Tuesday, December 21, 2010

Reese's Clusters
Makes me feel like I'm eating fats
Pure unadulterated fats

Saturday, December 18, 2010

At Junction 8 watching a group of about 50 middle-aged? old? ladies and gentlemen line-dancing to Mexican songs! They must be one of the most enthusiastic groups of public dancers I've seen :) I want to be like them when I'm old.. Don't lose that passion :)

Friday, December 03, 2010

Saw this at paperexploits.wordpress.com

The lady made these from scratch herself, and she runs a handmade-stationery/card/envelopes(and so on) blogshop. Some of the items are really gorgeous (like the strawberry boxes above)

Was thinking... if I had $10,000 I could start a blog shop selling handmade cards and paraphernalia (whatever that word means). I'll have fun, but I wonder if anyone will buy from me. Hahahahahahaha.
Saw a little girl
Looking around as though she was
Master of the World.

Is this... a haiku?
Hmmmmmmm

Wednesday, December 01, 2010

Riverdance.

Energetic. Uplifting. Breathtaking. Awesome. Stunning. Funny. Engaging. Touching. Lively. Impressive. Nostalgic.

The funny percussionist who played the gongs and the toms and the drumset and the gazillion percussion instruments and who looked like my irish lecturer who taught realism in international relations, sean molloy.

The feet of the lead dancer which moved so fast they were a blur yet so rhythmic and so precise

The saxophonist who never seemed to breathe and who had a lovely classical tone except that lovely jazzy part straight after interval

The showy violinist who seemed to be doing pizzicato and bowing all at the same time while striding quickly to and fro the stage and ending every section with a great flourish of her bow

The blonde singer who sang with (to quote a friend) a celestial voice and looked like she stepped out of a dream to render a moving version of 'a heart's cry'

The lead dancers spinning wildly on the stage
The girls who leapt up like they don't weigh anything and landed ever so gently on their stockinged feet

The black singer who stepped out in his Irish working class outfit and sang with a very English accent

The two lovely dancers taking an impromptu stance on Irish tap dancing - and the faceoff they had with the Irish tap dancers taking a very Catholic stance towards tap dancing

These were my impressions.
Wish I could go again :)

Friday, November 26, 2010

Walking home in the rain after work yesterday...
Waiting for the traffic light to turn green, with my feet getting wet.
Then I noticed - perched on top of (something.the signal box?a mail box?) was a little replica of the Eiffel Tower.
You know, the kind every street peddler sell along the streets of Paris.

Reminds me of the days I spend in Edinburgh, braving the persistent drizzle and the blustery winds that threaten to upturn my umbrella, feet perpetually wet and soggy and wrinkly. Staring down at the pavement as I walked to the MRT.. I could believe that I was in London.

Friday, November 19, 2010

it's ridiculous how i feel ashamed of my blog now.

how it has no comments function. or share function. or subscribe function. how the font is tiny. how the archives is not user-friendly. how my image is outdated. or my posts. or my links. how it doesn't incorporate SEO templates. how unprofessional it is.

i'm not a professional blogger.

Tuesday, November 16, 2010

Got me thinking about my blog.

My work at New Media introduced me to the world of social media marketing, something that (I admit) is totally new to me. It led me to start reading books on social media, word of mouth marketing and so on. And I keep reading about blogs, how to make full use of it, how to market it, how to gain visibility, to engage with your users through quick response (you get the idea). And all these readings made me realise how unfriendly my blog is. And got me thinking why I have this blog in the first place.

Today, at lunch, a colleague mentioned how outdated my posts were. I began this blog to update my friends and family on my life in Scotland but how relevant is this now? Now that I'm back in Singapore, who reads this anymore? Other than qy haha :) Plus this is not even a chronological update of my life. Especially since just a few months ago, I was blogging about my trip to Manchester 4 years ago. Haha! A bit random.

Maybe it's just a place for me to write. Like a journal of sorts. But then I should probably make it private. I guess I must want people to read this. This is confusing. I did.. entertain the thought of trying to make a 'successful' blog! Haha! To try out all these tips and theories that I've been reading. But I think it'll take quite a lot of energy to maintain. I shall go get my smartphone first!

*confused*
Sitting at Mos Burger, drinking iced milk tea.
Bobbles and snowflakes dangling above my head.
Listening to 'Have yourself a merry little Christmas~'
Somehow it feels so blissful. Maybe a little nostalgic.
It's strange how that song has such a big impact on me.
Wondering why...

