Singapore, I miss You!!

I have finally returned back home. It is something that i have been looking forward like one month. Upon returning, i have been eating all the nice food i have missed so much. But the bad thing is that all the foods i missed are all junk food. SERIOUS junk food. Hehe...

On My Way Home...

A little more and im gonna go back home to eat all the food that i like. Oh, and meet my friends who miss me. Hahah...

Saturated

Im saturated. Fully saturated. I cannot absorb anymore. Feels like a 20GB harddisk trying to squeeze 160GB of files. ARGHZ!!!!!

Tagged...

Got tagged, so here it goes.


1. What do you want to do now?
Dinner perhaps, or continue studying

2. Define cute?
Comes naturally, no doubt about it.

3. Do you hate your friends sometimes?
Yea... With them as enemies, who needs friends. Or issit the other way... Hmm...

4. Where do you wish to die?
Come back to me when i'm 70

5. Do you believe in seeing a rainbow after the rain?
Not believe, i've seen it with my own eyes.

6. What impossible things you wish to do?
Travel to space, walk on water

7. Your most sensitive part?
You know... That part that becomes 10 times bigger. The retina.

8. Are you happy with your life now?
Delighted.

9. What if your crush asked you out?
Than its a date.

10. Describe your other half.
Well... She gotta be slim, beautiful, smart and able to accept my constant jokes.

11. What feelings do you hate the most?
Guilt.

12. Do you cherish every friendship of yours?
No doubt.

13. What are you looking forward to in the coming weeks?
Using my own computer with the ACTUAL broadband speed, sleeping on my bed, eating all the food i miss, going to Taipei and going skiing

14. The most important thing in your life.
People. People that is part of my life.

15. Who do you hope to always be there for you?
The person whom i least expect.

16. Do you find life meaningless?
No

17. Who do you love the most?
Family and friends.

18. What's the most gross thing you've done?
Peeing in a swimming pool.

19. What's your greatest wish?
Live the Singaporean Dream

20. The sweetest thing you ever did for someone.
Quite a few, but i guess buying a bag of sugar for my mom counts right?

21. Your favourite animal at the zoo:
Lion

22. What is your favourite colour?
Black

Euro 2008 has started...

Euro has started, which means my exam is gonna start soon. It will be my first paper of the semester. Im kinda geared up for it but i feel i've not prepared enough. Well... Im pretty sure i can pass it. The paper is 50% of my total grade and the other half is assignments and tutorial participation. Apart from the paper, i've known that i've got at least 40% of the total grades. So its pretty easy to pass this unit. The paper... It consists of 10 MCQs, 30% of the paper, and four short/long answer questions. No way am i not able to get at least 50% for the paper. Furthermore i studied this topic when i was in my Poly days. That is why i felt like i was a little too lenient and slack... Well... I will only know when i enter the exam hall then...

Oh... My exam hall is located at the racecourse. I wonder... If im bored, maybe i will look out the window to view the horses doing their practice runs. Hahaha...

Fuse Hunt Day

The night before, i was studying at the library. My friend notified me that the power is out and i realise it too. Initially we thought the librarians switched off the electricity to our outlet, but the truth is that the fuse in my charger blew. Well... I found that out only when i went back home. Since its just a fuse, it should not be hard to find a replacement. Well... It is.

I started my fuse hunt right after breakfast. So i grabbed my friend's car and went to first place. It didn't carry fuses or small electrical parts. So i went to a nearby shopping centre, hoping my chances of finding it is higher. Well... None of the electrical stores have it too. Dang...

So i went back to a nearby hardware store and asked, they do not carry it and gave me directions to another location nearby. When i drove there, i was stunned... The store moved to the western part of the city. ARGHZ!!! I called a friend to find out another place. That place is 30 mins drive. I have never went to that place before. So i drove and finally found the place. It was huge. They are like the American Kmart. Shelves were stacked high and there was a ton of stuff. So much stuff that they do not carry the fuse. A big blow to me...

The assistant was very helpful and gave me diretions to another place. An electronics and electrical store. I can still remember his last sentece to me, 'If JayCar does not carry it, the whole of Australia will not have it.' It gave me alot of hope. I believed in what he said too. If the store does not carry it, im gonna go bonkers!

I managed to find the store which is roughly 10mins drive. I went into the store and they really is live up to their reputation. They sell alot of electrical stuff. Small parts too. So i thought this would me the place. It would be the one that will carry the fuse i want. When i step up to the counter, i gave the assistant the fuse i was finding. He looked around all the small little drawers where you keep small parts. He searched again. Then he turned to me saying that the store does not carry 3A fuses. DAMN IT!!!

So i drove back home, feeling all lost and down. I went back to my place, grabbed my entire charger unit and went out again. I went back to the first place to look for a replacement. Hoping that at least they have the replacement power cable for my charger. Turns out they do not sell power cable. They have the charger unit fit for a range of computers. When i brought it to the counter, it cost me a whopping A$100 for it. After an entire day, 5hours of driving to six different places and i ended up paying so much for a charger. I wonder why such a thing happen to me when im so near the exams...

My Final Weekend

This weekend is my final enjoyment weekend. After this week, im going to study full steam as what i had done last semester for my exams. I enjoyed myself pretty much this week...

A nearby shopping centre that i always visit had a midnight sale, 20% off mall wide. So i took time to visit the mall and bought a couple of stuff. A jacket, sweater and a pair of Havaianas slippers. The jacket was on 50% discount, sweater on 30% while the slippers were on 15%. With such discount, its hard not to buy them.

The following day, i had friends over for lunch. They came from Singapore and started touring and enjoying themselves for the past two weeks. I've met them last week and this week i meet them again before they fly back to SG. Than the preparation of the pranks and celebration begin...

We decorated my friend's place. We placed a big shiny "Happy Birthday" banner with music playing at the back. Than we ambushed her in her room. When she came in to the room, we blasted our party poppers. That was the start of celebration of birthdays.

The next morning, i woke up early to continue our series of pranks and surprises. Together with another friend, we came to her car and started sticking stickers of ducks, monkey and bananas on her car. It was hilarious... She liked it pretty much, guess i can say i can start my own custom design workshop for cars soon. Hehe...

Night time arrives and we had dinner at this place called Greasy Joe's. It is famous for their tasty ribs and big burgers. One word to describe it, dissapointing. The ribs were slightly overdone and the meat was tough. The chicken we ordered was undercooked and we got it sent back. The meat used for the burgers had a strong beef smell. It overpowered even the sauces. The crispy salmon was not done well either... It tasted like half-cooked salmon. The only good dish we had was the wedges and the plate of chicken wings. The rest... Dissapointment. Eight diners and we were charged almost A$200. Well, lesson learnt, never to go back there again.

After dinner we drove to the city and we went to Crown's Casino. Before heading into the casino, we had desserts and drinks. We ordered cakes, tea and a bottle of wine. It was more satisfying than dinner except for the slightly poor service. The waiter gave us a corner which does not have a heater. It was really cold for some of the girls. When we called for the bill, they did not print out our bill. We could simply walk out of the cafe and nobody would know. But i was honest and i paid for the bill. It was pretty sad that such great food is not matched by great service.

In the casino, we watched people playing at the tables. The girls went to play pokies, a.k.a. jackpot machines. The guys, we headed to the blackjack tables. We started with $50. We all said we are prepared to lose up to $50. So we went up to the $10 table and started playing. I was on a streak and stopped shortly after i have won roughly $50. So i told my friends, i've decided to stop. The croupier wanted me to continue, i simply told him i had won my lunch money for the week. Hahahaa...

Final Assignment Push

I've decided to push for my final assignment. Even decided to skip soccer training to work on my assignment. I realise that even with the training, im kinda putting on weight. So i sat down at a coffee joint one day and decided to take a breather from mt assignment work. Look back on the past few days and i realise that it was my diet and snacking to keep awake in the nights.

The nachos, the sweet drinks, the occasional beer. All culprits of my weight gain. The cold is not helping too. I cannot do jogs due to the cold. Maybe i have to pay for gym entries soon.

Assignment work is going to end next week. Im going to finish up whatever i need to do and hit full steam ahead for revision for exams.

What the *beeeeeeeeeep* X 2

Presentation day, Monday

I finally see my missing groupmate. He comes only at the moment he is required. Damn... And when we are preparing for presentation, he pretends to make himself useful. Standing behind me, looking interested. When presentation time, he just stands behind and keeps quiet. Even though he doesn't know anything, he just stands there and keeps quiet. Not bad for keeping quiet, doing nothing and still get full marks for it.

Another Assignment Presentation Meeting, Tuesday

I was suppose to wait for my groupmates at 6pm. They came late. I was in school since 12pm and im really tired. I waited till 6.30pm and we finally started. In the end, i ended at 8pm which made me so hungry and tired. I went home ate and slept. Didn't do anything good...

