Freshly Brewed Ideas

2011: A year in review

2011-12-31T08:48:00.001+08:00

"The days are long but the years are short"

I can't remember whose quote that was but it's one that has stuck with me for a while... I feel that it resonates with me. Each passing day may seem ordinary and mundane, yet when we look back, we can't quite seem to grasp where all the days went.

It's that time of the year again to reflect and look back. As another chapter of my life comes to a close, and to make up for my lack of updates this entire year, I've decided to make a short summary of the significant/insignificant, meaningful/mundane happenings of 2011. Just a little dot point list for myself to capture the year of 2011. Here goes!

In the year of 2011, I:

1) Got a new camera

After the demise of Scarlett last year, I finally got a replacement - Onyx, a Canon s95 which I love to bits. This was the first ever picture I took using Onyx. We were still at the camera shop and I was testing out the settings. :)

2) Had a reunion with 'The Gang'

3) Had a foodie roadtrip to Melaka

4) Fell down a flight of stairs and sprained my ankle. Again.

What can I say? My clumsiness knows no bounds.

5) Helped to plan my sister's engagement

And still ended up with the wrong ring size. Dang!

6) Had an extremely memorable night with primary school bunch

And I say extremely memorable because WY had too much to drink and puked into a salad bowl coz she couldn't make it to the ladies fast enough. She consequently dropped her promise ring into said bowl of puke and we spent half an hour going through puke to find it. Disgustingly funny, but an exceedingly memorable night indeed. Gotta love nights like these... they become the best memories.

7) Continued our high school tradition of 'lou sang' during CNY

I missed last year's one so it was great that I got to be in this year's...

8) Met up with Gohyun from Korea who came for an internship and brought her around

9) Celebrated a ton of 21st birthdays

And missed heaps of 21st birthday parties too because I wasn't home. :(

10) Attended the School of Hard Knocks and made my very own pewter bowl

11) Clubbed with the primary school bunch for the first time.

A momentous occasion.

12) Sent bestie off to Melbourne at LCCT

And was very excited for her to begin her adventure

13) Did the whole 'bai nian' thing with the high school bunch for the first time

14) Went back to KC to collect my SPM cert after 3 years

KC has changed so much! Will definitely not be able to recognize it when I go back this time round... and that makes me feel kinda sad. =/

15) Got Pepper - my iPad

And that's Dobby hijacking Pepper and playing some vroom vroom racing game.

16) Lost Simba and then miraculously found him again 3 days later!

Also, Bobby passed away. Cried my eyes out. It was not a good year with my dogs, both of them broke my heart.

17) Witnessed the best art exhibition ever at GoMA

18) Visited bestie in Melbourne

Had an awesome 3 days with her. And I think it was the first time we took a trip together in our 15 years of friendship!

19) Sat on St. Kilda beach and watched the sun rise

20) Dropped by Sydney

Accompanied Minny to get her US visa done and visited Sydney for the second time!

21) Brought Joyce around Brisbane and realized that it is actually a gorgeous city

22) Went for my first outdoor cinema experience

23) Made purple curry!!

All the purple came from purple carrots, which we've never tried before so we thought we'd give it a go. It was really good!

24) Went up to Genting by bus to visit Leng Leng

First time I ever took the bus up to Genting I think. And the bus tyre punctured. We were stranded by the roadside for awhile till another bus picked us up and we stood all the way up those winding roads to Genting. Gotta love roadtrips!

25) Did the lunch//shopping/gossip ritual with the girls

I love us and our sartorial adventures! Can't wait to see them again. :D

26) Helped Douie try on all of momma's wedding dresses

It's amazing how her wedding dresses are still in tip top quality after 30 over years. And they were beautiful, all flowy, soft and chiffon-y. Wish I could fit in them... :(

27) Developed tendinitis

My legs took turns to act up this year. This was the first time ever where the pain was so bad I wanted to cry. I'd rather starve and not eat than walk to the cafeteria to get food. That was how bad the pain was. And we all know how much I love food. Also came to the revelation that not being able to walk properly is a huge pain in the ass. I used to think if I had to give up something, I'd choose a loss of a limb rather than a loss of senses (smell, touch, feel, hear, see)... but now I'm not so sure.

28) Attended an Owl City concert

And witnessed Adam's very awkward swaying... =/

29) Cheered Minny on in several dance competitions

And watched her win even though she was convinced she wouldn't. Heh.

30) Got my first casual job in Aussie and took mommy out for dinner with my first paycheck

Unfortunately, that job didn't pay very well.

31) Watched Riverfire fireworks on Mount Cootha

32) Sat on the Wheel of Brisbane

33) Watched a cool laser light show along the river during the Brisbane Festival

34) Witnessed many amazing sunsets from our apartment

Still feel incredibly lucky and thankful to be staying here another year.

35) Helped out at the Salsa solo

Was basically the door bitch for 3 nights.

36) Got a proper casual job that pays well and took Minny out for sushi

Finally got a 'proper' job! Yayyy!

37)Went to Dreamworld

Haven't been there since I was 12 I think. Oh, and felt really sick after 3 super dizzy rides in a row. Haven't felt sick after roller coaster rides for the longest time, so that was pretty memorable. And a friend puked into the bushes after those 3 rides.

38) Met new friends

39) Discovered the gorgeous Coolangatta beach

40) Received a surprise 21st birthday gift from the primary school bunch

Complete with a hilarious story of KJ dropping his keys into the toilet bowl while writing my birthday card. Lol.

41) Hand fed a wild 21-year old dolphin named Tinkerbell in Tangalooma for my 21st birthday

And also tried sand tobaganing for the first time and loved it. Other than the fact that the sand went everywhere and was really hard to clean...

42) Witnessed an amazing sunset with a hole in the sky

Hope shines through!

43) Received a Tiffany's key for my 21st

Been jokingly telling my mom she's gonna get me a Tiffany's key for my 21st and she really did! <3 My second Tiffany's pendant, the first was for my 17th birthday I think. :D

44) Finally visited Australia Zoo (or better known as the Steve Irwin Zoo)

45) Walked a wombat on my 21st birthday and fell in love with them

That's Laura - she's so cute and fluffy!! So adorable, gah!

46) Celebrated my 21st

47) Watched a 3 hour long Swan Lake ballet 0_o

The longest ballet performance I've ever watched in my entire life. It was actually quite hard to sit through. The Little Mermaid Ballet was wayyy better than this one. Oh, and received my 2nd Marc Jacobs item for my 21st courtesy of Douie and Dobby, which can be seen above! ;) Now I've got a matching wallet and bag. Whee!

48) Vacationed with the family who came over to visit

Us in Montville. Miss having them around...

49) Had my first ever proper 6 course degustation meal at Absynthe

50) Found our favourite cocktail bar

51) Said goodbye to Vera

Aaaaand....

52) Successfully graduated!

This year has been filled with lots of ups and downs, happiness, frustration, joy, sadness, heartbreak, excitement, friendship and love. Here's hoping that 2012 will be as fulfilling and amazing as this one. Here's to change, possibilities, hope and being fearless.

2012, let's get this party started!

Through The Looking Glass: 2010

2011-01-01T16:19:00.003+08:00

Yesterday, I wanted to do a picture summary of my experiences in 2010. I meticulously picked out all the photos I wanted to include, uploaded them and got ready to write. Then I realized that I forgot to resize them as they were too big to put on my blog coz the alignment would be screwed up. So yes, this goes to show how long I haven't blogged. Instead, I'll do a really short summary, just to remember all the momentous things that happened and mundane things I wanted to jot down but never got the chance to.

2010 - The year I went abroad to study. This year marks the first time I was away from home and my family for an extended period. I remember thinking everything would never be the same again... friendships especially. I'm glad to say not much has changed, the important people remain the same and our relationships are as strong as ever, despite everyone doing their own thing and pursuing their own dreams. I am immensely grateful for that. It's always nice to know that no matter what I do, there will always be people who will support me and love me for who I am.

I have gained many experiences and learned many new things in 2010. I learnt how to be alone. Really and truly alone. I always thought that I was comfortable being alone. Taking walks by myself, or eating solo. It turns out that I wasn't. But now, now I am not afraid anymore. I've learnt that being alone can sometimes be more liberating than being with people.

I learnt how to make friends from scratch again this year. And I think I've made some pretty good ones over there. I am grateful for that as well. I've learnt how to cook and be more independent and have enjoyed my freedom in Australia.

I also learned that there truly is no place like home. Even with all its flaws, Malaysia gives me those warm, fuzzy feelings in my heart. However, transitioning from home to my second home or vice versa is one of the hardest things for me. There are times when I feel so torn between the two places that I wish I could just mash them together and get the best of both worlds. I miss both immensely when I am away from either. But I've learnt to accept the fact that both are my homes and that it's okay to miss them both.

And now for the more mundane things:

Witnessed my first drunken street brawl in which a friend's tooth got punched out and we had to spend 10 minutes in the dark looking for it.
Clubbed for several times in a foreign country and realized that they go hardcore there. We don't go home till the next morning's public transport has started. Which is like...5 or 6am?
Started proper salsa classes and enjoyed it
Watched Russell Peters live and loved it
Got my first housemate and realized that they can be a pain in the ass sometimes
Travelled on my own
Had my first dormitory experience in Melbourne thanks to Kit Mun, who let me stay with her. Realized that walking to the toilet in the morning is a pain coz the journey is long and it's freezing cold coz there's no heater! I've truly been pampered to death in my apartment. Teehee. It was fun nonetheless.
Celebrated my 20th birthday (I'm swear I'm still 18. In denial. As you can see.)
Volunteered to distribute food to the homeless and realized Asians are really very kiasu
Inflicted major damage on my liver and tried many new drinks for the first time

And there we have it... my 2010 in super short summary form.

In 2011, I plan to enjoy my last year of university. Each and every little moment of being a student will be cherished. I will procrastinate less, study hard and play harder. I will become fitter and hopefully lose all the weight I've gained this year (highly unlikely, but it's always good to write it down :P) and dance more. Just because it makes me happy. Lastly, I will enjoy all the little things and remember that happiness is a state of mind.

"To live is the rarest thing in the world. Most people just exist, that is all."
- Oscar Wilde

Here's to a rocking 2011, may you be better than 2010!

My Melbourne Escapade

2010-10-31T21:53:00.003+08:00

My first post in more than two months. Yikes! I haven't been blogging because I completely lost my blogging mojo. It was serious this time. I didn't even THINK about wanting to blog. In fact, I was flirting with the idea of deleting it or taking everything down. I'm not completely sure what brought this on... but at one point, I just didn't want to write, or didn't feel like I could write anymore. Everything I wrote sounded so... wrong.

But I left my blog as it is in the end because I figure it'd be nice to look back and see what I was thinking and how I've grown 10 years down the line. Which was why I started blogging in the first place. However, I probably won't be blogging as much as I used to. Certainly not as much as my Xanga days. I find it a bit hard sometimes because I can't share as much things as I would like to due to privacy issues and all that. I have to self-censor and self-edit a lot as quite a number of my friends and family know of this blog. It's true when they say our generation are all our own editors, because a lot of thought goes into what we choose to present to the world.

I also started a Tumblr to gain a little inspiration and share my collection of pictures I've amassed from the internet over the years. It's mainly a place where I try to put all of the things I find inspiring, motivating and pretty together. Never fails to make me feel a bit better when I go though it. If you're interested, you can check it out or follow me at:

freshlybrewedideas.tumblr.com

Anyway, I thought I'd blog about my trip to Melbourne during the semester break before the memories from the trip start to fade around the edges and become fuzzy. So here are some bits and pieces of my Melbourne trip, in no particular order, coz I'm lazy to rearrange them. Forgot that I had to arrange them as I upload, otherwise it's a pain in the arse to drag them around and rearrange them. THAT's how long I haven't blogged man.

One of the best things about going to Melbourne (and one of the things I really looked forward to), was having yummylicious macaroons. I had macaroons everyday for the last 3 days I was in Melbourne. And we tapau-ed a box of Lindt macaroons back to Brisbane.

I actually don't know why macaroon are SO addictive. The chewy goodness, the right amount of sweetness? What about it makes everyone love it and want it so bad? To the extent that people started complaining to me about the amount of macaroon pictures I post on Facebook! Said I made them hungry and envious. Sorry guys! :(

Max Brenner Belgian waffles are the shiz! They were so good... just the right amount of fluffiness in the waffles and chocolatey goodness drizzled all over it. Plus vanilla ice-cream (I'm a big fan of vanilla)! I was in gastronomic heaven.

This was taken after we went for the Tim Burton exhibition at Federation Square. The weather was gorgeous that day. The exhibition was really interesting and I enjoyed it. However, we went on the last day of the exhibition so there were a ton of other people rushing to see it too. We had to wait for our turn to look at the drawings in more detail, which started to get annoying after a while because some people took ages! But it was a good exhibition overall and I'm glad we managed to catch it.

I managed to find a Juno hamburger phone at the Queen Victoria markets! I didn't get it in the end though coz I didn't know where I would use it and it seemed slightly pointless. The Queen Victoria markets were huge! But the stuff they sold was quite similar to the Carrara Markets on the Gold Coast (which we were recently at), so we didn't get too much stuff.

My sister was also thwarted at her attempts to find the vendor that sold amazing treasure chest boxes, which she saw the last time she was in Melbourne but didn't buy. But we had a good time just walking around and eating jam-filled doughnuts. Mmmmm. Oh and spending cousinly time with Greg! Thanks Greg for accompanying us and bringing us around!!

Flinder's Street Station.
I took this while we were having coffee at Federation Sqaure after a very awesome dinner at Lygon Steakhouse. It was also the night of that epic Collingwood match and there were Collingwood supporters everywhere, celebrating their win. It was quite crazy coz people in cars would go past shouting "Collingwood!" and waving scarves and flags and all the people on the street would yell along or start cheering and whooping.

Laurent on Little Collins Street! Where we get our macaroon fix. We get our macaroon from here or Lindt. They have really good pastries too. It was nice to just chill here during the afternoon and have tea while people watching.

Cousinly time!
Having family around me really makes a lot of difference. I instantly felt a tad more complete and at home.

My sister made me do this. I quite like how the lighting turned out actually. I really like all the street art and graffiti in Melbourne. I wish we had that in Brisbane too. It gives Melbourne so much more character.

One of my favourite graffiti along that street. A Tokidoki-esque looking girl and a cute jellyfish.

The gorgeous Vicky. And of course, going to Melbourne means getting to see friends from back home. I was glad I managed to meet most of them there.

Joanne and I at Max Brenner.
Did I mention there's a Max Brenner is Brisbane now? I practically squealed when I saw it and gave Amanda a fright. The lines were crazy long though so I decided to go back during the weekdays to get another dose of Belgian waffles.

Having superb gelato at Freddo's after a satisfying Italian dinner at Lygon. I was really full after the dinner, but managed to wallop two scoops of gelato anyway because it was so good!

State Library with Kit Mun.
We didn't manage to wander around inside the State Library coz they were closing when we arrived. So we only caught a quick glimpse before they ushered out again. I probably should visit the Brisbane State Library to see if the it's as nice as the Melbourne one...

Walking back to the tram after shopping a DFO. It was great to be shopping with one of my girls again. At the same time, it also felt slightly odd because I'm so used to shopping alone here in Brisbane. When I wait for my sister to get off work and go for a dance class or when I'm waiting for my friends to arrive for lunch/dinner, I usually hit the shops alone. And do speed shopping, so I kinda forgot how it felt like to shop with someone else again.

We had glorious weather again that day. I know you're probably sick of me going on about the weather but in Melbourne, good weather (meaning lotsa sunshine so it's not so damn cold) can really make or break a day. Melbourne's spring felt like Brisbane's winter man. No joke... especially at night. And it was really hard for me on the first day coz I just came from Brissie and was used to wearing just a light jacket but had to switch back to my winter coats again.

Waiting for the bus at Monash, Clayton campus. I didn't expect Clayton to be that far away from the city. Takes about an hour to get from Clayton to the city and we had to take both bus and train. It's times like these I'm glad I'm in Brisbane where uni and the city is just 10 minutes away.

Camwhore partner is back!! Although I don't really like taking pictures of myself anymore coz I've gained so much weight! Just looking at my chubby cheeks makes me want to hurl. And that's saying something coz I NEVER EVER had a problem with how I looked before this horrible weight gain that's made me the heaviest I've ever been in my life. Meh. And it's not just how I look, it's how I feel as well. My pants have all gotten so tight and when I sit down now, I can feel the rolls of fat on my tummy and back. It is SO disgusting. Need to lose all the weight I've gained, pronto!

I stayed with Kit Mun for the first two days in her dorm.
So I got my pseudo-dorm experience. :) It was really cool. The only thing I didn't like about it was the communal bathrooms. It was FREEZING everytime I went to take a bath. Plus everytime you want to take a bath, you've got to bring all your toiletries with you, which was a bit of a pain. Other than that, it was fun having so many people around all the time. Although I think studying would be hard coz there's just so much distraction!

One thing I really liked and miss about Melbourne is the food. They have MUCH better food than Brisbane! I had the most authentic Nasi Lemak in a Malaysian restaurant at Glen Waverly. It was so good! I really wish I had more time in Melbourne just to eat. It was THAT good. I didn't have a single bad meal in Melbourne.

I had a wonderful trip overall. Despite getting sick on the morning we had to leave for Brissie and throwing up. And having the worst flight back ever because I was so sick, nauseous and my sinus was so bad my ear pressure couldn't equalize. It was the most painful thing ever! I was literally woken up because of the pain. It was terrible and I vow never to fly when I am sick again. Urgh.

I can see why so many people like Melbourne though. It's such a beautiful city... with a lot of character. There's so many quirky cafes and interesting shops to explore. I feel like I didn't get to see enough even though I spent almost a week there and it was my second time in Melbourne. I would gladly go back again... third time's the charm hey?

On another note, I'm loving the weather in Brisbane now. All the flowers are in full bloom because it's spring and it's so gorgeous! Plus we get lotsa sunlight and longer days but it's not too hot or stifling coz it's still spring and there's wind. Definitely going to chill by the pool tomorrow.

Good Luck for finals everyone!

The Top 5 Mistakes Guys Make When Dancing Salsa

2010-08-09T19:06:00.005+08:00

Inspired by the amazing quality of male salsa dancers last night, this is my top 5 mistakes guys makes when dancing salsa list. In hopes that a guy will stumble across this and take heed! I'm not saying I'm the best salsa dancer out there, nor am I the best follower, and I understand that the guys have it a lot harder when dancing salsa coz they have to think about so much stuff. But really, these are just the basic, BASIC things you do to make the girl WANT do dance with you.

So here goes!

1. Holding the girl too close
Like, hello?! You are invading my personal space bubble! Proxemics, anyone?! (I've just studied this today in my interpersonal communication class) No dancer can dance properly when all they feel like doing is taking a step back. No, make that several steps back. I really hate the feeling, it makes me feel really caged as if I have no space to breathe or think. I can barely follow his steps as I try not to think about how in my face he is. Plus, doesn't he feel that I am pushing back damn bloody hard against his hand to try and put more distance between us? And how do you tell this to the guys without hurting his pride/ego/dancing confidence?

2. Having bad breath
Because we are already in such close proximity, if the guy has bad breath, it really just makes dancing 10 times worse. Because I'm either trying to hold my breath, which makes dancing really hard in case you didn't notice; or the wafts of bad breath just make it really distracting and I can't follow properly because again, I'm trying to step back and put as much distance between us as possible. Please, please, PLEASE invest in mints or chewing gum or something man.

3. Have clothes that smell like they haven't been dried properly
And this isn't only in the case of guys who dance salsa, in general people who smell like this make me nauseated. I mean, can't you smell that horrible smell emitting from your clothes? In my sister's words: "What, are you immune to smelliness?" I don't know about you, but the thing I like the most about doing my laundry is how all my clothes smell like detergent and softener after that - clean, fresh and crisp. And I'd like to keep it that way which is why I make sure my clothes dry off properly before wearing them again. For the life of me, I don't understand why these people can't do the same. It's really not that hard leaving your clothes on the clothes rack for another hour of sun bathing.

4. Elbowing my head at any point during the dance
I am already very short. At a measly 162 cm, I am already shorter-than-the-average person, especially here is Australia. So really, you have NO excuse to be elbowing me in the head when you spin me or do turn patterns. I wonder how these people manage when they have to dance with taller girls. Pffftt!

