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The "Before" Pics! (Part 1) Yesterday (as in 31 Jan 2011), I have officially become the owner of my resale EM unit @ lakeside. After we got our keys during the 2nd appt @ HDB Hub, we took a cab back to Jurong to snap some pics of our unit (yes... finally ours... ) Quick Intro of the neighbourhood 1. Nearest MRT - Lakeside MRT - Approx 400-600m (5-10min) Lakeside is one of the most eastern part of Jurong West; it's almost at the fringe of Jurong East. Many times, when I tell people I live in Jurong West, they would naturally assume that it is very far and ulu and in fact, I'm guessing they are thinking I'm staying nearer to Jurong Point area and beyond. Lakeside MRT station is the nearest MRT station from my new place. 2. Nearest Primary School - Shuqun Primary School- approx 200-400m (<5min) My alma mater. Spent 6 of my formative years here. Pretty much a deviant student there. Not very gd with studies and don't do homework, spend most of my time at the corridor (coz i didn't do my homework, or "disturbing" other classmates) - prob sounds like a lot of other primary sch kids... Notice the block of EMs nearer the foreground? That's not my block. Mine's the one next to it, at the background. LOL... The other more famous primary school ard my area would be Rulang Primary School, which is just across the street. 3. Nearest Children's Playground - Approx 50m (<3min) Just behind the primary school and below my block. I used to hang out at this playground after school, with my classmates then. Of coz it didn't look like this last time; I remembered it being inside a sand box, and a structure that's almost a floor high, and i used to climb up and jump down from it. Thinking back, I've probably caused some indirect injury to my back and knees, with all those jumping ard... 4. Nearest Neighbourhood Park - approx 200m (<5min) I used to go jogging with my dad when I was younger (that's prob like 15-18 yrs ago) and this park was the end-point for our jogs, where we would exercise at the fitness stations. See the 2 blocks of EMs there? These 2 blocks plus the other 2 blocks make up the cluster of 4 blocks of EMs for this area. These 2 blocks have the "advantage" of the balcony looking down to the neighbourhood parks. Some people think that it's a better view (with the greenery), but some think that it's bad (due to the noise from the street soccer court at the park)

LOL... go sleep first la... tomorrow morning, it will be ready. I'm only done with main entrance, utility room, dining area, kitchen... still got... 1. wash area 2. staircase 3. living room 4. balcony 5. MBR 6. Bedroom 2 7. Bedroom 3 8. MBR bathroom 9. Common bathroom

Arranging them in powerpt slides and adding captions, so that it's easier to visualize and less words to read (coz someone commented that long entries very difficult to read; pictorials are better.) LOL...

marshmallow, May_dream1, Soichiro, hafiizh: thanks for your concern and well wishes! And i really hope 2011 after CNY will be better for me and everyone too! LOL! in the end, after we got our keys at HDB Hub during the 2nd appt, we took a cab down to the resale unit, and started snapping away! didn't throw any rice or salt, didn't roll "ong-lai" also.

