Unpolished Gem

Why is it so easy for some and so hard for others? :/

2010-01-11T05:51:00.000-08:00

How come work life not so simple!

2009-08-12T08:25:00.000-07:00

There is something very liberating about not being at work on a weekday. No rush hour on the tube to deal with, no waiting for lunch hour, no pretending to be busy clicking away at the screen, no waiting for time to pass faster.

I often question myself how it is possible to think that the industry is right for me when 10 months after joining, you still feel like an amateur and dare I say it- disengaged at work already. Yes, the merger created uncertainty but how much of the discontment can you put on it? 80%? 60%? 10%? Could it also be that they think they’ve hired the wrong person for the job and therefore not looked into my development. Surely if they think you’ve got potential they would want to teach you quickly but that has been sorely lacking on the job in this organization so far. Or could it be they sense that my life-span with the company is pretty short so no point wasting their time training me. But it’s not like working in the Singapore office would lose them anything! So many “could it be’s” and no one can answer me truthfully!!

Slightly disappointed with the lack of structure on the training crucial for someone inexperienced! Came in with high hopes, ran on a high for 3-4 months and stagnant for far too long. They don’t pass on responsibility, they don’t teach you (unless you ask questions), they can do without you. What are these signs of? Being side-lined surely! You wonder why they hired you in the first place!

There is a positive side of me hoping that my big break would come somewhere a bit further down the line and my personal deadline is 6 months from now. Afterall, that is after training by my senior colleagues in the back-up team (tell me why this wasn’t done way earlier?) which should provide me with sufficient technical ability to take on more responsibility. Hey, at least you made your voice heard so you can say you did try to make things work! The ideal situation, as I’ve been telling my friends, is to hopefully make the best of the next 6 months and then get a transfer back to the Singapore office. But that is only if 1) there is a vacancy for me (not necessarily a broking role) and 2) London allows a transfer that soon! My aim is to be back within the next 1 year and if my company can’t grant me this opportunity, it’ll be bye bye London, hello Singapore!

Things to miss about this job if I do quit are the relationships formed with my colleagues in both the London and Singapore office. Also, the face to face interaction with a range of different people outside the office makes it less mundane than being strictly desk bound.

Life in London feels like a dream which can be nice at times but ultimately transient! That’s the kind of place London is for me. I can leave tomorrow and all will be good! Can’t bear the thought of being away from my family and friends for that much longer and missing out on the happenings in their lives! Come next year, it’ll be 5 years away from home! Seen everything I want to see in London and travelled to numerous places already. It’s time to go home soon! In the meantime, try to enjoy London as much as possible!

What it takes to put life into perspective

2008-11-29T09:48:00.000-08:00

This morning, I woke up reluctantly at 12.30pm after a night of very controlled drinking with many men and girl talk with Nat. My mum called with news that a 28 year-old Singaporean girl has been killed in the Mumbai terrorist attacks. She was described as bubbly, confident, passionate and kind. These are words I associate with myself and while I have not achieved all of the above, I hope that with experience and exposure to this grand institution called life, I will in due time. She was the eldest in a family of 3 girls and a career woman who lived life to the fullest. This news struck a chord in me because I could have been the one, or any of my friends. The first thing that hit me was, this is so tragic, uncalled for and senseless and imagining how her family and husband had to cope with this untimely tragedy. The next thing that hit me was thinking of a solution- governments and intelligence agencies world wide nab the bad guys. And finally, what carpe diem really means. (So much for being trained to think logically by the Singapore education system)

So I’ve been working for 2 months in a British company (ie mostly English people) and have assimilated well into their way of life. Yeah, fake English accent and all. Some of the key things I’ve learnt from them:

1. Not to take life and yourself too seriously- Work hard when you have to, relax when you don’t; Joke about yourself, ie self-depracating humour which I love. Get fired? Think of what to do with your redundancy pay.
2. Graciousness- Being polite and respectful to everyone. I’m sure we’ve all learnt that in school but we don’t show it openly enough. Praise when someone deserves it and accept praises with thanks (Think I’ve always done that anyway )
3. Family- English people do value their family ties a lot more than Americans. I am generalizing of course, I can see some Americans throwing daggers at me already. We are not that different from them in that respect.
4. Traditions- They are fiercely proud of their traditions, Queen’s English, high tea, horse-racing, Marks & Spencers. And they generally dislike America and all things American. R&B, Hip-hop???

There I’ve got my list, my friends will be appalled by how regimented I am but at the same time, respect that I come from a different background, make jokes about it but I never let what others think of me affect my self-confidence! (Easy to say, I’ve certainly gone through phases of being easily affected!!). I’ve got a lot to learn from them just as they do me. A lot of the reason why people think they are snobs is because they are a country that has never been conquered in history, they’ve never had to accommodate or pander to anyone unlike say Singapore, we learnt English because we were conquered by them! (A lot of them do recognize the good points in our upbringing!) But we are ethnically Chinese and suck at the language which is why I’m fiercely brushing up now through Chinese lessons. On a personal and professional level, I’ve learnt:

1. If you don’t know, say you don’t. Don’t waffle or worst yet, give completely false answers with a straight face!
2. Not to get angry with people when things go wrong- Channel all your anger into something constructive that will prevent such situations from occurring again in the future. Eg, I was stood up twice by a personal trainer at the gym, instead of getting all flustered and screaming at him, I just went straight to the manager to get it reported and requested for another personal trainer, that is all there is to it.
3. Learning to say no- Guys love buying girls drinks. That is a very vague way of putting it. In my situation, men love buying young women drinks, you have to learn to cheat (tips not to be revealed, girls ONLY). Drink enough to loosen up, but not enough to get yourself into their bed!
4. If something ain’t right- you just gotta go out and get it fixed baby- TV not working, get it fixed. Room tornadoed- get it cleaned. (Even if you procrastinate a month, get it done in the end, heh!)
5. Cherishing your roots- I attended the HC alumni dinner with Mr. Ang and Mrs. Chin, it was great hearing all the programmes they were putting in place and updates on the school development. I will definitely ask my little sis to go to HC.
6. Economics alive!- The world has almost gone crazy in these times, we’ve not had it so bad because we are not middle-aged men who have mortgages to pay and children and wives to feed. Regrets studying economics? None.

I’ve always appreciated that I’ve had it good as a kid but I think I don’t realize how well I’ve been raised until I started working. I can keep thinking I’ve got the world figured out, but like what one of my colleagues described me, I am really still a baby. Which I think he means in the guys department, they have obviously underestimated how fast I learn. Anyway, this men/work crashcourse helped me to come to terms with my past “relationship”, if I get fired, I’d say, thank you for this crashcourse! London is great for single and unmarried people (yes to all my deprived Singaporean girl friends, there is a fair amount of good lookers here). I do think I’ll be staying out here for a while amidst the economic and political turbulence. Then again, judging by how fickle I am, maybe I’d say I wanna fly home tomorrow.

I’d like to end with saying a prayer for this girl, Lo Hwei Yen. I do not know her and I do not think it should take something so tragic to remind everyone that tomorrow could be your last day. Such is the fragility of life. I’d like to give thanks to my family and all my friends for sticking with me through these times and for keeping me grounded. Keep loving, keep learning and be happy.

Note to self:

2008-10-20T09:30:00.000-07:00

1. Do not overeat.

2. Do not spend so much time on freaking make-up in the morning and miss the earlier tube and end up standing all the way to work. Absolute bollocks.

3. Speak only Chinese to my Chinese friends.

Do you think i will look nice in this hairstyle?

2008-10-12T07:32:00.001-07:00

i.am.damn.restless...

2008-09-25T15:27:00.000-07:00

because work is starting on Monday and it feels so weird! Considering i've been slacking for the longest time ever and the 3 weeks really passed pretty damn quickly. After the first week I was like... wooh, this passed soo quick, but i forsee the next 2 gonna be really slow. But no... in a blink(well, many blinks of zziness ;)If u ask me what i've been doing day in day out, all i can muster is sleep approx 10-12h every day (no alarm! That i have to say is one of the most annoying soundsssss), watch all sorts of dramas ie Jap, Korean, Amerian, Reality TV, movies, clean the house, deco the room, shop- aLOT ie IKEA, sample sales, vintage fairs and the works of knightsbridge, oxford and carnaby street which have left me close to pauperish, eat- aLOT (One of the best discoveries in recent history is CHACHA MOON, i was super craving for chai dao kuey as many of my friends would know and i found something sooo close there in the form of CHACHA MOOLI which is basically like bigger chunks of kuey fried with shrimp, dao gay and just taste like chai dao kuey lah and the nai cha is sooo awesome and the main dishes like zha jiang mian in fact ALL the main dishes are freaking 3.50, kill me can, i will totally keep going back to that place again and again and again), play mj(think first time i ever earn money hiaks hiaks). So, its been a great 3 weeks, one that i will keep coming back to again and again in the future when I get all tired with work... oh, how i wish i had that 3 weeks again to s.l.a.c.k. I think i lead the lifestyle pretty well, so much so that im beginning to think i'm made to s.l.a.c.k. Okae better stop talking about this now or my dad will start shaking his head. Other things i've been up to is crazy looking at property, i'm obsessed and online shopping too!!! and make-up. AHHHHHHHHH, u seeeee.... things u can afford to do only when u're THAT free. Beginning with property, lets just say i'm living pretty far from central but I have to keep qualifying that despite the physical distance, it doesnt take me that long to get into central... half an hour on the tube and the northern line is soo good, it goes to tot court and leicester square which to me is absolute most important of stations. Second, it's 2 min from the tube, i can literally roll there since its a mini hill anyway. Third, there are loads of shops around like subway, kfc, malaysian chinese restaurant, supermarkets all within 5 min walking distance!! So there, there is absolutely nothing to dislike about where im staying. People just have this thinking that anywhere beyond zone 2 is like.... terrifying but really physical distance is just physical distance. It's all about proximity to say bus stop or tube station. Fourth, the rent is way cheaper than central... that's like an after thought and council tax too.. that bitch!!!

SO where was i about property. There are a couple of areas I would REALLY like to stay in...

1. Belsize Park/Hamptead/West Hampstead - rich area where celebs like Gwyneth Paltrow and a whole list of other celebs stay according to WIKI. And although i'm currently just 3 stops away from Hampstead it still does make a difference duh. It's like shifting from Toa Payoh to Newton... only 3 stops away what... there u get the gist. I really really love the Hampstead area, its so chilled out, relaxed, good mix of shops, cafes, bars etc and just a generally really good crowd there.

2. Holland Park - SO, i was given a ride through Holland Park and it was absolute gorgeousness, I love the houses, Victorian feel and all. Alas, that was at night so I couldnt get to see the area in its entirety but it is well known for being posh.

3. Chiswick Park - I have visited this area, very nice residential, neat and smart housing without feeling overly luxurious( ie unaffordable) and a great crowd as well thing is, its abit far off in zone 3 and on the district line which is quite an ass. I will never get to work if I live there, it takes 45 min on the tube itself which is just too long!

4. Queen's Park - I've never been to this area but i've heard good things so will check out at some point.

5. Marylebone/Baker Street - abit too central for my liking but for convenience, its fantastic, walkable to Selfridges, Regents Park.

6. St. John's Wood - same as 4.

7. West Kensington/Earl's Court/Fulham Broadway - less stuffy than South Kensington but still maintains exclusivity without breaking the bank. Need to visit the areas to get better feel.

So there, my dream list of property areas. One can dream ay? And inevitably when you actually do such indepth research into property, you would ask yourself if you could actually see yourself settling down here? Things change, pretty quickly. When I hear stories of my friends who find Singapore too hot, too expensive and too crowded, i get a little scared of what I should come to expect of my favourite country in the world. Like home is ALWAYS great for a holiday for a couple of months and then I find myself wanting to return to London quick. What does that mean for me? I haven't been home in a while and I'm dying to ROCK SINGAPORE soon but I'm so scared of reaching the point where I decide to stay on for good. But like I said, things change pretty quickly, maybe I will hate working here and cant wait to go home or what if its the other way round? Questions, questions and more questions. I will let you know when i've had enough experience to say something abit more concrete.

Where was i? Online shopping... when Siqi was around, that was when I absolutely went nutters. We shared some ''romantic'' nights together and I had such a blast bringing her around to EAT and shop and just showing her the alternative side of London that normal tourists wouldnt really explore. I met her like sooo often, it was pretty intense man, all to ''make up for lost time'' in her words and I did feel a bit weird when she left!!! So, the couple of nights I stayed over, we spent our time on shopping porn. Ooohing and Aaaahing on high street fashion sites, with the occasional divergence to HIGH END FASHION. Okae, my ultimate dream work bag is Mulberry Bayswater in Bronze... It's such a beauty I can keep staring at it the WHOLE DAY. They've got other designs too like the POPPY in green, its SOOO beautiful!!! Help!!! And i love miumiu wallet in red... i totally want it!!! Nuff said, i can go on forever and forever. In any case, i just whacked a leather work bag for 150 but am thinking of getting the longchamp at 35 quid instead to tide through until I return to Singapore to whack a leather bag. Infact, I think im really gonna do that cos 150 is DAMN STEEP and I am feeling DAMN POOR. Which makes me sooo jealous of MJ in Beijing now, the land where trench coats cost 20singdollars. I wish I can teleport myself there to buy all those winter wear and boots... exchange rate like divide by 15... I will feel so freakin rich. And then those zara, mng stuff all come form there... wah lao! I saw this trench at uniqlo that is so beautiful, its like a black trench with FUR collar. HOW NICE... and theres this poofy jacket in a beautiful greyish green and fur hoodie and super warm but sooo exxx then i keep thinking that its sooo cheap in china till i feel so upset. Yeah, im damn into FUR NOW. Of course fake fur so animal activists.. please dont kill me.

