Easter insanity

It's the Easter break now and all hell has broken lose. When I was supposed to be catching up on research, but I went window-shopping and screaming my lungs out at the Royal Easter Show. Not to mention busy catching up with friends and my ex at the Malaysian Sports Carnival.

Too bad I don't have pictures of Shaun and I on the sling shot. Actually, I take that back. Thank goodness I don't have pictures of that coz I look absolutely petrified. Urgh! $30 for the most heart-stopping 30 seconds of my life! That went my Friday.

Saturday was wasted waiting for Shaun to get his new 'hi-tech' toy - his new Nokia which uses the 3 network. He just can't wait until his plan with Optus ends! So now he has a handset which has a 2.0 megapixel camera! Then, the most unexpected of the unexpected happened. Melvin actually accepted our dinner invitation and brought Josh along for steamboat! Had a great time with them - no awkwardness, just good laughs. I miss that part of Josh, the part who doesn't just disses me in front of a whole crowd just coz of our bad history. Then Melvin had to start a bout of ghost stories, which had Erin, and I sleeping in Shaun's room with a lamp on all night!

Then, the day we have all been waiting for - the day Nic plays netball!!! Haha, I must say that was the most happening netball match I've ever attended. We had nicknames such as 'Woman Dominic', 'Wanker Dominic' and 'Miss Dominic' because he played the WD position. Nic was made famous and he has us to thank. Jun Hui had the whole SUAMS gang cheering 'cheerleader' style:

"Gimme a D! [D!], gimme an O! [O!], gimme an M! [M!] etc... What does that say? DOMINIC! Go, Dominic!"

Now, let's leave it to the pics to do the talking.

Pet's column

Hey everyone!

As we all know, our dear friend Petra is an English fanatic and loves volunteer work. We need more people like her in the world! OK, now, she's managed to score a place writing for the Sun newspaper. Do check out her monthly column! It's out every first Thursday of the month and do let her know if there's anything you are interested in getting out into the public. She will take everything into consideration and will be very thankful to you for enriching her bank of already rich information.

For your convenience and to spur you on to reading more columns, here is her first column.

Pet, you go, girl!

From Shij to Rick

I think April babies are the most direct bunch of people you can meet. They tell you straight in your face (or over the phone) things that would really hurt deep down inside. Things like, "You know, not everyone in school like the way you behave".... WA!! *Imagine me starting to cry*

Rick and I started from way back. From the time when I was a newbie in Primary 2, he was passing his paintings to me through the window panes whenever he walked pass to go for recess. Of course, that left me baffled and surprisingly, he himself still do not know why he did that. Just being the sweet 'tough' guy that he is. =P

He and Yeow taught me how to play badminton, which I still suck at. I sat with him throughout Primary 5 and we had 'races' to see who was able to hand in work first. Made me write so freaking fast! We were both prefects (believe it or not?!?!) and ah, he was the maths and arts genius.

Then we were in high school. Not sure why but I don't seem to remember the times I spent with him in high school as clearly as the times spent in primary school. So odd. However, I do remember the crushes he had on girls. Quite a few I would say but to save his 'face', I shall not name them. Oh, let's just say he used to sketch their faces when a teacher (usually Mr. Chin) was teaching up ahead. I would turn around and go, "Hor!! Not paying attention!"

I guess having grown up and spent so much time quarelling over everything has made him one of the most precious friends I have. Funny how the most painful prick (most hurtful friend, when loosely translated), turns out to be my confidante - the person I go to when in need, when I want to whine and cry, when I prefer to listen to negatives instead of positives - and occassional driver.

Rick, you cannot imagine how much I owe you for being direct and honest with me, for just trusting your instincts that "Shij is not like that" and for believing in me. Both Jeunn and you are one in a million (hm.. two in a million??)...

Happy 23rd birthday.

Lots of love, Shij.

[Hm, now, should I get you the pink or green T-shirt??]

From Shij to Jeunn

Today, Jeunn turns 23. Would like to wish him a very Happy Birthday and may his wish of graduating this year come true. Actually, Jeunn, I'm pretty sure it will.

Also, I would like to thank you for all the time that you have spent chaffeuring me around KL and being a 'free' taxi of the route Seri Kembangan-Taman Desa. Oh, and of course, for that unforgettable trip to Melaka. All that wear and tear, the toll fees, the petrol, the parking, your lovely treats of McDonald's soft cones, your charming (and sarcastic) sense of humour.

An even bigger thank you for standing up for me and believing in me when things go terribly ugly and wrong. Thank you for being honest coz that's what makes the foundation of all lasting friendships - honesty, loyalty, forgiveness, give-and-take. Love you to bits.