Assignment Presentation, Wednesday

I got played out. Group members said wear smart casual. I asked, jeans and short-sleeved. They said yes. When i finally see them, they are in jeans and long-sleeved. ARGHZ!!! Great then... I then decided to do more during the presentation. In the end, my tutor found my presentation much better than my groupmates. Hope he doesn't mark me down on attire.

What the *beeeep*...

It's only Thursday and i have received lots of crap from one of my group assignment members. 'I'm not free to meet', 'I'm busy so i can't meet', 'My friend had an accident so i can't come.' Everyday i learn a new excuse... Sick of excuses.

So i wrote in to my tutor last night. Arranged an appointment with him to discuss about my situation. We met today and we discussed on what he will do to them. He told me he will grade them down on the presentation. He will ask them questions so as to back the reasons of marking them down. Also, a peer evaluation sheet will be used to mark them down too. Overall, my groupmate and I would still get the marks even if we do not meet all of the requirements.

I asked if it is possible to reduce the requirements if its just the both of us. He said he will consider it. But if we can 2-man this assignment he will award higher marks.

Hmm... Guess I will be spending lots of time in school from now on...

Beginning of the End

It is the start of May, that means its another month before the exam period starts. Im still plagued by the assignments i have on hand. It is not alot but it's still stressful to have assignments on hand. Slowly but surely, i will finish them and go on to full steam study.

Well... To good grades and more fun in June!

Strike Three!! Your OUT!!

Today had to be the day. It had to be one of the worst day in 2008.

I had to buy lunch at a nearby Subway. When i was inside the store, it was kinda long queue. So i was practically standing by the front of the door. Then this old lady came. She stood next to me waiting for the door to open. So i told her the door was not automatic, it requires pushing out. Then i stood next to her and started pushing the door for her. Next moment she shouted at point blank range into my face, "WAIT!!" Im totally stunned and explained myself that i was trying to hold the door for her to walk out. She walked out and did not even say thank you. I was confused. A guy who was infront of me in the line went 'Pfft...' Strike One.

After lunch had this group meeting that i needed to attend. So i was discussuing with my mates then they decided to take a break. So i went down to the vending machines and wanted to get a bag of chips. I saw what i wanted, inserted my $2 coin and pressed the buttons for my selection. The bag of chips moved out but IT DID NOT DROP!! I was furious! I banged a little on the vending machine and hoped it will drop but it didn't. Then i thought maybe i could buy another packet, than i realise i didn't have that much coins left. Strike TWO!

Dinner... Neighbours came over to my place for steak dinners. It was amazing that i manage to cook six pieces of steak and all enjoyed it. Yea, beef is my forte. As usual, i had to clean up the dishes. Tonight there was a hell lot of dishes to clean. So i started washing up the dishes. While piling up the dishes on the rack, i accidentally dropped the ceramic soup spoons! I tried cushioning it with my foot but to no avail, it shattered to pieces. Worse still... I stepped on one of it. So i stopped washing up and started sweeping the pieces. I threw away the big pieces and sweeped the smaller pieces out of my room. Than i realise my floor has red patches on it. I was bleeding. Damn... It was a very small cut so i applied a piece of plaster over it. STRIKE THREE!!!

Hopefully things get better from tomorrow onwards.

Another KTV Nite

Been a stressful week and decided to go for a KTV nite. Since the next day is a public holiday (ANZAC Day) so why not make the most of it. We sang and danced. We rocked and rolled. And finally the tiredness took over us and we just went back home. Had loads of fun. I have this feeling we will do it again pretty soon.

I've Decided: NO DEAL!!

Title says it all... NO DEAL! Hopefully, i made the correct decision...

Should I stay? Or should I go?

With so much happening the past few days, im kinda confused... Im not sure whether i should stay put or i should go to my next destination... Well... Hopefully i can figure a solution out and be clear of what is the whole situation then.

Exciting Week

Nothing much to update this week... One of my most exciting week ever! Having late nights with assignments. And upcoming i have dates with group assignments. I will try to post photos if possible.

:D

The Day Where Melbourne Blew Me Off

It was 2nd April, wednesday. It is any other normal day in Melbourne. The sky was clear with cool breeze. I woke up early and prepared for breakfast. After breakfast, i was back to rushing my tutorial for the tutorial ahead. As i proceed out to school, there were strong winds blowing everywhere. It was crazy... Sand pelted my face as if needles were poking me. As i took cover with my hoodie, i looked on the ground and saw tiny glass shards moving on the floor. It dawned on me on a 'what if' scenario... 'What if a glass shard flying and hit me in the face?' In the end, i decided to take the tram to school instead of walking.

It was all well in school until a power failure came unexpectedly. The network was down and everything in school came to a complete halt. The school administration had to evacuate students out of the building, classes had to be cancelled as nobody can enter the rooms. It was bad... And my area was affected too. Power was out since 2pm and it only returned at 8.30pm.

The winds were really bad so i had to accompany a neighbour home. She wanted to take the tram but the wait for simply too long for her to endure, so we ended up walking. She was really small, skinny and light-weighted. During the walk, i had to push her a little to continue walking as the winds just impeded our advance.

Back at home, my neighbours and i had candlelight dinner. It was something i had never expected in my whole life. Now i realise the neccessity of power and backup sources if ever needed. I have never thought of electricity blackout backups. So after that night, i am prepared. Candles, lighters, torchlights and such.

The next day, the papers reported a few victims due to the strong winds which includes:

An old granny being crushed to death by a wall of bricks

A man died of electric shock while he was hiding in a telephone booth. Apparently the wind broke a powerline and it fell on top of the booth.

Another man was under a crane when the winds topple the crane over.

And many many more debris that fell from trees, tall buildings and construction sites. Thank god im only experiencing power shortage.

Birthday Party and Visit to our Association's Sponsor

We celebrated one of our friend's birthday and made a big bang out of it. We had a bbq at a friend's place and after that we went clubbing at a club which was sponsoring our association. Imagine an academic club is being sponsored by a clubbing club. SG pple really is power...

BBQ Party
We knew that she never had a good birthday party we decided to throw a big one for her. We prepared 23 presents for all the years we didn't celebrate with her. The presents included a pair of heels, new webcam, a top, etc. The BBQ was also part of her present and her last present was her boyfriend who travelled all the way from Italy to celebrate her birthday. It was such a happy moment she wanted to cry but held her tears back. Seeing her being so happy, some of the girls teared a little too. Haha... But the guys were happy for her but i guess he has set a very high standard for the other attached girls here. Sadly i do not have the photo of her and her boyfriend. I only took a video and uploading a hi-res video will kill my net connection speed. So make do with the photos ar...


The 20 presents we prepared.


The present presentation ceremony


The BBQ area


Our Tiramisu cake. Made it too big and didn't have enough time to cool it.

Clubbing @ Seven
After that we headed to the club. It was a long queue but we had reserved a table. That means we can enter the club without queuing. Like express lane, we walked past the queue and entered the club. It was not as great at the other week's one. But the good thing is that we got a table and its nice having a place to sit down, enjoy the music and finish up the whisky. Haha...









The second last photo was taken as most of them were semi-drunk. I wanted to photoshop myself in but could not find the time to do so... Well... Next time then.

Friendly Fire by Paintball

Attended a paintball event with the student's association. It was pretty cheap for 200 rounds of paintballs. Even though we never made up the 20 pax minimum limit to get our own referee, the staff there just gave us our own game and match. So we got our gear and before heading to the battlefields, the girls were given chest guards. Nothing for the guys, not even a cup. It was that dangerous for the guys that day.

So we loaded up and started playing. I guess we had lots of fun. Seriously lots of fun until my teammate shot me in the temple of my head from the back! It was a serious ouch! I mean, seriously painful.

But i didn't knew there were two girls who were so garang on paintballing. They are like shoot and move with me. It was nice pairing up with them. I think its good teamwork i guess. Haha...

Easter Weekend Celebration

Wow... What a weekend! Easter is like any other normal days in Singapore but i really celebrated hard. It felt so much like going overseas and really spending my time fully. It all started on Thursday...

20th March, Thursday
I went to Crowns Casino Hotel to celebrate a friend's birthday. It was his 23rd birthday and we decided to have a nice spread with him. The spread was amazing and we really had a good time eating there. Check out the photos!!







After dinner, we went to Kbox for karaoke. The package was 6pm-4am and each persons have 2 drink complimentary. The drinks includes alcoholic drinks too. The cost was about A$25(S$32) per person which was very worth it. Even though we started singing at 10pm, it was still worth it.







21st March, Friday
The plans was to have bbq at one of my friend's place. But the shops are all closed due to Easter, so we had to change plans. So they came over to my place again for potluck. This time we had another spread of food, ranging from pizza, fried rice and baked salmon to chicken soup and butter garlic mushrooms. It was an amazing spread. Too bad i didn't take any photos, they are all on my friend's cam.

Than we head to another friend's place. The others wanted to play mahjong while those not playing just tagged along. His place have the Wii machine and we played with it. Im not a fan of mahjong so i was playing with the Wii.