Last... make-up!!! Because I refuse to pay for YSL/Chanel/Giorgio Armani even though their make-up is super awesome... went to pretend to be interested and tried... shiokedoodadoooooooo. the Armani cream blusher which doubles as a lip gloss is really quite shiok... chai tried it and it looks so great but way ex man. SO, i go and buy the BOURJOIS which is such a cute brand! So affordable and made in same factory as Lancome so im sure some ingredients yada yada is the same. They have this ultra shimmery liquid eyeshadow that is a BEAUTY. Great for a night out, its like if you can do it properly can be stunning kind. and their foundations, eyeshadows and lip glosses are soooo nice. So if you have no money like me, try Bourjois. Oh man, this is free advertisement, they should pay me for spokespersoning! And also, im damn into all those moisturising creams and stuff now. The Clarins night cream like damn good value cos got promotion now but still steep. SIGH! I'm so conscious of looking old now cos my stupid friend keep saying that i look OLD. Maybe he's just passing it on to me cos he himself feels that way... u think?!?! And somemore coffee is having an effect on me, i had a big cup at like 8pm cos I thought i was invincible but then scully end up couldnt sleep till 4am!!! At first I thought it was just normal alot of things in the head then couldnt sleep, then I remembered the freaking coffeee... I thought only old ppl have this prob, guess Im not that young afterall :(

Anyway, i've got numerous little errands to run the next few days one of which includes ironing a whole bunch of shirts and pants then really full blast work. im a list maker, made a whole list of stuff to do. And did I say? I spent the whole freaking day cleaning up my old house- 3 of us took 8 hours. It's like S.P.A.R.K.L.I.N.G!!! And we were all wondering how come we never bothered cleaning up the place when we were living there. It was so clean Weizhi actually lay on the foor to zzzz... that would NEVER have happened in the past. If the landlord dared to say anything about cleanliness, i will slap him upside down. heehee. After we were done, then we remembered why we fell in love with the apartment in the first place. I'm exhausted but i've got so many niggling little thoughts running around my head... make me so restless.

because chai wanted to take pictures

2008-09-22T16:28:00.001-07:00

I spent 5h on these... one can dream ay???

2008-09-18T17:45:00.000-07:00

Because winter is coming...

Sweet dreams are made of these

First time experimental

Solitude and meandering thoughts.

2008-07-26T04:02:00.000-07:00

I think best when I’m sitting on the toilet bowl in the morning. This happens on occasions when I have the luxury of rolling around in bed until I’m fully awake. And it’s been a while. This morning, I woke up and thought I lost my soul, so I rolled some more but still I felt empty.

The last three months have been nothing short of a roller coaster ride. My closest friends would know about how a certain someone wrecked some emotional havoc within me. I was probably over reacting and irrational half the time, allowing my heart to get the better of me which I’m not prone to do because I am almost always a very rational and practical person. But indeed, with time, the dust has settled and I have regained full control, the inexorable truth has never been clearer. No more what-ifs, finding excuses and playing mind games. And I feel like a great burden has been lifted off my blades, if anything, this will make the separation a lot easier.

Concurrently, the final exams, the last breadth of the library air, a place that holds many fond memories. The extremely wide spiral staircase which I hate so much because I look like a lam-o walking on it and I also feel self-conscious because its really exposed. The place where I started developing hate for people just because I see them too much, that Korean guy and the disgusting one side gel-stuck flat hair one side bun guy. The Plaza Café where I spent numerous coffee sessions. And of course what would the library be without some eye candy to keep the studying going, although this year’s loot was pretty disappointing, only TG. Lastly, the library just wouldn’t have been the same without whining with Nat whom I exchanged many stories with, the sweet girl who stole so many guys’ hearts but who remains unconquerable and Flor who made somewhat infrequent appearances when she could tear herself away from Oxford ;)

And so the exams ended with minimum fuss and I was swept away immediately into a one month travel extravaganza which saw me visiting Paris, the city of lights, twice. I love the city mainly for the wide boulevards, the space which afforded a sense of freedom of spirit ala 1920s Moulin Rouge style and the majesticity of its monuments. I love Greece for the crazy beautiful beaches, lifestyle, people and food. I will always have a soft spot for Paros because that was where I met George Dong Lai, it was where we felt special because we were the only Asians around, it was where we first played beach tennis, it was where we took narcissist photos of ourselves prancing about in the water, each with a signature pose, it was where both young and old would feel at home and that I think is the true beauty of the island. Switzerland saw me taking charge, leading my parents and while frustrating at times because dad would nag or be paranoid that we were walking the wrong direction, I think I have proven myself to be a reliable, well-travelled “tourist”. You can’t really go wrong with mountains and lakes but to be honest, I think I’ve seen enough to last me a lifetime!

Convocation is really a formality, to give all the parents who have invested so much in their offspring an official day to say, “Yes, it’s all been worth it”. I hope my “almost first class honours” (in the words of my dad) degree made them proud.

The academic year started with a lot of apprehension. I was living with new house mates-all guys and I had no idea how that would pan out. Fortunately, things had a way of ironing out for me and I was blessed with living with thoughtful, responsible boys who laugh at me and make me laugh too. (Seriously, aubergine pasta and tomato cooked with vegetables Chinese style is not that weird okae!) Also, having lived in central London for two years, having to commute everyday now took some getting use to, but it has since become an inseparable part of my life. I take the opportunity to relax/zone out/reflect after a stressful day out and about and indulging in one of my favourite activities-people watching.

As everything winds down to a close, good friends leaving for good, London emptying out, it’s not the same anymore and I have new challenges to face. And I saw this coming from a long time ago. Sometimes I feel like I want to run, somewhere far away but in the end, you’re just running away from what you yourself fear the most. Sometimes I think how nice, it seems everyone has got it all worked out, know what they want and where they’re going, they just seem to have it all. Why can’t I be like them? But we’re all made differently aren’t we.

I’m in a state of what economists call, frictional unemployment. I feel like I have so much more to learn about the world, about society, about the community, about people. If you ask me what I really want to do at this point, I will tell you, I want to travel around Asia and help the poor children read and write, build infrastructure, farm the land, rear the animals. It’s something I feel like I should have done in the past but was neither resourceful nor brave enough to do. Now, I lack the courage and also I feel like I owe it to my parents to finally start a proper job. Therein begs the question and I’ve been asking myself this, trust me, time and again for the past month: Am I going to leave behind the life I spent three years building up and the city that sucked me dry financially, physically and emotionally? But also provided some of the greatest lessons on life I will ever learn. Am I going to swap all these chaos for the uniformity that is Singapore? So, is this it? Corrine May’s song comes to mind “Everything in its time’’. Where does my path lead and what lies ahead?

The whole point of a plan is to change it as you go. Geddit.

2007-10-22T06:07:00.001-07:00

one heck of a year ahead again!!

2007-10-03T08:50:00.000-07:00

hi guys! Just suddenly felt like typing again, who the dang dang is sopskyslat? I googled it and turns out its a pragueian dish? Er, sopskyslat... if you're from Prague, can I stay at your house when I go visit?

Anyway Anyway, gosh, the buzz of school is UNDENIABLE, feels great to be back in action actually, after nuaing for like 4 weeks at home, it's time to move on! I'm glad i came back earlier, so feeling much more settled down now. I'm just trying to do some research now and applications, so, lets just say things are moving, GOD BLESS! Anyway, i'm sick of staring at the computer pages of company reports, so here i am, back at the blog.

I just had a parttime job interview which I thought went badly cos firstly, I was JUST on time, like seriously just made it cos my stupid clock was working on a dying battery and that made me late! Had to squeeze with the morning crowd at Bank which was insane, wish i was walking on stilts so can overtake everyone. And just got news that I got the job! Phew, very lucky. I was really sweating during the interview.. then they asked... how are you going to convince us that you will be punctuall...wow, talk about irony, then i started sweating more... quite funny.

And then I just met up with some of my mentees and it was great meeting them, seriously, just 4 ppl and you see the diversity of the people here. Theres the American whos absolutely sure he wants to be an ibanker, reads up on the financial markets etc etc, he's cool, typically american , speaks damn loudly, but yet says things like my parents dont really want me to work parttime. Then theres the Brit who dreams of playing all day and keeps asking if she needs to consistently study in Year 1 to survive or can she party all the way. Then you have the exotic people, Indian who lives in Bangkok, Japanese who lives in Geneva and who in typical Jap diplomat style, brought a pack of Swiss chocolates for me. Dreams of being a diplomat, wants to take part in the Union, submit motions and no surprises.... his dad works forthe UN. But still typically Japanese, bows when he says goodbye.

The year is working out well, still figuring out the best way to get to school at which time. Traffic in the city is really hell! House is nice and big and furnishings are brand new so thats great! Even have like hot spots on the floor. Can't wait to whack some shots at the badminton trials! And it feels great to be a year 3, starting to see some familiar faces around school. I wish i dared to/can ride a bike to school! Bahhhhhhhhhhhh!

I was doing modules research and political economy sounds really interesting, abit of game theory and stuffs, industrial economics sounds quite bad, saw all the price entry crap which really confused the hell out of me last year. International and Monetary is well, standard, expected. Political intrigues me so most probably going to take that. Gt check out the lectures first and... well, i guess operational research is on the cards. haha!

Okae, thats my little update for you. God knows who reads this now! Ciao guys!

:(

2007-05-21T11:29:00.000-07:00

This is really turning out to be a disastrous exam year. Bye bye 1st :( Then I console myself by saying, oh well, no first class then no first class lor. It's just a case of not being good enough and being obsessive, I don't like getting 2nd when I know there's a 1st. It's like I decided overnight that getting 1st is simply not within my reach. Working hard can only take you so far right, afterall. Sigh! Nah, i'm mature enough, this can't beat me!

Hurh

2007-05-17T07:56:00.000-07:00

Just needed to let off some steam/excess Micro 1 energy, whatever you call it before i embark on studying for macro. The paper wasn't that tough but i'm not confident of getting a first, made some silly mistakes which should have been avoided and just felt that I wasn't at my peak during the paper even though i studied so much for it already. Yeah, I should really be more grown up about all these exam things. But I always still find it daunting and scary. 3 more papers to correct the bad karma from Micro 1. I'm still upset about not having done better but I've got to pick myself up ... quick.

Oh, have i told you about how much i dislike wearing glasses. That's one of the reasons why i dont like the exam period. Feel like a 24 hour nerdddddddddddddd

2007-04-30T01:39:00.000-07:00

I suddenly feel like going to China. I'm thinking about the what could-have-been if i did apply for the programme. Yeah, just feel like going back to my ''roots'' so called and just immersing myself in Chinese... the culture, everything! It is such a beautiful language, and I wish I was better at my Mother Tongue. (this has got nothing to do with ** btw, haha!) And I don't think i'll ever get the chance to do something like that in the future because this is my last holiday before working!

Peeeefed

2007-04-27T01:10:00.000-07:00

Ahhh! There are thieves in the library. Never thought people would be driven immoral during exam period and have the audacity to steal notes!!! Now, i'm so wary of leaving my stuff around. And i can't find out who did it, so irritatinggggg, they should have CCTV cameras. The thing is, how would the person know that I would be out of the library for long enough for him/her to take action ie, the person must have been watching me and saw me getting out of the library. Oh... schemeing. I should ask the girl who sits opposite me if she saw anyone taking my stuff. Pft! To prevent such further incidents from happening, I might have to lug my stuff out everyone i'm gone for long hours, that's soooo troublesome. Cos that would include lunch break. Or that's a risk I have to take for studying in the library. It didn't happen at all last year, so, perhaps i'm just unlucky huh. Woah, to think I thought I found my perfect area in the library to study.

Anyway, cant believe i rambled on so long about my stolen notes. POE is really killing me, why so toooouuuugggghhh. Gonna die already! I spent almost an entire day doing one paper and i got a major headache, and the worst thing was, i still couldn't do it after so much ''pain''! This sucks...

Yeah, as you can see. My life revolves around nothing but studying. So sad... Wish exams would be over soon but i'm very unprepared.

Sometimes I think, how nice life would be if we weren't so caught up in the rat race. You know, like lie down in the park to read, smell the fresh flowers, run outside. And sometimes, I wish people wouldn't be compartmentalized into coming from this and this school and that and that company and just really get to know the person for who he/she is. Like the case my whole life. And to do that, first, i'd have to quit LSE, get out of the institution so people would stop stereotyping. But of course I would never do that, because I'm too caught up in the race too. Hurh, so is this Darwin's evolution at work.

I am 21!

