What an exciting, interesting two days its been for me, filled with new experiences and simply enjoyable moments.

WARNING: LONG POST AHEAD!

Tuesday began rather frustratingly, as I woke up too late in the morning to really get any last minute mugging done before my Math paper in the early afternoon. I had been meaning to truly memorise the MacLaurin’s series… but never got a chance to. Fortunately, it didn’t come out in the exam. Unfortunately, other things I failed to study did instead. Guess I’ll never get around to passing Math. Haha.

Seriously, though… it was down to Vivocity after the paper to watch Sunshine, a independent sci-fi flick starring an international cast that included Cillian Murphy, Chris Evans and Michelle Yeoh. In the future, the sun is going to burn itself out, threatening humankind with extinction. The Earth’s only hope is a space mission named Icarus II, that will plant a bomb in the middle of the sun to jumpstart the formation of a new star. I thought it was a pretty decent movie that took itself rather seriously and delivered throughout. The only thing I didn’t like about it was the relative lack of trust each character had for one another. There didn’t seem to be any camaraderie, despite the importance of their mission. I chalk it up to poor characterisation – the audience was thrown into the midst of the plot, with no way to begin empathising with the cast. The other thing I didn’t like about it was that it felt like a mix between ‘Event Horizon’ and ’2001′ – though, to its credit, it played off both themes rather well.

Sunshine was followed by a quick trip around VivoCity, which had become more lively since I was last there, a foray into Toys’R'US where we played around with pink bunny ears. There’s at least one incriminating photo around… I hope it never sees the light of day. And then it was dinner at Carnivore – a belated birthday treat from direcow.

Carnivore is one of the latest in the trend of Brazilian Barbeque outlets sprouting up all around Singapore, but since I haven’t been to one before that night, it was a whole new experience for me. What an absolutely carnal delight it was! No, there was nothing sassy about it, but I use ‘carnal’ in the original sense of the word – meat! From chicken to beef, pork to lamb, slices of shoulder, back, wing coming one after another… it was heaven for this meat-lover. I ate and ate and again, like the time at Kushinbo, felt like throwing up. But this was much more fulfilling for me, compared to Japanese fare. It was hard to say which serving I liked best, but the grilled pineapple was nothing short of a godsend. crapshoot believes the Sixth Avenue outlet is better, so I’m tempted to give it a try one day.

We ended the day by being kids again at one of the outdoor playgrounds outside Mother Garden and Long John Silver’s. By the time we were bored having fun, my stomach had more or less settled and I felt really satisfied. Who said being 25 means you have to grow up permanently? Of the seven of us there, more than half have yet to turn 25, but it’s good to know that nothing’s gonna change yet.

Wednesday morning began rather blandly as Son of the Mask failed to excite even the most die-hard of Mask fans – me. It was an otherwise decent family flick, starring one of my favourite television actresses, Traylor Howard of “Monk” and “Two Guys and A Girl” fame.

After that, it was time to head out and meet up with The Weekend Designer, an old friend whom I just got back in contact with this year. We were supposed to lunch at March̩ @ Suntec, only to discover that it had been closed for a while. Instead, we headed down to CityLink Mall and stopped at tcc. I decided on the Smoked Salmon Linguine while she had the Beef Mozza-Tofu and shared the Golden Jubilee mashed potatoes at her recommendation. Best meal ever. According my sister, who works in tcc now, most of the dishes are very well prepared Рand I have to agree.

Post-lunch activity was an opportunity to follow TWD around as she did some business-related shopping. We went to Textile Mall, a place I’d never visit otherwise. There, we headed straight for Sungai – a shop that sold loads of items used to make accessories. It was an eye-opener for a guy who always thought that accessories were a elite universe that was beyond him. I found gothic pendants for less than a dollar and though the designs were sometimes rather odd, it was still a haven for the creative spark to be fanned into a flame. TWD bought $150 worth of chains of different colours, shapes and sizes that could be used for bracelets, necklaces, even earrings!

We then headed down to Square 2, the new annex of Novena Square to pick up the bubble envelopes she ordered. These envelops have a layer of bubble-wrap inside to ensure the safety of the products she mails out. Although it really was just a fraction of the business shopping she has to do each month, it was definitely an eye-opener into the intricacies of running a professionally-made accessories shop.

Do visit The Weekend Designer when you’re free and view her many unique and one-of-a-kind designs!

My day didn’t end there, as I was then headed to Mediacorp’s TV Theatre to catch the last episode of The Dance Floor LIVE before the Grand Finals next Sunday. But that, is an entry for itself.