March-Month of RushHour

This month is hectic as hell...I'm so bored of repeating this sentence over and over again....but I have to keep reminding myself that I need to keep up with time and deadlines and finish all my assignments and at the same time study for my mid-term examSSS..

Today was supposed to sit for one paper...but got cancelled. Postponed to next. Might be good news for other but not me. I have 3 deadlines to meet next week. With an already packed timetable, I don't need the exam to be postponed to add on to my already heavy burden.

This is just a quick post to RANT ALL I WANT....but what is there to say? Nothing much except to do what I'm supposed to do....

Latest Event - MAGRA 2009
A night where all excelling students are awarded. Theme was blossoming moment. Apparently, a few of us underestimated the event and was under dressed compared to the whole lot of girls that went to the dinner. Luckily I changed my mind to put on a light make up before going..or else.....
My coursemates and I. Can you spot the difference between my attire and their attire. Even the blind can tell how much effort I put into this night. Pictures of my coursemates and the lecturers from my school

People I always hang around with.

Exhausted..Soon

Daily schedules are mounting up...and they haven't even reached the peak. I have too many things on my plate right now although I just killed off 2 quizzes this week...Should say physics killed me off instead. Could have done better but what is past is past. Statistics coming up next week. Borneo Debating Championship next week as well.

From today onwards, it's last minute debate training, statistics goring and assignment and report typing. Everything revolving around me seems to be last minute actions. I'm more reactive than proactive. It's not just debating that I'm worried about, it's running the event smoothly without making a fool of myself and my uni in front of other universities from around Malaysia that are coming, including Swinburne, Sarawak.

I'm already tired plus lack of sleep and all these activities are coming up. I'm just walking in a daze most of the time.

I just realized something. Why do all my course mates assume that I'm smart etc just because I'm always sitting upfront in class? Does sitting in front mean that you're smart? Come on la...

Talking about peer pressure and stress, my friend just succumbed to stress and broke down. Currently recuperating in my room because I have the quietest room among all friends. Wished she had let out or confided in me or others so that she didn't break. I am shock at what stress can do to people now...

On a lighter note, my friends and I, we sort of celebrated Chap Goh Meh by having a nice dinner. Saw a cute little boy there. So, plucked up the courage and asked for a photo together. Here are some pictures. Can't believe that it's nearly a month since chinese new year. Time! you are flying too fast. I can't really keep up with you anymore.

P.S. Dilemma : Should I go celebrate my friend's 21st birthday tonight or should I go debate training?

Chinese New Year

How did I spend it? By surprising everyone back at home!...well almost everyone because *ahem* I lied (it was a white lie...) that I wasn't going home for new year and I appeared at the door step on the First day. Many were surprised..some thought that I was some sort of hideous creature hiding in the bedroom when they were asked to go into the room to help my cousin sister get her bag...Their expressions..priceless..how I wished I held a camera in my hand at that moment. But those moments will be engraved in my memory forever. Thinking about it now still makes me smile.
First day of chinese new year...the obvious activity..gambling...I lost about RM 16 in half an hour by just playing in-between...

I went about Penang like a tourist/driver again this time...filled with loads of booze as well..because 2 big bully cousins were in Penang for hols as well.

The famous Kek Lok Si lights that are only switched on for 15 days a yearDrinking and drinking and card games and dares at UPR with friends and cousins.

And for the first time, my camera went underwater. I haven't had the chance to test my camera until we went to Rasa Sayang to stay for a night. The hotel is great....service is good...room is good...view is wonderful..
A glimpse of the room..this is just the balcony. You have a big outdoor bathtub and you have blinds that are remote controlled for you to block out the sun when it becomes too hot.
I practically was only at home to sleep. I lack sleep and rest back home and I now paying the price for it by dozing off in class. So now, I'm off to bed by midnight and I try to nap as much as I can in the afternoon.

P.S One week for new year was way too short but I guess that's what happens when you are enjoying yourself. Didn't have enough time to spend with everyone.

Pre-CNY 09

Back after my hiatus. Went for a field trip last weekend. Trying really hard to finish up my assignment...the lecturer just made it worse by extending the deadline. He really shouldn't have extended....just makes me procrastinate....haihs.....

CNY is just around the corner. Trying to plan out how to spend my one week's worth of CNY holidays to the max because after this holiday, it's work work work till the end of the semester in May without any break in between.