2007-04-23T16:46:00.000-07:00

Yay! I'm 21! Just had a very lovely picnic/squate-down-on-the-floor-kampung style bbq at the park behind my house! Thanks to Michelle's idea! And i had alot of fun. And thanks to everyone who came for the food and the presents and just taking the time to come down cos we're all stressed by on-coming exams. Just makes everything that much sweeter! Yeah, and last night, when I came home, i thought everyone was sleeping already cos it was so dark and, surprise surprise! I had a birthday cake, yeah, my very blatant request for a black forest Paul cake came true! Thanks to my housemates :) :) :) Woah, I really got a shock!

And to Miss Hui, you're the sole singapore representative in London, thanks for the presents babe! See ya in June! And my mum got me this really nice watch that i so adore, similarly good taste, Heh! Thank you mummy, love ya! Okae, i'm very tired now. I would love to post some photographs but my eyelids are drooping and I will do it next time. This blog could do with some photographs though... hmmm... laaaaateeeeer.

2007-04-14T03:36:00.000-07:00

OMG! It's been 2 months since the last update. Thought i'd drop a note to say HELLO, i'm still alive and hope everyone's doing well! I was on the verge of abandoning this blog but knowing myself, I know there'd come a day when I'd actually feel a little urge to blog, and wala, took about 2 months... haha.

Anw... i'm blogging because... i'm suffering from post-holiday depression. Germany was SO awesome, loved it, loved Berlin, loved the people and to anyone interested in going to Berlin, please stay at JETPAK City Hostel, it's the best hostel i've stayed in, VERY clean, good location, internet access, very nice and friendly staff, loved it. You're missing out if you don't stay there in Berlin, i swear!... Unless you're going for 4/5 star hotels. I met Yoke Pean and her friends and we so coincidentally booked the same hostel, took the same flights to and from Germany, so Mich and I were with them for most part of the trip, twas FUN FUN FUN! Ate lotsa good food, all the pastries and pork knukles,sausages, beer. Get FAT, heck. Munich's really pretty, much prettier than Berlin but Berlin's so historical you gotta go for the walking tour when you're there... it's free and you just got to tip the tourguide at the end. We went for this Third Reich (the rise of Hitler) tour as well, and saw the Berlin Wall, Check point Charlie (where people stamped their passports to cross from East to West Germany), Hitler's Bunker where he killed himself, the Death strip etc. Yeah, Germany has such a dark history, to think that the wall was torn down just under 20 years ago. We went to the Dachau (pronounced da-how) concentration camp in Munich and it wasn't as sad as i expected, think Auswitz is a lot worse cos they display the original bunker beds and things like that. And the Neuschwanstein castle, before Walt Disney castle was the Neuschwanstein castle! Yeah, like a real life castle, very pretty. I took zero pictures, hahah, my camera never saw the day light but the others took many photos so i'll try to post them up if I can get over the inertia of blogging. Oh, and German guys and girls are hot. Haha, that's kinda relevant huh.

For now, got to get back into studying mode, sucks!!! It's the bane of my life, i wish my life was more exciting... just 1.5 more months... very quick very quick it'll be over and then... Spain and Portugal in the hot hot summer sun, i'm so looking forward to all the Paella and churros and tapas and Portugese eggtarts and 4 storey Zaras and Mangoes and to practise my rusty Spanish and to see VEE in Europe, WHEE! and then HOME. Woah, feels like a really long time since i've been home. Looking forward :)

On a completely random note, sometimes, the more you want something, the more it eludes you. The best things happen when you least expect it, that i'm a firm believer of.

Hanging precariously

2007-02-12T12:45:00.000-08:00

I hate waiting i hate waiting i hate waiting!!! How can they do this to me... ! -faints

As if my life depended on it

2007-02-09T03:10:00.000-08:00

I'm going to fail POF and POE! Always come out of class feeling like i dont know anything!!! BOO! I can't wait to study for it.

Anw, the wait is killing me... I want to know. NOW. I usually don't think about it but when my thoughts linger and imagination runs wild. But i'm so scared of disappointments.

The lightness of being . . .

2007-01-30T15:59:00.000-08:00

These days are characterised by a spring in the step and just general comfort with everything. I can't really pinpoint it to any one thing, it's just a sort of inner peace. Contented and counting my blessings. Was just thinking, the chance to be educated in a top institution is really one of the best things that has happened to me. And the thought that there is less than half the course to go saddens me. As much as I complain that POE is the bane of my life, and POF is almost there as well, I do see the big picture at the end. I'm excited about the modules available in year 3 already. So perhaps, I should really consider doing a Masters? But where and what? Food for thought.

I want to read a book, drink coffee and eat a slice of moist chocolate cake. Yumm.

and... I would like to extend a warm welcome to Miss Michelia Hui to the UK! HELLO! BIG WAVES :)

Indian Finance Minister and Mr Lim Hng Kiang

2007-01-29T15:57:00.000-08:00

Yeah, after making the last cut to get into the Indian Finance Minister talk, I found myself sitting next to Mr Lim Hng Kiang... the minister of ___? Haha, Would have greeted him if i didn't forget his name then! What a surprise! Finally managed to catch a public lecture, it was kinda exhilarating to be among the last admitted in and it was a great talk. I always feel so enlightened after listening... Hope there will be more interesting ones coming up. Looking forward!

And Sir Howard Davies is really funny.

SPL presents: Anthropology ONE

2007-01-29T04:39:00.000-08:00

I will be acting again this Thursday for SPL! Do come and support, very limited seats available! I personally like the scripts, hope it'd be enjoyable for all! See ya !

One.last.stab

2007-01-17T07:53:00.000-08:00

NYC + Washington + Boston... SWELL!

2006-12-30T02:49:00.000-08:00

What a relaxed holiday!!! In the company of Vee and SQ and Rainna and Nicole. AH! I miss those girls already. And of course, Mr. Nice Guy Sung. Had such a great time i didn't want to come back to London, but i guess all good things must come to an end. Vee and I were just complaining about going back to reality. So sucky cos i have so much homework to do and it's killing me slowly.

Anyway, happy things first. Can't believe we cried so much when we had to say goodbye. My tearducts are quite free flowing, but what was the trigger? Too emotional alr, but SQ said it can't be controlled. I think it's the whole farewell thing plus the fact that i'm not going to see them for a long time more. But we had a great time so that's what's important yeah? And i will remember and always be grateful that i went over.

Let me recount the stuffs that we did, first stop: Princeton (ulu land) shuttling between NYC and Princeton daily, visiting the Metropolitan Museum of Art which was half boring, Central Park which is just a huge park. Most noteworthy was the food we attacked, literally travelling to eat good food, thanks to the Straits Times guide we had, Straits Times Rocks! We ate Dominican sandwiches, Superb Japanese ramen in an intimate setting, the best oven-baked Pizza. Yummilicious, NYC has no doubt the best food. And Vee, i can't forget how the alarm died on us and we jumped out of bed in horror when Jonathan knocked on the door and then moved at supersonic speed throughout the room, stripping at the same time.HAHAHAHA :) And how we played ping-pong and sang karaoke (screeching our lungs out thinking we'll never meet those people in the room again which of course didnt work out cos apparently, USA is pretty small too!)

Second leg: Washington DC when SQ, Rainna and Nicole joined us. Alot of Jap and Korean phrases started flying around, Vee attempts to brush up. The only thing i remember is SUGOI (very good in Jap) !!! DC is a pretty grand city, all the museums, capitol hill and white house (which is alot smaller than it appears on TV!). Washington tried to model the city after Paris, thats why they had lots of wide pathways and large open spaces. Visited museums, most memorable and educational was the Holocaust one, we went to that twice. But i don't think i'll want to go Poland after, it's too sad. Again, we hunted for food, thats a very important part of the trip! Lots of Jap and Korean, sugoi!!!

Third Leg: Boston. Loved the freedom trail alot. A walking tour of the city, alot of cemetries but educational too. Can't believe we did it in a day!!! Anyway, along our self-guided walking tour, we identified wrong monuments, took pictures of monuments from the wrong wide which was super hilarious. Hahaha! And visited Harvard and MIT which didn't really impress us! It's just a school afterall eh, we did try to look intellectual when we went to Harvard though. It was also in Boston when we met 2 friendly old men, one from UK and he gave me his contact, he lives in Portsmouth. So boliao, he really thinks i'll contact him if i go there?!?! And we watched Blood Diamond there too, so much time, haha. Really good movie, highly recommended. Girls, next time when you buy diamonds, make sure they are conflict-free diamonds.

Last leg: Back in NYC. The food hunt continues, ate super cheap and delicious beef noodles and dumplings and dao huey zhui, superb crepes... philadephia cheese bagels, cheesecake, dunkin donuts, tiramisu rice pudding, Cold Stone CREAMY, Sugoi!!! Oh yeah, love the apple pie from Macs there too... it's more baked(less crispy)with cinnamon, mmmm. Went to Times Square... my favourite place in NYC, so bright and pretty! Which was where we spent our Christmas too.. counting down among ourselves in a cafe. And we watched The Wedding Singer which was really entertaining. Loved it alot, the songs so nice! And then had umbrella war at Rockefeller Centre, everyone trying to grab the best position to take photo with the tree, so competitive. Hahah!!! St. Patricks Cathedral and Grand Central Terminal very pretty too. And of course Statue of Liberty on a clear blue sky, the ultimate symbol of American idealism, FREEDOM. And their financial Prowess: the Wall Street Bull. And last day, shopping at Woodbury, that is absolutely paradise man. Bought quite alot of stuff, wish had more time there though!!! We're so deprived of good, affordable shopping here in the UK!!!

And that marks the end of the trip. Which ended in tears. Boohoohoo! Okae, will try to post photos once i get them.

Ate so much in NYC i really felt heavier and more difficult to move around. So i gotta exercise. My New Year Resolution is to go swimming regularly at Oasis. Doesn't sound too hard right. Haha! While i'm still rotting at home now, struggling to do homework. And Watching Tree of Heaven. Quite a strange show cos the male lead is mute so far, wish he would TALK. And the guys also not v good looking, sad. It's the prequel to Stairway of Heaven so hope it's good. I'll persevere! Such a sucker for romance dramas!

I want to watch " Curse of the Golden Flower", wonder when it's out in London, mummy said it's very good. Interested in how Jay Chou and Chow Yun Fatt act together! Looking forward to the stuffs that mummy is sending over for me. It's always a treat :) And Mich, i can't wait for you to come over too :) :)

Second last day of the year, time flies. Another year has passed and i'm starting to feel really old, like no longer a kid. Which is really sad cos i don't want to grow up and take on more responsibilities. Nmind, at least i'm always a kid in my parents' eyes. I love you, and Jie and Vera! Heh. Anyway, have a great New Year back home everyone! May all your New Year resolutions come true :) Miss you all!

Can't believe i typed such a long post! Trying to escape from doing work :( POE is really killing me slowly, i barely understand anything and Macro's so tough too. I keep drifting away and thinking of other stuffs whenever i try to do work. I get a headache everytime man. Only one week of holidays left, bugger! I'm doomed, at the rate i'm going, no time!! Why is Year 2 so tough!!!

Hmm, getting sick of this greenish blogskin, anyone kind enough to help me revamp?

Feeling poor...

2006-12-11T15:59:00.000-08:00

Yeah! NY is costing me a bomb! I think Easter can't go anywhere alr man. :( And my pay check is still not in yet which makes me feel even poorer... i want my pay check... NOW! Places which i still def want to visit are Germany, Eastern Europe, Spain, Portugal. Nmind, save up for summer, hopefully our summer plans come true FIO!

Ah, New York is coming soon! finally figured out where is lower east side, midtown etc and all the different neighbourhoods. Cheem man! Hope everything goes smoothly!

I need a longer holiday !!! One month is simply not enough for play, study and relaxation!

P/S: i realize i forgot to put washing powder, so the clothes were washed in... water!!! What a disturbing thought! Argh! was just thinking... if my nose was more effective, i probably would have realized earlier that the clothes didn't smell fresh... instead of taking 2 days to recall!

crazy.week!

2006-12-04T06:27:00.000-08:00

Last week of school is turning out to be CRAZY! ah!!! my brain is scattered everywhere!
And... can you believe it... i said GOODNIGHT to my teacher when i meant goodbye... too embarassing. I was just too sleepy.

Okae, no time alr. My spanish is all over the place too. Why... dictionary.com screw up on me when i'm doing hw... no time!!! I can't wait for end of school. But i think there will still be alot of unfinished business. AH!!!

Winning Bias

2006-11-22T08:15:00.000-08:00

You need to believe in yourself. Believe that if you tried hard enough, things would work out. . !

Spoke to Papa and he helped calm my nerves. And made me re-focus.

Sometimes, I wish i were... SUPERWOMAN.

I'm a goose

2006-11-17T03:36:00.000-08:00

If i had a file! All my notes would have been saved from the flood. Luckily i saved my calculator and handphone. My bag was dripping with red water all over and i have no idea why it's RED. MESSY... I'm a GOOSE

VOMIT

2006-11-12T02:34:00.000-08:00

OH NO! sorry girls, i didn't know you'll commented. OOPS, anyway, the tagboard thingy is finally UP! It's so simple and i should have done it like one thousand years ago.