5. Robot salsa
This is salsa, dude, it's supposed to be smooth. This is not popping in hip hop. So, sudden jerky movements or steps or really not appreciated. Not only does it annoy me, it makes us look really bad on the dance floor. I understand that the guys have a lot more to think about when dancing salsa (keeping time, thinking of what steps to do next, leading the girl properly) but if at any time you're in doubt, just do the basic step larh! I don't mind doing 5 sets of basics before a turn pattern hits you but really, don't make ambiguous jerky leads where I don't know where you want me to go or what you want me to do. Meh.

Transition.

2010-07-24T21:10:00.003+08:00

I woke up on Thursday morning feeling completely disorientated. I thought I was still in my bed at home, and it took me a few minutes to realize that I wasn't. The surroundings were oddly familiar, which was why I thought I was at home. I was home. It was just a different home. It was the Brissie home.

I think that was the first time I ever felt homesick. Prior to Thursday, I've never felt homesick. Sure, I missed my family, my friends, but I never wished I was back home, living the KL life. And for the first time since I've come to Brisbane; for the first time in 5 months, I felt homesick. I suddenly wished I was back in my room at home, and then I would walk down 3 flights of stairs to the kitchen and my family would be at the dining table - dad and sis getting ready for work and mom pottering about the kitchen making us breakfast. Instead, I got up to make my own breakfast in an empty apartment. The homesickness hit me hard at that moment. It's better today though. I'm glad to be back here again as I walked through the streets of South Bank in the windy, winter air.

Prior to my departure back to Brisbane, my sister warned me that the transition was the hardest. And she was right. I needed a few days to adjust and adapt again to the vastly different lifestyles I led in Brisbane and KL. I think it was a whole lot harder coming back from this holiday than the first time I left because the first time round, KL felt like reality and Brisbane was like an escape from reality, like a holiday. But now, going back to KL felt like the holiday while Brisbane feels like reality. It probably has to do with my whole mindset of the different places. Today I wish I could merge the two - KL and Brisbane. And then I wouldn't feel like I'm giving anything up. But of course, that's not possible.

I was wondering if I should continue with my gastronomic adventures in KL. And I've come to the conclusion that I should. This is largely due to the demise of Scarlett (my trusty, beloved camera). I don't know how it happened, but sometime during my transit from Sydney to Brisbane, Scarlett got wet and won't function properly now. I suspect it might have been the Nestea I put in my bag for a little while when I was boarding the plane. It might have spilled but nothing else in my bag is wet!!! I was so upset, words probably won't even begin to describe it. First of all, Scarlett was a present from my sister. Second, I really really REALLY loved my camera to bits and pieces. I liked how I could adjust most of the settings (flash, ISO, exposure etc.) But most of all, it was something that helped me to record memories, the things I wanted to remember, the moments I treasured and cherished. It's been a trusty companion for the past 2 and a half years, a constant in my bag wherever I went and now it's gone.

When I found my camera wasn't working on Thursday, my sister said my expression looked like someone had died. And I was thinking, of course, my camera died!! It's like a trusty friend was gone. Ah, Thursday was really quite an emo-nemo day for me. Anyway, it wasn't working at all on Thursday, I blow dried it using a hair dryer and put it under my study lamp to er.. sunbathe in hopes that all the stuff inside will dry up. Yesterday I could take pictures again but only pictures with no flash. Today I managed to take 2 flash pictures before Scarlett died on me again. Even if the flash miraculously restores itself, it won't ever be the same again. There's water stains on the screen now and keeps asking me to reset the date and time. Sigh.

So yeah, might as well share the last few good pictures my trusty camera took.

This was at Italiannies, MV after watching Eclipse. Their grape shakes and spinach and artichoke formaggio are a must try over there. However, the rest of the food kinda CMI wan. So yeah. Just trust me and order those only larh if you're ever there.

At Zen, Pyramid after a relaxing massage. Wanted to go to Sushi Zanmai but the line was wayyy too long and besides, it's apparently owned by the same company anyway, just pricier.

Tried out this pastry place on Jalan Delima in KL one of the days. It's called LeVain Boulangerie Patisserie and I highly recommend it if you're a fan of pastries and bread (Adele Wong, are you reading this?!) because theirs is home made and freshly baked. It was quite a satisfying meal. Tried their mushroom soup too and it was goooood. Parking there is a bitch though as they only have limited spaces in front of the shop. But the food and atmosphere totally make up for it!

Had hawker food with the primary school mates at Dataran Sunway before going back to Tropicana for alcohol and karaoke. The usual.

The girls are all red-faced because they split us into boy-girl teams and we lost really badly during the drinking games. Oh and Mirinda soda tastes really REALLY bad when mixed with Vodka. I didn't think that Vodka could ever taste bad but boy, was I wrong.

Finally made it to Golden Dragonboat with the cousins in tow to have my pomfret. It's the dish on the right? Mmm, my all time favourite fish next to cod.

At TGIF, MV having my favourite Cajun Fried Chicken Salad after watching Inception which by the way is probably one of the must-watch movies of the year. Good storyline, great casting, intriguing plot and they had some beautiful shots too.And of course the director is awesome.

After Pepper Lunch in Pyramid. I went to visit them on their first day of classes. The day was really epic and happy and fun-filled. It would have been a perfect day if we hadn't received such horrible news at night - that Mr.Ben had passed away.

Mr.Ben was one of my favourite lecturers in Monash. He taught Film and Television studies and he was one of the reasons that made my first year in university so enjoyable. I think back at all the time we spent in his office discussing assignments, listening to his stories, asking for his opinions; all of his tutorials in which he would lace with sarcasm and humour; all the times he's helped us with our assignments, offered words of encouragement, and I really felt a sense of loss. Life is short, and death is an inevitable path that everyone must face but I couldn't help feeling sad and shocked at his sudden death. I wish he'd had more time, more time for future students to experience his awesomeness and passion for the arts and film. But I know he was well-loved by all his students and friends and will be remembered as someone who inspired many of us. And really, how many of us can say we've touched so many lives in our short time on this earth?

Anyway, that day was really and epic one filled with funny one-liners, jokes and incidents.

For example:

Ea: Oooh, your bracelet is so pretty! It's sparkly! *touches the charms on my bracelet and then the clasp*
Oooh, what's this? Is this a musical instrument? *while holding on to the clasp of my bracelet*
Me: Er... No Ea, that's the clasp of my bracelet.
Jowee: *bursts into laughter*
Ea: Ohh! I thought it was a trombone!

Waitress, after we asked her to help us take a picture: 1... 2... SMELL!!!
Us: *burst into laughter*

Ea: *talking about Jowee's love life*
Me: *looking at Ea and then realizing I can see her ear through her tudung which fascinated me so I interrupted her*
Hey, I can see your ear!!! *while pointing at her ear*
Jowee, Ea and Wei-Lin: *looks at each other then bursts into laughter*

I think there were quite a few more funny ones but I can't remember them now. Suffice to say it was a very entertaining day!

Coincidentally met Yng there too! It was good seeing her. And I saw Wai Yee on the escalator and waved to her as well. I guess it was a good day for meeting people. :)

After Pyramid we adjourned to Shook! in Starhill for tea since my sister had a RM50 voucher. However, they were having a promotion for tea - RM3.60 for everything on the tea time menu from 3pm - 6pm so we couldn't use the voucher but it was really worth it anyway since it usually costs a bomb to eat at Shook!. So don't say I didn't share and go and take advantage of the promotion before it ends! I say go for the German sausage with mash and the SzeChuan Kung Po Chicken.

The walkway between Marriott and Starhill. Some China tourist holding a DSLR was making a fuss about how he couldn't capture all the lights on his camera. Hello, mine is not even a DSLR and I had no problem okay?! You can adjust all your settings and take so much more cooler shots than mine and because he doesn't know how to use it, he was complaining! My goodness, I swear these people don't deserve DSLRs. If you wanna get one, learn how to use it properly la! Wasting money man. I don't understand people who get DSLRs and refuse to learn how to use it properly and leave it on auto mode. What's the point then?! Meh.

Went for Shangri-la buffet for dinner because they have a promotion for all American Express card customers on a Monday. You get 50% off when two people eat. We split the bill so basically between the four of us, two of us ate for free! So worth it! I stuffed myself to the brim with salmon and desserts!

Oh and that's us holding up my new Gorillapod. I walked all over Lowyat looking for a Gorillapod (it's the official name okay!? It's called a Gorillapod) but nobody knew what it was until I described it as a tripod with flexible legs. Finally found it at Foto Shangri-la on the Ground floor for RM25. And then I went to KL Sentral the next day to apply for an Enrich Grad card (so I could get excess 10kg baggage allowance) and I saw a nicer coloured (black and orange. Mine is boring black and white) Gorillapod going for only RM20!!! LOWYAT CHEAT PEOPLE'S FEELINGS WAN!! Sigh. So if you guys are looking for Gorillapods, go to KL Sentral and get them okay? It's the stall outside the Enrich office, behind the check in counters. Seriously, who would think of going to KL Sentral to buy Gorillapods?! Not that it's much use anyway, since Scarlett pretty much died already. Ah well. I'm still upset. Meh.

Currently listening to - Crown of Age by The Ettes

Motherland.

2010-07-12T17:15:00.005+08:00

So it's been exactly 12 days since I touched down in KLIA into the hot, humid and sweltering heat of Malaysia. I must say this surprise visit was executed pretty perfectly with only Kit Mun and Ka-Yee being kept out of the dark as it was necessary to tell them in order to coordinate our schedules to meet up. I wish I could have filmed everyone's reactions when they realized I was home. I felt so loved seeing/hearing everyone's "OMG, are you freaking kidding me?" voices/expressions. The best one has still got to be Mel's though. The girl was so oblivious even though she was right outside my house and Kit Mun had already hinted at my homecoming so many times! Needless to say, her reaction was epic when she saw me.

The other thing that surprised me actually, was that - WHY la you people don't check which number I'm calling you all from? I called a whole bunch of people and nobody suspected I was back home. It was quite amusing really. I even called Adele's house when she didn't pick up her phone and she didn't even suspect anything.

It was a good idea surprising everyone though. I don't think I will ever forget Wai Yee's shocked face when she saw me; or Kai Jie's blur-ness over the phone trying to figure out whose voice it was; or Jean who practically stopped in her tracks when she caught a glimpse of me. I've missed everyone dearly. And it really feels so good to be back.

These 12 days have been maximized to the fullest I think. I've ate SO much I dread the day I have to step on the scales again. *shudders* I once read that people can apparently figure out what kind of person you are by looking at the food you eat. If that's the case, I think the only thing that people will be able to figure out about me is that I am a glutton.

So, a quick summary of my gastronomic adventures since I've been back. Here goes!

Day 1 - Straight to the OUG market for Pork noodles after I touched down
Pasta Zanmai @ Pyramid with the girls for Kit Mun's farewell

I think we spent close to 3 hours there gossiping and catching up on each other's lives.
And dinner at the Gardens food court where I had my favourite Japanese ramen.

Day 2 - Pan mee for lunch
Marmalade @ Bangsar Village 2 for tea with Jowee and Wei-Lin while we waited for
Vicky's surprise party to begin

This was Wee's wrap and honey latte.

Dinner was Vicky's surprise farewell party at Delicious, BV. Hello Duck Confit Spaghettini and Caesar Salad! Oh, how I've missed you!!

Day 3 - I think I had more hawker food for lunch. Can't quite remember.
Little Penang @ MV for dinner which has the best Char Kuey Teow ever! Trust me,
after you've had that, all the other Char Kuey Teow pales in comparison.

Day 4 - Dim sum brekkie @ Jing Xuan, Kuchai Lama with the primary school bunch
Alexis @ Bangsar for lunch. The usual Penne Carbonara, Caesar salad, Iced Coffe and
Tiramisu. Heaven!
Sushi Zanmai @ MV for dinner. Affordable yet scrumptious sushi. Probably our
favourite Japanese restaurant of all time. Next to Rakuzen, which is owned by the same
company anyway so it doesn't really make a difference.

Day 5 - Lunch @ Lot10 foodcourt

I've never been to the Lot10 foodcourt coz I think it only opened after I left. Overall, it's a nice place to have hawker food in a nice atmosphere with air-con. Apparently some of the hawkers are the original ones from Petaling Street so it was quite authentic. The oyster omelette in my opinion was pretty good but my parents didn't really like it. Of course no oyster omelette can ever compare to the ones in Pandamaran where the omelette is crispy but hey, you have to make do right? Besides it's quite a hassle going all the way to Klang for oyster omelettes.

Hokkien mee which was superb! In fact this is the only Hokkien mee I've ever eaten that can compare to Road 29's Hokkien mee, which has hands down, the best Hokkien mee ever!

Rojak! The sauce was quite good.

Mou mou and I with all the food on the table. Quite the scary actually. In addition to the food above we had Kajang satay, Ice kacang, Lam mee and a coconut.

Dinner was Baskin Robbins! Ice-cream dinners make me so happy!

Day 6 - McD's for brekkie @ Parkson. Sausage egg McMuffin and hash browns!
Chicken chop and nasi lemak for lunch in Damansara coz I teman-ed my dad to do his
passport
Dragon-I @ MV for dinner. They have the best SzeChuan Dan Dan mee and Xiao Long
Baos! Their ribs are pretty good as well.

Day 7 - Rojak for lunch
Mummy's homecooked food for dinner

Day 8 - Lunch with Adele @ the Taiwanese restaurant opposite sushi Zanmai which I can't for
life remember the name of in MV. They have the most awesome cold noodles for only
RM9.80! The only problem with that restaurant is that there's ALWAYS a line outside
waiting to go in. Same with Sushi Zanmai larh.
Road 29, Sun Kam Kee for dinner

Day 9 - Pork noodles again for lunch if I'm not mistaken
Din Tai Fung for dinner. They have awesome fried rice and Japanese cucumber

Their toufu with century egg was quite good as well.

Aforementioned Japanese cucumber which I loved!

Day 10 - Crystal Jade @ MV for lunch
Homecooked food by mou mou for dinner

Day 11 - Homecooked century egg and salted egg porridge for lunch
La Bodega @ Bangsar for tea. If you're ever there the Sauteed button mushrooms
tapas and calamari with aioli are a MUST TRY. Never disappoints, those two. We also
had their Waffles with butter and honey and it was goooood. The waffles were fluffy!!
Dinner was at Unique Seafood in PJ.

They are famous for seafood as the name suggests. Usually we'll have their Clam Ginger soup, Steamed prawns, Barbeque Fish, Salted egg crabs, Two style Kailan, Fried and steamed cod, Mayonnaise Chicken etc.

And of course their Toufu too!

Supper was Pringles, Pods, Super Rings and Kampai while watching the World Cup finals with Jowee. Kancheong maximum. I'm just glad they didn't go into penalty shootouts. And I have decided Casillas is the best goalkeeper ever!!

Day 12 - Woke up at 1pm coz of yesterday's World Cup and had heong pang and Sugar cane
water. I think I'll go have a snack now before dinner!!

So, that sums up my 12 days since I've come home. *pats fat, round tummy*

Now you guys understand why I've grown sideways eh?
So I've shared most of my favourite restaurants here already. But still to come (hopefully I'll manage to fit them all in before I go back) Daorae Korean BBQ, Steven's Corner Roti Telur Bawang Cheese & Ribena Special, Pepper Lunch, Golden Dragonboat's pomfret fish and a Ramly burger.

In between all these gastronomic adventures, I've met up with friends, watched 5 movies in the cinema, catched up on old Sex and the City episodes, re-read Eclipse again in preparation to watch the movie this coming Wednesday, shopped (Zara sale anyone?!), spent time with family, got a haircut, attended a booksale, got my results and finished The Short Second Life of Bree Tanner.

Life is good. :)

A sudden burst of...

2010-06-30T16:04:00.006+08:00

"All our energy is spent for the purpose of getting what we want, and most people never question the premise of this activity - that they know what their true wants are. They do not stop to think whether the aims they are pursuing are something they themselves want.

In school they want to have good marks, as adults they want to be more and more successful, to make more money, to have more prestige, to buy a better car, to go to places, and so on.

However, if I do get this new job, if I get this better car, if I can take this trip - what then? What is the sense of it all? Is it really I who wants this? Am I not running after some goal which is supposed to make me happy and which eludes me as soon as I have reached it?

Therefore, man lives under the illusion that he knows what he wants, while he actually wants what he is supposed to want."

- Eric Fromm, Fear of Freedom (1955)

This was discussed in one of the lectures on discourse analysis during the semester. It struck a chord with me probably because I'm one of those people that are not really sure what they want. I mean, I know what I'm supposed to want, but what do I really want? If you think about it, there's really quite a difference between the two. Sometimes it feels like I've been disconnected with myself. I feel like an outsider looking in on my life and I don't really identify anymore. It's scary really.

I think I'm going to miss the clear, crisp air of winter. Oh, the irony.

Currently listening to - High Times by Landon Pigg and the Turbo Fruits

This I Promise You.

2010-06-21T11:33:00.003+08:00

I hereby pledge to blog more often once exams are over.

If I don't, feel free to harass me online or in person about my blog.
(Not like you guys don't already, but I give you permission to up the intensity of your harassment)

In the meantime, you guys can check out Five Fashion Friends. Since we now have 6 girls working on that blog (after the addition of guest blogger Tee Jowee), it gets updated wayyy more often than this blog does.

Cheers!

The days are long, but the years are short.

2010-06-01T13:06:00.003+08:00

It's Week 13 now, time really does gallop by, leaving me a little startled as I watch the dust gather behind it. It seems like yesterday I was boarding a plane, getting ready to begin another chapter of my life in Australia. And suddenly it's now, with my first semester of my second year in university coming to an end. I wish I was able to grasp time, make it into something tangible, something I can hold on to, even if it's just by the edge of the sleeves. But it always eludes me, and slips right through my fingers.

If you think about it, everyone laments about how long their day has been. Whether we sit in lecturer theaters, counting down the minutes till it ends; Or are at work, sitting at a desk staring at the blinding computer screen, watching the second hand of the clock trickle by so slowly, it starts to hurt watching it. It's true, the days always seem so long, filled with so many things to do, people to see, places to be at. So much so that we never notice how fast the days fly by until suddenly, we reach a milestone and discover that the days have indeed flitted past us, silently and stealthily. And we start to wonder where all those days went and how it could have passed us by like a speeding bullet train.

The days are long, but the years are short. In Jowee's words, truest.

The Truth About Forever.

2010-05-23T18:29:00.003+08:00

Sometimes when I think of home, a flash of fear stabs me right in the heart. It's irrational and silly, but I am worried that if I go home, I'll find that I no longer belong there. Or here, for that matter. Then what does that leave me with when I'm in between worlds, spaces, homes and friends?

So much has happened since I've left. I'm afraid that the world has moved on, and everything is not as it used to be. And then there's me. Trying to figure out where I stand amidst all this constant change. Xin Yi jie once wrote that I am like a cockroach - easily adaptable and impossible to get rid of because I will never say die or give up. Not the most flattering of comparisons but she meant it in the nicest way. There are times when I think she's right, and there are others when I doubt myself. I fear change, the unknown and possibilities. How can I be easily adaptable when I fear all these things that are constant in life?

I dread the day I go home, to find that the places I used to know so well aren't the same anymore;to find out that the people and friends I know and love have changed so much that I have no idea what's going on in their lives anymore; but most of all, to find out that being home feels foreign instead. Too many pieces of my heart scattered about and left behind, it feels like it's impossible to collect all the pieces and make it whole again.

I probably won't feel this way tomorrow. Thank goodness.

La-La-Land.

2010-05-08T18:26:00.005+08:00

I think one of the reasons why amusement parks are so popular with people of all ages is because they make you forget. For a few hours, a day even, the moment you step into an amusement park, you forget everything else except that you have to have fun. I think everyone becomes a kid again once they step into an amusement park.

It's a wonderful feeling really. All the things that are troubling, worrying or stressing you out fade away for a few hours. No thoughts about assignments or jobs, no worries about the problems and dramas of everyday life. Just pure, unadulterated joy of reliving childhood memories of fun, being captivated by all the attractions and rides, souvenirs and performances. Enjoying the adrenaline rush as you fly through the air upside down 5 times in a row. I wish we could feel that way everyday. I've said it before, but I'll say it again. I wish feelings like those could be collected in bottles. And every time we're in need of a pick-me-up, we could open those bottles and unleash all those feelings again.

