The last weeks of 2008

2 days to Christmas, 8 days to 2009, 13 days to new school term.

What have I done with my 6 weeks' holiday? Erm...nothing much yet actually. A summary would be that I met some of my friends, I went on a very memorable and interesting holiday at a homestay, I met with more of my friends, I went to Bali with my family members while building muscle in my left arm, and I read a few good books.

An expansion on the things I've listed once I've got some of the photos and a computer with internet access at home. :)

In the meantime, enjoy being crushed by the crowd during Christmas eve, Christmas, New Year's Eve and New Years... I am going to avoid the crowds by staying in after certain time. Have a good one y'all!

I thank God(s)

I wake up this morning feeling absolutely great! I am so touched that I am so loved by my family, friends, pets and the Gods above! Why am I suddenly so grateful (seeing that I have been an absolute ungrateful brat before this)? I don't know. Enlightened, I suppose. ;)

I thank Gods above for my beautiful family. I realise now that my parents, brother and sisters and their families love me unconditionally and are worried about me all the time. They would walk on fire or shelter me from rain with their own bodies if there is the need. It was unfortunate that there is the communication break down within the family that makes each of us forget how much the other loves us sometimes. But I am determined to not let that happen to me again.

I thank Gods above for my extended family. Without you, Ah Yi and Ashley, I think I will not realise how much my parents have done for me. I'm sorry for my MIA status for over 2 months, but I did not want to repeat myself like a broken recorder and be reminded of the difficult times. :) Now that all is well, you can question me all you want. :)

I thank Gods above for Brian. It is definitely quite unusual among the people I know to still be friends with their ex. It is great that he is such an awesome and understanding guy. Girls, this guy is amazing! (Hey B, lemme know if my advertisement for you works, k?) ;)

I thank Gods above for my lovely friends...William, Linesh, Vilo, Melwin, Woon, MeiJu, Hwa Cheat, Sara, Ming Keat, Jarrod, Siaw Hui, Sin Yuan, Sophia, Joshua Paul, Jono, KY and others who were truly worried about me when they heard rumours of the break up but dared not ask for fear of intrusion. Haha...you guys are the greatest...And again, sorry for my MIA status.

I thank Gods above for my good looks and kindness. Hahahahahaha...You people who have/had crushes on me, better 'fess up or risk losing me to another person! Muahahaha...I know Vilo, you have told me so many times, let others have a chance! Hahahaha...

I thank Gods above for my job (and with that, my patience). Teaching brings much satisfaction sometimes. And some of the kids make you really passionate about teaching and helping them do better in their lives.

I thank Gods above for my lovely pets - Baby, Charlie, Hunter and Kristy. Baby for not biting me much these days and only welcomes me with a helicopter tail. Hehe...when she was slightly younger, she'd be so excited to see me that she could fly bottoms up because her tail was spinning wildly. For other family members, she would just wag her tail. :) And those of you who have seen Charlie would know that he follows me around as though he can't bear to be apart from me even for one second (except when my mom is eating snacks in the kitchen). Hunter, for all his craziness leapts as though his legs were springs when I'm at home. And poor Kristy who used to snap at me is on her last legs after my mom bought Bobby(which is dead after 2 weeks) home to accompany her. I didn't know that turtles are even more violent than dogs when they fight for dominance.

I have much more to be thankful for. Right now, it is for KFC. Hahaha...am off to have my finger linkin' good lunch now.

Amen, Amin, Namo Amitabha, ohm Shanti shanti shanti...

I love hugs

~Sigh~ I so do love hugs... and I just realised this not too long ago. It is not just me. Melwin has been feeling the same way too ever since she came back from Sabah. Too bad it is not in the Chinese culture to hug. Of the Chinese I've hugged, I think my aunt and cousin (love you lots, ah yi and Ashley!) are the only family members (ooh..and Willie). Heck, I hugged my friends' fathers and mothers and aunts and sisters but never hugged my own! I did attempt a half-hug with my father when he gave me my car but I don't recall him hugging me back. And my eldest sister's first hug for me was when she was leaving for UK and I stood there like a log feeling disgusted at being hugged. Hahahaha...that is/was the culture of my family.

Growing up imagining myself being open minded made me enjoy hugs. Somehow the hugs were only shared amongst the ones who went to national primary schools. Very rarely were hugs given to those who went to Chinese primary school unless they were really really close to you. I think the only one whom I hugged from Chinese primary school was Yoke Thing on her 21st birthday. And I remember her feeling awkward because she wasn't expecting a hug. Haha..or maybe it was just me giving her an awkward hug. :P

And then in Maktab days where my closest friends are Indians, I embraced the culture of hugging. Meeting someone after a long time *hugs*, before leaving *hugs*, family members *hugs*, just so that you know you are important and loved *hugs*...Before being posted and separated from my dearest friends, I had thought that it was some kind of obligation or habit for people to hug for no apparent reason. But I have since realised that it is not an obligation or a habit, it is just a need and a rather effective way of showing that you care...

I've been really lucky that I have been able to meet up with many of my closer ex-coursemates over the past 2 weeks. And I had a glimpse of the very different culture of the 3 main races in our beloved country:

My first outing was with Daus, Aisyah, Azee, Hakimi, Apai, Ikin, Sarah, Is (and Nana) and Vilo. Yup, a rather muhibbah outing we had at KLCC. Even though I was not close to some of them, we met and shared the particular 3-time hugs of the Malays. And even though it looked like standard hugs, the different levels of affection could be felt. For me, it is very natural to hug the one I am closest to or am friendliest with first before hugging those whom I am not that close to. And the ones I am closer to will hear the "muah, muah, muahs" while those whom I am not close to will just feel me doing the obligatory three time hug. Haha... Of course, religion and culture dictate that guys and girls shalt not hug (or touch) each other, so this "culture" was only exchanged among the girls. I would not mind giving Daus a hug though...hahahahahhaha...he's such a great friend! Besides the hugs, it was great to be able to meet and chat with them about everything and nothing again. And to go to the Skybridge together (the ticket collector was surprised that Vilo and I were together with them). Too bad Daus and Aisyah want to keep our photos close to their hearts and do not want to share them with others *hint*. ;P

The second outing I went to was with the Indian girls...the ones whom I almost always went out with. I am very bad but I would always try to hug the person that I miss most first even though it would be out of the way. So, without noticing it, I (kind of) ignored the person who was standing closest to me and went and hugged Melwin first. The Indian hug is different from the Malay hug that it is only done once but is felt by intensity. So, if I hug Vilo (hahaha) it would be a tight squeeze as opposed to me giving the obligatory hug to erm...Vilo's aunt. Great fun to be with the girls again...Mindy, Vilo and Melwin, we should go bowling and watch movie again soon! Miss chatting with you gals and laughing for no apparent reason! Haha...