Funny, why weren't we better friends back in high school?

Here's to you, cheers.

还可以吗？

哇，好类啊！好想好好睡一睡。
我的摇很酸。肩膀也有一点但是我依然还在对着电脑。
眼睛已经快要闭上了。刚刚打瞌睡。
但是我还在听着歌。新哥来地。当然比较high的感觉啊！

不晓得我写的对不对呢？我华语使在的是太赵高了！
咳，为什么我当时没去上华效？那我觉得我母亲才能告诉你。

可怜的我。

Gratitude

Thank you for the prayers. Paul is out of ICU and is on the road to recovery.

Appreciation also goes out to the people I live with - it's never easy when the monthly 'aunty visits' happen because my hormones literally go haywire and I do lose a lot of blood. It's hard when you have the genes of both your paternal and maternal female members - all have a history of something to do with the vagina, such as cysts and fibroids. And apparently, I will be inheriting the little growths as well. Why can't I have extra synapses in the brain to make me more streetwise or something like that?

Speaking of going out of hand, I somehow decided to spend more time reading 'The Harmony Silk Factory' than anything to do with uni. And I finished it really quickly, as well. Well, not nearly as quickly as 'The Bondmaid' but I never seem to be able to follow any of the rules I've set out for myself. One of them being - read more textbooks, fictions save for weekends. Perhaps I need to threaten myself. Hm.. suggestions?

Moreover, I bought not only 'The HSF', but 3 other books! Will not reveal what books but they are definitely by my favourite authors. One was bought out of interest, though. Not revealing what either. =P

I have been munching on Peanut M&M's non-stop since Wednesday and have not been going for my regular walks and cycles. The loss of blood is causing my stomache to bloat (Shaun thinks it's funny to look like I'm pregnant), my legs to go weak and lethargy to take over of all controls. But I think the chocolate is causing the extra heat in the body so I would need to boil another pot of chrysanthemum tea. Learnt a new trick from mum on how to make it extra yummy so maybe tomorrow is a good day for tea. Cooling me down would be just in time to face prac with a level head. =/

But I think the biggest surprise this month's 'visit' has sprung is my swift decision to continue with my Optus postpaid plan and to upgrade my handset. So now, from a Nokia 6610i, I am the proud owner of a Nokia 7370, which is part of the L'Amour Collection. WHOA! Chrys using a high-tech mobile phone!!! Definitely a first! Oh, but it's not the one that you see in the TV advertisements. I have the one which is Coffee Brown in colour. Shaun thinks the amber one is more feminine, which is true as it has flower motifs and gives a more 'girly' look but hey, who says all girls like stuff like that? So sexist! Talk about gender equality. But yes, it is snazzy. I like the phone. Hell, it comes with matching earphones, leather pouch and sling! So going to treasure this.

And, I went to the Adidas factory outlet store in Lidcombe this afternoon when we failed to fix my old pair of Reebok runners for the 5th time. We've tried super glue, epoxy and what not. In the end, Shaun said, "Don't think we can save this pair of shoes. You've been wearing this pair for 9 years! For heaven's sake, go get a new pair!" $80 poorer, I came home with a pair of Xanthos. Believe it or not, I think it's from an older collection as the Adidas website does not have any record of it. Sorry, can't show you what it looks like. But for those of you who have seen my first pair of white-with-orange-stripes Adidas, which I bought in Midvalley for ~RM300, this pair look similar but with more funky-looking stripes and with more support to the ankles. And it's cheaper than the orange pair!

So yea, out of control mode is scary. Makes me think that I am doing really badly in life as a 22-turning-23-year-old human being. Still, I am totally 100% truthfully not complaining about the oh-so-exciting life that I am living.

ARGH!!! Someone stop the squeeking of my spacebar!!!!!!!!

Paul's news

OK people, just got IMed by my cousin Woon Bing. Please head to this blog for updates on Paul's condition. I'm just so glad that he is on the road to recovery. So, so glad, really. I think I nearly cried when my other cousin, Pei Shin, sent me a text message saying that he could move his fingers and had some facial expression. I know I did jump for joy.

So yes, please keep the prayers coming. And no, I have no preference in religion. I don't care if you are freaking non-religious, Buddhist of any denomination, Christian of any denomination, Muslim, Taoist, Hindu, Ba'hainese or a mixture of everything. Just pray for Paul, please. Even if you don't pray, just think of good thoughts and believe me, the aura of good thoughts do travel far.