More quick updates 1. Group Buy: Arco Floor Lamp Collected my Arco Lamp ytd, somewhere at a warehouse at simei area (Jurong to Simei... **** far lor!). According to Jonas, I'm one of the first to collect the white marble base Arco Lamp. Collecting earlier has its advantages of being able to pick from a bigger range of white marble bases. Trust me, it all look different. WTB wanted an all-white one. Looks more sleek, but she noticed a long "scratch"; she feared that it might actually be an internal crack. I'm not too sure, if it's part of the natural design of the marble or it's really a "scratch" due to the whole shipping/transportation process. Anyway, we chose another piece which we were happier with; with nicer "prints". Jonas was very helpful to guide us with the installation process, and tips on how to fix it up effortlessly. really appreciate it. and he also helped to get his worker to load the very heavy (freaking 70kg) marble base into the car boot and provided some cupboard paper for protection. He's prob stunned that I'm getting the lamp even before I've gotten my place, coz I'm going to then shift the *freaking* heavy lamp to the new place. but that would be in another 2-3 months, i guess. And thanks ejzoen for organizing the group buy. This replica lamp doesn't look or feel like some cheap imitation, like what some other forummers have seen being sold locally, but with a round flat marble base and tubular armm, etc... this is like the real McCoy... and best of all, WTB likes it. 2. Final inspection before handover appt tomorrow! Went by the resale unit at 5pm today to meet up with my agent and the seller to do the final inspection. it has been almost 2-3 months, since I last saw the unit. seriously, i can't remember how it look like, except for the floor plan. I even wrongly recalled that it was on the right side of the lift lobby, instead of the left. The unit has been cleared of its furniture; sort of regretted not taking pics of it, before that. it would have served as a gd reference on how the place would have been transformed after my renovation. Good for the seller. they have managed to get their keys to their new place earlier than expected (they initially expect to get it after CNY) and have since shifted and moved in. Now that, i'm looking at the place, stripped of furniture. it really wasn't as large as i imagined an EM to be, esp on paper. In fact these few weeks, when I was reading thru the t-blogs of fellow homemakers, I kind of feel that an EA is actually much bigger in terms of usable space and would actually allow up to 4 or even 5 bedrooms. oh well, it's already a done deal. but no regrets la. First level I was looking at the floor tiles at the first level. They really have to go. The tiles look seriously mis-aligned due to the tilers aligning the first piece with the main door, and it sort of made all the walls look slanted (maybe they are also slanted). Didn't notice this earlier, as the edges were covered by furniture. There's also a few mismatched tiles, which they have prob replaced it some time ago... Balcony The balcony (5m x 1.7m) also didn't look as big as what i've imagined. And I prob shouldn't squeeze too much things into it. gd thing - there's already a tap installed there. We wanted to build a corner basin and maybe a tap for a water hose, so that next time, it will be easier to wash the balcony, since it's open-air. Living Room i was thinking 5m was long... but not exactly too... and getting a projector up, would be possible (since RimBlock has done it too), but I'm just wondering abt the effect; whether the space would look cramped. MBR WTB also commented that the MBR didn't look that big and she's having 2nd thoughts about squeezing so much things (the study table, etc) into it, and definitely a challenge to do up the MBR with the shower screen, vanity top and WC... need to look into creative use of space. and the toilet ventilation window is really SMALL... think if i put a ventilator fan, it would take up the whole space. Bedroom 3 Bedroom 3 - initially I thought the Opennet terminal pt was at the utility rm at lvl 1, but apparently, the seller has it in Bedroom 3 instead. definitely, it will have some impact on my space planning. hmmm... Wash Area the wash area at the kitchen is pathetically small too. And yes, i saw all the huge ugly waste pipes and they are taking up a lot of precious space. it would be a challenge to squeeze in a WC, a corner basin and still have a shower area (with partial shower screen). Entrance & foyer As for the gates and door, we've having 2nd thoughts on whether to shift both the gate and door to the outer part of the recess area. Went down the lvl 6, where I saw the renovation-in-progress earlier on. Apparently, it's prob already done up now. The gate and door look gd on the outside. There's 2 pairs of slippers outside too. I suppose the owner has moved in. They've used mirror-like windows, hence, we can't see in from outside the corridor. Think it's a gd idea to keep off prying eyes (like US!! lol...). There are still some unused tiles lying along the corridor though. We was very eager to take some pics, however, the seller, his wife and their son were still there, doing final clearance of stuffs. Didn't want to impose further. Anyway, after tomorrow 4pm, we'll become the official new owners and have all the time we want to slowly take all the pics (and discover more "horrors")... LOL... The sellers were quite nice to leave the place in a pretty neat condition. They even bother to clean up the place and wash the toilets, which was not really necessary, as we were prob going to hack those anyway. I'm still thinking: 1. whether want to roll "ong-lai" or not - did anyone do it when they first get their keys and open the main door? or other "rituals"? 2. whether want to get a portable table and a steamboat set and go over for a quick CNY dinner. can prob bring my 27" LCD TV monitor over to watch TV. LOL.. WTB thinks i'm crazy...