The third outing which lasted for almost a week was with the Chinese gals. Siaw Hui, Hwa Cheat, Sin Yuan and Woon were in KL. And guess what? No hugs at all. Hahaha...we just waved and stood awkwardly saying hi to each other even though we are quite close, closer than I am to the Malay girls, at least! I only hugged Sophia and Dasha in the outing but not with any of the others who joined us after that...Ming Keat, Mei Ju...It's a little sad because now I regret not giving them a hug. But something about the culture holds us back... Chinese just don't hug...

Like, the culture in Chinese school is to stay away from the teachers. The children just don't want to get to know the teachers better. It is very different from national school children who would love to be closer to their teachers. The Yr 6 graduation ceremony is so stiff and awkward compared to the time when we left our practical school with hugs and kisses from the children. Sigh...it is sad that we don't adopt some of the better cultures of other races. Perhaps one day...one day, Malaysia will be truly be made up of Malaysians...

Girls are impossible to understand

Ok...I've been truly bored for the past few days. Haha...I know some people would kill to be in my position right now, but too bad, you guys still wouldn't have holidays like me even if you had killed me. :P Ahem...so anyway, as I was saying, I am bored. And in my boredom, I have been bugging some of my old friends for outings and been talking on the phone almost non-stop. And in one of those nonsensical phone calls, a friend tells me his opinion about "paying". My first reaction to his opinion was "Which century are you from?" and I was a tad offended by his male-chauvinism. But then, after the phone call, it made me think again. I mean, many girls would be charmed by the idea that a guy would be so chivalrous.

So what do you think of this modern girl dilemma: If a guy insists on paying for everything, do you think that he is being chauvinistic or chivalrous? My first thought would be that the guy is being chauvinistic. On the other hand, if a guy lets me pay for my own on a date anyway, he is being a cheapskate. I mean, friendly date, never mind la: you pay one time, I pay one time OR go on Dutch. Fair ma...But this should not happen on a date date.

Sigh...I can't understand girls. Hahaha...I mean, I don't know what I am thinking about most of the time anyway! But I am very sure of my position that the boyfriend should not pay for all of the girl's expenses. I mean, come on you guys, some girls are truly out on the hunt for bill-payers. Don't be so dumb, ok? When you are paying the girl's rent, phone bill, shopping and what-nots, you are definitely not being chivalrous. That is being STUPID. I mean, the occasional presents and shopping bill is ok, but if you two are at the cashier and she is waiting for you to fork out the money, something is wrong, man!

I used to have girl friends who do that. Flirt with guys and make them buy expensive cosmetics and perfume for them. The girls who do that, I don't respect. But to imagine that there are guys stupid enough to buy them those expensive gifts, I am speechless. And I remember scolding one of my secondary school friend who used to go shopping with a girl he was after so that he could pay for her with his few months' allowance. CRAZY males!

Any comments girls and guys on this issue? Please, do leave your comments. Am so freaking bored!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY LIL MONKEY

Happy Birthday WILLIAM!!! Wishing you many happy returns of the day! Looking forward to the karaoke session! Haha...luv ya lots, kiddo!

Lost without school...

Well, humans are never contented, are they? I mean, a week ago, I was so looking forward to the school holidays (truth is, I don't have any respect for teachers like me! ). Now that the school holidays are here, I am bored half to death eventhough I have only been at home for erm..3 days.

Yeah...as much as I hate to admit it, I miss those little monkeys who would run around in class screaming "Lao shi! Lao shi!" even though I've already told them a million times to call me either "Cikgu" or "Teacher". Thinking about those kids make me feel sad. They have only just begun to warm up to me, and I may not see them again after this year. Why? There is this little problem of the school population shrinking and that they do not need as many teachers as this year. The possibility of me being the extra teacher is high as I am the last to be sent in. Hmmm...crossing my fingers that everything will be all right.

Many people seem to have the misconception that teaching is an easy job. I suppose compared to many other jobs, teaching has the least official hours. But I doubt many other jobs require as much patience, dedication and love. I mean, do you think it's easy to face 40 kids everyday? Try babysitting 3 of your nephews/nieces on your own and then comment on how easy a teacher's job is! Well, ok...actually taking care of your own relative's kids is much harder because you are not supposed to scold or correct the brats' behaviour unless you want a cold war with your relative. But the point is, it is not easy to take care of kids.

Haha..I suppose not many people are enlightened to the fact that there is no "easy" job in the whole world. You would think that the lower paying jobs are easier, but would you be willing to put your hand in other people's trash even if you were paid thousands? Would you be willing to spend hours under the hot sun cleaning the roads and still be unappreciated? Would you be willing to be on standby 24 hours with no off days except maybe on Mother's Day?

Gosh...am ranting. AM SO BORED!! SAVE ME! Any idea of what I can do during the holidays? I was planning to go volunteer in SPCA. Any one wants to go with me? Please, all you MPIK-ians and Segarians out there, update your blo*dy blogs!! Hahahaha...I think I'm crazy. Better go jump around like a monkey now. Adios amigos!

I hearby promise...

Dear Ashley, thanks for staying loyal to my blog. Haha...

Well, life has been different for me. I've been through quite a lot of new feelings and experiences in the three months that I have been posted. It's ironic how I used to laugh at Melwin because she said that her mother was going to live with her wherever she was posted to until she got used to herself and end up having my mother stay with me for 3 whole months. Hahaha...not that I am complaining (the place which I got posted to is seriously a dead-end) but I used to be so proud of my independence and wished that I could stay away from my family a bit. :)

In the end, having my mom with me for the three whole months made me think of how much my family really do love me. For fear of my safety, my mother who is approaching 60 decided to leave my dad to fend for himself and come live with me. The truth is, if anything had happened in those 3 months, my mom wouldn't be of much help. But the idea of her wanting to protect me from harm, is just priceless.

I seriously regret having to hurt their feelings just so that I could feel a bit happier. I've learnt my lesson. Rebellion will not last. At the end of the day, it is your family whom you will fall back to. However much you disagree with their points of view, you would have to admit that they see things clearer.

Thank you all who have made me see my ways. I promise that I will try not to hurt my parents' feelings after this. Ashley, you gotta remind me, ok? Haha...take care y'all.

m back..kinda

I can't believe it! I have been working as a teacher for 3 months+!! Sorry for not updating but I do not have internet connection. I used to have for a while but I am returning the broadband modem to the owner.
So much has happened that I don't know where to start. Well, if you want to know, wait til the school holidays before you check this page again la. Hahaha...happy Deepavali and Selamat Hari raya!!

Grateful...maybe not

After reading my friends' recount of the places that they have been sent to: Sabah and Sarawak, I truly feel ashamed of myself. Yes, I thank the greater power for placing me in Selangor. Yes, I thank the greater power for placing me in a "town". Yes, I thank the greater power that I have all the basic necessities and amenities. I am grateful that I have 24 hours' electric supply and endless supply of pipe water. I thank my friends who have been sent to nowhereland for reminding me of all the things that I should be thankful about.

