Ikea Pre-Sales Drama

I was in Ikea today. Thought I'd take a look around at the pre-sale event that started today since I was already in the area.

The checkout queue was manic. There were at least 20 people deep, if not more, in all the lines.

A guy (a Malay man, to be exact) in the next line started shouting at the staff. Don't know what about as I was at the checkout counter paying for my purchase. He was really losing it. The cashier, however, was polite. He apparently didn't have something that she needed and he was getting upset.

My heart went out to the cashier. It's hard work having to process so many customers in one go (I know this from personal experience). Getting yelled at is the last thing that they need, not when they are being polite and trying to do their job.

Here's some advice: if you're the kind of person who gets agitated in situations such as queuing up in sales, DON'T shop during sales or pre-sales or warehouse sales or whatever, you get my meaning. There is absolutely NO point in raising your blood pressure. It's simply not worth the hassle and headache (yours, the service staff as well as the people around you who have no choice but to witness your spur of the moment hissy fit). Shop during quiet times, sure, it's not as exciting but there will also be no drama featuring you.

Here's what I normally do when I have to stand in a very long line: I just flip out a book and start reading. Makes the waiting a tad bit more bearable. But then again, that's me. Find something to do to occupy/ amuse yourself while you wait. Getting agitated should not be it. Remember, it's about staying sane... and happy, if that's possible in such situations.

My Teatime Indulgence

Mmmmm......a Cranberry Scone with dripping butter for tea time at The Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf in The Curve. It was raining out there and there wasn't anything else to do but to enjoy watching the rain fall as I had my warm scone. I haven't had this in ages and I enjoyed every bite of it :) I washed it down with Passion Fruit Iced Tea. 

H&M 1-Utama Cashier Review

I just hate it when people don't queue AND the staff on duty serves them.

Case in point: I was in H&M 1-Utama today patiently queuing up to pay. The customer who was being served before me was an Indian woman. As her transaction was completing, a family member  (I presume) with a child in tow went up straight to the counter, put her purchases on the counter and started talking to her. Even though the cashier on duty, and there was only one on duty at that time whose name in Nabiha (as stated on her name tag), saw that I was waiting in line (she made eye contact with me),  she served the second Indian woman who obviously had not queued up!!!

Doesn't H&M train their staff on how to handle such situations since quite obviously queuing up is an alien concept for those from counties such as India? Attending to them even though they have obviously not queued up sends the message that H&M condones such customer conduct and that H&M can't give a rat's arse about what their other customers think.

San Francisco Coffee Suria KLCC Review

It's been a loonnngggg time since I've patronized San Francisco Coffee and believe me that when I say a looonnnngggg time, I mean a very looonnngggg time.

Anyway, I saw that they were on MyDeal and were selling RM10 vouchers for RM6. Hmmm.... a 40% discount... so I bought some for a few of their outlets around town.

The deal on MyDeal

This review is for their KLCC outlet which I went to for brunch on last Saturday. I ordered a Smoked Salmon sandwich on Ciabatta. Not being a coffee drinker, I wanted to give their Mango Madness Frappe a go. I was told that it wasn't available. Okaaayyy... how about the OJ Did It then? That also wasn't available. Hmmm... the only frappe that was available was Guava Goodness. Okay, I went with that.

The staff who took my order at the counter was pleasant enough

This is what my brunch looked like.

The whole order came up to RM31.80, of which I paid RM30 with the MyDeal vouchers (yay!!!) and the balance in cash. The processing of the payment via the use of the vouchers was a tad slow, which I expected anyway.

The sandwich was okaayyy... but nothing to shout about. Let's just say that I've had better sandwiches in other coffee outlets. The Guava Goodness Frappe, however, was surprisingly good.

The Verdict
Had I paid the full price for the meal, I would have felt shortchanged. But considering that I got the meal at a discount, it was okay value for the discounted price that I got it for.

Cotton On Body THE SHORT Review

I did it again!!! :( Yep, I don't learn my lessons :(

I purchased yet another Cotton On product. This time it's the Cotton On Body The Short.

I just couldn't help purchasing it as I like the wide comfy waistband and the color contrast is a design plus. In my defense, it was on sale selling at a deep discount. I got it at RM15 (original price is RM59). It seemed like a great deal then...

Besides, I thought that I could use a longer length pair of shorts to wear to races instead of my usual shorts as sometimes, the shirts are unisex and are quite long and would cover the shorts that I usually wear. I don't want to give others the impression that I'm not wearing shorts under my long tee...... Anyway, I digress..... Unfortunately, this product has the same problem with two of the earlier products which I purchased from Cotton On (read about the Cotton On KRA workout bra color run here and the Cotton On Rubi shoes color run here ) --- the color runs!!!

I wore these shorts to the Vitagen walkathon yesterday and my white Vitagen walk tee was stained pink around the waistband area. However, luckily, the color washed out --- phew! I guess that was because it was still damp when I threw it into the wash and maybe the washing detergent that I use is super great at avoiding color stains from setting in. Still, I'm NOT IMPRESSED with the color runs Cotton On! Color runs are simply not acceptable!!!

