Definitely, maybe

Yesterday was the time of our lives

2011-12-20T00:43:00.000+08:00

Just a couple of days ago, i came across an article about how Facebook makes people miserable. Skeptical, I took a quick glance, absorbed the key facts and left it aside, considering the fact that i do not spend that much time on Facebook to start with. Today, I relate to the article.

Sometimes you stumble upon things you don't want to see, or know. Years ago it wasn't possible to do such a comprehensive virtual stalk on a real life person, nope, not even with the existence of friendster. Sigh, you could tell how deeply affected I am tonight, by the little things that you 'accidentally' stumbled upon. Small, yet impactful. Truth be told, the person who quoted 'sometimes it doesn't hurt not to know' is probably the greatest genius alive.

Right.

I haven't been putting thoughts in words for the longest time ever. and this little spider has also found a home in this dusty abandoned space of mine. Thing is, adulthood really changes your perspective in life. From those minute little details, to the larger than life ones. Ultimately, we're the ones who complicate our own life. But leaving it entangled a little too long, and you'd probably find yourself suffocating trying to solve a huge big maze you created.

Reflections.

5 more days to Christmas. Time flew like the speed of light this year, yes, I'd admit, I had my fun, making a mark on different parts of the world this year, but there are so many rough patches this year. Survived my excruciating pain from appendicitis. Went through my first ever peak period at work, and spend those nights camping away in office, wondering if the efforts were really worth it. Broke many hearts, and at the same time, broke my own each and every time. Learning that I can't have all the toys in the shop. Pushing my limits. Understood what 'loneliness' really meant. and watch a few friendships wither at the account of building a few tight ones...

I'm learning through it all. Toughening up, but at the same time, finding the old self back. That sweet little girl, who gave her genuine all to people. Might not be as simple as merely saying, but constant reminders to self would do the trick. "The world may be harsh and cynic, but you don't have to be one of them. You could shine, and make that little bit of difference..."

10 more days to wrap up 2011. Not gonna let anything crush me down now. Gotta keep my head high. Gotta have another happy blog post reminding me how 2011 has put so many smiles on my face. Gonna have to build that old self back once more. Gotta learn how to smile genuinely, and love genuinely.

For now, let's bask in the joy of Christmas season, and be reminded of how great God is, in any circumstances possible.

What I fear most

2011-09-18T19:20:00.003+08:00

Fear of height? No.
Fear of wild animals? No.
Fear of the dark? No.
Fear of physical pain? No.
Fear of public speaking? No, ok, maybe slightly.
Fear of spirits and ghosts? No.
Fear of insects? No.

What i fear most, is the pain of geophysical distance from people who matters.

Sigh. Final quarter of 2011 is gonna be something different altogether, but please be kind to me.

as my soul slips away...

2011-07-07T02:05:00.000+08:00

... at the very least, i still have things to keep me sane. (:

we all need our lil' escapade every once in awhile..

#1 bubble tea addictions.

#2 wheeee 10 seconds joy.

#3 nasi bojari om-nom-nom. delightfully tasty!!

#4 a meal fit for carnivores.

#5 Girly catch up!

#6 Chic Pop joy!!

#7 pimping up the workstation.

#8 Monday perks!

#9 roller disco!

#10 still surviving!!

counting down the days to Hong Kong!! <3

Sunday sweetness

2011-06-05T23:11:00.000+08:00

clockwise from top left:
Mr. Tiger roaring out Sunday. i love Departure Lounge.
Throw in some good reads (with lotsa colorful glossy pages!)
Next to-buy book, battle hymn of a tiger mother.
Summer dress paired with a big sling bag to chuck all-in-one.

Toast to an amazing weekend! And all pumped up for Monday!! ;p
bring it on!!!

The Milky Way

2011-04-25T15:19:00.002+08:00

I should currently be flipping through hundreds of pages of contemporary business issues, deciphering why sub-prime happened, at the meantime prep up my understanding on the current economy's future outlook.. but my mind breezes through those economic terms and floats into a semi conscious state. Imagining, how gorgeous it would be to lie in the arms of a loved one staring at the splendors of colors painting the sky, dotted with stars on that grassy field of El-Teide, Spain. We would then have nothing on our schedule, and simply just enjoy each other's presence, and photograph all the lovely memories of us in our moments. Picture perfect moments.

Beautiful, ain't it? I've currently jotted it down under one of my To-Visit before I die. I guess that part of my wandering heart will never settle for just a mediocre city life chasing fame and fortune. Yet I know the distinction between perceived life and the reality, and reality for me is two CPA papers awaiting to meet me in two weeks time. Time is ticking, and I should be racing against time. Fairy tales shall wait for now... (;

Suppressed

2011-03-13T22:24:00.001+08:00

I once thought, if you could push your feelings aside long enough, it'll soon gather dust in the deep dark valley, bound never to resurface. I once thought, I'll feel all fine and dandy again without having to dig out the past. But I was wrong. Once you've gathered enough courage to push the ''refresh'' button, all the tiny memories will eventually start trickling out of darkness. That's when you realize, nothing has ever left.

Where is the crying shoulder when i need it?

2011-03-01T23:10:00.000+08:00

unraveling the knots in my life.

" look at the brighter side of life would ya? "

the endurance race

2011-02-23T00:40:00.002+08:00

cpa papers.
rangers.
salsa.
toastmasters.
work.
fitness.
God.
family.
friends.
personal goals.

in no particular order.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxx

uh oh.
one too many commitments?

Happiness is a feeling

2011-02-10T01:34:00.003+08:00

Having so used to being driven around, it sure feels good reigniting the thrill of having my hands on the wheel during late nights speeding my way home. Maybe it's the solitary time for self reflection, or maybe it's having the power in your hands, or simply just because I wildly love doing things to the extreme, well, sometimes. :p

So it's currently 2am, on a mid week, with work the next day, and here I am swiping the dust of this almost forgotten memory keeper of mine. I'm pretty contented with life today, although I may beg to differ in just a matter of minutes. Feelings are such uncontrollable items I sometimes wish I can be an ignorant blissful naive girl.

But such is life, and life is such. The more you know, the less you understand. Life complicates itself, and it's up to oneself to actually untangle the knots one has entangle themselves into. Constant reminders to always have a little fun along the way... and do what you love.

Speaking of which, here's a peak of my to-do's of 2011 and you can feel free to join my happy lil' journey just holler up! (;

1. Photoshoots, theme 1: Bubbles, Greens, and Laughters! (JU!)
2. KL Marathon, I'm darn serious this time around. 10km, anyone wants to join/train with me?
3. Master at least one ballroom dance.

... and i shall jinx myself to retain that happiness feeling in me as long as I can. I heard that happiness is a disease, and it can spread, so I'm spreading some of my happiness to you today! Go buy yourself a treat after this and have a great week ahead!! (I'm already badly looking forward to the weekends!!)

xoxo, a big hug to all of you out there who needs one just as bad as i do! <3

ok, i admit

2011-01-23T16:02:00.003+08:00

... i'm not made for the kitchen.

could not possibly imagine how cooking a simple mac and cheese dinner dish can turn into blunders of mishap. Mr milk went spilling all over the floor thinking it's fun, and Mr. Fire decided to go all out to take revenge on my brunch, darkening part of my pot i'm now dreading to clean. Great, just great. Lost my appetite, and now I'm munching on undercooked Spongebob and Co. pasta drenched in cheese paste which I think is a shade too dark for my liking.

I have two more packets. anyone interested in biting off miniature Spongebobs and Toy Story characters??

2011-01-20T01:49:00.001+08:00

Sometimes I wish I was a tech geek.
UGH.

Epilogue

2011-01-13T01:23:00.001+08:00

The start of 2010 was spent on Miami's South Beach gazing at explosions in the sky, with a can of good ol' Budweiser in hand, surrounded by a bunch of happy crazy people ushering in the new year. 2011, however, started with a nice twist, watchnight service in church, and I'm glad I chose to start it the right way this year.

In honesty, I'm not ready to close 2010 as another chapter of my life just yet. It's been such an incredible journey albeit the tears and rainfalls. If you hadn't notice, in 2010, I'm a changed person, from an introvert sweet girl to a crazy outgoing girl with a bold personality. If you were shocked, I'm equally shocked as well.. but I will only reply:- "funny how situations and circumstances changes someone"...

15 days into 2011, and I'm finally embracing 2011. In 2010, I threw off the drawn lines, stepped into the deep end of the pool, enjoyed the very essence of freedom with no boundaries. In 2010, my formula was to live life to the fullest being 21! and I pretty much did. Reality hits when you turn 22, when career comes into place... so for 2011, I'm going to focus on the more important things in life and quit trying to have a foot in everything else in the world. It's not easy, but being jaded at 22 is not ideal! Resolution for 2011? Quality over Quantity.

The clock just strike 1.23am! I'm off to bed for now, so I'll be energized for work tomorrow!

May 2011 be a bright year ahead, where dreams are fulfilled, and hearts are joined.
Have a Fantastic Latte Friday! (;

Look what sits happily on my office table

2010-12-19T00:48:00.001+08:00

sticky candy!! (:
in christmas colors.
(: (: (:

Discombobulated

2010-12-16T00:07:00.007+08:00

What comes to your mind when you first see this picture? A colorful array of defined blur layers... fuzzy happy jolly intoxicated people. Too pretty, too vague, too much happening all at once. Exactly a year ago, I asked myself a question silently, are you happy now? to which I couldn't give a proper answer.

And funnily, I'm posting the same question to myself this very quiet night, 10 days away from Christmas. Truth be told, I've mature quite a fare bit this year, probably the result of one too many transitions within a short period of time. Graduating from uni was a big step for starters, especially when it was such an easy fun three years. Speaking about moving out of comfort zones, I was thrown into a whole new life in the USA for five months, experiencing freedom and independence. Now, I'm in the latest phase of my life, the working chapter. Somewhere in the middle was another phase of craziness, which I'm glad is phasing out.

Looking back, I used to be easily contented, easily amused, and less complicated. Today, I weigh every single detail before seeking contentment, show a very unamused face to things I used to get excited over, complicate every thing in every way possible. Heck, I even think twice before I write each sentence here...

What I'm really trying to say is I'm still discombobulated, in a certain way. Work now eats up most of my time, whilst the remaining hours are spent squeezing in dinner dates and running errands. Still surprise how I can always find time for the latest episode of Gossip Girl, and also currently my new addiction, that korean series titled "you're beautiful". I guess there are my little escapades from reality even though it means sacrificing sleep time. Now if only I can find the time to submit my credit card application and threading brows which I've put away for quite a bit..

At the very least it's December, my favourite month of the year! With Christmas and New Year's around the corner, it's very hard to resist a smile curving up my cheeks at the very thought of it. Throw in wonderful things like passing my CPA paper, a cheery email from Minnesota, work slowly picking up... and all the other things that God put his hands into, being discombobulated is not that bad just yet.. I just need to really sit down and think through some major things, and to constantly meet my own expectations. Think of the bigger picture in life, girl.

Meanwhile, I don't want to lose my casual writing skills to business writing!! So I shall attempt to write more here for balance. Also, not to throw myself at only work, but maintaining relationships and harbored dreams. That said, one of my most favouritest! people on planet earth is back in the country, and so are a few others.. so I shall go for merry meet ups over tea and coffee and champagne and wine and ice cream. Oh, and also looking forward to my little pony gift from Secret Santa! (still quite easily amused afterall) (;

and... just in case I go mia till after Christmas, have yourself a merry little Christmas! Warm your hearts with wonderful carols, spend quality time with people you love, hug someone who needs it, buy a gift for someone who can't afford to buy you one in return, and lastly, don't forget the real meaning behind Christmas..

with all my love,

Feliz Navidad!!! <3

Fact of life #3

2010-12-08T22:53:00.002+08:00

"And you're always in my heart
Always on my mind
When it all becomes too much
You're never far behind

And there's no one
That comes close to you
Could ever take your place
'Cause only you can love me this way.."

Keith Urban

Food for the soul #2

2010-12-07T22:30:00.003+08:00

Sang Har Meen
Succulent juicy big prawns with yee mee.
Delightfully tasty.
I crave for it now!!

Address:
Greenview Restaurant
No. 6 & 8, Jalan 19,
Petaling Jaya, 46300, Selangor.

Tel: 03-7958 1076

moments words can't describe.

2010-12-03T00:05:00.001+08:00

Rapunzel and Eugene on the boat surrounded by a hundred thousand lanterns...
touching tears indeed.

... lying down on a picnic blanket with the other half, enjoying quality time leaving the world behind.

... lady and the tramp moments. (:
Sweetly memorable...

... tale as old as time...
... unexpected love stories...

... magical moments with someone dear...

(: (: (:
ok, enough digression.
now, back to work.

stop being so skeptical

2010-11-24T00:26:00.002+08:00

start living.
be initiative.
smile genuinely.
love freely.
(:

shoe frenzy!!

2010-11-21T13:47:00.003+08:00

part of the shoe collection.
i can safely say that i'm a shoe person.
now, for that perfect shoe rack...

Land of fairy dusts sprinkles and Mickey's charm

2010-11-09T23:22:00.004+08:00

a childhood dream.
two on a journey of adventure.
disney characters scattered everywhere.
four magical park.
countless smiles.
and everything else was.. "wow!"