I scoffed at an inspirational e-mail which I got which goes something like "for every 100 reasons there is that makes you cry, think of 1000 reasons to make you smile". To me, by the 10th reason to make me cry, I would have been suicidal already! Often, I forget about all the things that I should be grateful of and dwell on the things that I dislike about life. I suppose it happens to most people. We almost always need to lose "it" before we we realize the importance and significance of "it" in our lives.

~Sigh~

Isn't it just a drag to be a human? I look at Charlie and Baby and Hunter and I think their only concern was whether there was food and whether I was home to protect them from the "big, bad man" of the house. Haha...

Look at the silly grin on his face! =P

My dirty huge elephant

Apparently, my hyper-ness is too much for my dirty elephant! Haha...that's Brian by the way. ;P

Go mandi la you! :P

Teacher of monkeys

Dear all,
I have finally settled down in a small chinese school in a small town an hour plus' drive away from my house. I was a little lost at first because the headmistress said that there was no vacancy in that school...hmm...it was the first time that I actually heard that a school didn't have vacancy. I mean, why would the education department send me there if there was no vacancy, right? So, anyway whatever it was, I am staying put in that school and teaching BM, English, PJK and Seni! Foowee!! I had expected to teach PJK and Seni, but never in my mind was I expecting to teach BM! Haha...surprisingly, it is now my favourite subject to teach because the kids can converse and understand the language better than English!

Haha...so anyway, instead of travelling daily for an hour and a half, I have decided to stay in that God-forsaken place. It is convenient although I wouldn't have a life there. Anyway, if I continue staying at home with my family, I wouldn't have much of a life still, so not much of a difference. The people there are super friendly and helpful. It is almost as though the only excitement that they have for the day is to find out what you need and what you did! Haha...

I suppose the only thing that I didn't like too much about the place is that the people live within their community only. There is no need for them to learn BM or English other than as subjects in school because they don't communicate with people outside their community, except for maybe to their Indonesian maids.

Anyway, I have already turned jaded after teaching for barely 2 weeks. Hehe..dun blame me la...it is to ensure that I don't go cuckoo by the end of the year. I teach as best as I could, if the kids still don't know their ABCs, it's either they don't want to learn or they are slow. Muahahaha...I hope the slow ones catch up soon and those who don't want to learn leave my life in peace! Haha...

Ok, I think I'm bullshitting already. My apologies, I just drank a cup of coffee kau kau...hyper. Gonna go jump around like a monkey now! Wooo-heeeeeeeeeeeee!

Posting, posting, posted...

It is final. We have been posted to the respective states. It still seems surreal to me. It was just in the previous post that I said we haven't been posted yet. Good thing I haven't started breaking my back to redecorate my room! Well, I am very lucky that I got Selangor but I could still be posted to places an hour and a half away! Many of my friends got posted to Sabah...it is a shock to many as all of us only had a week plus' notice; and moving to Sabah and Sarawak is not like moving down the street. With the date of reporting and the convocation date only a few days apart, those who have been posted to Sabah are in a dilemma. The way the things work in the government is so unclear that rumours are flying around faster than you can type "rumours"!

~Sigh~

I don't know what and how to console my dear dear friends who have been posted so far away. I suppose it would be seen as an adventure if the government had given us enough time to digest the news. Perhaps they should have told the teacher trainees where they would be posted to once they graduate? Or they should have told us three months in advance? Whatever it is, they should have had a better option than just to pop the order to the trainees so few days ahead.

Whatever it is, I'm sure the 73 of us would do our lecturers in Maktab proud for doing our best to guide our youngsters to be good citizens. I think all of us have truly felt and practised the magic of tolerance and respect in the multicultural environment that we were in for the past 6 years. Here's hoping for a better future because of us! =)

"Berkhidmat untuk negara" no matter where we get and no matter who our pupils are...

No longer a ping-pong ball

Hello everybody!

I finally got a room to myself. My elder sister and her husband have moved into their new house and my eldest sister and her family have returned to Singapore after a short visit. Muahahaha...I am so excited at the thought of being able to throw away all the "antiques" in the room that I can hardly wait to start work! From tomorrow onwards, when the mattress that Sean wee-weed in dries, I am going to finally be able to remove the bedframe that is my parents' wedding present from my uncle. Not that I don't appreciate the history...but I just can't wait to get rid of the things in my room. Yahoo!

I just hope that I don't get posted to a far off place where I am only able to return to my house once a year once I start making the room truly mine. Since we have not received our posting yet, I have been planning to make use of the time and repaint the room besides redecorating. Haha..hope fate is not that cruel to us!

Well, here's hoping that all the TEYL Cohort 1 will savour the holidays and get the posting place of their choice. Cheerios and miss you all! (Even you, Adilah and Azee...say I'm fat... =( ) hehe...

I am 50 goin on 24!

Weeks at home have added a few unwanted kilograms onto my already fat body. Yup, life is tough for the glutton with a too loving mother and an efficient maid. The situation was made worse when people seem to have the urge to tell me that I have put on weight after not meeting for some time. Hey, didn't your mama teach you not to say anything if you don't have anything nice to say? Telling people that they have put on weight is under the category of "not nice", ok? I was cursing and swearing about the person who made my days ahead gloomy when my skinny sister laughed at my anger. Wtf? I believe in karma...may those skinny people who laugh at a fat person die obese or put on lots and lots of weight after giving birth to children!! Muahahaha...

So anyway, I noticed that my mother who is approaching 60 was still making an effort to look good and do things that make her feel and look good. Compare that to me who is only 24 but look and feel like a woman 50 years older. I was devastated. I haven't even started enjoying my life as a teenager or a vibrant 20 something and I am already ancient. I kid myself about being in the teaching profession was the reason I look and feel like a mothe rof 30 children, but the fact is, I have just not been LIVING like my age!

I have been conservative my whole life. My only attempt at wanting to follow the fashion and wear a spaghetti strap top for shopping was frowned upon by my father. And that was it...I never did try to wear anything that is considered fashionable or acceptable to a young lady after that. Haha..not that I am blaming my father; my yoyo weight did not help either.

So, today I experimented with my boundaries. I bought an orangey halter top last year for my sister in Australia but it was too big for her. I have kept it with my growing pile of clothes that I hoped to wear someday because they are either sleeveless or too tight for me just now. So, I've decided to live a little today and wore the said orangey top out on my date with Brian.

It took a lot of Dutch courage. Haha...I had to get a boost from coffee and whiskey. Nah, just kidding. But it did feel weird wearing something that bares your shoulders when you are out in public. I think I shocked my maid who has never seen my shoulders! Muahahaha...

Although I felt uneasy at first because it is SO not my style, it made me feel good, overall. I felt that I somehow fit in the "young" crowd in KL. And I was finally wearing clothes that I longed to wear but never dared not fear of being laughed at. Surprisingly (or thankfully) no one made the attempt to laugh at a fat girl who's trying to wear skimpy clothes! And no one looked twice either, which is good! It means that there are more (ugly) girls wearing ugly clothes in Malaysia! Haha...Hmmm...or maybe there are just too many old aunties in KL trying to look young by wearing so not age-appropriate clothes for the KL youngsters to care anymore? Hmmmmmmmmm....