Prayers needed by the bucketload

Conversation between my cousin Woon Bing and I, this afternoon over the MSN Messenger:

WB: Did you hear about Paul?
SJ: Oh hello, no, I didn't. What happened to Paul? (sensing something amiss)
WB: He's in ICU now. In critical condition.
SJ: OMG!
WB: He slipped and hit his head when going into the drain to take the ball. He was playing basketball.
SJ: Which hospital is he in? Is he awake yet?
WB: HUKM. Not sure. All I know is that he was supposed to wake up yesterday. They only told us during Sunday service. I don't know what really happened.
SJ: OK, thanks for letting me know. I will call Jon. He would know more.
WB: OK. Take care.

Paul is a lovely, caring and energetic young man who has lots of friends who love him in return. He is funny, sarcastic and played really good volleyball.


According to Jon, he was fine until he gradually lost his coordination. His condition has been up and down. He's had two operations and his brain was bleeding. Not sure if it's still bleeding or not. Doctors took him of sedation but he's still in coma.

Oh please, give me a break already! Last year my bro, my cousin and now a good friend of mine in life-threatening mode? And all happening when I'm over here???

I must've been a Communist or a terrorist in my past life to deserve all this.

A little something from a dear friend

Received this lovely piece from a very dear friend of mine. You know who you are. Love you lots.

May you be blessed
with all things good.
May your joys, like the stars at night,
be too numerous to count.
May your victories be more abundant
than all the grains of sand
on all the beaches
on all the oceans
in all the world.
May lack and struggle be always
absent from your life
and may beauty order and abundance
be your constant companions.
May every pathway you choose
lead to that which is pure and good and lovely.
May every doubt and fear
be replaced by a deep abiding trust
as you behold evidence of a Higher Power
all around you.
And when there is only darkness
and the storms of life are closing in
May the light at the core of your being
illuminate the world.
May you always be aware you are loved beyond measure
and may you be willing to love unconditionally in
return.
May you always feel protected and cradled
in the arms of God,
like the cherished child you are.
And when you are tempted to judge
may you be reminded that we are all ONE
and that every thought you think
reverberates across the universe,
touching everyone and everything.
And when you are tempted to hold back,
may you remember that love flows best when
it flows freely
and it is in giving that we receive
the greatest gift.
May you always have music and laughter
and may a rainbow follow every storm
May gladness wash away every disappointment
may joy dissolve every sorrow
and my love ease every pain.
May every wound bring wisdom
and every trial bring triumph
and with each passing day
may you live more abundantly than the day before.
May you be blessed
And may others be blessed by you.
This is my heartfelt wish for you.
May you be blessed.

"A Brother's Journey: Surviving a Childhood of Abuse"

Written by Richard B. Pelzer, this is a true story account of (as you may already have guessed), his childhood. I'm into everything that has to do with children and childhood so I guess that was what made me buy this book. Wasn't sure if it would be a upsetting book but I read it anyways. And you know what? I think I topped my record of finishing off a novel under 4 hours! The last time I finished one in such a short time was when I read Catherine Lim's "The Bondmaid" back in 2001.

What do I think of it? I thought it was an honest account of what had happened. I cannot imagine myself remembering all the details of what happened to me when I was only 5 years old but Richard remembers, and I can understand why. When you experience abuse in that manner, you will most definitely remember everything that you felt, if not have done. Emotions and feelings are the strongest matters that keeps us alive, sane or insane. To remember events down to the very words spoken by all the main characters, one can only imagine the journey that he has gone through, one that he wouldn't want anyone else to live through. Warning: some descriptions are not for the faint-hearted. They initially brought disgust and hate in me but then I also had tears in my eyes. Kudos to Richard and all others who have published their experiences for educating the world and bringing such horrors out into the daylight.

Reading "A Brother's Journey" made me appreciate my life even more. Although I realize that my childhood was enjoyable and free, I can't help but feel that I could have taken everything for granted. Not realizing that someone undergoing abuse in their home could well have been my next-door-neighbour or my volleyball teammate, I might have even taken life for granted until I came over to Sydney. In fact, I think I sometimes still do take everything I have for granted. See how powerful reading books is? It makes you think of so many things!

Writing this book was Richard's redemption - he has managed to put everything down and learn from the events in his life which he deem unfortunate. He has become stronger and he will be able to teach and love people in a more 'real' way. To me, that is a significant trade in life - to let go, move on and become stronger, something that I still kinda suck at.

Life

Life begins with birth
We exist and deviate
We then end with death

Unusual dinner

Today I decided to cook. Usually I would prefer to let Shaun do all the cooking and I would just pretend that he's fine without any help. Well, I usually do the cleaning up, as in while he's cooking. Erin and I take turns to wash up afterwards.