Quick updates! Accident 1 - Mum injured eye while cooking braised pork Mum was preparing braised pork on Fri. And while cooking, she went to do the laundry... and before she knew it, there was a burning smell from the kitchen. When she went to open the lid to check, the boiling oil splattered on her eyes, face and shirt. She was sent to A&E and after 2 days of rinsing her eyes with eye solution, her eyes are getting better now. Hopefully, there's no permanent damage to her eyes. her face was scalded too, but that's not the main critical part. It looks a little like what I get when i have severe sunburn. Lessons learnt: 1. Don't do other things while cooking. Most house-hold accidents happen this way, I suppose. 2. Don't open the lid of anything that seems dangerous (boiling soup, oil, etc) and place your face near it. Sounds like common sense, but sometimes, we do forget. Always turn off the flame/electricity and wait for it to cool off before opening, else the boiling oil or steam might get into your face. Accident 2 - Car got hit by cab while I was driving it I was driving to Jurong Pt with WTB, and decided to go home, coz of the traffic and parking (super long queue). When I was at the road, nearer to the park area, msian-registered car was trying to switch lanes, as a bus was blocking its lane, and it was cutting into my lane, so i slowed down to allow it to come out. I've already slowed down to a stop, and he was not getting out. And before I knew it, I was hit by something from behind. A cab bumped into my rear. First time I got into a car accident. Lucky for me, no one is injured. And technically it's not my fault too. I suppose the cab driver was tail-gating me or was talking to a passenger or so. Anyway, the right rear lights are faulty now; the bumper needs repair, and the boot lock is damaged. sigh. dad's upset. as he intends to drive to M'sia for CNY on Wed, and it prob won't be in time for full repairs. Lessons learnt: 1. Even if you don't drive recklessly, it won't guarantee that you won't get into an accident. Accidents can happen to anyone, anywhere, anytime. I'm not superstitious or wat. But somehow, a whole year of "no bad" luck, it seems like something bad must happen to equalize it before the new year. And it really sux to damage the car before CNY... coz the workshops will be closed and the repairs won't be done in time, and that's when you prob need the car to do visiting and a lot of other stuffs.

I have no idea... but somehow, I'm seeing a $600-700 in my mind... i have either heard it from my friend, or saw it on some online catalogue, or in my dreams.

yes.. that would be true... and if they are able to get into 1 floor below my MBR, they would have been in my balcony, and there's no stopping them to get up to the MBR using the staircase... LOL... I think beside my kitchen is my neighbour's kitchen. So unless the "spiderman" is my neighbour, think should be ok not to have grilles ba.

When I was signing the OTP, the seller told me that there's a buyer who bought the unit at the 6th floor and doing renovation now, I went down to "peek" with my WTB during one of the weekends. And they were doing the open kitchen concept, hacking the utility room and with kitchen island... looks really gd... and it's an all-white kitchen (at least when I saw it that time)... very modern-looking... I think they changed the staircase to glass-type one also... I wonder if it's one of the forummers here... Maybe by now, their renovation already completed and preparing to move in b4 CNY le. this sun, when i go do my final inspection of the unit, i'll kay-poh and pop by for a "peek" again.

WAH... maybe i should really consider hacking my utility room and extend my kitchen... and build a long kitchen island to double up as dining table... WTB wants Scanteak kind of dining table (at least $1.3K - $1.6K)... not cheap ah...

LOL... sorry... i missed out the "doctor" part.... i thought you really working wit doctors...

1. You know your own lifestyle and requirements... plus you ALREADY mentioned that it's one of the top 3 requirements .... 2. And since you have sufficient space and allowance (at least from the floor plan)... 3. and also it serves multiple purposes/uses (food preparation, dining, entertaining)... 4. And if you can afford it (or rather you are willing to spend the money on this)... I say "Yes"... anyway, we not staying or going to enjoy the "benefits"... LOL... our vote doesn't really matter ah... gd thing also, no need to seek another person's opinion... coz no other occupants (at least for now... )

So now, considering whether to "downgrade" to queen-size bed... (coz WTB and me also not very big size la... BUT of coz king-size more shiok, right? can roll here, roll there, still got space and won't disturb the other person. but maybe it's so tight, partly, because i put 80cm as the depth of the wardrobe. I'm not too sure what's the norm... 60cm or 66cm or wat? As for the kitchen sink and wall... hmmm... maybe need to shorten it a bit... (the protruding part), actually, also thinking whether it's necessary to have the protruding part... it's gd because: 1. increase kitchen top area (more food preparation area + space to put electrical appliance 2. more storage area (under the kitchen; coz some of the bottom cabinet going to be "eaten" up by the gas cylinder" 3. improve the "golden triangle" so that more optimal placement of stove, sink and fridge; else stove and sink will be almost side-by-side with some small counter space in-between. it's bad because: 1. decrease walking space - movement difficulty in "high traffic" area 2. makes the kitchen look "less spacious" 3. might have difficulty handing laundry... oh well... wait for keys on monday... then go up with my measuring tape and camera... But hack the utility room le... means no more storeroom... we intend to get 2 bicycles next time, no place to store... only storage area is underneath the staircase, which is like... not much... LOL...