I don't know how, why the apps are so tiring, time consuming and stressful! I'm just bad at balancing it with school work and fun! There's so much happening around but i always find myself consumed by the same old boring apps which makes me an old and boring person too!! Eeeeks! Really want to get it out of the way and play! And that's the only reason why year 2 is bad, but if you think about it, it's a matter of choice. In any case, it's been taking up a disproportionate amount of a precious commodity called time and draining my vitality and beauty (okae, that sounds weird :) but it's true leh! when i'm even too lazy to wear contacts, that means i'm sacrificing beauty! hahah.) and i'm determined to get it SETTLED in the next few days, by hook, brook crook. Can you see the fire!!!???

Anyway, in the meantime, i've secured a parttime job on campus! Really excited to start work and earn some cash! Woohoo!!!

I find this year's courses intellectually stimulating. And it definitely helps that i've got pretty good teachers and a very charming Fernando Aragon, my favourite teacher. He's so gentle and he winks ever so often in class and he teaches very clearly too which surely is the most important thing (heh heh heh). For now, i genuinely enjoy learning more and doing my homework but i probably won't say that like when exams are coming. But that is for then (so watch out for complaints next year). I wish i spent more time fully understanding the coursework and reading my textbooks but there never seems to be enough time for that. Don't i sound like a NEEERD. hahahhahah!

The family's off to Japan tomorrow and i'm so jealous I can't go! I wanna go Disneyland and eat all the yummmmmy Jap foooood! But yeap, can't wait to see the pictures of them having so much fun! Okae, one month to end of term. Super fast! NY beckons... Veevee and SQ, can't wait to see youall!

And to everyone at home. BIG waves and hugs!!! Sorry I haven't been in much contact :( Hope you'll are coping well with the exam period! Jia you :)

Guy Fawkes Day!

2006-11-04T14:53:00.000-08:00

Love love love the fireworks at Alexandra Palace! They are so Beautiful and it lasted SO long! like 25 minutes of non-stop fireworks! Muskies! You guys would surely LOVE it. And it's so cool cos we were quite elevated and we could see simultaneous fireworks going on all over London. And then we went to the beer fair and fun fair and had a very delicious Brazilian doughnut called Churos which Ali loved.

This term is passing SO fast i can't believe it. And i realize more than ever that i'm actually quite pampered. Bah! Anyway, my flatmates rawk... okae, so even though shihui is probably never going to read it. But i just gotta say, it's been such great fun, cooking (shihui and mich's cooking bagus, sorry for my horrible cooking guys...!) , baking dreams, cleaning up, crossword puzzles, complaining, griping etc etc. Thank you You guys! I'm gonna treasure all our wonderful times!

I love year 2!

Overwhelmed and disorganized. I need a secretary. SCREAMS!

2006-10-25T07:13:00.000-07:00

Need...

2006-10-18T15:33:00.000-07:00

... alot of energy and more than 24 hours a day.

Will you?

2006-10-16T16:21:00.000-07:00

work away your youth?

Kissing Kissing!

2006-10-14T12:27:00.000-07:00

Yay, there were two people kissing passionately outside my house today. At the church opposite. And the wind was blowing. Woah.

Balance

2006-10-05T02:32:00.000-07:00

It's all about the balance. And Common Sense.

I finally....

2006-10-02T07:11:00.000-07:00

finally finally finally super deeduperly understand why there are only 15 hours of school a week. Wah lao eh! ( wah lao, that must have sounded super crude. BUT who cares! Life is so exciting and pulsating lah!)

Adios!

2006-09-10T09:23:00.000-07:00

I've decided to shut down this blog because.... i'm selfish and don't wanna share my life with you! hahah... just kidding. It's just that after a while, the novelty wears off once again, especially for someone like me who hardly completes what i set out to do without prompting. (blah.. end up talking about myself again! See See!) I've had enough of talking about myself! I always blog when i feel that there is something to be announced to everyone, but it can be so subjective and an inaccurate representation of my life and whenever i read blogs, i get this impression of this person and that person, you know those stereotypes and it's unhealthy. So, i guess i'd rather not say anything at all. The online world of blogging has always been a mystery to me and after one year, it hasn't become clearer to me at all. For me, it just feels good that i am actually writing for an intended audience and when people respond and for now, that's not reason enough to keep writing. Sometimes, i wanna slap my mind upside down for being such a practical person (where's the emotion baby! But do you wanna watch the tears flow? I sure can turn it on!) but anyways, i know this blog will be flushed down cyberspace in time to come anyway so no big deal ending it prematurely.

So, goodbye to my readers (the few of you, haha!). As this blog shuts down, many more are being set up, each with their own purpose, each finding a voice in the scary world of the internet. I guess there are other avenues to channel this little bit of extra energy to blog, like exercising maybe ( when your mother starts saying you're fat/look like jin1 san3 shun4/advises you to eat less prata (MOCK HORROR!), that must be a problem!)

Growing up can be such a pain isn't it! But growing up in an environment such as mine cannot be said to be a pain at all. That would be insensitive to the people around me and disrespectful to my parents who have given up so much for us. And i can see why no love is greater than a parents love for their child. Someday, i wanna be a Mummy too (AH! I'm not going into this maternal instinct thing again! Hell, i'm only Twenteen (Vee, you're our trendsetter!) I guess being an Aunty first is a good start? When i see the look on my sis and her boyfriend's face whenever a cute baby passes... i almost imagine a pregnant sis, bloated cheeks and all...)

So... after blabbering so much, all i want to say is, although we're at a junction of our lives, grappling with issues of insecurity, treading the fuzzy line between teenhood and YOUNG adulthood, it is important to enrich our lives in a meaningful way. Wah lao eh, a finale speech has morphed into another one of those "self-discovery" ones. (As if you'll didn't already know that right!) Yucks!

So, anyway, life is good good good! You can wish for alot of things (like for Jonathan Leong to sing a lullaby to you everynight, swoons), to be richer, to be prettier to be more popular among your peers but man can never be satisfied. It's just like branded goods. When you've attained a certain degree of wealth, you'd willingly spend on your Zara's and Topshop'
s etc but are you satisfed? Your eyes start to get attracted to those luxurious fur coats, decked stylishly on the mannequins beyond the glass panels and often beyond your reach too.

I was just wondering why on earth do people wanna pay up to 15k to these motivational gurus to speak! It's ridiculous! Live your life the way you want it to be led! With that, i'm starting off year 2 on a sprightly note, living my dreams, finding my feet 6754 miles away from home. And i hope you would too!

P/S: Pardon the many a time cringe-worthy factor of this post please! Just had to vomit all these words out. It's the final entry, after this, no more unpolishedgem crap!

I wish i wish i wish...

2006-09-06T05:04:00.000-07:00

... i paid more attention during Mrs. Quek's Social Studies lessons, especially the chapters on Venice. You know, i've been to so many beautiful places in Europe and it's such a shame that i know so little about the history of these places. It's as if there's a hole missing somewhere in my heart.

I look at all the photographs of these places and it's just so beautiful, i wonder why i didn't heed my uncle's advice to read up on the history of these places before i went. Especially for Italy and France, both such beautiful countries ... like literally bursting with history and culture. There is no time for regrets is there? But in the next two years, i promise i'll read up on those countries that i'm going to before leaving. Or do you realize what you've missed out on only after seeing that such beauty actually exists and you're fortunate enough to have been there?

I will also try to take nicer pictures, i'm so horrible at these! ie, less focus on people, and more on the background.

Fry away...

2006-09-02T10:27:00.000-07:00

I think late nights are so totally suited for reflecting... accompanied with Jay Chou's Ye4 Qu3 on replay for the tenth time. Haha, probably the only thing that could get me to sit down and write again. I've always admired people who could effortlessly translate their thoughts into words... i can only conjur up a garbled mess of incoherent random bits of my life, stopping short at writing it out... which kinda SUCKS. Haha! But i will try not giving up on this little space, cos i suspect i'll be much more compelled to update than now, where everything is just so familiar, so easily within reach and so Singapore.

It's been two months since coming back... sure doesn't feel that long! 3 weeks to London and i think everyone's getting more excited about leaving already which is a good thing! Had my fair share of fun, sun, abs-inducing laughter, catching up with my dearest friends, eating, basking in the love of mummy and daddy dearest and my sisters even though sometimes i have really sadistic thoughts of squishing my younger sister's mouth cos that mouth of hers can really make me smile and cringe from one second to the next, she's growing so fast (gotta check out her calf muscles man... wah lao eh, and we're going jogging tmr early in the morning, her grand plan to be a cool athelete! hahaha) and i'm really happy to see her blossoming into a fine young lady... kim gek like and sporty( guy's favourite right... my sis has so much potential!), yeah hopefully she'll be alot less rough than me! I really hope to see my elder sis find happiness and get married, i think girls all have an intrinsic fear of marriage, like you don't know what to expect and what kinda role you're expected to fulfill.. okae.. too many talks by mummy... all the sex education stuff... MUMMY, i'm TWENTY! and Vera's THIRTEEN and you're saying the same stuff to both of us!!! ie how to say NO to the guy when he asks for it. haha! We just pretend to be really wide-eyed listening when we're actually giving each other THE LOOK. Yeah, back to the point on my elder sis... her boyfriend wants to marry her, so scary ain't it! And my mummy's so excited about choosing wedding gowns and dowry that kinda stuff... it's going full circle isn't it... But of course nothing's concrete, my sis isn't prepared to marry him, but all could change when i come back next year? Or even before that? That's what i like about life, the unpredictability, it may wear you out sometimes but it also makes life more exciting.

Come end September, i'll be out of this country once again, but this time, i'm so much more certain of what to expect, how i'm going to start off my year two, but at the same time there are alot of things i haven't experienced like watching an EPL soccer match, i'm just SLOW, going on road trips within the UK, discovering London more, going to Eastern Europe, and i feel like going to New York tooo.... oh money money, making MORE friends, being a good housemate, learning a new language maybe, taking part in events, looking forward to living in my own place (anyone got taboo? i'm in love with the game!), decorating it, back to the cooking lifestyle AH!!! my disastrous cooking skills which i have no motivation to improve over the holidays... how how how when you're always so well fed and fat here. I just wanna eat and shop till i drop here! Better go back to London and lose some weight man. Haha! It's all in the mind right... Home is not that far away! It's just there... right next to your heart. Eeeks... that must sound REALLY corny... hahaha!

For now... i still wanna meet YOU all.. ! I must see you all so much until i Don't wannt see you at all for the next 9 months. HAHA! But time is just flying So fast away!!

Bliss

2006-06-19T09:34:00.000-07:00

I just want to say. It's GREAT to be home. I was playing down all expectations but back home, everything.... everything just felt so right. It was almost as if i've never left... very surreal. Like some kinda time machine just zapped me off to London for a few days (which in fact was 9months) and here i am, back home again. To the warm, familiar and happy faces of Family. It didn't take much, but in the few hours i've been back, i know they love me very much and so do i them. And, actually i miss them more than i think i did.

2006-06-16T15:10:00.000-07:00

Really hate to see Ivory Coast go!!! Damn, it's sickening when crap teams like England (I really like Beckham though, he hasn't lost any of his charm ... now he has the softer more fatherly feel... drools, the way he talks to the kid... awww MELTS) go through so easily and those who really deserve it get kicked out, unrightly so! At least Angola held Mexico to a draw, way too many close shaves for them though, well, it's time an African team got lucky anyway.
Argentina is kicking some ass man, heh, hurrah to Messi!

Oooh, finally went for a haircut and i loook like a pirate now. But i like it. Just to keep you in suspense!!!

2006-06-14T16:46:00.000-07:00

Woah... Mediterranean food is good stuff man. They had this amazing salad that was tasty yet healthy... there was avocado, brocolli, cucumber, very fine bean sprout, this rice tasting thing that looked like clumps of pomello and goat's cheese and some magic sprinkled on top that made my eyes twinkle and my ears wiggle :) And the spanish sausage and sweet potato was really good too. And best of all, to all my weight conscious friends, the dessert is SUGAR Free. Can't imagine a chocolate tart that's sugar free... but i found out that they used fructose instead... duh, there had to be some form of sweetener! Still, it's supposed to be healthy.

Interestingly, the whole restaurant was filled with LADIES. Such a girl power restaurant. Those men who were there were with their girlfriends/wives. Maybe it's the world cup effect, or maybe it helped that the French manager is such a good looker ;) No lah, it's a health conscious ladies restaurant. I would go again, anytime, oh yes, for the manager too.

On my way back :

A: Hey, excuse me, do you know where Covent Garden is?
me: Oh, (knowing how bad my sense of direction is) , the general direction is towards the left.
A: Do you know where this "rocket head " (sthg along that lines) club is?
me: No.
A: You went to River Island? Was there some kinda sale there?
me: Shakes head, laughs and walk away.

What strange pick up lines they have. More entertaining than anything. Gee.