Sunday, November 14, 2010

Shopping at Cotton On at Novena Square last Saturday.

Had a 30% discount voucher so went a little mad. But there were lots of things I didn't buy. Anyway, point is, when I paid, I realised that the 2 for $30 T-shirts were actually cheaper without the 30% discount. Because how the cashier did it was to change the T-shirt price to the original, which was $24.95, then deduct 30%, so I ended up paying $35 for the 2 for $30 shirts. Obviously, I went back to the cashier and asked her nicely if I can take out these 2 shirts and then pay for them separately (i.e. pay $30 and not use the 30% for the 2 items). At first, she said no. Then later, she said 'Refund? Ok, wait.' *calls someone else* So, this guy came. And we repeated the story to him. Then he was like 'No la, you use the discount, definitely cheaper than without'. So I counted for him. And he didn't believe me. So he took out his calculator and said:

'If you use the discount *punches in $24.95, multiplied it by 2, stared at me for a while and the number $49.90, then clear the memory*' he continues 'if you use the discount' *repeats above procedure but somehow manages to do the 70% of $49.90 part* He repeats 'so if you use the discount you get this number (which was around $35 as I have previously counted for him). 'Then' he continues 'if you pay the promotional price for the 2 for $30 shirts, you have to pay...' *punches in $24.95 multiply by 2 for the third time in his speech, stares at the number*

I interrupted him of course and said 'If I buy the 2 for $30 shirts, I pay $30, right?'

He ignores me and continues punching numbers in his calculator.
Uh. Since when do 2-for-$30 shirts not cost $30?!
Thankfully, in the end, he decided to trust my maths, and refunded everything for me.
It was hilarious.
I should really continue my entry on Spain but... it involves a lot of thinking and recalling HAHA.
Well anyway, random shots from around Singapore :)

Shot 1: Chopin at the Singapore Botanic Garden. Was there to catch Alfred Hitchcock's North by Northwest. The weather was lovely and cool. Pity I went unprepared with nothing but a picnic mat. Had to stare longingly at the spread of food and drinks all around me...
Shot 2: My first trip to the railway station (after telling millions of visitors how to get there). So cool! Doesn't feel like Singapore at all. Makes me wanna take a train for the fun of it (And that is after telling millions of tourists that they might as well take a bus to KL since it's less hassle and takes a shorter time).
Shot 3: CLONE WARS!
Shot 4: Tourists at Jellights. My only glimpse of the iLight Marina Bay installations :( I need to get rid of this bad habit. Of not going for things though I wanted to cos I couldn't find anyone to go with. I shall just MAKE time and just go for it by myself. I will. New new year resolution!
Shot 5: My mommy's birthday presents. Pink and brown theme this year! (Of course, I wrapped them all.)
Shot 6: Ochado pop egg milk tea. I love popping those pop eggs. (wish they had a nicer name though) And the tea is just as good as Koi. The price too. The location is a bit... It's at Chong Pang. Haha.

Shot 7: Haha. I'm obsessed.
Shot 8: My office table mess.
Hmm. Oh well. Was going to upload one more. But I think my laptop's protesting. So tada.
End of random post.

Thursday, November 11, 2010

'Stop thinking', she said. 'The more you think, the faster you cut your own throat. What is there to think about? It always ends up the same way. In your mind there is a bolted door. You have to work hard not to go near that door. Parties, lovers, career, charity, babies, who cares what it is, so long as you avoid the door. There are times, when I am on my own, fixing a drink, walking upstairs, when I see the door waiting for me. I have to stop myself pulling the bolt and turning the handle. Why? On the other side of the door is a mirror, and I will have to see myself. I'm not afraid of what I am. I'm afraid I will see what I am not.'

[Jeanette Winterson]

Sometimes I find quotes that mean so much to me at some point of my life.

Sometimes, they stay relevant. Sometimes, the words stay the same, but the meaning grows distant.
I need to revive my book of quotes.

Monday, November 08, 2010

So anyway, back to the FOOD folder.
Amusingly, Foodie 5 in my previous post isn't a pizza at all. It's the Fried Chicken Strips starter from Domino Pizza. The real pizza is hiding behind the chicken strips box. Look carefully.