Today I decided to prepare the ingredients, since Shaun wasn't home yet and I didn't want to take a nap. I figured that it was too early for a cycle so away I went with the chopping, cutting, peeling, pulling and whacking of shallots, ginger, garlic, beef, tomato, carrot and apple.

Intended dishes were beef with shallots and ginger, and an omellette. Was thinking of putting in mushrooms, chilli and tomato into the egg but we didn't have mushrooms, Erin doesn't take spicy and so I was left with only the tomato. ARGH! So, I decided to be a little creative. I put in a carrot, which I sliced thinly, and an apple!!! I cut the apple into cubes. Boiled the carrot in some hot water so that it would be softer when I cook them with the egg. And when I dumped everything into the pan, they smelled terrific! I then added some salt and pepper. After a few tosses, I though I'd add some sesame oil. Wasn't sure how it would taste but what the heck.

Verdict: It tasted weird. Haha, but it was a good type of weird. It wasn't salty enough, though. And the one cup of rice wasn't enough today! Shaun and Erin were very hungry! Erin then made some 'bananarama' flavoured oats, which she and Shaun absolutely did NOT enjoy. Oh... Uncle Toby's, oh so tasty... NOT!

Another day. I'm going to start cycling now. Have to give Nic back his comp. Haha...

Hm, what should I cook tomorrow? Maybe the brocolli. It's starting to turn into ice.

Coogee Beach

Date: March 11, 2006
Time: 12:30pm
Venue: Coogee Beach
Event: SUAMS Welcoming BBQ

FYI, SUAMS stands for Sydney University Association for Malaysian Students and the barbeque was to welcome the freshies into the great and exciting life of students in Sydney ala Malaysian style. Haha, there's where I don't fit into the picture. 1) I am NOT from Sydney Uni. 2) I am NOT a freshie. =P

Oh, but I did get food for free. That's coz Miow is the Sports Director and he was sweet enough to get some chicken-tasting hotdogs and a cup of cordial. Couldn't tell what flavour it was, though. Oh, I wasn't the only person who was out of place. There was Ta Seng, our navigator. Haha, oh, but he was a hit with a group of girls. They thought he was really funny.


Erin with some food....


Ta Seng and Shaun with more food....

As I felt bad for eating food that I wasn't supposed to, I didn't eat much. I ended up getting an apple pie from Mackers with Ta Seng. We then went for a hike up the cliff. The view was stunning! Should look at the colours of the rocks and oh, the blue, blue sea....






We also had a brief dip in the baths. It's an enclosure, which is like a pool, just that this one is a natural one, in the seas. Bummer, don't think I have a picture of that. Will remember to take one when I go to Coogee again coz those at Bondi and Manly aren't as 'friendly'. Oh, and the sun!! Look at what it did to Nic..


Spoilt the day with an unknown tantrum. Urgh.... sometimes I hate being myself coz I don't understand half the things I do or say.... Now, don't say I didn't warn you about my mood-swings and temper tantrums. Stay away from me!!!

SMKDP Class of 2000 Reunion 2006

Date: February 10, 2006
Time: 9:00pm
Venue: Newly-opened section of Sri Neela's mamak (they should pay me commission for giving them so much business)

[Very long overdue. Apologies, apologies..]


Su'Ann Wong Yinn-Venn. The last time we met was at Denise's birthday party some 8 or 9 years ago. Having graduated from the University of Auckland, she is now back in KL working in Damansara in a job that is something like a job-hunter's, just that she receives CVs and forwards them to prospective employers.


Girl in white is Natalia Yee Yen Lin, most popular girl in school history who is currently doing her Honours in Psychology down in Otago, NZ. Lim Sim Yee, her faithful sidekick is now working at Tropicana Golf and Country Club. Give her a call and she'll bring you in for some scrumptious food. Fella behind us is cheeky Foong Chee Kit. No idea what he's doing now actually but he's still with the same girl from milleniums ago. Happy for him!

The twins, Adelle and Adelyn Lim. Please guess for yourself who is who...


This is Max Leung Kah Nung who now drives a swanky new black two-door Merc, which he bought on his own. Will always be a dear friend to me coz we get to speak in Hakka when we want to backstab someone.. nyahaha...


Two guys from Science 2, Tommy Chiang Choon Leong (in red) who is doing.. er... I forgot what he's doing now but I do know that he's working now. And, I do know that he's still as sweet as ever. Raymond Loh Chiang Yew, heartthrob to the younger girls in school. He managed to come from his cousin's wedding dinner and still ordered something to eat!


Law Pin Kean was penolong ketua pengawas along with my brother. He's now working in a bank in Kajang, if I'm not mistaken. Sim Hui Wei, longtime friend was late due to an accident that happened to her brand new Perodua Myvi.