Some exciting World Cup matches tomorrow. Sweden Paraguay and of course England Trinidad :) English TV actually isn't that bad. Very interesting shows like Super Nanny, Desperate Housewives, their version of MTV, a few drama serial channels. Maybe it's because we have a larger selection of channels than traditional TV. And maybe because I have been so TV deprived for 9 months. Past mid-night, they air ancient movies like these 3 cheekopek men in the jungle (the kind with a jungle wall paper and a few fake trees!!!) with a woman and they kept trying to peek at her bathing. One of them climbs up a tree with his binoculars, a gorilla (think King Kong style) taps his shoulder, he passes the binoculars to the gorilla, freaks out and falls off the tree... like HUH? Then the other man pretended to be the woman's maid by speaking in a really high pitched voice and LOOKED at her as he poured the water over her and when she was about to turn around... he threw the towel over her head and ran away ... like HUH? Sorry for the unnecessary elaboration, just found it too amusing.

Can't believe i'm 4 days away from Home. Too close to be true.

For the love of the beautiful game...

2006-06-12T14:12:00.000-07:00

World Cup is such a joy! Italy made its appearance today against another African team, Ghana. The first half hour i was really scared for the Azzurri, the Ghanians played with no fear, no inferiority complex, as if they've taken part in every world cup when it was their debut match! But the Italians showed what they were made of, got about their business, and won it. The Italians were definitely the better side, but i do feel sorry for Ghana, thought they deserved at least one penalty. Football isn't the fairest game afterall. Watching soccer on BBC is so entertaining i tell you. Especially today's match analysis, they invited Marcel Desailly who was originally from Ghana and of course he was supporting Ghana, and the other guy kept arguing with him that it shouldn't have been a penalty yada yada yada and Desailly wasn't pleased at all. It was hilarious the way he argued... "Marcel, i don't care how many World Cups you have won with France, the referee was right, it shouldn't have been a penalty!".

The other day, the England Paraguay match, the commentators described England goalkeeper Robinson as a giant yellow banana when he hurled over a Praguayan attacker cos he was wearing bright yellow jersey! Man, i'm going to miss the wit of these people when i get back home and have to resort to watching soccer on Malaysian channels :( If, i can get any reception at all!

New found hero, Rosicky from Czech Republic, amazing amazing goals. Totally blew my head off!
Samba boys on tomorrow, can't wait to see Ronaldinho strut his stuff.

Oh yeah, it hit 32degrees today. I couldn't believe it when i stepped outside.

2006-06-10T15:42:00.000-07:00

I've been meaning to write this for some time but i could never get my butt to sit still enough at the blogger home page. Afterall, there is always tomorrow and tomorrow and tomorrow. The xxx number of days i have in London, probably more than most people.

On the eve of shifting my stuff out of this little nest of mine, i look around and realize that i actually do like this make shift hole/semi pigsty (Mum wouldn't be pleased, but she wouldn't be here to see either, muahaha). How ironic, at a point when the room at its messiest and dirtiest, all the dust floating around in the room when the afternoon sun shines through (It's freakin' hot now, the room and everywhere else, it's almost like home! Can't believe the day i actually sweat has come). Soon, no more swipe cards, no more going... "SH**, I locked myself out of the room!" immediately after i close the door behind me, no more having to change for 20p coins for laundry. I'm so glad i changed my room in the end, otherwise I wouldn't be able to shake to the Cuban beat or pretend I'm a diva like Mariah Carey or Toni Braxton or squeal in delight upon seeing my dearest Roque in action on the pitch (even though he underperformed :( ) or jump onto the bed and hop around like a bunny when the last paper ended.

Came over, innocent, ignorant and holding on to mummy's hand for guidance. I was looking through my old emails and i can't believe i actually asked a senior if it was necessary to bring a kettle over, sounds so ridiculous now. And how i asked someone along Houghton street where Peacock theatre was. Those were the days. Where London was a big scary city, dirty and dodgey in certain areas, crowded, polluted, congested and absolutely busy, it still is and I was almost panicking the thought of living in such a place. Yet there was a certain allure about it, be it the cobbled streets of Covent Garden where I've set foot on countless times, the expanse of Hyde Park, my everlasting favourite Bayswater, Chinatown which has of course been an integral part of our survival in the land of expensive food (and almost everything else), the markets and desserts, the wonderful musicals, the lovely walk along the Thames where Westminster, London Eye and Tower Bridge can be seen. It has been a real eye-opener really, living alone in London. And i like it. But i haven't always liked it, there were times I got tired of living in Big city London, sometimes feeling most insignificant, one of the 7 million floating around, not really feeling rooted. But, I overcame that, called this place my second home, liked the freedom to (dis)organize my life the way i want it (not that i was constrained at home, but you realize fully just what it means to live alone includes the whole package of settling your own meals which can be a real pain and next year, of course, washing the toilets and kitchen! haha!)

And priceless still is all the travelling.

Well, everything fell into place in the end because of the new friends i've made here. Thank you for being a part of this wonderful journey, you've made a difference and I hope i've been a good friend to you as well. Cheers for the LSE mates !

For now, i'm looking forward to meeting a few more friends next week... old-time friend Tien Tien, wacky Marvin... (i'm expecting a running commentary of the natural science museum!!) and Wennee ;) and i'm in the thick of football mania too. Thank goodness for digital TV on my laptop. The African teams have really earned my respect so far... Argentina vs Ivory Coast... and i was thinking, where in the world is Ivory Coast(it's in the South of Africa btw) but man did they put up a fight and so did Angola. Debutants... but the way they played, held their heads up high. SALUTE! They just lack the finishing... which is a real pity but i do hope to see at least one of the African teams make it to the next stage. And then i was thinking, if an African team does win the World Cup, what a boost it would be for their economy, national pride. It wouldn't be a bad thing.

With the packing almost wrapped up, i'm done with my business in London... for now. I haven't had enough of everything here. But, it's time to take a break from this complicated place, back to where everything began. We've come full circle... as i've been telling Flor (who is currently on the plane back home with her little bro, we were supposed to go back together, but unforseen circumstances!!! ) My friends, catch me swinging back into town, live on 19th June!

My face has put on weight!

2006-06-04T08:24:00.000-07:00

Look at HF!!! Even the angmohs don't wear tubes. You go girl!

The site of many artistic shots...! Check out the short skirt! I sound like some cheekopek. HAHA!

Lelong Lelong! Fresh Raw fish anyone!

Yummy OYSTERS!!!

Brownies. Cheap and good!

In love

2006-06-03T16:49:00.000-07:00

I'm absolutely in love with life at the moment. Watching DVDs (settled my butt enough to watch Chocolat, good stuff man, the blissful look of those people who sank their teeth into the chocolate and Binoche's cooking should be sufficient reason to brush up my cooking skills... but alas, i have no chef hands...can't believe i survived 9 months eating my own terrible cooking half the time :(, which reminds me that Da vinci code sucked... wasted my money man, Tom Hanks super doesn't fit the role... SO OLD! And the plot was way too thin, injustice injustice!) Listening to Tao Zhe, pretending to sing falsetto like him and bobbing my head. (Which reminds me about how my Chinese has deteriorated to such a low standard, i feel funny speaking it, i can't write beyond Pri. 6 Chinese words, i ought to slap myself... It was really funny how mich and shihui were giving ali and me ting xie and i failed miserably! You think listening to Chinese music will help?? It's such a pity really, all the years of studying has come to this? Okae, speak more more more Mandarin when i'm home.) Browsing wedding photographs has become one of my online habits, it makes me oh-so-want to get married! This is what happens when you have so much time on your hands. And then i start playing with things like FACEBOOK. Choosing the chioest photo i can lay my hands on. The idea of Facebook is actually very dumb, like my friendster which has since long died. I remember the photo on my friendster was... Ultraman because i had ultraman hairstyle last time. And i was too shy to put my own photo online!!! So dumb right... silly JC days.

Today's weather was blistering hot. Should have bought those sunglasses man! Hot weather has come at last... a little too late, i'm leaving in two weeks! After almost 7 months of Cold, the snowman in me has finally thawed. Yeah, everyone's in a good mood when the weather is warm. We did a mini tour of the SOUTH bank today... Borough market which i adore... Had BROWNIE, delicious delicious followed by OYSTER and... what else, venison burger and some alcohol tasting. Perhaps i could buy some dried fruits home :) And then we went to Tate Modern, a little too modern to appreciate, there was this piece of art... which had many pieces of "shit" looking stuff scattered all over the floor, gave me a really bad feeling man, seriously, reminds of elephant excretion... And then there were preserved birds shot by arrows. EEEwww. Some paintings were really weird, this giant painting, painted red with one strip of purple at the edge. Damn strange lah. But they had some very nice photographs too to give tate credit. It's free so i shall not complain! The Thames walkway was packed packed packed. Never seen London so packed before, the Millenium bridge had an enless flow of people! Then, it was off to Bankside, finally, after months of procrastination and tasting the "famous" Bankside kebab which tasted normal, conclusion, banksiders have weird food taste. That goes for spicy Pork too. Haha! And we took endless photos of St. Pauls, from 1km away to 100 m away to 10 m away. And Gerald really likes to take artistic shots... like the one of him and hf "talking"... er... eh, (post it on your blogs!!) Yeah, hf, please brush up your photography skills. Haha!!

In my weak attempt to start packing, i dug out the scrapbook that the musketeers spent all night and day making for me (yeah, you sweeties :) )and it really made me laugh and roll all over again. I never got over the fact that yw thinks i have an iguana face that's why the iguanas behind my house are always so attracted to me. Our one and only agreeable cute guy with that group of pioneer jc students, we really did stupid things back then! Rocket making was like one of the highlights of upper sec man. The pumps and munching on hello pandas! And our love affair with Mr. Tang... And MJ> Feng Zeng!!! OMG, the fountain, that is really HILARIOUS!!! Come to think of it, we were... rude!!! Could saving the fountain have been more important? Thanks for being so down-to-earth about your expectations of my cooking skills :) Thank you babes! Looking at those photos also convinced me that i've put on weight, especially the face. Mmmm... exercise the face more? How to tone cheek muscles huh?

I think i've had enough play. Of course i'll continue playing, but time for more serious thoughts. About THE FUTURE. Sounds big and scary. But a big girl's gotta plan big things.

The world is indeed my oyster.

pictures from stockholm

2006-05-31T11:58:00.000-07:00

Beautiful Stockholm from the sky.

On the way out of Stockholm city centre to the airport. Absolutely tranquil. The water looked almost glassy.

Posers! I had a sunglass urge!

This large swing we took, i love this picture! The swing was right beside the river so it felt as if we were flying over the river. Cool!

Free-fall -- almost!

Theme park! Kids once more :) But we realized that we were way too old for themeparks! Squeezing with the little kids and screaming like teenagers!

Vasa (Ship) Museum. This ship was lifted out from the coast just off Stockholm like 50 years ago, almost in entirety. It sank in the 1600s.

Nordic Museum

Outside the Nordic museum which explained the Swedish way of life.

Out-of-place Chinese Pavilion which the King built secretly for his wife as a birthday surprise hundreds of years ago. No idea why a Chinese pavilion though.

Outside this Guard tent. We saw many guards and everyone wanted a guard each cos they were rather good looking, on our way out, we discovered to our horror that they were all girls with boobs cos we saw them training!?!?

This Extra guy who insisted on taking photo with us. Cheekopek!

Tada! Drottingholm palace for you!

The ferry which would take us to Drottingholm palace.

Stormy. View from the cityhall just before our boat ride to Drottingholm Palace.

Pretty Stockholm.

Walking the streets of Gamla Stan (Old town), most European cities split their towns into old and new ones.

Royal Palace

2006-05-29T09:59:00.000-07:00

Sweden's awesome! It's a feel-good city ( i can actually imagine myself living here (minus the freeezing weather)), courteous people, excellent food (better than London anyways! well fed throughout the trip), pretty architecture, hips shopping, beautiful people, spotted our fair share of Orlando Blooms and eye candies, Scandinavian hunks haven't failed to deliver! Better than the French or the Italians, i think from what i've seen so far, the Welsh are the least desirable (oops!) I want a Swedish boyfriend! And it helps that they all speak English, not in the heavily accented Brit way, easy-going, just the way i like it. Well, when you put 5 girls in a group on the prowl, you get raging hormones, shy giggles, lots of eye exercises and breaking out into Chinese whenever we were sizing someone up.

I shall let the pictures do the talking. I love Stockholm!

Sometimes, it scares me that i feel so at ease living a life of my own. Just 2 weeks ago, hf and nat asked if i was looking forward to going home, it wasn't an unmeasured "YES, I'm DYING to go HOME" kind of response and i don't know if it's a good or bad thing. The fact that i'm actually pretty happy staying on for another 3 weeks scares me. I'm not missing home as much as i think i should or would like to? Very ironic, 2 months ago, my answer would have been the reverse. That makes me feel very unfilial. I would like to think that it's more of a " i've matured enough in this one year to not be missing home" than actually becoming indifferent.

Holiday once more!

2006-05-24T12:48:00.000-07:00

Alas, it has ended! Barely have sufficient time for myself! To sit, stone, reflect and think about what has come and gone in the last eight months. But, it's good to be kept busy for now, i'll have more time after i come back from Sweden (yay! With 4 other lovely girls, i'm sure it'll be a blllllaaassstttt!... we must seduce those hot and hunky Swedish guys okae!)