So anyway - again- this post is about my attempt at truffle-making.
As usual, I have NO idea where I got the recipe from. And I'm not going to pretend I'm an expert at truffle-making. This post definitely is not going to pretend to be a recipe.

Truffle-making...
Step 1: Boil some water, and draw a heart from the bubbles at the bottom of the pot.
Step 2: While the water is boiling, chop up beautiful blocks of chocolate.
Step 3: Put the finely chopped chocolate in a bowl and put the bowl into the boiling water. Hot water bath. Stir gently throughout. This is when your room smells divine. In case you're wondering, the bowl doesn't actually say 'lakes' - I know it looks like it, but it actually says 'Cow makes milk'. It does.
Step 4: Rescue the melted chocolate from the water bath. (This is where it gets a bit vague) Put in some ingredients, like vanilla essence, butter and stuff, and stir gently into the cooling bowl of chocolate. This is false. Because I clearly remember melting the butter and mixing the vanilla in a pan over the hob. But anyway, let us proceed. When we're happy, we put the bowl into the fridge, taking it out to stir every... (now there is some complicated instructions involved here, like for the first hour every 20 mins, then for the next half hour every 10 mins, or something like that - all I recall doing is noting down the time, then calculating the times when I have to go open the fridge and stir the mixture). So, anyway, u get a hardening ganache. It's NOT supposed to be grainy. One of my batches turned out weird.
Step 5: When the ganache turns reasonably hard i.e. they stay in shape, roll them into little balls. My first attempt took the instructions quite literally. I put a spoonful of ganache on my hand and rolled and got ... messy hands. Thing is... ganache is still pretty soft and melts at low temperature. So I just used a cooled spoon to nudge them into shape and plop them on a piece of baking paper. These are... artistic spheres.
Step 6: Put the ganache into the fridge to harden again, in preparation for their ordeal later. Make melted chocolate again - step 1 to step 3. Don't mix any weird stuff in it this time. Just take it off the hob to cool till it's like still liquid but not so hot. This potentially requires a thermometer to judge the correct timing to do it properly but I didn't have a thermometer so... when it looks kinda okay, and the ganache in the fridge is solid hard, spear the ganache quickly and dip it quickly in the melted chocolate and rescue it before the ganache dissolves in the chocolate. This is tricky I know. Cos imagine... if the ganache can melt in your hands, they MELT in the melting chocolate real fast. Then quickly plop the coated ganache onto baking paper and shove it back in the fridge.
Step 7: Look at them cool. Oh yes. I sprinkled some cocoa powder (or maybe icing sugar - forgot which) for some colour.
Step 8: EAT.
Thin chocolate crust with soft ganache that melts instantaneously. Mmmm.
I really shouldn't be doing this when my laptop is so laggy.
In fact, I should be busy backing up all my files right now. But just as I was done with the first picture folder, I discovered the FOOD folder, and I don't think I've uploaded that before. So here goes :)

Foodie 1: Aubergines is my greatest love. Fried with sambal chilli and minced pork (which, due to its exceedingly low price, has become my staple meat in the UK).

Foodie 2: Black pepper beef noodles. This is very yummy too. Freshly ground black pepper. Some mysterious combination of black colour sauces like oyster sauce.
Foodie 3: Chicken fillet wrapped in Bacon for that juicy fattiness, and a sprinkling of parmesan cheese. Served with a few healthy slices of tomato. For no reason other than making me feel healthy.
Foodie 4: Dumplings. This deceptively simple looking piece of dough takes AGES to make, and mini-seconds to eat. The filling is awesomely yummy. Found an awesome recipe but forgot where. Something to do with chives, and rice wine, and soy sauce, sesame oil and the omnipresent minced pork. The dough is simply cold water plus flour. I tend to like my dumplings fried but then it was ultra messy and disastrous, since the dough skin simply split. After that experiment, I prefer to simply boil them. The tasty filling makes up for the blandness of boiled food.
Foodie 5: Domino pizza. My staple food during exam period, dissertation period, lazy periods :D Not Domino specifically, cos I'm partial towards Papa Johns too. Whoever has the better offer I guess. Marmaris does an awesome chicken and mushroom (not chicken and ham. can you believe i walked into a halal shop and asked for chicken and ham twice when it said very clearly 'chicken and mushroom' on the menu! *slaps* who does chicken and ham pizzas anyway) pizza. The-shop-on-Nicolson-Square-which-I-conveniently-forgot-the-name-of does an amazing forgot-the-name-of-the-pizza-too (what on earth x.x). Some minced lamb with chilli and onion and spice pizza. I've even done the pizza buffet at Pizza Hut on North Bridge. Not to mention Pizza Express, both the one at North Bridge and the one near Arthur's Seat. I've even tried... Tesco pizza. So there.
I have pictures of one more food in my FOOD folder. But I think they deserve a post of their own. So that's all for food now :)

Sunday, November 07, 2010

Finally, on Spain... my last Europe trip with friends :)
Disclaimer: This post is not about the attractions of Spain. It doesn't even come close.