Escapism. I think everyone needs a healthy dose of it from time to time. Be it in the form of amusement parks, or television series or just going to the movies. Everyone needs it.

The moment we stepped out of Movie World, my sister made a joke saying: "Uh-oh, everyone just put on 5 years on their age" and Umbrella Man continued by saying: "Yeah, I can feel all my wrinkles coming back!"

It was a joke. But that was how it really felt like. Ominous as it sounds, I could literally feel the weariness settle in my heart as we left. The crazy life of assignments, house chores, group work. Being a student is probably the easiest part of life. But still...

And it's not just walking out of amusement parks. It's seeing the family come and go. Having lots of people in our tiny apartment bustling about, taking turns to use the bathroom, watching TV and YouTube videos (Ahmet the terrorist, Auntie's failed reversing, Russell Peters), waking up in the morning and seeing everyone gathered at the breakfast table - to just you. You and an empty apartment.

I think I've forgotten how good writing feels. Not writing for assignments. Just writing from the heart. Greg is right - it is a form of release.

Into The Night...

2010-03-31T13:26:00.005+08:00

Just another quick My-Life-In-Numerics again as I take this little breather in between this crazy period of assignments and presentations.

1. There is this absolutely ridiculous group on facebook named "My Sister Said If I Get 1 Million Fans She Will Name Her Baby Megatron' which everyone seems to be joining. I think they've all lost their senses, the lot of them. Why the eff would anyone want to name their kid Megatron? Can you imagine the poor kid's childhood? The amount of teasing he would get about his name from all the other kids in school? Can you imagine what would happen everytime the kids introduces himself? Or what if the kid grows up and enters the corporate world? I mean seriously, can anyone envision themselves saying to their potential employer: "Nice to meet you, I'm Megatron!" People would probably think it's a joke and go :"No seriously, what's your name?" Take that and multiply it by a million times and you get the life of that poor kid. And I'm operating under the assumption that the kid is a boy, what if it's a girl? Besides, why you name your kid after the evil, not-very-cool baddie in Transformers? If you reall wanted to, should've named him Optimus Prime. At least his transformer truck is cool and the kid can be known as Optimus. Better than Megatron right?

I'm really glad my parents were sensible and didn't give me funny names. Thank you mummy and daddy for giving me a name that actually has meaning and sounds good and not Tan Long Kang or Kleenex Tan or some other nonsensical name like that!

2. I went for a local stand-up comedy show the other day. One of my sister's friends was performing and he invited us along for free. :) Personally, I feel that stand-up comedy is one of the hardest things a person can do, or do well for that matter. The show we went to was called "Exit Laughing" and was performed by ordinary people who only did a 6 week course in stand-up comedy and had the guts to perform after that. It was pretty amazing, because most of the acts seemed so professional! I never knew you actually had to write out a script for stand-up comedy. I mean, obviously you have to have some sort of draft, but I never knew you needed a full-blown script coz it always seemed so conversational and easy-going. I guess half the hard work goes into making it seem conversational instead of a memorized script.

On another note, I think the best comedians are the ones who don't need to use a lot of swear words or sexual content in their jokes. I noticed much of the jokes revolved around swear words and sex. But I think, if you can make people laugh without having to put in those two elements, then you truly are a master!

3. I've noticed this about doing presentations in Aussie. The Aussies like to read from a piece of paper instead of present. Well, most of them did anyway. For the entire presentation, they basically just held a piece of paper in front of them and read it word for word. Tutors back home would have cut major marks for style of presentation. But I guess it's not as important here. *shrugs*

4. We had a guest lecturer talk to us for our International Journalism and Mass Comm. lecture this week about war/crisis reporting. I've never aspired to be a hard news journalist but I really admire those people that do. And even more so, those that would risk their lives just for a picture or a story to let people know what's going on in a particular country. Anyway, the guest lecturer showed us a short film he made on the dangers of foreign correspondants and journalists reporting from war-torn, conflict countries and it is really sad to hear about all the horrors they've encountered. Especially the ones about the landmines. They must have gone through traumatizing experiences just to try and publish news and inform the world. I also think it's really sad that, more journalists have died in the Iraq war compared to that of World War 2 and all the other wars before Iraq. It's probably because the terrorists groups target journalists to either kill them or hold them for ransom. But I don't understand... what do they hope to achieve by doing it? I mean, other than the money obviously, and the power they momentarily gain over a country as they videotape themselves beheading someone. But that's it. Human lives lost in order for you to make some stupid point about religion and politics. Is it worth it?

(wordboner.com)

I think that pretty much sums it up.

5. Watched Alice In Wonderland on Sunday (finally!) and thought it was awesome! Who knew the Mad Hatter could be such a knight when he wanted to be? However, I think wayy too much emphasis has been given on the clothes Alice wore in the Red Queen's castle. I thought it was pretty and ingenious but it wasn't my favourite outfit. My favourite outfit was actually the first one she wore after she shrunk. But to each his, or in this case, her own I guess.

6. I've noticed that people seem to like converting old curches into something else here in Brissie. For example, the Pancake Manor used to be a church and is now a 24 hour pancake shop. One of the only 24 hour restaurants in Brissie I might add. And this club I went to the other day called Magic City @ The Church was you guessed it! A former church. Oh the irony of converting a former church into a club. And don't get me started on the name Magic City... it sounds like a place where people go to do drugs or something! Like they go there and suddenly everything is whoop-de-doo MAGIC! 0_o Calling it The Church is wayyy cooler albeit ironic. The good thing about clubbing here is that smoking is NOT ALLOWED inside clubs, or restaurants for that matter. The way it should be. No more smelling like chimneys after dancing or getting accidentally stubbed by cigarettes! :D Oh, and there are wayyyy more hot guys (and hot girls too) in clubs here compared to back home! Eye candy FTW! ;)

7. Two more days till the parents, aunt, uncle and cousins touch down in Aussie! I am quite excited at the prospect of seeing them. Let's hope there's no family drama-ramas. Don't think I can deal with it anymore.

And there you have it! I must now get back to doing the laundry and vacuuming, so the place looks spick and span when mom arrives. Mustn't give her a reason to nag ma, right?! :P

Enjoy the Easter/ mid-sem break guys!

Ingenious Little Sites.

2010-03-26T10:04:00.003+08:00

These two sites are so ingenious!! A must-go when you're in need of a little laughter or inspiration.

http://nose4news.wordpress.com/

If you're Malaysian and are sick of all the drama-rama news going on about dreary politicians everyday, check this site out. It is hilarious!! Especially loving the one where it says TNB to sue WWF over Earth Hour - coz when I first read it, I actually thought it might be probable given how er... ignorant (used in place of a uglier sounding word) our politicans/ government are.

http://thingsweforget.blogspot.com/

This one is cute and inspirational. Someone should start doing this in Malaysia! I'd love to find some random, cute post it note along the street/ in a shopping mall somewhere. :D

I forsee a My-Life-In-Numerics post coming up soon!
Till then, cheers folks!

**Edit**

Sorry, couldn't resist sharing one more!
I'm a sucker for interior design and have a perpetual fascination with how people design their homes so if you're like me, this one's good for you!

http://www.theselby.com/

I guess one of the reasons why I'm take such an interest in people's homes is probably because, their room/house says a lot of them as an individual. It's always interesting to see whether the people and their personalities match up. ;) Plus the site has gorgeous photos as well. Always a plus point!

Enjoy!

High Times.

2010-03-18T19:10:00.000+08:00

I think that the experience of going abroad to study is such an important. On one hand, it is a privilege since you get the experience of a lifetime that not everyone gets the chance to go through. On the other, I feel that it teaches you so many things.

I remember thinking to myself that coming here would be the ultimate test of independence since I've never really left home before. And I think I've managed pretty well. Granted, I am extremely lucky to have my sister with me. I think having one member of your family here makes a lot of difference since I didn't come with any friends. It's like a little piece of home with you. I can't say I think I've really changed as a person. I'm still me. Klutzy and selfish. But I think it's good being away from home for awhile and experiencing new things and starting anew, experiencing a different sort of university life.

This is typically what I cook if I'm feeling lazy. Which is most of the time. My sister and I eat a LOT of eggs over here. Because we don't really eat much meat here, we're hoping all the eggs will supplement the lack of meat. That and eggs are super easy to cook. :P

Another typical meal for us would be salads. Just coz they're easy to make and we try to be healthy and eat our greens. Even though the dressing is usually Caesar or French Onion with Sweet Chilli and Maggi Seasoning so the health factor is null. =/

Otherwise it's pasta or Indomee. Basically, anything that's easy to cook. I admire people who can spend eons in the kitchen just to prepare one meal. I'm impatient. So when I want to eat, I want to eat as quick as possible. So food that doesn't take a lot of preparation is my best bet! Lazy, I know.

I never really acknowledged how hard it was to plan and prepare meals everyday till I came here. It really is a big headache, especially if you don't want to end up eating the same thing everyday. So if you don't have to prepare your own meals, appreciate whoever's cooking them! :D

This is a view of Brisbane from Mount Cootha.
I think sometimes being persistent doesn't pay off. Especially if someone has already rejected you. You really should just piss off.

However, the wonderful thing about staying on your own is the freedom. It's pretty awesome knowing you can do whatever you want to do, whenever you see fit.

Brisbane's One Tree Hill. Lol XD

This is my sister standing in front of the UQ Social Sciences and Humanities library. UQ has like 14 libraries or something like that. It's crazy! Puts all Malaysian libraries to shame!

Sandstone buildings are so majestic somehow. UQ turns 100 years old this year. Come to think of it, my high school is actually a few years older than my university! :D

See, that big piece of greenery behind me? It's called the Great Court. And the Aussies like to go sit on the grass and tan/eat/chill. I have sat on the grass a grand total of... 2 times. I am not very angmoh as you can see. :P I still find sitting on the grass kinda icky but ah well, might as well try and enjoy the experience!

The only thing bad about studying in such a big university is when you have back to back classes at opposite ends of the campus. It's crazy trying to huff and puff your way to your next class and trying not to be late.

I miss driving my lil' green tortoise around. I take forgranted much when I am at home. The luxuries of a car is one. I used to be able to leave whenever I wanted to because I could just drive to uni at any time. Now I have to plan my times according to the ferry schedule. Sometimes when I am just a minute too late, I watch the ferry going past as I stand at the traffic light waiting for it to turn green so I can cross the road and board the ferry. It's a very frustrating feeling to see the ferry glide right past you without being able to do anything. Ann is right - the adventures and thrills of taking public transport.

When I do manage to catch the ferry JUST in time, I am deliriously happy. I can still feel my heart thumping due to all the speedwalking/running like a mad woman involved to catch the ferry and I am pleased coz I don't have to wait. It's rather amusing at times. And annoying at others.

Computers in the library are all Macs here. Not just in the journalism lab! :D

And yes, we have our very own Art Museum on campus! Art here, or at least the exhibition that was going on at the time was very Aborigine centered. Most of it was about how Aborigines are discriminated and stuff. I suppose it's like how Malaysian art, a lot of it is about politics and stuff as well.

Rows and rows of library books. It makes me feel slightly claustrophobic at times. But at others, I am in awe of how much knowledge there is on the shelves. Probably has something to do with my love for books. I am a nerd like that.

You know you're an epic phailure when your sister uses your student card to borrow textbooks when she isn't even studying before you do. Sigh... fail Swan, fail.

On another note, I walked into the coffee table the other day. As a result I have ugly looking yellow and purple bruises on my thighs and knees. Don't ask me how I did that, I told you amaze myself at my klutziness at times.

By the way, I highly recommend watching Paper Heart starring Michael Cera and Charlene Yi. It was a pretty good movie though I think the ending is questionable. But I like how they incorporated the documentary style into the film. And the answers about love by the little kids are just so cute! Kids really do say the darnest things sometimes. I like listening to stories of how couples met and got married and STAYED married. It's always fascinating to me... and restores my faith in the institution of marriage. It's heart warming to know that not all marriages end in a blubbering mess of divorce and indifference. Or angry, hurtful words, like knives, being hurled at each other. Sometimes I wonder how two people who claimed to love each other so much can become like that after years and years of staying together. It doesn't make sense. It makes you wonder, did they truly love each other? Can you really fall out of love? I guess you can. If you can fall in love, it makes sense to be able to fall out of love.

I think it's time to stop procrastinating and start some of my assignments. My web design course still scares me even though I know how to write basic HTML code now. ;)

It Was Your Heart On The Line...

2010-03-18T14:56:00.002+08:00

Currently listening to Mumford and Sons - Little Lion Man

Read this entry by Scott Adams, the creator of the Dilbert comics. So hilarious!!

http://dilbert.com/blog/entry/man_points/

His blog is ingenious. A stereotyping of masculinity and how it is represented but insanely funny at the same time.

A proper post coming soon. With photos. Watch this space!

I am a question to the world.

2010-03-03T14:03:00.003+08:00

Just some random bits and pieces of my last few weeks in KL before I jetted over here. All of it seems to have happened such a long time ago. As if it was another lifetime, distant. In reality, it's only been a few months/weeks.

First up, a Gastronomic Adventure I didn't have time to blog about before I left.

It was a cousinly outing with Greg and Reena and we decided upon having WIP @ BSC for lunch. WIP used to stand for Work In Progress when the retaurant as under renovations, which was my first time there with my colleagues from Mindshare at the time. Now that the reno-s have finished, it stands for something else entirely which... I CANNOT REMEMBER WHAT IT IS NOW! Forgetful... sigh. This is why I need to blog fairly soon after..otherwise it just escapes me!

Anyway, I don't remember what we ordered anymore, the exact names and such so you guys can just enjoy the pictures. I'm pretty sure we ordered another Salmon pizza as well, but I don't have a picture of it which leads to believe that being the glutton I am, I forgot all about taking pictures halfway through the meal and just went for it. Whoops!

WIP is on the expensive side for restaurants (but really, what restaurant in BSC isn't?), but of course the atmosphere is really nice. Especially at night coz they have fairy lights all around the trees! I am a sucker for fairy lights. When I go back to Malaysia I intend to bring my flower fairy lights over to drape it around my bedpost. I couldn't do it since I've moved coz my new bed back home didn't allow it. Fairy lights make me happppyyy. As do disco balls. I'm still contemplating getting one, but I don't know where I want to hang it.

Moving on. That was one of those awesome days. After lunch we went to Austin Chase in Gardens for coffee and TABOO! Taboo is so fun larh. Everytime I play it with friends, we can play for hours and hours till the cards run out and not get sick or tired of it. But that was a fun afternoon, I remember laughing till my cheeks hurt. And that is always a good sign. I think we adjourned for a movie after that but I don't remember what movie anymore. Probably because the movie was not the focal point of that day for me, but rather the company and laughter.

Oh and Austin Chase serves pretty decent Chai lattes. Me and my sis frequent Austin Chase coz it usually has less people than Starbucks and Coffee Bean (which are especially crazy on the weekends). So we can chill there and play all the games they have there as well like Uno, Taboo, Monopoly etc. It's a very cool hangout place with less people around. Oh and they serve like 3 flavours of Baskin Robbins ice-cream too. So when Baskins is crazily packed, we go there for our fix as well. Strawberry cheesecake, anyone? Don't say I didn't share with you guys and enjoy it while it lasts people, I'm pretty sure once everyone discovers Austin Chase it will be jammed packed like sardines.

Another fun outing with the cousin was bowling. I personally haven't bowled in years! Like since Form 3 or something. Rusty, very rusty. I think we were all rusty. But in Greg's case, his Wii Bowling came in handy! Lol. XD

I did glow in the dark bowling with Mel and gang in Genting again shortly after that. And the scores were much better. But that was probably also because Mel's dad was coaching all of us. Thank you uncle!

I think I took this in Luna Bar. Was there for Ladies Night one of the weeks. Their free drinks for ladies sucked. I think I chose vodka and cranberry but it was pretty tasteless with the cranberry overpowering the vodka. Meh. I digress.

I took this picture because I really liked it. I thought the detail of the eyes was great.

I went up to Bukit Tinggi during one of the weekends. The last time I went to Bukit Tinggi was when I was still in primary school and since my mom wanted to bring an overseas friend of her there and asked me to tag along, I did. I must say it was quite a dissapointment. First of all, I don't remember the walls being purple or yellow or orange. I thought they were white?! Besides it's modelled after a real French village, and I highly doubt a French village would have their walls painted all kinds of funny colours. So not chic.

And as with everything in Malaysia, maintenance, maintenance, maintenance. We have the awesomest of things and they're all fine and dandy when they're new. But after a few years, everything just looks like shit. It's like we can never follow up and keep everything in tip top condition. Such a waste. As always.

This is Mel - showing us her diary that she totally forgot she wrote back in 2005?

It was a blast from the past indeed. All the crushes we went through. Growing pains. I'm pretty sure everyone went though that phase. I know I did. And I would probably NEVER let anyone read what I wrote during that time. Except for Wee. Coz we used to exchange diaries every week anyway. I think it takes real courage you know? To let other people read the things that were closest to your heart at the time. The innermost workings of your brain. And the words said from the heart during that period. To let people judge the person that you were and compare it to the person you are now. I don't think I'm brave enough.

I know I seemed amused, Mel. But I admire you for doing that. And trust me, your taste in boys has improved greatly! Lol. =D Faster get a hot Aussie bf woman!

And this my friends, is a typical Mel and Ka-Yee fight. They fight ALL THE TIME. And I somehow usually get caught in the middle and get soup dumped on me. =(

Having said that, they provide live entertainment and are very amusing.

I've probably said this a MILLION times already, but I miss my girls!!

This was our big farewell outing before everyone scattered off again.

How Many Bear Bear Jumped Across The Wall?

None.

I FINALLY got it after playing it for a gazillion times with them. And the stupid thing is, I've actually played it before with the college guys and I distinctly remember Teik Chi telling me the secret to the answer but I couldn't for life recall what it was.

I figured it out in the end, after I stopped trying to remember. Just goes to show, some things you have to figure it out yourself for you to remember them!

I still do not wholly get the Bang! Who Died one though. Play with me when I get back again to see if my theory is right k?

And my pleasant surprise the night I left. You know my family really thought you guys were coincidentally sending someone else off instead and so happen I was just going off as well. It was quite funny really. But yes, when you guys turned around it took me quite a few moments to process that you were actually THERE before I became super touched.

Thank you for coming all the way just to see me off!

Aaaand that's it. That night was just a whirlwind of activity. Everything just happened so fast! One minute I was still at home in the morning gobbling down CNY goodies and throwing stuff into my luggage bag and the next, I was checking in at the airport already. Everything was just a blur. I remember boarding the plane feeling quite numb actually. I wasn't excited. I wasn't sad. I wasn't happy. I wasn't anything. It was just matter-of-fact. Was probably operating on auto-pilot.

Anyway, we bought tickets to go see Russell Peters LIVE in May! I am super excited! Russell Be-A-Man Peters in the flesh. Woot woot!

In the meantime, recommend me some good songs to listen to please? I think I'm getting bored of my playlist.

Waiting In Line.

2010-03-02T21:04:00.004+08:00

First official post from the Land Downunder, well at least for 2010 and the duration of my stay for the purpose of furthering my studies. I'm pretty sure I blogged here when I was visiting my sister a few years back.

So, My Life In Numerics again because there just wayy to much to say, jot down and remember and because I've only just got my broadband. :D

1. Sitting here on the 9th floor, listening to the sounds of the cars whizz by on Coronation Drive below and the laughter of the patrons from the bar opposite floating in through the glass doors, I am at peace. Things have finally settled down a bit. It feels like home. Maybe it's because of the familiarity of the apartment. Was it selfish of me to not really consider all the other housing options? Very. I tried, I really did. But this, this feeling of coming home, here. Nothing beats this. Except maybe going back home. Home as in Malaysia home.

2. Australians have a very weird sense of newsworthiness, if there's such a word. I read one of their local papers the other day, The Courier Mail I think it was. And it was the day after the devastating Chile earthquake. However, their frontpage news was about school bullying. The whole page of it. Only a small, tiny section at the bottom showed a picture of the Chile earthquake and a small header. I was pretty much gobsmacked. I mean, who'd put school bullying over a major, earth shattering (literally) earthquake on the front page? It's very interesting to see how Australian media reports global happenings. I keep forgetting I'm not in Malaysia anymore and things are very different over here. My International Journalism lecturer put forward a very good point the other day. He commented that while Australia is geographically closer to Asia (and thus should be more concerned with it's happenings), yet loss of lives in Western countries creates a bigger impact than that of Asian ones. Probably still has something to do with Western supremacy and how Aussie was once a British colony. But still...

