Top Ten Moments

My last post of 2008. Of course it has to be the moments of the year! Memories are so important to me and here are my top ten moments of 2008...

10. Aunt Angie had a haemorrhage just this month. She made it through her operation and after having her head drilled, she managed to recover the best she could. She can talk a little bit but her left side is paralyzed. She still has her good and bad days, she won't ever be the same again and she's going through intense therapy right now. All the best Aunt Angie... I'll always be your baby marshmallow...

9. Alone for 8 days. Sister in Europe and Mum in Perth visiting my aunt. I think regular readers of my blog will know what I'm talking about so I shan't elaborate too much!

8. Snow. The first time I saw snow (in Korea) was actually at the ski resort. But that wasn't 100% natural snow. What stands out for me was the night we were shopping in Seoul. Christmas lights and music surround us. It was freezing cold and windy, then... it started snowing. Ah... that was real nice. And something I can cross off my bucket list! :)

7. Driving around with my cousins. 2 of my lovely cousins passed their driving this year, so congrats! Ruyi and I drove around a lot with her dad's car and when I was alone, we rented a car! Man... we got lost a lot! But its so fun listening to the radio and singing along. It sure is a far cry from sitting on Jac's bed and pretending we had our own car! Haha...

6. Singfest, Jason Mraz. My supervisor at worked presured me into doing the other feeding trail. I brought my scripts along and was pretty stressed out. Some of the other acts there were pretty good but Mraz really stuck in my mind. He came out and did an awesome warm-up before jumping into The Remedy. Then afterwards, he had everyone raising their hands in the air, singing along to a section in Marley's ''Three Little Birds''... every little thing, is gonna be alright. And it was.

5. My first job. How many posts did I have about this job? Enough. As much as I complained about it, I totally have no regrets. Sure, it was 6 months of my life but I did meet some interesting people and some nice ones as well! It taught me so much and after having such a rough working environment, I am so ready to see what's next!

4. Birthday Surprise. Boy, I did not expect such a sweet thing to happen to me! To me! It was a fantastic way to book in my 20th. Thanks cousins!

3. Korea trip. 2nd time out of S.E.A. Í don't like tours but I'm so glad that I managed to experience another country. Plus, I paid for most of it myself!

2. Vietnam and Malaysia trip. After working so hard for my last semester in Poly, I was sooo looking forward to this trip. During the late night cram sessions, I was visualizing my feet in the sand and looking out at the ocean. And I did that! Plus, it was my first time in a 5-star hotel (in Vietnam)... cool man. Then about a week after that, we were off to Malaysia in our good old drive-up! Ah... fun times.

1. Graduation. That's really the big thing this year. After 3 years, it was over. I remember going back to school for the first time after the exams with my best friend to collect our robes. We went through secondary and poly together, girl! Then finally on graduation day, we all put on our robes, smilled and went on stage to get our diploma. The girls got me a cake for my b'day and we went out to watch Prince Caspian after that. Graduation was a big aww moment and one that would stay with me for a long time.

So there it is… my top ten moments. Hopefully next year I would have so much more to choose from.

Now I’m just waiting to eat dinner and kinda shaking my head at my sis who’s trying to arrange flowers. She looks stressed man… Haha…

Happy New Year Everyone! :)

Top Ten Movies

2008 was the year of sequels for films, I think. Madagascar, Narnia, Travelling Pants, Batman, Hellboy, Mummy, etc... A lot of good and some bad films.

Some bad films include:
My Best Friend' Girl starring Dane Cook, Kate Hudson and Jason Biggs. It was bad directing, bad acting and even... bad lighting! I watched it at CCK some more... So it was a bad movie in a bad theatre.
The Winx Club wins the worst film of the year for me. Yes, it was a kid's film and ya, I didn't really want to watch it. Boy, it was a bad film... even the kids looked bored! Ironic thing is, the company that made the film is gonna open a branch here. Wtf?? The storyline seemed ok but the direction sucks and the voices for the characters were worse. I mean, how many times can one giggle? A lot apparently... The characters were sooo not proportionate. And I swear, sometimes they looked a little like hentai characters. Don't ask me how I know what hentai characters look like ok...

Enough about the bad. Here are my top ten films of the year:

10. Mirrors
9. Australia
8. Jumper
7. Iron Man
6. Mamma Mia
5. Bolt
4. Prince Caspian
3. The Dark Knight
2. Atonement
1. Kung Fu Panda

Mirrors is a scary movie. I really don't watch these kinda movies but it had Kiefer Sutherland so I had to give it a try! And it was awesome... Usually I would avoid horror flicks cos they have bad endings and they scare you needlessly. But this had a storyline and a rocking ending! The best horror films, I find, are the ones that chilll you and leave you thinking about it when you walk out.

Australia is a very late entry. I watched it only last week. Wah, damn long show man... 2h 45min! Nicole's melodic voice and Hugh's AWESOME body is enough reason to go watch this show. But surprisingly, it has so much depth to it! And I bet if I was Australian and knew it's history, it would mean so much more. This show will have you on the edge of your seat and screaming to go to the toilet. Go watch it... :)

Jumper and Caspian aren't that fantastic but they were well made films. Very good effects. And they also have my celebrity crushes Hayden Christensen and Ben Barnes! Hee...

7, 6 and 5 were a whole lot of fun. In Bolt, there's one part (the trailer park part) where it tickled my funny bone and I couldn't stop laughing! I was tearing, mind you!

The Dark Knight. Enough said. So much going on around this film and I think it speaks for itself.

Atonement was actually released December 2007 but it only reached us January 2008. It was very long but fantastically made. A good director really goes a long way. And the story... wow. Its just fantastic. I really recommend watching it. Just make sure you're not sleepy (cos it can be quiet a lot) and go to the toilet first. :)

Kung Fu Panda! Man, I love this movie. I look like the Panda (which I find cute) and I watched it during the training week for my last job. It was a real motivation for me and it definitely played a part in me staying on!