Flying from Edinburgh to Barcelona Girona Airport, then taking the expensive airport shuttle bus (the only option available) to Barcelona Nord Bus Station. It was a beautiful day. Not a cloud in the blue, blue sky.

We got to our accomodation via the metro, then settled down for the night. The next day, we headed out to sightsee but got a bit lost. But we caught sight of a beautiful building. Dunno what it was, but it made the extra miles worth walking.

And (fortunately we took the wrong path) for what did we discover but a famous chocolateria, Escriba <3 The hot chocolate was heavenly. I had the hot chocolate with chilli. Mmmmm.

I took more photos on this detour than I did on our actual stay in Barcelona o.0 I couldn't resist. Check out this graffiti.

The next thing that caught my (camera's) attention was this sign warning vehicles that this was a school zone and to look out for children. Why are the children on the sign running as though they were escaping from something deadly? Says something about Spanish schools, doesn't it?
For our first main meal in Spain, I went for... the Hog Roast Burger at Hard Rock Cafe on Plaza Catalunia. Don't ask.
 My first attraction photo coming up! Guess where we went! FC Barcelona at Camp Nou. It was drizzling the whole time.
I stood at where I think they do interviews and stuff and took a photo (with my umbrella so I can remember the dismal weather o.o)
Their museum is definitely one of the most artistic football museums I've ever been to (the rest being only Old Trafford and Anfield).
I also sat in the commentator's box and tried screaming out stuff (without trying to embarrass my friends too much).

Check out their cool lamp-post. It's a football! (and Blogger is refusing to let me upload any more images)
 Maybe it's a sign. That I should go do other stuff. Instead of blogging. Though I'm not done with Barcelona. I haven't even come to... the main stuff like Sagrada Familia.
I have lived in Singapore for around two decades, but I'm still experiencing 'first's.
Could you guess what this is? Haha.

Artists creating the new exhibitions for the walkway from Citylink Mall towards the Esplanade :)
I've always seen the exhibitions but strangely enough, I never saw them being taken down and put up.
Well, there's always a first for everything :)

Wednesday, November 03, 2010

I'm listening to Ryan Shupe's Dream Big


When you cry, be sure to dry your eyes,
'Cause better days are sure to come.
And when you smile, be sure to smile wide,
And don't let them know that they have won.
And when you walk, walk with pride, 
And don't show the hurt inside,
Because the pain will soon be gone. 

And when you dream, dream big,
As big as the ocean, blue.
'Cause when you dream it might come true.
But when you dream, dream big. 

And when you laugh, be sure to laugh out loud,
'Cause it will carry all your cares away. 
And when you see, see the beauty all around and in yourself,
And it will help you feel okay. 
And when you pray, pray for strength to help to carry on,
But when the troubles come your way. 

And when you dream, dream big,
As big as the ocean, blue.
'Cause when you dream it might come true.
But when you dream, dream big. 

When you cry be sure to dry your eyes, 
cause better days are sure to come.
And when you smile be sure to smile wide, and
don't let them know that they have won.
And when you laugh be sure to laugh out loud,
'Cause it will carry all your cares away. 
And when you see, see the beauty all
around and in yourself, and it will help you feel okay. 
And when you pray, pray for strength to 
help to carry on when the troubles come your way. 



:)

Monday, November 01, 2010

OMG.
So irritated with myself.
Saw a book the other day. Can't remember the title. Can't remember the author's name x.x

But I was really inspired. It was written by a lady (I vaguely recall) who started jotting down little things that made her smile, or made her happy, in a little notebook. She collected them for like six years and published the collected words as a stream of consciousness chain (or however you describe it).
So anyway, I wanted to do the same.
But I'm annoyed I can't remember her name. Or the book's name! Grrrrr...