Anyway, my mom was also shocked by my "sudden change" as she could not recognize me when I came home. I don't know, it may sound stupid to you, but wearing that top made me feel refreshed, rejuvenated, reborn! Haha...it may be another few months, weeks or days before I may try to attempt to live my age, but at least I am trying to do some stuff before I die!

Well, laugh at my flabby arms if you want to but I felt like a million dollars when Brian took this photo of me! Ahh..the power of being loved. :P

Bangkok Shopping Tips

Dear friends,

Sorry for another late post. The caged bird got to go Bangkok with her mother and her friend for 6 days at the end of last month. Between the Singapore trip, the moving back home, the wallowing in self-pity and the trip, I have had the busiest time! So, anyway, before I forget the details of the Bangkok trip, let me give you (and myself) some tips to having an affordable and enjoyable shopping trip to Bangkok.

1. Get cheap air tickets

- My mom and I had decided to go to Bangkok since last year. We booked the AirAsia tickets last November for only RM 6. Of course airport tax and fuel surcharge and what-nots came up to RM 270 per person...but the RM 270 is for a two way ticket. When I thought I couldn't go with my mom last April, I had wanted to book the same flights for my sis (as the tickets are non-transferable) and it would have cost us RM 600++. So, book the tickets early!

2. Travel by taxi (even to and from the airport)

- Yup, most of us would think that taking the tuk-tuk would be cheaper, but in actual fact, the taxi is often the cheaper option. The Thai taxis are almost all very comfortable and trustworthy. The starting price is at 35 baht which is about RM 3.50. A helpful fellow Malaysian told me to go to the 4th floor of the airport (the departure hall) and take a taxi from there. This is because most taxis at the departure hall are waiting for customers to go back to the city and would charge slightly cheaper and according to the meter compared to the ones waiting at the arrival hall (which I read somewhere on the internet that you have to buy tickets or coupons to board). Maybe those taxis waiting at the arrival hall are those limousines or minivans (?). Don't bother asking for directions from the officers in the airport because they will direct you to the coupon-ed taxis. Just go to the 4th floor and walk out of the airport. You will see lots of taxis waiting there. The taxi fare from the airport to the city inclusive of toll is about 200-250 baht. The taxi fare from the city to airport might set you back at between 300 to 500 baht because most taxis do not want to go there.

Taking the metered taxis around the city from shopping mall to shopping mall will be less than 100 baht at all times. The tuk-tuk will charge you at least 50 baht per person even for short distances. Don't be lured by touts who charge 10 baht per person to any shopping malls because they will first drive you to jewellery or silk factories that will give them coupons and benefits for bringing in customers. Always, ALWAYS, flag down taxis with a red light on as this will signal that they are using the meter and also that they are available.

3. Get a hotel near the shopping area

- My father's friend recommended Bangkok Palace. We got a Deluxe Room which is about RM 250 per night. But you can actually get it cheaper over the internet. The hotel is only a 10 minutes walk to the Pratunam shopping district where we did most of our shopping.

4. Exercise

- This is to prep you up for a lot of walking in Bangkok. Bangkok utilizes its spaces so well that a shopping mall half the size of MidValley Megamall may have up to 3000 stalls/shops. And they have many, many malls in concentrated areas.

5. Plan to spend a weekend there

- The Chatuchak or Jatujak Weekend Market is a must-go for all! From pets to kitchen ware to toys, you name it, they have it! But get there early (preferably Saturday morning) to avoid the afternoon crowd and the price hike by some of the sellers.

6. Bring lots of money

- Shopaholics will die happily there! You have so much to choose from that no wonder it is a shopping haven if not THE shopping haven in South East Asia. The things are even cheaper than the things in China! And the sellers are not so rude too!

So, a summary of the places that I went to:

- I booked an 10 o'clock flight so that by the time we reached the city, it would be just nice to check into the hotel at 2. After a short rest, we went to Pratunam market. Pratunam area is a wholesale area. They have stuffy backlanes and dark alleys where tiny shops and stalls line the way selling mostly clothes. The market is sectioned so you will find clothes and only clothes in one area, tailors in another area, and shoes and bags and accessories in another area. Don't be fooled by the prices there though. Not so organized environment does not mean that they sell their goods at the lowest prices. If you are looking for things at a reasonable price and a more comfortable shopping experience there is a small shopping centre called Indra right next to the Pratunam market. You will find a food court there too.

- The second day, we went to the city. Bangkok authorities are very forward thinking in that they have a walkway called the Skywalk which stretches at least 4 kms in the directions that the Skytrain goes and connects ALL major shopping complexes in the city! The shopping complexes in the city are for those who are looking for more high-end products such as Jimmy Choo (ironic that he does not own an exclusive shop here), Ferragamo, Coach etc etc. Although you may not want to buy any of these things, it is worth a walk. Of course, being in the city we also went to the famed four-faced buddha in front of another shopping complex to offer some very expensive flowers. My advice, the Buddha will know your sincerity even if you don't offer the flowers sold at exorbitant prices outside.

The best thing about these seemingly expensive shopping malls is that they have huge supermarket and they sell so many different brands of things from so many countries that you would just wonder why you were so impressed by the things they have in Cold Storage at the Gardens. And they sell the things at reasonable prices too. The aunty bought a bag of 1kg glutinous rice (don't ask me why) and 2 guavas for less than RM 6!! The food court there may cost a bit more though.

Since we were not very interested in high-end products, we walked to a shopping mall called MBK (Moh Boon Krong or something like that). It is similar to Times Square but has more stalls in a smaller area. Things there are quite reasonably priced.

- On the third day, the aunty and I went to Pratunam area again but to a shopping mall called Platunum Mall. It is also a wholesale area but you can buy things separately or mix things up and get the wholesale price. Very worth the visit. Too bad I went with the Aunty who did not look very interested in the things that I was looking at and made me feel guilty for dragging her along for almost 4 hours before we sat down to have something to eat. (Shopaholics would understand the special energy that flows through their body when they see lots of good stuff at low prices that they do not need to sit, go to the toilet or eat =P)

At night, we went to a touristy area at the other side of the town called Suan Lum Night Market. If you are looking for the touristy stuff, you can go there from 6 p.m. til daybreak. But as in all touristy area, this place sells things at a high price and it is up to you to slash the price. I won't recommend that place though...

- On the fourth day, which is a Saturday, we went to the Chatuchak Weekend Market. They open from 8am to 6pm only on Saturdays and Sundays (GMT +7). You can spend the whole day and all your money there. Shirts as cheap as RM 5 or 50 baht and shorts of good quality only at 100 baht! CRAZZEEEEEE!!!