So there it is. 2008 in film was alright. Here's hoping for more better films in 2009!

P.S. I decided not to take the advertising job as it wasn't what I expected. It was more of a sales job which is so not my thing!

Top Ten Books

I didn't read that much this year... as compared to my previous years. Mostly because in the beginning of the year I was busy with studying for final exams, finishing projects and anything that has to do with ending the school year.

Then sometime around June, I started working. And for about 2 months, I was busy learning my scripts and reading a lot of animal stuff like encyclopedias and online stuff. So the following list is really just about 8 months of reading...

My top ten books this year are:

10. The Tenth Circle ~ Jodi Picoult
9. The Tale of Two Sisters ~ Anna Maxted
8. Mister Pip ~ Lloyd Jones
7. The Last Lecture ~ Randy Pausch
6. My Best Friend's Girl ~ Dorothy Koomson
5. The Alchemyst ~Michael Scott
4. Artemis Fowl and the Time Paradox ~ Eoin Colfer
3. Marley & Me ~ John Grogan
2. The Tales of Beedle The Bard ~ J.K. Rowling
1. The Infinite Wisdon of Harriet Rose ~ Diana Janney

Bet you thought that I'd put Beedle first right? I like Harry Potter books and although Beedle was awesome, it didn't strike me as much as Harry did.

10, 9, 8 were alright books. 7 was a really touching one, about this professor who has terminal cancer so he wrote this book for his kids and others. 6 was a really touching story about this woman who found out that her best friend had a baby with her fiancé.

Marley &Me was really nice. I remembered I read a large part of the book when I was on a train in Vietnam. My cousins were playing cards on the top deck and I was in my own world at the bottom deck. I stayed away from this book for a while cos my dog just passed away and I didn't want reminders of having a dog yet cos her death hadn't really settled in. But when I finally picked it up, her death was already thoroughly accepted.

Artemis Fowl took up a few years of my teenage life and its just great fun to read! The Alchemyst.. although totally a teenage fantasy, it was entertaining. And its so movie material...

My No. 1 choice... Harriet. It was the first book that I thoroughly enjoyed this year. Its about a teenage girl who is very much into philosophy and not into boys that much. And how the author slips into her mind is oh so entertaining. Highly recommended.

Christmas!

It was a fantastic christmas party at Shaun's last night. But everyone else had to work so we had to cut it short or else I'm sure it would've continued on into the wee hours!

And... it was the first time I did like a live performance! It was a mini one and I sang on their mini stage with Cousin Jason. So cool... live acoustic set man... my fav! We performed Stop & Stare, Can't Take My Eyes Off Of You and Complicated. The mic was a bit too loud and echo-y and I couldn't hear myself, plus we were totally improvising so we went off-key sometimes. But its so fun to perform... My mum later on said that I got like ''no shame'', getting up and performing like that. Hey, I used to talk at work in front of hundreds of people!

The food was amazing man. Christmas chicken and ham and even some sushi! Haha... And the cousins took a group photo together! We haven't done that since CNY this year man. So let the pics speak for itself...

Cousin Chloe. She's adorable! Not even 2 and walking like mad!

Christmas Eve

Nothing much going on around here. Just waiting around for Christmas I guess... But I got a very special present today! I had an interview with an advertising agency... I got a call back about 4 hours after I left the place and I was shortlisted! So I'm gonna start my training on Monday, 9am. Yea!

Seeing as its end of the year, I've decided to make as many countdown lists as possible, just to roughly summarize my year.

This post also marks my 100th post! Woo! A little over a year ago, someone whose name also start with K convinced me to start a blog... and here I am. Its a great place to practice my writing and to let people know what's going on with me. If only I got more feedback... :)

Since its Christmas time, a time of mass consumption (hee...) I've decided to compile a list of 10 of my favourite purchases this year.

10. Dickies bag with my own MCR patch
9. Chanel lipgloss
8. Lee Cooper shoes (I wear them all the time)
7. Lots of Amethyst stuff
6. Lots of CDs
5. Face shop stuff (in Korea!)
4. Lots of Books (special: HP extra and Artemis Fowl)
3. Lots of DVDs
2. Samsung handphone
1. Olynpus camera called Violet

There ya go... my top ten items this year. And the special thing is... I actually paid for half of these items with my own money that I earned! Haha...

Tomorrow is the Christmas part at Shaun's house. I don't even know what time it is man!

Patriotic, maybe

I was at Jurong Point on Friday night, by myself, to pick up dry cleaning and to feed myself. Boy, was I pissed by the time I got home. And I was there barely an hour!

I love my country, don't get me wrong. But the only thing I dislike about it is... its overcrowded!!! We're such a small city and people are just everywhere. I can't walk 10 steps without having to step aside to avoid some idiot who's in my path! This made me think back to the 2 weeks I spent in Perth. It was so relaxing... People weren't in a rush, you have all the space in the world to walk and you could actually get a seat on the bus! There's no way you could do that here. Unless you go out at like 4am...

Which reminds me: the times when I am thankful for being a Singaporean (besides National Day) is when I am out in the wee hours of the morning. The time when people are already in bed or before they come out for another hectic day. There's hardly anyone around and I can finally breathe and take in my country. I see youths out and about at 4 in the morning, I hang out at a 24 hours food joint, I stop by 7-eleven to get a drink, etc...

That's when I appreciate my urban oasis. When things wind down in this concrete jungle and I finally have space to take it all in. Its clean, its safe, its my home.

Then the alarm rings. People wake up and go about their daily lives... And that frown returns to my face...

Oh well... I'm definitely patriotic, maybe.

In Good Company

My aunt is in hospital in Australia. So less than a week from our return home from Korea, my mum flew off to Australia to see her. My sis is on vacation in Europe. I don't really hang out with my dad. So basically, i'm alone. For the 1st time in 20 years. I've gone overseas without my family before but this is the 1st time i'm alone at home. I think i'm doing darn well! I feel more independent and more of a... adult! I though that I was totally dependent on my mum but i'm glad to find out that I can do things on my own. Awesome!