"half a year ago, a dear friend and I stumbled upon the magical land where dreams come true. and we spent 7 very happy days discovering every corner of this magical land, had many joys and laughters along the way..." Disneyland. the array of colors. the joy on the faces of every dancers and workers. a delightful aura. cute little rides. amazing roller coasters. words are simply not enough to describe this bustling world, so shall i leave you with visual displays:-

#1 a fairly comfortable room for 2 @ Comfort Inn Lake Buena Vista.

#2 tickets to Disneyland!, sunnies, frozen frappes.

#3 we're officially heroes for walking more than a mile to the outlets. but once we saw the stores in sight our weary mind and body auto rejuvenated. ;p

#4 Celebrate today! is their very theme for the year. So pleasantly surprise to be invited by Disney characters upon arrival with a parade full of dancers and very very colorful characters. ok call me childish or whatever but how can you not grin from ear to ear when you're in Disney!!

#5 Buzz Lightyear!!
"To infinity ... and beyond!"

#6 Weather was scorching hot we got ourselves Edy's bite size ice cream which did wonders cooling us temporarily. I ♥ Edy's!!

#7 lo and behold, the infamous Cinderella's castle!
very picturesque, regardless in bright daylight or starry starry night, but it's literally impossible to get a shot alone with the castle without having other bystanders in your pic.

#8 Minnie's tiny note in her house. sometimes i wish my to-do lists are as simple as hers, call Mickey. make box lunch for Mickey. bake a cake for Mickey. instead of bank, errands, work, errands and more errands. wishful thinking much. (:

#9 Alladin's world. Very arabian.

#10 ham and cheese wrap!! with an assortment of side dishes including cheese, sauteed mushroom with onions. Sho good. Ok, it wasn't fantastic but we were hungryyy, and i love ham and cheese to bits.

#11 i still cannot comprehend how we (or rather, I) find an hour wait worthwhile for a picture with Disney princesses. must have been too much Disney in the short span of four days. but it was so cute to see all the lil' kids dressed up as little princesses ready to get an autograph from the princesses. (:

#12 "put your hands to heart" snap!
we look so pariah in shorts beside princesses in gorgeous dresses, not to mention lining up with kids dressed up in princesses suits. shakes head* but at the very least, here's a commendable picture to show you how very pretty the princess is. (:

#13 Castilla Del Morro. Intrinsic detailing of every architecture in Disneyland really wows me. Everything feels so real, and proper. Sometimes I wonder if those who work in there live in a different world altogether.

#14 The prettiest castle ever.

#15 Wishes fireworks over Cinderella's glowing castle, a fanfare of all things magical.

#16 So pretty le sigh. It starts at 9pm, but it's best to get there a little earlier to get a good spot. I was half blocked by people holding their cameras/vid cameras so high up,which made the experience half the fun. So we went back on the very last day again to make it up. Wishes fireworks twice!!! (((:

On the second day, we went discovering the wonders of the world through Epcot, and traveled through 11 countries in just a mere couple of hours. Spaceship earth was glaring at us upon arrival, and i absolutely love how futuristic it is. we got lucky the flower festival was ongoing, pretty flowers everywhere. /fell in love with the romantic air that surrounded the street of France / applauded the jaw dropping acrobatic skills of those young China’s dolls/ waddled through the rivers of Mexico and enjoyed their Spanish guitar serenades/ tried on a kimono in Japan and got our kawaii pictures taken/ rode a Viking boat in Norway/ sipped English tea out of a small little teacup in London/ scurried through the American adventure/ took silly pictures in the heart of Morroco in the little alleys/ didn’t like Canada at all, because all Disney could come up with for Canada is a huge waterfall. Best part of Epcot : being able to witness the killer combination of colorful lights, water, musical scores and fireworks, illuminations: reflections of earth.

#17 lookie the pretty flowers!! spring time calls for spring decorations!! every character has its statue made from plants, very very creative.

#18 flexibility. ;p

#19 Ola!! Como estas!! Going photo crazy!

#20 More character greetings! We went a little crazy on character greetings, and you can browse through the rest by clicking this.

Hop along, we became stars in Hollywood Studios!! (; Disney’s replica of Hollywood Boulevard is really impressive. Right at the corner of Hollywood Boulevard stands Hollywood’s Tower of Terror, a ride where we had the fright of our lives, literally. Thank goodness Beauty and the Beast musical showed right beside the tower, giving rest for our poor lil’ hearts. Loved the shows in Hollywood Studios, amongst those that you can’t miss are Indiana Jones and the lights, motors, action extreme stunt show. Hollywood’s make up . entertaining. Don't miss out on Fantastic Fantasmic!!

#21 The Darkroom.

#22 Infamous Magic Mickey's wizard hat. was so tempted at that moment to buy the hat. actually it would have been a good idea...

#23 One of the gazillion photos of us, with every background possible. ;p

#24 can't get enough of musicals and plays!
"tale as old as time, true as it can be..."

#25 you cannot ever miss this show if you're in Hollywood Studios i'm telling you. see pic#26 for a sneak preview and you will take my word.

#26 explosions in the sky!

#27 I ♥ coke!

#28 Top 10 favourite pictures of US trip!
note to self: to develop the photo and stick it up.
[oo number 28 ju!]

#29 the. props. are. fantastic.
really felt like we were in Hollywood to start with.
and all the more reasons to snap photos after every 1 minute of walking.

#30 see what i mean? ((:

#31 sunset blvd.

#32 Fantasmic!!!
lights + water = splendid supercalifragalistic show!
standing ovation pls!

#33 I've fallen in love.

How can we miss out Disney's very own Animal Kingdom when disney is afterall full of animals? loved how they made animal kingdom shady with big ol' trees to decrease the direct sunlight exposed to us. this particular park is a little boring in my opinion though, a little too kiddie for my liking. maybe if i'm 10 years younger i would have enjoyed it fully. :p nevertheless, i had my fair share of fun.

#34 the Nemo show, which i heart to bits!
it was so good, and when the bubbles started falling slowly, my heart melted.
awwwwwww.

#35 handy tip for all parks: the fastpass is an amazing pass. it's free of charge, and all you have to do is get it an hour before, queue up for another ride, come back between the time frame allocated, and trala! you get to skip the usual line and breeze through the fastpass line.
;p ;p ;p

// Both Expedition Everest and Kali River Rapids are the best rides in the park! I swear, well, for my age group at least.

#36 self entertainment.
i was so short some random guy had to carry me from the back.

#37 chinese sweet and sour chicken. i actually miss having chinese from western countries where we get to eat out of a box and they give you free fortune cookies. how very cute.

#38 both me and ju had so much fun on this ride!! we were soaked wet and we had a bunch of fun ppl in our boat. oh and if you're a spectator from the bridge you get to soak others in the raft.
good fun, real good fun. /please remember to wear bikinis and shorts to this park though. Not very cool to get wet in jeans ey?

.. so these are my personal anecdotes of Disneyland. definitely glad to have the chance to visit it, and also with a crazy partner. Glad that my parents gave me the chance to embark on a journey on the other side of the world, and for God's faithfulness and favor... the inner child in me will never forget this very magical Disney experience. i have a feeling, i'll be back, if/when i have kids. :p

heavenly cinnamon

2010-10-31T22:50:00.003+08:00

and so we sneaked in to the private yacht club, took in the night sea breeze, lingered around.
i wished upon a star, photographed the scene in my memory, enjoyed the very moment.

today, i'm shoving this to the back of my mind. store it in a file called 'darkroom'.

doodle me do

2010-10-20T01:31:00.004+08:00

McD's Sausage Mcmuffin with egg and coffee!!
CPA notessssss.
eat pray love.
bubble tea goodness.
doodlings.
getting a dip into student's life again. temporarily.
ahhh, i miss them all.

isn't it way too hot?

2010-10-18T16:07:00.003+08:00

Ever since I've been exposed to the wonders of exploring the world bit by bit, my hunger for traveling has always stuck by me. So whenever anyone suggests a trip to wherever, i'll jump to it. Three days away from the city, with Monopoly deal and pictionary in hand, a bottle of Vodka, and good company was a breakaway from the standard working days.

Our checklists for Malacca!! (;

1. Satay celup (checked!)

2. Cendol Melaka (checked!!)

3. Chicken rice ballssss, with awesome chicken and assam fish!
(checked checked checked!!!)

4. Malacca River.

5. A lil' comical but it's my first time in Jonker St. in my whole entire life.
and to sum it up, it's nothing fantastic, really.

of course we had to missed out nyonya food and the oh-so-famous crepe shop, oh well, more reasons to make another trip there.
and thank you peeps, for being so accommodating.
I will, be more aware the next time around, on controlling emotions. (:

the essence of life

2010-10-12T23:26:00.001+08:00

walking down Fort Myers beach with an unforgettable friend.

You only live once.
Make a difference.
Do what your heart dreams.
Brush off the define guidelines in life.
Create moments to treasure.
tick of your life's to-do list.
.. so when you look back next time, you'll find memorable events,
instead of just the same boring ol' routine.
(:

Impress, that's all that matter.

2010-10-11T00:54:00.001+08:00

hahaha. self denial.

"So be lonely. Learn your way around loneliness. Make your map of it. Sit with it, for once in your life. Welcome to the human experience. But never again use another person's body and emotions as a scratching post for your own unfulfilled yearnings." Eat, pray, love.

Konichiwa!

2010-10-09T10:50:00.000+08:00

backlog post coming soon!
yes it's been months but i need to write it down before i forget.
compilations for my own memory sake.

eat, drink, and be merry.

2010-10-08T21:44:00.005+08:00

it's the weekends!

sipping white wine, acquiring it's bittersweet taste beats a casual pint of beer no?
need to stop beer to tone up my body.
so, how about a glass of wine instead?

Fact of life #2

2010-09-21T22:53:00.000+08:00

When we least expect it, life sets us a challenge to test our courage and willingness to change; at such a moment, there is no point in pretending that nothing has happened or in saying that we are not ready. The challenge will not wait. Life does not look back. A week is more than enough time for us to decide whether or not to accept our destiny.

Paulo Coelho

exactly a year ago.

2010-09-16T17:20:00.001+08:00

"I want to feel happy whenever I get up in the morning. I want someone to talk to all the time, every day, about absolutely anything. I want someone who will take the extrovert out of my introverted self, someone who brings out the best in me. Someone who has the words to make me smile, the jokes to make me laugh, the shoulder for me to lean on and the hand for me to hold. Most importantly, I want someone who will prove to me that love is not a big hype that everyone falls for." - via letters to crushes.com

how can someone perfect fall in love with someone so flawed

2010-09-13T03:00:00.001+08:00

Naoko pressed against my arm. "I told you in the letter, didn't I? I'm a far more flawed human being than you realize. My sickness is a lot worse than you think: it has far deeper roots. And that's why I want you to go on ahead of me if you can. Don't wait for me. Sleep with other girls if you want to. Don't let thoughts of me hold you back. Just do what you want to do. Otherwise, I might end up taking you with me, and that is the one thing I don't want to do. I don't want to interfere with your life. I don't want to interfere with anybody's life. Like I said before, I want you to come to see me every once in a while, and always remember me. That's all I want."

"It's not all I want, though," I said.

"You're wasting your life being involved with me."

"I'm not wasting anything."

"But I might never recover. Will you wait for me forever? Can you wait 10 years, 20 years?"

"You're letting yourself be scared by too many things," I said. "The dark, bad dreams, the power of the dead. You have to forget them. I'm sure you'll get well if you do."

"If I can," said Naoko, shaking her head.

"If you can get out of this place, will you live with me?" I asked. "Then I can protect you from the dark and from bad dreams. Then you'd have me instead of Reiko to hold you when things get difficult."

Naoko pressed still more firmly against me.

"That would be wonderful." she said.

an excerpt from Norwegian Wood - Haruki Murakami

a lazy saturday afternoon

2010-09-04T17:03:00.001+08:00

paradoxical

2010-08-27T01:19:00.004+08:00

rainbow colors spinning all together in motion, circular, to be precise. it spins, slowly at first, gaining momentum as it spins, going faster and faster, till everything's a blur.
all you could observe, is a streak of white nothingness.
white, blurred, scarred.
the beautiful colors aren't there anymore.
hidden, beneath that blurred white streak of nothingness.

go with the flow

2010-08-21T19:22:00.003+08:00

she acts like summer, and walks like rain.
she listens like spring, and she talks like June.
tell me, did you fall for a shooting star,
and did you miss me while you were looking at yourself out there...

Fact of life #1

2010-08-02T23:22:00.002+08:00

It's a dog eat dog world.
no one really cares.
except God, for you do miracles so great.

my love

2010-07-27T22:24:00.002+08:00

<3>

before the memories start fading..

2010-07-18T21:33:00.006+08:00

"In New York, concrete jungle where things are made of..." every time i hear that song my lips unknowingly form the words in accordance to the song. i guess, in various aspects, i miss US. it wasn't cotton candy land, where everything is puffy and sweet, but i had the liberty i always wanted, the opportunity to see the moon from the other side of the world, and perhaps most of it all, a small escapade from reality.