Tuesday, October 26, 2010

Taken from http://www.news.com.au/travel/news/funniest-holiday-complaints-revealed/story-e6frfq80-1225943163031
An Australian news article about the 'Funniest holiday complaints'

Travellers' Complaints
1. Lack of kangaroos hopping in Sydney city
2. Too many tourists in Europe in summer and not enough English-speaking people
3. Too cold to ski in Japan during winter
4. Too hot in Singapore
5. Too many children in Fiji during school holidays (although visitor brought her own kids)
6. $20 Gucci handbag bought in China is not real!!! (duh.)
7. Greece's beaches had stones
8. Emirates' airplane seats too comfortable - put visitor to sleep when he wanted to stay awake
9. There are fish in the sea! (duh.)
10. *drinks from gravy boat* Soup is too thick.
11. Hotel made me pregnant
12. Too many Spanish people in Spain
13. Too much curry served in restaurants in India

Travellers' Demands
1. Chaperone for a group of sex addicts
2. Menu of only blue food
3. Bed for dog
4. Request for hotel staff to put a stop to the rain
5. Request for staff to tape up window to prevent sunlight from shining through
6. Stop aircon from making weird noises *Electric toothbrush in suitcase buzzes and pretends to be the aircon*
6. Borrow hotel staff's shoes
7. Use hotel staff's car
8. Request hotel staff to drive them to a shop
9. Request to marry staff's daughter x.x

LOL.
At the expense of leaving work late, I have to put this article down before I forget.
Tourists these days...

Monday, October 25, 2010

Yay I have some more photos, which I finally uploaded :)
BUT I'm a bit lazy, so I'm going to sort through the smallest folder first, which chronicles my last few days in Europe :(

Snapshot 1: Random advertisement I saw on the bus (from Edinburgh) to London Victoria coach station... (and sign-writing too. haha. it says)

Snapshot 2: Tan-tan mee at a small noodle bar in London Chinatown. It tastes horrible. Can't remember why I wanted to try it. But I think the restaurant I wanted to go to was too packed (for good reason) and because we have been eating duck rice in London for the past 2 days.
Snapshot 3: Mommy and I in Europe because it's my graduation! Looking very young :)
Snapshot 4: Mommy and Sis on the Hop-on Bus in London! Yeah, it's not Paris, cos I cleverly took the sign behind that says 'Trocadero London'. HAHA.
Snapshot 5: Mommy and I at 54 Farringdon, apparently relatively famous Malaysian restaurant in London. The food wasn't too bad. The sorbet was quite exciting - Cempedak, Durian and Lychee, but too sweet for my liking. And when I say too sweet, it REALLY is too sweet.
Snapshot 6: JUST so that I have at least 1 photo of an attraction we saw. We were on the Hop-on bus in Paris and we saw the Eiffel Tower. Not that we didn't go to the Eiffel Tower, and not that we didn't take a photo there together, just that, my sis has a more pro camera, so I can't really be bothered to take :)
Snapshot 7: Mommy and I on our umpteenth bus ride to Livingstone designer outlet. When 3 girls get together, all they can think about is shop, shop and shop!
Snapshot 8: This is what happens to white trousers when you go out for a walk on a rainy day.
Snapshot 9: This is the staircase which I lugged up my 25kg luggage and lost a wheel. You can see it (the wheel or what's left of it) on the third bottom-most step. I was feeling brave and strong and decided I could manage wheeling my luggage from my flat to the hotel. But forgot about the glass pieces on the pavement (from the drunken gangs that haunt Edinburgh at night) which took 1 of the wheel on my luggage about halfway there making it almost impossible to wheel it. Wanted to give up and take a cab but realised OMFG I forgot my wallet. Didn't want to leave my luggage in the middle of the street and run back for my wallet so I dragged my handicapped luggage to the hotel, cutting through the shortcut (decided that up the stairs beats walking for an extra 200m or so). Bravely and politely rejected the offers of help that kindly Edinburgh gentlemen offer to me and pretending not to pant too hard.

