@cinemaniacx

Coming home to an empty living room of a COVID-stricken house is the opposite of how I’ve spent my past birthdays being surrounded by the people I love. In fact, I haven’t really been feeling it in the weeks leading up to this day; I struggled at work and then completely lost my shit when COVID took down four people in my household including my momma whom I tried so hard to shield the last two years. I’m still testing negative but who knows it may just be a matter of time before I get it too. There was a flurry of pivoting; plans were cancelled and I repurposed my freed up time hunting down medicine and food for the family, keeping the house tidy so it doesn’t look as apocalyptic as it feels, catching up on deadlines I missed and being left alone with my thoughts for longer than I’m comfortable with. Permit your basic friend to now quote a *snort* Rolling Stones song: “You can’t always get what you want; But if you try sometime you might find… you get what you need.” No better time to be reminded to stay calm, carry on and keep showing up for the people and the things you care about. To be grateful that we're still OK and that I have easy access to most needs. And to never forget that I have people in my life who are so determined to extend a helping hand that they’d push themselves into my orbit even though I closed off because I was sad. So, thank you for the cakes, chats, thoughtful gifts, treats, birthday messages, wishes and offers of help - they feel like hugs from afar. The living room is still empty but my life is full as ever in the ways that matter most. And here are the receipts! Happy birthday, Didi. One year wiser, hopefully? #ThisIs41 #DidiBirthday2022 #LoveInTheTimeOfCorona #Birthday #SingaporeILoveYou #fwenz #love #foodgram #foodporn #yummy #SGeats #steak #cake #coconutshake #coffee #tea #sgig #igsg

My Forever Valentine - Love of cinema and these FOINE gentlemen. ❤️ Ryd said something that cracked me up: Princess Di used to say that there were 3 people in her marriage so with that, this wholesome threesome (@ryddy, 2022) went to catch Pablo Larrain's mesmerising biopic about my namesake (Spencer) at the Crown Jewel of our aerospace industry on Valentine's Day. 👑 Plus, so chuffed to be a part of @malcolmrob1's #FabFebFifty celebrations. Thank you, my dears! 😘💕 #fwenz #SingaporeILoveYou #cinephiles #Spencer #PrincessDi #KristenStewart #PabloLarrain #Oscars2022 #ValentinesDay #ValentinesDay2022 #Love #sgig #igsg

Hearts and bellies are full from feasting with friends! ♥️ At the Kew House, reunion dinner was a Melayu-Peranakan (and baju butterfly! 😂) affair where we served up home-cooked Ayam Buah Keluak and Chap Chye by me and Sambal Udang (prawn) by Le Momma! Ayam Buah Keluak recipe is by Chef Malcolm Lee of one-Michelin-starred Peranakan restaurant, Candlenut. If you're keen to give this a whirl, feel free to DM me. Happy to share it and offer some tips I've picked up along the way. The face-stuffing shenanigans continued at Peppermint where we got to sample delectable festive dishes, tucked away in @parkroyalcollectionmarinabay's lush interior. Happy Lunar New Year, my friends! May the Year of the Tiger continue to keep you in good health and bring about wealth in the things that matter most. 🐯🍊🍊🧧 #CNY2022 #ChineseNewYear #ChineseNewYear2022 #YearOfTheTiger #festive #fwenz #SingaporeILoveYou #homecook #AyamBuahKeluak #ChapChye #foodgram #instafood #foodporn #yummy #SGeats #sgig #igsg