You know the first two so let's start from the girl in white. Ong Su Ee, ketua pengawas and future architect, currently finishing off at Newcastle, NSW. Her hand is on the shoulder of Lian Poh Choo, sweet and super intelligent currently in UM. Behind her is Nai Ching Yee, joined us in Form 4. In grey is Wong Yew Fon who used to be blur but is someone who is sweet and loyal to friends. Last but not least, Lee Lee Sih (Rick's cousin), who is 2 days older than I am. Not sure if she's still working for Aunty Gek at the salon in Ampang but she sure has beautiful skin and lovely hair now.


Alexis Keith Fernandez is the young man standing next to Chee Kit. He's a copyrighter now. You know that Perodua advertisement that was on TV during CNY where there were 3 young boys (one Malay, one Chinese and one Indian) who spoke Mandarin and played lion dance? Well, he did the copyrights for that. The handsome young man sitting in front of him is Robin Sue Tze Liang, who is working in Kelana Jaya doing web designing. It was also his gf's birthday so he had to run to and fro our gathering and her birthday dinner. Next to him is Vijay, a person I've not seen since VK's break-up with me. That would be 4 years?


We practically took over the whole shop! This is only one part. We had tables at the sides as well!

That was not all who attended. There were many more. To name a few, there were Yeow Chwan, Rick Kee, Jeunn Fuh, Peng Wai, Edwin, Justin, Chia Lit, Karen (Kow Cheng Ye), Yin Lee, Husaini, Chin Liang, Weng Fei, Yee Sim, Kong, Yuen Chai and many more!

I would like to thank all of you who has helped to make this reunion a success, especially Chee Kit, Adelle and Jeunn Fuh who helped me call the peeps whose numbers I don't have. Thank you guys so much!

P/S: Santhosh apologized for not being able to make it due to Thaipusam.

Dream a little dream of....

Had a dream of a guy I used to have a crush on in high school. It was a peculiar scenario. Unsure of where we were exactly and what we were doing, I allowed myself to continue dreaming. It was at the beach. And for some parts, we were at a shoplot. I think near my house. Now, there certainly isn't a beach anywhere near my house so it seemed really weird. To make it even more weird, he was rather friendly towards me. We weren't particularly best of friends in school and I haven't been thinking of him recently so why this sudden appearance in my dream?!

He taught me how to surf. I don't even now how to swim in real life. =/ He stood up for me when some of the other girls bad-mouthed me. How sweet... *blush* (in the dream, not now la!) He held my hand when we climbed down some rocks. He helped me pack my stuff and carried my tote bag from the beach to the car.

And we attended some meeting at one of the shoplots. Upstairs were tables arranged in a long row and chairs all around. There were many people and he waved at me. I sat next to him. Didn't dare to look at him, as I never dared to look at him in class back then. After the meeting, we were the last to leave. We went down the stairs and he held me back. His hand was on my left shoulder. He came near me to whisper something into my ear, which I totally do not remember now and he started to kiss me! OMG!

The disbelief actually woke me up. And for the entire day, I tried to call him on his mobile. I finally managed to get him in the evening. It's funny how things turn out. We are now 'phone buddies'. Still a little shy and awkward when we meet but at least our misunderstanding of a decade ago has been cleared. I love the feeling of getting things out in the open. At least, we are still friends.

I wonder why I don't dream of my boyfriend that often... hmm.......

New discoveries!

I was feeling lazy, yet again, so I browsed through random blogs. There were a few which were hosted by BlogCharm and they caught my attention. Why? They had this:

Why not get paid to blog?

Wa!! I thought, yea, why not? I signed up for an account just to end up deleting the blog I had set up. They wanted me to create a Paypal account, which I did. But, due to my own insecurities of online transactions (especially when it requires your bank account number), I chickened out. I closed the Paypal account the second after I created it. Annoying eh, people like me?

You might be wondering how you get paid and you might be thinking, hey, I wanna get paid, too! Just go to their website and find out for yourself. If you know how AdSense works, you would be able to figure this out pretty easily.

As for me, I'm fine with blogspot. That is until someone I know can prove to me that it is safe to use BlogCharm and I won't lose any of my parents' hard-earned money to some cyberthief.
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There is a lecturer here at Macquarie who is Malaysian! Wow! She specializes in History of Travel and History of Love. Imagine that... love you know... and how did I find out about her? As students, we get an update of what happens in uni. Yea, it's like a newsletter. And she was featured in it coz of the release of her new book. Oh yes, she writes books, too! I did a Google search on her name and I found out that she has won an Australian award of some sort (I don't remember the name of the award, ok: bad memory) for her book Love and Vertigo.