3. It feels like I've been constantly unpacking and repacking since the end of last year. Which is actually true if you think about it. Moving is always such a tiresome activity. I'm just so glad we had all my sister's friends to help out this time. Otherwise, assembling everything (bed, bookcase, couch, tables, chairs) would taken ages if it had only been the two of us. Her guy friends are all so sweet. The day we moved in, they all took turns coming to the apartment to help us fix up everything. It was like they were on shifts, coz one would leave and another would arrive. And this went on all day long. My sister has awesome friends!

4. I've just finished Matthew Reilly's The Six Sacred Stones. I always like his books coz they are just so kan cheong maximum! He manages to keep you at the edge of your seat at ALL times, which for a writer is such a difficult thing to do. Sure, his books don't have a lot of character development, but action/adventure books rarely do anyway. I always forget how a good book manages to keep me so engrossed in it, transported into this other realm, that time ceases to matter. It just trickles away so quickly! Mom was right to confisticate my books last time. They are hazardous to my health coz I sleep really late and wake up early just so I can finish reading them. But now that she's not here... =P

5. I have the most awesome pawsome friends in the world. Seriously. All the gifts you guys gave me before I left, the cards, notes and letters, the messages. You guys rockkkk! And the primary school bunch showing up at the airport to suprise me was just crazy! I was so touched. I totally did NOT expect to see you guys at all man. I feel the love, I really do. I am so, SO grateful to have each and every one of you as friends. Missing all of you here in Aussieland. And to those I did not manage to see before I left, I really am very sorry I couldn't organize everything in time. But rest assured, we will definitely go yum cha when I am back for holidays!

6. The weather's been crazy lately. First it was so hot, we were practically boiling. Then, it rains non-stop and the sky is all gloomy with flash floods happening everywhere. Completely nuts. And Brisbane flash floods are mighty scary let me tell you this. I don't think this city was built for heavy rain. At all. I also think Mother Nature is mighty pissed off with us all. What with the crazy weather, and the Chile earthquakes, flooding all around the world. I think we've damaged this earth too much, and it's just going nuts now. Sigh.

7. Starting anew has really refreshed me. I think I forgot my love of learning over the holidays and it has come blasting back at each of my first lectures. I am nerdy that way. So it's not just you Wee! And Ea! :D I guess we are all nerds at heart. The only subject this sem that I have slight resevations for is my web designing one. I am hopeless with HTML codes larh. And I'm guessing we have to design a webpage as one of our assignments. Don't get me wrong, it's such a useful skill to have. I'd be able to improve the look and feel of FreshlyBrewedIdeas so much more easily if I knew how to write the codes and stuff. But I sense a LOT of learning ahead for this one. Which involves hours in front of the computer trying to figure out why my code wont work coz I probably forgo a bracket or something, knowing how careless and scatterbrained I am. Which brings me to my next point...

8. I am so forgetful I amaze myself at times. Like today for instance, I forgot to take my entire file containing the campus map, my timetable and all the locations of my classes as I dashed out the door to catch the ferry. I met this really nice Malaysian girl who goes to QUT while waiting for the traffic light to turn green and because at that moment, I realized my hands were devoid of my file I had to rush back to the apartment to grab it. Hence, losing the opportunity to talk to her a few moments longer and get her number so we can grab coffee one day or something. So, Amelia if you ever read this, I really meant to stay longer and chat!! I managed to catch the ferry JUST in time by running like a madwoman back. And in spite of that, I was still late to my lecture by 10 minutes. Sigh. Plus on the ferry, I saw this cute guy which made eye contact and smiled at me but I was so out of breath from the running (and out of shape too from not going to the gym), and worrying about whether or not I was going to make it in time for the lecture and sweattyyyyy + wet coz of the rain, that I totally did not smile back lorh. All the opportunities lost because of my carelessness. Lol. A day in the life of me indeed.

Anyway, it's getting late and I have a 9am tutorial tomorrow so I'll sign off here. More updates to come, with pictures this time hopefully. Watch this space! ;)

Straight From The Heart.

2010-02-07T17:14:00.004+08:00

"Friendship is unnecessary, like philosophy, like art...

It has no survival value; rather is one of those things that give value to survival."

- C.S.Lewis

I don't think the past 19 years would have been the same without the prescence of you guys in my life. Looking back at pictures from the past few months, I am both thankful and grateful. You guys have been wonderful. Thanks for always being there - my safety nets, catching me when I fall. Thanks for always making the effort to oragnize outings. Thanks for keeping in touch. Thanks for accepting me for who I am without judgement, for picking up the pieces.

But most of all, thank you for being my friend.

It means so much more to me than words can express.

Here's to many many more years of friendship to come.

I think the lollipop-turned-into-something-obscene story will stick with us for years and years to come. ;)

Epic picture!!

Thanks for being little kids with me again.

Our early, pseudo CNY celebration since many of us won't be around this year.

Coincidentally bumping into each other at Pusat Sains Negara still counts as meeting up, Ea! I don't care! :P

Panas panas!!! :D

There's Skype, there's Facebook and of course MSN. It won't be the same, but we'll make do, right?

Thank you once again for all the farewell presents. Little things, but it means so much to me.

***************

You know how the song goes - Live Like We're Dying. I don't think we truly practice it till we have to say goodbye. Not like I'm dying or anything. But leaving really puts things into perscpective. The things that matter, the people that care, the people whom I care about... it's like my vision which used to be blurry has sharpened around the edges, came into focus.

Here's to an awfully great adventure. Bring it on!

The Sickness Is Myself.

2010-02-04T21:22:00.004+08:00

I'm going to do another one of those My-Life-In-Numerics posts again just to jot down some happenings and feelings I want to remember. Bear with me, these few weeks have been absolutely nuts!

1. Paintball yesterday was a pretty cool experience. I survived the war with only a small reddish mark on my left leg as a souvenir. No major bruises or cuts which I am very thankful for, but aching and sore muscles are aplenty. I would definitely go back for another round. This experience has taught me that being caught in a crossfire is utterly not as glamorous as it looks in movies. Confusion is rife and you literally don't know what hit you till you feel the pain. Plus getting hit is so easy coz stray pellets are everywhere. In Adele's words: "I definitely don't wanna be a policewoman." Oh and note to self: If I ever go for paintball with Jern Han again I will shoot at him continuously when he is out of pellets to give him a taste of his own medicine. *evil grin* Bugger refilled 50 pellets when I only had 20 pellets left and then rained pellets on Adele and I as revenge for shooting him earlier. =/

2. The first day after I stopped work, I woke up feeling deliriously free. Maybe I'm so used to the prospect of work or doing stuff that I felt kind of weird not doing anything anymore or counting down the days till I have to busy myself with something. It was awesome really. But I must say, I'm glad I got to work at Hot Potato. It was a rewarding experience. And seeing my name in print in the magazine was pretty cool.

3. We had our company Chinese New Year lunch on my last week of work at Spring Garden, Tropicana Golf and Country Club. The office boy, who's a young mid 20-ish Malay dude, was invited to join us. That was his first Chinese meal he's ever had in his life. We had to explain each dish to him, the ingredients used, what it meant. He didn't even know what yee sang was! 0_o I realized at that point, that we are so close together physically yet so isolated and disconnected from each other's cultures. The concept of exposure also dawned on me. Some people don't even have to chance to be exposed to or get to experience the culture and traditions of another race who live in the same country because of poverty. We take forgranted too many things. Really and truly.

4. Today is Thursday. I am jetting off on Monday. I have not packed. At all. I think it's a combination of procrastination and the significance of packing once I do start. Packing makes leaving real. It makes leaving behind all things comfortable and reliable - friends, family and home, tangible. And it scares me. The unknown. How do you pack your whole life into a 30kg suitcase? At least moving was slightly easier, the unknown was only 5 minutes away and I could take as many boxes as I wanted to. But this... this is taking things to a whole new level. I think the magnitude of leaving has finallt started to catch up with me.

5. I got another piercing on my ear today. I've been wanting it for ages but it was a spur of the moment thing to do it today. Kit Mun and I got it done - hers on the right and mine on the left. Mel chickened out at the last minute even though it was her idea to go pierce. =.= I think I have quite a thing for impulsive decisions. Probably has something to do with the adrenaline rush I get when I do impulsive stuff.

6. I cut and dyed my hair yesterday and it looks much healthier now. I think I should have cut it slightly shorter though, it's gonna be pretty long when I come back from Aussieland. =S

7. Today was our farewell outing amongst the college gang since everyone will be leaving after this. I think I'm gonna miss laughing and doing crazy things as well as telling funny stories with you guys the most. I'm glad we found each other. I love how we manage to gel together to easily even though we're all so different. I am going to miss you girls so, so much!

8. I handed in my withdrawal form to Monash today. I felt a hollow sensation in my heart at the thought of walking in as a Monash student for the last time. Monash was a heck of a good first year of uni and I fervantly hope that second year will be as good, if not better.

Anyway, that's all I can think of for now. Check back later for longer posts. Will definitely try to squeeze in a few more before I leave. Cheers!

Cut My Life Into Pieces.

2010-01-23T23:28:00.003+08:00

As I grow older, I find that I have less tolerance and patience. Odd isn't it? One would think that as one grows older, one would acquire more tolerance and patience while learning to smile and communicate politely whenever the situation calls for it. In other words, knowing what to do and just the right thing to say for every situation.

I hate it. I have absolutely zero tolerance for entertaining nowadays. I hate how we have to pretend everything is okay and face the world when it's not. I hate the stupid save-face Asian culture we adhere to where everyone has to put on their best facade and pull on an unrecognizable mask whilst playing the ridiculous game of "let's pretend". I hate how everything is so perfectly contrived on the outside yet so irrepairbly broken on the inside. And in Greg's words, I hate the whole "dancing around short fuses and slighted feelings" situation. I hate how we have to be on our toes all the time. It's like dancing a neverending en pointe - everyone's shit exhausted but still has to stretch those facial muscles into a smile because the show must go on.

In spite of all these, the cracks still show. Then, why bother? Really... why do we bother to hide and pretend when you deliberately pour acid down the facade for it to corrode and let people bear witness to it. I don't understand how we became this way. I don't understand how the ties that are supposedly the strongest can be broken so easily and forgotten.

I'm sick and tired of this and will be glad to leave this all behind. Maybe leaving isn't such a bad thing anymore. Such a selfish thing of me to say. But I am. Selfish. I am probably the most selfish person on the face of this earth, but if it means I can pretend that it's not there and doesn't exist then whatever... I can't be bothered. If leaving is my one way ticket to get off this turbulant ride then I'd take it.

I think the first sign of imminent trouble is when you think it's okay. When you think it's justifiable for someone to treat you in a certain way. When you don't stand up for yourself or give yourself a voice. When you don't retaliate. When you feel inferior but in reality, you should be equal. When you settle. When you try to accomodate another person's needs to much that you forget what it is that you want. Forget the essential things that you need. That make you well, you. Forget yourself. You lost yourself in a search to help find someone else.

I think I'll make a promise to myself. I vow to never let anybody treat me in similar ways.

Screw this shit.

I don't know if I can.

Nothing Louder Than Silence

2010-01-15T16:40:00.004+08:00

Currently listening to - Switchfoot's Hello Hurricane album (thank you Greg!)

"There are few things that Success is not... Success is not fame, money or power. Success is waking up in the morning, so excited about what you have to do that you literally fly out the door. Success is getting to work with the people you love. Success is finding a way of connecting and binding them together, making people feel. Success is connecting with the world. Success is falling asleep knowing you did the best you could. Sucess is joy, friendship and freedom. Success is love."

- Fame (2009)

This will be my reminder to myself - I have tasted success already. On the days that I feel like a failure, on the days that I feel under accomplished, on the days that I feel I am not enough... I will remember that I am. There is nothing more successful than loving your life, the people in it, the things you do.

I wish we could crystallize and bottle up moments like these. And when we don't believe anymore, all we'd have to do is just unscrew the cap and let the wonderful moments course through our veins again. Then, we'd have faith and strength and everything else that we think we lack to go on.

Different Names For The Same Thing.

2010-01-14T12:37:00.000+08:00

Oh dear, I SO should not do Gastronomic Adventure posts when I'm hungry! Sigh... now all I can think about is food, food and moreeeee yummylicious food.

Anyway, I'm sure some of you have noticed the gradual disappearance of the restaurant known as Mr.Ho's Fine Food. My family used to frequent the one in Mid Valley for all things pork, which has since been taken over by Caring Pharmacy.

Apparently, Mr. Ho is quite the gambler and as gamblers usually do, gambled away his entire fortune, including his restaurants. However, the former Mr.Ho's at Plaza Damas managed to change hands and is now called The Meat Experts (TME) with the exact same menu and staff as Mr.Ho's (or so the manager claims).

We've since tried it out twice during the weekends and I can safely say that the food is pretty much the same. Except for the sausages which tasted slightly odd. Everything else was the same as before, so now you know where to go when if you've missed Mr.Ho's porky goodness!

Caesar salad with salami and pork! Dressing was fabulous!

Pork knuckle - my parents favourite! The skin is really crunchy and their mash is awesome too!

Spaghetti Carbonara! While the dish was creamy and sinful and good, my sisters and I still prefer their Signature Asian Pesto because they use coriander instead of basil making it super yummylicious and flavourful!

My favourite dish other than their Asian Pesto is this - TME pork ribs!

The meat is really tender and nice and the tangy sauce adds so much flavour. Thinking about it makes my stomache growl... =(

Om nom nom....

My sister thought I looked "cute" eating and decided to be trigger happy. I'm glad I amuse you jie. =.=

Garlic fries! <3

I'm a pretty big fan of garlic so I loved this snack since it had oodles of finely chopped garlic in it.

Don't order it if you're on a date I guess... unless the both of you are planning to eat it/loves garlic.

I think I need to go and snack on something now. Toodles!

Half Of My Heart.

2010-01-12T11:11:00.005+08:00

Currently listening to - Daughtry's cover of Pokerface

We talk about tolerance, about muhibah, about living in peace and harmony.

We talk about love, forgiveness and the freedom of religion.

But that's just it, isn't it? It's all talk.

The actions of the ruling party are singing a much different tune.

I consider myself to be patriotic - I love my country, my home. I really do.

But as someone so eloquently put it, being patriotic doesn't mean agreeing with everything the ruling party does.

But lets leave it at that for the moment.

****************************************

My sister brought me for my very first No Black Tie sometime during the end of last year. Her friend Reza was playing and she wanted to go and support his act so I tagged along.

There was a cover charge but I've totally forgotten how much it was.

We had a late dinner there and although I've heard many complaints about the food, it was actually quite okay. The agadeshi tofu was passable and the shoestring fries were pretty standard but the mentaiko pasta left much to be desired.

I guess we'll stick to snacks the next time we go back.

This was the other band that was playing that night other than Reza's band. I missed the band's name due to the funny little man's (the one sitting on the tiny stool) heavy Indian accent. =/

My sister and I were pretty mean because we kept quietly giggling at the funny little man. Aiyo, I swear! He shouldn't sing larh. I mean their songs are quite good and the musical arrangements are pretty awesome... it's just that the lead singer is... for lack of a better phrase - an epic failure. They really should let somebody else sing. I've a feeling that the funny little man writes the songs and he should continue writing..his topics are quite political and very relevant to Malaysia (apparently he works for a newspaper which explains it) and he can continue playing the guitar but he really should just NOT open his mouth. I know it sounds quite mean, but trust me... our quiet giggling was nothing compared to the other people in the audience. They started talking and laughing really loudly and halfway through the set, they started yelling for Reza.

I must say I quite pity the funny little man. Haih~! His song entitled ISA Blues should really be the anti-ISA theme song.

Anyway, this is Reza Salleh and his band. The guitarist is apparently from Estranged, which was why he looked so familiar (I only found out after the performance).

I'm glad that Reza started a band. His original songs which he used to play solo sounds better when accompanied with a band.

The song that really got me hooked on Reza's music all those years ago was actually For Her. I think he gave a copy of his CD to my sister when they were in college and she used to play it at home. I remember listening to it and thinking it was a cool song. I think that's the only song that I'd prefer him to play solo.

All in all, it was a pretty cool experience and I'm glad we went though I had to work the next day and the gig only ended around 12am. It started on time though which is such a rare occurance in Malaysia.

There are so many talented Malaysian artistes out there. It's great that places like No Black Tie are willing to give exposure to them. I'm so sick of hearing all the same Malaysian bands again and again as opening acts for concerts. They really should have a little more variety.

Preview passes to watch Cirque Du Freak: The Vampire's Assistant.

Ahh... the perks of working in the media industry! :D

Movie was so-so only though. I thought they could have done better in terms of the pacing of the movie. It was a leetle to slow for my liking. And more character development would have been nice.

Ah, I've just realized this post will probably be the last one regarding the events 2009!

I still can't wrap my head around the fact that it's 2010 already even though I've stopped saying "this year" when what I really meant was "last year".

Anyway, New Year's Eve was spent in Selesa thanks to Ann and Nick. ;)

It was a supremely last minute plan as it was only finalized that afternoon itself while I was at work.

Mel and I as we were on the way up!

Our accommodation for the night! Thanks Nick for picking us up and letting us stay at your place!

Our view of Genting. We stopped by the roadside half way up as we didn't want to go all the way up and jostle with the crowd there.

Night mode! I like how these night mode shots when all the lights transform into cute shapes due to the slow shutter speed. Yes, I know I am slightly weird.

The girls. I think what I liked the most about this trip was that it was so spontaneous. I liked how the whole trip came together without too much planning or hassle. It felt like one minute I was sitting in the office and the next I was enjoying the cooling breeze in Selesa.

Of course, the awesome company helped make the trip epic as well!

The crazy girls doing the flasher pose and the poor guys looking like they don't quite know what to do with us. :P

Love this self-timed group shot! I think it summarizes the whole trip - happy times!

Nick was actually carrying Ann bridal style but Mel and I blocked them. :(

Whoops!

I think this might be when the fireworks started which is why lovebirds #2 were looking up into the sky! :D

A super shweet picture nonetheless.

All I managed to capture of the fireworks. Lol XD Little poofs of light. The fireworks mode in my camera is CMI wan...must be super duper still then only can capture. Ah well. Typical la.

More flasher butt poses. This time we even left gaps for Ka-Yee, Joyce etc.

;)

The boys super layan us coz we wanted to stop by the roadside and camwhore.

So that's how we ended up doing jump shots on the road and whenever a car came we'd all rush back to the side. Adrenaline rush! :D

Unfortunately, the gastric that felt like it was eating away my insides kicked into full force by this time and I didn't feel much like camwhoring anymore. So I settled for being photographer instead!

The other girls went crazy though! I like this picture the best because it's so funny! Especially Mel! It's like she's trying to bait Mun and Ann with her military jacket but they don't wanna layan and want to take pictures instead!

More self-timed group shots! <3

All the epic poses. :D

After that, we headed back to Selesa and played Taboo!

And Gin Rummy as well.

Next, we moved on with Twister. It was so amusing seeing them figure out how to position themselves! That's probably why I was laughing so hard in the corner there. ;D

Totally twisted. Literally.

The boys went to sleep after a few gruelling rounds of Twister while the girls decided to indulge in an aunty pastime and played more Gin Rummy!

This is Aunty #1 who looks more like a lady boss!

Aunty #2

Aunty #3

Kc said this would look more real if I had Chinese Tea in the cup instead of Vodka + Sprite. =.=

Aunty #4 who Ann calls a zombie grandma! lol XD

All in all, it was a rocking start to 2010. Let's hope that it's an indication of how the rest of the year is gonna be.

Better Days.

2010-01-07T21:42:00.002+08:00

I remember one morning getting up at dawn; There was such a sense of possibility. You know that feeling? And i remember thinking to myself, "So, this is the beginning of happiness. This is where it starts." And of course there will always be more. It never occurred to me it wasn't the beginning. It was happiness. It was the moment. Right then.

-The Hours

And that day was one of those days. It started out like any other. But as I was on my way to work, I stopped at the traffic light in front of BSC and just glanced up. It struck me how very beautiful the sky was - clear, blue, without any clouds whatsoever hovering above. Don't get me wrong, I'd gladly spend a day lying down, staring at the sky and making shapes out of the cotton candy clouds. But there are days, like that one, when I love how the vast sky is cloudless. Neverending.