22nd March, Saturday
The bed finally arrived at my place. The guy who i arranged for delivering was a letdown. He really just want to earn my money. A very bad experience with him. He still have the guts to tell my friends about him. I doubt i'll ever gonna let other know about him.

Than i joined my friends for shopping at a factory outlet shopping centre. Lots of discounted products but the sizes and designs does not attracts me. I only bought a sweater top as its cold most of the time here in Melbourne. Quite cheap and looks better than the one i brought over. After all the shopping, we went to have dinner together. It was pancakes with fish and chicken, very bad combo... Lots of carbo... And for desserts, we had more pancakes!! This time with ice cream and apples. I really packed lots of sinful food...





23rd March, Sunday
I had a nice sleep on my 'new' bed! It was really good. Much better than the sinking matteress. Haha... Had to wake up early as we arranged to have lunch together. We had dim sum lunch. The food was okie but the beancurd dessert was amazing good. It was extremely smooth. It had this tint of ginger but not that strong. I seriously loved it. Too bad they didn't serve up you tiao.

After that i went to my friend's place to bake muffins for the next day's trip. He had an oven which was perfect for baking stuff. Im definitely going back again to mess up his kitchen





And then we joined a couple of friends for clubbing night. It was pretty fun and i had lots of drinks. And the best part about it was they was showing Man Utd vs Liverpool game in the club! It was like killing two birds with one stone. After that i was dragged to the dance floor and they started dancing. I just merely stand and concentrated on my game. Haha... But it was my style to buy one round of drinks for the ladies. I don't mind buying drinks for them but it was me who drank a fair bit more. That was expensive.





There is still lots to post. Im lagging behind on dates. Man, im just getting too busy now. Haha...

Got myself a set of wheels!

Last sunday, i got myself a set of wheels. By hearing this, it does sounds like i've got a car but its a 2 wheeler. It's not a motorbike but a human-powered bicycle. Its quarter of a price of a cheap car but at least i wun be paying for petrol. Petrol is priced pretty good but still expensive. Here is my bike...



Its not fantastic but a bike like this would cost quite a bit in SG. Trek brand with RST suspension. Im gonna upgrade the seating and maybe install a back warning light later on. But for now, its good enough transport to school and back.

And last week on Friday, it was suppose to be a Movie night. Yes, the movie night was carried out but it was the after hours special that was fun. Hehe... Too many photos to post up, here is the link for the photos.

http://www.sasmonash.com/Movie%20Night.php

Lots of pretty girls ar... Too bad most of them are taken le. Haizz....

Potluck at my Place

On the day which i will be celebrating birthday for that OLD person, i managed to have as much fun with friends here coming over to my place to have dinner together. They brought food over and we simply ate, joked and enjoyed ourselves thoroughly. On the menu was Curry Chicken, Salad, Fried Rice and for desserts, we had chocolate fondue and profiteroles. I think its spelt like that cause when i first heard it, i thought he was bringing prostitutes. LOL!!

Some random photos...






It was pretty happening with around nine of us partying at my balcony. We had so much fun, the chocolate fondue hardened while we are sharing stories. Lots of stories were shared and we got into talking about B.O. Yes, body odour. Imagine a girl with body odour? And her aim is wanna be FHM cover girl! Plus she does not have this amazing figure. Small boobs, no hips and i don't see the ass anywhere. How to be FHM cover girl? More like FHM wannabe. Haha...

edited 17th Mar

New Overseas Student = Constant Shopping

You cannot deny it. I mean, i have been doing lots of shopping to fill up all the holes in my accomodation, clothes to fight the weather and most of all my big appetite which i think i reduced it. I cannot eat too much now. It hurts the wallet you see...

Past few days have not been doing much shopping as i did my grocery shopping on Sunday. Carried quite alot back and spent more than 100+. Well... Its alot cheaper than eating out.

Today im gonna visit a friend to see if his old bed will be my new bed. Hopefully i find out how to move the bed from his place to my place. Hehe...

The Weekends...

Well, the last weekend was better spent than the previous one. I joined a friend of mine to meet friends of hers' at Ikea. I wanted to get a new bed, skillet pan, chopping board and a dish dryer tray. But after some advice from them, i skipped on the bed and skillet and bought a set of chopping board. I totally forgot about the dish dryer tray. Dang...

And since one of them is driving, i decided to buy a quilt and a quilt cover. No more cold nights now! Hehe... After that, we went to their place in the city. Played a few rounds of card games on their poker table. I always wanted to own one private poker table but its just too expensive to have one.

Than we went to this japanese ramen restaurant. The restuarant shop is called Momotarou, it sounds so much like Hamtaro. The chef was really good at cooking the ramen. I ordered the pork and vege ramen in white soup. It was very good. The ramen doesn't taste like maggi mee and the pork slice was big and juicy. The group of us ordered 1 dozen of gyoza. Also damn nice... Haha...

Beach Day on a Cold Summer Day

It's all summarised in that sentence above. I joined a group of students from Singapore in their event of a beach day. Following the lead of the president who brought a group of around 10+ to the beach, we got to know other students from other faculties and a few of them are pretty interesting too.

Upon arrival at the beach, it was blowing strong cold winds. The guys in our group are freezing let alone the girls. So most of the girls huddle up and keep close together. Well, the guys as usual, just stayed strong and braved the cold winds.

The club organised us into 2 teams. Than we started playing games and getting to knoew more about each other. It was then that i realise most of them are staying near my place, some 15mins walk away. And the best part, a girl is staying at the same place as me. Too bad she is attached and her boyfriend is coming over next week.

While playing games, one of the club member helped to start the barbeque and started cooking the sausages. The sad thing is they bought raw sausages which took pretty long to cook with that small bbq set. So that was the negative point but the crowd and the members made up for the lack of cooked food. Hehe...

It was nice to see Singaporeans here and coming together to orgainse events. I will be joining them in lots of different events im sure... With free food and lots of company, what else could i ask for in a club?

Yea! A present!!

Past few days had been pretty good. Since the start of school, i got things planned out for me. At least i won't be staying home doing nothing. A couple of things happened the past 3 days.

On Tuesday, the smoke alarm was activated and the entire building of students had to evacuate. I didn't know what to do and just walked out with my t-shirt and shorts. Nothing seem to be burning and i see others wearing their jackets out, they even got their mobile and wallets out. All i got was my house keys! Then there was cold winds blowing at us. Soon the fire brigade came, they checked the system and told us it was a false alarm. I was almost a popsicle... So that was that and i went on to finish up my reading. And it happened again! At 4.20am in the morning! This time im smarter, i took my stuff, wore a jacket, even brought my blanket out. And like the previous time, it was another false alarm. Disturbed my sleep totally...

Today i went to this shopping mall that my friends recommended, they say its so big you will have to take 2 days to fully explore it. So i did some research on it, found out the directions to the place and start my journey to the place today. It was huge...


This is taken around 400m away from the mall. The entire building IS the mall.

The building is made of 2 supermarkets, 2 major retailers and over 100 different stores with like 4 food courts. Vivocity to me now looks so small... Haha... I didnt't buy much there, just went to venture and look around. Didn't manage to completely walk the entire place. But i realise something, unlike Singapore, every corner you will see a Mcdonalds. Over here, they are hard to find. Even the shopping centre doesn't have one. And in the city, its like only 2-3 outlets.


Then another surprise came to me... My uncle sent me a welcome gift.

Now i get to venture around even better! Muahahaha!! Thanks!

First Day of School!!!

It was my first day of school here in Melbourne. I got my timetable today and i get to plan it! Yay! So i crammed all my lesson dates into Mon-Wed, leaving thur, fri, sat and sun free. FREE!!! I repeat myself again, thur to sun free!! Haha...

Lectures are like back to poly life. Lecturer, lecture hall, hundreds of students. But the difference is that the students here are younger. I mean almost five years younger than me. There are those other working adults back to studyin but im like the older person among the younger crowd. i realise something too. I see my old self inside them. Paying for school fees but still wanna sleep through lectures. Coming in late and just stroll in to class. Well, things are different now. I've thrown away these bad habits and now felt like some good boy studying hard. Haha...

Lastly, i just wanna share the new experience i had today. In the Uni, there is this open lecture theatre. The only wall that is opaque is the projection wall. The other three sides are all glass. I mean i can see outside clearly. One thing it helps is that you won't fall asleep easily as you can look out to see the amazing view. Its something so new that i feel like going back there again. I will try to get a photo of the place as soon as possible.

1 Week has passed...

I have finally survived the 1st 7 days of my life here in Melbourne. Not a very foreign land but still all alone. It does feel lonely sometimes, but the worst part is during sleep time. Its the time duration where you are awake and falling asleep. That is the time where 'miss' and 'lonliness' starts to creeps in. Then eventually, i will drift off to sleep and start all over again the next day.

As i have shifted to a new place, i took a few pictures of the area. Oh refresh or reload the page if the pictures are skewed. No photoshop due to somebody...


Open the door and this is what you see


My bed


Opposite view of my room, cupboard with mirror and far right is the kitchen


Lastly, full length windows with a HUGE balcony space.