Oh, and i must announce my coming of age. Because i finally clubbed here!!! Fiona, i know you're disappointed! But at least i've done it!!! Even my mother was surprised that it was my first time! Haha! It was really fun!!! Really let my hair down!!! Yeah, literally too cos my hair is soooooo long. Woohoo! And i drank a tequila shot and some Bailey's shot and was still perfectly sane at the end of the whole thing! It's great when you go clubbing and you don't know the people i think, cos it's so embarrassing to dance infront of people you kinda know but don't know! I really hate the after effect though, feel like a zombie, my eyes are half shutting as i type and there's a 6am flight to catch?!?!

I'll be back with pictures from Sweden. Happy holidays you guys! I'm finally free like you too! Oh, i just watched 2 episodes of 24 and it's hell exciting! Ah, i've got jap serials and some movies to watch too. Keeping my eyes glued to the comp. :)

one liners part 2

2006-05-19T10:46:00.000-07:00

I was so nervous i was lsing 15 minutes before the paper. And i was like s***! No time!

The questions were manageable but i still managed to screw it up.

I had 20 minutes to finish one essay! How cool is that!

But it's okae, strangely, i don't feel that upset. In fact, i felt really happy when i was writing the card to my teacher on how i screwed up the exam!

I still like IR alot. It has transcended the "I hate the subject because i don't do well in it stage"

And of course i still like my teacher alot.

One more exam to go!

one liners

2006-05-18T14:08:00.000-07:00

Apparently, eating pork makes you smarter. (notice the irony) I had many different forms of pork today before being told that it makes you smarter. Hopefully, it will help to give me the streak of genius i need to survive tomorrow.

Also, Chilli is the reason why most Singapore girls are flat chested. ( After 4 of us successfully devoured 4 bowls of chilli) Because according to a keen observer, other Chinese girls are more busty.

The Chinese guy sitting opposite me is gross. He burps unabashedly. He wears ear plugs that looks like he's been wearing for years, it's out of shape, faded and damn dirty looking. Wah lao!

The Jap guy sitting beside me has a nose problem. He rubs his nose so hard and makes that ew ew mucus sound. Very strange people indeed.

If my IR teacher were 10 years younger, i would have a crush on him.

It's just exams... It's always about your own expectations, you're not accountable to anyone effectively. Noone's going to scold you if you screw up. So, Take it Easy.

I'm drowning...

2006-05-13T14:32:00.000-07:00

... in words. Damn... can i just declare my IR dead. Saturation and then i try to do essay outlines and it all sounds so yucky. Boohoohoo. i need more time time time!!! OMG... i'm really going to screw up IR... i just know it!!! I can't even memorise the points properly. This is killing meeee! And i'm eating such crappy food now. I'm never ever stepping into subway/wrights bar or anything that has to do with BREAD once the exams are over. How How How. Pulls hair, stamps feet, shoots ceiling, punches fist in air. K.O.

2006-05-12T07:52:00.000-07:00

I guess i'm not that unfortunate afterall! The passport is ready for collection! Phew. How my fate changed in a day. Funny how it was always taken for granted.

Now... 2 days to the start of exams. Oh, man. Liberation awaits. I can hardly wait. I've had enough of studying... I just want to run outside and breathe nice fresh air instead of stale recirculated air indoors, lie on the grass and picnic. What am i doing indoors when the weather outside is SO inviting. AWAY and OUT with the exams. NOW i say!

Panic!

2006-05-11T11:13:00.000-07:00

~@"~£#:?"" The Swedish embassy just told me that I can't travel to Sweden on a Document of Identity (DOI) in case my passport isn't ready by the time i'm leaving. Oh, i'm so pissed ~@!##?&*^% What's wrong with the keys anyway, doesn't even look like i'm spouting all the bad words. I even backspaced the "badwords" just to make it look badder. Argh. Why Why Why. Please SGP passport, i neeeeeeed you. More than anything else NOW. Can they just HURRY UP.
I'll bawl like a baby if i can't go!!! Damn Jinxed!
I hate not knowing that i can't control my own fate.

WAVES hand

2006-05-04T02:26:00.000-07:00

Hello! Lest you think i've disappeared, i'm actually still kicking, messing and alive! The books have sucked alot of my energy but alas, it's just exams... a ritual we've gone through, year after year. Inspite of all the late night muggings, i'm still glad for things like eg Florrine who goes home with me in the wee hours, as we attempt to "laugh" very loudly so that the robbers wouldn't dare to come near us "yeah right!", for eating Benjys dinner in the Brunch Bowl, and friends whom i know would be available for dinner anytime. Makes the mugging less of a chore :) There are so many things to be grateful for, so many things to look forward to after the exams... I can't wait to go Spain! I can't wait to slack around, watch all the drama serials whole day long, movies, go shopping in all those markets we've been talking about, just stay in, chill, read a book! And most importantly, HOME awaits. Let's take it one step at a time, first up, OVER and OUT with the exams! BAH!

I need to bao zha

2006-04-24T08:11:00.000-07:00

Yeah! I'm damn suay i tell u, the passport app didn't go through cos my hair was covering half my right eyebrow in the photograph!!! I'm so pissed! The application takes a month, meaning that there might be a chance that it won't be ready by the end of exams!!! WTH!!! And they only do collection of apps once a week on friday... delay even more. I'm dead!!! I'm gonna be stuck here!!! This is driving me nuts. And no one will travel with me cos everyone's zaoing imm after exams. WHAT AM I GOING TO DO!!! This sucks!!!

And i just took passport photograph again... this time i tied up my hair but the blardy machine's like running out of ink. It still looks fine to me but Crap, if they're gonna be fussy... Wah lao, i have to go to the embassy again. This should NEVER have happened!!! Pukes.

Anyway, i'm starting to Panic for the exams... and library is getting a little too crowded for my liking. This is BAD.

I'm older, wiser? and happier :)

2006-04-23T17:00:00.000-07:00

Firstly, THANK YOU for all the Birthday wishes, calls, presents, cards, surprises. I couldn't have asked for more. I know all of you miss me (HAHAHA! don't roll your eyes!... come on, admit it! I know i'm very thick skinned), yeah, i miss all of you too! TRUST ME... time will pass so fast you wouldn't believe i'll be back THAT soon. What would i do without you guys???

And to everyone who took time off from studying just to celebrate my birthday with me, i'm really touched, happy that i've made so many good friends here. And i'm really looking forward to spending the next 2 years with all of you.

Oh, i've just discovered the best kinda fats ever. The kinda fats you actually enjoy eating. DUCK FATS. Rocks.

Tried and Fried

2006-04-21T17:02:00.000-07:00

Bring on the mugging man. Today i tried very hard to get my IR in order but i spent more time trying to organize all the notes, looking for books etc etc etc = in short, unproductive. As we all know, being the muggers that we are, unproductive days suck. Boo boo to any more unproductive days ahead and cheers to our newfound alliance. Flor, we rock! haha! (don't tell anyone what we're doing, they'll really laugh at us and start calling us names)

I thought i was invincible!

2006-04-17T13:14:00.000-07:00

Who knows? A wisdom tooth is growing! Don't know why, i just believed i was immune to it! Now, my tongue keeps flipping backwards to touch THAT tooth. Been a long while since i last did that, the last time was in Secondary school, when the last of the milkies came out. Hopefully it gives me some wisdom for the coming exams. Actually, i just hope it doesn't hurt! Or start pushing all the other teeth until everything gets out of shape! How frightful!

Waiting...

2006-04-12T03:00:00.000-07:00

... for calls that don't come is FRUSTRATING. For 2 days!!! And it's not a guy lah, please. Not in that context anyway. Is it that difficult to connect an international call? Pukes!

Full steam... choochoo!

2006-04-10T14:05:00.003-07:00

marseille yachts at the port

the freezing water the guys dipped their feet in!

beautiful!

the famous boulabaisse seafood curry lookalike soup that we didn't quite take to

we're strong like napoleon! the arc de troimphe

eiffel by night

the glittery!

the louvre we never got to go into

Everyone's mugging their head off. Including me. haha. The library is packed to the brim! And, such a nerd i am, i'm actually sad the library's gonna be closed for 4 days! Do they really need such a long good friday break... ?!?! Yeah lah, i've officially declared myself a bookworm. But, i'm way behind what I intend to cover by now. And studying for IR is scary cos the questions can come from anywhere so I'm not even sure if I'm studying along the correct lines! I wish my productivity was Higher! Hurry Hurry study study! To all the LSEians, hang in there!

On a sidenote, i'm damn pissed that this plastic envelope that I was told to buy for the Singapore embassy to send my passport back in is actually UNNECESSARY!?!? And it cost me 4.50pounds for that bloody envelope?!?!

Oooh, here are some more pics from France

The drive...

2006-04-04T15:47:00.000-07:00

I just returned from a very enjoyable two day introduction to Investment banking thing and man, it was hell of a fun. When I first stepped out of the Canary Wharf tube station, I was like WOW, this is the place I wanna work in. I guess it's because I haven't seen like skyscrappers in a long long time. It reminded me of City Hall and Shenton Way. And it was so cool how all the men were wearing their blazers, they just look really smart.

So, we got lots of chances to speak to representatives from the investment banks and I was assigned to Citigroup and Morgan Stanley. Excellent stuff man, we visited the banks, and it's just so nice and professional looking, saw the trading floor at Citigroup, damn exciting! And then we were talking to the people within the differnt divisions in IBanking, there is so much to learn, fixed income, equities, derivatives, private banking, hedge funds, global transaction services, risk management etc etc etc. And we were assigned to like do one case study on acquisition and another on trading and it was so fun! It was challenging but not to the extent that you can't understand what is given to you. And then we had to do a presentation after that, and the guys "forced" me to do our part of the presentation. Like halfway through the preparation for the presentation, they did the twistie and said they weren't going to present... ?!?! I was the only girl in the group lah... for both the acquisition and trading one, for some strange reason but it was okae, i still had a great time anyway. I've learnt so much more about Ibanking and i'm pretty sure that's where i'm heading. Private banking appeals to me, quite alot. But the thought of the competition scares me to no end. One of the guys i was speaking to said that there were close to a thousand appplications for Citigroup summer internship and they only took in 30 people. What is the precentage? 3%?!?!

More than ever, I want the job so badly! An internship next summer is so important to get graduate employment. And there is really alot of preparation to do and I've got alot of thinking to do as well. The "role models", as they're called, who guided us in the case studies really know their stuff and I want to be like them too, guess the "role model" title fits well. And the thought of working with people from all over the world excites me to no end. Everyone's from a differnt country! And these big banks have excellent graduate training programmes that will equip you with the necessary skills in the financial market. Good job, good prospects, it's an excellent starting point for fresh graduates. But boy is the competition tough.

This is the urging and push that I need to get my studying going abit. Cos I realize that we're in the 3rd week of holidays and I still haven't gotten much done. It's getting a little worrying. (cold sweat) I'm dreaming of big things now, dream dream dream...

On a side note, i met this Korean guy at the IB session and he really reminded me of Fulun! The look, the slight goofiness. He's really quite funny... his actions. Like he didn't want to return the Citigroup and Morgan Stanley security passes we were given... cos it had our names printed on it and it kinda looked like an Employee pass. Haha! And he was explaining to me about that uphill road ( but feel as if you are going downhill road). Interesting!

I'm starting to acquire a fondness for raw smoked salmon, especially when it's eaten with cheese and bagel. Yummy.

Just let me watch one more episode of Beautiful Life before i Attack my books tomorrow. Discipline Discipline Discipline! My favourite letters are A and D. Sorry for being so random. Haha!

Happiness ;)

2006-04-01T10:43:00.000-08:00

Ah! I'm so happy cos I just met Uncle. It didn't seem too long ago since he was last here. But it must have been around 4 months. Even though it was just half a day, can't describe the happiness of having family around. So, we went shopping, the plan was to go to Harrods but the stupid bus decided to terminate service at tottenham court road! So angry, so we ended up shopping at Oxford Street, man it was packed packed packed. When we went to Topshop, i swear i saw more people than clothes. And Spring is finally here i think. Glorious weather except for the short showers.

And then we headed to Kam Tong for dinner. Damn nice, much better than Chinatown. Time flew so fast and it was time for him to leave before i knew it. I can't wait for summer.

Anw... studying's really crappy. Productivity is so low I'm not getting anywhere. All I want to do is watch Beautiful Life! Bah...

Eiffel

2006-03-29T05:11:00.000-08:00

Nah, two pictures of Eiffel by night! I'm too lazy to upload the rest!

I went to France with 2 bags and came back with 1.

2006-03-28T23:26:00.000-08:00

Bonjour! I am home! Back to the comfort of my little own room. What a trip full of unexpected twists and surprises.

It's hard to put everything down into words. Let's start with the bad. Probably the worst thing I would have imagined happening on a holiday... getting your entire bag stolen. In Nice. It's such a jinxed place I will never go back there again i swear. not only did i lose my bag, it also cost us a bomb to get to paris from nice, leaving us poor to the bone in Paris! After losing my wallet last term, I have been super paranoid about my valuables, alas, fate has it that i was to lose not just my wallet but the whole bag as well. Including passport, camera and phone. The 3 most important things. I was careless for 20sec. I left my bag on the floor at the table to get some mayonnaise and that was all it took. I remember that desperate rush to the door to give chase, running down the dark alleys, not knowing where to turn to. And I knew it was gone. The Puma bag with our picture is dumped somewhere in the back alleys of Nice. The bag I so eagerly explain to everyone that it's the picture of us, the girl power of 64.