There's like a tonne of things to do after this one week break. I have labs to attend..which practically equates to staying out of the room from 8am-5pm. Tutorials to attend. Physics alone is taking up 6 hours a week! This semester is all about calculations for me. I NEED help. I hate calculations. Haihs. Trying my best to keep up with calculations...I practically everything that I learned back in high school. That is how much I hate calculations with all those ridiculous formulas.

Enough about boring stuff...Now for the highlight...A playback of my field trip

I went to Kota Belud. Go search up your old sejarah textbooks and you'll find that it is the place where orang Bajau live. Bajaus are the famous horsemen among the aborigines.

We stayed at a place called Kampung Tambutuoan...It's really in the outskirts of Kota Belud. It's so far fetched that you can't get any handphone signals there..unless u hold up your phone and try to locate some spot that have a bar of signal.

This the chalet that all 40 plus of us stayed at. The place is actually very clean and serene. I think the villagers built the chalet themselves...including the double deckers in the room.
This is my attire for 2 days in Kota Belud. Don't you think that I look like someone working in the market..Reminds me of Family Outing...
This pair of wellington boots costs me RM14. Protects me from the stones in the river bed.. There's nothing much to do there...actually there is nothing to do. Our mission there was just to take water samples, measure the river flow rate etc...I have a feeling that the lecturer is just trying to prepare us for the second fieldtrip where we would have to sleep in tents for 3 days..without any facilities/toilets. Every au natural...River for bathing...bushes for big and small businessesThis is the brigde that connects this village to its opposite bank. Not more than 10 person at a time to go across...The river is about 27m wide.

One thing to take note of thought...although they are so far out..all the houses have Astro. That's something that I find amazing in Sabah. All the outskirt places that I've been to, all the houses have Astro.

The people here love dogs, the entire village is filled with dogs but 90% of the dogs have skin diseases.

They still work with their hard labour. They also use this wooden cone-shaped basket to carry all their stuff...

The next day, we went to the city.We had a few hours to ourselves to wander around since we were way ahead in our schedule.So my friends and I, we went to the Tamu mingguan. This is called pencarak..not sure about the exact spelling but it sounded something like that. It's pan-cake like...deep-fried. The red one is brown sugar..green is pandan. RM2 can get you 9 pieces of this pencarak. It actually taste good...

After filling our stomachs, we went to Kampung Siasai
The craftmaker-a Bajau aborigine. Apparently the entire Kampung Siasai residents are Orang Bajau.The final product-Parang made by orang Bajau. From the sword to the wooden sleeve is handmade. We wanted to watch the horsemen show but we missed the time. They only perform once a day. On the way out, we were told by this guy and some others to stand at the side because they were trying to capture some wild cows. They are just equiped with some thin rattan sticks with a huge rope at the end. And they are all stick thin themselves. While walking out, we saw that they succesfully caught one young cow.

From the river, in the beginning of the trip, we ended up at the delta leading to the sea. The thing that I love about Sabah is that no matter which beach you go to, the water is crystal clear.


Took this just before it poured really heavily. Sabah's weather is gloomy nowadays, it's raining every evening. So it's actually cold here. Heard it's cold back in Penang too..maybe because of the winter winds from China. Bangkok is down to 4 degrees.

Now that it's the festive season, I miss home and family and friends. Happy Chinese New Year everyone!

New Year, New Semester

Today is the third day of my 2nd semester...and I already have 2 assignments on hand. One is due next week and the other due just right before chinese new year! WTH! I thought I could get a bit of rest in the first week due to all the errors in the registration system. Things don't always go the way you want it to be.

I have 2 field trips coming up. Next weekend is a 2 days 1 night trip to a village for an ecology project. Another trip, so some jungle for another project for 3 days 2 nights. BUSY BUSY BUSY. Each of this trips come with lab works and reports.

Plus this semester, we're starting with tutorial classes which means I'll be out of my room from 7am till god knows what time.

I'm back to the life of a hermit I guess. Wake up, attend class, go back, laundry, assignment, sleep and the cycle repeats.

I'll try to blog about how I spent the last few days of my holidays in Penang by being a tourist together with my relatives. It was a new experience for me altogether.

Last Day of 2008

Today is the 31st of December 2008. This year has been a roller coaster ride year for me personally. A recap?

The first 3 months were spent working at Delta. Tried to save as much as I could to make my holiday trip to Taiwan/Hong Kong possible.