So now i cook my own dinner while having a comfortable personal space i call home for now. But the thing i need now is a bed, as you can see they only provide a mattress. Its sinking in the centre which causes my tailbone to hurt sometimes due to it hitting the supporter poles. Well, im getting a new one if possible. Hopefully by next week im sleeping on a nice spring mattress bed.

Hey Ho From Melbourne

Wow... So much things to blog, guess i gotta do a quick one with photos to explain the rest.

After passing through the security, i did not want to look back. I just wanted to walk to my gate and get up on my plane as quick as i could. But looking at the scene around me, i got a feeling my friends would wanna do the same too. They wanna wave crazily to me while i wave back and see them for one last look. So i turned around, saw them waving their most sincere goodbyes at me. With each wave, a blessing from them to me. And i feel blessed to have friends like them.



Upon arrival at the airport, i contacted my airport pick up and soon was driven to my motel. Nothing spectacular... Below is the photo, you can see its somewhat 2-3times the size of my home toilet. The bed was lousy, the TV was sucky and there was only 1 power socket. Guess they didn't want me to use too much electricity.



After that, i went to register in my school and also my life in Melbourne alone. Good thing i learnt all the life skills before coming over. Well, not all exactly. I guess i still have to consult a few people here and there. While finding my future accomodation, im stumble upon a sign saying there is a free concert in a park nearby. So i went over with my bag of chips and a bottle of coke. But i was overwhelmed by the attendence there. There are families all over! I would say roughly 1000 people are there watching the concert. All with their nice picnic floor mats, wine, assortment of cheeses and all kinds of food and fruits. Its pathetic comparing them with me.


Yea, there were lots of insects flying around that night. Too small to even be seen by the naked eye.

So today i went to the city to do some sightseeing. It was an adventure to see the city on foot. I gotta learn everything all over again. Like where to get the free busses and trams, where to find the cheapest food, etc. An adventure all over... And i set myself a target that i must bring back a pillow today, the motel's pillow is totally flat. So i went out and bought myself a nice comfy pillow. Yeah!



Well... Thats all for now. Hopefully i get a place to stay as soon as possible. I want to get out of this crummy place!

Korean Trip Experience

During the CNY period, i planned a Korean trip for my parents and my immediate family members. A total of 11 people, including me, went for this trip. Only my aunt has been on Korean soil, so most of the things i would consult her for advice. As for photos, i will post a link to the album. It's difficult to link photos to the days so just see it after reading this post or vice-versa.

Flight Day:
Flight was on 8am, so we had to check-in by 6am. Our flight was at Terminal 3, the new terminal. Its very nice and very spacious. Though it was only catering to Singapore Airlines flights the service is still slow and there is always a long queue to check-in. Everything was smooth and dandy and we are on our way to Incheon, Seoul.

Upon arrival at Seoul, you can really feel the winter chill. Its like 2-5 degrees in the day and below 0 in the night. So i guess you can say its really, really cold. We paid for airport transfer which is actually a bus loops around Seoul city. Amazing that our hotel is just outside the busstop. Check-in to hotel and we are all hungry as its dinner time. Dinner was settled in a korean bbq styled restaurant. Dad ordered too much as he was hungry. After dinner, we went back to the hotel and rested for the night.

Day 2:
Started with meeting my family members for breakfast. We had breakfast at starbucks. It was pretty cheap as breakfast for 2 included regular latte and cuppa, bagel, sausage crossaint and espresso shot cupcake. After breakfast we proceeded to Nandaemun market for a little shopping. As it was the first day of CNY, all shops were not opened. It was almost like a ghost town. We walked around except a few stalls are open. Finally, my mom crashed into one of the stalls selling Korean fare and bought a big bag of stuff. Meanwhile i visit the Nandaemun gate. It was rather impressive. Few centuries old structure still surviving till today. Took a few photos and seperated with my family.

Our group seperated into 3 parts, my parents, aunt and grand-aunt went to the casino. My uncles family and cousin went on another part of shopping trip. My brother and I went walking just about everywhere. While on the way i bought some strawberries. Imagine a lunchbox size portion of strawberries for only $7! What a steal... Bought 1 box and happily continued our way back to our hotel. Along the road picked up some roadside foodstalls. See photos for more explanation.

Day3:
As planned, my brother and I decided to climb one of the peak in Seoul. The mount is call namsam park. Situated just south of the CBD area and at 200m above sea level. An adventure junkie like me would never give this a miss. So we started our journey after breakfast at Coffeebean joint. Halfway through, my brother was panting and than he saw hope of going up the top without sweating a bead of sweat, cable car. I would say its more of a gondola. I cursed at him and told him i will pay for the ascent to the top but we will walk down. Up the cable car and up to the top. At the top, we went up to the Seoul Tower, one of the tallest buildings in the world. It was a spectacular view from there. You can see the whole of Seoul city and the surrounding distant residential area. At the top, i realise something. The sight was almost the same as what i saw at Taipei 101 tower. The city has a river flowing through it and surrounded by natural obstacles of stone. I guess that is how a capital was chosen, abundant life with the river and natural defenses of mountains.

We came down from the tower and looked around the base of the tower. It was then i saw something unique. On the fence, there was thousands of locks on it. Im confused and wondering why the heck do Koreans put a padlocks on these fences for? Than i saw a mandarin speaking guide so i made my way there and listened on his explanation. The padlocks are locked here by couples, it meant to them eternal love. All locks will have 2 keys at least and if one day they are truly seperated, one of them will come here and unlock it. It is like a token of love. It also shows how romantic Koreans are. Hehe...

In the afternoon, my dad requested to see the palace. Da Chang Jin made him want to look how magnificent the place is. So we got into a taxi and went to the palace. It was lucky enough for us to be there just nice to see the change of palace guards ceremony. Something interesting and special. Comparing that to our change of guards parade at the Istana, its like comparing shrimp and lobster. After touring the palace grounds, my mom decided to give a treat. She won quite abit during the the previous day at the casino. So we had the international buffet. The spread was amazing. I never had so much tuna belly sashimi in my life. Great buffet. Damage? $70/pax. Ouch! Still lots of leftovers for my mom in her winnings. So my parents contined the night to try their luck while i walked back to the hotel with my brother. On the way back, we saw snow! Yes. snow! Haha... After so many years of my life, its my first ever seeing snowflakes falling on to me. It was a wonderful experience.

Day 3:
It's now the 3rd day of CNY. Most of the shops are opened now. It was the last day in Korea. So i decided to tell my parents of my plan. Main objective is to go to their Coex tower to buy kimchi and visit Lotte World for once. In the morning, we went to a local shopping centre as my cousin wanted to buy a toy. Lotte Mart was the name of the store and the prices there are pretty reasonable. After checkout, there is this packing station. Empty cardboard boxes is stacked neatly by the side. You can take box, put whatever you want inside and carry it home. They even include free tape! That is what i call cash and carry. Haha... We carried everything in plastic bags and head back to the hotel.

We continued our journey to Coex Tower and Lotte World. At the Coex Tower, the shopping area is huge! It's comparable to Vivocity except its only one level. I kept trying to find the Kimchi museum but its hard to locate it. Hunger overwhelmed us and we finally head to Mcdonalds for lunch. I had shrimp burger while my brother tried their tomato and bacon big mac. Interestingly, they big mac had a cardboard ring around it. Making it hard to topple while still keeping the cut lettuce inside. We ate at the location so the server gave us plastic cups for our coke. Its nice to see them save the environment. After lunch, we continued our search for the museum. Finally submitted to asking the information counter. The lady showed me the way and when we are there, its closed. So sad... Then we proceeded to Lotte World. Finally got tickets to their famous themepark. Shan't say more, the pictures tell a thousand words.

Finally, we head back to our hotel late into the night. We went into this 24hr Korean Restaurant. Ate the BiBimBap as they are famous for it. After that, we went back to the hotel and packed our stuff for departure the next day.

Day 4:
We woke up and had our last breakfast in Seoul City. Heard of a chicken store that sells good baked chicken. So we had the set for brunch. Overall it tasted simple. Not as good as Cute Chicken in Clementi. Then we shopped for one last time and went back to the hotel. Packed our stuff and left Seoul City with so much still waiting to be discovered.

The photo album link:
http://smg.photobucket.com/albums/v395/scopion/Korea%20Trip/

I will pay for damages...

Today i had quite a lineup for my day. I brought a friend to pick up her boyfriend from the airport early in the morning. It was a unique experience i must say, but to see the smiles and happiness is worth the time. Too bad i didn't bring along a camera...

During noon, i had dental appointment. Pulled out the old bands and installed a new set of bands. Seems i have to extend that removal of braces date further, but its a small sacrifice for greater study and the adventure of a lifetime. Lunch was settled in PS, had the Ayam Panggang in the foodcourt. Gonna miss local fare very soon.