And I felt it. That sense of possibility. Instantly, I knew that it was going to be a good day. Isn't it wonderful how simple moments like these can totally transform a mundane, ordinary day into something special? It's moments like these that I truly am glad I'm alive. I'm living, not existing.

Here's hoping everyday will be as awesome for all of you guys too! :D

War Sweater

2010-01-01T17:50:00.006+08:00

And so, a new year begins...

2009 was a pretty awesome year for me. My first year at Monash could not have gone any better I think. I feel so sad at the thought of leaving it next, I mean this year. This year. THIS year. It's finally here. There are times when I think of this coming year, and all the uncertainties that lie ahead and I feel a creeping hollow sensation in my gut.

Then there are other times, when I think of this year - 2010, and all the changes it will bring and that stream of excitement bubbles into a fountain inside my heart.

I have not made any New Year's Resolutions these past few years. I think I don't believe in them anymore. Why should it take a new year for people to change? If you were really serious about it, change can start at anytime, anywhere.

The last new year's resolution I made was a few years back, after a crazy shopping spree in Aussieland (Boxing Day salesssss!), I vowed not to buy any clothes for the next 3 months. And I lasted for 5. I was very proud of myself. ;)

Anyway, here's to a fun-filled 2010 brimming with love, joy, laughter, occasional tears, rewarding experiences and enriching journeys.

Bring on that first year in Aussieland! :D

******************************

The last few weeks of 2009 were awesome. I hope I always feel this contented and happy.

Many thanks to Huey Li for inviting us to Elysium's club opening.

They played good music and we had fun!

With our driver for the night. Thank you Max!

Free flow of beer. ;)

Theme of the night was supposed to be Grecian. I think all of us looked a little too funky to be considered really grecian but hey, we tried!

And I find the concept of Asian gladiators very amusing. :P

On to Maison after that!

While I was on my way to Sr2ScA gathering, the sun was setting and it was so beautiful. The palette of colours that melded together in the sky just took my breath away! Unfortunately, I didn't have much time to snap a picture since I was supposed to be following Adele's car as I didn't know the way to Plaza Pantai. As a result of this picture, I nearly lost sight of Dele's car since two other cars cut in front of me. =/

It was great seeing everyone again. It's been nearly a year since I last saw everyone? Wayyy to long.

This picture was epic. They were all still talking and laughing when I wanted to take the picture but as soon as Ying counted to "3" everyone turned to look at the camera and smile! Always camera ready indeed. :P

Christmas Eve dinner at Alexis, Gardens!

That's two years in a row we've been dining there at Christmas Eve. What can I say? They have good food.

My pretty sister with the table deco.

We ordered dishes from their special Christmas menu.

This was one of our starters- Scallops and peas!

The scallops were huge, succulent and juicy making it ultra yummylicious!

Another Christmas starter - Mango and Chicken Salad in Balsamic Vinegar

Christmas mains - Crabmeat and Seafood Pasta

I totally forgot to take a picture of the other main courses (I told you I'm an epic failure as a food blogger) but I'm pretty sure they included Roast Turkey (which had good stuffing) and Alexis' famed Sarawak laksa.

Christmas Day dinner was spent with the cousins at Unique Seafood before we adjourned to Bar TwentyOne at Bangsar Shopping Center to count down to Min's birthday.

Oh, and Greg is back from Melbourne! :D

The sisters!

Our dessert! Christmas pudding, bananna mango mousse and some melted chocolate thingy that sent me to chocolatey heaven!

The bowls they use are super cute too.

Happy clappy times!

When the clock struck 12, we sang the birthday song and attempted to let Minny blow out the match. It took quite a few attempts, but we managed in the end!

Toasting! Their Long Island Tea is super lethal coz it tastes like lemonade but actually has a lot of alcohol in it. My sister and I both K.O-ed when we reached home after that. But that might also be a result of the combination of super lethal long island tea in addition to all the other drinks we had earlier. =/

Reena's turn at blowing out the match since her birthday was only 3 days away!

With the revolving Christmas tree.

In Greg's words: This is what Santa would look like if he were a Chinese Starfish. Complete with the sepet eyes somemore!

Boxing Day or rather Min's birthday was spent in Pavilion looking for er... my belated birthday present. =S

We had a gastronomic adventure at Cafe Stelle run by Raffles.

Their placemats are cool but very sharp. You can't lean your hands on it otherwise you'll get imprints.

Bread served with yummlicious sides - butter, salsa sauce and pesto.

My sister's latte came with these little sticks of brown and white sugar. So adorable!

Banger and mash.

The sausages were really good. I don't know how to explain it but the meat tasted really er... fresh? Not the processed meat flavour that lousy sausages sometimes possess.

Plus, the mash was super smooth too!

The salad that came with my sister's Healthy Set (includes dessert, coffee/tea and a main course)

I thought it was so-so. Nothing to shout about.

Butternut Squash Soup that was superb! Just the right amount of flavour and creamy-ness.

Pesto Linguine. This dish was absolutely delightful coz it the pesto flavour really came through.

Raspberry sorbet with peaches.

Typical kind of dessert.

After we settled my birthday pressie, we had Godiva for tea!

Pistacchio macaroon with a layer of Godiva choclate in the middle is heaven! My sisters and I are a wee bit obsessed with macaroons lately. Blame Delicious Ingredients for that!

Macaroon being washed down by our super yummylicious chocolate drinks- Dark Chocolate Decadence and Chocolate Raspberry.

That's all for now folks! I leave thee with a picture of me wearing all the funky headgear courtesy of my sister. Happy New Year once again and since Christmas last for 12 days, Merry Christmas too!

I Wish You'd Catch My Eye.

2009-12-28T20:49:00.003+08:00

Currently listening to- Painting by Chagall by The Weepies

We had a joint celebration/ shopping outing for Kit Mun and Ka-Yee's birthdays who are just a day apart a few weeks ago.

This is Kit Mun looking all supermodel-ey with her oversized sunnies holding part of Ka-Yee's pressie.

Finally, Ka-Yee arrives to claim her birthday pressie.

Woman, I'm so glad you managed to make it that day. We hardly ever get to see you man! :(

And it seems like she likes her gift! :D

Operation Get Ka-Yee To Wear More Dresses is sucessful!

I also realized that I have not introduced Delicious under Gastronomic Adventures yet which is travesty since that's one of my favourite food joints.

Anyway, this is my all time favourite Watermelon and Lychee Blast. I almost always order this when I am there. It's usually that or their Frosty Lemon Tea.

Both drinks are very refreshing and are best served on a super scorchingly hot day!

This is another one of my favourites - Duck Confit Spaghettini

It tastes a bit like aglio oglio, only more yummylicious! The sun dried tomatoes add that extra flavour and the duck is always marinated to perfection.

Lately, my sisters and I have also been addicted to their Pesto, which is also extremely scrumptious. Another must try though we didn't order it that day.

Vietnamese Chicken Salad

This was Ka-Yee's choice and it turned out better than expected I must say! (coz I usually order their Caesar which is pretty standard)
It is however, a dish for peanut lovers only since the dressing is peanut sauce. (I'm a peanut sauce lover as you can see)
Ann didn't like it coz she doesn't like peanuts. :(
Loved the presentation though. The thinly sliced zucchinis are so cute!

Mun's favourite - Spaghetti Carbonara

A pretty standard dish I would say. Their sauce is rich and creamy (as the best carbonaras should be even though the original ones aren't creamy at all =.=), making this dish super filling. I advise sharing for this one if you want to avoid filling jelak!

In my opinion, this is the best dish is Delicious - Shoestring fries with Aeoli

It sounds deceptively simple but it tastes superb! I'm sure you're probably going: "You go ALL the way to Delicious to eat fries?!"

But trust me on this one. Delicious makes the best shoestring fries ever! They are usually crispy at all the right places and coupled with their to-die-for aeoli, I'm in carbohydrate heaven. :D

And the best news is, their amazing aeoli is now for sale at Delicious Ingredients at only RM10! We already have to two little pots sitting in our fridge. Hehe. And aeoli has replaced chilli sauce at the dinner table. Fattening, but in my sister's words: you only live once and we're ALL going to die anyway! Lol XD

Good food, good company and good ambience. What else can you ask for?

All the Ssaps minus Ieka. :(

One more before we hit Telawi for some retail therapy!

Oh, we made Ka-Yee try her dress first though, just to make sure it fit properly.

Doesn't she look stunningly gorgeous in it? ;)

My college ssaps are the awesomest bunch ever. I love you guys!

Moving on girls, bazaar this weekend on? :P

Painted in Grey.

2009-12-28T19:20:00.004+08:00

As I walk into my room, I can smell the aroma of the newly hung oil painting. Looking at the black and white contrast of the interconnected webs of branches and dots of leaves with the background always forces me to stop, stare and mavel. Art really is beautiful thing.

I remember the exact moment this painting caught my eye so many months ago. I was walking unsuspectingly in Jusco, One Utama. I wasn't even looking for anything in particular even though we were all supposed to be on the lookout for additions to our new sanctuary. And then I saw it. From afar - in all it's contrasting glory. And I knew I wanted to have that painting. Must have it, even. I had no clue what my room would be like, what colour I'd paint my walls, what style my future furnitire would look like, but I knew I wanted that painting. Crazy isn't it?

And so many months later, I finally have it. At a fraction of the original price because I managed to find the exact same painting with a tiny flaw at a stall in Plaza Damas. The artist who sold me the painting said they all came from China. Oh, how they over-inflate the prices at these commercial stores!

But I digress.

I was saying how art is such a beautiful thing. And it is. I find it so amazing how the same piece of art can mean so many different things to different people. I see mine as a tree of life. The vendor sees it as a money tree. (and so does my dad) 0_o But it works just as well I suppose. I love how, in that sense, each piece of art is unique to every individual. And I'm not just talking about art in the form of paintings, but art in the form of words, architecture, buildings, songs, photographs, sketches, food - everything.

Creating something out of nothing. That's probably what I admire the most about artists. It's times like these that I wish my art was good. That I am able to create all these wonderful, amazing things which will make people stop in their tracks and think for a moment about what it means to them. How wonderful that gift would be!

But I cannot create, I can only imitate. Or re-create. Even when I took art lessons as a kid, my best drawings and paintings were imitations of my teacher's work. I always had to have an example to look to, before I could do anything on my own. But I think I've come to terms with that. It's probably why I admire writers, artists, architects and even engineers so much.

Oh well, in the meantime, I'll just admire my pretty tree of life everytime I walk past it. :D

Merry Christmas!

2009-12-27T20:11:00.003+08:00

Merry Christmas!

I hope everyone's Christmas was filled with lots of warmth, love, joy, laughter and fun!

Cheers.

Btw, can you believe that my Christmas tree is older than I am? And most of the ornaments on the tree too come to think of it. =/

P.S: I'm loving how our Christmas tree is sitting in the corner of a very oriental/ Chinese-y living room. The best of both worlds indeed.

All About Us.

2009-12-23T21:57:00.004+08:00

Last month, I spent a few days helping Ea and Jowee with their music video.

We filmed most of our shots in Monash, some in my house and on Pyramid's roof top.

Although it was super tiring for the most part, it's also one of the fun-est things I've done in awhile. So thank you girls! For inviting me to be a part of this wonderful experience.

I can now say that I've been a part of a music video production. :)

Before you guys watch the actual music video, take a look at the behind the scenes shots!

Our direction/producer-Zaleha on the left taking her lunch break! Check out her mouthful of spaghetti on the left. :P

Introducing the other director/producer who was doubling up as a crew member!

On a completely unrelated note, I think the dead cat(the fluffy mike) is so cute! It amuses me for some weird, inane reason.

This was how dedicated everyone was! The sun was glaring and we were all sweating buckets but we persevered for the sake of art! ;)

Director/Producer er... instructing her main actors while the other director/producer sets up the equipment.

At one point, one of the wheels came out and ALL the future engineers came to the rescue.

Sometimes, having boys around can come in handy! :P

Transporting the dolly!

The equipment.

Day 2 of the shoot was done on Pyramid's roof top.

If either Jon or Ea were to slip, it's a LONG way down. Yikes!

This was the final day of the shoot.

The two directors/producers taking five while waiting for the actors to get their act together.

It was an awesome experience girls, I'd relive it in a heartbeat even though it involved lots of hard work.

Anyway, here's the final product! I hope you guys enjoy it/ understand the storyline!

PS: See if you can guess my feet correctly! :D

Neither Here Nor There.

2009-12-12T21:58:00.003+08:00

The question isn't about staying together forever- with the right amount of patience and perseverance, anyone can do that; it's about staying HAPPY together forever.

****

Anyway, this will probably be a pretty long, picture heavy post. If you're not in the mood for on those posts I suggest you read these bite sized versions:

1) Andrea's concise version

2) Jowee's short, sweet and fun version

3) Adele's two in one version

My version will be a more detailed one since it was my 19th birthday after all and it was a time to remember. :D

Let the shrine of narcissism begin!

So I fetch Mel and Wee down to Sheraton to check in and thus began our epic hotel sleepover!

It was super jammed on Imbi that day die to those good-for-nothing traffic policemen so bear with our continuous shots!

The Octopus mouth is the easiest thing to do when you need to change facial expressions I've noticed. :P

My friends are so comel laaa... <3

Once my dad and sis checked us in and we were done oogling the room, camwhore time begun!

My right and left hand girls. Don't pway pway!

And then we decided to get ready for dinner. Look at all the gorgeous dresses! Wee and Mel had a dilemma choosing which one to wear so we decided to have a mini fashion show trying on each other's dresses since we had to wait for Ann to arrive anyway.

The fashion show begins! I guess girls never tire of playing dress up do they?

That's Mel in my dress and Wee peeking out of the closet.

Loving Jowee's hair here! So pwetty.

And I'm trying on Mel's dress which has a gorgeous back! You guys can check out Five Fashion Friends to see our complete outfits for that day! ;)

Once our outfits were settled, we started to take jump shots.

And this was the perfect jump, except that we look like headless chickens.

Ah well, at least it's funnier this way.

Touching up our make up was next in line and here you can see the look of intense concentration on my face as I try not to poke my eye whilst trying to make myself look good.

Oh, the things we do to look pretty!

Now, it's time for a gastronomic adventure!

We decided on Dome for dinner at Pavilion and this is my all-time favourite drink at Dome- Cranberry Cooler!

Basically, it's just cranberry syrup and sprite but somehow Dome makes the best Cranberry Coolers. I've tried similar ones in Alexis and Chinoz before but they just don't do the drink justice.

If you like something with a bit of fizz in it, this is a must-try!

Next up, Chocolate Brownies with Vanilla Ice-Cream.

This was pretty standard with the gooey, sweet, sticky chocolate.

The only thing that left me slightly irritated was that they served this as the second or third dish. Hello? Desserts are meant to be served AFTER dinner. At least ASK before you serve it la right?

Pesto Caesar Salad

So we alternated between super sweet dessert and savoury starters and mains.

Their Caesar was pretty good because of the pesto sauce- which made it slightly similar to The C.Club's Caesar.

Back in the day, I remember my sister would go to Dome JUST to eat their Caesar Salad coz it had a full egg in it. However, they have since changed their resipe but it tastes just as good if you ask me.

This is another all-time Dome favourite of mine too- Creamy Seafood Pasta

It's sinful with all the cream and pretty flavourful too. What more can you ask for?

Best served with lashings of black pepper! ;)

Oh and their prawns are fresh! Not the artificial chewy kind. Urgh.

After our filling dinner, we walked around Pavilion trying to let the food digest and guess who we bumped into at Diva? Nicole Chin!

I seem to always be bumping into people at Diva- that store feng shui good la.

I bumped into Debbie and Wei-Lin at the same time in Diva MV.
They shoudl be called: Diva- Bring People Closer Together By Their Love For Accessories.

Lol XD

And this is, as Ann calls it- a commercial break from all the picture viewing. Drink Coke!

It was actually pretty funny watching this dude decide whether or not to continue walking while we were taking the picture. In the end, he decided to walk right when Jowee thought he wouldn't, and this is the end result- Drink Coke!

Pavilion's Christmas deco this year is superb! With all the fairy lights and ginormous Christmas trees, it was truly magnificent indeed.

Group picture before Adele had to leave because she had her IELTS the next day.

Thank you so much girl for coming even though you had a pretty important exam the next day. It means a lot to me. *hugs*

Headed back to the hotel for Wee and Mel to do an outfit change and oh, funny story!

On the way back to the hotel as we were exiting the parking lot, we were held up as this car was blocking the exit. While we passed by the car that was holding up traffic, we saw this shiny black 2 door BMW parked right at the exit, a girl throwing up as she sat in the passenger seat and her boyfriend (presumably the owner of the BMW) frantically wiping her puke off his car door, looking up at her in concern and asking if she was okay, and then resumed wiping his precious car.

And this is why dating car lovers suck. The car is more important than you.

Bah, humbug.

Love that spotlight from above, midnight sun indeed! :D

And for the record, standing on pebbles in heels is really no joke. =.=

They had a massage table next to the pool!

And I already said this is a narcisstic shrine so big ass pictures of me are compulsory! :P

I love this candid shot of Mel and Ann! We were waiting for Kit Mun btw, that's why we had so much free time.

Improved version of See No Evil, Speak No Evil and Hear No Evil.

^_^

A really nice Caucasian lady offered to take this photos for us! Her angle was really awesome!

Kit Mun finally arrived and we headed out to Maison.

Despite having a bit too many lecherous guys filming ugly podium girls dancing as well as ah bengs, I think we managed to have fun!

This first drink we scored for the night which... nobody drank.

I swear Malaysian guys, or more specifically ah bengs are a complete failure at picking up girls!

You do not, let me repeat, you NEVER walk up to a girl's table hold a drink, plop it down, and then leave without saying a word! Jeez. Who is going to drink your drink like that? We have no idea what it was or if it was spiked and when we tried asking him, he remained tight lipped and walked away. Epic PHAIL!. So we just left it there at the table.

Now this guys was a bit smarter- he took an entire bottle of Chivas and poured it right in front of us and clinked glasses. Thank you Waleed, for having some common sense!

It was a pretty good night I felt and we hit the dance floor shortly after our Mission For The Night was accomplished. ;D

My present from the girls. So suspicious lol, what is it?

I told Kit Mun I wanted Taboo, and lo and behold, they got me Taboo!

Ask and thou shalt receive indeed. :D

We spent the rest of the night or morning I should say playing Twister and Taboo! So much fun!

It is actually quite hard to play Twister when you've got a slight buzz going in your head but we did it pretty well and burned some calories holding super hard positions till like 7 in the morning! :D

The party don't stop just because we were back in the hotel room yo!

Unfortunately Mel K.O-ed for awhile but woke up when we beeped the Taboo beeper in her ear 2 hours later. Lol XD

And of course, we continued our Langkawi tradition of taking bikini showers.

Except we decided to do bikini hot tub first!

It is super relaxing to soak in hot HOT water after a long night out. Props to Jowee who ran the bath!

We popped in a DVD (Ghost of Girlfriend's Past) at around 7.30am but all of us crashed and took some much deserved rest on the fluffy hotel beds.

We woke up again around 10am, and I found it amusing how we all got up at exactly the same time! Our brains are so in sync it's not funny! Anyway did our make up and showered before checking out and heading off to have lunch.

Check out our bikini line! :P

Ann's intense concentration look! Eh, curling lashes also needs skill and concentration okay!
Btw, Ann I love your lashes- they're so long!

Decided to try out Pepper Lunch and it was really yummylicious!

But being the glutton that I am, I forgot to take picture and dug right in so I can't really do a gastronomic adventure post. :(

Oh well, suffice to say, it was good and you should try it one day!

And so ends my epic brithday sleepover. Thanks to all of you darling girls who made it.

I love you guys like crazy!

I think what made this sleepover so crazily fun was that we all gel-ed together so easily and all of us liked to dress up and do all the girly, fun things together. Outings with you guys are always awesome! Sg. Wang next k, girls! Can't wait!

Fly Away Now.

2009-12-08T23:32:00.003+08:00

As I mentioned in my previous post, my birthday dinner was spend at The C.Club in Pavilion.

And it was a really good choice I must say- thank you minny!