It's been two months, vivid memories of exploring new york flashes by once in a while, but i'm afraid one day it'll be blurry with missing details.. thus the post. scribbling the very best of new york in point form, with selected pictures out of the thousands sitting in my hard drive::-

#1 the gushing feeling stirred standing in the middle of times square with various animated neon lights brightly lit everywhere at the junction of Broadway and 7th Av. it is so ever lively, tourists spotted from all around the world holding cameras clicking away trying to capture themselves at times square, little booths selling I ♥ NY shirts and Sabrett can be spotted at every corner, couples meeting up at cafes having a good time with coffee and pastries, children bugging parents to buy all the toys they ever wished for from the largest Toys'R'us, NYPD with their horses/cute mini vehicles scattered everywhere, tourists walking out from M&M's/Hershey's world with bags of overpriced chocolates, broadway enthusiast queuing in line to get cheap broadway tickets at tkts, and if you're lucky enough you can spot the Naked Cowboy/Cowgirl... in simpler words, i love how walking in times square made me feel.

#2 skyline view of Manhattan at night from the 86th floor of the Empire State building. Very breathtaking indeed, if it wasn't for the unbearable cold at such a high altitude, i would have stayed there for a very long time, wishing upon a star.

#3 took a long stroll across Brooklyn bridge with a caramel frappe in hand. too bad the picture isn't symmetrical enough for my liking although it's the best out of the lot, le sigh.

#4 so before departing to the US I was talking to this friend of mine after watching My Sassy Girl to plant a time capsule in Central Park. i would have done it if i had tools with me. anyway, first picture above was taken was at the Mall, where movie scenes are always filmed. second picture depicts a happy me after spotting John Lennon's imagine memorial in the middle of Strawberry Park.

#5 holding the city pass and doing the tourist must-do checklist: visiting the statue of liberty and battery park. perfect place to see NYC from a distance though. if it was night the night lights would have been so pretty.

#6 we went on a museum streak of visiting all the museums on Museum Mile/5th Av. Fooled around in most of the museums for entertainment's sake because dinosaur artifacts and history isn't our kind of thing, above being the classic example.

#7 halal food at 3 in the morning after spending the night dancing away in the city that never sleeps, and on another occasion a house party with beer pong and cards with beer overdose. I officially suck in the american classic game of beer pong. and halal with extra white sauce is the best food to have in the early morning... speaking of which, I kinda miss it now.

#8 sitting outside Gershwin theatre waiting for lucky lottery winners to be announced, but we weren't lucky enough. ); the first thing i'm going to do if i head back to NY again is to watch Wicked, with or without lottery.

#9 Phantom of the Opera Broadway!!

I've waited since forever! and it was phenomenal, as the sign says, it was made better when we got center orchestra seats at a reduced price. the musical pieces were stuck in my head for a good one month.

#10 sneak peek of the infamous chandelier.
A little on the broadway streak we also watched Next to Normal when four of us got lottery tickets! Sigh still can't get over how cute one of the actor, Kyle Dean Massey is.

#11 Korean food @ Korean Street. Speaking of which, I have cravings for those beef!!
Anyone with me this coming weekend?

#12 Grand Central.

#13 Avocado with salmon and tempura. Awesome stuff.
Had sushi twice in New York, weird but we were very much sick of cheeseburgers and fries.

#14 More museum visits. Guggenheim, if correctly recalled, was one of James Bond's shooting scene. Dust to dust, ashes to ashes, earth to earth. Loads and loads of paintings. I tried to appreciate! :p

#15 on 86th St. Waiting to go uptown.

#16 Mojito!! I love how the States have bottled up mixed drinks.
Lemonade, Mojito, Smirnoff... i love them all.
♥

#17 you know you're in Times Square when you see more yellow cabs in comparison with cars on the street.

#18 We stepped foot on Theodore Roosevelt Park too!
and took our infamous feet shot.

#19 Starbucks love. We had it every other day.
It's only proper to have Starbucks in New York.
Esp when Frappes are half off. (:

#20 the museum of natural history.
things to do: act like a dinosaur beside one.
ok fine i'll definitely be more amused if i was 10 years younger.

#21 but I guess it was worth a visit. to know what's actually inside.

#22 and do stupid things like this when you see: semai of Malaysia.
i still don't get what semai means.

#23 Woodside Av, our place of stay for 8 days.

#24 LOVE. we randomly walked into it.
Such joy. I loved, still loving and will never give up on love. (:

#25 Subway. it was pretty much freezing half the time we were in NYC so scrambling down underground was nice to get some warmth. (:

#26 the NYPDs.

#27 ok last picture of museumss.

#28 play it well, and i'll fall head over heels.
:p

#29 Rockefeller Center.
Too crowded, but pretty.
Too bad it wasn't Christmas, if not the Christmas tree would be standing high over here.

#30 last dinner in NY at Serendipity 3, upper east side. It has one of the coziest interior ever, and an array of good deserts, but their Frozen Hot Chocolate is the best ever chocolate drink i've tasted. So smooth, with flakes and fresh cream, it was love at first sight.

... and i can remember the night where we took the subway all the way to Flushing for good ol' Pho, shopping on Soho streets... so this was my New York experience. so, who'd like to join me in my Eurotrip next year?

2010-07-13T00:26:00.003+08:00

credits to deviantart

God restores.
All the time.

♥

2010-07-11T14:57:00.002+08:00

Can we pretend that airplanes
In the night sky
Are like shooting stars
I could really use a wish right now

the working chapter

2010-06-28T23:30:00.003+08:00

i finally understood what Monday blues feels like. it's not dreading for work, more like pulling yourself together to function responsibly after a weekend of letting loose. and the weekends are that good. that worth to sleep a little less to have that lil' bit more fun. work a little harder during weekdays to party a little harder on weekends. ahh, my blissful weekend was filled with everything else but work. breaking the rules of being Cinderella. being back in rangers once again, seeing them grow to become such a noisy cute bunch. caught two movies on the big screen. overspent on shopping. dim sum breakfast, har gao!. beers and wine. football. spending quality time with people in general. working life isn't that bad after all, although i badly miss the freedom of being a student, especially when half your friends are still enjoying that particular freedom. oh well, strength to persevere.

but the best cure to Monday blues is when a certain someone decides to have lunch with you, even though it's a 1 hour short lunch. with goodies. (: definitely made my day a better one.

pop me a little happiness wouldn't you?

and so i will.

2010-06-19T18:33:00.005+08:00

“Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn't do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails.
Explore. Dream. Discover.”

- Mark Twain -

life in US part II

2010-06-06T00:45:00.004+08:00

winter, in florida,was delightfully cooling. it took awhile to accustomed ourselves to the chilly weather, but eventually it felt nice getting around in that weather. sips of hot chocolate warms up the body on cold winter nights, and palm-hugging the mug transferred some warmth to frozen fingers. the apartment's heater was constantly turned on for a warm toasty bed to snuggle in. dressing up in layers was one of the fun part, especially putting on scarfs! occasionally the sun decides to quit the hide and seek game, revealing its full glory for a nice beautiful day. grocery shopping, if i hadn't mentioned before, was a delight. frozen pizza going for a dollar, cakes so sinfully good... i could just walk in a grocery store to turn a sad face to a gleaming one. really.

so yes, although we worked our butt off, we had our fair share of fun. pictures::

#1 our make-shift chinese new year celebration. there were hardly any asians in town so we barely had chinese. Sold my soul to work on cny eve, but came back in time to join a gathering with loads of home-cook chinese dishes. i can still remember how good those pork ribs made by Nina, this girl from China. so. goood.

#2 in search of chinese food again. decided to visit asia fest. the char siew pau tasted so weird. and americanized asian food is heavily modified. but they had some taekwando performances and this golden buddha statue in the middle of the fest. that lil' bit of asian culture i guess.

#3 AWESOME FOOD!! omg looking at this picture itself is making me drool.
care to make an all american breakfast for me?

#4 FREE PANCAKE DAY. ok it wasn't all that awesome. but still it was free. totally drenched the pancakes in heavy doses of maple syrup i'm pretty sure it's diabetic.

#5 Matt.

#6 bowling! (:
i can't bowl for nuts, but at the very least i didn't get last place so hurrah.

#7 pizza buffet at Cici's. $3.99 for unlimited pizzas. awesome deal. their cinnamon rolls. are to die for. like seriously.

#8 americanizing ourselves. had tons of american breakfasts.

#9 baked chocolate chip muffins. ok i cheated all i did was buy Betty Crocker Muffin Mix, add water and egg, put it in the oven and tadaaa!

#10 British Pub. i loved the interior design. and how cozy bars in US can be.

#11 had one two many strawberry shortcakes. lots of strawberries, lots of whipped cream.. not to mention at a fraction of the price compared to here.

#12 St. Paddy's Day!!
all things green and irish beer. ;p
all so jolly and happy.

#13 Hector! at Dolly's for the last breakfast together.
i hate farewells.

#14 more crazy parties. (:

#15 share the loveeeeeee.

#16 Easter Sunday.
Perks of working in Publix. We're allowed to grab leftovers from the bakery!
we had cheese danishes, chocolate chip cookies, apple pies, all sorts of bread, biscuits, cheesecakes... i think we went a lil' too crazy.
totally couldn't finish more than half the food.

#17 Shopping at the outlet mall.
Joy joy joy! ;p

#18 spent easter evening watching sunset by the beach.
I <3> off days.

#19 sneak peek of my room.
it was pretty nice. (;

#20 walk in closet.

#21 ladies night! open barrrr.
mm cran-vodka.

#22 Kat's bday celebration.

#23 sesame chicken with pork fried rice and egg roll.

#24 blissful me.

ok updates on hold.

***

summer, in malaysia, on the other hand, is dreadfully hot. nothing has really changed. except for the fact my room is really pink now. and i no longer share it with my sis. change of status from a student to a working adult. oh, the most drastic change being the change from within. as for now, i'm glad for mamak sessions, and random salsa classes. cinnabon being the cherry of the icing. ;p

things I miss, and crave

2010-06-04T19:24:00.003+08:00

I think I need some now.

life in US part I

2010-06-01T03:15:00.006+08:00

so, my updates are a lil' outdated. but i've finally stopped procrastinating, sharing experiences on US because right now I'm missing it. Life in US. It's like having a taste of a forbidden big juicy apple in comparison with that normal apple you have in hand. living the American dream for that little bit. or maybe just escaping reality for a short moment. no matter how you put it in words, it was one of the best escapades of my life. Bonita Springs, was the opposite of all I imagined. a quaint lil' town filled with retired community, with no proper public transportation system, it wasn't the best option ever. adaptation did it's job, and having the beach 5 minutes drive away from your apartment isn't all that bad really.

#1 Starting out was never easy. But we managed. We pulled through. and Bonita Beach Road is where our apartment was. The heart of Bonita Springs.

#2 starting our 9km journey of walking to Walmart. yes we were pretty insane, but we made it. and it was a big accomplishment.

#3 Shopping! and dressing up in layers for winter cuz it was so coldd. now that I'm back it's so hot here.

#4 home, for three months. living independently honestly ain't that bad. apart from the house chores, i actually embrace the idea of living as a bachelorette.

#5 Mode of transportation. Never in my life have I biked this much within the short span of three months. Insane.

#6 Shopping at my workplace. Whee.

#7 Never in my life I've cooked so much too. But I have secretly started to like cooking, and grocery shopping, and all things related. Being domesticated isn't all that bad, after all the infamous quote goes the way to a man's heart is through his tummy, ain't it?

#8 clad up in winter attires visiting the beach. it was freezing cold!

#9 Movie and Ice cream nights. having ice cream straight from the tub on bed can be pretty pampering. ;p

#10 cheap beers. chill out sessions.
I love Budweiser, esp when it cost less than 1 buck. ;p

#11 Night lights from the pier.perhaps one of the things I miss the most of Bonita is the sea breeze, and the sound of waves crashing up.

#12 Bonding with J1s over beer. My colleagues! it was funny how we had trouble communicating due to language barrier, all of them speak spanish as their first language. i do miss them though. we did have fun times despite the barrier we had.

#13 most of the J1s. (:

three months of living a bachelorette's life. of attending parties having to hide in the closet at the end when the police came, to cycling, to meeting new friends, and experiencing a totally different culture... i'm glad I signed up for the program.

more snail (wail) updates on US coming!

all things pink

2010-05-31T23:58:00.001+08:00

been going through a pink overdose phase lately.

it's just that, pink's too pretty.
and catchy.

bimbo much.
rar, i'm still re-adjusting.

2010-05-28T00:27:00.002+08:00

you spoil me silly.

i miss.

2010-05-25T20:22:00.001+08:00

i long for.

Publix, where working is a pleasure.

2010-05-04T15:40:00.005+08:00

"When you wish upon a star

Makes no difference who you are
Anything your heart desires

Will come to you..."