But it would have been silly to harp on it, so we just went on with the trip. Paris is indeed the city of Romance. Every turn, there were beautiful buildings, such fine architecture. The Eiffel is GORGEOUS and the very first night we were in Paris, it burst into a million sparkly stars, lighting up the entire Eiffel. And then of course we strolled along the famous Champs Elysees which we thought didn't live up to the hype, we much preferred Galleries Lafayette which is something like the Covent Garden of Paris. You know... Oxford street = champs kinda thing. THere were these suspicious Chinese touts along the Champs which kinda spoiled the experience abit... conmen! I really like the Arc de Triomphe too, this huge arc that Napoleon built to celebrate the declaration of France as a republic (hope i didn't get the facts wrong). The Tuleries Garden is really nice too, directly infront of the Louvre. I remembered reading about how Robert Langdon and Sophie Neveu drove along the Tulieres Garden after they escaped the Louvre. Cool. But alas, fate was playing us out again because we couldn't enter the Louvre. We read that it was open till late on Mondays, so we decided to go in the evening, only to discover to our horror that it closes at 5.45pm. We wanted to go on Tuesday, our last day, only to discover to a bigger horror that the Louvre is closed every Tuesday. All the way in Paris and we didn't even get to go in! What to do... ?

Paris is just really different from Marseille and Nice. Our common favourite is this small town near Marseille called Aix-en-Provence, a pretty chill-out town where we sat at Uncle Sam's and ate delicious salmon Paninis and sugar crepes, just watching the world go by. There was a wonderful fine arts museum there as well. It's a charismatic town full of well-dressed French, busking in the sun, blatantly people-watching (hey, we should do that too... you know what the French do, they sit with their chairs facing the outside, how discrete can you get). It was also where i spotted the David Beckham look alike. Handsome man! We saw the student strike at Aix too, pretty cool, no violence or anything, just peaceful strike with a police car following behind, i think they were enjoying it, wearing ghost faces and holding placards that read "The French Revolution".

And anw... it's such a big world out there you wouldnt believe who i met in Paris! Teo Eng Siang, we just looked at each other for a second and i wasnt sure if it was him, and Andre wasnt with us so when he finally came along, we went on our quest of Teo Eng Siang, didn't take too long to find him and it was just kinda strange that the world is indeed this small. And Hf met her RJ friend in Paris too, shopping. Maybe it's the shopping maniac in all of us. All roads lead to shopping?

It was a wonderful trip, except the stuff that happened in Nice. The ride from Nice to Paris was surprisingly scenic, we all got along, laughed alot, ate alot of baguettes, played alot of Spades, walked till we dropped, and spent till we were broke. Thank goodness Jesse could speak French, otherwise, we're pretty much doomed cos the French just don't like/don't know how to speak English. Yeah, and we're all so impressed by his fluency that we wanna take up a third language too? The few phrases that i can remember are... palais vous anglias (Do you speak English?), Bonjour, Bonsour, Merci, Au Revoir. er... pathetic lah.

This morning, when I reached back hall, I had a wonderful surprise that left me wet-faced. A big thank you to Kelvin. And Mummy, I love you!

Now, it's time to get studying, ah, the inertia. The exams are one and a half months away, I can't wait for it to be over!

Off i go!

2006-03-20T16:22:00.000-08:00

Oh, Les mis was a blast! I like it so much! Vera... I can so imagine you'd love this! Singing along to all those lyrics that you can memorise. Fantastic!

I'm off to France tomorrow, hope it'll be a blast! And away with the riots... please please! See you guys soon with pictures ;) Study hard for your exams!

How I wonder what you are?

2006-03-18T15:28:00.000-08:00

"I wake up
Thoughts of you
Tattooed to my mind
As I wonder
What to wear
What to eat
Who to be
Will I see you again"

-with courtesy from miss hf's blog.

I wish I could wake up and forget this folliness on my part ever happened. Grow up Grow up Grow up.

The timetable is out!

2006-03-16T15:21:00.000-08:00

And guess what... i will finish my exams by 22nd MAY. Oh my... that's like how fast... the exams span all of one week. the bad thing is... IR is immediately after econs. BAH. Har? Hope i'll be all ready to conquer the papers by then, haha. That's like in 2 months time, in 2 months time... i'll be free as a bird. That leaves me almost a month before i go home, wonder what i can do with so much time. We'll see how it goes... but oh, i can't wait for 22nd May.

2006-03-15T13:26:00.000-08:00

Come, let's bitch about the weather. Have I told you how I would always curse under my breath as i walk back home from school. Even though it's just a short 10 minute walk away. Yeah, i've been cursing for months, and i don't think i will stop cursing anytime soon. Check.. weather forecast for next 5 days.. is still.. what -1 to 6 degrees. NO!!! Check, Barcelona is 14degrees today. Ah, now i feel like going to Spain cos France is still so cold. NO!!! This is not happening!

Come, let's bitch about my pro-Singaporeanism. I wouldn't say it's a bad thing but I just realize I have practically zero foreign friends except for those in my IR class. IR rocks... see, studying international relations gives you international friends. Yeah, I was slapped in the face at the DPM Wong Kan Seng dinner when one of the guys i spoke to was scolding all those people who knew only Singaporeans. Like OUCH. Which is pretty true anyway. It was quite funny the way he said... "You come all the way here for an INTERNATIONAL education to make INTERNATIONAL friends!" Yeah, he must have said it twice. Spent practically the entire first term settling and adapting and I just heckcared the making more foreign friends part. So guess what my resolution for next academic year is... I'm going to make more foreign friends! Yeah, a resolution even before this term's over. And what is the action plan... I'll go back in June to train my rusty badminton skills again and join badminton next year, knowing how i'll always go back on my words, it is thus the duty of ping,lin,min to play with me. Regardless of how pro you guys are and how lousy i am.HAHAHAHAHA. Or, we could play beachvolleyball, and then see if my volleyball is up to standard. HAHAHAHA. Or... we should just do both!!! YES YES YES? And... pin,lin,min, guess who i heard is coming to LSE next year, i almost did a merlion when i heard it.

Alison was just telling me about how "things have changed" when she went back to Singapore in December... and that was only like 3 months after we left. Sounds so scary, 9 months after having left the beloved island, i wonder what would have changed?

I need a haircut. The ends are flying in all directions, dried and frayed. It's bad. Soon Soon. Maybe Friday.

And... the theme of last week was food. Emiley is such a great cook. Her bbq chicken is to die for, let me recap what we had... sambal egg, bbq chicken, mixed veg, gado gado, braised fatless pork, and tiramisu for dessert. Oh Oh Oh... Oooh, gasp! Fantastic stuff. I wish i could cook well too! You need passion for cooking i realize, where's the passion? And yes, i just got the recipe for the hwachong night truffle, sounds tough, but oh, it's just so nice. I'm gonna try it, one fine day. SPL dinner was just OKAE. Like i wouldnt pay that amount of money for that kinda food, but it's free so who cares? ;) And of course DPM, i was stuck with the PMO for so long, and a whole bunch of psc scholars talking to him about the civil service, like BOO!! I dont' care, just give me my laksa and char kway teow. Yeah, i was salivating as i watched EVERYONE around me holding mountain heapload of food on their plates. In the end, i didn't have time for a second helping of the laksa. BOOO! It was so funny, i was telling my mother that i paid 6pounds for a bowl of prawn mee at chinatown and she nearly fainted. Yeap, that's a really faint spell inducing price. I just can't boast about the Beach Road prawn mee enough.for $5, you get HUGE prawns, wonderfully tasty soup, generous serving of chalots and chilli. and a separate serving of ngoh hiang and lime juice to go with it. Oh, the $5 is only for the noodle. But wow, it's really THE best, i swear.

Theme of this week is ... theatre. Friday will be Asian boys, and Saturday will be ROJAK. Rojak better be good, I'm paying so much just to support Marvin. Monday shall be Les Mis, ooh, finally, i can't wait! And the holidays beckon. I just wrote down a whole list of things I wish would happen, oh, how i wish they will ALL happen.

Laughing at myself

2006-03-14T13:36:00.000-08:00

I was working on the essay in the library today and i found myself smiling to myself more often than actually writing anything down on the paper. This is ridiculous!

Pasta

2006-03-13T16:21:00.000-08:00

Sometimes, i just want to KILL myself! Agony... pure agony!!!

why oh why...

2006-03-11T05:59:00.000-08:00

Did you know? I don't believe this man, just checked the weather forecast and it's still so cold until next Wednesday at least(as far as the weather forecast can go). Flor, your resources not reliable lah!!! This is so upsetting, I wanna peel off layers and go running, but the weather... tomorrow is...(drumrolls ...) 2degrees to 2 degrees. What is this???

I slept until the latest time yet, because of the slumber party at 419. Before that, we had steamboat and then our guest-of-honour made her grand entrance at 10.30pm with almond jelly, chocolate cake and we boiled some tang yuan. It was so funny and fun, girls rock! Hahahaha. And, thanks for entertaining my frivolous thoughts, all the endless possibilities, it all sounded so possible and i woke up this morning with a clear head ( vs spouting nonsense at 4am in the morning) to realize that perhaps it was just wild fantasizing. Haha, but it was good while it lasted ;)

The Big "I" returns, conquer the demon you must!

The BIG I

2006-03-09T15:24:00.000-08:00

"I" has been bugging me! I wish it just dropped down from the sky. I love magic, stuff dropping down from the sky. How unrealistic. BAH! But what's got to be done has to be done... I mean serious business here.

I met my IR teacher today and i absolutely love him. He's so kind and encouraging I almost feel bad that I didn't do my work better, seriously, i almost felt embarrassed and that's a really weird feeling, never imagined a teacher could invoke such emotions. Anyway, yeah, he's the perfect American gentleman, I LIKE! Polite, humorous, smart, charismatic. awwwwwww! I saw his research paper on public diplomacy and nearly fainted, it's supposed to be a 330 page report! Brilliant stuff.

Less than 2 weeks to the end of term, getting fidgety and restless. I wanna go France already. An essay more to go, can't believe the academic year is more or less coming to a conclusion! Like werrrrrrrt! Too fast... too fast!

Looking forward to a weekend of great FOOD! Singaporean style on Saturday, Thai style on Sunday and Wong Kan Seng style on Monday. Yay ;)

Online shopping

2006-03-08T18:01:00.000-08:00

Spent the past 3 hours browsing online. Saw a whole load of nice stuff! Oh well.. talk about wasting time...!!! Mad about flats.

cheaters!

2006-03-08T13:29:00.000-08:00

EH! somebody stole my brand new bottle of jam! I don't believe this! Maybe someone broke the entire bottle and is too cowardly to admit it! And i just bought 2 croissants that were supposed to be reduced price but they charged me the original price! Why am I paying the original for nearly expired croissants! Irritating!

pictures for you!

2006-03-05T14:07:00.000-08:00

US!

Volleyballers, kinda. Haha! Me, adrian, justin, mich, jiaying

marvin and me.

director sengteck and me

Girlies! Eehui, Angela, me, Gillian and Chermain

Thank you you guys!

Anyway! i'm so pissed! I wanted to delete one particular photo that was repeated and stupid blogger deleted all the photos i painstakingly uploaded! This sucks! So, the number of photos have been reduced to these few. Angry!!!

drained but happy ;)

2006-03-04T14:42:00.000-08:00

Ah! Yesterday's performance was a blast! I forgot my lines without knowing! How cool is that! But yeah, i enjoyed myself so much, my last one hour 20 min of fame. Hahaha! I am so glad everyone liked madam white snake! I've probably done it so many times to actually find "her" that funny. But oh well! Now that SPL is over, it feels kinda weird to not have to go down to london bridge everyday! Ah, the audience's laughter and applause it what's gonna keep me going back for more of it. I'm a "hopeless attention seeker" in that sense, i love the feeling of everyone watching me act. Hahahahahahah!

London games today, played volleyball where we got "thrashed" but still emerged second cos there were only two teams playing! Haha, yay, got a medal. What's worst.. its LSE vs LSE. And netball, was well COLD. I hate playing in the cold! Oh i miss mih so! That last glimpse... how precious! Now, i'm thinking of when i will niagamihees. BLAH!!!

I'm zonked now... BIG time. And down with a sorethroat. I need rest.

Oooh.. the adrenaline... i like

2006-03-03T06:28:00.000-08:00

Last night was a blast! In spite floundering my lines, i was on such a high... except the initial few minutes after the show, where i thought i screwed up. The audience didn't even know the show ended until backstage started clapping... i nearly died! But thank you so much for all your encouragement, feedback, comments, i knew all the effort hasn't gone to waste. Thank you you all for the flowers as well, as jx said, yes, i felt like a big star! I wonder why i was so frustrated just a week or so back... but thanks Gerald for encouraging me to never give up what i love doing.

Tonight, will be the last night. Of all my Hi my name is tracy tan's. I think i'll miss it when it's over. But man, i'm going to put in all my heart and soul... i promise.