That's why i'm real thankful for all the great company I have! Mum left on Mon and i've been going out everyday since then with my cousins and friends. Thanks guys!

My cousins and I had a sleepover and we also rented a car! Now we have 2 drivers (i'm waiting till I earn my own money then I can really get my license) so they took turns in driving. It was real fun chilling to the radio and seeing the world go by. And we could go wherever we wanted. I finally got to see Dempsey Road and satisfy my craving for Waffletown!

We also went Sentosa for a short tanning session. First time I purposely went to tan. Other times its usually some other activity that would get me dark. But I don't get dark. I'd get pink, look ever so slightly darker, then I'd go back to my normal shade. Anyways my skin is red and a little itchy right now! At least my tan lines from work aren't so obvious now!

At Dempsey Road we went to have Ben & Jerry's. Man, that place is nice! It has an old English castle-like feel to it. The atmosphere was amazing... Plus there was a 2-man band playing good acoustic covers of good rock songs. Can I use that place for something? Haha... I admire local musicians for playing live sets. The Singapore crowd is dead. Dead! They won't even applause a little bit after they were done with their song. I know how it feels when people don't appreciate your performance, so I was glad to say I started the applause! Hee... Dempsey road is nice but super inconvenient if you don't have a car and way too dark if you do! Here's some pics...

It's Friday and I have nothing to do. Guess I'm gonna stay home then. Urgh... I hate being alone at home at night.

Korea!

Wow, it was a real fun trip! We went to Jeju Island and Seoul. We got to meet some interesting people, stay at nice hotels and... see snow! After 20 years of existence, I finally got to see snow. And the best thing is, its the first time that my whole family saw snow, so its a nice experience to share... Here are some highlights from my trip...

Jumping for joy on top of a mountain

Aiin's Miniature world

Yes, that's my butt...

No, we didn't stop in Paris, but its one of the dreams!
New York is also one of the dreams

War Memorial

It was surreal to go in the actual planes and tanks that those brave soldiers were fighting the war in. I can't imagine what must've been going through their minds

FOOD!
Korean food is very simple. Sure, we have Korea food here, but its altered to suit our taste. So we had authentic Korean BBQ, ginseng rice, noodles... and of course, Kimchi. Man, they have Kimchi all day! Even in the morning right beside your scrambled eggs! Haha...

At Everland resort (mini Disneyland), freezing, drinking beer and eating sausages in Holland Village. Yup, you heard me. A Holland Village in Korea.

Kimchi school! The Kimchi we made was given to the orphanage. Btw, Korean kids are the cutest!
At Dunkin' Donuts. All their shops were so nicely decorated, the donuts fed us and their hot Oreo latte kept me warm!
Coffee Bean, my fav (sorry ting) was all over and it kept me warm too!

Of course, after eating so much, I started to look more and more like these corn dogs... Diet!

Teddy bear museum

We weren't supposed to enter but we did anyway! My sis couldn't get up but I somehow did! :)

At a Teddy bear museum. I know... I really look like the Teddy. Round.
At Everland resort again. We were almost lost but my navigation skills got us through! Ahaha...

We really weren't prepared for the cold and when the wind blew... we braced ourselves!
Dragon Ski Valley

Supposedly where they filmed Winter Sonata. Sis and I got to ski! I took to it pretty quickly but didn't do much cos we weren't allowed to go up too high and it was tiring climbing up by yourself. It was -12 baby!!! Woo... damn cold but I got used to it... with snot running down my nose! Urgh... Here are the pics!

Hmm... when did we take a non-goofy pic?
My snow angel. Mind you, I did this in the middle of a shopping centre square and people were staring! But I think when you're on Holiday, the normal rules don't apply! :)
This little girl is called Cheryl and she's damn cute! Real sweet and nice and tells the most ridiculous jokes!

My tour group. Got some damn tau people but some real nice ones too. Just before this pics was taken, we were all throwing snow balls at the driver and tour guide. Damn fun.

Family pics

How do we look in our Korean costumes? People keep saying my sis looks like a Korean actress. Anyone knows who? (tag please)

Ah... in the snow after a warm dinner and good shopping. Who could ask for more?

Us with our tour guide. She's from Taiwan, is damn funny and straightforward. Thanks mei ren yu!

Last but really not least... the stuff that we bought! A whole dining table worth! Haha...

Here's some items that I was real happy I bought:

• Adidas special shoe made with bamboo! And... it was at a factory outlet, a whole shopping mall of cheaper branded stuff! Only $40+!!!
• Gucci and Roxy perfume like SGD$20 cheaper than here!
• The Little Prince umbrella
• A ton of face shop stuff! Really, a lot! I spent almost SGD$100. But some of the stuff there is half the price here man!
• Chocolates
• Little souvenirs for cousins and friends
  

It was a just nice trip, really. Not too long nor short. I liked Seoul. Its like a cooler version of S'pore and their heritage is everywhere (Something you don't see too often here). The architecture is fantastic. The people are cute. Food is nice, healthy and simple. Would I go there again? For sure! Maybe in like 5-10 years?

Hmm... where will I be going to next? Haha... :)

A night out about Town

Met up with my secondary school friends yesterday. I haven't seen the army guys in ages, so it was real nice to catch up and see how they are. We were supposed to meet at 3.30 but they didn't come until 5! But its alright... after they arrived, we thought maybe we could hang out at level 9, maybe get one of those rooms. But after much discussion, we decided to watch City of Ember. We missed the beginning so I was a little blur as to how the city came about. It was an alright movie, but more for young teens and kids. The lead male looks so much like Skandar Keynes (King Edmund in Narnia) and the girl that acted in Atonement (one of my fav movies) was the lead female. Here's a little comparison between the 2 males...

Get what I'm talking about? And the Ember actor actually has a twin brother!