February : Chinese New Year...nothing much. Had family reunion dinners..the usual stuff. Then we had a friends reunion dinner. At the end of February, 3 girls flew all the way to Taiwan/ Hong Kong. Very exciting and fun.

March : My grandmother passed away. She lived to a ripe old age of 80. I would say that she lived a full life. My STPM results came out as well.

April : Searched for a few private colleges and universities just in case I could not get a place in public universities. Went to Jakarta for 3 weeks.

May : Half of it was spent in Jakarta. I had a great time there.....shopping was good...eating was good as well.

June : Worried about university entrance. I got in finally. Prepared stuff for university and left Penang.

July - December : Longest time I ever left home. Stayed in Sabah for 6 months. Studied. Went sight seeing a bit in Sabah. Some days were great. Some days, not so great, but I pulled through

December : Went to Singapore with a lot of my closest friends for the very first time. A lot of relatives came to visit. Practically, I only at home just to sleep. I leave my laptop to download movies then I'm out the entire day then come back and sleep. and the cycle repeats. Ate a lot as well. All those hawker food that I missed so much. The downside, the moment I came back to Penang, everyone has been telling me that I gained so so so much weight.

Sad but true. I'll be leaving for Sabah this coming Sunday. Won't be coming back until May 2009. So, that is another 5 months away from home.

It's surprising (MAYBE) that time passes by so quickly. One moment I was worried that I would not secure a place in university and the next moment, I've already finished one semester in Sabah. Growing up (old to be exact) happens in a blink of an eye. Without noticing it, another year has come and gone.

My 2009 new year's resolution...

Top priority : Lose all those pounds that I piled on in Sabah. I've had enough of words torment from my family. But the truth is..any fatter and I'll have to start shopping for Plus Sizes.

Second : Train up my stamina so that I'll succesfully conquer Mount Kinabalu in May.

Third : Go holidaying in someplace new. Bali is in the plan somewhere. Just a matter of realising it. Kids...are you guys reading this? Start saving $$$$$$

Fourth : Improve my grades further or at the very least, maintain them. Improving is much better of an option though.

And that's a wrap for the year 2008.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!! Hope that the coming new year would be much better for everyone (despite the economic recession) $$$ money wise and healthwise. If you're low on the $$$ side, be grateful for staying healthy and being able to live and being around your loved ones. Money is not everything (but without money..there is nothing)

12.24.08 ,12.25.08

12.24.08
Just before Twilight

What have I been up to on Christmas Eve? Nothing much actually. Just went to watch Twilight..I know I watched it like 3 weeks later than the rest of the world and people have been talking so much about it. For me, the movie could have done better. The scenery and music were great. It's just that it lacked the sparks to make a great and memorable movie for me but I wouldn't say that it was a total flop. Anyways, we headed to Korean Palace after that. Dinner at 9.30pm. Can you imagine? By the time our food arrived, it was nearly 10pm already. But dinner was good. Everyone enjoyed it. Luckily, because I recommended the place. I wouldn't want to spoil a christmas eve dinner now would I...
We drove all the way up to Sunset Bistro. Parked the car without even having to look for a parking space. We left 10 minutes after that though. The place was so packed even after the extension and all. So we went over to a family gathering nearby and saw a belly dance performance. Wished everyone merry christmas and then we left again as it was too scary an occasion for my friends to handle...way too many relatives of mine. Then we wanted to head home but because we all dressed up to the nines, we felt it was a waste to go home. We went to UPR. First, we went to Fame..FOC..because friends were there. Then we decided the songs were not nice, we headed across to Mois...FOC as well. But the sad part was, Mois was way too packed to even dance and everyone there were already wasted. You see people drunk and sweaty and the place was stuffy. So totally not enjoyable...I miss Singapore Clubs now. Smoke free and cleaner. After about 10minutes, we could not take it anymore. So, we left again. Next, we headed to QEII. It was nearly 3am already..so we went in..FOC again. We actually went to look at the scenery at QEII. I know this is the lame-st christmas outing ever. We went home after that. Slept the moment I hit my bed. Ju overnighted at my place. I think it was the first time my friends actually slept at my place