- Mom, Aunty and I went to Indra Mall again on Sunday because we didn't want to go too far and because I didn't want to (couldn't) buy anything anymore because our bags were full to the brim and might be overweight! Haha...imagine, I only brought 3 change of shirts and a jeans to Bangkok and my bag was filled with nearly 40 pieces of clothings and 5 pairs of sandals on the trip home!

- On the last day, book an afternoon flight so that you can do some last minute packing and leave for the airport at around the check out time. The airport's name is Suvarnabhumi but pronounced as SuwarnaPUNG.

I took some photos of the stuff that I got but, you know me...I hate to upload photos, so maybe in the distant future, I might post them here. Hehehe...have fun!

Golden Jail Bird

Hello everybody! Sorry for having not posted anything for quite some time. I have been officially "captured" and back in my "golden cage" (refer to my analogy of a chick who has learnt to fly and stuck in nest...my perspective of the nest has since changed to a cage). It was an eventuality actually but I am angry because I was dragged home 3 days earlier than I planned. My father gave me the order to return home when I disappointed him by returning to Cheras the moment we came back from Singapore. I didn't mean to disappoint him - I had just wanted to have my freedom and my own room for a little while more. Is that a crime? Apparently, it is a crime in my family law.

The transition from having my own room in a rented room to not having my own "permanent" room has been horrible. For the first few days, I resolved to sleep near Charlie's cage in the living room. But my mom who sensed my unhappiness had kept coming out to check on me in the middle of the night (and anyway, the living room is half of her bedroom). So, after 2 late nights in the living room, I moved temporarily into my grandmother's room. I am still unhappy with the arrangements, what with my clothes are in bags and my newly washed clothes back in the room that I have no access to AND the fact that I cannot find many of my things which are all in bags and arranged clumsily in the living room!

My attempts to escape from the "cage" by re-reading the Harry Potter series (ooh, the last book makes more sense to me now) and by going out to KL on my own have received comments and criticisms too. The worst part is that I could not even o out for drinks in the mamak stall with Brian! My parents are seriously driving me crazy! Their determination to lock me up in the house and my resistance to relinquish my freedom has resulted in a cold-war of some sort. Yes, I love them and I know what they are doing is a way of showing their love towards me. But enough is enough. Wasn't it true that children learn to be stronger when they fall? If they keep locking me up and keep ushering me towards what they want me to do, when will I get the chance to learn? When they pass on to the next world??

Do I sound like an ungrateful brat? Someone I spoke to did say that...Well, how would you feel if you were in my situation? I am truly running out of patience. HELP!

Practising to be a babysitter

Hello everybody...greetings from Singapore! Yup, I've been exported to our neighhbouring country along with my mom to be temporary babysitters/maid. It was just a phone call on Saturday afternoon and less than 24 hours later, my mom and I were on our way to the rescue.

Having helped my sister take care of her elder son for a day and a half almost all by myself (my mom accidentally had some sweet stuff to eat and was tired the whole day), I cannot imagine how a mother can live a normal life! What more a working mother! I think I learnt to look at a mother's life from a different perspective after watching this reality tv show called "Crash Test Mommy" on Discovery Home and Health. One thing I've learnt is that your house can never be as clean or as tidy as you wish it to be when you have kids (unless of course you have a maid to clean up the mess the whole time).

Another thing is that children are so full of energy that you someties wish that you could change their batteries from Energizer to some imitation brand batteries! I was worn out by the end of the first day. And Sean is already much easier to take care of these days!

Well, I got to go now. I think my charge has awaken from his nap. Haha..wish me luck! =)

Supposedly photo-filled post about Redang

Ok, so I finally got the time to go and get these photos from Woon who lives downstairs. Hehe...yup, I am still in denial and living in Cheras. I was just talking to her just now and we agreed that we will be living with our families again, cooped up like we used to be once we get posted. *Cross our fingers* Hope that we still may have our social life once we are back at home. Thinking now, most of my classmates are either first-borns or the youngest. The first-borns set a precedent to their younger siblings - still living at home with mom and dad, and probably still have a curfew at the age of 24; and the youngest (like myself) well, our parents just don't want to let go of their youngest "baby" so soon because they have no other children to hang on to by now.

Hmm..I am guilt-ridden. I miss my family and wish I could spend more time with my mom because she is so lonely. On the other hand, I can't give up my freedom - just yet. Besides, I don't have a room to myself at home still. It's not like I'm trying to get rid of my sister but now that her husband works the night shift, it means that I could not even use what used to be my room too in the afternoons! Ahh..the dilemma of a young chick who has somewhat learnt to fly but is still stuck (or going to be stuck) in the nest for the next few years!

Well, we all have our problems. But, let us not dwell too much into it and enjoy these wacky photos my friends and I took in Redang. You can actually rent the cameras with water-proof casings at the reception. And it's quite cheap too. RM 35 for 50 photos, Rm 45 for 80 photos and RM 60 for 130 photos. They also give you a CD and a free folder of professionally taken photos of the underwater world.

*Ok, I've tried uploading the photos so many times and failed that I give up! So, no photos this time. Wait for the next post or when I have a better internet connection. =)

I like...

I found this remarkable singer when I was watching a YouTube clip of my ex-schoolmate playing the guitar. Sorry, Luke (don't think you will read this, but anyway...) but I prefer this singer's videoclips to yours. Haha...So, people, download this! It's seriously great stuff! Enjoy!

Redang, Kuala Terengganu, Dungun Day 3

Ok, back in Redang...the third day we didn't do much. Brian and I decided to go take photographs and just walk around after breakfast. Laguna Beach Resort is really a nice place, I bet the price is nice too. =P

Laguna Beach Resort...nice.

Here is the famous MoMoCha Cafe. I never did finish watching the movie because I dislike Sammi Cheng's acting (although the movies that she was in all have rather nice plot).

A couple of jumping photos before we left:

We left Redang Island at around 9:30 a.m. in a speedboat which took us only half an hour to reach the mainland. Compare that to an almost 2 hour journey to reach Redang Island on the ferry! Brian's GPS showed that the speedboat was only going at 60km/hour. It was a rather bumpy ride but I enjoyed every moment of it. MeiJu didn't know that sitting at the front of the boat meant that it would be a bumpier ride and happily sat across from Brian and I. Haha...she was "faint boat" for a while (haha..classic translation from YiLoon to mean sea sick).

Meiju feeling "faint boat"

What is a journey to Redang without souvenirs? We went on a shopping spree at the jetty. Advice: Never buy things on the island itself because it would cost more. MeiJu and I bought a cuddly turtle each.

On the way to Woon's house in Dungun, we stopped by in Kuala Terengganu for lunch. We had steamed lekors (which didn't taste too good).