After the movie, we went to this Japanese place at the 2nd floor of Orchard cine for a little dessert. I couldn't eat cos I was cutting down and I already had rice earlier, so I just had lime juice and chatted with them. That place is nice! I'd definitely bring mum there someday! Haha...

After that, I didn't feel like going home just yet (I spend so much time at home already) so we just hung out at Heeren for awhile. I promised I wouldn't spend on anything unneccessary but I ended up buying Paramore's DVD! Then we went to hang out at the tent that Shawnrick was supposed to look after (his 3 days temp job). He had the AMAs so we watched it for awhile. Shiok, cos it was kinda dark and the tent cover was plastic, plus it was right beside the entrance of Heeren. I just sat there and watched the world go by. Nice.

It was real nice catching up with them. I learnt a lot about them that day! Hee... I don't have my camera so can't take pics but May Ann brought hers, so i'm gonna pester her for the pics!

All packed and ready to go Korea! Being a girl so troublesome man. My dad's luggage is half our size and the 3 women in my household are carrying huge ass luggages! Haha... take care ya'll! See ya in 8 days! :)

House-daughter

I spent half of my day on Wednesday... ironing clothes! Haha... I woke up with the thought ''I feel like ironing clothes''. I mean, who thinks of that??? Only a slacker who wants to do something, I guess! I started irong my clothes around 11. I went on to iron my mum and dad's clothes as well. And now all the clothes that we need for Korea are all ironed by me! I did feel a small sense of accomplishment though. :)

I know I won't be doing this for long. I went for a job interview with NParks today. The headquarters damn nice. It looked like a upscale chalet cos they're in the process of renovating. Cool office furniture. It went quite well! I was clear on what I could say and I think I did quite ok. The 2 interviewers were guys, so that made things a lil easier! Hee... but if I get it, there might be a chance that I'd have to be stationed at Pulau Ubin. Hmm... not too keen on that! Well, see how it goes!

In a total music mode and I just bought the new Sims expansion so I can't spend anymore!!!

Kylie Mania!

Cousin Spencer is a huge fan of Kylie Minogue whose concert is tonight. I got a call from him at about 7...

Spencer: Kel, are you at home?

Me: No, at Jurong Point, but about to go home.

Spencer: Can you go over to my house, check on my mum then call me back immediately?

Me: Oh, ok. I try to go asap.

Spencer: Thanks, its an emergency.

So I hurried over to his house, with my mum, thinking that there might be something wrong with my mum. When we got there, his mum was fine. I called him...

Spencer: Ok, go to my room... (it's in a total mess cos he's revamping it) Is there anything inside the black booklet on my desk?

Me: Erm... Nothing much. (I saw a sistic booklet on his desk but I ignored it, he sounded real panick-y and I didn't wanna ask too many questions)

Spencer: Then go find this orange and green bag... is there anything in it?

Me: Nope...

Spencer: Ok, go back to my desk... (Mumbling)... Sistic...

So I took the sistic booklet and lo and behold, there were 5 Kylie Minogue tickets inside!

Me: Are you looking for Kylie tickets???

Spencer: YES!!! YOU HAVE TO COME DOWN NOW, I'LL PAY FOR YOUR CAB FARE AND I'LL... I'LL BUY YOU A DRINK! YOU HAVE TO COME DOWN NOW!!!

Me: ok, ok, ok!!!

Haha... The concert was at 8 and I managed to get there after a short jam at about 5 min to 8! Mum and I had to take a cab from Jurong West to Indoor Stadium then back to Jurong West again! Lucky we got a good, fast taxi driver. The total cab fare was $36.40. That's the most i've ever paid for a taxi ride! Cousin spencer sure knows how to make a night interesting!

Things have been going fantastic since I stopped working. I get to spend lotsa time in my wonderful home and do all the projects that i've been wanting to do. I also have lotsa time to clean up my room and I must say, its looking much better!

I went to Zouk with cousin Ruyi and 2 of my friends for the PCD Doll Domination party. It was pretty boring so we decided to go phuture. 1st time ladies night and it was so shiok not to pay! Save money... There, we had a fantastic time! Met some people and shared some stories. Partied until lights on and went home thoroughly exhausted!

I've also taken to being a... house-daughter! Haha... I help run errands and clean up the house and it totally reminds me of when I was waiting for my results. The house is now in tip-top condition and looking good...

I would consider myself a pretty organised person and I love to pack. Gonna go Korea soon and I just love packing my stuff neatly into my luggage and seeing how I can put things in. Wow... I'm a geek! And I need something better to do... hmm...

Save Us

What do you do when you're feeling a little down?

Drink? Smoke? Cry your eyes out? Eat all the sweet stuff that you like while watching Friends?

Well, I felt like doing all of that on Tues. But, all those things, I figured, just wouldn't be very good for me at all. After all, I wasn't entirely sad. So, lucky I got trusty people that I can go out with and have fun and forget it all! And one of those trusty people just happens to be related by blood! Cousin Ruyi! Haha...

I decided that what I wanted to do was go to Kbox and SING MY HEART OUT!!! We started out with One Republic songs Say All I Need and Stop and Stare. Something about the way Ryan Tedder composes that makes the melody so sweetly melacholic. And shiok to sing when you're feeling down! I think that night I sang the best Kbox session! Haha...

After our singing session ended around 11.45, we met up with... cousin Jess! We were hungry so cabbed down to Al-ameen and had rockin' prata. Reached home at around 2.30 and I was the last one to reach home! That's so rare man...

Went to bed and didn't do much the next day. Oddly tough, I got reminded of the incident at dinner. Guessed the cheering up was temporary only. So I had a good talk with my mum and realised something really important: you're never gonna be happy until you get down to the root of the problem and solve it; only then can you move on and be happier.

So, people out there, take time to find out what's wrong. It can be as short as a dinner conversation or your entire life. Life is a journey, get on it! :)

Peace out!

High School!

NOT! Well, secondary school as we would call it. My previous post I mentioned that I wanted to write something about secondary school (SS), so here it is!