The magical world of Disney. an escape from reality. a fairytale dream come true. my childhood dream came true, at the age of 21, not too shabby ey? (: I love Disney. but i felt like i've grown too old to believe in the magical stuff anymore. the distinction between the younger me who used to believe in happily ever after and forever love, i've now grown to believe what adults do, the complicated world. the only constant happiness in life is Oreo chocolate chip cookie dough ice cream. but i'm contented for now, because i know the world is still filled with love. and that lil' heart of mine is still very much loved. afterall, love is what makes the world goes round.

it's been around two weeks since I've left Bonita. just when i get accustomed to the quaint lil town by the beach, it's time to travel. left with a heavy heart, and took alot of memories with me. this is how life is, and it taught me how to appreciate things more than I used to.

So here's where I slaved for three and a half months. I practically live, eat and sleep there. Ok, I'm exaggerating but it's close to being it. this is where I bike 5 miles to work, and stand for 8 hours, pushing carts and bagging for customers asking, is plastic ok? :p Endurance is really the key factor, trust me. but Thank God for the blessings. My colleagues are such a nice bunch, who constantly offer rides home so that I don't have to bike another 5 freaking miles. and alot of other lil' favors that they so generously throw in.

appreciation cake. yes I actually baked.
just cause people have been so nice and generous over here.

this is will. he's the asst. customer service manager.
he's cool like that. (; sho sad he left before me.

linda! (; asst. store manager!!

who's such a darling, super motherly. there was this occasion where me and Venbee were mopping the floor and she goes, "you should twist your hips so that you get better waistline." she's just very very nice. (:

Eric. although he looks more like a Nick to me.
the store's fastest leveler. and i secretly think he looks manly.
haha. maybe cuz of his personality, and his blue eyes. (:

one of the bakery guy who whips up the best looking cakes and pastries ever. one of the contributing factor to my round face now. BOO.

Rikki and Frankie!

Janet, my mamasita.
One of my favouritest (yes it's grammatically incorrect I know) cashier. Heh, although there's some language barrier, but oh i love her. (:

Rikki. The customer service team leader.
Her laughter is seriously contagious. (: heh the coolest team leader ever. Which boss will host a drinking party after work? Rikki. and we'll all just release work stress with beer and the coin game. good times indeed.

Frankie, my customer service manager.
Thank you for always adding hours for us, and for dropping us home and all.
It's been awesome having you as manager. really.

Mary. (:
Remember the incident where I slammed my fingers between the door? That gory image you can actually see if you scroll down. She drove me to the hospital, and to Burger King to get my insurance done, and waited patiently for me whilst I get my X-ray and needle poking session done. she's also the one who take care of those new on the job.

Ann!!! (;
Haha one of the sweetest cashiers ever. She even borrowed me a cake pan for me to bake a cake. We would so often get into conversations, especially on the topic of food. When a customer checks out with a fried chicken in hand or any particular cakes or pastries from the bakery she would always tell me how good they were. Bad influence much!

Leo! ;p
tsk he's funny. going on with his chicken butt jokes and whatnots. He's one of them who never fails to offer us rides home, and that includes bringing my bike along. (: A darling much.

Everett!!

My fellow bagger friend who's already aged old but still as strong as ever. I salute you.

Crisbel!!! <3>

Leveling in process: arranging product brands to face front.
Every single day. It's a crazy OCD job, but I actually like it.
maybe cuz I have a hint of OCD in my blood. just maybe.

Kimmie, who so kindly loan me books to read and every so often would give me chocolate candiesss. ;p

Junior, my store manager. He may look very serious, but he's really nice. (:

Rodrigo and Lupe. My crazy Deli friends. ;p
Sneaking chicken tenders free for me and stuffing my tray so full when I actually ordered something. heh, i heart them so.

More bakers!! (;
Fernando, the guy on the right is awfully sweet.
He's the one who's been feeding me with chocolate chip cookies and offering rides too.
Sigh, I miss them all.

Randy, the Deli manager. :p
haha my partner for slicing his fingers. LOL.

Hector De Jesus. ;p
My silly friend. who do crazy things. and makes me laugh. and for being my guardian angel. and so many other things. Gracias.

I wished I had pictures with the rest of my co workers. ): It's so sad I left so abruptly just like that. It had been a great three months, although the job wasn't the best job in the world, the people made it enjoyable. this is my locker, the lil remnants I'm leaving behind as an imprint. ;p

My working chapter in the US was a crazy one.
One of those fun unique chapters in my life.
with many lil' tales slit in between, I hope I'll be able to remember and share them one day.

Finding comfort in a foreign country

2010-05-01T13:52:00.002+08:00

I miss my piano, the black and white keys my fingers used to run along every alternate day. Even though those fingers aren't the most agile ones, they look pretty great together, good enough. Although now if they were to reunite I'm quite certain it might not blend in as well as it used to. Not till they find more time together. The question is.. will they find time? Or will they just let time fade the special bond they once use to have. No one knows. No one will find out, not just yet. Only time will tell..

Been meaning to update this space here since ages ago. Like how I meant to update my thoughts on bidding farewell to Bonita Springs, my experiences in the USA, happy thoughts, travelogues... but I've been procrastinating aside being busy. In short, I think I've grown alot these past few months being here, mental wise. Being a bachelorette can be tons of fun, but with freedom comes responsibilities. For now I'm ready to be pampered again. I miss getting pampered. At the very least we're getting pampered by Ju's aunt now, who's been so hospitable towards us. For once in the US this is the closest we're getting to taste that bit of homeliness. Seeing the day we arrived the temperature in Maryland was freezing, being welcomed by a brimming hot bowl of home cooked Penang Hokkien Mee after a crazy flight was one of the best thing anyone could ask for. :p

Anyway, if all goes according to plan, tmr we'll be going for a massage session (I'm so looking forward to it!) followed by breakfast at the Dutch market, mmm I can already imagine that beef with cheese wrap in a pretzel (Ju's craving for three days in a row). :p That said, we might even be heading down to the outlet malls to do some decent shopping since DC has one of the lowest tax rates compared to the other states we're visiting. I am pretty pumped up for tomorrow's plans, albeit the body is a lil' bit reluctant cuz it's defense mechanism is slowly falling apart at the moment.

Tata for now. I need to do some justice to my body.

sweet

2010-04-13T04:50:00.001+08:00

(:

Things I appreciate in life.
Lil' things.
Muchas gracias.

2010-04-12T23:48:00.001+08:00

"So, what's your dreams?" He asked.
"Honestly, I don't know. It's blurry now. Nothing's clear anymore..."

I just want to live life one moment at a time.
For now.
Enjoy the beauty of a sunset, and soak in the hardship of life as a platform to climb.
After all, nothing's definite in life.

You're my inspiration.

2010-04-11T13:54:00.000+08:00

transition in progress.

it's a love hate relationship.
1o more days.
Time flies, doesn't it?

who would've known?

2010-02-28T08:40:00.006+08:00

So I've heard about ppl complaining about how hot the weather back in Malaysia is, and I am, opposite the globe, complaining about how cold it is. Literally. Freezing. Sunshine state is never supposed to be that cold! As I'm typing this I'm bundled up under my Snuggie (Haha, yes Ju and I actually bought it) , with two layers of clothings on.

Work has been pretty good. It's such a repetitive job, the service industry, but the people and positive thinking makes the day pass by. For all who don't already know, I'm on a work and travel program, catered to university students who're interested to learn about the US culture. There's two companies in Malaysia who offer this program at the moment, Speedwing and Out of The Box. I came with the latter, but do check out both companies to score the job that best suit your interest.

Right now, I'm stabilized in Bonita Springs located in the state of Florida. Currently attached to Publix, a grocery outlet. I work in the customer service department, as a bagger, or a nicer name would go as a customer service clerk. Ha ha. My job involves putting groceries in plastic/ paper bags for customers, pushing carts back to where it's supposed to be, basically, customer service. Don't go 'omg what kinda job is that' because people here grocery shop ALOT, and I meant alot to the point the groceries sometimes equate to two cartfull. The store is currently very busy lately because all the snowbirds are down here, and it's a cluster of human jam. It's nice to be kept busy though, working hours seems to pass faster. One day I will post up the picture of my uniform, which isn't too shabby but i would love to do without the apron.

It's been two months into the job now, and I've experienced the good and bad of the job. Things like pushing carts around sunset simply is amazing, because the splendors of colors in the sky is beautiful at that time. Occasionally you get to chat up with nice customers who tell you about their plans in the evening with the groceries they bought, and these things makes your job more interesting than it usually is. Getting tips is sweet even though I'm not officially allowed to. Cleaning the store at night ain't that fun, but walking pass those aisle of goods while mopping isn't all that bad, I love America's grocery shopping. Everything is so instant, so easy. The coffee aisle is one of my favorite to mop, the heavenly smell of fresh ground coffee is intoxicating. Mmm. Biking to and fro from work is honestly pain for me, but I guess it's giving me the exercise I need for the amount of food I'm consuming over here. And occasionally lifts home from colleagues are cool. (: Just y'day we packed three bicycles, a scooter and six people into a MPV, just to get us and our bikes home. How cool is that. ;p

Being the workaholic I am, I scored a second job at Burger King, just to pass my off days, and earn extra dough. I work as a cashier in Burger King, and it's honestly pretty fun. I actually like my job. I love how busy the food industry can get, how demanding it is, but how you can put satisfaction in people's face, because there's this invisible bond between people and good food. It's a multitasking job, especially when you're working the drive thru. It involves filling up the right drink in the right cup size for the customer, getting the right food (picky customers, no lettuce, extra tomatoes, no mayo... ) , collecting money... at the very same time you have to take the order of the next customer in line at the drive thru. Pretty insane during busy hours. The only thing about Burger King is all the employees speaks Spanish, gosh I feel like I'm exposed to Mexican culture more than the US culture over here. It's so diverse. Which reminds me, I really need to buck up a lil' bit on Spanish if I want to make the effort to know my colleagues. Best perk of this job? Getting a double cheeseburger with bacon and mayo, add onions no pickles (yes, I'm picky too) at only a whopping 53 cents!! :D Es Bueno!

I've been enjoying myself at the expense of my sleeping time. Just yesterday night we had a game of poker with a twist, the bet being sips of beer instead of the regular poker chips. It was pretty insane when the bets were raised to crazy amount of sips. The worse thing is when you lose. But it was all good fun. Even got to drive on the left hand side to McDonald's at 4am to grab our one dollar breakfast burrito, although I wished they had sausage Mcmuffin at that time.

Another thing about living on your own, you have to settle your own food. Either you eat out, or take frozen, or cook. Since I came here, I've been cooking more than I've ever did in twenty years. Dead serious. I think no one can imagine me and Ju dissecting a whole chicken. It was pretty comical watching us do it. You should've seen the squeals and expressions. Haha. But look at the end product of one of our cooking! Doesn't it look pretty good?

Baked Chicken

(for two)

Cooking time: 30 mins

2 leg quarters
1 packet of Baby Carrots
1 packet of Spinach
Italian Seasoning
Salt
Pepper
Teriyaki Sauce
Soy Sauce
Barbeque Sauce

If you're tight on budget and tight on time, this would do good. (: Marinade the chicken with salt, pepper, teriyaki sauce, soy sauce, barbeque sauce, italian seasoning.. anything you prefer, to your own liking.

Place marinated chicken in oven dish, and pour the excess marinade into the dish. Throw in carrots and spinach. Potatoes would taste good too. Heat oven to 300 degrees, and just wait patiently. Don't forget to turn your chicken over from time to time so it won't get burnt.

Glaze with butter or honey when it's cooked.

Voila, bon apetit! (:

Ju and I were just randomly talking about opening a restaurant with the name: Everyday's a Suprise! to which we'll serve whatever we feel like cooking. Haha, pretty ambitious for two ppl who know close to nothing about cooking. Tsk. Well, at the very least the kitchen is still hanging in there, not burnt yet! ;p

Turrah for now! I'll try to update more from time to time, if work isn't dating me all the time! :p

A million miles away...

2010-02-18T14:26:00.004+08:00

... from home.

My first CNY away from home.
A valentine.
Long distance phone calls.
Mailss. ;p
Webcamming with the family makes me smile. (:

I have so much thoughts to share.
For memory keepsake.
Or just to open up that reserved self.

But I'm so drained doing my daily routine.
Taking two jobs is tiring, as much of a workaholic I can be.
I'm not complaining.
I love life.
Traveling starts in two months time.
Bliss.

Here's a pretty gory picture of the price to pay for being clumsy.

The other side of the finger is in worst shape, but I'll spare you all the details.

Cute picture to remove the gory image from your head.
After Valentine's sale. USD 1 toy. Sho cute.

G'nite world.

I'm still a klutz

2010-02-11T11:30:00.004+08:00

Two months here, two accidents.
I'm that accident prone. Tsk.

First one involved getting hit by a car while biking home, but thank God I scrap through with minor bruises and cuts. (:
Second one just happened today. Got my finger slammed by the door. Pain is excruciating. ): Sigh, I think it's still bleeding at the moment. Rar, pls remind me not to be so clumsy.

So bad shape.

a glimpse of my life in US

2010-01-28T03:00:00.010+08:00

Off days are honestly bliss. It comes by so rarely that you'll take full advantage of every single bit of it when you get it. I'd sleep in late on cold days, and get the freedom to roam around this quaint little city when it's warm and sunny without work stuck in my mind. What's best is when I get two days off in a row, full potential to have decent rest and fun.