On the way to Dungun from Kuala Terengganu, we stopped by one of the many stalls by the roadside to buy satar. It tastes a little like otak-otak but it has some glutinous rice and very spicy chilli padi in it. We also bought corns. At the stalls, I wanted to try air nira kelapa which I've not heard of and bought a bottle. MeiJu warned me that its taste needs some getting used to. The moment I opened the bottle, I regretted my purchase. It smelled like the ammonia stuff hairstylists put on your head when you go for a perm. Drinking the air nira wasn't too bad. It just leaves a weird after taste. I gave the bottle to SinYuan who seemed to enjoy it when we stopped at Rantau Abang beach.

Satar

Corn, satar and air nira at Rantau Abang

After that it was an hour journey to Woon's house. We settled in and took a rest before going out for dinner with Woon's family at a Chinese restaurant. You would think that we would have stopped eating after dinner, but no, we went on to eat lekor and drink fruit juice for supper. Oohh..and nangka juice is not as bad as it sounds. It is actually very good. Do try it if you find a stall which sells it. It was only after that that we said enough and went to Woon's house for a good night's rest. Talk about eating non-stop!

D'uh...slow reaction

Ok, need to move away from the Redang topic for a while to let me digest a "sudden" realization... I am graduating and my friends are going to be everywhere after this week.

The reality FINALLY hit me. No wonder my friends were crying their eyes out on the day of our final paper! I just realised that I won't be able to meet my friends whenever I like after this week when I went to SiawHui's house to get some photos from her, MeiJu and SinYuan. No, I didn't feel it when I went in the house and saw that they have already packed their stuff. I still didn't feel it when I went into their almost empty room to get the photographs. I only felt the loss as I was leaving. Slow right?

As we were driving away, I tearily told Brian that I would no longer be able to just send them a message to ask them to go for karaoke or a drink after this. Of which Brian retorted by asking "do you ever?". It doesn't really matter if I did or didn't...it's just that the thought of being able to do that in the past was comforting enough. Now, whenever we think of each other, we would be too far away to meet up.

And as Vilo and Melwin kept writing about, 6 years is not a short time. I didn't cry in my primary years because most of my closer friends went to the same secondary school as I did. I didn't cry at the end of the secondary school years because I only had a few friends and I still keep in touch with them when we are back in Rawang. I promised myself to not to cry this time around, but it is just too much. Too many bitter and sweet and funny and sad and angry and countless indescribable emotions were shared with these bunch of crazy maniacs throughout the 6 years.

SIGH~~ many of my friends have already returned to their hometowns by the time this realization hit me. Another week or two and we will be posted to God-knows-where. For those who are still in KL, please, do give me a ring or send me a message and we WILL meet up.

Missing some of you badly already... =(

Redang Day 2

The 2nd day in Redang cannot be just narrated with words. You have to look at the photos, which of course has not been uploaded yet. Hehe...I will, I will...

So anyway, the snorkelling session for the 2nd day started at 9 a.m. We headed off to the marine park for this session. I was a little disappointed with the marine park condition as there are not many live corals there anymore. Too many tourists shh shhing there perhaps? Hehe...but Brian and I had fun looking at swordfish swimming among snorkellers who did not notice that the fish was around them because they kept looking down instead of near the surface where this fish is normally found.

After about an hour, we headed back to Redang Beach Resort for lunch. Brian left the lifevest that we rented on a bench at the beach while we went snorkelling (Oh, I didn't mention that Brian can float?). When we came to take it, someone had mistakenly taken the lifevest and left his own, which is boldly marked BRBR for Berjaya Redang Beach Resort. Grrr...talk about being blur! So, after asking the resort people for advice of what to do next, we took the much smaller vest and headed back. On the way back to the hotel, the "captain" of the boat suddenly stopped his engine in the middle of nowhere. We thought that there was something wrong with the boat when one person pointed into the sea and said "turtle"! Everyone rushed to one side of the boat to take a look that the boat was not balanced for a while. Haha...great luck that we could see turtle in the clear waters though.

About Brian floating, I believe his father has done a great job at training his children to be good swimmers since they were young. Brian and his sister can float in deep waters without the need of a life jacket. FuSeng, who is a capable swimmer himself tried to imitate Brian's "floating style" insead of treading water (because it is very tiring treading water for a long time), nearly drowned. Hahaha...Brian just has to kick occasionally to stay afloat. I tried that too but in a faster pace and I too nearly drowned (all the swimming lessons gone to waste as I did not think of treading when I was panicking).

After a good lunch, Brian and I went snorkelling in the areas that he missed out the day before. We saw three baby sharks and many many other beautiful fishes. After that, we went snorkelling in another spot in the deep sea. The spot on the second day is more beautiful than the place where we snorkelled on the first day. There were many corals but not too many fishes. Brian dove a couple of times to collect rubbish from the seabed. He attached them to the back of my life jacket which fell off during my attempt to do "stunts" and take underwater photographs. Haha...

A full day out in the sun. We headed back to Redang Beach Resort and went to the baby-shark-infested area. Hehe...we took a couple of photos and went back to clean up. Dinner that night was not good. SiawHui's skin has begun to react to the sunblock that she is allergic to. The girls had to take her to see a doctor. Brian dragged me to the beach for a moon-tan and I insisted on buying a can of beer. While happily sipping on the beer, Brian came up with a box and voila! a diamond ring for the full second year anniversary of our real date. Awww...is the diamond ring real? Well, that's for me to know and for you to wonder! ;)

Sunburnt but happy.

Diamond ring. Real McCoy or fake?

Love you sweetheart!

Redang Day 1

So, right after our final paper, when everyone (almost everyone) cried their eyes out, 6 chinese girls were gleefully laughing away at the excitement of going to Redang some time very soon. Yup, the 6 girls were myself, Woon, HwaCheat, Meiju, SinYuan and Siaw Hui. As our peers bid tearful goodbyes, we were smiling and saying "see you on Wednesday!!". Haha...

Brian, FuSeng, Woon and I started our journey from Cheras at 11 p.m. Tuesday night, the others were taking a flight straight to Kuala Terengganu the next morning. So anyway, we left Cheras at 11 p.m. and reached FuSeng's house in Dungun at 4 a.m. That was Brian driving after a full day's work. So, we took a nap at FuSeng's house and left for Kuala Terengganu at 6 a.m. because we didn't know the way to the Merang Jetty. I valiantly fought sleepiness from KL to Dungun because I know how drowsy it would make the driver feel if all the passengers in the car were asleep but I could fight it off no longer and left Brian to fight fatigue on his own from Dungun to Kuala Terengganu (of which I got an earful of complaint after that). The bus was crawling and we only reached the jetty at 9a.m., the same time as SiawHui and the gang arrived.

I napped again on the ferry and got another earful of complaint from Brian because having been knocked out meant that he had to stay awake to watch over our belongings. Hmmm...

OOh...the fun part about Redang jetty is that it is a mobile one! And it stops halfway so you would have to step into water to get to the hotel! Fun right? Good thing Woon told us or we would be all wet in our jeans!