I don't think you grow up during your childhood. Of course, you do grow up physically, but the real growing up, I find, is during your teenage years. When you suddenly experience so many new things and when you do the real growing up, discovering who you are and who you could possibly be.

The following are recounts of the more memorable moments in my SS life...

I started out SS as a rather quiet girl. Had a serious crush on this guy for almost a year, which I now find was rather pathetic. Hee... Joined the band almost immediately and met the people that I would be with for the entire 4 years that I was there. Johan... Big person in my SS life. We sat together in band, teased each other and did so until we graduated. I had a tough time learning music in the beginning but slowly picked up and I thought I was a mighty fine player by the time I left! Haha... Band was the most fun I had in school! :)

2nd year was fantastic! I had wonderful teachers and did very well in my grades, which ultimately led me to be promoted to sec 3 express. I also got closer to my friends and lost quite a lot of weight! 14 was the smallest size I've been in my life so far. I'll get smaller! Haha...

3rd year was rocking as well. Me, May Ann and Jeremy had to start out in an entirely new class. New syllabus as well. May Ann and I quickly got close to Sharilyn whom I knew from Chin Yan from band. It was weird to see our friends during sec 1 and 2 from a distance and not go through lessons together... Sec 3 was also SYF year. So much training and practicing of Gustav Holst's Jupiter until we could memorize our parts! We didn't get anything but we learned so much. That night after the results I remembered a bunch of us sat at Burger King at the old Marina Square not really eating much and looking entirely glum. But hey, we bonded so much through that experience and I wouldn't change a thing! I think it was this year that we had the band chalet as well. Lots of nice memories from there!

Sec 3 was also the year of SARS! Remember? School was closed for a few weeks and Singapore was like deserted outside! I actually missed school and, for sure, my friends.

Sec 4... O LEVEL!!! I started out alright, then I got tired and decided not to pay attention in class. Grades were not fantastic and prelims were terrible! Haha... I remember the groans of my classmates and I when Mrs Tai came in with HUGE stacks of accounts paper and constant reminders to study and practice! All that extra classes, night study and training courses made us all look so tired. Then during O level I saw after each day a small sigh of relief from everyone. And on the last day... HURRAY! I think there was some clapping and cheering after they said we could leave the hall!

I think that my group of friends bonded quite a fair bit during that last year. I will always remember how the 7+ of us would squeeze into the round table at the canteen and we would somehow manage to get the same seat!

Graduation was pretty fun as well. Us was the last batch that could wear our own clothes to the ceremony (the next batch had to wear uniforms and it was in the day) and it was nice to see everyone looking different. There was a candle ceremony (catholic school thing I guess) and a nice speech by Marcel Lee (you rock!). After all was said and done, it was time to party! Beingshy, pubescent, singaporean kids, of course we didn't lososen up as much. But I remember there were disco lights and a net that held up a big bunch of balloons that the guys were quick to let down themselves! After that, my group of friends went to Beautyworld (I think) to play pool. Pleasant night, but I think it'd be more fun if it was held after our O level!

I also moved out of the house that I grew up in for 16 years! Bye-bye sweet 3-room flat and hello much bigger 5-room flat! I've been sharing a room with my sis since forever and I was so excited that I was finally getting my own room! No more random switching on and off of lights and sudden scream attacks in the middle of the night... Finally, a space that was all mine! Unfortunately I couldn't get to enjoy it thoroughly cos we moved in October, right before O levels. I actually only decorated my room after O levels!

After O levels, I pretty much slacked all the way. I decorated my room to the masterpiece (I find) that it is now and that period waiting for results was the time that I explored my artistic side a lot! More than half the sketches I have now were done during that period. I LOVE slacking... :)

So that's it. A very summarized version of my SS life. Nothing dramatic and very safe... :) Back to real life...

I'm on MC again. Went to see the Doc on my off day and it turns out that I don't just have a sprained ankle... I have a torn ligament! So that's why I can't rotate my ankle all that well, I have a crescent shaped bruise and I can feel a strain on my calf! And that weird bump that I have could have been that when I ''fell'', the ligament pulled the bone out a little. Urgh... I need that MC anyway. Its literally painful to walk the whole day now. Esp with the heavy boots, after the day is done, it really hurts. Doc said that all I can do now is not walk too much and let it heal...

Blurr...

Phew! What an interesting couple of days! On Friday, Jess called us up and came over to hang out at my house. We then decided to go Kbox and got into Ruyi's dad's car and drove down to Clementi. So nostalgic... We used to pretend that we were on Jac's bed driving around and now we're finally doing it! Haha... So we drove down there and had quite a lot of fun! They had a lot of new songs and we sang until 3. So we were quite hungry and decided to drive to West Coast Mac, even though they had one at Clementi. Sat there and chatted before we finally got our butts off the seat long enough to get home. I reached home at 5.30 feeling thoroughly... occupied!

A couple hours later, woke up, took a shower then went to meet Kal. She wanted to go to the This Fashion near PS, even though there are plenty of outlets elsewhere! Anyway, we walked around a lot and had a real pleasant Saturday afternoon.

Sunday. Gotta work but got ''half day'' which is more like 3/4 day cos we only can leave after 2.30! Something kinda funny happened. I was in a rush to get home and I didn't look where I was going. It was at the Baboons place which has a lot of uneven places and I've seen people trip a couple of times... I sprained my ankle!!! It hurt A LOT and I limped back to the locker room with the help of my colleague. Suay man... It was hardly and hour before my foot started to swell and now it still hurts! Here's a pic after the swelling subsided a little...

Yes, that's my very purple bedsheet...

