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I think at the very least, a HDB license tells you that the contractor is legal. My husband ignored the red light warning when our contractor didn't have a license and had to 'borrow' the license from another company. True enough. We went through h*ll and after six months, the reno was anyhow done and incomplete. If the contractor got nothing to hide and meets HDB requirements even if the standard was very low, why shouldn't he get a HDB license? Referral may not be reliable either. Our contractor was referred by my husband's friend who strongly recommended him. Huntered, Mine was Chiang. John Chiang. I requested to look at the workmanship. He took us to see a few flats with good workmanship by a Malaysian tiler, but he gave us a China tiler who couldn't tile for nuts. Every single tile is uneven, hollow at the bottom, gaps are huge and uneven, grouts are either non-existent or dirty, and for the tiles lying on the edge, he just laid them as they were without smoothening the edge. And no door kerb too! My neighbor said this the first time she came to my place,"HDB contractors are said to have the lousiest workmanship but yours is even worse!"

Most people back off when someone tries to shove something down their throat. Again, there's a difference between having disequilibrium in what you always believe and a conflict of beliefs. Being a first-generation Christian, I have to constantly ask myself if what I hear or see is biblical especially if I feel uncomfortable with the new ideas. Is it me refusing to move out of my comfort zone or is the idea self-serving to the pastor? Of course, I wasn't capable of questioning the ideas or beliefs when I first became a Christian. That's why age helps and experience counts I left my first church when my equilibrium was disrupted to the point of disillusionment. What they had practiced was contradicting what they preached. It was too disturbing to ignore so I left the church. I was an 'extremist' when I first believed. It was until I threw the talisman my mother placed on my baby's chest away and saw the hurt in her eyes that I realized that my mother also wanted the best for my baby despite using different methods. She fed my baby with burnt talisman in water when my baby fell sick, but it was what she had believed to be the 'best' method to cure my baby. She took my baby to Chinese temples to pray to the deities because she wanted her to have the blessings of the best gods, exactly what she did for us when we were young. I participated in this discussion because I didn't want any new believers to be stumbled, especially if non-Christians are also sharing what they think without knowing the biblical implications. I think it's important to get the fundamentals right first before we tamper with the methods to go about getting things done. We can be skeptical about what humans preach or practise, but when in doubt, prayer should always be the first thing we turn to rather than the last resort. I remember my churchmates used to invite their pastors to say prayer of blessings over their new flats - that I thought is the Christian way to bless the house rather than roll ong lai and sprinkle salt.

I don't remember giving and receiving Ang Pows got any link to 财神 leh. Pray enlighten how they are linked. As far as I recall, giving and receiving Ang pows is an act to bless the younger generation to 平平安安长大, but gradually we also give angpows to the elderly in the family to show our appreciation and love. As long as there isn't any idea to conflict with the idea that I only worship one God, there is no reason why we can't adopt certain practices. I don't hold joss sticks because it is a form of worship. If it isn't, why wouldn't the toaists and buddhists go through water baptism, or raise their hands at church services, or kneel in church? It is precisely because these acts are forms of worship. Even non-Christians believe that, so why shouldn't I? As for eating food offered at bai bai, there is always the grace that we say over the food, although I know there are Christians who really don't eat them. My aunt and mother used to set aside food for me before they offered them. I am not sure why you don't go to church. Even if you do not want to belong to a church, it's always good to listen to the sermons and worship with his people.

To be a Christian doesn't mean attainment of perfection. To ask someone if he had followed the ten commandments is irrelevant in this discussion. You might as well ask if he had sinned and then say 'my point is ...' Ya, have God in your heart by all means, but it's too easy to use it on the pretext of doing what you want instead of what God wants eg. I abuse drugs as long as I have God in my heart, I lose tantrums as long as I have God in my heart ... The question to ask yourself is: what would Jesus do if it were him? To sprinkle salt and rice to either appease or chase ghosts out of the house, hasn't God promised to "strengthen and protect you from the evil one" (2 Thess 3:3)? To roll Ong lai for prosperity sake, isn't it promised in the Word that "my God will meet all your needs according to his glorious riches in Christ Jesus" (Philipp 4:19)? We are called to "honor God with your body" because "you were bought at a price" (1Cor 6:20). To argue if holding joss sticks and carrying out rituals that have religious implications is right or wrong is senseless. The question/s to ask is/are 'Is what I am doing honoring God?' 'What kinda testimony am I serving to the non-believers?' 'Is God demonstrated thro me?' Lastly, I leave those in Christ who "have God in my heart" with Hebrews 10:26 "If we deliberately keep on sinning after we have received the knowledge of the truth, no sacrifice for sins is left" Be assured that no Christian will judge anyone in Christ who continues to seek practices that are non-biblical. I just wish to highlight that there are differences between practices with religious implications/secular beliefs, traditions/customs and fengshui purposes.

I did not belittle anyone in the process of clarifying if throwing ong lai or sprinkle rice or salt is right for Christians. To be very explicit for those who can't read between the lines, what I had meant was: Christians who do not know if such acts are biblical should check with their pastors, because if one has gone to church often enough, you would have understood why it's not appropriate for Christians to do those things, because the sermons would inevitably mention how a Christian should or should not act. How ridiculous to equate that statement with self-righteousness! Ironically, it's often those who chide others for being self-righteous the self-righteous ones. See some of the quotes I also want to laugh. If it's from the bible, at least be more accurate lah.