Tuesday marked one of those crazy long but fulfilling days. Those one-of-a-kind days, those that struck the unusual chord. I caught my first ever fish with a fishing rod yesterday! yes you heard me right, I had my first fishing experience down at the pier of Naples Gulf. Honest opinion, I used to think fishing is a waste of time, but I had a change of mind yesterday, it is indeed one of those relaxing sports you'd love to be up for when the weather's good. Put it this way, fishing is more than just merely fishing, it's taking in the ocean smell, feeling the sea breeze messing your hair, having the sun giving you that golden tan, sipping that thirst quenching Snapple Raspberry Tea, watch seagulls flying in the cloudless blue sky.. to sum it up in one word, calming. The tourist me would love to actually have some decent pictures show how the process went, but the brilliant klutzy me snag the camera out of the house without its battery. Le sigh , this is how forgetful I can be sometimes. I vow not to ever do such things again. To top the cherry on the icing, we managed to catch the last glimpse of sunset on Marco Island's beach. Beautiful, very beautiful indeed.

I'm currently too tired to think of what or how to phrase my sentences, or even to edit those pictures. Picture post coming up soon, can't believe I've already been here almost a month, time really flies doesn't it.

monday morning thoughts

2010-01-18T10:48:00.000+08:00

I'm slowly losing tune.

I don't know what it's like to be in tune anymore.
I'm trying, but I'm drifting.
drifting further and further.

hoping for someone to notice, and catch me just in time.
before I drift just a little too far for my own good.

Cómo estás?

2010-01-12T11:15:00.011+08:00

Maya on Lincoln Rd, decorated to usher in the new year.

How has 2010 fared so far? For me it's a mixed of changes in environment, much more responsibilities, or put it in a simpler way, different challenges in life. Florida has been pretty welcoming, albeit the unforgiving cold weather, people here are very nice and very friendly in general. I'm also learning up basic Spanish since everyone here speaks Spanish, hence the title. In translation it means: how are you?

I've been working for close to a week by now, and yes, work has been draining, especially when you're living a bachelor's life. Household chores, meals, bills... so much to handle. But all's in good hands for now, just that I have a tad bit lesser time to spend idling on the net. Off days are exploring days, which meant visiting the crooks and nooks of the small town I'm living in. Thank God the weather was good today, Ju and I headed to the beach with our bikes. It was around 40 minutes ride, 4.5 miles away, with beautiful landscaping along the way. I could use a five month break away from the hustle bustle of the city, and enjoy living just 1o minutes drive away from the beach, and wake up to a quaint little town, nope, not that bored just yet. (:

We managed to spend New Year's Eve counting down on South Beach of Miami, besides walking around Sawgrass Mills Mall and Adventura Mall. Miami is so full of life, and the fireworks display when the clock struck twelve was breathtakingly beautiful I wish I could share it with all. I'm pretty drained at the moment, after biking 9 miles to the beach, but before I go here's some pictures during our stay in Miami.

#1 Plane food actually taste quite good. Ju was just telling me a minute ago that she's already looking forward to our trip home just for the food. -_-' Ok, I do miss plane food and M'sian food a bit already, especially Village Park's awesome fried chicken nasi lemak and bubble tea.

#2 Major spam of apple and orange juice in the airplane. Luckily we were sitting at the very last row where the air steward was just a seat away. Much easier to grab drinks. Our 13 hours flight has no personal screen can you believe it we spend most of the time sleeping and writing. Rar, still very not happy with the fact we don't have movies to entertain us.

#3 We missed our connecting flight from Detroit to Miami because of technical screw ups in our flight arrangements, and were put on the next flight delaying our arrival time by 5 hours. Detroit airport was freezing cold, we settled in Starbucks and slept off to past time. Just beside our sofas are these pebbles, to which anyone can scribble anything they feel like. Obviously we had to do one, but I misspelled Detroit, le sigh.

#5 Walkalators, and getting use to standing on the right instead of the left.

#6 Pretty fountain in the middle of the airport. The airport is so big there's a train inside the airport just to transport people between transits.

#7 Before Detroit we had a short transit in Tokyo, Japan. I can now tell people I've been to Japan ... 's airport. Sigh, so tempted to walk out and explore Japan.

#8 This is Zong Liang, also known as John. (: He is so hospitable, giving us a nice cozy room to stay, driving us around town and from the airport, providing us an IDD card to call our parents, bus cards to travel around, and temaning us window shopping. Thanks loads John!! Waiting for your arrival in Naples, and we'll head to Tampa ok?

#9 Wannado City, part of Sawgrass Mills Mall. That place is a shopping haven, with so many factory outlets and whatnots. So tempted to start splurging on those Coach bags, Forever 21 goodies.. but self control. ;p New York will have better outlets.

#10 We're 7 feet tall with extremely long legs! (:

#11 So instead of splurging on items, we bought food. We found the Cheesecake Factory! and just couldn't resist not walking out with a slice of cake at least. Tried their 30th Anniversary Choc and Cheesecake, and boy it tasted so awesomely good. Accompanying the cake slice was a whole chunk of fresh whipped cream, which I don't take, and Ju was happily enjoying every bit of it. We didn't finish the cake though, and ended up throwing a quarter of it away. What a waste. );

#12 Everything, absolutely EVERYTHING we had that day revolves around CHEESE. Tell me how am I supposed to come back looking the same. Ugh. Taco Bell! So sinfully good. Ok, I'm a cheese lover so honestly I love the food here. Even the pastries in the supermarket I'm working in now looks tempting. Apple puff pastries drizzled in sugar, how can one not drool!

#13 South Beach was so brightly lit with a million lights, packed full with people and balloons. It was quite a sight, and people are so jolly and happy. I was so drained from the lack of sleep and jet lag I was in a pretty down mood despite the atmosphere I was in, party pooper much. But that was after flying for 40 hours, and having to wait for the next connecting flight cuz we missed ours.

#14 Miami is filled with night clubs. and their clubs are opened till 6 in the morning, and it was quite a sight because at 2am there was still a line outside. Our stay in Miami was way too short though, only had like one proper full day to wander around.

#15 Part of Lincoln Road consists of art centers. They are all so creatively designed it adds so much flavor and vibe to that street. Typical touristy us snapping away along the streets.

#16 Tired looking me with Lincoln Theater.

#17 Blessed 2010! ;p

#18 I quote the wall: '' Art can make you look at something in an exciting and totally different way. It can give you the power to fly."

#19 Fireworks at 00.00am, 1st January '10.

I wish you were here, with me.
5 months, will things still be the same?

Currently Listening: She's got you high - Mumm-Ra

2010-01-09T23:53:00.001+08:00

I hate papercuts. ):

and a very blessed 21st to me.

2010-01-04T21:57:00.001+08:00

Thank you all for making the effort to come.
and for dressing up in pink.
Lots of love from Naples, FL.
♥

2010-01-02T05:36:00.001+08:00

Domokun hard at work blowing pink balloons for the pink party.

... some moments don't come by twice.

2010-01-02T04:49:00.004+08:00

#1 Spent a couple of days in Singapore to visit the bestie, at the same time do some much needed clothes shopping. The Merlion, proudly overlooking Singapore's river. Such a tourist destination, but I just had to since I was already at the Esplanade. Besides, it's too pretty at night to forgo.

#2 this is my darling bestie, to whom I dearly love and miss. we're exactly on the opposite side of the globe right now, and distance is honestly a bitch. Those four days were so rejuvenating for our relationship, and yes I know I have yet to reply your fb message, but I will soon I promise alright? (:

#3 I asked her for a clothes hunt, she brought me on a food tour instead. This is Chippy's, Bristish Take Away, fried mars bars with vanilla flavored ice cream. It's something different, but it doesn't scream 'you must eat me!'.

#4 THIS. THIS IS AWESOME. you don't even need to speak. you just eat, and the expression on your face will explain it all. mMm. (: It cost SGD 6 for a small slice though, pretty pricey, in comparison with that freaking awesome cheesecake I had from The cheesecake factory, going for USD8.10 but thrice the size, plus it comes with freshly whipped cream. Yum.

#5 Perks of being an air stewardess includes having the best of all worlds. Well, being one's best friend I got to enjoy the perks too! Hong Kong's most favourite egg tart, although I'm not a big fan of egg tarts, taste so good. But I can only imagine how it would taste like if it was fresh...

#6 Put two girls and a camera together, you'll end up with self timer syok sendiri shots. Well, it's not completely bimbotic. I honestly wanted the pictures for memories, just because some moments don't come by twice..

#7 She had a mini Christmas celebration whereby we whipped up some awesome home cook food, wine and great fellowship. I had the fun going grocery shopping. Picking out biscuits and feta cheese, and attempting my very own salad. (Fine, making salad honestly isn't hard, but I'm not a kitchen person ok. New year's goal is to learn up some culinary skills)

#8 Lynn's very own Clam Chowder, made from scratch.
*licks lip*

#9 The salad I 'made'. (:

I love feta cheese it taste so freaking awesome when mixed in salad.

#10 More pictures of ussss! (:
Everytime I browse through the pictures I smile.

#11 Handmade stockings filled with goodies and thingamagics.
♥

#12 Orchard Road striking a pose.
Narcissistic much.

#13 Us again! at Ion Mall and reflections.

#14 This is the famous MOS burger in Unagi flavor. Tell me how not to put onweight when wherever I go people are feeding me good food. Not that I'm complaining much.

#15 DSLRs are so cool. Just you wait, just wait till I get my hands on one.

#16 Hard Rock Cafe Singapore as an early surprise 21st celebration, from Lynn. It was a pleasant surprise! Thank you for everything love!! The guy with the star shirt plays awesome guitar and sings beautifully to the song he plays. I have a few videos in my computer, it'll have to wait a lil while before I edit/upload them.

#17 Fooling around silly at The Coffee Connoisseur. Absolutely love that place, the salmon sandwich with avocado is love.

#18 Another awesome dish from TCC. Ok this post is filled with too many food pictures, maybe cuz I'm still contemplating between reheating that buffalo chicken pizza or just head to bed. it's 5am right now. I should just head to bed. G'nite world. Waking up tomorrow for grocery shopping! Am highly excited! Wheeee.

Shadow of the Day

2010-01-02T02:07:00.000+08:00

Hide me under your wings,

under the biggest facade ever.

this is my story for 2009.

2009-12-30T04:28:00.002+08:00

bittersweet. like how the taste of a cup of caramel latte would be. the sweet drizzle of caramel, a swirl of whipped cream, followed by a sip of bitter espresso aftertaste. it's good. but sometimes the bitter after taste lingers on the tongue a little too long for my liking. pop a marshmallow in and you'll be good again. thing is, I don't like marshmallows. period. so I'd rather let the aftertaste linger, and learn to appreciate it. bittersweet, indeed.

Am currently spending a 6 hour transit in Changi Airport, with fast internet connection, and a squishy nice sofa to sit on. I'm thinking of writing a closure for this year, but honestly, my mind is filled with too many random thoughts at the moment. happy I had lou mai kai before I left just cause I was craving for it so much. I'd still wished I'd wake up for dim sum. le sigh.

There were a few specific events that happened this year which were totally unexpected, a change from norm. December marks one of the craziest month ever. Honestly, at this point of time, I'm glad things aren't as bad as it seems, that most things are going the way it should be, like graduating from Monash, and my trip to US of the A. 2010 is definitely going to be exciting, challenging, and hopefully, a fuller year.

.. thank you all, for the birthday messages, the sweet surprises, the lovely gifts, the encouragements, and for simply making a difference in my life just because you guys care. (:

Have a Blessed New Years.

Today

2009-12-29T14:05:00.007+08:00

.. marks my bittersweet 21st b'day.

Closure of one important chapter in my life,
embarking on an interesting chapter ahead.

if you'll be my star...

2009-12-17T18:20:00.000+08:00

... i'll be your sky

you can hide underneath me and come out at night
when i turn jet black and you show off your light

i live to let you shine

but you can skyrocket away from me
and never come back if you find another galaxy

far from here with more room to fly

just leave me your stardust to remember you by

-Meredith Godreau

Simplicity is the key

2009-12-09T00:50:00.000+08:00

A friend once told me that.
So.
I'm applying it right now. This instance.
Why complicate life?

#1. I'm a graduate, of Monash University. Thank God!!!
#2. Taro balls from Snowflakes made me a happy girl.
#3. Should stop using the word stupid so often. It's not very pleasant.

#4. Anger management. Sensitivity button. Cut me some slack. Stop judging me.

#5. Christmas is just around the corner. Are you feeling the atmosphere yet? ;p
#6. Declining all part time job offers from today onwards. I need the quality time.
#7. Couples Retreat is quite a mindless humor movie.
#8. My schedule is filling up. Yet I still have important people I need to spend time with. ):
#9. Bring me on a ride. to somewhere unknown. somewhere magical.
#10. I'm breathing, and I've never been more thankful.

Tuning in to bed before 1am. With a book in hand.

Bliss.