Anyway... Went home immediately and took a shower and got ready to go see the taping for my cousin's Don't Forget The Lyrics. It was damn fun, albeit there was a lot of waiting around. I definitely appreciate media productions more now! We went through 2 contestants and didn't even get to my cousin's turn. So I think we have to go back tonight and hopefully he'll actually get to play the game! I don't wanna get in trouble so I won't say anymore details... :)

I watched High School Musical on Friday and it was quite nice! Still don't really like Vanessa Hudgens though, and I got a feeling that the audience (a good mix of pubescent boys and girls) didn't like her that much too. When Ashley Tisdale did her thing, they laughed at her in a good way. But when Vanessa did it, they kinda sniggered at her in a bad way! The movie is totally Disney, but if you don't mind a little ''roll-your-eyes-cos-its-so-sweet'' kinda thing then go to the theatre and have some fun! Go toilet first though, cos its about 2 hours long. I wanted to write a little something about my last year of ''high school'' but this post is running a little long. Save that for another time!

Live from my room!

Yay! Internet is up and running in my room, and all around the house! And the really awesome computer technician fixed my sound on my PC too (which something happened to it and I didn't have sound for a long time), so I've been on a ''watching TV shows'' phase.

Ya know, I generally don't like to download stuff, and I really try to buy the original as often as I can, but the programmes that are shown here from the U.S. take so long to reach us! For example, a certain dance show on TV was shown in the U.S. over a year ago and it is only shown now in Singapore! And they keep doing things like ''it will be shown 2 weeks later''. They don't seem very bothered that they're broadcasting it... Anyway...

I watched that dance show with my mum. We were already halfway through the season so we just continued until the end. We watched it on my computer from about 5pm to 12am! Haha... We ate our dinner and more in my room that day. Spending time with mum is fun, even though she tends to repeat her questions! Hee... :)


Things have been going great. Since I've decided to work only 3 days a week, it really clears my head to do other stuff. Now on my wonderful off days, I clean and organize my room and maintain it too. I don't think people really realize the importance of having a clean and organized room. Some call it feng shui, I just call it good sense. I find that when your room is cluttered, you don't really feel the motivation to do anything in it. But when your room is clean and organized, I feel, that you feel the flow and therefore would wanna hang out in it more often and do things. Hmm... maybe that's why a lot of people stay in their bathrooms for long periods... cos its not really cluttered. ;) Moving on... I wake up now feeling more relaxed and really appreciating my room. Also, if you can customize your room, I think you should. It doesn't have to look good, cos its your room and its your ideas, and that's all that matters, as long as its your stuff. Putting you own touch to it is like getting a manicure: you pamper your nails, it looks prettier and you tend to wanna look after it more. Voila!


Food, glorious food
I discovered this shop that sells really awesome brownies. Its called P.osh at Dhoby Ghaut MRT. OK, I might be a little slow on my discovery but if you haven't heard of it, go check it out. They sell real wonderful tasting and looking brownies! And when you bite into it... ya feel good! Haha... take a look...

We (my AES pals) went Brewerkz to celebrate Sharilyn and Shaun's birthday. I'm already quite broke cos I'm saving up for Korea and the meal costed $59.20! Shared a beer with JY and Shaun and I still don't like beer. Like, I really don't like it. And people at work keep asking me to go out for a beer/drink! Why can't it be just dinner? I'd go for dinner... Anyway, I had the Mac & Cheese there and it wasn't nice. The dessert was nice though. I had the coconut creme brulee. Nice place to hang out and we had a nice waitress who I think enjoyed serving our table!

Alright, I'm gonna go prepare for work and go to sleep now. This week I'm only working 2 days! Shiok! One thing good about my workplace is that it has flexible hours... yup. Well, take care ya'll! :)

Any tips?

Any tips on taking a cold shower as quickly as possible? It is now day 4 (since Sunday) that there is no hot water in our house. Haha... And for the first time since I started working there, I took a shower at my workplace. Just so I don't have to take a cold shower at home! We called the heater guys as soon as we found out it was spoilt. They told us Tuesday. Tuesday came and went, then they said Thurs cos it might be an electrical problem and not the heater problem, blah blah blah. Eh, hot water is essential man! Hurry up la! Anyway, I'm working on Thursday so i'm definitely gonna take shower after work! Hee...

And my internet woes might be solved pretty soon. The internet guys are gonna come fix us up with a new wireless modem and a new internet plan that cost much less than what we're paying now. WOO! I so miss doing stuff on my PC in my room man. And having wireless around the house so I can put my laptop wherever I choose to, instead of being chained to the hall coffee table and having to plant my ass on the stool which is at a totally uncomfortable height! Anyway, by next week, I'll have nomal internet access again! :)

I recently took out this book called ''Happier'' by Tal Ben Shahar. I started reading it in December last year until about March. I kinda put it aside and forgot about it. Anyway, I took it out and coincidentally, it was about having life goals! About doing more ''want-to's'' instead of ''have-to's''. And it talks about this matter in relation to work! Then it goes to happiness in the workplace! Haha... how appropriate. Let's see what the books says eh?

Anyway, hope ya'll are doing well!

Ash Concert

Got 2 free tickets to the Ash concert on Thursday, 2 Oct, courtesy of my cousin Trixy. She was working at her company booth that provided the food there and she had 2 tickets! I like Ash's music, but I'm only familiar with their latest album ''Twilight of the Innocent''. Whatever previous albums that they had earlier, I know nothing about! Hee... But they had very loyal fans here who sang along and cheered at almost every song. Surprisingly, those fans weren't so sure of the newer songs! Haha...

The concert was supposed to start at 8. My sis and I got there at 7. Nothing happened until about 8.30+. There was a funny local band called Fish Tank for the opening act. Music not bad, but they didn't have to look so poor thing trying to sell their album!

Ash didn't come on until 9+. They were very nice people! Come from Ireland and they only spoke 2 Fucks throughout the whole concert. And I think they were pleasantly surprised at the response from the fans. They looked real happy. The singer was fantastic and he totally rocked out on the guitar. The basist was quiet but he was real attractive! Nice butt and he looked damn cool. The drummer was... a good drummer. :)

Got home around 11.30, took a shower and got into bed at 12+. Woke up at 6 the next day for work feeling totally dazed. We were standing around the second row so we were pretty much boxed in there for like 2 hours. My feet hurt. Plus I had to walk around for work, so now I'm typing this with aching feet! Haha... no worries!