Lunch @komasingapore to celebrate my friend of 27 years on her birthday. It's impossible to take a bad photo of this modern Japanese restaurant and sushi bar. The OTT decor may seem garish to some but I love that it's theatrical and full of interesting details! It feels like we've been transported to some kind of Japanese wonderland ala Studio Ghibli. And it's not just a pretty face too - the food is *chef's kiss*. As it's a special occasion, I took the plunge and ordered their Hobayaki snow-aged Nigata wagyu ribeye. The price is steep but what you'll get is an A5 wagyu steak of such perfect doneness (medium) and texture that it melts in your mouth. It's comparable to the premium wagyu steaks I've had in Kobe. The other main we tried is the relatively modest Bincho sakura chicken thigh which is juicy and flavourful and we think just as satisfying! For the dessert, we went for Chocolate Pumpkin 'cause 'tis the season and Lemon Yuzu, a zesty confection served with yuzu jam on a bed of cocoa crumble. Yum! We'll be sure to return for the good eats and good vibes! But maybe need to fatten up our cash reserves first before we can do this again. 😂 Many happy returns of the day, dearest @crappysotong! 🥳 May there be many, many more fun makan shenanigans in the years to come. #fwenz #birthday #SingaporeILoveYou #JapaneseCuisine #SGeats #MBS #MarinaBaySands #foodgram #foodporn #instafood #sgig #igsg

The desert planet has no chill so why should I? Stoked AF to finally catch Denis Villeneuve's epic DUNE adaptation in an IMAX theatre with a few buddies on opening day! Lisan, Al-Gaib you some advice... Don't ever feel Shai-Hulud to let your spice flow. It's even better when you're surrounded by enablers like @blueberryjellybean who lent me her shawl so I can feel Fremen to strike a pose. I both love and hate her for knowing me this well! 😂 Capsule review of @dunemovie to come... #Dune #DuneMovie #FrankHerbert #fwenz #SingaporeILoveYou #FrankHerbert #TimotheeChalamet #OscarIsaac #JasonMomoa #Zendaya #cinephile #IMAX #sgig #igsg

A gorgeous Saturday at @susserrellas' where we escaped to Italy for a day with a (mostly) home-cooked feast of antipasti platter, lasagne, pizzas, meatball spaghetti, ice cream and tiramisu. @susserrellas deserves her own solo portrait because while the rest of us cooked or bought 1-2 items, this annoying overachiever made the lasagne, cherry tomatoes focaccia and tiramisu from scratch. Clearly, one of us is #WinningAtLife! I brought my home-cooked meatball spaghetti to the table. 🤤 Thanks for our very extra themed makan sessions, ladies. The joy and laughter they bring fill me up in more ways than one! ❤️ #fwenz #SingaporeILoveYou #ItalianCuisine #ItalianFood #Italy #homecook #instafood #foodgram #foodporn #yummy #ThatsAmore #sgig #igsg

#Tbt Celebrating the people and flavours of home in two parts. We paid tribute to Singapore's 56th year of independence by doing what Singaporeans do best - MAKAN! We brought our most homey dishes to the table: My momma's mee siam and macaroni goreng. Then there's lontong, nasi jagung and assorted dishes by @khairaloves.lives.laughs's mum as well as nasi lemak from Changi Village, satay, halal chang, nasi kerabu, KFC the cereal fried chicken edition 😂 and of course DURIAN!! Needles to say our bellies and hearts were very full!! Bursting at the seams, in fact. ❤️🇸🇬 #SG56 #ThisIsHome #fwenz #NationalDay2021 #SingaporeILoveYou #sgig #igsg

We weren't sure if catching Thai-Korean horror flick, The Medium, on Friday the 13th during 7th Month (the weeks leading up to Hungry Ghost Festival) was a good idea... But we did it anyway! 😬 I tell ya... We ran into a series of unfortunate events, for realz! We were denied entry into the first cinema as one of my friends was still in the middle of their vaccine journey so we had to process a refund and rush to another cineplex nearby. Then the automatic gate slammed into my friend's thigh and it bruised immediately. We got a bit of motion sickness from the found-footage/ shaky cam documentary style of the film. Later when I was on my way home past 1am, my cabbie lost his way and we ended up in Town/ Civic District instead of the ECP that would take back home in the East. Talk about redeeming all your bad karmic points in one night! 😂 Luckily we ended the night with a warm and hearty moo(🐮)kata BBQ/ steamboat at Jahan and Li Ting's! I can always count on my diehard horror kakis for some scares and giggles! ❤️ 📸: @jahan_ #FridayThe13th #7thMonth #HungryGhostFestival #fwenz #TheMedium #ThaiCinema #KoreanCinema #horror #horrorfilm #cinephile #sgig #igsg