Bimbo post

2009-11-30T03:12:00.008+08:00

"So I will dance with Cinderella,
I don't wanna miss even one song,
cause all too soon,
the clock will strike midnight,
and she'll be gone... "

I am supposed to be asleep, tired I may be, I feel so compel to write, it's been awhile after all, since a decent update was written. November is coming to an end, and in a month's time, the year is officially ending. It's been a roller coaster year for me, and as much as denial plays its role, I've realized that I've experienced drastic changes this year, and sometimes the changes surprises even myself, and I'm still finding footings in a lot of things in life. Questions after questions pops up in my mind on and off, to which I cannot give a proper answer. Only recently did I understand what it meant by a complicated situation, only lately did I understand, knowing more does not necessarily makes you answer questions better. What ifs and what has become, was it my expectations? or my selfish little ways? or are we just human? I'm tired. so tired at the moment I just want to throw everything aside, and enjoy the pleasurable holidays of waking up to sweet nothingness, and make random plans just to make myself that tad bit happier, or think less for that matter.

To those who don't have an inkling, I'll be leaving to the States in a month's time, for Work and Travel USA. It's been something I've been wanting to do since forever, alright forever is an overstatement, but yea, it was one of my to do list to ticked off. At this point, everything is settled, flight tickets are already paid for, visa already approved, and yea, all there's left is packing and leaving on a jet plane. To be honest, the feeling hasn't really sunken in, it still feels very surreal, and I'm not that ready as I thought I would be. Five months isn't that long a period, but long enough for things to take changes, things to take flight, things to wear down. For once in my life, everything is so tentative, everything is not definite, and it's scary, but very exciting at the same time. I guess the whole thingamajig of feeling overjoyed, nervous, sad yet happy kinda feeling will only sink in probably a week, or maybe just a day before departure. I'm that kind of last minute person, although thinking of New Year's in Miami itself is already sending tinglings down my spine! ;p

Holidays so far has been great, awesome in fact. It felt pretty empty at first when exams just ended, probably because I've already got so accustomed to the study sleep eat life, but life is now. Life is the ability to sleep in, to catch up with friends whom I haven't meet for ages, to play guitar hero till the wee hours of the night, laughing my butt off hearing my sister sing to rock songs she'd never heard of, to take a million pictures, to have odd jobs for that extra pocket money.. ok I believe there is more to life than these things, but I'll settle for being easily contented at the moment. The month of December is reuniting with me in two days, and it remains as my favorite month of the year. It will pass swiftly, in a blink of an eye, as much as I try to grasp hold of it, but one thing for sure, it's going to be very different from the other Decembers I've had before. Right now, all I hope for is a good month, good month in the sense that things will go smooth, priorities will be acknowledge, good results, hearts will be mend, relationships be healed... honestly I just want a genuine smile again.

Things that keeps me sane over the holidays and pre-holidays:

Girly Gossip Day
Short catch up over cupcakes and savories.
It's nice to have girly meet ups every once in a while.
Girl talks are so essential in life.

Cupcake delivery girl
;p

Sweet tooth

I've such a sweet tooth when it comes to sweet drinks. You name it, I'll love it. Ooo, especially when it comes with sticky chewy pearls/taroballs (snowflake one is ♥)/tong yuen with black sesame filling mmm. The one in the picture is from Hong Kong (on the same row with KTZ SS2) which we've decided to try since KTZ was so packed. Ended up being conned because it cost RM7 just for that bowl up there. Not worth. Boycott! Three layer tea smells so heavenly with Gula Melaka in it!! Extra brownie points!

Lookoutpoint

Been up there a couple of times, and still enthralled by the breathtaking skyline view. Too bad the look out stand that used to be free for all is currently occupied by a new restaurant, sigh, making you pay if you want to get to the top deck for good pictures. Such rip offs.

The 'corporate' us
Working for Microsoft events are pretty fun.
We were lamenting that this look would be us in the future.
Meeting up in formal wears instead of that flirty mini skirt and tight fitting spaghetti top.
Sigh, this is how fast time flies.

View from Level 39, Twin Towers.
Motivates me to work harder to work in offices with city view.

Fooling around in formal wear post event, till we were so tired and cranky.

Sitting down in front of the art gallery, just cause I'm not born to walk in heels, and it hurts.

Volunteering for Vacation Bible School
Team Elephant!! ;p

'Watering Hole Snack'
Their food crafts are all very very cute!

We also managed to have a trip to the ostrich farm, where we saw, sat and ate ostriches.
That little girl was trying out by stepping on ostrich eggs. Pretty hardy aren't they?

See what I told you? So cute right!
This is giraffe! The chocolate stick is to die for!

Zebras! Haha. Taking care of kids aged 4 to 6 years old is a bundle of joy and headache.
Massive. None can sit still! Seriously.

Crafts 101.
To which the helpers did most of the work at the very end.

Isabelle! (:
Such a sweetheart! Heh, but such a naughty little kid.

Vanora!
..is such an intelligent charming little girl.

SEEE!!!

Glowsticks loveeeeeeee.

Johnson's 20th

♥ thank you!! for obeying the cinderella's curfew. heh.

Winter bar is so freezing cold!! Brr was literally freezing half the time inside.
I loved the chair though, the egg shaped chair. and the interior of ice bar.

Barbeque Party

Super delicious rosemary chicken, with salad, grilled veges, sausages and smores.
Mmmm. ;p
Maybe I need to learn how to domesticate myself.

... and here comes the end of bimbo post, as comical as it may sound. I need to un-bimbofy myself to get some decent rest, and finish up my project long overdue.

hiatus.

2009-11-26T03:17:00.000+08:00

I'm still alive.
just busy. busy. busy.

;p

colour my heart

2009-11-21T01:15:00.002+08:00

It's like you come onto this planet with a crayon box. Now, you may get the 8-pack, or you may get the 16-pack, but it's all in what you do with the crayons--the colors-- that you're given. Now don't worry about coloring inside the lines or outside the lines. I say, color outside the lines! Color right off the page! Don't box me in. - Waking Life

because it will be worth it

2009-11-19T01:38:00.001+08:00

I don't have a fear of commitment - I have a fear of abandonment.

We all screw things up;

I screw things up, especially with the people I love. I get needy, I get moody, I get distant,

I want to be too close, I get confused.

I don't understand all of it but I keep pushing because I hope in this thing - the universe. There's no way I'm the only person out there who wants something this bad.

If I want it, someone else out there must, too.

the final hurdle

2009-11-09T00:44:00.000+08:00

four more days of camping in the ice cold library.
for the toughest subjects ever.
pretty much gotten accustomed to this life.
but oh yes holidays, I've missed you.

you could say I'm a dreamer.

2009-11-05T01:59:00.004+08:00

Kinz' old school camera, trying out vintage photoshopping

Lately the blog has been filled with too many emo posts, though I'd much prefer to call them thoughts and revelations (HAHA). it's ok, for now I barely have the time to think, given all my attention thrown to books, although some may beg to differ, with the tap tap and pigging out sessions. ;p I'm just officially stuck in the last cycle of finals season, and getting into routine is quite a bore at times. Just 8 more days to freedom. 8 more days. 8 more days and I'm done with uni, for good.

God has been awesome, as He always is. I twitted this awhile ago, but yea God's angelic protection was with us, resulting in a failed attempt of a robbery aimed at our house, except a broken grill. That's number 1. Number 2, I went for my visa interview with Ju just a couple of days ago, and it went so smooth, getting a good parking, a good interviewer, and getting there on time (click on Ju's link for a more detailed post in regards to the interview). We friggin' passed our interviews!! Number 3, PWC called me today, and said they're going to KIV my application, upon returning from US, all I need to do is contact them. Seriously, God's grace succumbs all, creates miracles. (:

One more thing, treasury paper went well, with the amount of tips he gave. That's one down, three to go. Now I need more grace than ever. Accounting theory and audit, please be friends with me?

Ok, short filler post ends here. Off to bed, 2am, new record. I hope I can doze off, seriously, need to fix my sleeping time so bad.

realisation

2009-10-29T22:56:00.003+08:00

"How do you say goodbye to someone you can't imagine living without?"
I didn't say goodbye, I didn't say anything.
I just walked away.

My Blueberry Nights

2009-10-27T01:36:00.005+08:00

i am stoopid like that.
naive.
rar.

Here comes the sun, sea, and sand! (:

2009-10-24T04:49:00.001+08:00

Lang Tengah, in short, consisted of good beach, good food, good company, and plenty of relaxation and tanning. I call it one of the last trips before graduating from university, a little bit more memories plus pictures to add in the memory keeper's university's folder. incidences like spending a little too much time in the airport's mcd resulting in us running like we've never ran through countless terminals to catch our plane just in time; late night charades with chips and coffee, and alot of laughters in between ahem cue shrek, the orphan, alvin and the chipmunks.. having chauffeured around Terengganu town on the last day in a private bus, oh we were so blessed... honestly, I think I valued the company more than anything else. (:

"ok now do fly shot!"

loved the beach.

"emo shot"
haha, I thank God for Ju, my only SS friend.
tsk everyone else don't layan the camera one.

essentials. which weren't really essentials at the very end.

A toast, to a great semester together, and for more memories to come. (:

clearly, I'm distracted from studies. for tonight at least.
arghiosjfoihifuarejofijeriaofjidosjfa.
g'nite.

Here's a sneak video of us playing charades.
It's one of the funnier ones, if you can catch it.
Guess the movie, and post a comment.
(:

The missing brick

2009-10-15T01:05:00.000+08:00

Read a fraction of the book, and found thoughts and reflections along the way.
I particularly am fond of this one.

*******

Once, when I and my wife were traveling, I received a fax from my secretary.

'There's one glass brick missing for the work on the kitchen renovation,' she said. 'I'm sending you the original plan as well as the plan the builder has come up with to compensate for it.'

On the other hand, there was the design my wife had made: harmonious lines of bricks with an opening for ventilation. On the other, there was the plan drawn up to resolve the problem of the missing brick: a real jigsaw puzzle in which the glass squares were arranges in a higgledy-piggledy fashion that defied aesthetics.

'Just buy another brick,' wrote my wife. And so they did, and thus stuck to the original design.

That afternoon, I thought for a long time about what had happened; how often, for the lack of one brick, we completely distort the original plan of our lives.

Like the flowing river - Paulo Coelho

******

I don't want to miss a brick.

it's been awhile...

2009-10-13T03:38:00.007+08:00

her table's filled with stacks and stacks of jumbled up notes, of auditing, accounting theory... she, poised calm from the exterior, is frantically panicking on the inside, yet the mask conceals well enough, in her little opinion. there's a stack of receipts yet to be accounted for, a list of errands to run, forms to be filled, obligatory meet ups that's long overdue, pictures yet to be edited and upload, unwritten replies to emails that are written from the heart, issues to be dealt with, and four toughest final year final semester papers. Oh, the poker face pulled it quite well indeed, my dear.

Slicing herself a little bit today, she wrote on her little diary/planner: " I've missed you too, you, you who meant that much to me. I admit, it's partially my fault, for the lack of communication between us. It does take two hands to clap, and the string between us is thinning along with crawling days. I'm not slowing down enough to appreciate the beauty of life, the frugality of a friendship, how painstakingly it takes to build a tower, but only mere minutes to destroy it to flakes of dust. Perhaps, life's just throwing too many lemons and apples at me at this time; attempts to make the perfect pint of lemonades out of lemon itself is tough enough, what about the apples? and the peaches, watermelons and soda? One thing at a time, she reminded herself. But would the other things wait, or would situation keep changing at the speed of sound whilst she browse through the other duties in life instead? Maybe some things are damaged to the extent we have to learn to throw it aside, and purchase a replacement instead. She's still not willing to let go, for memories and flashbacks are pain, and the pain is unbearable. no, not at this time, when lemonades must be made out of lemons.... "

the chocolate bar with the wrapper stating p.s. missed you still sits at the corner in the candy filled drawer, every time she slides the drawer open, she's reminded again. and she smiles. it'll be worth it in the end, somehow. oh, time heals? really? she still haven't found truth to that popular statement. time doesn't heal, it just fades memories, which can be recalled through the flick of old pictures, or just an old familiar place. familiarity breeds comfort. she's too used to her comfort zone. needs to learn to throw herself out to the big bad world. toughen herself up, sharpening the knife for war. kit kat bites and lollipops. oreo cheesecakes are temporary cheer givers. oh the rain. the rain is calming. and she pens down, a jumbled up post, with a jumbled up feeling.

Life in Technicolor ii - Coldplay ♫

finding myself, and finding you.

2009-10-12T02:06:00.000+08:00

Monash Ball '09

"你那么爱她
为什么不把她留下
是不是你有深爱的两个她
所以你不想再让自己无法自拔.."

revelations. i liked my hair on that day, courtesy of Joanna.
amazed at my ability to tick of tasks in impossible time.
badly in dire need of photoshop.
swallowed a crazy amount of pink pills and kopiko sweet today.
sipping up tea. bubble tea. coffee. caffeine is my best friend.
lil things that touched my heart. made me smile.
i'm not sure of the ending anymore.
can i continue writing the book, and never end it?