The Good
Design
Nice color contrast between the waistband and the rest of the shorts
Good decent length
Comfy waistband design
The price when on sale

The Ugly
The color from the waistband runs!!!

In short (pun not intended), this product is really not worth the hassle. NOT recommended.

Vitagen Healthy Digestion Walk 2014 Review

I was at the Vitagen walkathon today. I stopped by the local mamak's for a quick breakfast before going to the venue.

I got to Taman Jaya pretty early, at 6:30 AM to be exact, when it was still dark out there. I went out to examine the booths and at that point had not yet worn my bib, which I left in the car. When I went to register sans bib, I was given the Spanish Inquisition by this bossy Malay woman who was less than polite. She thought that I didn't know my bib number and when I did and I told her what it was, she made an issue of having to check it. Believe it or not, they didn't have a laptop on site and were relying on paper printouts (who would have thought that they would still be living in the Dinosaur Age...).

They gave the participants a bottle of drinking water and a banana at registration and later, they gave Marigold fruit juices (I had OJ) and Vitagens before the run to the participants. It has been a looonngggg time since I last had a Vitagen. Believe it or not, the last time I had Vitagen was when I was 13!!! I was not milk friendly and needed to consume milk (long story there) and this was the closest that my parents could get to getting me to consume a milk based product.

The execution of the walk itself was not very well planned. The path around the lake is quite narrow and when it was flag off time, it was quite impossible to even walk at a comfortable pace and this went on for the whole lap. Most people stopped after the first and second laps thus making it easier to walk after that as there was more space not just to walk but even to run! I did 10 laps (I think I was the only one who did that).

The handing out of the goodie bags at the end of the walk was well executed. Most of the volunteers were sweet and efficient.

The goodie bag 

The contents of the goodie bag

They even included a cooler bag (which came in really handy as the Vitagens needed to be kept at a cool temperature) and a microfiber towel in the bag.

And this is my second breakkie for the day!!! You simply have NO idea how often (and how long) I have thought of having an A&W's waffle with syrup and butter for breakfast!

My second brekkie :)

a much needed treat

Mmmmm.... sheer indulgence on a hot night

A Chocolate Frappe on a very hot night...it's a tad sweet though...

I hope it helps me sleep as I need to wake up early tomorrow morning for the walkathon.

Rubi by Cotton On Red Plimsolls Review

A few weeks ago, I bought two pairs of Rubi canvas plimsolls from Cotton On in Avenue K. They were too cute to pass up and they were on promotion (two for RM80). They are lightweight and look really cute for casual days which for me, is almost everyday really!

I just love the laces that came with the shoes :)

Just too cute. I received compliments wearing this pair.

Color run from the shoes on my brand new Uniqlo footie socks. Bummer  :( :( :(

I have since worn both pairs and guess what... while I had no issues with the Hello Kitty pair ( I have been saving that pair, I must admit, as it is simply too cute!), the perspiration from my feet resulted in a color run from the red pair after the first wear which left stains on my brand new neutral colored socks.

Sheesh...another color run issue from a Cotton On product! I thought it was just the sports bras that had color run issues...you can read about it here in case you missed it earlier.

On top of that, the insole comes off when I take my shoes off without undoing my laces (who does that anyway???). Today, I noticed that the fabric on the insole is coming apart --- double rats!!! :( :( :(

Note the exposed insole as the the fabric coming off it :( :( :(

It's really a shame as I like the designs (and price points, when they have a promo, or better still, go on sale) of the products in Cotton On.

Sooo... looks like it would be better to stay away from Cotton On products unless they're pastel colored and quite unlikely to have color run issues.

In short, this is my take on Cotton On's Red Rubi plimsolls:
The Good
Lightweight
Cute design and color
Love the laces
Comfortable
Price

The Bad
The color runs
Insoles come off when you remove your shoes
Fabric covering insoles begin to come apart after a few days of long hours of wear

Sweetness Overload

Today is the very first day in a very loooonnnngggg time where I indulged in a soft drink. Yes, I had a Sprite (I could have had a Coke to go with my meal, but that would be pushing it as I have had a history with Coke where one isn't always enough), and not just a regular sized one too, I had an upsized Sprite!!!

In my defense, it was not planned (how was I supposed to know that the Old Town White Coffee in Mid Valley Megamall is an "Old Town Signature" outlet that doesn't serve Honey Lemon or Iced Lemon Tea with their tea time sets like all the other "normal" Old Town White Coffee outlets??? So yes, there was no other choice for me but to have a naughty indulgence!

Note the Sprite order listed!

Mmmmm.... it was a very tall glass of Sprite

And as if that wasn't enough, I don't know what possessed me, a few hours later, I ordered a Cendol at Nyonya Colors. 

Super sweet treat

It was one of those things where the idea seemed better than the real thing coz the real thing was extremely sweet (what was I thinking???). I tried to finish it but ended up leaving half of it behind. Note to self: don't order it the next time!!!