Oooo.... new books to eye on, new author to spy on!

Yeash!!! I'm so gonna take advantage of Co-op's 15% discount!

Hello, Miss Teo Hsu-Min!

"Beyond the Fall"

What is "Beyond the Fall"?
I've been reading this book for the past 3 days. I should be finishing tomorrow. It's written by a young man called Thomas, who resides in Singapore. He is a tetraplegic (person who is paralyzed in four limbs) and this book is about his life after the fateful Christmas Party in 1999, where he got drunk and somehow ended up on the ground floor when he was supposed to be in bed on the third floor of a friend's house in Bukit Timah.

How did I get this book? Why?
I was in Popular with mum and our two maids, Seuth Pov and Pher. Seuth Pov wanted to buy some books before going back to Cambodia. I just took the chance to spend more time with mum and dad. I was browsing through the shelves (not the the branch in South City Plaza has a good selection of books) and one section caught my attention. The first book was Lydia Teh's "Life's Like That", which is about Malaysian life. That was a good read. Will talk about it next time. Then next to her book was this book, which has a lovely painting of a sunflower on its cover. It actually looked a little like the art work produced by the kids dad teach. I flipped through, read the front and back covers, and the first few pages. At the bottom of one page read: "20% from the sale of this book will go to .......... Foundation...... Charity........" Oh yes, definitely buying this book. I'm a big fan of charity..... =P

So far...
I've enjoyed reading it. I envy Thomas' journey of life. I mean, I don't think it's any fun being paralyzed but I think he is getting much more out of life because he is more appreciative of life than most of us 'normal' people are. He wanted to share his experiences with the rest of Singapore (and perhaps the world) to show that people like him are also part the society and that they should also be taken care of. He was referring to how an enormous task it is for him and his maid to go 'jalan-jalan' in his neighbourhood - high kerbs, flimsy railing, uneven pathways, uncovered manholes, etc. Just imagine a really bad version of KL. There were a few typos but I guess that's alright as the publishing and editing was done by his close friends. I like the layout of the book, though. The idea of starting each section with a picture and poem is refreshing (for me, at least). Definitely refreshing when you have been reading Times New Roman font 10, single-spaced, in paperback published by Puffin or Penguin all your life.

Not good enough

Hm, I didn't get the scholarship.

When Jennifer (Head of Dept., IEC) called me on my mobile, I was waiting outside Darryl Lea for Uncle, Aunty and Erin.

J: I'm so sorry to tell you that you didn't get the big prize. But I must say that your interview was a very strong one and it was a tough pick.
Sj: Oh, that's alright, that's fine. No worries. Thank you so much for providing me the chance.

Hm, I sounded just fine. I felt fine. Probably I was too hungry to feel anything else. All I had in my mind was Pent-Thai's Pad Thai. Yummy......... I need to eeaatt.......

But, I did have the reflex to call dad right away. Wasn't sure where he was but I called him anyways. He answered very quickly.

Sj: Hello?
D: Yeah..
Sj: You in Papua New Guinea already ar?
D: Haha, nolar! I'm still in KL la! I'm only leaving tonight.
Sj: Oh. Er, I didn't get it.
D: Did they tell you why?
Sj: No, and I didn't bother asking. But I sort of thought that I wouldn't get it anyway coz my GPA is not as impressive as my friend's. And I would think that they would choose someone with a higher GPA than one which is sitting just slightly above the requirement mark.
D: Yes, yes.
Sj: And they would want to make it look good on paper, too. You know, to encourage other students to get higher GPAs and also to look good in their report to the Scholarship Committee la.
D: Of course, of course. Never mind. We already said that it's not important.
Sj: I'm going to call mum to tell her.
D: No need. I'll tell her for you. No need for you to make another call. I'm going to her place now. I'm meeting with her for lunch.

It takes time for stuff like that to sink in. I'm not supposed to be sad. But somehow, I am. Like 6 hours after the receipt of the news.

Oh well, consider myself lucky. At least I had the chance to even be allowed to apply.

A CNY to remember

Quick, faster, why so slow one? Hurry, if not we will be stuck in the traffic jam! We couldn't wait to go home, to be with the family. It took us around 2 hours to arrive. As we drove into the driveway, we could see a white tent. We disembarked. Grandma was glad that we were home. Youngest Aunt (Aunt Yeen) was already there with Eunice, Youngest Cousin. So that meant that 4 of the 5 siblings are home - Dad (Oldest Son), Aunt Ying (Oldest Daughter), Uncle Fatt (Youngest Son) and Aunt Yeen (Youngest Daughter). The missing link was Middle Daughter (Aunt Hong), who lives in Melbourne. Uncle Aaron was said to be arriving the next day enroute to Melbourne from Beijing, and he would be representing Aunt Hong.