2009-10-08T20:06:00.004+08:00

i don't live by rules.

rules are made to be broken.

in other words, i twirl rules with my fingers.
:p

pointless rants

2009-09-24T15:27:00.001+08:00

Down to my final assignment for this semester, or rather the 'last' assignment for uni life. My body is reluctant to cooperate with the brain to finish this finance paper asap, taking a little break to breathe. Feeling a little surreal typing this out, but yea, time is moving at a frantic pace it's tough to grasp hold of fleeting moments that are dear to me. One blink of an eye and I'll be closing another meaningful chapter in my life, speaking of growing up and turning 21. This week marks one of the craziest hectic week ever, with two heavy assignments due, a part time job, meet ups, reports, practices for the anniversary, a ball to go, and loads of last minute shopping for ball. I've barely tick off half the lists that is due tomorrow, leaving me with 90% of assignment to go, scratch that, make it 100%, a dress which hasn't been collected, no clutch and no heels, no hair do appointment, incomplete make up, geez, I'm pretty much a hero. I really am looking forward to next week, for a decent one week mid semester break, and a breakaway to Lang Tengah to clear my mind of city stress.

Shall we pray that I will finish the assignment on time, get the altered dress on time which will fit well, and tick of my crazy impossible to do list, all in 24 hours, with adequate 8 hour sleep. mMm, that sounds, just great.

ok. full stop. rant over.

(:

never revealing their depths

2009-09-11T02:26:00.004+08:00

"Honey Star"

I've been meaning to update a proper post since ages ago, the many unfinished posts ending up in drafts, to which excuses after excuses were given, but honestly it's just sentences of words I cannot find the courage to blurt out. Having a private journal allows me to write the most personal thing without worrying about consequences, leaving this blog with vague, one line updates. But I have come to terms that running away is not going to bring me to greater heights in life.

This two weeks marks one of the craziest period in my life. I wish I could jot it all down here, but yea, filtering because it's an open blog, and the web's a crazy lil' place. I'm slowly digesting the little bits of all, and trying to realign to transitions and all. Definitely, maybe, indeed.

Officially spent the whole day just chilling at home, web browsing, clearing the bag from mission trip that I left untouched since Monday, catch up on moonlight resonance episodes, and finally found time to slap on some mask to rejuvenate the poor face. I foresee starting next week assignment will take hold of my life. Sigh, five more weeks to go, and I'll be done with uni, and slap with finals. At the meantime, I'm taking things one thing at a time, and still living life to the fullest, because hey, I'm still young. (:

People have been telling me that I take pictures and just keep the pictures without sharing them, so here's a selection of pictures, of interesting things that I've yet to broadcast to the world.

MSLS '09

Drew was casually mentioning about this event, I went with the thought of boosting my resume, and perhaps to have some eye opening experience. Ended up soaking up much of political stands and whatnots. Pretty interesting I would say.

Fiji my love
His absolutely blur adorable look, tak layan my camera boohoo.

TIS event
with Esther. (:
Thanks for the invite, I had fun, bonding with you.

Bertie the Beetle
Chocolate caramel crunch for burning the midnight oil. There was Mcd's Choco Top as well.

Meeting up with Lynn

The bestie, the SIA air stewardess. and putting her 21st b'day present to good use. When I was over at her place she was showing me her stash of Polaroid shots from around the world. Good memory keepers.

SkyTrex Extreme Challenge

So we finally pulled of our first outdoor activity successfully. It was bundles of fun although initially the pulling yourself up 22m was a killer, really. Flying fox is such a breeze, while the obstacles totally drained us. It's worth the money though, do try it out at least once!

Off to bed, to escape the crazy splashes of events for a little while.
Have a great weekend!

2009-08-31T01:28:00.000+08:00

learning to say "no".
it's probably the toughest thing to do, but I need to do it.

me time

2009-08-08T01:02:00.001+08:00

the picture dated 20th July '09.
Caramel ice blended with a good book.
the only time I can find time for these things are during first weeks of uni.
i long for one now.
anyone care for a cuppa with me?

snippets.

2009-08-06T22:04:00.003+08:00

... happily munching on wonka's nerds rope, leaving the bit i munched off linger in the mouth as the flavor slowly fills the senses. mMm. (:

... sad that my laptop is currently in the ICU pending. With two assignments and a presentation due next week, it's really bad time to lose my precious asset. le sigh.

... still learning the art of juggling life.

... ate so much. ayamas percik for dinner, and dad comes home with the infamous beef ball noodles. how to resist? ):

... had a good time picking out clothes from racks after racks today. very happy with my buys. but still unsatisfied. heh.

... there is such thing as a free lunch in this world. free nando's with coke today. just cause it's their 11th anniversary. how cool is that.

... had an awesome bonding time with a friend whom I haven't had the chance to catch up with alongside mango sticky rice and thai laksa over the weekend. so enjoyable. so comforting.

... attempted exercising today, and almost died after half an hour of lunges and whatsoever. my level of fitness has deteriorated ever since forever.

... lost 2 combs in two weeks.

... embarrassing myself is like an everyday thing for me.

2009-08-04T23:36:00.000+08:00

it's august already.
no, I'm not ready.

Western Australia, in words.

2009-07-28T10:37:00.003+08:00

Second week of uni. More specifically, the second week of my last semester in Monash, to which I will be graduating thereafter. and as if time isn't flying at a crazy fast pace already, I'm swamped with a million to-dos and uni workload. Sigh, but the short span of winter break was good, managed to catch up with quality time with people, forget about the worries of the world and enjoy a relaxing holidays in Western Australia, a much needed breakaway. I'm already missing that place loads. Most of the pictures here are already up on fb, but here's little notes about that quaint laid back city...

The ambitious us decided to stretch the holidays as much as we can, for an 8 day trip, we travelled closed to 2000km, route from Perth-Yanchep-Lancelin-Swan River-Fremantle-Bunbury-Busselton-Margaret River-Pemberton-Albany-Perth. Crazy one heck of a road trip. (:

hot chocolate accompanied with ham and cheese croissant

Probably one of the most enjoyable thing I loved about Australia is the large amount of cafes with heavenly smelling coffee and warm toasty pastries. I have a weak spot for coffee, cafes, and bite-size delights, so you can probably imagine me happily sipping away coffee on the streets of cold chilly Perth. :]

Yanchep National Park and King's Park. Grass!! (:

I love my family. I really do. For the sacrifices, the tears and the joy they endured with me. For picking up the pieces I accidentally left behind, for teaching me the important values in life, for bearing with me, for reminding me who I really am deep down... gracias.

Fremantle's Cicerello's

Before I left for Perth, almost everyone who've been/staying/studying in Perth reminded me endlessly about this particular fish and chip restaurant, apparently known to serve the best fish and chips ever. No doubt, having the best fish and chips meal beside the harbour is really cool, with endless seagulls flying around, albeit the chill you get up your spine every time the wind blows. Brr. [Btw, the fish and chips are indeed good, in comparison with the other competitors over there, cuz we've managed to try Kaili's too, which was a tad bit oily.]

"Spiderman"

Fremantle market boast an array of thingamagics happening all at the very same time. There were buskers, face painting, pubs and live bands, people cooking up scrumptious delights like that bratwurst sausage mmm, fresh fruits and bagels, more invigorating coffee, boomerangs , massages (yes I kid you not) and really, it's bustling with activities.

Wine Tasting...
.. at wineries along Margaret River and Swan River.

Oggies Ice Creamery
is ♥.

Old Shanghai

We were wandering around James St. on the first night looking for decent food, and came across this particular restaurant, to which serves awesome lasagne, and asian food. Might not be the best, but well, tourists are tourists. :p

Greek Style Lamb Sausage with black pepper

Since the lodge we were staying in had cooking facilities we decided to cook breakfast during our one night stay in Margaret River. Ok mainly because I loved grocery shopping over in Aussie, and we were craving for bull's eye. So before you start pointing the finger that I can't cook for nuts, although to a certain degree it makes sense, the sausage looks gross because the dad and sis smartly sliced the sausage open while the instructions on the label said, do not slice the sausage to ensure it remains juicy. Such brilliance. Tsk.

Swan Bells

Busselton Jetty stretch so long from the shore. Too bad it was under maintenance, we had to settle midway instead of walking to the very end.

"If you use the P.A. system you must speak with a fake accent"

Haha, I wished I've had the guts to use the P.A. system, and note the cute pink handcuffs just below it. (: Backpackers, so unique, so colorful with happy shiny sun picture painted on the wall, and free internet, a hundred thousand movies to choose from, and ps2 with guitar hero to play. So.cool.right.

Hogs Breath Cafe
Pork Ribs, to which 4 out of 4 pigs agree! (:
I can't help agreeing with the pigs!

Jewel Cave

The Gloucester Tree

Standing 75m tall, pegged with steel rods and no harness whatsoever, my sis and I made it the very top in the freezing cold weather! Ok I don't have the fear of height but my sister, haha, was so funny during the climb down.

Simmo's icecream is yums. ♥♥♥

Cape Leeuwin Lighthouse
I look like I'm smiling silly in the photo, but yea, who wouldn't smile to clear cloudless sky, cool breeze in a foreign country?

Wind Farm at dusk

The scenery down south gets better the more we travel. The above picture is a shot at the Wind Farm. We were rather reluctant to pay it a visit at first due to time constraint, but luckily we did, the view, was so awesome. In my little mind, I recall strong gusts of wind, gigantic wind turbines, and the beauty of sunset.

The Gap
Total breathtaking view.
Totally worth the drive down to Albany.

Dead whale on cable beach
Such a pity, sigh. ):

"take a peek at the inside of a human heart, not just the exterior beauty,
and you'll be surprised at your findings..."

Candy Cow!
Painted pink in colour, the sweet smelling shop is filled with candies, candies and cow soft toys. Sigh, this is where happiness lies. Fudge, candies, gummies, cows.

Corica's apple strudel
messy, but absolutely delicious.
Ok it was also recommended as one of the must try in Perth. (:
and it was also good to have met up with weny and yobi at Perth over pizza.
and walking the streets of Perth waiting for yobi's grand arrival.

London Court
.. to which I grew an affinity with. I loved that street. Someday, I will visit London.

(;
Now I long for a beach escapade...

thinking of the possibilities makes me cringe.

2009-07-27T00:32:00.002+08:00

so sweet. (:

2009-07-23T14:31:00.001+08:00

it's when we evolve.
and things changes.
feelings toying emotions.
life starts to intertwine.
.. and love starts growing.

food for the soul #1

2009-07-07T14:06:00.003+08:00

Strawberry Mill Crepe
20 layers of crepe accompanied by strawberry fillings.
Also available in chocolate, and vanilla flavor.

Address:
BG-8 Happy Mansion,
Jalan 17/13, 46300
Petaling Jaya, Selangor

Sharing the love of good food with people. (:

my memory keepers

2009-07-07T04:23:00.001+08:00

In two days time, I'll be enjoying a short breakaway in the city of Perth. I'm thrilled, to spend quality time with the family, at the same time go trigger happy, experience my first "winter", and also to partially escape this crazy city for just a little while albeit it meant missing opportunities, like joining the Deloitte tax challenge 09. Life works consistent with the economic term, opportunity cost, doesn't it? Choosing the best alternative, sacrificing the next best alternative.

Life has been good thus far. I'm totally enjoying the freedom of holidays. One precious day of my holidays went towards spring cleaning my room, since the room was in utter disaster prior to my final paper. Milo sachets, books, sweaters, miscellaneous scattered everywhere... now it's so neat, I feel accomplished, seeing I'm a partial "neat freak". (: Whilst I was sorting out the mess, I took time off to reminisce whenever I come across little notes, letters, and things that brought back memories. Things of sentimental value, I can never find the heart to throw them away...

#1 Classic hand folded stars in Patrick. Fond memories, this one. Bet you'd never thought I'd kept it till today, in a small box, tucked away in the depths of my room. I laughed at how the stars aren't symmetrical, but in the end, it's the thought that always counts.

#2 Shiny stickers! Call me childish, but I'm still a kid at heart. My collections of stickers from 10 years ago, is now destroyed. So many empty spots, where it was once filled to the brim. Emoe. Haha, I kid, I got over the sticker stage already. These are just... remnants of my happy childhood. (:

#3 Pass-a-message key chain. High school. Form 3. We were all so innocent. Love was so easily defined. Hahahaha, this was a set up, and it was such a big deal back then, gossips and all. Looking back, I'm glad a beautiful friendship is still there, albeit the high school funny little incidents.

#4 Dried flowers in a wine glass. I always thought that throwing flowers away when they wither is such a wastage, such a pity. This bunch of flowers above were my 20th birthday gift from Wae Lern and Harry, to preserve it, I tore the petals out and store them up. It currently looks like potpourri without smell.

#5 Ornaments. See the miniature hand painted vase? I bought it as a souvenir from my Mount KK hike, just cause they were too cute to resist. The seashell mirror, from ancient age, Leo Installation's souvenir. Heineken beer cap because I simply collect weird things, bottles, bottle caps/corks, sugar sachets, and other lil random things. (:

#6 " I guess we always stuck out like a sore thumb..." So agreeable, I read through so many letters that day itself, and boy, it made me smile silly to myself. You know, I'm glad we stuck out like sore thumbs, because in the end, we're not the losing end. Thank you, for sticking by me. I hope, I've been a good enough friend. ):

#7 Proud to once be a Cool Cool Kit-Kat. Rangers molded half my life. The number of camps I've been, the sunburnt skin, carolling, sleeping in tents, waking up early, kayaking, abseiling, camporama '04, advancement camps... funny when I think back of when I was 14, I feel so... old, in the sense that now I'm a cmdr, no longer a ranger. I've grown a long way.