The ambience was good with the pretty and shiny crystal chandeliers and Christmas music.

However, they seated us next to this table of er...for lack of a better word- ah bengs and ah lians who pretty much ruined the atmosphere with their incredibly loud conversation (in irritatingly horrible English mind you!) and their incessant flash photography. Sigh... oh well! That wasn't The C.Club's fault so... moving on!

After we sat down and placed our orders, it started snowing outside! And it snowed all throughout dinner. So awesome since we were seated next to the window and we could see snow float past us as we ate.

Totally did not feel like Malaysia what with the snow and the nice ambience. ;)

Anyway, we ordered a 4 course meal which cost us Rm154++ in total if I remember correctly. The set includes coffee/tea, juice, a starter, a soup, a main course and dessert! Very worth it if you ask me.

This was our soup- Shellfish Bisque with a dash of Cognac

It was so so SO flavourful and yummylicious man! Plus it wasn't watery or too thick- just right.

It had scallop, baby crab and prawn inside it as well which added to the flavour!

A must try if you ever go there.

This was an extra order or Caesar salad that was really scrumptious too! They added pesto sauce in it which was probably what made it taste so different yet good.

Scallop foie gras
The stringy orange bits are pickled pumpkin while the red stuff on top is onion marmalade.
I loved how the taste of everything combined and really exploded. Especially the foie gras, it was done to perfection and sandwiched between the huge scallop just added brownie points.

This was our mains- Pan seared salmon rossini (a chef's recommendation if I'm not mistaken)
It's basically salmon served with oxtail stew at the bottom and a juicy piece of foie gras on top.
It was heaven! I really really REALLY liked this dish. (I'm a salmon lover so I might be biased though =.=)
This was what Remy from Ratouille meant when he said cheese and wine produced fireworks. Because it was an explosion of taste and flavour on the taste buds!

And to top it all off, Dessert!

Lavender and lychee creme brulee top with scorched balsamic strawberries

When my mom first decided she wanted this dish for dessert out of so many other delectable sounding choices in the menu I was a bit apprehensive. In my experience, anything lavender flavoured (other than tea) doesn't usually turn out quite well because it usually tastes really artificial. In addition to that, I'm not a huge fan of creme brulee either.

But as it turns out, I needn't have worried because I think this is the most awesome creme brulee I've ever eaten in my life! And that's saying something.

And it wasn't just me, my sister thought so too okay!

The lavender flavour was infused with creme brulee and it wasn't too overpowering- just subtle hints here and there. The crume brulee was super smooth and the balsamic strawberries added an interesting twist to the whole dish.

Overall, an awesome dining experience at The C. Club. It's probably a bit too expensive for normal meals but for special occasions, it's a pretty good place.

When we got home, we cut cake! The best Oreo cheesecake ever (as I have proclaimed before) is from Marmalade and it's my birthday cake this year! Woot! :D

My mom couldn't resist and stuffed the mushroom into the frame. Sigh... she is obsessed with all these ornaments I swear.

And THAT was how I celebrated my birthday- good food with the family.

Sleepover at Sheraton with the girls post coming up soon. Wait for it!

Nineteen.

2009-12-08T18:06:00.003+08:00

And so I have turned 19. It honestly felt like any other day. Which I knew it would. (you can this post here to see how I feel about age)

The thing is, when I was younger, I always thought that at 19 I'd be all mature and smarter and I'd figure out what I want in life and which direction I should take. You know, I thought I'd be the girl who had everything together and all that. But I guess when I was only 10 years old, 19 seemed like it was so far away when in reality, it passed in the blink of an eye.

Now that I AM 19, I guess I feel disappointed that I not that smart. I haven't matured all that much. My thoughts and actions can be so unbearably childish and selfish and vindictive sometimes. I have no idea where I'm heading or which direction I'm paddling towards in this big river called Life. Even my VOICE hasn't lost that kiddy-like tinge to it that my sister likes to tease me about. :(

Having said that, I guess 19 is just like any other age I've been at. And besides, when I 19, I'm 18 and 17 and 10 and 5 all at once right? :) And I've learnt that what we want in life changes constantly, and we never have a clear picture of it. And that change is constant and unwavering. And we can sum everything up about life in 3 words: It Goes On (according to Bob Marley if I'm not mistaken. Best quote ever!) I've learnt that time stops for on one no matter how hard we wish it to. I've learnt that my friends are such awesome beings, I wouldn't know what to do without them. I've learnt that friendships require much effort and genuine love for them to last and go the distance which I hope I can maintain, because I really REALLY love all my friends now and would hate to see us fall apart. I've learnt that you can be whoever you want to be- because in the end, it's really up to you. I've learnt that life's really short, so we should all spend more time doing the things we like, discovering ourselves, feeling truly ALIVE. Don't waste your time with people who don't make you feel alive because really, life's too short for it to be wasted away pleasing other people. Don't make someone a priority when they only make you an option, because we all deserve better.

And I guess, this is what counts right?

************************************************************************************

Anyway, my 19th birthday was a blast! A day before, my primary school friends surprised me with a cake, a present and an awesome dinner. You guys are so sweet la... thank you so much! I'm glad to have friends like you guys, you don't know how much it means to me.

The food they prepared. Everything was really good. And I'm really touched you guys put so much effort into organizing this- the facebook messages and MSN meetings.

You guys rock! <3

All of my awesome friends present that day.

My present- perfume

Funny story here. I have NEVER bought my own perfume believe it or not. They have always been gifts from other people. If this keeps up, I really will never have to buy my own. My first perfume was Glow by J.Lo given to me by my aunty as a birthday present. The second one was Issey Miyake given to me by my sister after she bought it and realized the scent gave her a headache. The one I'm currently using now- DKNY Red Apple was actually last year's birthday present by the college gang.

Pretty awesome huh?

After dinner we adjourned to Ri Hao's room and played these really insanely funny drinking games. I was laughing so hard my cheeks hurt man! But it was all good fun as they waited for it to be midnight and once it was, they toasted really REALLY weird and funny things for my birthday.

The girls.

Self timed group pictures!

Cake cutting time! Loved the pretty candles.

It was an awesome countdown indeed!

My birthday itself was spent having a yummylicious lunch at MV Sushi ZanMai with the family. Met up with darling Adele after that who teman-ed me to get Melissa's present. Yes, my birthday was spent shopping for somebody else's present. Lol XD

Mel I hope you like your present! I personally adore the reindeer slippers.

And for dinner, we hit Pavilion to try The C. Club! A gastronomic adventure post coming up real soon. Prepare to salivate!

Perfectly Imperfect.

2009-11-22T17:22:00.006+08:00

I've heard a lot about Palate Palette but haven't actually been to the place till today.

In terms of atmosphere and decoration, Palate Palette did not dissapoint.

It was quirky with the mismatched chairs and tables as well as cool vector art lookalike patterns on the walls. And the chill out music was good too.

I particularly loved this part of the wall with the drawing that looks like it could be used to measure one's height and the polaroid pictures beside it combined with all the stars really drew me in.

If my art was as good, this is what I would've wanted to paint on my bedroom walls.

But sadly my art sucks. :(

Loved the multicoloured spiral steps as well.

My mom spoiled it by saying: "Having spiral steps no good for feng shui. Makes you luck and fortune go round round only- you will never get to enjoy it. Cannot trap the luck." 0_o

Such a typical mom thing to say.

I wonder why as people grow older, they become more superstitious. =.=

My sister and I with the cute walls behind us.

My sis and her umbrella ella ella man.

I really like this shot with the colourful wordings on the mirrors and the assortment of bottles beneath it. Turned out better than expected I must say.

Our first dish- Mushroom Soup which was a chef's recommendation.
It was made up of authentic mushrooms blended together but it lacked salt and pepper so it was a little bit tasteless in the beginning but we remedied that by adding more salt and pepper.

My drink- Iced Mocha with Hershey's Chocolate.
They used Illy Coffee so the aroma of coffee was really REALLY good. Plus the chocolate at the bottom tasted like melted Hershey's so that really added to awesomeness of the drink. :D

Tandoori Chicken Satay
It was good and the meat was pretty tender but for some reason all of us felt the sauce lacked something. Like that extra kick to push it into the awesome category. It wasn't bad though, it was actually pretty good but for some reason, it just lacked that special something.

Egg Salad Sandwich
Pretty typical this one but it was good nonetheless.

Palette salad

I liked this salad, especially the dressing because it was really flavourful.

And they were generous with the dressing too. :)

Chicken Lasagna

This was pretty standard too but it was delicious as well.

Asparagus and Smoke Chicken Penne

The portion of the pasta was huge! It doesn't look like it here though but the bowl is VERY deep. We couldn't finish this dish.

Overall, the pasta was not bad. The smoked chicken really gave it flavour.

However, we felt a bit cheated because the menu said it was white sauce and we all know white sauce should be creamy and sinful but it wasn't.

Oh and it lacked salt too. =/

Took a trip to the loo. My sister was fascinated with the many locks on the toilet door and asked me take a picture.

Then, we went upstairs (up the colourful spiral staircase) to poke around.

The colourful flamingoes caught my eye.

They have a carousel horse on the bar!!!

And a giraffe's bottom sticking out from the roof. So adorable!

Basically upstairs is used more for functions/ events or big groups of people.

They have a disco ball too!!

Sorry I am very fascinated with disco balls one....I considered putting one in my bedroom you know! But they are so expensive. :(

Pretty peacock wall painting.

All in all, I'd say Palate Palette is a good hang out/ chill out place for drinks.

But I wouldn't say the food is fantastic though.

I probably still prefer Alexis or Delicious food.

Neverthelss, it is quite worth visiting at least once. ^_^

Palate Palette Restaurant and Bar

21, Jln Mesui off Jln Nagasari,

50200 KL.

03-21422148

Closed on Mondays

Turn that frown upside down!

2009-11-20T17:10:00.004+08:00

These past few weeks of holidays have been absolutely awesome! I think we don't learn to appreciate holidays enough till we've had a taste of working life. Because after that, holidays seem like something to be treasured.

I will never understand why people get bored during the holidays. It seems like there's endless possibilities of things to do, people to meet, places to go that we, or rather, don't have the time to do normally. And even then, there's opportunity cost involved because I can never seem to decide what to do next? Choosing to do one fun thing leads to forgoing another fun acitivity. For example, by choosing to watch TV (I can never seem to find the time to do this on normal days), I'm forgoing reading a good book (trust me, the list of books I want to read is staggering due to it being accumulated over the year). Or by choosing to go out, I'm forgoing all the time I can spend at home chilling- which is really hard to come by. Decision decisions. =/

Anyway, I was looking through all the videos we took during our epic badass sleepover at Ea's mansion in the jungle and I was laughing so hard, my cheeks hurt! To an outsider I probably looked crazy, staring at the computer screen, laughing to myself. 0_o

But some of them really are so funny. The crazy things we come up with! I'm just gonna post a few for remembrance here. Everyone else may not get what we were trying to do/convey or all our crazy jokes but hey, if you do understand, you're in for a ride!

This was our short choreography to Vengaboy's Boom Boom Boom Boom! in the car on the way to Janda Baik. What can I say, when you put crazily energetic girls in a confined space for 2 hours this is what you get! :P

And this is us trying to learn Pixie Lott's Boys and Girls music video dance choreo. Look at Ea! :D

Still trying to learn the choreo. Looking at these never fails to crack me up.

Wei-Lin's slim shady joke. Lol. XD

And this is Vicky's racist joke. Damn funny if you get it.

and this our little adventure in the buggy while it was pouring cats and dogs. It doesn't look like we're going very fast here but it was really scary when Wei-Lin turned super sharp corners. There's funnier, longer ones of us in the buggy but I decided not to put it up. Embarassing. :P

And to end it all, here's a proper video of us doing a cover of Black Eyed Pea's I Gotta Feeling.

Wei-Lin's voice is really beautiful- so soulful and soothing.

I'm sorry the sound isn't very good here though- what can you expect la, I used my camera to record so it isn't exactly very professional. =/

Anyway, I hope you had fun laughing at/with us. ;)

That Brilliant Streak Across the Sky...

2009-11-16T18:08:00.003+08:00

“For one reason or another, most folks on this tiny little planet seem to be mesmerized by fireworks. Maybe it's the sheer pyrotechnics of it all, the power we have to make beautiful explosions. Maybe it's the overwhelming brilliance that comes with that final pop of light. Or maybe yet, it's that child-like thrill imprinted into us that comes from the unexplained phenomenon of night fires - something that still hasn't dissipated even after our however many years of living. But, maybe we see something more in fireworks. Something that most others can't recognize. Maybe we love these glorious shows of light because we can relate. Like these fiery lights, we are strong, explosive, thundering in unspoken magnitude, yet so incredibly mesmerizing. Quietly we shoot to life, shattering into a million tiny pieces of broken glass, and then in an instant we sizzle away into the night, leaving the world wide-eyed and staring. We disappear, the explosion gone, but that hazy trail, our smoky sweet dust powdered across the night sky will forever be there for others to blaze. We are tiny explosions all over the world, popping with every brush of greatness, and collectively we form a gloriously blinding blanket of light and life. We are stunning, captivating ; explosive diamonds broken across the night sky, falling back down to earth and leaving our mark on the world. Sometimes we may not shimmer like we intended and instead only stun our audience with a quiet pop. other times we may not fire at all. Nevertheless, our potential is there. And when we become kinetic, nothing can stop us. We are beautiful and strong ; brilliant and graceful. We are the fireworks show of the world, running year-round. And nothing could ever come close to the beauty we leave behind.”

– Penelope Bat.

And we are- so full of infinite possibilities and potential. We should never forget that. Let this be a reminder to myself and everyone who reads this:

We are everything we say we can be, and so much more.

Currently listening to- Linkin Park's Meteora album

Uprising

2009-11-07T16:09:00.004+08:00

Currently in love with- The Baseballs

Gosh, y'll must check them out! They're a German band doing covers of modern songs in 50s rock and roll music. It's so awesome.

Check this out.

One of the best covers of Rihanna's Umbrella ever.

I really like their cover of Katy Perry's Hot n Cold, Usher's Love in this Club (which is saying something considering that I don't even like the original version), Plain White T's Hey There Delilah and Leona Lewis' Bleeding Love (I'm not a big fan of the ori version either).

On a completely unrelated note, finals are overrrrr so it's PARTAYYYYY TIME!

Ignorance is Your Best Friend.

2009-11-04T23:50:00.003+08:00

People really piss me off when they say that a Degree in Communication isn't "useful". And this is coming from people who are actually PURSUING a Degree in Communication. Seriously, why are you even studying it then?

I hate it that there's this perception that pursuing a degree in arts is seen as a lowly, stupid thing to do for people who cannot study and have no idea what to do with their life. It seriously sets me ablaze when people think that because excuse YOU, my grades are just fine and although I don't know EXACTLY what I want to do in life (the specifics I mean, like become a doctor), I have a general idea and I WORK towards that which ultimately is better than having NO idea at all. Besides, I CHOSE to study Communication and Arts as I had interest in it. Not because it seemed like the easiest option available. Because really, when it all boils down, is anything ever easy?

Granted, I can't control what people think but I'll offer a little insight as to what I think. Coming from someone who used to do a double degree- Bachelor of Business and Commerce and Bachelor of Communication, I got a full experience of both courses. And if you ask me, both are equally useful, though in different ways.

With the Bachelor of Business and Commerce, I suppose one could say that it was more applicable directly in life in that, you could apply whatever you learnt straight from the textbooks, in real life. But the thing with Business is that it's really generic (at least for me it was). It felt like an extension of high school- where you're spoon fed with information, you memorize and you regurgitate it for exams. Even for assignments, I felt like for the business subjects... they had a formula you know? Like if you just applied the formula, you'd definitely score. Your examples and the way you apply the formula can be different, but ultimately there IS a formula and you have to do it EXACTLY the way your lecturers/ tutors want to score. It's easier in that sense because everything is sort of laid out for you and all you have to do is follow it. Plus the lecturers were never as interesting as the Arts lectures.

With the Arts subjects, I personally feel that it requires a lot of thought. While what you learn is probably not directly applicable in life, I think it's indirectly applicable. Whenever I do my readings for the Arts, it always makes me think. It makes me think about things that are so mundane and normal in everyday life that we sometimes forget that they're there or we take forgranted their existance and how they came to be. Take for example language, what I'm writing in my blog right now and communicating to you guys- it's a social construct, it's not innate and it's learned. How many of us would have considered that normally? Basically, everything is constructed. There are no absolute truths in black and white, just different versions of what happened when different people recount them due to different intepretations. So, what is reality? Is anything real in that sense?

See what I mean? One thought can lead to so many others, it really gets your brain whirring. And I'll admit it, my brain was SO rusty before this, it's not even funny. Blame the Malaysian education system of supressing questions and curiousity. Plus the discussions in tutorials are always so much more engaging and thought provoking in Arts which really encourages participation. In the Business subjects, hardly anyone says anything at all. But this may just be a Malaysian occurance la, I don't know about what happens overseas. Maybe when I hop over to Aussieland, I'll take one more business elective (if I still have room for more electives that is), just to see if there's a difference.

Another thing I'd like to point out are the lecturers. Oh the lecturers are SO DIFFERENT in the Business and Arts. I feel that Arts lecturers are more easy-going and friendly and that the distance between us students and them is not so far away. Probably because they treat us all like friends and when we have free time, we can always go to their office just to talk to them about whatever and they'll entertain us. And I may be biased saying this, but they always seem to be much more interesting than Business lecturers. Business lecturers always seemed to be a bit more rigid and strict. And they give off this air, like unless it's something assignment related or exam related, don't go and bother them.

It may be just me, but I feel like I learn more out of the Arts subjects that stays with me compared to the Business ones. For example, if you ask me after a Business exam of all the theories I studied and stuff, I probably can't remember all that much. But if you asked me about the Arts ones, I could probably tell you more. (Like I said, I might be biased coz my interest leans more towards the Arts).

Recently for JRN assignments, a couple of people did the whole Arts vs. Science thing, about how Arts is always looked down upon and seen as inferior. They traced it back to high school, on how we are streamed based on results eg: better results go to science, poorer results go to arts (that's where the biasness starts).

In part, I think that accounts for the biasness but only PARTLY. I think they forget to take into account that Arts in highschool and the Arts we learn in university are completely different. I don't know about you guys, but Arts in my high school meant that you had to take Accounts and Perdagangan and stuff like that which isn't even REAL arts if you think about it. More like commerce. And then's there's Seni which is all about drawing and handicraft and stuff which is fun and all but I don't mean Arts as in art, literally.

And so that's why a lot of people choose to do Science (I did it partly because all the science subjects are in English but the kononnya Arts subjects are all in BM- bad reasoning I know) but also because I felt more of a pull towards the Sciences at the time even though I knew I probably wouldn't be going down the Science road later in life (though I must admit at one point, I did consider pharmacy but soon realized it wasn't for me. Chemistry for the rest of my life weiii. 0_o) Anyway, I think I was always more interested in the Arts anyway which is why I took an extra subject for SPM- English Lit. And I think, that really sealed the deal for my future in Arts. Upon taking those extra classes, I realized just how horrible my thought process was and that I was all rusty and couldn't think on the spot anymore. My critical thinking was like zero. And for that I am thankful. Thankful to Puan Bahiyah, my amazing Eng Lit teacher who restored my love for learning and thankful that I did decide to pursue an extra subject even though it meant spending more money, time and resources for extra classes.

I guess what I'm trying to say is that hey, whatever floats your boat. No course is EVER useless. It just depends on where your interests lie and what you make of your course. As for me, I may have switched to a single degree for now but I do plan to take up the Business degree for my Masters hopefully, because I DO want to know more about the business side of things as it IS useful. (Then again, that may be society's pressure to get a real degree talking. =/) But we'll see how that goes.

First of the Gang to Die.

2009-11-01T16:44:00.007+08:00

For as long as I can remember, I've disliked cigarette smoke. Someone recently asked me why, which got me thinking.

When I was maybe 4 or 5 years old, I once thought that it looked cool to smoke. (Sorry, blame it on all the movies, bad baaaad influence) But gradually, smoking started becoming repulsive. I really can't pinpoint when it started. It may have been when my eyes started to water because they were sensitive to smoke. Or maybe I just have an overly sensitive sense of smell, which I recently just found out. Wee and I walked into a lift in uni the other day and I immediately knew that the previous occupant of the lift had been smoking. And Monash is a smoke free campus mind you, so the smell had have to come from the person's clothes and body. I scrunched up my nose and made a face but Wee said she couldn't smell anything. Maybe that's the reason why I dislike it so much. I can smell it so abundantly and others can't. Sometimes when I walk into Mr.Ben's office I can smell it too...the distinct smell of tobacco.