After lunch i went a little shopping to justify the buying of new clothes during Chinese New Year. I bought a box of cherries from the supermart and in the midst dropped two boxes. A lady came up to me and demanded i pay for the two boxes as nobody will buy. I simply stayed calm and told her, i will pay for the damages. She stared at me with those poison tipped eyes and started picking out the spoiled cherries. A total of four. Than i said, you weigh them and i will pay for it. Then the supervisor came and intervened and said that its okie, i will not be charged for it. So remember kiddies, when you break something, you have the right to pay for the damages.

Lastly i went to see my usual physician. A little injury on my shoulder which is a huge pain in the past two weeks. So i had to get treatment for it. Accupunture to the rescue again! Yea! But its not miricle cure like the movies but im feeling better now.

My new Toy... Woot~

My ex-classmates all gave this as my farewell gift. It was something that i have been bugging one or two of them. Actually im joking as to getting it but they still went on to get for it. I liked it very much and as promised, i have to bring this new toy to Melbourne with me.



Yup, its the Tickle-me Elmo. YAY!!! Loads of fun and laughter just looking at it laughing. And its the Xtra Special edition too. 6 different specials waiting to be discovered.

Flight Delayed +X

And i thought i could snag a date at the campus before V-day. Well, my flight was delayed by one day and its now on V-day itself. Meaning by the time i arrive at Melbourne, its 15th Feb. Spoil all my plans...

Bad Cooking

As the title said it all... Bad cooking. Shall not talk more about it...

Picnic in a park

Im still troubled by this girl. In short, she is a girl i met during school. Now we chatted awhile and she decided to cook something for me. Seems to be quite a big spread as she wanted to meet up in a park so i can savour her cooking. Initially the chatting was like friends and she asked me this whether i would eat what she cook. Out of politeness, i replied i will. So she decided to cook for me. And its gonna be tomorrow. The last girl that really cooked for me(minus my family members and my god-parents) was my sis. I got a feeling she is hitting on me, but i am not interested in her. She is like 3-4 years older than me. That is the important thing, i do not digg girls older than me. Don't ask me why but its my preference. But i wonder why is she doing this when im leaving for SG in like less than 30 days.

ARGH!! The suspense...

Another Boring Entry...

Just post one in case this dies out of inactivity. Hopefully i will start to populate it again soon. Anyway im going to Aussie, Melb. So i guess it will be pretty soon that this will be alive and kicking again.

Hopefully...

Old Trash Thrown, Welcoming New Trash

I finally took some time to clear my room of all the rubbish and useless stuff. Imagine throwing my game magazine collection. Started out as a hobby to collect but realise im not a magazine company, so why bother collecting them?

Threw away alot of junk. It just piled there from time to time. Some of the things i threw:

1. Gateway CPU
2. Computer chair with armrest
3. Gaming magazines
4. Old newspaper cuttings
5. Rough papers that are used but not thrown
6. Empty computer part boxes
7. Spoilt plastic folder

And many many more.

Spent like $200 on a new printer and another $100 for the printer cupboard. Ouch. Now i want to tear down my old posters that is 'yellowing' on my wall and put up an artwork i saw in IKEA or get a custom made mirror to make my room look bigger. Hmm... Suggestions? Im sourcing for a wall bracket from IKEA too. Wanna continue my robot collection. :D

Privilleges of a Student

Life of a student is sure fun. No much of responsibility and no one to report. Only you and yourself to study hard and achieve high grades for your course. Sometimes it is stressful but at least its less stressful and tiring than working.

But the problem of being a student is cash flow problem. Lots of money going out but little coming in. Even with tuition classes, its still not enough to cover my expenses. Travelling, lunches, dinners, occasional treats here and there. All amounts up to a big bill. Plus the plunging market prices, makes me even poorer... UGH!

Well, hoping some stroke of luck or something will hit me soon. I don't ask for much, just the top prize for the monthly lottery ticket will do. Thank you!

EPL has revived!

The new season has started! And i have all the time in the world to watch the games now. Doesn't matter even if its on a weekday night. And the best part is, my dad just brought back a carton of bottled beer. Guess its gonna be finished pretty soon. =)

With the new season, im considering to purchase Manchester United's jersey. Especially now we have the champions badge. Its a pity that they did not win the Champion's League Cup, but they worked hard to be the champions of England. They will always be champions even without the cups or trophy. But the cost of a jersey, plus printing of name, plus badges would equals $$$$. Which is $$$$ i do not have. Right now, im saving up for a notebook. Its not easy to suddenly make decisions where you have to curb spendings. Events like having coffee at the joint is taken out. No more outdoor lunches and definitely more home cooking. Guess i will have to start going to the wet market again. Haha...

It isn't easy after leaving the military. Even though the freedom is there, i realise that i have spent alot more than usual. For instance, travelling expenses have inceased 4 fold. That increase is really taxing on my wallet. Im deciding to cut down on lunching and maybe skip lunch so i can have a hearty dinner at home. Unhealthy definitely but it is for awhile. With giving tuition to kids relieving the burden, its still not enough to fully cover my expenses. With the current grim market prices, im looking to see if there is any quick buck to make. Hopefully quick enough to sail me through the next month.

School Has Started

I finally get to attend school again. It is more than 2 years since my last lesson in an education environment. But the feeling of a university student and a poly student is definitely different. Especially in the quality of the lecturers.

Instead of creating their own set of slides and teaching materials, they follow a set of notes and slides given by the university. And the best part is, some of them do not know what is on the slides and just blabber without following the slides. I feel that i can study better on my own by reading both the prescribed text and notes, do the tutorials and try some quizzes online. The best part about these lecturers, they do not quite care about their student's passing. They seem to be just doing their job within their contract and hope that when it finishes, the school will either renew it or they find a career outside the education sector.

As for the on-campus transfer, i suppose im leaving end of the year. Going over there as soon as possible. Why? It is more worth it paying the exhorbitant school fees. I know its gonna cost more with the addition of living costs and other unforseen expenses(eg. abortion haha...). But i believe that you are paying for the experience which you will never ever do it again. Imagine if you still want to study overseas for a couple of years with a wife and 2 kids?

Adventures of the Uni Student

Well, it was time to go back to studying as usual. The past month have been playing games at home non-stop. So now it is time to go back to studying full time and maybe apply for a part-time job.

Im currently scheduled to classes on mon and wed. It seems like so easy... Life of a uni student seems so easy. Wondering why so i spend so much money for only 6 hrs of class each week. Unlike pri sch... I spend like 1 day would equate my 1 week. Haha... In sec sch, is an even worse comparison. I can easily spend like 10hrs in school a day. Including saturdays when i have activities. The good old days...

As i slowly advance, i countdown to the number of days i have left here in SG. I will be flying off to Melbourne, Australia at the end of the year. Im planning to study there next semester. At least enjoy the feeling of an overseas student. Life alone and independence is the next challenge. I have learnt all the skills of surviving alone but have not gone through the tests yet. Would love to test myself for the next 2 years and hopefully be branded as a full independent person. Do no need to be dependent on my parents or somebody. But i would miss lots of people... Family and close friends. Especially my god-sister, would not know how it would be like chatting with her over Skype. Haha...

ORD Loh... New Chapter begins...

On 9th June 2007, I have officially cleared my service to my country and moved on with life. I will miss those days where i have rules and regulations, regimentation and controlled freedom. Alot of people will hate such kind of life but i will definitely miss it.

Right now im just living day to day, getting back to life as free men should. But the chapter has started pretty bad. Im just at home, rotting and gaining weight everyday. I realise that i need to do something while waiting for enrollment. Guess its the sort of life like what happened in the past, im letting history repeat itself.

Not anymore... Since i have been through that part, i told myself that i must have things to do daily. Even the smallest event would be good. So i took part with a friend for a overnight geo-caching hunt. Its actually very simple, a clue of a place and a coordinates of the place. You just have a GPS and off you go. Its an entire island thing and its pretty amazing at how people can think of places. At one point i had to climb up a hill in the middle of Yishun, our coordinates shows that of a HDB lobby. We were wondering where it is when one teammate thought of the letterbox. Lo and behold, the treasure is in the letterbox with the same coordinates. Hehe...

Well... This chapter begins slow and boring, but im sure i can make it exciting and fun. This chapter in life is just as exciting as how i choose it to be, how i want it to be.

Macdonald Kids

RSM: 'So how did you injure both your ankles?'
Me: 'In Taiwan, during the excercise.'
RSM: 'Haizz... Macdonald kids. Walk also will sprain ankle.'
Me: '...'

That was what i got when i injured both my ankles. The RSM is the highest raanking in the specialist cohort in any unit. I kinda hate the comment he said about me. He isn't the one walking in the middle of the night. He isn't the one inserting into enemy territory alone and without medical help. He is armour trained which means he doesn't even walk at all! The only time he walks is going to the toilet and maybe to the field kitchen. Macdonald kid... BAH!

Accupuncture Treatment

I twisted my ankles during my trip to taiwan. Left ankle 4 times, right ankle 2 times. So overall, i have wobbly ankles. I still can walk and run but i cannot change sides suddenly or shift my body weight to the sides. Even sitting down cross-legged hurts!!

