Into The Night...

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.

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.

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...

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.

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.

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! ;)