There you go. My exciting grad trip. (Not really) 
As in not that it's not exciting. But the photos don't show half of it xD

Sunday, October 24, 2010

Went for a concert last Tues at Yong Siew Toh with Xiaomirs :)

It was possibly the first string quartet that I've heard because as a wind orchestra person, strings are beyond me. The first time that I heard a violin that I didn't immediately go 'EWWWWWWWWWW' was back in 2006, sitting the B&B in Cambridge with Rui, watching the BBC Proms on our little TV. I'm not even sure who it was. It was a lady, and she was so awesome that Rui and I just sat there listening, instead of launching into our usual complaints about string instruments :)

So, anyway, I can't tell if the Shanghai Quartet was brilliant but they sounded pretty good to me. The rather modern-sounding piece by Penderecki, however, was ... well, modern. It sounds like the type of piece that I wouldn't be able to understand and perform unguided, though the motifs are quite pleasant taken alone.

But Xiaomirs and I were discussing how amazing it was that they could change tempo, and in general, play together without a conductor to direct them. Sitting in Rwinds prac yesterday, it's amazing how even when there IS a conductor, the band was unable to change dynamics or tempo together. Maybe for the simple fact that some of us are unfamiliar with the pieces. But also, because coming from different backgrounds and different bands, we don't play in the same style and we don't feel the same about how a piece ought to be played.

Anyway, back to the Shanghai Quartet, alarmingly, I quite like their 'Selections from China Song'. Perhaps it was cos the first movement was Yao Dance, and in RG, I'm pretty sure I played 'Dances of Yao' or something like that and it just sounded so familiar :)

This is such a boring entry x.x

Friday, October 15, 2010

今日はちょうつまらない!何もしませんでした!雑誌もう読みました。日本語で日記を書きたいですが、日本語を書けません。いらだたしいんですね。ついさっき、エディンバラのクリスマスのウェブサイトを見る。思い出を蘇える。日本語で書くは難しすぎる!友達が今晩の晩御飯の予約を取りやめました。どうする。一人でご飯を食べるか。
You know you're a workaholic when you think about putting work-related stuff on your  blog.
But I can't resist x.x

Japanese have fewest digital friends on social networks
Quotes from: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-11501625

In Malaysia the average number of friends is 233, closely followed by 231 in Brazil and 217 in Norway. This contrasts to an average of just 29 friends in Japan, and 68 in China
 Article suggests countries like Japan have 'fewer but closer relationships'. To be honest, I find that assumption plausible but unreliable. It really depends on what the survey meant by social networks. If they only surveyed global sites, which are mostly English-speaking, then it would make a lot of sense why Japan and China scored low. Not that Japanese and Chinese speak less English, but they tend to prefer using their own languages, I feel. Sadly, I don't know of any Chinese-only social networking sites, but I'm pretty sure they do. And perhaps this is the channel where most Chinese social networkers go?

Or it could also just mean that social networking sites are just not as popular. For China, internet penetration rate isn't high. It is possible that many 'friends' simply do not have easy internet access. Or, even in Japan, where internet penetration rate is high, the statistics may simply suggest that social networking sites are not very popular amongst the locals.

It is true that the overall rise in the use of social networking sites, or more generally, digital sources suggest that businesses should venture into digital space in order to attract their customers. But, it is also crucial that one looks at which market they are targeting. Because statistics are so misleading sometimes.

Don't feel like expanding. It's too brain-taxing for a Friday morning :)

Wednesday, October 13, 2010


Just found some photos on an old thumbdrive - Manchester photos :) Haha. Year 1. My first trip in the UK. (Not counting touching down in London, going to Cambridge and then to Edinburgh) With Kenny, Hian Liang and Garrick. Being very studious uh students, we went to the library.



 
Then to the Christmas market at the town square :) It was very pretty.

And the Manchester-eye?flyer?wheel?!

And of course to Chinatown, where we FEASTED on Chinese food, dim sum (nom nom) and bought snacks at the Chinese supermarket.


Also saw 3 cute trumpeters in Santa hats playing Christmas carols. In the cold. In the FREEZING cold. Surely their fingers must have been frozen.

Dunno why. But I can't upload any more pics :( So sad. So you can't see the cute newt-salamander-monster thingy. Or the pics at Old Trafford. Or you can.. just wait for the next post haha. Since I'm lazy to transfer new photos.

This was so long ago I can't even remember most of what happened. 2006 Christmas holidays. With 3 guys I barely knew. Just cos all the girls went back for Christmas in their first year. But it went surprisingly well. I can't say I didn't enjoy the trip haha! I'm glad I met up with Nic and Shun in London after that though :) It's always nice to be with your loved ones during the festive season!