So i decided to visit my usual doctor regarding twists and sprains. He reccomend that i do accupuncture treatment. It was my 1st time doing it but i jus took the challenge like it was nothing. After agreeing to it, he proceeded with wiping my shin and ankle areas with alcohol. The alcohol was kinda cooling compared to the heat outside his clinic. He went on with the procedure with a packet of needles, told me to relax and not to move so much. As the first needle poked in, i was like ouch! Feels like an injection, but there was more to come. Slowly, he finished poking like 7 needles into my right leg and went on to start on my left leg. Now both legs have around 18 needles sticking out of them. Was kinda cool but it jus felt like multiple injections which equals to multiple ouches. Hehe...

He left me lying on his clinic bed for like 20mins before he took out the needles. A couple of the holes was bleeding but he said its okie, it should clog up later. I tried standing on my feet but there was this strain on the ankles and i quickly fell on my butt again. The nurse/doctor's attendent laughed. I told her my ankles are a little strained after the treatment, she told me to sit down and rest till im ready. Kinda embarrassing... As i get my composure back, i paid the nurse/doctor's attendent and left the clinic.

The accupuncture treatment was intresting but i could not feel the healing on my ankles. They still seem to be swollen and twsiting them a little still hurts. So i guess accupucture still isn't the miricle cure i always thought it would be. Worse still... Doc says im to go back for more treatment. More needles...

Chapters...

After a short conversation with a close friend of mine late one night, it came to me this question. Did i change anybody's life? Did i set an impact in anybody's life? Seriously, did my comments or advices change your decisions in your life. After that conversation, i thought... Was i insensitive to his/her thoughts? Did i question the right areas to help him/her? Was i of any help at all...

All i wanted to do was help. To assist, to aid, to lend a listening ear and a helping hand. But if all you wanna do is ignore my help. Ignore all that i have done, then i think we are done. Why should i spend time and energy to help? Why should i help and advise when i could ignore toally, accepting that one should solve their own problems themselves?

All im thinking now is, what did i do to set an impact in your life? Did i help you in times of need? Was i there when you need assistance? I don't need spectacular stuff, but at least show me that i have entered your path of choices. Being part of your life and entered a small chapter in your life story.

ORD countdown mode

Now is the time... I have almost finished my liability to the service of my country. Now all i need to do is wait for time to pass and finish my clearance form. AND IM A FREE MAN! Haha...

Have so many things ahead of me to do. I do not know where to start. Most probably have a nice dinner with my family for the celebration of finishing my service. After that would be proceeding to Australia for further studies. Or maybe i can try a part-time job and earn some income to curb my spending. Anybody got any part-time jobs to recco??

Flight to Taiwan

In another few hours time, will be my boarding call for my flight to taiwan. First time leaving this country under the rules of the military. As everybody knows i like the freedom of goin overseas but hate the constrain of guided tours. I do hope that when we are over at Taiwan, everything would be fine and dandy. Hope that nothing will go wrong and after this 2 months, I will be enjoying my life real soon.

Back from Perth

Im back, im back! Back from Perth. Its fun there but i guess its time to come back to Singapore and back to reality. The only thing lacking there is the nightlife. As the entire Australia operates up to 1730hrs, its always a sad thing when the watch screams 1700hrs on my watch. So usually we would have dinner ard 1700hrs. At around 1900hrs we would settle dinner and most probably be drinking at some pub. And soon after... Its back to the room and slpy time.

The next day we went out to the great outdoors and drove around the outback of Australia. It was fun and got a couple of factory outlet stuff. Including a chocolate factory and a nougat factory. Haha... So intresting to see how chocolate is being made. Finally... Imagine buying a case of wine and drinking it with a bunch of new friends i made there. Starting was drinking but as we got near the last bottle, most of us are almost pouring all over us.

Near the last day, we went around doing shopping. I managed to find that blasted Crumpler specialty store. Bought a few items and went back a happy man. Dinner was nice as one of our new friends invited us over to her place. She owns a place there and we went down to enjoy her cooking. It was not fantastic but the spread was amazing. In the end, we ordered pizza and threw away abt 50% of what she cooked. Haha... We ate and drink again. This time it was worse as we emptied her cabinet of alcohol. Played some games and slept at her place for the night. The next morning we packed our stuff and drove to the airport. Upon leaving we dropped by the post office and sent her a thank you note plus our contact if she or her frens intend to come over for a visit. It was fun having known such nice pple there.

Trip to Perth

Im typing this as we are still stuck in Changi Airport. Flight was suppose to be scheduled for 8.10am, but due to technical problems which nobody knew what is happening delayed our flight. Initally, i thought the delay would be an hour or so... But as it drags on and on... It became longer and longer. After 2hrs, the pilot said over the comms that the initial techinal fault was not the one. So the 2hrs was wasted and they are finding the fault all over again. ARGHZ!!!!!

So it dragged and dragged till lunch time. We had our lunch at the transit hall, which we got a couple of free items. To make it simple, 5 person ticket meals but we got ard 8 meals. Too bad alcohol was not free... Else there would be 5 drunk travellers in Changi Terminal. Haha... Anyway... The pilot later informed us that the flight will take off at 1.30pm. But the ground engineers are taking too long to remedy the situation therefore the flight is further delayed. Now the major problem that we do not know when are we flying, what time will we land and what is the compensation of this major delay. Seriously, i do hope they refund at least 25% of our ticket price.

Im not sure if the car rental company will charge us for the rent of today. I do hope that when we arrive there, we have a smooth entry and quick paperwork to access our car. And lastly, we find a good hotel and park our butts there. Waiting is so tiring and my PSP is running low on batt. One of my buddy is gonna explode soon if we do not receive any news about the flight. I do hope we can make such a big explosion that we can get a direct flight to perth! If thats the case, forget about the 25% refund!

Our kind of New Year, The Lunar New Year

It was a joke made in the Simpsons where the police chief confiscated fireworks from the Chinese in their town. The reason of confiscating the fireworks was danger to the public and saying that its crazy the chinese are celebrating New Year in February.

In hot and steamy Singapore, we celebrate many kinds of New Year. We even have public holidays to remind us of these days. But to me, the most important and most looked forward to is the Chinese Lunar New Year. Why? Simply put... Im a Chinese(even though a banana, but still chinese rite??) and we should be proud of our background and the way we celebrate our New Year. With so many things happening during the 14days of the Lunar New Year, its hard to catch up with the all the action happening at the same time.

This Lunar New Year, i will not be celebrating it at home. Im going on a trip to Perth, Australia to celebrate with my family. Since this is the only time we can go on a holiday as a family, im just glad that we can spend time together as a family.

Extreme Makeover: Room Edition

Im planning to take care of my room. Since this is the year of my ORD, might as well change some things. I've sat down and listed a couple of things that i want to change...

1. Clutter clutter clutter, more boxes or cupboards to organise things.
2. Retiring of old Hi-Fi set, time for a smaller and sleeker machine for churning out music.
3. Rip off the posters on the wall, buy wallpaper and DIY.
4. Clear off unwanted magazines, even though they are my precious~~
5. Seperate treasures and junks, sell or keep treasures and throw away junk.
6. Donate bed to Salvation army, buy new bed.
7. More space, more things. Invest in a sofa bed so can have friends sleepover.
8. Install a board so i can remind myself of assignments and events.
9. Together with the Hi-Fi set, out goes computer chair, in come ergonomics chair.
10. Revamp my already old and slow PC so i can enjoy gaming when i have too much time after ORD.

Anybody wanna join me in this quest to makeover my room??

Another Great Book Down

This book is about 2 brothers who took time off from their family, their work and their life to travel for 3 weeks around the world together.

Title: Three Weeks With My Brother
Authors: Nicholas Sparks, Micah Sparks

I manage to get my hand on this book is a try out from the Times bookstore. I was walking around aimlessly in the bookstore when i pick this book up and read the sypnosis. It suddenly caught me that i have not spent time with my brother like i used to, or like we used to. The book goes about how one of them got a brouchure of a round the world trip and invited his younger brother to join him in his trip. Even though both are married and the elder brother have a family of 4 children. Just imagine having so many children in a family, taking time off from them is like having God giving you a lifeline. So... They took time off their life and went on an amazing trip together. They went to St. Petersburg, the Nile River, Vietnam, Stonehenge, Niagara Falls, Sao Paolo and many more. And in this 3 weeks, they realise how much they miss doing things together. How much fun they have as brother and how life have changed as they grow from kids to adults.

After reading this book, i hope that i too can travel for 3 weeks around the world with my brother. Seeing all the wonderful things in the world and in life. Right now, both of us are living our own lives. Im not depending on my parents that much anymore and my brother is learning the ropes of independence. So maybe... Just maybe one day we can travel around the world together and look back at it when we are old and wrinkly.

The Year of 2007

Simple recollection of the things that happened in 2006.