We stayed at Redang Beach Resort which is a very nice place at a very reasonable price of RM 300 per person. The way the cafeteria is runned reminds me of a camp site. You know, bread available all day, Meal time from what time to what time, self-service and clean up after your own mess kind of thing. But the food was superb. So, after munching on a bit of bread and attending a short briefing, we checked in into our rooms and prepared to go for our first snorkelling session.

Having an energy-giving ice-cream before going for a snorkel.

Snorkelling was fun. Hmm..the photos of the snorkelling session are not in the computer yet. I'll upload them in a post later. After about an hour of snorkelling, we went back, took a rest and had BBQ dinner. Yum yum...Brian threw a tantrum because of lack of sleep that day. Haha...but all is well during dinner after he had a nap after the snorkelling session while I went snorkelling at the beach with FuSeng, Woon, MeiJu and YiLoon. Hehe... I may sound like a horrible girlfriend but you spend the amount of money to have fun, right? After all, he was cranky because of lack of sleep ma, so let him sleep la while I have fun for the both of us. :P Love you, sweetheart!

Before getting a sun tan, on our way to the deep-sea snorkelling spot.

The location for our snorkelling activity that day. Beautiful place. Too bad my camera couldn't capture the different shades of blue and green of the water.

More in the next post!

Graduation dinner 2008

Dear Ashley, this is an update for you. Hehe...

I just came back from Terengganu with a stomachache that lasted for 1 week. So this is an update of something that happened way before...even before the trip to Terengganu. Yup, it is the night of our graduation dinner. The night which many have spent hundreds to dress up and to attend. The night which caused so much heartaches and arguments between the "committee".

Actually, it was a rather successful night considering that many did not turn up and that there were so many dramas involved prior to the night. Whatever happened, everyone breathed a breath of relief once it was over. It was not a night of crying or sadness for most of us because we still had to sit for an exam on the following Monday, and anyway who wants to have mascara run down in two black streams? Haha...

It was lucky that DD and Esun managed to scrape up with something that looks like a door gift with the limited funds that they have. But the magazine looks fabulous. No doubt about that. And I got an award : Einstein Award. Haha...that's for being the one of the more notable "brains" in the cohort. Nah...they practically gave awards to everyone, so nothing to be too proud of.

The door gift that is the magazine and some ja-jans.

The highlight of the night must be that we hadto stand for almost ten minutes singing the national song, the UM song, the IPIK song, and Kami Guru Malaysia! Haha...I thought it was awkward but fun because we would not have much chance to sing these songs after graduation. But then it was Awkward with a capital A.

Having to sing patriotic songs before the dinner. Weird.

The food was all right considering it is hotel food. I had a taste of heaven with the payassam...Yum yum...There were actually two bands performing while we pigged out. Friday's was actually quite good compared to the band that jarrod was in. Unfortunately, not many paid attention to either of the bands because we were famished. The dinner was scheduled to start at 8 but Malaysian timing meant that we could only start eating at almost 9:15p.m.

The buffet food that I took before wolfing it down.

After eating, most people were busy taking photographs with each other rather than to pay attention to the bands or to the games that or award-giving ceremony at the front of the ball room. Haha..tough luck la that our cohort isn't too into these kinds of things. Leave us be in a room with soft music playing and lots of cameras and we are happy. The initial plan was to have soft music and maybe a band playing at the end, which would have saved us a lot of money but...

Well, cool and dampening responses or not, here are some of the many photographs I took that night...

Almost everyone important in my Uni life in the photo. Meiju, HwaCheat and Woon are missing.

Sempat lagi smile in this random photo.

Look at the butterflies syuck to the eyelashes. Classic. :)

With the Bollywood beauties. :)

Rawang's historical moment

Last Friday may have been a "historical" moment in the political scene in Rawang. My father's Chinese association had invited the newly-appointed wakil rakyat and the former wakil rakyat to its 75th anniversary. And all the VIPs sat in the same table. I had actually taken photos of them but the photos are in my other computer.

So anyway, everyone seated at the VIP table were feeling a little awkward, I suppose. But like all dinner functions, everyone just put on a smile and pretend as though they were long-lost friends. And then came the time for speeches. As the president, my father started the speech session with a speech that I think(I wasn't listening to the entire speech :P) is telling the two political party to work together for the good of the rakyat. And then it was the Organizing chairman's speech. He is a stauch supporter of MCA but he didn't touch any political issues, merely reporting the figures and support that he received for the celebration etc. (Ooh...I didn't know that some people are seriously thick-skinned and would actually pull a Rudy-JJ stunt of inviting themselves to functions!!)

After that, it was time for the politicians' speech. Why did my father invite the former wakil rakyat, you might ask. Well, I think it's because the former wakil rakyat had been quite helpful to my father's association and anyway, my father's association is not a political one. So,inviting him is a gesture of appreciation for his generosity for helping the association and the people for so many years. And it is only right to invite the new wakil rakyat.

So anyway, the former wakil rakyat started his speech well, telling of his party's defeat and that he is no longer a YB but an ordinary citizen like us with a lot of free time on his hands. And then he turned the SPEECH podium into a debate podium and bombarded the new wakil with a lot of questions about his former mega projects that have stalled and the allocation of funds that he procured from the federal government during his time. And you could see the shaking of heads and smiles of disbelief in many of the audience's faces. And when I turned to the new wakil rakyat, her head was down as she was busy eating her bowl of shark's fin soup. SIGH~~~

After the former wakil rakyat's speech, the new wakil rakyat, a young woman of 27 years, was invited to give a speech. She had a piece of paper with her as well (oh, the former wakil rakyat's speech was written by a reporter but I don't think the list of questions was included because the reporter was very quiet and kept looking down and shake his head when the former wakil rakyat came to that part). I think she must have been an active member of the debate team in her school or speech. She hardly looked at the piece of paper that she brought on stage and she humbly accepted the former's "words of wisdom" that because she is still young, she has much to learn. And then, she calmly retorted the questions asked by the former by saying that she has already asked for a meeting of some sort with the former in the newspaper and personally to discuss all these issues because she knows that she is new to the place and does not know the place and people as well as the former. Whoa...TABIK, girl! For the time being, she's my new political idol, other than RPK (But RPK is not IN politics, is he?).

After her speech, her "superior", the representative of Selayang, was asked to give a speech. Ok, so I wasn't paying attention to the announcement because a fresh dish was served then. Anyway, I didn't hear his name and when I turned to isten to the speech, I saw a man with a very red face, swishing his hand from right to left and speaking in monosyllables. My first thought was "what the...why is the drunk on stage??" and then I turned to mom with a scowl and asked who he was. My aunt turned and told me that he is English educated while my mom told me his name. And I was like...O.M.G! This man is THE man whose poems and articles are published all over his party's website? I looked again and he was still standing there swishing his hand from right to left and speaking in monosyllables. After a few times of swishing his hand but no words came out, he spoke in Cantonese and apologized for his lack of Mandarin knowledge and that he had tried to learn the language over the past month but that he is still unable to speak much. I felt so sorry for him! He seemed a little relieved after his apology and he continued his speech in English. I was trying hard to listen to his speech because I have read his articles and poems and I thought he would be a very eloquent speaker. Hmm...with the rising noise in the restaurant because many of the uncles and aunties couldn't be bothered with this English speaking alien, he was almost speaking to a handful of audience and as I turned 180 degrees to listen to him, he would focus on my table (and maybe me) when he turns to his left. After a few repetitions about inflation and dunno-what, I decided to go explore a gimmick from a bank with my aunt. I feel guilty for not listening to his entire speech, but the noise level was so high that you can't really hear his speech anyway.