#8 Movie stubs are also in the list of weird things I keep. But as I was going through the stubs the other day, I'd realized that most of them are already faded, or in the process... I ended up dumping the faded ones away.

#9 Postcards, from various countries. From Melbourne, Cairo, Manchester, Taipei, India, Sydney, Beijing, Incheon, Japan, Houston... and the list goes on and on. I know it isn't easy to bother writing to me from everywhere, but I'm glad you did, and I really appreciate it. One day I'll buy a photo album and compile it all up together. (:

Alright, it's getting late I should curl in bed and rest. Oh last note, through it all, this song has helped me through wonders.

"With Christ in the vessel I can smile at the storm,
smile at the storm,
smile at the storm,
With Christ in the vessel I can smile at the storm,
as we go sailing home... "

Try putting some faith in Him when you're weary, He welcomes you back all the time.
Every single time.
Thank you God, for being with me.

little did I know

2009-06-26T05:09:00.000+08:00

The paper.
It used to be white. Pure.
Now, it's stained.
Just a little black dot in the middle.
A day later, there's a pen line, at the corner of the paper.
Blue in color.
Three months later. It has significant dirt on it.
Dirt from food stains. Dirt from hand prints.
Three months ago, it used to be white, clean.

What do you do?
Attempt to rub it all off?
Or try to decorate the paper to cover the stains?

what lil' miss mystery has been up to lately...

2009-06-06T02:49:00.002+08:00

.. apart from cramming for her finals.

You know, I guess that throwing your worries away temporarily sometimes does wonders. Today, funnily, I've decided to erase some things out of the brain, opening up the mind, and boy, it feels good. liberating. happier. lighter. laughter. Feelings that hasn't stuck by me for awhile, came gushing back. A genuine smile. Perhaps handing in my last assignment for the semester did help in the process, a crappy investment assignment that is, oh well, at least I get to focus fully on the upcoming finals, which is merely nine days away. /gasp

Just yesterday, I posted a personal message on MSN which stated: are you genuinely happy? To which I've received different types of replies, some happy, some thinking they are, some, not really. I don't really know which category I'm stuck in right now, just cause I do have mood swings which varies to my liking, but at the moment, I am happy. period. which is why I probably let myself time out from studies and blog. (: I'm also in the midst of planning my schedule for my three precious week of holidays in July, to which I am eagerly waiting for it to come by, minus the exams part. I need a break that bad.

Speaking of which, I've had so many accumulated pictures over the past few weeks, of outings, and those little memorable things.

Sunset in the city. The sun was so round the other day I took out the camera in a jiffy to snap this picture before the traffic light turned green. When the car started moving, all the other shots went blur. Boo.

Elken Motor Hunt.
23rd May 2009.
Of Ayam Brand, Bangsar, Gempa.
(:
More to come the next time!

Agnes' 21st.

Playing oversized cards.
So.freaking.cool.

Pat's.surprise.21st.
Buntings. Photos in frames. Itallianies Foccacia Bread.

Esther's 22nd.
We're all getting old man, talking about working life and serious personal stuffs.
Glad to catch up though!

Mussels. just because I love them.

Frames.
I've been there twice, and I loved that place.
Nice concept, awesome photos.

The game of Catan.
Beginners luck. I won the first game. :p

Mindless scribbles.
I like my horsey.
It's nicer than the elephant right.
RIGHT?

Throw chats.
(: (: (: (: (:
When studying in the cold library gets a tad bit boring and lonely.

Indian day in Rangers.
I wished I had a Sari.

Korean BBQ @Desa Sri Hartamas to celebrate the sister's 18th.

Family love.

Thank you, for Rakuzen. And Bangkok Jazz.
It was a good night chill out.
(:

The condition of my room.
Books.books.books. are my best friend for the upcoming three weeks.

you make me happy.
(:

p/s: I'm not used to the attention. Suddenly.

2009-06-01T00:20:00.002+08:00

It gets a little hard to breathe when there's so much things going on.

Prioritize.

My sole word to live by for the month of June.
It's going to be a crazy hectic month.
Can't wait for July to come by.

Words, have this unspoken power over my emotions.

2009-05-25T01:10:00.004+08:00

I'm currently swamped with assignments, and should be working on them, but currently the brain isn't cooperating with me. Was browsing through my drafts, and thought showing some light to this post will do some good in a way. It's just quotes, that somehow rather spoke to me, whether it relates, that's totally another different story.

Words stringed together so beautifully.

*****

"才知道有些感受
我和他谁都不曾说出口
我们都是最好的朋友
谁会有勇气去开口
不在乎不再难过
我们还有好大好大的借口喔
故事的最后
我们都不曾失去过什么
我们依然是朋友噢"

I knew what this was. It was bereavement. It was losing something precious. It was losing a part of myself I'd never gotten to know. I hadn't gone through the bereavement process like I should have done three years ago when I found out. I'd simply stay in shock, maybe even denial, pretended it wasn't happening. I was somewhat along the process of loss and grief. I knew that. Intellectually I knew that. Emotionally was something else completely. Emotionally a simple look would ignite enough pain to knock me out. - Marshmallows for breakfast

"Lost and insecure you found me you found me,
Lying on the floor surrounded surrounded,
Why'd you have to wait?
Where were you? Where were you?
Just a little late
You found me..."

Quotes from Sisterhood of Travelling Pants 2:
Car's are easy. It's people you need a manual for.
You need to have a little faith.. Not everyone you love is going to leave you.
Sometimes words fail.
No one can diminish you but yourself.

"And how we laughed, and how we smiled,
And how this world, was yours and mine
And how no dreams was out of reach,
I stood by you, you stood by me... "

"他走了带不走你的天堂

风干后会留下彩虹泪光

他走了你可以把梦留下

总会有个地方等待爱飞翔"

Scaling Mount Kinabalu

2009-05-12T02:59:00.004+08:00

Easter break '09 was well spent. Whilst everyone was busy meeting assignment deadlines, or just frankly taking a break from Monash's crazy workload, I took five days off, for this.

4095.2m, proudly achieved by yours truly. (:

I survived Mount Kinabalu, made it to Low's Peak, South East Asia's highest peak. It's so surreal till today I can't help but break into a smile when I share my experience with others. It's not being smug, although there is a little air of pride, but because it is such a big achievement for me. What made it tougher was that prior to the climb the only training I had was twenty minutes on the treadmill, zero incline. Besides, the doubtful look people shot me when I excitedly told them I'm going to attempt climbing Mount Kinabalu didn't help much. For one, a free dinner was even placed as a "bet" on whether I reach the top. How encouraging right.

But in the end, what matters most is that I made it to the very top,

I conquered Mount Kinabalu!

In my humble honest opinion, the climb was excruciatingly grueling for me, with much mind over matter chantings, a large chunk of will power, a pinch of determination, alot of God, and every single ounce of strength mix together to pull myself through the whole regime. But looking back, everything, all sacrifices made during the climb was so worth it. So worth it when you reach the peak, it's like that feeling of overcoming a tough obstacle, it drains, but it feels really really good at the end of the day.

There's tons of photographs at the end of the trip courtesy to three photgraphers, and Borneo is so beautiful. I already am missing that place, or a matter of fact, a holiday, a getaway from my current hectic life. Scattered pictures of the whole trip:-

Blooming flowers at foothill of Kinabalu Park.
Really really beautiful.
♥

Trail Map of Mt. Kinabalu.
In anticipation of the climb.

The little triangles on the map shows the little pondoks available, and every time I step into one I feel like I'm one step closer to the top. The smallest encouragement helps ease the climb a whole lot.

At Timpohon Gate with our guide/porter Nizam. With the "Selamat Mendaki" sign brightly greeting us, we're still all pumped up, taking in the cool breeze. Very enthusiastic when taking our name tags, and lunch pack.

The team. As Pastor Lik said, "You'll never forget the people you climb any mountain with." Truly, it has been a wonderful experience, and I couldn't have done it without the support from all five of you.

The never ending big steps.

It was practically raining cats and dogs on our way up and down Laban Rata.

Little Miss Sunshine and Supergirl conquered Mount Kinabalu!

Complimentary hot coffee and Sabah tea at Laban Rata Resthouse. Weather was very chilly so it was very pleasant to sip up tons of hot tea to warm the inner body. It was also here that we had a hearty buffet dinner and a light supper before we continued our climb to the peak.

Sunset view at Laban Rata.
We're practically above those puffy cotton candy lookalike clouds.
Breathtaking view ey?

Esther and I all geared up at 2.30am. I think the temperature was around 3-6 degrees only. Air was very thin, thus making breathing difficult and climbing in the dark difficult. The beautiful thing about climbing at 3 in the morning is the uncountable bright shining stars in the sky lighting up the path for us. (:

Awesome breathtaking view from almost-peak.

THE PEAK!

My shoes gave way a whole lot, and if it wasn't for the nice guide who hold my hand all the way down to Laban Rata, I'd think I'd already slip a couple of times because I was wrongly geared with running shoes. I'm forever grateful to the guide, really. (:

Backpacker's lodge @KK town

It was my first experience staying in a backpacker's place, and I really liked the open concept of it. Free internet access, tv at the lounge, not to mention it's way cheaper than hotels.

On our journey to Padas River white water rafting. The train broke down, so our alternative transport was the "trolley", where the locals would pedal a simple assembled "raft-like-board" with wheels attached. To which I've also experienced a near crash with an oncoming vehicle. Tales that lasts a lifetime.

White water rafting was bundles of fun! (: Enjoyed it tons, and would love to do it again. We were so blessed with amazing sunsets almost every other day in Sabah. Watched this on the way back from white water rafting in the oldest train to Beaufort station, I still remember that little bit of history.

Last day in Sabah was spent sight seeing.
The Navy's were having some event on that fine day.

Us @ The Filippino Art Market
Haggling skills come in handy as starting prices are ridiculous.

Acting bimbo with a red telephone booth, before heading to Pulau Manukan for some lazing on the beach with Esther.

15 minutes speed boat ride to the nearest island.
Absolutely loved the ride.

*******

*Clinks glasses* to our success.

Thank you, for walking with me till the end.
(:

Many thanks to Pastor Lik, Pei Hong, Uncle Steve, Aunt Jamie and Esther, for such a unforgettable trip. To Esther, I'm glad you chose me for the trip, apart from all the fun activities, it was really great having bonding sessions with you over Maggi Mee at the backpacker's lodge, and oogling over that tanned skin good body china guy in boxers. Hahaha. Good times, good times indeed.

As for Borneo, land under the wind, I'll be back in due time.

I love the way you say good morning

2009-05-10T21:08:00.003+08:00

Saturday morning Breakfast at Roz's.
Homemade pancakes with butter and maple syrup.
Orange juice. Cold chocolate milk.
Guitar, RC, Puppeteer.
Lazy Saturday works great for me.
We so should do this more often.
(:

Hold my hand, and never let go.

2009-04-24T00:20:00.002+08:00

If I choose not to take that leap of faith, would I ever know of the happiness over the rainbow? If things were to work out differently, would I still be sitting here contemplating on the decision? If my ego were to lessen just that bit, I'd like to believe sweeter things would've already come along my way. If I were to ask, would I get the answer I want? If I were to spill, would it result in heartbreaks or happily every after? If life was less complicated, we'll be happier and merrier, clinking to life's simple pleasures....

...but I'm glad life's just that little bit more complicated, just so it'll be worth it in the end.

I'm trying. Really.

2009-04-13T23:58:00.001+08:00

Leaving on a jet plane in six hours.
To attempt climbing Kota Kinabalu.
With the most minimal training effort.

Have a great easter break ya'll!

I have toned biceps

2009-04-08T00:33:00.003+08:00

Swarmed with work, yet only when I'm swarmed with work will there be updates on this blogs.
The irony.

Kayak trip over the weekend was deemed productive. Scored.
Two hours one way, 10km, under the hot midday sun, against the wave.
Reached island which has no bathroom, no whatsoever.
Set up tent, lit up fire.
Start cooking. Heavy rain pour.
Continue cooking Ramly patties over open fire under heavy rain shielded by army or rangers holding up canopy.
Eat heartily, even though food is filled with sand due to strong wind.
Clock in to sleeping bag at 8.30pm. The earliest record for the year.
Stink.like.crazy.
Wake up.
Tuna and bread.
Kayak for another two hours.
Land!!!
Fresh water and shower, one of the precious things in life.
Home sweet home. (:

Can you tell I'm procrastinating?
At least it cleared my mind a little bit.
Good day.

Dream

2009-04-02T00:44:00.004+08:00

I would write down a thousand million words to describe how I feel right now, but I'd rather not. Soak it all in my mind, breathe some fresh air of the night, and let it all out with the wind.

You know what's so magical about snowflakes? It's how intricate the design is, how symmetrical, yet out of the infinities in the world, none is alike.
I miss my snowflake.

I want to let my hair down, lay back awhile, slip on that pretty dress left hanging too long in the closet, put some make up on, wear that four inch stiletto, and dance in the moonlight with good company and drinks.

It'd been awhile.