Monday, October 11, 2010

I'm determined to start blogging again :)
Will blog about Sat when I can be bothered to sort out kite-flying photos.

Sunday :)

Went to catch 'Welcome' at Alliance Francais.

(I'm not sure how to credit photos. But I got this from inSing.com. Why is the hyperlink black!)

And... non, je ne parlez pas Français.
About a strange relationship between Simon and Bilal. Actually I can't be bothered to write about the story :) But some of the images were very striking. The brown 'Welcome' doormat at the hostile neighbour's door. And the way it said 'Welcome' stark white against a black background at the end of the film. Bilal in his blue wetsuit striking out against the foamy waves in the stormy grey sea. It was very grey. The sky was grey. The sea was grey. The blank, blank looks on Bilal's and his friend's face at their sudden fortune. The typical messy, ravenblack hair of a poor Pakistani girl in London (Londre). The ring. Diamond and sapphire. That nobody wanted. And the look on his face when Simon told his wife: He walked 4000m and now he wants to swim the Channel. Just to meet his girl. And I can't even cross the road to get you back.

Irrelevantly, mini burgers are very yummy :) I think I will eat mini burgers everytime I go back to Holland V. As long as I don't go with Qpuffs, the restaurant will probably be open.

Friday, October 08, 2010

reading 2006 posts - by myself.
somehow some of the events don't even seem familiar - at all.
i used to write quite interesting posts. maybe my life was more interesting. actually i do write interesting posts (right? xD) but just a lot less frequently. maybe i should make it a habit of writing almost everyday. it's nice to look back. note the change in writing style. so much has happened in these 4 years that not much stays the same anymore. it's not just how i write, how i do work. but my entire attitude towards life, towards people, towards events. it's strange how for the first 18 years of my life, nothing much happened to change my world view. but in these short 4 years, maybe even just the last 2 or 3 years, things after things happened, so much so that i don't know who the xin writing all those past posts is.

Monday, October 04, 2010

The most important things are the hardest things to say. They are the things you get ashamed of, because words diminish them — words shrink things that seemed limitless when they were in your head to no more than living size when they’re brought out. But it’s more than that, isn’t it? The most important things lie too close to wherever your secret heart is buried, like landmarks to a treasure your enemies would love to steal away. And you may make revelations that cost you dearly only to have people look at you in a funny way, not understanding what you’ve said at all, or why you thought it was so important that you almost cried while you were saying it. That’s the worst, I think. When the secret stays locked within not for want of a teller but for want of an understanding ear.


- The Body, Stephen King

Copied it off Chong's blog. Just cos it's so true. Especially the part about making revelations (that took you ages to pluck up enough courage to utter it) and facing an indifferent response that 'you almost cried while you were saying it'.

But we musn't lose the courage to try again.

Thursday, September 09, 2010

it's a long, long journey.
but i'm home...
and nothing is the same.

Sunday, August 29, 2010

Back in Singapore.
Time flies. And I still miss everyone... it's so strange how I won't be flying back.Stepping into that house.Dreading all the household chores and the bugs that have settled in over summer.THOSE WOODLICE.And then meeting up for tea at Kilimanjaro or Beanscene or someone's flat.Found some miscellanous photos taken over the last half year or so.Random memories unaltered by Photoshop (just cos I can't be bothered to).They may be blur, not artistic or whatever but they remain a special part of me.

Snapshot 1: Supper. An almost daily occurrence usually in the wee hours of the morning. Apple pie from Farmfoods and a scoop of Haagen- Dazs Bailey's, not that you can see the rest of the tub, which we managed to finish as well.


Snapshot 2: Oreo smilie. Tea break at Nurul's. One of our countless dissertationsessions with yummyfood. Rahima and Nurul and I with mugs of tea, 3 laptops and a constant chatter.


Snapshot 3: Happy chocolatebread family <3 Lots of love from Nurul and I. A lesson on what to do when you get sick of studying.


Snapshot 4: Sunset at Arthur's Seat.I miss having such a beautiful place just 15 minutes from my place.


Snapshot 5: Botanic Gardens. I know I said I'll go back when the flowers are out. Maybe someday I will..


Snapshot 6: Scottish weather. Self-explanatory.


Ok I gotta go out. So.. will continue this next time. Hehe. Didn't expect -that- many photos. BUt the more I look at them, the more I want to talk about them. Every one of them. They all seem equally important.