• I got into an office-cum-outfield-type of job in the army that allowed me to stay out every week. It sucks but i get to go home.
• Got a huge red packet from my grandmother during CNY.
• Learnt to ride a bike from the SAF.
• Got promoted to the specialist rank.
• Indulged myself in the World Cup fever and got myself a pair of Argentina jerseys.
• Got into a relationship which lasted not very long.
• Bought a new monitor that kinda fits its purpose in my room.
• Received part of the insurance my grandmother bought 21yrs(or 20yrs) ago.
• Celebrated birthday with a little hush hush since nobody remembered. (Got used to it so dun nid to pity or sympathize me...)
• Got into the hang of investment again and earned a few dollars myself.
• Got burnt in the investment but the only thing that hurt most was seeing my friends lost money.
• Man Utd led the table for the longest for this season since Chealsea won the double last year.
• Due to problems caused by somebody, which nobody could argue with another somebody, everybody that stayed out began staying in. Including me...
• Went to Melbourne to take a look at how is the place im gonna live in when i move over there to study.
• Christmas was nice and enjoyable, hope it would be better anyway.
• Counted down with the stars at Vivocity and got pictures of those i wanted to take with. Just to make sure... Jamie Teo was extremely hot and beautiful, the no. 1 of my favourite babes of Singapore. Felicia Chin had to take second place, im sorry.

Well... Thats about it. As for resolutions, last year i did manage to complete all of them. Since i set only three so completing was easy. Its the same for this year...

1. Bring back a girl for CNY so that my grandmother knows that im trying to carry on the family line.
2. Tidy up my room so i can organise things for a fresh new chapter in life. (That is life after ORD.)
3. Organise my finance well as i would be taking allowance from my parents again.

So... I guess there are other things to hope and wish also. Three wishes for the year...

1. Friends and family great health and wealth, with happiness and laughter following them everywhere they go.
2. Removing of old stuff from my room so that new things can take over.
3. To see my grandmother and granny still around till the last day of the year and surviving longer after that.

End of Christmas, Start of New Year

Everytime after a Christmas party, my place would look like a wreck. The next day, with all the alcohol after efftects in full gear, we clean up the place and made sure everything was back to its original position and place. Well, since i just clean up my room so it took me like an hour to complete it.

The entire day of Christmas was nothing much. After cleaning, i sent my parents to the club as they want to enjoy the gambling services there. I tried my hand and lost everything. Well... Just wanna see if my luck was up or down. Left my parents there and brought my brother to the local LAN gaming place to enjoy a couple of hours playing game with him. Seems like so long since we did that. That is result of the advancement in life and the progress in time. Hope we can have such times again soon.

Christmas are full of wishes and hopes. I guess one of my wishes was heard and someone up there is giving me a hand. I do hope that he/she keeps helping me so that the wish does come true in the end, allowing me to have a nice ending to this hectic year.

The Christmas Spirit

Every year, all the malls will have this special sale for this season. Since its the season of giving and sharing, might as well make it more affordable for people that want to give.

It's the same every year, i would think of a few people that i would get something for them. One of them would definitely be my sister. She is the dearest of all and every year i would get her something. This year, i was busy and did not manage to help my sister celebrate her 21st birthday. A very big sin as an elder brother. So i guess i have to pay back what i owe my sister.

Every month i would reward myself with something. Something of monetary in value and usually a splurge. Last month i got myself a new phone. Sony Ericsson K800i. A steal when i bought the phone on a package. Have been eyeing on this phone for the past few months, finally able to hold it in my hands. Like the previous phone, its a phone that packs everything into one. Everything of it is good, camera, phone system, user friendly, music, etc. The only negative point is the bulk. A little bulky but i guess for so many things to be in one, guess the bulk can be overseen.

This month reward would tie in with my personal christmas present. Same as every year, i would get myself something too. With the sale coming on now, i did some recce and i spotted my target. But the store at Raffles City did not have extra, so i had to make reservations at another place. Can't wait to pay for it and use it soon.

One of the issues of the 8 days magazines that my camp mates brought in had a movie guide. After finishing the little extra, i will list down the movies to be expected and hopefully get to watch it. Those with a * is a must watch.

DEC 06
Eragon*
The Curse of the Golden Flower*
A Night at the Museum*
Deja Vu*
Deathnote 2: The Last Name*

JAN 07
Babel
Blood Diamond*
Zodiac (watched it but catch it, its very 'nice')*
Fur
Running With Scissors
Harsh Times*

FEB 07Ghost Rider*
The Fountain*
Just Follow Law(SG productions, Fann Wong and Gurmit Singh)
Protege(Andy Lau and Daniel Wu)*
Sugar and Spice

Mar 07Haninibal Rising*
The Pursuit of Happyness
300*
Rocky Balboa*
Shooter
Happily N Ever After
Stardust*
The Leap Years
The Invisible

APR 07
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles*
Meet the Robinsons*
Lucky You*
The Hills Have Eyes II
The Reaping

May 07
Spider-man 3**
The Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End**
The assassination of Jesse James
Shrek: The Third***

JUN 07
Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer*
Live Free or Die Hard**
Ocean's 13**
Butterfly on a Wheel*
Smokin' Aces*
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix**
The Simpons Moive (Die also must watch!)*****
Rush Hour 3 (It's awhile since this sequel, hope Jackie Chan still have it)*

Rest of 07/08
Transformers
Evan Almighty
Children of Men(Read this: Mandkind has lost its ability to procreate and its up to Clive Owen to protect the planet's remaining pregnant female, Julianne Moore.)
I am Legend(Vampires vs. Will Smith)
Beowulf


Well, im just stating some of the movies that needs some attention for the next six to seven months ahead. For more information, please visit www.google.com.sg or www.apple.com/quicktime to check out more on each movie's detail.

Updated Blog Format

Just changed the blog format as the previous one is giving most or should i say all of my friends problem viewing. Currently is using the default layout, will change to a fanciful one in the upcoming week.

Furthermore, its been one week after my birthday. Happy Birthday to Me. Haha... Seems that i look younger as i grow older in age. Hope this changes soon as i do not want to look like a Pri 1 kid when im receiving my Degree cert.

Past week was boring. Nothing much was happening and nothing much happened. Went for a 5km run though, realise that im not able to meet my previous timing. Its okie, not to worry. I will give myself 3days to go back to my timing.

And lastly, outlook for the next few major events. Rank them by date so its easier to strike off.

1) Melbourne Trip with my Mom
2) IPPT Test
3) Christmas and New Year Holis
4) New Mobile (I Hope!)
5) Commandos,1 SIR Evaluation and Reservist Amour Evaluation
6) Lunar New Year and Valentines Day (Anybody wanna celebrate with me?)
7) 2 X Taiwan Trips under SAF
8) Clear leave and off, medical and dental check up
9) Collect PINK I/C on 09/06/2007 (FRIDAY)
10) Go Taiwan for backpacking at least 10days, be back before Uni kicks in

Biennale Suggestions

The cost of organising Biennale = S$75 million


Some of the things we can do to better use of that money...


-Cab rides for 2,884,615 people from Changi to Woodlands at $26 each


-107,142,857 of copies a set of newspapers you gonna get at 70cts each. Enough to cover 239,542 years!!


-1,500 months of salary for a ex-CEO of NKF at S$50,000 per month


-21,428,571 plates of chicken rice at $3.50 each. 18,750,000 if you order extra rice


-50,000 Russian "escorts" if you want to "party" with them, at $1,500 a day


-947 times Paris Hilton will attend your party at your alleged fee of US$50,000


-9.4 times you can get Katie Homles to marry you at $8 million


-45.45 number of Malawi orphans you can adopt if you paid Madonna donated ($1.6 million)to charities


-107296 number of Xbox 360 at the price of $699 each


-3,947,369 times you can watch the next installment of Harry Potter with your girl. 1,250,000 times if you watch it Gold Class style.


-Lastly, 125,000,000 pieces of prata at 60cts each.

The Divorce

Dear Husband:


I'm writing you this letter to tell you that I'm leaving you for good.


I've been a good woman to you for seven years and I have nothing to show for it. These last two weeks have been hell.


Your boss called to tell me that you had quit your job today and that was the last straw.

Last week, you came home and didn't notice that I had gotten my hair and nails done, cooked your favorite meal and even wore a brand new negligee.


You came home and ate in two minutes, and went straight to sleep after watching the game. You don't tell me you love me anymore, you don't touch me or anything.



Either you're cheating or you don't love me anymore, whatever the case is, I'm gone.


P.S. If you're trying to find me, don't. Your BROTHER and I are moving away to West Virginia together!


Have a great life!


Your EX-Wife





Dear Ex-Wife


Nothing has made my day more than receiving your letter. It's true that you and I have been married for seven years, although a good woman is a far cry from what you've been.


I watch sports so much to try to drown out your constant nagging. Too bad that doesn't work.


I did notice when you cut off all of your hair last week, the first thing that came to mind was "You look just like a man!" My mother raised me to not say anything if you can't say anything nice.


When you cooked my favorite meal, you must have gotten me confused with MY BROTHER, because I stopped eating pork seven years ago.