So here are some pictures. First time I used my camera for concerts. Well, my sis took all the pics cos when I watch concerts I just like to stand there and stare... :)

The awesome band!

The rocking singer!

The cute basist!

Working on Hari Raya

Phew! It was such a packed day man! There were a couple areas where you couldn't walk 5 steps without having to avoid someone! And after one show ended, people were just cramming to get out of the place. Feedings went quite alright. Some areas where the sound was softer, I had to raise the level of my voice more. That's not so fun... And since it was a public holday, there were plenty of families there. That means... aunties and uncles!!! The bad ones... the ones that steal seats from children and pregnant women. They are rude and they talk loudly when I'm doing my feedings. Some of the aunties kids pushed other kids to get a good view of the animals, and some pushed me for no reason! There's this one girl, I was just standing there. Suddenly I felt a hard push at my hip. I looked down and that brat was just staring at me. Instinctively, I pushed her back and gave her a ''you like that?'' look. Sigh... kids these days...

Then after work, I took a bus home. 138 and 927 came at the same time. The bus stop has space for 2 buses. So 138 stopped at the 1st spot and 927 at the 2nd spot. All the aunties and some workers rushed to the bus. Seriously, they ran like someone was giving out stacks of hundred dollar bills. I was one of the first few to board the bus, until... a few workers pushed pass me to get on the bus. Like how in Amazing Race when they go India and the people push past them? Exactly like that. The 1st guy shocked me when he pushed pass me, then the 2nd guy tried to push past me again! Ya know how they're rather small and I'm rather big... I used what I had and I pushed him aside! Haha... Of course, he moved with ease and I managed to get on the bus with a decent seat.

Then while I was waiting for the bus to move off, A couple people who don't look retarted came up the bus from the back door! The driver was kinda old and he didn't do anything about it... Then when the aunties managed to get on the bus, they grabbed whatever seats they could and they even tried to chope seats for their bratty kids/grandkids! The ugly side of Singaporeans...

Anyway, I went to watch Eagle Eye with mum and sis that night. It was rather ok. The action sequences were packed full of adreneline! And Shia Labeouf is always a treat to watch! I also watched House Bunny. Like most Happy Madison (Adam Sandler company) films, the comedy is funny but most of it you've probably seen in the trailer and there's always something lacking, which most of the time is depth and character establishment (as I'd like to call it). Nevertheless, its a nice funny show to watch and its definitely one you watch with friends, guys and girls.

Its Been A Long Time

Wow... Finally an update! Haha... Well, lots of things have happened since the last time I updated. Let's start with what I can remember in order...

Aug 31

The girls and I went to Cineleisure for an afternoon of fun. This time, with Jojo! Haha... She sprained her leg and walked even more like the Ah Ma that she already is! Joking... Anyway, there was the Avril Lavigne auditon thing there and we had lotsa fun watching them try out. That's just about all I can remember!

Sept 8

The day I went back on my off day. I had a leisurely ride home, took a nap, then went out with Ruyi for a Kox session. Had plenty of fun, singing the new songs that they had. Stop and Stare was one of my favourites to sing! Stayed there until about 12.30 then went home to plop into bed feeling very ''fulfilled'' :)

Sept 11

Went out with Ruyi again, but this time, with her dad's car! Her dad was overseas and she just passsed her licence so we went for a drive. She picked me up at Jurong East, we went West Coast Mac, headed to Queensway Shopping Centre then Ikea, then picked my mum up at Jurong East so that we could go watch a movie at Jurong Point. We nearly knocked a cyclist at Queensway and got quite a few horns! Haha... Its so fun to have a car all to yourself! :)

Uncle's visit

My 'Sa-gu' came in from Perth for a week and we had an awesome time! We went Sentosa, Queensway and a bunch of other places. He also stayed over at my house and we had plenty of good chats. I wanted to take off on his last day but couldn't. :( And I got a bit teary when I called him up to say goodbye! But I'm sooo looking forward to going on vacation with him and my family at the end of the year!

I also went out with best friend May Ann on Sept 21. We went to Marina Square, ate and walked around. We saw the stuff set up for the F1 race and it looks awesome! Always a nice and pleasant time with her!

I went to Lot 1 today to watch a movie ''My Best Friend's Girl''. Its not very nice. A good director can really make a difference. After that, since Lot 1 has a lot of places that sell cute-sy stuff, I saw something that, for those who know me, very strangely caught my eye... a purple care bear! I already have one, but this one was a light purple and... I thought my other care bear needed a partner! Ah... So girly! HAHA...

I haven't read as much as I'd like to recently. I haven't drawn for the longest time. And I so miss just slacking! Haha... But its ok! :)

I'm Still Here

If I take public transport, I reach home close to 7. I eat dinner, take a shower, then all I wanna do is rest. And on my off days I'm usually not at home. I think partly why I'm lazy to turn on my computer to do all the internet stuff is mainly cos I'm not using my normal internet. My damn router is spoiled so now the only way I can use the internet is by my hubstation connection. Which is real slow. And if I wanna go Youtube or upload videos or anything, it takes a long time. So that's why the lack of updates...

Due to ''complains'' that I've been receiving from my friends and cousins, I will try to update my blog more often! Haha...

Something kinda funny and stupid happened on Mon. I woke up at my usual time, got ready, got in my Dad's cab, sent my sis off to school, went to eat breakfast, dropped off at work. So I strolled into work thinking it was gonna be just another day. I walked in the locker room and my colleague was like: ''Kelyn! You working today meh?''