Maybe it's because I've been stubbed by a cigarette before and it wasn't a pretty sight. I was walking the streets of Mongkok in Hong Kong and well, in Hong Kong half the damned population are smokers so it's not uncommon to see the locals walking the streets while smoking. The thing is, they like holding their stupid cigarettes at hip level while walking so it sticks out. And of course, it's HK, the population is damn crazy for such a small place so it's supremely crowded, I was weaving through the streets when this idiot decided to take a drag of his cigarette and then put his hand down while I passed by him effectively burning my hand with his cigarette. It effing hurt and I had a nice, red, round burn mark for the next few days.

But I think my passionate dislike for smoking started a long time before that incident. That incident just served to increase my dislike of smoking. I think the real reason that I really hate cigarretes and the act of smoking so much is because it's so inconsiderate. I mean, hey you wanna destroy you teeth and lungs and release stress please be my guest! But don't destroy everyone else's in the process with your icky secondhand smoke.

I'm not saying I hate ALL smokers (I know lots of lovely people who happen to be smokers, but they are awesome nevertheless), just the inconsiderate ones. Like the ones that burn people with their cigarettes, no matter how accidental that was. And the ones that know you don't smoke, yet blow all their disgusting smoke into your face. Pregnant ladies smoking also pisses me off- do they not know they it harms the baby or do they not care? It's the same for parents who smoke in front of their young kids. Not because they're being a bad role model or whatever because all role models come with flaws. But do they not know that smoking in front of kids increases their chances of developing asthma? Or even the idiots that think they look so cool smoking. Urgh. The reasons that people start to smoke sometimes disgust me. I mean, if you started smoking because it helped you release stress or kept your weight down by supressing your appetite I can still understand.

But if you started smoking because of peer pressure or because it looked cool, THAT I cannot accept. I think it's stupid that you can be such a pushover. Just because other people smoke doesn't mean you have to. This applies especially for guys. Let me reiterate: it's NOT COOL to smoke. In fact, it's disgusting and repulsive. No matter how manly you think you look when you're smoking, you don't. You just look stupid holding a cancer stick. Besides, there are already so many things we're doing to ruin our health, you don't need to add smoking to that list.

Wee once asked me if I was ever curious about what smoking felt like. I'm not. Not for one second. I have no desire to be a chimney for even just once. Which is saying something because I'm usually pretty curious about everything. Maybe I'm biased. But really, morphing into a puffing chimney is not high on my to-do list but who knows? If ever I feel the compelling urge to understand why smokers smoke, I might try it one day.

Until then, you guys smell and taste like cancer.

Why Can't We Seem To Keep It Together?

2009-10-14T23:49:00.002+08:00

I just took out the remnants of purple nail polish on my fingernails. Now they look so clean and... normal. I guess I've been used to seeing purple everytime I look down for the past few weeks. Manicures are such a little luxury for us girls to indulge in.

Our recent pedicure. Yin and Yang! My sister's toes and mine. =)

This is my birthday present to Wee! A mani/pedi! Now isn't that awesome?

3 guesses whose foot this is!

Anyway, the point of this post is not for mani/pedi-s. I've already talked about that some time back. The point of this post is to introduce one of the most orgasmic Oreo Cheesecakes EVER!

I used to think that Secret Recipe served the best Oreo Cheesecake. No where else could compare... and then I tried this one! It was cheesy yet moist. Flavourful with the crunchy Oreo bits infused in and the delectable biscuit base was heavenly! Confirm this will be my this year's birthday cake. ;)

Time to make you guys hungry again....

LO AND BEHOLD!

Anyway, aforementioned yummylicious Oreo cheese cake is from Marmalade. I usually go to the Bangsar Village 2 outlet but there's another one in KLCC if I'm not mistaken.

I promise you won't regret eating this one!

A must try!

There Is A Light That Never Goes Out

2009-10-14T22:18:00.006+08:00

Currently listening to: Muse- The Resistance album

(Thanks to Zaleha for giving me the cd! The album is mind blowingly awesome.)

I know I haven't updated in awhile. But like I said, I have my bouts. Sometimes I feel that I have totally lost my blogging mojo and other times, I feel so pumped to blog but when I actually sit down to do it, the feeling dissapears again. I can barely latch on to it.

I still haven't fully regained my blogging mojo. So you'll have to forgive me if this post seems terribly unstructured. But I was thinking how this year has been such a blur. I haven't been blogging much and I haven't written in my journal in the longest time ever (mostly because I was busy but these last month was because I can't find it! It's probably in some box somwhere. Sigh.). So I figured I'd better list some stuff down before the year whirls by me again and I have nothing tangible to hold on to except those fragile memories.

Besides, these past few months have been very awesome and I'm afraid I won't feel this way again ever. Even when I think back now... only wisps of it emerge only to flit away again. Ah, this is what you get for being lazy Swan!

Gonna do this in point form coz it's easier (in no particular order/importance):

1. I have settled in. Really and truly now. I went back the other day to the old sanctuary. Everything felt the same yet different. But in a weird way, that reassured me. The mini fountain was still sprouting water, the white picket fence still stands proudly and the alamanda tree is as beautiful as ever. Bobby was being his usual crazy self. It was a beautiful day, that one. Big fluffy clouds littered across the sea blue sky. As I stood there looking at it, I felt bittersweet. But I didn't feel empty anymore. It was empty, most of the furniture gone with only bits and pieces scattered around, remnants of the life we had here. And I didn't feel empty anymore. I guess that's a good sign. This is home now.

2. Some people really have no idea how to behave in social situations. I am not kidding. I feel sorry for them. How do these people make friends? I was standing at the library printer the other day, waiting for the printer to spew my papers out and this dude was who was next in line was standing SO close to me that if I turned around, I probably would have collided with him head on. Jeez. Have you not heard of PERSONAL SPACE? I hate, let me say this again, ABSOLUTELY hate it when people invade my personal bubble. No matter how close you stand to me, the printer is not going to print any faster so really, why bother? I could have "accidentally" stepped back onto his foot or "accidentally" boob nudged (in Zaleha's words) him with my elbow OR even turned around and be all bitchy and go:"Excuse YOU, could please not invade my personal bubble? It's rude." But I decided to play nice and ignore him that day and walked off after I got my stuff. Meh. I was freaky dude again on campus and he was staring at non-stop. Urgh.

3. Today was a wonderful day! We went back to Pink to have lunch and I finally had my Thai style fried chicken with fried rice again after what seems like an eternity! I miss Pink, I do. Made a stop at Sunway and met Iekaaaaa! Whom I haven't seen since... LAST YEAR GRADUATION NIGHT! Can you believe it? It was great seeing her again. Briefly met Wee Guan when walking out too. And Ms. Santhi couln't recognize me. >.<>

4. 500 Days of Summer is THE must-watch movie of the year. I swear. Everyone I know who has watched it, loved it to bits. I loved it because it was real. It isn't your typical boy meets girl, BANG they get together kinda thing. Reality isn't like that and I'm glad that this movie showed it. And I loved how the movie portrayed the feeling of being in love (through that little musical number and the spring in Joseph Gordon Levitt's walk) and the feeling of being frustrated with love (how everything he loved about Zoey Deschannel turned into hate after that) and also how the way things play out in our heads never does in reality (the part where they split the screens into two, one being reality and the other fantasy). And I also like the fact that Joseph Gordon Levitt was stuck in a job he didn't really like and didn't plan for even though he studied architcture because really, that's how life is! I'm glad they didn't start off the movie with him already being an architect because that would have been so generic and typical for the protagonist to have some well-paying job but not a love life kinda thing. And the SOUNDTRACK! I so totally need to get my hands on it man.

5. I'm loving this semester in uni. It hit me one day as I walking to FTV lecture. I remember saying hi to a number of people and stopping to make small talk with a few of them. Jowee and E'a were with me and Wei Lin and Vicky were not far behind. The weather was perfect that day- breezy and not too sunny but not overtly cloudy that you'd feel depressed either. And it just hit me... that uni life here is so awesome. I love the lecturers, I love the friends I've made. And this was... home. I felt like I belonged. And I'm giving all this up to go to Aussie next year. And there was just this pang in my heart. I'm sure Aussie will be heaps of fun too, but things'll be different. I guess things are really good now and I don't it to change. But change... change is the only thing that is constant. I think I've finally learnt that by now.

6. Monash Ball 2009 was such a memorable, fun-filled night. Even though BEP was performing right below us and we couldn't be there, I didn't feel the slightest bit of regret. AND gotta thank Guiness for hosting Arthur's Day on that day coz right after prom ended, we were treated to a free fireworks display. It was beautiful indeed and a great way to end prom before we headed off to MOS to partayyy.

7. I can't believe semester is ending already. It is now Week 12. It seems like just yesterday semester started and I was so excited because Jowee saw the light and came to Monash too. ;P

And we could finally cross off Going To University Together from our childhood list of Things to Do Together/ Before We Die.

8. The problem with having a king sized bed with yummy silky sheets is that you never want to get out of bed. I would gladly hibernate for a week.

9. And here's the quote of the day:

At some point you have to make a decision. Boundaries don't keep other people out; they fence you in.Life is messy, that's how we're made. So you can waste your life drawing lines or you can live your life crossing them. But there are some lines that are way too dangerous to cross.Here's what I know. If you're willing to take the chance, the view from the other side is spectacular.

-Grey's Anatomy

Empty.

2009-09-16T22:38:00.003+08:00

Today, as I was sitting here, I could hear wafts of the drums floating in from next door. And I thought, I will miss feeling this, seeing this. The white picket fence. The big, flourishing , yellow Alamanda tree beside the fish pond. The clusters of Ixora bushes beside the gate. The big, tall Christmas trees slowly being eaten away by parasites. The squeaky front door grills that have watched me grow up. The secret shoe bench. The old school steps up from the living room. The cracking walls of the kitchen. The rusty yellow backdoor. The alternate passageway to the washroom. The special, old, creaky, yellow connecting door. The peeling floral wallpaper that’s probably even older than I am. The wooden doors with multiple rusty, tarnished locks. The jagged hole in the mosquito netting. The beautiful tiles with pictures of geese and ducks in the bathroom. The creaky cupboard bursting with clothes that’s missing a handle and that opens by itself. The matching furniture. The teddy bear curtains and bedspread. The squeaky beds. The empty green field visible from the window. I will miss all of this and more.

I am leaving a piece of my heart behind here. No, make that many pieces. So many memories shattered to fragments, left behind in every nook and corner. The slip and fall by the front stairs, the sprained ankle in the early recesses of the morning, the countless days being awoken by the sound of Twinkle Twinkle Little Star, the humid dinners, the run in with the cobra, Bob cowering under the bench during a thunderstorm, the walks back after taking the bus, the countless celebrations of birthdays, the slogging for exams and assignments on the aged wooden desk.

Will the hands of time freeze for a moment to just let me take this all in?

Change… it is the only thing that is constant indeed.

Caliente

2009-09-10T22:14:00.003+08:00

Time to make you salivate boys and girls!

So today, I'm gonna introduce one of my all time favourite restaurants- Rakuzen. It's actually the parent company of Sushi Zanmai, Pasta Zanmai and Sushi Zen. And as you all know, I'm a big lover of Japanese food, especially sushi! So, Sushi Zanmai is one of most frequented places.

Rakuzen is a slightly pricier compared to Sushi Zanmai but for the quality and amount of food you get, it's well worth it. As far as I know, there are two Rakuzen branches. One in Plaza Damas, Sri Hartamas and another in Chulan Square, KL. And I tell you, Rakuzen is one of the best Japanese restaurants around, hands down!

Lets start by introducing my all time favourite dish in Rakuzen which you MUST try if you ever go...

Sushiya salad with Rakuzen dressing.

Orgasmic I swear. If you've had the Sashimi salad with Sushi Zanmai dressing, the Sushiya salad is something like that but just 10 times better. And that's saying something since the Sashimi salad already rocks socks!

The tantalizing pieces of thickly cut salmon coupled with the generous amount of crabmeat and slices of tuna is aboslutely yummylicious. And when paired with the Rakuzen sauce, it's like magic!

Okay, I'm making myself hungry now. =.=

I'm so sorry but I had a momentary lapse of sanity and FORGOT TO PUT MY MACRO MODE ON which explains the blurry picture. I think I was too hungry to care and wanted to dig in as soon as possible. >.<

Anyway, this was on their special menu for August. It's their Summer Roll and boyyyyy, I wish they'd make that a permanent thing on the menu! It was so awesomely good.

If I remember correctly, it had cheese, avocado and crabmeat.

The cheese really gave it that extra oomph!

We always order this when we go to Rakuzen too.

Coral Roll- Salmon and Avocado.

I think the combination of salmon and avocado is the best ever, I don't think I can ever tire of it.

When I hop over to Aussie, I'll probably stuff myself silly with so much sushi sticks you won't be able to recognize me when I get back. =/

This one's called Kanimayo Maki if I'm not mistaken.

It's just crabmeat rolls with a drizzle of Japanese mayo but oh, the simplest things are the nicest sometimes.

I totally do not remember what this dish was called but it's cream and corn patties which was superbly yummylicious!

All the that creamy goodness oozing out when you poke it apart.... Mmm.

And this is beef slices stuffed with enoki mushrooms. I don't remember what the official name of the dish was. >.< But it was scrumptious!

Anyway, I forgot to take pictures of our dessert after that because being the impatient, hungry eater I am, I just went straight at it.

But their macha ice-cream is really good and we had strawberries filled with cream which was insanely delectable.

Anyway, there's a picture of the 3 of us. Coincidentally, we were wearing the same colour scheme that day (green, yellow, white). Ah, great minds think alike!

I've just realized I'm really quite bad at introducing food to you guys because I keep forgetting to take pictures of the food! Gah, I guess I'm just too much of a glutton and attack the food once it arrives. Meh.

PS: Do make a reservation for Rakuzen if you ever plan on going coz it's usally jam packed with people. =)

By the way, know any other good Japanese restaurants? Do recommend them to me.

You Can't See The Forest For The Trees.

2009-09-04T00:02:00.006+08:00

You know those moments when you lie idly soaking up the sun and you feel alive? Like you're really living. Not just existing. It's hard to describe really. The thing is, I haven't felt truly alive for months now. Everything seems so monotonous and dreary. It's college, home, sleep, assignments, tests, movies, trawling the mall and the cycle repeats. I think the only time I've come close to feeling alive these past few months was seeing the Taj Mahal in front of my very own eyes. But there were so many people there, jostling and taking pictures it was hard to just soak in the moment. To just be.

-An excerpt from my old Xanga blog (August 30, 2008)

Read that entry here.

This time a year ago, that was how I felt. A year later, I've finally gotten my wish. A blissful summer holiday spent at the beach. Listening to the waves crash upon the shore, feasting my eyes on the breathtaking scenery and sunsets. Being carefree, no assignments, no deadlines, nothing to worry about for that 4 days and 3 nights.

Bali heals the soul.

Let's start by introducing what my sister calls her beach bag- her hedgehog LeSportSac which is just so insanely cute!

It is known as her beach bag because she only uses it whenever she travels to islands. =.=

We took Air Asia there. This is the view from the plane.

The clouds were so fluffy that day. Like cotton candy. It felt like if I just reached out, I could have plucked them out of the sky.

Some part of Indonesia we were flying over.

Looks like something out of a Geography textbook, doesn't it?

Upon arrival at Ngurah Rai airport, we were immdediately greeted with fragipanis. Oh and we could bypass immigration cause Eu Shen arranged for us to go through the diplomat counter. Skipped the long queues, we did. ;)

The frangipanis were so frangrant! But I couldn't wear them for long because floral scents give me a headache after a while. =/

Anyway, our first stop was to fill our growling tummies with yummylicious food!

We went to this restaurant just 10 minutes away from the airport which was famous for their chicken.

True to their word, the chicken was really very good. I can't remember exactly what we ordered, but I remember everything was supremely crispy and delectable.

If you really want pictures of the food, I think Greg's facebook might have 'em.

This is the hotel we stayed in for the first two nights- Ramayana. Centrally situated in Kuta.

Shopping was really easy since it was within walking distance to the markets and Kuta beach was 5 mintues away by car.

Our room. The hotel is quite old but they've kept it quite nicely I must say.

In the hotel lobby, getting ready to go see the sun set at Uluwatu Temple and watch the Kecak dance.

First glimpse of the breathtaking sunsets in Bali.

The colours just seemed more vivid than usual. It was beautiful! Too bad we didn't have too much time to admire it since we wanted to go watch the Kecak dance. =(

My sister and I waiting for the dance to begin while taking in the picturesque view.
At least our seats were strategic, since we got an awesome view of the stunning scenery.

It was packed to the brim to watch the Kecak dance man. Everyone had to squeeze and squeeze just so that everybody could fit in and sit.

There certainly was no traces of the swine flu effects on tourism in Bali!

These flag like thingies are everywhere in Bali. I wonder what they are for?

To tell the direction of the wind? Or just for decorative purposes? I mean I know the checkered cloth is supposed to ward of evil... guess I should've asked our local guide huh?

Just look at it, doesn't it seem so surreal? My sister said the sunsets there don't feel real. They feel fabricated, like someone painted a backdrop and left it there.

But that's the amazing thing. They are so very real, and the beauty of it just takes your breath away.

Getting ready for the Kecak dance. These were the people who provided the sound effects. I admire the fact that they don't develop sore throats after each performance. They were constantly chanting, singing for close to an hour! Imagine doing that everyday!

Watching that big golden ball slowly set.

The Kecak dance is actually the story of Rama, Sita and Laksamana. If you guys remember, we studied it for SPM BM before. How Rama went to catch the kijang for Sita and told her to stay in the protective circle and left her in the charge of Laksamana but in the end she got captured anyway. I found it easy to understand coz I knew the background of the story but I without that, I would have been feeling kind of lost.
Oh well, at least now we know SPM BM literature is good for something! =P

And look at the crowd! Isn't it crazy?

And yes, that is real fire. The heat was scorching when they did that. I really pitied the people sitting in the front row.

Next, we adjourned to Jimbaran Bay for some scrumptious seafood!
Jimbaran Bay is basically this stretch of beach littered with restaurants serving awesome seafood. So, you can enjoy the seafood whilst listening to the waves and looking out to the sea.

Tried their coconut but was sorely dissapointed coz it wasn't sweet. I think all of us momentarily forgot we were in Indonesia and not Thailand where the coconuts are forever sweet. XD

But seriously, Bali reminded me very much of Thailand for some reason. And it wasn't just me, Greg and my sister thought so too.
I think it might have been because of the traffic and the roads (jammed and narrow) as well as the abundant use of motorbikes. And the shopping! Coz everything was so cheap there!

We tried their famous grilled corn and it was insanely HUGE and filling but supremely yummylicious!

I think it was because they put a layer of syrup or caramel on the corn before grilling it, making it super sweet. (I have a sweet tooth so I enjoyed it. =D)

Oh, and the people at the back of Greg were a little singing troupe. Seranaded us with old songs (obviously in hopes of getting tips) but the lead singer's voice was very melodious.

I think, our one and only group picture. All the others are missing someone! =S

Second day in Bali! Taken right after brekkie in the hotel.

We went for a walk at the market right opposite our hotel.

Quite a number of things are sold there- from souvenirs, to wooden carvings, t-shirts and clothes.

Their paintings was what really captivated me though. So many CHEAP and beautiful paintings over there which would have cost like three times the price over here.

My sister bought a really cool silver and black painting, which I don't have a picture of yet because it hasn't been hung up.

Oh and travel tip! When shopping in Bali (Like China, Thailand, India and Vietnam), you have slash the price by at least half and haggle like your life depended on it. Because otherwise, you're just getting fleeced by these Balinese vendors. =.=

Oh and they have very interesting stuff like this helmet for sale too! I mean, do people actually wear that? 0_o

This was right outside our hotel's bar. We had to go back to our hotel to deposit all our shopping bags!

One of the many stone basins around the hotel. The hotel's staff meticulously arrange a different pattern using the flower petals everyday! Such a tedious job but it's the extra effort that makes the surroundings of the hotel so beautiful.