It was quiet. We could see that Grandma and Dini (their long-serving Indonesian maid) were tired and sleepy. Even Granduncle and Grandaunt were there. Heck, there were even family members I've never seen or don't recognise. Scary feeling indeed. It was a time to gather, to reintroduce, to tell our stories that would have evolved from the last time we met. It was a time to bond. And trust me, having spent one CNY away from family is enought to make you really appreciate all the small talk and 'Wah, your daughter ar? So big awleddy? Good girl or not? Oh, study in Ostehlia ar? Wa, must be very clever one's.

We (the younger generation) were left to our own devices. With such a huge house and the lot of us, there were many things to fiddle with. Eunice fed the fishes while Samuel watched and instructed.



We had lively discussions at the dining table, which had us resorting to using the cordless phone as a 'mic' - the person who wishes to speak shall speak into the phone and everyone else must keep quiet to listen. That was really entertaining! Uncle Fatt was the only one who didn't need to 'mic' as he had to take care of his sparrow hawk. Unfairness.....



And yes, let me introduce you to the other female Voon of my generation: my cousin who is 10 years younger than I am - Miss Voon She Ying (see the resemblance in the names?). She's a little ripe for her age, I reckon but nobody says that it's a bad thing. =) She's pretty and chirpy. She seems to be very creative (like me!) - she makes things out of paper, plastic, ribbons, just everything she gets her hands on. And she's very into Channel [V] and MTV and everything rock. She's into black and red stripy stuff, rap and over the eye hair fringes (which drove grandma nuts when I had the same hairstyle!). And yes, she's hot with the fellas.

Back in Sydney

It's been a week since I arrived in sweltering hot Sydney. Well, it's not hot at the moment because it's actually pouring (for once!) and windy. I left a gap in my window so it was all wet - my laptop, too! I sort of panicked but all is well. It is quite intersting to sit her at the table and stare out of the window to watch raindrops fall in the glow of the street lamp. And the smell, the sound of rain - feels like home. Just that where home is, it's literally raining cats and dogs.

With the Chews here, life has been pretty unpredicatable (and predictable in a way). Don't think that sentence made sense but that's not important. I can safely say that the way Shaun was brought up and the way I was brought up are really on the two ends of the spectrum. But I won't say that what they do is wrong. For all I know, they would think that I'm a stuck-up, selfish, bitchy, spoilt princess from a rich and 'we-know-all' family. Ah, sama-sama lah.....

Due to Erin's arrival, Nic is now roughing it out in the living room while looking for a new place. He started with 2-bedroom units. Then now he's looking for one-bedroom places. He was so into looking at chun places, places which look new and funky. Heck, he had me looking at the pics, too, and I must say, some of them really are attractive! The one that stood out most was the 3-level place. Ooo, saliva drooling.....

Let's just hope when the parents leave on Wednesday, we would see some differences. And that the girl would prove all my preassumptions wrong.

Yes, I am preassuming. So hate me.

Fight: Forgiven

I was upset
I wanted to let you know
my feelings
as did you

Hoping
the person I once knew was
still in you
somewhere

You
released the
pent up
anger you had that was waiting to
explode

Eyes swollen with tears
Body trembling with fear, distress and disbelief
Fear because we've never had a FIGHT
Distress because we let the FIGHT take over
Disbelief because we let the FIGHT begin

What has become of us?
Was it entirely due to
me?
you?
her?
him?
All of us?

I don't know
I don't want to know
It hurts to know
Heck,
it hurts to care and love

The
Fight has awoken me from
my life
A life of loyalty and compassion
A life that has been misinterpreted
A life that was help formed
by people such as
you

Thank you for the
fight,
anger,
distrust,
disappointment,
release and the
lifting of burden.

I will always remember the times we've had
in the past
when nothing mattered
when we were friends because we
enjoyed each other's company and
talked about everything

You were someone I treasured and would
still want to treasure
but it is too painful and
heavy a task
to know that you have never understood
my thoughts and intentions

I fought with you
I forgive you

Will I forgive myself?

Goodbye

It was 5:30am. The phone rang. I was wondering if I should get up to answer. It rang thrice. My mum answered the call. Or was it dad? Not sure. Mum opened my door and stormed in, saying, 'Your gong gong passed away'. I literally jumped out of bed. I asked, 'Are we going back now?' I came out of my room to see dad still standing at the phone. 'Sigh, he's such a naughty man, isn't he?' I smiled.