I went to go check my schedule and... I was off on Monday! And Tuesday! I went a bit hysterical cos I wasted my time going to bed early and waking up early... So after I ''recovered'', I strolled out of work. Thought of going to see some of the animals, but it was still pretty early and they weren't really out yet. So I took the bus home. Lucky I wasn't in a rush cos there was a big huge jam that cost me about 20 min! I like taking the bus when I'm not in a rush, esp at like 10+ and 2+ cos there's not much people. Got home, read a lil, slept a lil and lazed around until I went Kbox with Ruyi later in the day. I've been having mostly 1 day off and not 2, so I told myself the next time I have 2 days off, I'm going Kbox so I don't stress my voice out cos, ya know, I use it for work. HA.

Ok, I'm so ready to go to bed right now! I just uploaded some pics to my com so I'll load it the next time!

Take care ya'll! :)

Hum-De Yah!

Just about 10 notes make up the Discovery Channel's ''The World Is Just Awesome'' song. If you haven't heard it, try to go find it cos its a very cheery song and you can totally add in your own lyrics to make the song yours! I've done my version of it and I love it! Hum-De Yah!

I've been quite fortunate to have a ''work-one-day'', ''off-one-day''... work wek. Last week I worked Mon - Wed, off Thurs, work Fri, off Sat, work Sun, off Mon. Hee! And things have been going just great at work. I'm learning more about my job and my colleagues and they're really starting to grow on me. I've been a bit narrow-minded about things lately and that hasn't been very good at all. From now on, gonna keep an open mind and make things better! :) I spent Sunday half by myself and half with Karm and of course, it was fun with her around! Had lotsa laughs with her and the keepers and thoroughly enjoyed myself! Hum-De Yah!

Off day today and spent it with... mum of course! Some people might find it weird that I spend so much time with my mum, but she's really fun and why not? I get sponsored for stuff too! HAHA... Also, if you're that comfortable with someone, why not spend a lot of your time with them? Hee... We went to Orchard Cine today. Watched a R21 show called Pathology which stars Milo Ventimiglia from Heroes. Its quite a lot of nudity and definitely the most blood I've seen in a single movie. And not that unnecessary blood splatter in gore movies, but since its about a bunch of pathologists (those people that perform autposies), its all about blood coming out when you cut up a body. Its hard to describe, but I like the way it was done. And how the actors can truly act so casual about it all. You certainly gotta have an open mind when you watch it, and preferably and empty stomach! But, we had lunch at Chicago Steakhouse before that and a pleasant lunch it was. Cool music and not too bad looking waiters! We even got a free coffee on-the-house because we were ''very nice and patient customers''! After the movie, went to HMV and bought Jason Mraz DVD, Queen DVD and a Prince Caspian making-the-movie book. Pleasant off day... of course! :)

HUM-DE YAH!

What Matters Most

If you're having a crap day at work, you just gotta keep in mind of what matters most to you. Family and friends and happiness are what's important to me (also I'm working on me a lil bit). And on my off days I spend time with both and they help me re-focus! :)

On Sunday, I went out with the girls that include my poly peeps: Kal, En and Shereen. The 2 small ones didn't join us, but we had a blast anyway! We met up at City Hall, walked to Marina Square, ate at Swensen's, watched a movie (Journey To The Centre of the Earth again) and walked around. I bought a pair of ked-like shoes and a book that's titled ''Don't Go To Work On Modays''. Perfect! (Well, the reason being that a lot of people get heart attacks and die on Mondays) Its this book full of fun and interesting facts... Then we just hung out a lil more, bumped into some of our GV seniors and went home. Although I did have to go to work the next day, that Sunday really helped me keep in check of what's important in life. :)

Of course, we took some goofy pics and had some laughs...

Mum struck 1st prize on Wed and when we went out on Thurs, I finally got a new phone! Finally done with the N80 that keeps hanging and giving me all sorts of problems! I got a Samsung Soul, and here it is...

Btw, I've decided to name my camera Violet... HA.

Overdue Post

Singfest

Singfest was a blast! Had fun with my sis and her friends and remember that famous person? I got to meet One Republic! My sis' friend won some Levis thing to meet them and he didn't want to go cos he wasn't a fan and my sis suggested me! So I got to the waiting point at 6.30 and only got in their tent at around 7. We went in, shook their hands, I gave one band memnber a hug cos he saw my ''hugs not drugs'' shirt, the lead singer wasn't that nice, and it was all over in 30 seconds! I'm not exaggerating! We left earlier during Alicia Keys to beat the crowd and only got home close to 1. I had to work the next day... So altogether quite fun and Jason Mraz was the best one! Hope to go to next year's one! :)

The wrist band and tag that I have to wear

During Jamie Scott. He wasn't that fantastic...

The Past Week

As I said in my previous post, there are some interesting things that happened. I was asked to do the other token trail and learn the elephant show! A show! Geez, hopefully I'll be able to learn it in time... :)

Alright, there are some nice things that happened the past week though. It was a rather good week spent largely with Karmilah. She's so relaxed and fun! Anyway, here are some work pictures...

Me trying to immitate the polar bear picture. I know, pretty similar huh? Polar bears are cute! Except when they're killing stuff...

And this is Adeline. Real fun girl to hang out with. I have lotsa fun with her and Karmilah... :)

August 9
It was one of the most fun national days I had. Woke up at around 9.30, mum and I wanted to go to breakfast at Swensen's but that would mean that we'd have to rush, so we skipped it and took our time to get ready. We took a cab to Great World City, bought tickets to The Love Guru, then went to have lunch at Kenny Rogers, walked around, bought lotsa stuff, then after the movie (which wasn't as good as I thought it'd be) we walked around some more, bought some groceries, had dinner then went home. It was a very fruitful day and we certainly splurged our paychecks! :) So here's what we bought....

All the crazy stuff we bought! I bought Queen, Beatle and Jason Mraz. Mum bought Jazz, Blues and French! Haha... We bought a mug and Nike sports bra for sis. I also bought a plate and owl, and the most interesting thing... An Olympus camera! And its purple!!! It was so unexpected and I needed a new camera anyway! My mum payed first then I'll be paying her back over the next few months... Haha... Mum rocks!

And these are the little tidbits we bought. Most of which is cos we didn't see them before and the packaging was real nice! Hahar... :)