Our 2 local Balinese guides and our 2 organizers of the trip- hard at work planning the day's itinery.

Kuta Beach!

Weather was super hot and sweltering in Bali. You realy cannot survive without sunnies coz the glare of the sun is so strong.

We passed by loads of paddy fields in Bali too!

Clear blue skies and grenery that stretches for miles and miles...

En route to Tanah Lot to watch the sun set.

The entrance of Tanah Lot.

I love the waves in Bali. They are so much bigger than our own which makes it a sight to see whenever it crashes upon the rocks. And because the waves are larger, the sound the waves is amplified. I don't know about you, but I always feel a lot more peaceful after listening to the waves. They may be loud and angry, but somehow it sets my mind and soul at peace.

And I felt... alive.

I think it's the combination of the picturesque view and the feel of the holiday coupled with the sound of the waves lapping against the shore.
In that instance, warmth spread through my veins, lighting them ablaze.

And I was happy.

Content.

Us, spoiling the view. ^_^

By the way, I am super in love with my Canon camera! I should probably name it...

The setting of the sun cast a golden glow onto the paddy fields.

It was a breathtaking sight indeed.

There were two dogs running across, sprinting across rather, the paddy fields.

Watching them sprint across the field, chasing each other without a care in the world... I could taste freedom.

For those brief moments, freedom became a tangible thing.

I suppose we were all like that once. Running freely across gardens and playgrounds and field with a kind of blithe innocence.

I really like this shot. The silhouette of the trees and people and the pagoda....

Gradually dissappearing.

That night, we had Nasi Padang for dinner.

Greg calls Nasi Padang Indonesian dim sum/buffet. Coz everything came in small portions (like dim sum) and when you finished a dish, they'd replenish it for you (buffet).

My parents- Raja Sehari. LOL XD

After dinner, we headed to Bali Coffee House to just chill before going for a foot massage.

We decided to try the world reknown Kopi Luwak in which the coffee beans have been eaten and er... excreted by the Civet cat. >.<>

Watching the waitress preparing Kopi Luwak (USD$20 for 8g, don't play play).

There we go! The aroma of Kopi Luwak is absolutely yummylicious. But the aftertaste is... interesting. It tasted a bit like berries but yet, not quite. Quite indescribable really.

3rd day, took a walk around Kuta area. This is the beautiful beach.

Made a stop by Starbucks to get drinks since it was so insanely hot! And I dunno why everyone was bruised during the trip. That's my cousin and my sister who both have bruises on their legs. 0_0

For lunch we went to this really quaint place called Bebek Bengil.

I've heard so much about this restaurant and am glad it lived up to its expectations.

Nah, this is the history of how Bebek Bengil got its name.

Bebek Bengil is situated right beside the paddy fields. So lots of greenery while you feast on their yummylicious food.

Again, I felt at peace. Looking out at the paddy fields, feeling the cooling breeze on that hot, hot summer day and enjoying the awesome spread.

Told you Bali is good for the soul. =D

Their signature dish- crispy duck. You can choose to have it with rice or mash.

If you guys ever go, YOU HAVE TO CHOOSE THE MASH because it is TO DIE FOR.

I'm not kidding! Can rival Chilli's mash seriously.

All that buttery goodness that melts in the mouth. Mmmmm.

Aside from that, their BBQ pork ribs was really flavourful too! A must try.

After lunch, we visited Ubud Art Market which had a plethora of things to look, see and buy. Too bad we couldn't stay for long as we had to go and check into our villa- Bidadari Villa.

Aptly name I must say because it was heavenly!

That's their outdoor shower. So you get to shower under the moon, stars/sun, rain. =P

I must say, the view is actually quite nice when you shower at night.

And somehow it feels very... liberating.

Me: Jie, have you ever showered outdoors before? (after I finished showering)

Sis: No wo. This will be the first time.

Me: It feels very... liberating.

Sis: (laughs) Okay, I shall go and liberate myself now and be one with nature.

Lol convo between my sis and I.

Their HEAVENLY bed. Mmmm. I miss the bed!

Their big bathtub. And that's my other sis with a bruise on her leg too. =S

I forgot to resize a picture of our private swimming pool. Aiya, you guys can go check it out on Facebook la.

On our last night, I tried Bintang beer. I'm normally not a big fan of beers (except for the Passionfruit or Apple ones from Belgium Bar) but this one was really light and surprisingly easy to drink.

And so ends my Bali trip! This was us, flying off into the sea. The takeoff and landings are quite scary yet thrilling because if the pilot misjudges, you'll end up in the middle of the sea.

Airport security was a bitch though because of the Jakarta bombings while we were there. Bali was suspected as the next target. =(

Why is it always like this? We travel to some country and surely something happens one.

We go to Bali, Jakarta gets bombed.

We come back from India, and the chain of luxury hotels we were staying in gets bombed (although it was in a different part of India la)

We were in Bangkok when the tsunami hit.

Post September 11, we were holidaying in Europe. (And we didn't have to line up to go to Madam Tussauds or the Eiffel Tower because there were so little tourists! Lol XD)
And when the Y2K bug was supposedly gonna hit, we were in the US if I'm not mistaken.
0_o

Anyway, the last picture for the day. Reliving the feeling of becoming overnight millionaires!

Since everything is by the thousands and millions in rupiahs, instant millionaires we became! ;)

Sigh, I miss travelling. I need a holiday from my holiday.

Oh the irony. =.=

Breakeven

2009-09-03T23:37:00.003+08:00

I've decided to include posts labelled under Gastronomic Adventures in which I will introduce good food for you guys to feast your eyes on (just to make you hungry) as well as recommend restaurants which I think are good so you all can go and try it out.

Feel free to recommend awesome restaurants to me too! Would love to go and try out more places to eat at.

George and The Dragon

George and The Dragon is actually a pub/restaurant located in Bangsar Shopping Centre on the ground floor.

My aunt and uncle strongly recommended going there to try their crispy pork knuckle which they said was even more yummylicious than El Cerdo's. (In my opinion, El Cerdo's serves the best pork!)

And so on one of the weekends, we ventured there to check it out.

Since it's more of a drinking place, their tables weren't very big and it was quite difficult to accomodate all 5 of us in the same table.

However, their food is pretty awesome! I totally forgot to take pictures of the food we ate but I remember we had bratwurst and pork ribs as well as German salad which were all delightful and very flavourful.

And then, their crispy pork knuckle...

Behold, pork rations for a whole month is here! 0_O

Anyway, their crispy pork knuckle is pretty good. Comparable to El Cerdo's I would say but not better.

It didn't have that jelak porky smell which was good. (That's the first thing I notice when I eat pork knuckle.) And the crispy bits were scrumptious!

Having said that, I didn't like their food presentation though. I mean, I know we're eating pork la but you don't have to stick the bone right in the middle like that. (I made it timber after that by taking out one of it's porky foundations. =P)

Other than that, everything else was pretty good. So if you ever crave pork, you know where to go!

Unforgettable.

2009-09-03T21:47:00.006+08:00

Most of our lives are a series of images. They pass us by like towns on the highway. But sometimes a moment stuns us as it happens, and we know in that instant that it is more than a fleeting image. We know that this moment, every part of it, will live on forever.

- One Tree Hill

Warning: Picture heavy post ahead. Aaah, I haven't posted one of these in a while have I?

Anyway, these are the moments that will live on forever from my month long break between semesters. It's a bit delayed but looking at these pictures brings back the holiday mood again which provides the perfect pick-me-up in the middle of slogging though this semester.

(And Gill, I know that anonymous in my chatbox is you. So don't complain I never put up pictures liao.)

My beloved Jowee's birthday pretty much kicked off my holidays (even though I had one last paper after that). It was wonderful being able to celebrate with her and even more awesome now since I see her everyday!

We must go for that mani/pedi Wee!

Darling Adele was next. We really do need to stop going to Delicious don't we?

Oh and I remember I met Kern Wen on that day too! It was nice meeting you even though your photography skills leave much to be desired! =P

Next up, planning Wai Yee's surprise birthday (which was er...how many months late again? Whoops. It's the thought that counts, I swear!)

That's us with our hard work!

Oh, look how we've grown!

Anyway, we went to Full House for lunch and also to spend some time with Kia Shen who was back from Aussieland. Their straws are really addictive, everyone couldn't stop playing with them after we'd finished our drinks.

Belated birthday girl and I.

Oh and LOOK! I had to post this up. I think this is the first time ever that I've seen the both of them in shorts and slippers. They are usually so well-dressed! Yes, you can proceed to make fun of them now. ;)

Caught red handed in the shower. Tsk tsk. KY, what will Han Yang say hmmmm?

And this is Ri Hao, who looks quite like MJ in this photo I must say. And this was around the time the news of MJ's death broke. =/

SURPRISE! Sorry we were so late but better late than never right?

So now you guys know. If you really want to surprise someone, surprise them when they least expect it. Which would months after their birthday. Confirm your surprise will be successful. XD

The girls.

After a few round of playing King, this is what you get. Tomato red faces all round.

And Kia Shen who was super high that day kacau-ing Siok. In fact, that was probably the tipsiest I've ever seen him. =.=

I have a whole series of pictures of them kacau-ing each other. >.<

See what I mean?

Ohohoho! Bottoms up!

Our poison for the day- Absolut Kurant

aaaannddd.....

Midori.

Which in my opinion tasted like cough syrup. I know it's really expensive and all but still. Cough syrup! Supossedly, it tastes good when mixed with Coke. But we didn't have any that day.

After that, headed to Jaya One's Duck King for dinner. Ah, fun times fun times.

And here's Wee again. We were off to Bangsar for a shopping spree! And it was damn jammed so we camwhored! =D

I like this pic. It's courtesy of Wee. Another year before that P sticker comes off. Le sigh.

If you didn't already know, this is Jowee and we have been friends for 13 years and counting now.

She is the cutest ever goldfish I have ever known.

See what I mean? So comel.

As you all know, Wee and I go waaaay back and when we were younger, we used to have these 2 diaries that we would write in and exchange every 2 weeks or so just to keep in touch and update each other on our lives.

I flipped through the diaries again yesterday and oh, it was a blast of the childhood past.

Pages and pages filled with scribbles of our daily lives about boys, heartbreaks, family dramas, crushes, friends.

I feel so old just looking at it now. Oh, how we have grown and matured.

Oh hindsight though, some things still remain the same. Wee has always and will always be the more creative one, the dreamer, the optimist, the thinker, the artist. It is so evident now that I look back and see.

For example, this was written in 2006:

Jowee thinks:

People are beautiful
The world today is evil
People are too judgemental
People are too weird (and everyone is mentally challenged, since all humans are flawed anyway)
Pink brings world peace
Cartoons are cute and entertaining
Being young is WAY better than being old! (Don't wanna grow up)
Music has tremendous power
George Bush should rot in hell
Bigfoot could exist (Who has actually disproven it?)
The Olympic Games rocks
Blogging is wonderful
Nothing is impossible

and

Love conquers all

Ah, doesn't this sound like the Jowee we all know and love?

"I wanna go online and blog my brains out"

-Tee Jowee

Wee, this was written in 2006 as well when you're internet was down. And ironically, I'm waiting for your internet to be fixed NOW, so I can have my dose of Jowee everyday!

(Wee, I hope you don't mind me posting that here!)

The Cutest PickUp Line Ever...

2009-08-29T02:37:00.003+08:00

Boy: You dropped something today.

Girl: Really, what?

Boy: My jaw.

Awwwww.

One of the ones that I think would actually work in real life as compared to nonsensical shit like "Do you have a map, cause I think I got lost in your eyes". =.=

The World Spins Madly On.

2009-08-20T23:26:00.004+08:00

"All I know is, if you don't figure out this something, you'll just stay ordinary, and it doesn't matter if it's a work of art or a taco or a pair of socks! Just create something new, and there it is, and its you, out in the world, outside of you and you can look at it, or hear it, or read it, or feel it. And you know a little more about you. A little bit more than anyone else does. Does that make any sense at all?"

Sometimes I forget why I blog. Why I started blogging, why I still want to. And then little quotes like these remind me again. This blog is a representation of me. It may not be the best representation but still, everything here is handpicked by me, written by me. It's a little piece of my life that I want to share with you guys. I guess in a sense, this is me leaving my mark here.

I was looking through my old blog posts in Xanga the other day and I really did write some pretty amazing stuff back then. Looking back, I'm not even sure I could produce the same quality of posts now! Granted, my Xanga blog was filled with lots of stuff in my daily life, but in between those posts about my outings and holidays were some pretty meaningful posts. It may not mean much to you guys, it means a whole world to me because it reminded me of what I was thinking back then. Then again, some posts are so cryptic I have no idea what the hell I was talking about. I really need to be less cryptic when I do my occasional emo posts don't I?

Anyway, this post seems quite random but I'm just typing whatever's in my head at the moment because I can't seem to structure my thoughts anymore. There's too much stuff buzzing around up there and I have a severe case of writer's block. It feels like everything I type, write or say doesn't feel right anymore. Or that could just be me being a perfectionist.

Today was one of those happy days. It may not have been perfect, but it was a happy day. There was such a sense of possibility flaring through my veins and I felt alive again. I hope everyday will be as awesome a day as today. =)

Hence, I shall end with just a little awesome reminder about life:

Five Fashion Friends.

2009-08-20T22:54:00.004+08:00

I know I've been stingy with updates. But but but... I'm here to introduce you guys to this new blog which I set up with Melissa, Andrea, Nicole and Kit Mun. It's called Five Fashion Friends and it's mostly about fashion, beauty, makeup and all that girly stuff. (But since my blog readers are mostly girls anyway, I figured it doesn't really matter. ^_^)

I know we're probably not the most fashionable people on earth. But we do like getting all dolled up and we have a huge interest in fashion plus the blog is a really good way for us to keep in touch style-wise. So, do gallop by and show some lurrrrvee if you're interested!

Here's the link again in case you missed it the first time:

www.fivefashionfriends.blogspot.com

So everything related to fashion, beauty and clothes shall henceforth be posted in that blog. Not that I post a lot of that here, but occasionally I do throw in a few pictures of what I wear. And I think I might just do a post in the near future on 'How To Do Swan's Crazy Eyeliner' since my makeup is usually the thing that people ask me about the most. ;) Do wait for that and check it out!

The kind of flawless I wish I could be.

2009-08-12T00:13:00.004+08:00

I've never really believed in the whole horoscope analysis thing. But I found this one quite accurate. Scarily so in fact. Sorry if you can't read Chinese.

射手座终极分析

乐观与忧愁：射手座人的内心不是外表看上去那么乐观的，因为喜欢看的远，容易担忧的事情也就多，在他们的字典里，即使现在好，也不一定代表未来好，有时候很多人觉得很好的一个工作或一个伴侣，他们很轻易的就会放弃掉，可能只是因为一个毫不起眼的小原因。所以，这样的外在表现，就让人们觉得他们不喜欢被某件事情或某个人束缚住，追求自由的，没有压力的感觉。

现实：常说射手座是追求梦想的人，但往往忽略了他们现实的一面，算计起来不会比处女座差哦，只是更高明更隐藏罢了。射手座人的梦想是必须建立在现实的基础上的，一般他们很少谈及自己的梦想，而是实际的去做一些向梦想靠拢的事情。如果可以借巧力完成的事情，决不会多花一点工夫。(So true this one!) 所以有时候射手座也容易给人耍小聪明的感觉。可是，不得不承认他们完成的还满不错。也许终其一生，他们都在考虑怎么巧妙的做一些事情，花最少的精力去达到最好的效果。 (Exactly! Why would you WANT to do extra work if you can do JUST the right amount and be done with it?) 所以，很多射手座看上去让人们会觉得很懒 (Meh, I don't deny that I am lazy.)，但是其实他们的大脑可没有停下过思考现实的事情。

拒绝低俗：几乎所有的射手座内心都是骄傲的，其程度绝不亚于狮子座。只不过他们不会显现在脸上，外在的表现总是随和的，恰当的。可是内在有着极强的自尊心，敏感也情绪化。因为射手座人心中是骄傲的，所以他们拒绝低俗，不喜欢任何俗气的、粗鲁的事或人。如果可以，他们希望一切有关的事物，都是优雅的、高尚的，值得品味的。而真正能让他们觉得值得交朋友或谈恋爱的人是很少的，虽然表面上他们是很随和的.

多情：很多人说射手座多情，尤其是男性。其实在射手座人的心目中，对于爱情确实有理想化的倾向，和他们谈恋爱，是一件高难度的事情。他们非常讨厌俗气的人，所以你不能很物质或喜欢谈钱，但是他们又很现实，(I am materialistic at heart, I do not deny it.) 所以你不能一文不名，各方面也必须有一定的实力。物质与精神，你必须平衡的刚刚好，才让他们觉得你值得去爱。或者，你有足够的神秘感，可以让他们不知道你的缺点在哪里，而盲目的爱你。一般，当然是没有完美无缺的人的，所以，可能象金牛座这样永远会让射手感觉捉摸不透的闷闷的人，会非常吸引他们；或者象双子那样，足够机智，懂得察言观色，捕捉他们的情绪，才会让他们感觉到爱情的甜蜜。一般射手的感情模式是，第一阶段，你们还不熟悉，他（她）爱上了你，非常热情。第二阶段，你们逐渐熟悉，而他（她）开始龟毛，整天挑剔你的毛病，无论是背地里还是当面。如果你有幸通过他（她）的挑剔过程，基本挑剔出的毛病为零或者你把缺点保密的非常好；那么进入第三阶段，他们就又是忠诚和热情的爱人了。但是基本能通过第二阶段的人非常少，所以有了射手多情一说。其实射手对恋人的挑剔，是源于对爱情的挑剔，对丧失自由感的恐惧。

射手座人的人生，往往是幸运的，(I really have been lucky on a number of occasions) 因为他们是聪慧的、明朗的、通透的。与众不同，也许是他们终生追求的梦想，(Why be like everyone else when you can be you?) 希望每一个射手人，可以找到他们的梦想！　　

人人都说射手座是感情的骗子，对爱情不尊重，只追求片刻的快感，是花心与冲满欲望的象征。朋友们…你们了解射手座最真实的一面吗？射手座是大孩子，天真与善良，遇到爱情时，可能让人感觉不认真，付出的比谁都少。可是，知道吗？射手座很想爱，却也很怕爱！刚开始他们只是慢慢的付出，谨慎的爱，好怕自己会受伤。可是在一句一句的爱，一天一天的相处下，射手座把带刺的防备丢掉，开始不顾一切的去爱他们所爱的人，在别人眼中，只是射手座为了达到某种目的而作的行动。可射手座不介意，他会在自己幸福的想象中陶醉，希望对方能感受自己的爱，想对方觉得与自己一齐是幸福的。在射手座爱上了一个人，他会把自己放到最后。有苦自己承担，可能会因为吵了一场小架而不开心，却也是最快认错，无论谁的错，他们都会包容，知道吗？射手座会因为深爱一个人而原谅他的背叛，会因为你的一句话付出很多。他们爱玩，在玩的同时，也希望把那一份好心情带给你，射手座是乐观的。　

人们总觉得射手座的世界很快乐，可是呢？射手座难过时没有人知道，他不想让别人可怜自己，射手座不坚强，可是很善良。在你难过时哄你开心，让你有依靠，分手后，他会哭者去想属于你们俩幸福的回忆，也不想爱的人因为同情而勉强和他一齐。他比谁都希望自己爱的人快乐幸福，却常常忽略了自己，全身都是伤也笑着告诉你，我很好不用担心。(Why should you let other people worry about your own shit?) 　　

在所有人看到他的笑容以为他没事，却不知道失恋对射手座有多大伤害，华丽的外表下有一颗脆弱的需要别人了解和安慰的心。知道嘛？你的一点关心，心思细腻的射手座会记得你对他的好，把自己的爱毫无保留的送给你，射手座是不被了解的，可他们不会怨谁。他们会傻傻的认为，让我承担吧，别让别人也受到伤害。所以，不要让快乐的射手座痛苦，别让他们最有魅力的笑容成为掩饰痛苦的伪装，认真爱射手座。你会知道射手座的爱，是充满泪水的…

The last line was wayyyyy to dramatic but the rest IS pretty accurate la. Maybe this why we Sagittarius understand each other better than other people?

Currently listening to- Estrella and Zee Avi (on repeat)

Soothing muic is good for the soul.