It will be the first day of the new lunar year on Sunday and he couldn't make it. Oh, how true the old Chinese saying is - they will not make it to see the next celebration.

I will be going back with dad (if he wants me to, that is). Bro is still sleeping, oblivious to what has happened. Mum is rushing to pick Jeffrey and Angel.

Hence, there will not be updates until I return from Temerloh. Until then, take care and Happy Chinese New Year.

Henry Kor!

Just one sentence: I miss this bugger very much!

Mamak gathering #3

Date: January 17, 2006
Time: 8:00pm
Venue: Al-Rafi's Restaurant, Taman Putra Indah

Finally, we managed to get Jon out to meet us! And this time, I managed to persuade them to come over to Seri Kembangan. Not very much to ask since I've been going to Desa for the past decade-and-a-half.

Yeow couldn't make it as he was stuck in the office. So, Max came instead and was the first one to arrive. Rick drove Dor and Weng (who insisted that it is further for him to drive from Subang to SK although he's not used the Bukit Jalil way before). Sigh... Jeunn was kind enough to go into Seri Petaling to pick Jon.

The verdict on the food at Al-Rafi's: the roti canai is no where near as delicious as the roti canai at Merdeka, which is just opposite. And according to Rick, the roti Hawaii served in Sri Murni's is ten times better. So, now we know not to go there again if we ever meet in SK again. Maybe next time I would bring them to Serdang Perdana. More choices.

We were very distracted by the television (the guys were watching WWF) and of course, we cannot forget to snap more pics for the album, can we?

Family bonds

Blood is thicker than water.

For all that has happened
For all that will happen
You are still family

Family accepts
Family forgives
Family teaches
Family will always be there

No matter how far
Or near
When in need
We will be there

Sydney
Melbourne
Temerloh
Kuala Lumpur
Distance is no barrier

Family bonds will never be broken.

The National Science Centre

You guys must think that I've gone wack but hey, rest assured that I'm totally fine. After the late yam cha the night before, I had to drag myself out of bed early to bring the big kids to Bukit Kiara. Mum arranged for the 'naughty kids' to be with me. Yew Weng, Kien Heng, Jun Cheng, Lih Herng and sweet little Weng Kei were in my charge and although they were all over the place and noisy, they sure had a hell of a time there. Of course, like myself, they enjoyed the playground the most of all. Haha, even more if the playground was on water! Oh, the laughter and the non-stop screams! It was so endearing to hear them cheer Chui Yi on. Chui Yi is like a timid little mouse who needs plenty of encouragement, which her friends instinctively provided. Oh, those young'uns, they have grown. I had a go, too, along with Miss Ong! We had a chance to be kids again... haha... Picture galore to do the rest of the talking:

Mamak session #2

Date: December 27, 2005
Time: 8:30 pm
Venue: Sri Neela mamak, Taman Desa (yet again)

We finally managed to get Ai Ling to come out to meet us! Hooray! This time, there were more of us. Perhaps it was due to the fact that a super-busy lady would be present. Hm, Ai Ling, I think we will be calling you more often liao... haha!

Max drove his very own car; a Merc! He told me the amount of money he spent on buying it and doing it up and I gulped. So you take a wild guess as to how much he loves this new baby of his. No, no pics of his baby here, sorry. Oh, but there is one of his new girl, Melissa, though.

Hui Wei didn't want to have a pic of her taken as she did her eyebrows in the morning. She thinks she looks horrible. I have no comment. Lee Sih came out, too, with the powerful persuance of her cousin, Rick. Nelson and Justin (or should I start calling you Dr. Khor?) came a little later to 'give face' to Ai Ling. Haha, Ling Jie, you still have the influence on people leh...

Now, I'll let the pictures do the talking (apologies for the pics being really dark):

Long overdue

Oh my goodness, I am so terribly sorry for not updating in such a long time. I beg your forgiveness...

Alright, a gist of what's coming...
1) Mamak session #2
2) The National Science Centre
3) Family bonds
4) Mamak gathering #3
5) Henry Kor!

And there should be more but I can't remember them - the result of not blogging on the very day itself. Sigh.

I have added complications now. I might need to return to Sydney earlier due to my Honours project. Argh! I have friends who have already started with their work - OMG! I'm still here helping mum and cleaning the house and awaiting the celebrations and non-stop indulgence of high-fat, high-cholesterol, high-sugar food! And not to mention that if I really need to return early, I would need to buy a NEW TICKET, which would be MORE EXPENSIVE, as the day I'm flying off on at the moment is the FIRST day of OFF-PEAK season. Any earlier than that would be SUPER-PEAK... =_='

More time in self-reflection, kind thoughts and praying needed...