalls using the washing machine.

1) My delicate clothes get damaged when I hand-wash!

2) My dark coloured clothes get a massive lint attack when I wash them with towels!

3) The colour of my dark clothing stains my light coloured clothing when I wash them together!

Friends, let me introduce a suggestion, that might be the best solution to your problems!

Let me introduce to you..

The Laundry Net

Mommeh's little helpers

The laundry net is an amaaaaazing invention!

With a laundry net, I can now safely wash my delicate clothes in my washing machine.

With a laundry net, I can now separate my dark clothing from my towels, and get no lint stuck on the dark fabric.
With a laundry net, the dark and light clothes can be separated, and there will be reduced chances of the dark clothes staining the light clothes.

(Disclaimer: of course we don't try and do stupid things like washing a brand new piece of dark clothing with a light coloured clothing in 2 separate bags, coz new dark clothes are very very very infectious and the concentration of dark dye will simply be too much for the laundry net to handle)

And I speak from real life experience. I always had an issue with hand-washing because I have terribly sensitive skin, totally incapable of tolerating detergent. Of course it can be argued that I could hand-wash my laundry wearing gloves, but it is usually harder to handle, and in the final rinse, you can't feel if all the detergent had been removed before you wring it to dry. The laundry net saved my life.

For very expensive delicate clothes, I will protect it from the harsh washer with 2 layers of laundry net. This can ensure the safety of the delicate fabric. The same concept can be applied to very expensive dark clothing - 2 layers of laundry net to protect it from the lint from towels. Trust me, I've been using laundry nets from the age of 13!

For brassiere, you can protect the ones with underwire by using an improvised laundry net - the laundry-perforated-type-plastic-ball. This can help to retain the shape of your expensive underwired brassiere without the need for hand-wash! (Btw, I neva trust hand-washing brassierecoz I can neva fully get the detergent out from the thick paddings)

If you live in Pandamonia, a good place to shop for good quality laundry nets will be at your friendly neighbourhood Daiso. Daiso stocks a good selection of different sizes of laundry net, and some look pretty with cute prints on 'em. I usually get my nets from Daiso.

All the nets I have are from Daiso, with the exception of the small rectangular one in the middle - that's from NTUC.

Another place you can try is NTUC. NTUC laundry nets are also of not bad quality, but there are 2 points lacking in comparison with Daiso nets. NTUC nets usually cost more and they carry different net brands from time to time, so the net zips are sometimes good, sometimes bad. The bad ones tend to have the holdable part of the zip falling off in a month or two of washing, and subsequently you'll find it hard to zip up or open the laundry net without a holdable part.

BUT PLEASE, please please please, DO NOT ever buy laundry nets from pasar malam (night market) stalls unless u wish to waste time and money. The quality is usually bad - they are usually made of thin netted fabric, and have terrible zips that can burst open after just one wash. In 'burst' I mean the teeth of the zip tend to lose the alignment and when that happens, you can't fix it ever.

So ladies, go ahead, go and get your laundry net fix, and stop the bloody hand-washing! Life is short, don't need to wash hard.

♥