I went to sleep on you when you had on that new negligee because the price tag was still on it. I prayed that it was a coincidence that my brother had just borrowed fifty dollars from me that morning and your negligee was $49.99.


After all of this, I still loved you and felt tha we could work it out.


So when I discovered that I Had hit the lotto for ten million dollars, I quit my job and bought us two tickets to Jamaica. But when I got home you were gone.


Everything happens for a reason I guess.


I hope you have the filling life you always wanted. My lawyer said with your letter that you wrote, you won't get a dime from me.


So take care.


P.S. I don't know if I ever told you this but Carl, my brother was born Carla. I hope that's not a problem.

Slight Note on Life

I apologise to some of my friends who started reading my story yet didn't get updates. Its been awhile since i continued my story and updated my blog. I seriously have not much time to get it done. I promise i will complete the story once i have the time, most probably in October... Hehe...


On the serious note, i just made a huge impact to my life. I have gone to the 2nd phase of braces. Two weeks ago was my initial phase. The dentist inserted rubber bands and a week after that, changed it to metal molar rings. Now, i have metal braces across my front teeth. Not really use to having things stuck to the teeth right now... Its ugly and a torture. Why? COS I CANNOT BLOODY EAT!!! Due to the tightening of the metal brackets, i have pains and discomfort when i bite food. Even chewing is difficult for me. Right now, im on a strict diet. Milo, milk and instant cereal. A little of minced food like tuna spread and luncheon meat here and there. I miss my burgers and pizzas and chicken... Just keep reminding myself that its gonna be for a better future. Yes... A better, brighter and nicer future...

The Replacement Helper: Part 5

Cont. from where i left off... Took awhile to get this on Word, but at least its up.


As the store employees left the shop one by one, Tanaka is counting his earnings for the day. 'What a lousy day it was... One of my worst, only 15 bentos were sold.'
'Goodbye Mr Tanaka, I will be leaving for home now.' Mr Dohmoto said as he wears his coat and walk towards the store front. 'Arh yes... Bye Mr Dohmoto, please send my regards to Mrs Dohmoto, hope she gets well soon.'


'I will, thanks for your concern.' Concern... Concern... Actually Tanaka is more concerned about his business than Mrs Dohmoto. Not that he does not care about her, but the business is not the same anymore. Business has gone from bad to worse. After Mr Dohmoto came as the substitute, the bento business have not been good. He knew what was the problem. The main problem; Mr Dohmoto.


Mr Dohmoto have been taking the counter since the day he was the substitute for his wife. It was a good idea and it solves Tanaka's manpower problem. But another hidden problem erupted without him knowing it. Mr Dohmoto was used to the corporate working life. Life inside a room with his desk, roller chair, computer, printer and a cabinet full of files and folders. In a day, he may not see any of his colleagues at all. He is trapped in that little room of his, coming out only to get a cuppa or to ease that call of nature. That is the corporate life for Mr Dohmoto.


Now at Tanaka's Bento store, things are different. He wakes up early but wears casual winter wear now, not a business suit. He carries a packed lunch in a paper bag, not a briefcase of files. He now walks to work, not take the local train to the office. He would be the second person that reports to work everyday. As he takes off his coat and scarf, he dons on the apron for work. The rest of the employees would prepare the ingredients for the day. He would stand at the counter, behind the cash register. Perfectly still and stern. Not a smile on the face. The store is ready for the first customer of the day. Students who are going for school will get a bento or two for their lunch break. Three girls stroll into the store, giggling about the boy from the class next door.


'That Kiyomaro from 3-4 is soooo cute. Yesterday, while walking back from the library. Our eyes met... And he smiled at me!!' Proclaimed one of the girls. 'Really?? The other day he was at the vending machine. I was going to buy a drink but he did not have enough coins. So i gave him some and he smiled and said thanks to me... I just cannot forget that smile, those mesmerising eyes, the hair... ' Replied the other. When they walked towards the counter, three pairs of innocent school girl eyes met with a stern and serious eyes of Mr Dohmoto. Their mind of the handsome Kiyomaro have dissappeared. Infront of them now, is a face so serious, so stern that they began to feel fear in them. 'Good morning, children. What would you like to order today?' Mr Dohmoto greeted them like an army officer greeting his soldiers, serious and firm. Not showing any smile at all. Immediately, the girls started walk backwards and head for the door. They would rather go hungry in school today than buy from this new guy that looks so freaky.


For the rest of the morning, he has been driving customers out of the store. Not that he drove the customers out of the store, but his face jus scares the customers out. Business for the morning would at least sell 10 to 20 bentos, that morning the store sold only five. Two of them being sold to Shiori and his fiance. When Atchara reports to work in the afternoon, she was shocked to see that Mr Tanaka was sleeping at one corner of the kitchen. She walks over to Shiori, wanting to know what happened in the morning. 'So clean, everything. Mr Tanaka sick also?'


'Nothing is wrong with Mr Tanaka. This morning we had little sale. Only sold three bentos. I hope that later would be better.'


Too bad she did not 'hope' harder enough. The rest of the day was as mundane as morning. Customers are afraid to step into the store. If Mr Dohmoto was working as an army officer, the troopers would follow orders seriously. Customers that saw his expression would shun from the store and walk away from it. He was not rude either, he just did not smile. Not a single laughter. He just did his job. At the evening time, Atchara would report to her language lesson and she would bring along a bento for dinner afterwards. As the shop closes, all the employees would return home. He counted that day's earnings. 32 bentos were sold today compared to an average of 60 per day. What a day... He is a business owner, so the ups and downs of owning a business is something that he cannot help. Well... As he closes the day's accounts, he prays that tomorrow will be a better day.

How do I live?

How You Life Your Life

You tend to deprive yourself of things you crave, for your own good. You're laid back and chill, but sometimes you care too much about what others think. Your friends tend to be a as quirky as you are - which is saying a lot! Some of your past dreams have disappointed you, but you don't let it get you down.

How Do You Live Your Life?

The Replacement Helper: Part 4

Cont. from the last post


The next day, Mr Dohmoto went to Tanaka's shop. Tanaka was surprised to see Mr Dohmoto. 'Morning, Mr Dohmoto. What brings you to my lovely food store today? How's your wife? Hope she is feeling fine.' Asked Tanaka with a slightly low tone than usual. Mr Dohmoto stared at Tanaka. Immediately a shot of fear entered Tanaka's mind. The towering build of Mr Dohmoto plus the fear-inducing eyes. All plays a part of the blame on the fear inflicted.


Before he came to the store, Mr Dohmoto woke up early to prepare for work. But he is not wearing his business suit, silk tie and leather shoes. He wears a pair of loose trousers, a sweater knitted by Mrs Dohmoto two winters ago and a jacket to keep himself warm. Mrs Dohmoto wakes up before he leaves home, saw that he is wearing so casual can't help herself but ask, 'Where are you going today? Don't you need to work?'

'My dear, i got good and bad news for you . Bad news is that i have been retrenched. They gave me three months of salary, medical benefits and a reccomendation letter.'

What? You have been retrenched? Oh my god...' As Mrs Dohmoto gathers herself, she continues her sentence. 'Okie, that is indeed a bad news. And im sick. Who would provide income for our family right now? Sigh... So what is the good news?'

'Since i have all the time in the world, i am thinking of going to substitue you as a helper in Tanaka's store. At least for the time being... Im sure Tanaka would not mind right?'

'What?!?!' Mrs Dohmoto was shocked. 'Im not very sure about this. But i guess it should not be a problem. Just don't be a nuisace to him alright?' After finishing the last sentence, she kissed him lightly on the cheek and put weak smile appeared on her face.


'Morning to you Mr Tanaka. I have come to replaced my wife. Since she is sick, i will be taking over all her duties from today onwards. I hope you will guide me throughout my time here with you.' As he finished the sentence, he gave a 90 degrees bow to Tanaka and said, 'Please guide me and thank you for your guidance.' Tanaka is taken surprised, very surprised. The cat has indeed got his tongue this time. 'Ah... Eh... You welcome, Mr Dohmoto...' He wonders what can he do in this tiny store of his. Well, Mrs Dohmoto is in-charge of the cashier, he might as well take charge of it today.


After a crash course through the cash register, Mr Dohmoto is ready for his first day at the store. Wearing an apron and a small chef's hat, he still looks rather menacing with his towering looks and stern looking face. Throughout the entire morning, there has not been a single order. Tanaka was wondering what is happening. Even the morning aunties that goes grocery shopping would pop in to buy a box or two. So he step out of his kitchen to see what is happening. Nothing was wrong, everything was fine. Except that he did not notice this tiny little problem.


Customers were afraid of Mr Dohmoto, his stern and serious appearance cast scares to all who entered the store. Furthermore, he did not smile or look cheerful. It was the same serious face that he brought to his previous workplace. Tanaka just didn't see this problem. He returned back to his kitchen believing that its a small problem. A hiccup in doing business is natural. Or so as he thought...