Hmm...so anyway, the whole point of this blog post is that, Malaysia's political scene is getting more interesting these days. I still hope that my aspirations of being a political spokesperson for animals and plants would be fulfilled - it's just which party to join when the time comes that is the question. Oh, and of course, that learning more languages is always a good idea (better than swishing your hand in an unknown sign language :D).

The story of a toilet (and maybe children)

The story of a toilet (and maybe children)

What's with guys and toilets? I don't get it. No, I am not talking about leaving the seat up. That is not an issue for me. The seat's up? Put it down before use lor...what's so difficult? I don't understand why girls like to nag about that though when there are MORE serious issues than that.

See, I share a toilet with three guys. Ok, so I can understand if they don't wash the toilet because I have the most free time. I can understand that they don't flush after peeing because they are trying to save water. I can understand that they smoke in the toilet, the smell will go away. I can understand that they throw the cigarette butts into the toilet because they don't want to burn the house down. I can even understand how they forget to turn off the water heater but turn off the water source that the heating element of the water heater (that Brian got for me, mind you) melted part of the plastic inside.

So, having tolerated all these nonsense, what am I fumed about?

Spraying everywhere.

Like, serious. For a few weeks I thought it was Woon's dog, Pluto who made the toilet stink. Can't blame me la, he did shh shh in the toilet a couple of times because he couldn't get out of the house. And once he shh shhed outside the toilet because someone was inside and then the floor mat outside the toilet was soaked in it. And I understand that no one bothered because their noses was stuffed that they couldn't smell the stench.

But hey, come on la...haven't these guys been toilet trained yet? It isn't enough that I wash the toilet every week or two weeks. I had to spray lots of water everywhere around the toilet and scrub it every time I go to the toilet now because someone couldn't aim properly? Damn it! Do they move around or dance while spraying?

Aim for the light, you idiot!

And you thought leaving the seat up is such a serious offense?

Bad Hair Day

I did a stupid thing over the weekend...I permed my hair. Yeah...I got talked into it by my sister who wanted to perm her hair and I got excited because HwaCheat's hairstyle looked so cute on her. And not to mention, I felt like experimenting/rebelling with my hair, like how Woon did with hers. But you know what's the stupid-est thing with my hairstyle? Not many who knew me before I straightened my hair noticed it. Hahaha...why? Because my natural hair is curly. And in those days when the straight hair-style was In, I straightened it. And now that the straight hairstyle is Out, I spent 200 bucks to perm my hair so that I look like my old self. Stupid right?

HwaCheat looking cute with her new hairstyle...kawaii neh

Woon a.k.a Storm or any anime character...wild and cute at the same time

My hairstylist reassured me that I will get used to my look after a few days. But I turned to my mother and said, I don't feel weird about my "new" hairstyle because that's how I used to look after coming out of the shower! Of course, my curls weren't that aunty-ish and were a little flatter compared to the one that my hairstylist styled for me. Coming back to Cheras, my best friend Woon and her boyfriend noticed a change in me but could not point it out. And my aunty thought I did not dry my hair before meeting her that day. Hahahaha...

Sigh...the pursuit of fashion and beauty is truly a waste of time and money! I bet you would remember the times when big hair was in in the 1980s. Or the scary, over the top make up of the 1980s through 1990s. And some of you may remember the hiphop clothings...big top, skinny jeans or miniskirt. Urgh...thinking back and looking at old photos make me laugh til I faint. :)

Well, I don't have photos of my old self with long-hair untied. But here, look at this photo and imagine it on a slightly slimmer face and you'll see me 5 or 6 years ago. :P

Same hairstyle! That's me on the left and Vilo on the right. Hehehe..

Friend - - - ship

Yes, we will soon be graduating (finally)! We can almost smell the bouquets of flowers and Ferrerro Rochers *hint, hint* and see the flashes of camera before our eyes. Haha...ok, so there is still the matter of a small, little itsy bitsy, tiny Future Studies examination between us and that figment of my imagination. But then, no harm in imagining and practising for the smiles of triumph on our graduation day, right?

Ahh...so much has happened in the last six years. The tears, the joys, the busy days, the bored til we grow mould days...It is truly hard to believe that we are all going to go our own ways soon! What's with the Vilo-Linesh-Melwin, SiawHui-SinYuan-MeiJu trios, and the Sophia-Dasha, Apai-Rina, Swing-Julia duos and the MeiLee, Zali, Luqman monos, and of course all our random cliques, we are finally going to have other people to gossip about and criticize! Hehehe...

It is sad in a way that I have not spoken to some of them for more than twenty sentences over the past 6 years. Not that I think they care coz many of them are not bothered about attending the graduation dinner or supporting any of our functions anyway. But then, you think about it again, the sad cases are these people. I understand why these people are not bothered to attend the functions and stuff - coz they have nothing to celebrate, nothing and no one to bid goodbye to - they've always been alone in their 6 years journey. I'm sure that they are more than glad that their lonely journey has finally ended.

But I digress, what I had in mind when I started writing this blog was to celebrate the friendships that I've gained in this journey. I was some sort of a loner when I was in secondary school. You know, the normal teenage angst thing and thinking that everything would be better if you died. The people who stuck by me all through the secondary years (and still is) is this fler and in those days this pretty lady:

Willie

Yoke Thing

Hmm..I went out of topic again. In my 6 years of Maktab-sation, my pillars of strength and hope have been these 3 clowns (haha..pretty girls la) and these bunch of maniacs (no, really - maniacs with a capital M). :P

The three clowns (pretty gals) - Vilo, Linesh and Melwin

The MANIACS - Woon, MeiJu, SiawHui, SinYuan and HwaCheat

Not to mention, I also found a slave sometime in my 4th year in Maktab, who would slog over my assignments too when my pressure is too great or would worry about me endlessly:

Brian when he's doing my assignments for me or worrying about me.

Brian when he's not worrying about me.

And of course there are the others whom I have had great joy being friends with:

TEYL Cohort One. Graduating class of 2008

6 years is not so easy to wipe out from one's minds. Despite the occasional "name-nesia", I bet many of you would be able to remember all those who were in your primary school class, your secondary school class even after all these years, right? What more of us in the Maktab. How can one forget another so easily? Hmm...I'm starting to miss bitching about someone from our cohort already...