12.25.08

Went to a family friend's Christmas party. The food was good. Lots of alcohol. But what I lacked were friends. Mostly were guys there because the family friend has 4 sons..so you can imagine how friend-less I was. But I enjoyed the food and watching tele and drinking alcohol there albeit a little lonesome. Things started to heat up a little after everyone filled their tummies. Talked a bit. People were giving me career talks. Future plans etc and not to forget...Alcohol. I tried something new that night..which I like a lot. It was a mix of Red Bull and Jagermeister. You some sort like drop a shot of Jagermeister with the shot glass together into another glass half-filled with red bull. Then you just finish the drink ASAP. It was new and interesting..well as least for me. At the end of the party when they ran out of booze, they just mixed every alco that was left on the table into a coke bottle and then everyone drinks up. They had a few rounds of those. I just had 1 round but a very big glass. The taste wasn't too bad but right after you finished, you'll feel dizzy. But I wasn't drunk..guess that's the benefit of having inherited high alcohol tolerance genes.

X-mas In Singapore

This is the first time I went on holiday with so many of friends. Finally after years of yakking about it...The theme at Orchard this year was sweets, candies and everything sweet. I have seen nicer decorations at Orchard...is it because of the economy downturn?

We went to a lot of places... Sentosa Island, Science Centre, Orchard Road, Bugis, Esplanade, Suntec City.
The infamous fountain at Suntec City. We all bought the similar t-shirts. I'm Mr. Tall...how ironic...hahaahah

We even went clubbing..It's called The Arena. They hire a group of Black Eyed Pea wanna bes to sing live. They are actually good. And instead of girls joining dance competition, they make the guys do it. One guy actually took off his pants..with the boxers still on. The atmospere is much better than the clubs at home as they are smoke free. So for once, I didn't stink like cigarretes at the end of my night out. The cover charge is $22 for 2 drinks. And it was the baby's birthday! So it was like a birthday + party. One funny thing though, you see alot of old uncles in their 50s perhaps inside dancing to When I Grow Up.The presents to BABY..it does look like present to a child doesn't it? hahahahaha

We spent a lot of money especially me.... Bought a lot unintentionally because even after converting the price back to RM it is still cheaper to shop there....The MRT is kind of expensive to me though..I think I spend nearly $10 a day just for MRT which is equivalent to RM24.20...just for public transport.

This was taken at the Esplanade. Nice right? We placed the camera on top of an electric box to get this pic. Talk about risking lives for the perfect picture.
Does the pose look familiar?? I want nobody nobody but you!
Our failed attempts at trying to capture ourselves jumping up in the air.This was at Vivo City.

Science Centre...I like the Omni-Theatre..although a bit dizzy...It is similar to Petronas Science Centre.This was at Chinatown.

That was a summary of my 5 days 4 nights trip to Singapore. No pictures from the fifth day though.

What I've been up to after exams

KL-Debate


Learned a lot although we didn't even manage to squeeze into the top 8. Competition was too tough. When you are there at the competition itself, then only you realise that you only know so little compared to others. My political, economical, social etc knowledge is so limited that I feel like a frog under a coconut shell. And their English are so good that I felt inferior about my own English.

Oh. I found out another thing.... I lack persuasive skills and also I'm not sharp with my words. I could not really make my opponent sound ridiculous.

Washing Machines and Snakes

I went rafting just before I came back to Peninsula. It was at Sungai Padas. It is at the Tenom-Pangi Dam. If you still remember your geography that is. It is in Sabah. The river was running really fast as it was monsoon season and the water level was high as well. The guides said that we came at the right season. Rather than during drought, you'll be feeling bored when it really should be adrenaline pumping.

Though the pictures show that the sport is dangerous, it really is not. The first time I was in the river was because I was pulled into the river by my boat guide. Then the second time, he asked if I wanted to jump into the river again and I did. It was FUN! and EXCITING!!!

We rowed for 23km down the river going pass washing machine and snake rapids and some other rapids that I forgot the name. The river is labelled Level 4. It is the highest level of difficulty that you can find in Malaysia. Any higher, you'll have to go to New Zealand for it. For Level 5 or 6 I think you'll be rowing down a waterfall according to the guide. We took about 3 hours to finish the ride.
This was the first picture taken. A few kilometers after we set out.
When you meet a rapid, you have to row harder and faster to build momentum and release your boat from being trapped in the rapids.We got panicked when 2 of our passengers got thrown overboard at the first rapid. Nothing happened. At the end of the trip we realised that falling out of the boat was something lucky and fun, to say the least.