Believing in God doesn't mean throwing away your common sense. Helping yourself doesn't mean doing things that displease God. When you throw Ong lai, you are hoping that the act would bring you prosperity. If this is in line with biblical belief, then churches would be decorated with Ong lais. Everytime churches ask for financial blessings, just roll Ong lai can already. When you sprinkle rice or salt at the corners of the house, you are chasing evil spirits or unrestful spirits away. Isn't that the practice of Toaist priests? Whatever that practice is, it's definitely not a Christian practice. If not, I should see pastors and priests doing the same thing. We can argue until the cows come home and we will still believe in what we want to believe. Like what one of the posters said, unless you are a believer, you will not understand why it's not right to do the above. If you are a Christian and do those things, then I would say, go ask your pastor if it is right, because obviously you don't go o church or read the bible enough.

Ya, if tio cancer, no need to see doctor because he can heal you 100% mah, tio boh? If go see doctor, that means no faith wor, like that will go **** liao, siao liao.

The bible does say that God looks at the intent of the heart. Worshipping a golden calf is a simple and innocent act but it incurred the wrath of God because it is idolatry. Did I mention that God is a jealous God? He is a God of love and forebearance but he can't tolerate us having another god. I've already made it very clear that it's the intent behind that act. Can Christians hold joss sticks and bow to ancestors? Sure they can. But what difference does that make between them and non-Christians? What is the intent and belief behind those acts? The thread asks if it's 'alright' to do this and that. As human beings, it's alright; as Christians, it defies biblical principles. I don't mind reading the horoscope for fun, but if I'm bothered enough to behave in a certain manner or do certain things because I'm bounded by the prediction, then I'm allowing another thing to control me, and God is not God in my life. The same goes for pineapple rolling and rice throwing. The thread is about whether it's okay for Christians to do it, not whether the acts themselves are wrong.

Did I mention anything about being disrespectful to others' belief or values? There's no need to take such discussion to the extreme and insist others to take sides with even things that has nothing to do with their belief. Customs and beliefs are not necessarily intertwined although most of the time they are. For Christians, we need to examine the spirit behind the practices - do they contradict with our beliefs? When you roll that pineapple and throw rice at corners of the house, what is the intention? If the intention is to have peace of mind, why do you need that peace of mind by acts that are not biblical? Is it because you don't think that God is not sufficient to chase out whatever evil spirits that dwell in your house? Shouldn't prayer be the way instead? I'm not sure how giving and receiving red packets contradict with biblical principles. I have Christian friends who go to You Long Zi for their kid's name and approach fortune tellers to have their fortune told. I don't judge them and think less of them. It just shows that they need more assurance in their lives. I'm not against fengshui either because I've come to realize that fengshui is about the flow of energy and sometimes it has to do with science and at other times, common sense. But whatever a Christian does, he should examine the spirit behind the practice if he doesn't want to contradict his own belief.

Indeed, God is not a selfish God, but he is a very jealous God It may seem an innocent act, but the act deviates from your very belief that God is above all these. It's hard to explain to non-Christians why the act is not exactly right, but it does demonstrate unbelief in God if you have to seek comfort or peace by doing something else other than committing it to him.

White 'skin' for interior shelves may turn slightly yellow after some time but white laminates won't. I use glossy white laminates for my kitchen cabinets and they haven't yellowed after six years. I use matte white laminates for my book cabinet and drawers for study table. If it's laminates, go ahead and use white if you want.

What's John's surname? I also had a lousy reno experience because of a John. However, he didn't even have a shop or Hdb license.

It sounds like their business is so poor they need every dollar they can grab. When you meet such unreasonable money grubbers, there's nothing you can do. Even $50 they also must eat. Treat them like you would a beggar lah.

Oh I see! Thanks, Aurelia!

Oh I'm sorry, Aurelia. I was not talking about the bomb shelter itself. I had meant the left hand side of the feature wall that is not opened. Do you make use of that side to store anything at all or can it be opened like your tic-tac door even?

Hi Aurelia, Can I know whether the covered side of the bomb shelter is functional ie. Does it open to some shelving? Thanks!

Hi, My neighbors use partition board to create extra bedroom/s and install normal doors on them. You wouldn't notice the diff unless you knock on them.

I thought it strange to have a piano behind the sofa. If I remember correctly, buyers of pianos are advised to place pianos against a wall with about 10cm allowance. With a sofa behind it, wouldn't people sitting at the sofa be unrested? I imagine it would be very uncomfortable listening to piano-playing sitting there.

Wow, it sounds like a really exciting tale with everything perfectly worked out for the protagonist! *envy*

I have only tried Sealy and Simmons and I think you are safe with either. I got my Sealy 6 years back and during that time, Sealy was better known for its plushness while Simmons was firmer, but when I tried my sister's Simmons, it felt soft and good as well. There are many models within the brands themselves, so it's always better to try them out yourself to have a feel of which one you like. Lie down on them and toss around for 5 to 10 minutes until you are happy or sure about how you feel about it. Keep doing this until you are able to shortlist two. Robinsons has a good variety of both Sealy and Simmons. Do go try out the ones that fit your budget. I remember looking forward to sleep in my Sealy bed after buying it. And even now, I still love it as if I just bought it.

One man's meat is another's poison. What is 'too much' to you may mean 'consistent' to another; what is 'cramped' to you may be 'cosy' to another, just like how your post with 'no offense' as a starting line sounds quite offensive in all. It's entirely the owner's whims as to how he or she wants it to be, but you can always suggest how the owner can make the place more 'beautiful' in your opinion. I'm sure the owner would appreciate it more than a 'no offense' post.

It must have been a bold step to 'downgrade' in terms of size! I simply can't return to a smaller-size flat again.

Hi, Why don't you incorporate a cabinet below your basin in your MBR toilet? It'd be practical. You don't intend to have a build-in oven?

Thanks! And it includes a hidden shoe cabinet! A good price I thought.

Ya I saw his reply on EDL, was hoping for the specific code or colour because the range was so wide. I also read that you mentioned that your contractor or ID said that it's expensive. Am curious exactly how expensive it is