You can read mine at my t-blog. I got others also la... those 63-67K ones... if you want, I can email you lor.

Technically, my MBR is on the 11th floor la. And my balcony is unsheltered, so can climb into the MBR from the balcony la. BUT of coz, first the "spiderman" must survive the climb to the 10th floor. And yes, having said that, technically, falling out from the MBR is only 1 floor high. Likely won't die, but maybe mortally wounded (unless, suay suay land head first la). another "nonsensical" reason to not very "critical" to have window grilles for MBR. LOL

That's my space planning also a bit tight at certain area (~80-90cm), which I'm still skeptical abt whether it will look and will have further unforeseen repercussions (eg. need to move big items ard, etc) 1. the walk space between the (proposed) king-sized bed and the sliding door wardrobe (think sure cannot use casement door type) - 80 cm.... *sweat* 2. the walk space between the protruding portion of the kitchen counter (where my sink will be residing) and the nearest wall - 90cm... * sweat* ... as i'm thinking of changing the opening of my wash area; that area is potentially "high traffic"

you working as nurse or pharmacist ah?

i also like that idea. dual/triple use of the island - food preparation, dining, entertaining area... i actually wanted to hack my utility room, and extend my kitchen so that the dining area is seamlessly connected with the kitchen. And I don't need a very big dining area also. Then my existing dining area can be converted to a study area, with glass partition... BUT... BUT... BUT... all these very $$$, so scraped the idea. Maybe the floor plan and the items are to scale, BUT one might not be able to visualize and appreciate the scale of things on paper... (may look ok to pass thru, but actually very very tight...) typical walking width: 60cm (min), 80-90 (recommended) - my agar-ation...

WTB and myself agreed that don't want grilles in MBR... coz it spoils the look. Did thought abt the safety concerns in case got toddlers next time. BUT, there's already a lot of dangerous spots (kitchen, etc) for toddlers in a normal HDB flat... and even more for an EM (staircase, etc)... So we concluded, just have to be more careful lor. LOL. I guess for most people, the grilles are dual purpose - to keep intruders out, and to prevent occupants from falling out... but for us, think only the former purpose matters more la.

Just a quick note: 1. Is your floorplan calibrated to scale with floorplan and are your items to scale? 2. You might want to check the minimal walking clearance for your toilets (referring to the narrow space between the washbasin and the shower screen?) - might be a little tight 3. as mentioned by many forummers, all the ugly waste pipes, beams, etc are not reflected in the floorplan; so it might look ok on paper, but not feasible on actual ground. I believe you've brought some ID/contractor down to look-see liao... and maybe you have also taken some pics, so you should know better ah.

LOL... $63K is like the magic number... think I've asked a few forummers for their quotations... and those quotations that I've gotten. It's mainly ard $63K... think from normal distribution or "bell curve", think the norm is $63K to $67K. The outliers are like $35K (may have a lot of missing items) and $78K (may have a lot of "unwanted" stuff)... The below average is ard $50K. We can exchange quotations and compare, if you want.

actually... i'm ok without built-in furniture, unless, there's a natural recessed area (like in my bedroom 2), where it can be flushed with the walls. built-in stuff tends to limit flexibility lor. and as marshmallow has mentioned, likely only to do them for kitchen, since the use of the space is more or less fixed. For the wall-mounted tv, if not going to do feature wall, what are the gd ways to hide the cables?

Yes. I agree. It's enjoyable to read... though i have some difficulty trying to decipher some of the handwriting. LOL.

Woah! I'm eager to visit you to see how you wire up your projector, screen and also your sound system.

I'm likely to just do kitchen cabinet and built-in wardrobe for MBR and one of the bedroom (coz it already has a recessed area, suitable for building wardrobe). So, also no feature wall, no tv console, shoe cabinets, study table, etc... just going to get off-the-shelf kind... hopefully, can save more money this way...