CNY Festivities (or rather, lack thereof)

So as with every other year since I have been in the UK, CNY often comes and leaves unrecognised. Surreptitiously, in the dead of night. 

Since I have left London, however, it seems my CNY 'festivities' have hit a new low. Gone are the days of our 'Concord' gatherings and dinners in Chinatown, despite the shrinking number of people in our group. 

I can't for the life of me remember what happened last year during CNY. After racking my brains like mad, I suddenly recalled that I had been on a weekend ward-cover day running around like a headless chicken throughout the whole hospital tending to every medical patient in the hospital who was threatening to die. I told myself since then that no CNY could be possibly worse than this.

This year, my CNY had hit a new low. Being the solo doctor on Gastro that Friday, I had been dreading this day for weeks, having been on a two or three man team on a Friday on Gastro and still leaving at 730 pm. Thankfully though, my desperation must have been heard and God must have answered my prayers because it did not turn out to be anywhere as horrible as I had expected. 

However, my CNY itself was desolate indeed. I spent the weekend cooped up in front of my computer, stressing about not being able to finish all my work before my impending job interview and then stressing again about my lack of medical knowledge. Why oh WHY did I have to sit MRCP?

I told myself that this would be my last CNY spent in a similar fashion in this country, though. 

So what's a girl to do but research pretty cheongsams? 

Last year, I had a bit of a nervous breakdown when my good friends Sue Lynn and Leslie got married and proclaimed that their theme was Shanghai 1920's, to which I suddenly realised that I had no cheongsam and no similar 1920's themed outfit. With my mum's help who went on a cheongsam rampage in Kch, I finally managed to rock up in this: 

Which, considering the fact that I had not spent a few hundred bucks having it made to measure, turned out pretty good. Unfortunately, I had put on a ton of weight then and had not looked my optimum self, but now have a few cheongsams at hand to choose from. 

And then I discovered this Singaporean designer, Ong Shunmugan, and I knew I had to get some of these dresses next year:

What better to complete my true love for peplum than to have it in form of a cheongsam. Ingenious! 

Well, perhaps I should grace Team Gastro with my presence in a cheongsam one day. 

What say you?