Just a sidenote... tasted the most amazing milkeshake ever. It's banana peanut butter milkshake. I know it sounds gross, but it's really fantastic! I think 3 ppl sharing is a good number, cos it's a pretty huge glass and you can't drink too much cos u'll get sick of it. It's the kind of thing that you can't have too much of. AHh.... was on a peanut butter high! Anw...flor! your peterpan peanut chunky butter is really good! The peanut is easier on the mouth than skippy, skippy's peanut is abit too hard, tends to cut your gum as you chomp your bread. Haha! And i'm so glad you caught the meaning behind the voice messages ;)

The BIG day

2006-03-01T16:56:00.000-08:00

The Big day is finally here. I have so much confidence in our production! Our last full dress and i flopped my lines and completely didnt appear to do my scene at a certain part. Gosh, how freaky. But all is ironed out and i'm sure things will work out tmr and friday. I'm so excited!!! But i'm so tired tooooooo.... but i'm so excited tooooooo. Blah, extremely incoherent now, my eyelids are half closed again. Of all weeks to change class time, it had to be THIS week. 9 am class, it's 1 am now... i'm so dead meat. And i haven't finished my homework for tomorrow! Ooops.

SPL... bring it on!

Zonked

2006-02-25T16:23:00.000-08:00

The longest rehearsal yet. For 12 hours! Woah... my eyelids are half open now.

Anyway, i realized the power of make-up. And mascara, Yi hui's supowerful mascara gave me the lashes i could only dream of. Yeah, when i go back to Singapore, i'm going to become a vainpot and start using all the eyeliner things... they make your eyes HUGE u know! I still can't stand the crimper though, it's like some torture device, gosh, so freaky, was so afraid all my eyelashes would drop out. Oh, that sounded so bimbotic.

But i can't really think straight now. So i shall just leave it as that.

barca vs chelsea

2006-02-22T15:02:00.000-08:00

Heya! Beeen aloooooooong time since i last watched a soccer match and i just watched a great one! Thanks to Huifang for suggesting. Woah, it was a great match man. Watching it English style in a smoke filled pub. I was afraid there'll be English hooligans and thugs cos we were supporting Barca! I love the classic Messi "look at the other guy then pretend to roll over" action. Haha! Anyway, i like paolo ferrero.. eh.. is that how u spell it hf? He looks like... like the guy from dirty dancing! Our HOT guy remember? hahahaha..

One week to go... i'm getting psyched up!

And yes ppl, i'll kop a few to bring back okae... i have to frame one up and put in my living room. Hahaha! Now... i feel like a big star! I realize this is actually the first real drama production i'm acting in, cos all the previous shows i acted in were not so formal, or were musicals or shakespearan... like those in secondary school. Don't ask me how, but i could somehow trick people into believing that i can sing when i actually croak.

Anyway, i heard about the contact lenses thing RENU in Singapore, my mother was so worried, called me twice to remind me to STOP wearing contact lenses. It is quite scary. Destined to be bespectacled...

i just had to post THIS

2006-02-21T14:46:00.000-08:00

Even though i look bad in the postcard! but heck, it's not everyday you get your own postcard. So there! And anyone in London who might be reading this, Please come for PIE/Spoilt on 2nd and 3rd March at King's College(Guy's Campus) London bridge tube station, 7.30pm. Because i'm acting! ahahahahhaha! Show your support! Tickets going for only 5 pounds .

Oh, and i know where to get FREE haircut already. Just beside my hall, this rather posh looking place. Never noticed there was actually a hair saloon!

2006-02-20T12:52:00.000-08:00

Er. I think i'm not working as hard as i should? I don't know. Seems that people are starting to get ready for exams. Yeah lah, it's just me panicking cos i can't even smeeelll the exams at all. Oh well, i'm sure when the time comes, i'll know when to start working. Can't really swallow econs, it's like so tough... bah. Don't worry Mummy, Papa, i'm not playing a fool here! Not going to waste your money yeah ;)

Anyway, i so enjoyed my trip to TESCO today. Haven't been there since December! Bought chocolate cake and HUGE strawberries, and dao gay... comfort food eh. Now i realize how POK the sainsburys is. BAH! And i finally got my eggs from Chinatown, the cheapest eggs in town. Hurrah! It was damn funny cos Florrine and i were working home with 4 plastic bags each, how aunty can you get! And i'm very angry that my whole cucumber got FROZEN in the refrigerator. And someone stole my laughing cow cheese. MY laughing cow!!!

Scribbles

2006-02-20T02:22:00.000-08:00

The case of the noseblower: There's this guy in the library, spotted him twice at the same spot. He blows his nose damn loudly! I think the whole library can hear. I swear! You know what's the worst thing, i can't hear no muscus sound at all?!?! He's just like blowing air ... air. And he uses so much force... i can imagine the velocity of the air that's flowing through his nose and the thousand hairs being swept by the tornado within. Yeah, so everytime i hear it, i just want to laugh. Giggle to myself.

guilty

2006-02-18T09:47:00.000-08:00

I dislike the competition. 2 vs. 1. Frankly, i'd much rather if it was just one. This is bad, feel as if we've reached a plataeu in terms of standard. But it's not good enough. I can just imagine the next two weeks...It's quite upsetting when you think you've tried hard, but someone tells you that it's still not good enough. Focus focus focus. It's been a long drawn affair and the devil in my head is saying... i can't wait for this to be over. That's the devil, but the angel will say... come on, it's only 2 weeks! Your friends are coming to watch you ( i assume you are huh.. haha) and you're not going to disappoint them. Something tells me this is the last production i'm going to be in. It's just too tiring. Or maybe i am really getting OLD.

Editing

2006-02-16T12:37:00.000-08:00

Argh, i wish i could just hand up the essay. I've got to cut it by 300 words and every other point seems just as important. Bah, and it's really scary when i read my essay over and over again, the less it seems to be answering the question! What is wrong man ~!

And i'm getting lazier and lazier to cook dinner! I wish food will just drop from the sky on my table! ( nono birdshit! )Everytime i go grocery shopping, will have to plan, hmmm.. when can i eat this, hmmm when will i be eating out, when do i have to freeze the chicken. Trivial stuff like that, too domesticated. Yucks, but then again, cooking can be reallly easy, like what i just did. throw in the chicken breast, mushroom, chilli, sauces, and FRY. Tada! one dish! Bah, gonna buy some pizzas for next week cos it's so hassle free!

Rehearsals are heating up! Marvin and me put up a satisfactory performance on Tuesday. It can only get better... yes? yes? YES!

Feeling less lazy

2006-02-15T03:42:00.000-08:00

yibing and me ;) She looks so cute as always!

Happy Valentines Day!

2006-02-14T14:37:00.000-08:00

group photo

chocolates! Look at the teeth marks. WOah... my favourite!!!

EMCEES! Isn't what i'm wearing familiar. Haha. Eh, first time i tried putting on make up for myself... hahah! except for the eyeshadow which Yibing helped me with. Haha!

I am no romantic but oh wells.. spread the love! Happy friendship day ! Haha, what a sad v-day spent having rehearsals and back in hall eating INDOMEE for dinner. Haha, and thats not the worst thing, have to start writing essay. Bah. Oh well, yeah, i'm gonna eat this very nice chocolate that i got from hwachong night. But i can't really bear to eat it! Can't believe someone and it's a guy actually MADE the chocolate! Here's a picture of it, i know it looks like hmmm.. sthg not very appetizing, but it's DAMN nice. I swear, it's like the kind of standard u expect from Godiva. It's heavenly! I'm trying to contact that guy, cos i want to marry him. Hahahhahaha, no, i just want the recipe cos its so damn nice, there's like some wine taste and.. argh.. its just SO good.

Oh, and before i forget to announce. I'm in a single room now. Yes, a SINGLE room. By a strange turn of events. Woohoo!

Alrightey, here are some pictures of hwachong night. Im too lazy to upload, just a few.

Oh, and did u know... was supposed to go for the ma ying jeou talk. BUT... it was full house like almost 3 hours before he was scheduled to give the talk!! and i thought i could get in just by being 15 min early. Damn!! But, well, i did see him walk past.. hahah and it was damn funny cos there were girls (OUR AGE) shouting Jeou-ge Jeou-ge... hao shuai oh! WERT!!! I know he's charming lah, but quite disturbing to idolise someone the age of your father right. Yeah, like pop idol, lots of cameras flashing and screaming girls. Amusing. Haha. Luckily they put up the transcript of his talk. Too popular he is. Alright, my essay is seriously screwed, i don't have time!!!

2006-02-11T19:17:00.000-08:00

Just wanted to say that tonight was a BLAST! And i'm DEAD tired too. But it was really fun ;) Hwachong rocks ! as corny as it sounds... haha

2006-02-10T15:38:00.000-08:00

Hmm.. lovely mussels with lager and delicious fries... and that apple crumble. Rocks man!

And Proof is a good show. Been watching so many movies! Thank god they've all been good.

And Mah Ying Jeou is coming to LSE on monday. Exciting stuff, hope he gives a good talk. We're all hoping he'll be super charismatic, charm us all and make us go weak in the kneeees... Harvard grad leh... haha!

Er... I must add... i'm tired man, been sleeping late every night! Bah... And rehearsals are really tiring... Tiring tiring!

this Saturday...

2006-02-06T09:33:00.000-08:00

Make or Break... You know what i mean VEEEEEE! hahaha! wake me up leh!

Reinvigorated

2006-02-06T06:23:00.000-08:00

After a super boring econs lecture where i repeatedly dozed off( its the insufficient sleep lah..!) But...Woah, just attended one of those IR classes that left me feeling more knowledgable and glad that the endless hours i've been spending on IR has been worth it. And there's a public lecture tomorrow on IR i'm definitely going to attend. IR rocks!

2006-02-05T12:19:00.000-08:00

MAN!!! Feeling like a pubescent teenager!! huh......!

exhausted!

2006-02-04T16:58:00.000-08:00

Started off the day with netball... was great fun at first until Alison twisted her knee... Poor girl! Now she's on crutches :( Hope you recover soon girl!

And then was back for Holborn dinner which was a hit once again! April came along from York, was nice meeting her again after so long! Too bad she didnt stay for our dinner! Played asshole daidee until 1am... and now i'm back finally in the room. And tmr, i have rehearsal at 9am?!?! and i havent finished memorising my script! i'm dead i tell you! I have a presentation on monday and i'm not ready! And my very responsible presentation mate decided to pang seh me on thurs monrning when we were supposed to meet to finalise the presentation thingy. I'm dead... all my work. Bad, but man, it was real fun! Tmr's gonna be fun too but.. my work! damn! nmind

After Winnie updates her photos, i'll kope some to put up.

Exhausted....! Yawn

picture!

2006-02-03T14:17:00.000-08:00

I almost forgot! That's us in our ching chong tops!
(L-R) Colin, Emiley(owner of the catering business), Andre,me Jo, Ling and Watson!
Fun stuff :)

Think...

2006-02-03T13:22:00.000-08:00

As i type, the sound from a Japanese dvd plays in the background. What's new... Noise pollution as you guys call it. But i'm not doing any work so I shan't bother. But doesn't it suck that every waking moment that i'm in the room ( which is really little btw, considering i've been getting home at 12 for the past 3 days), the sound from tv or the comp permeates the room. And then at times like these, when my mind wanders... you know what silly things i think of, how nice i't d be if i have a bf, i could choose not to go back to my room! (Okae, stupid random thoughts, see what stupid things i think of! )Gah... i've resorted to staying in the library to do my work and i'm actually glad when i have to stay out late like the past 3 days cos it means i wouldnt have to hear all the sounds. I dont know if i'm a sound phobic or what okae. At the end of the day, sometimes all you want is a little quiet... even if you're not doing any work. Personal Space. Don't get me wrong, i'm not upset or anything... cos i've been there, done that. And as i've said, i'm really alot busier this term... that's why i've been out so late so often. I was this close to getting a single room, but the guys who negotiated the deal with me havent gotten back to me yet, and it's been quite some time so i'm not depending on that at all.

Anyway, i just ate the most horrible fish ever. Didn't know i'd be eating out so often this week.. so i left one slice of salmon in the fridge.. and today's the last day before it expires so i hurry cooked it. Despite the amount of butter i added and all the garlic... wah lao... it still tasted so bad... like the about to rot kinda taste. Gross man! What a put off... hope no diarrhoea. Yucks...

OH yeah, i watched Munich a couple of days back and it's a great show man! Go watch it if you can ;)

Work yesterday was fun! I'm 60 pounds richer now. Hurrah! mingling with all those guests... hahah, and they took a real interest in us cos we're students. And quite a few many of the guests were LSE alumni. Yeah... see how they all go on to be successful people. I picked up a piece of advice from Colin, this Singaporean LSE alumni guy that we "worked" for. The moment you get tired of what you're doing, move on. You have approximately 40 years of working life, don't waste your youth. Which was probably what his wife was doing... she was a corporate lawyer in Silicon Valley before she came to London and decided to call it quits... and she set up a catering business! They are a really lovely couple!

Sometimes, i wish i thought more about life. Like the meaning of life. hahaha. I do, when i think that, then i'll think of weird random thoughts like hmmm... what's the big deal with tolerating a room mate. Yeah, myopic thoughts like these... So... what's the meaning of life. What the heck am i doing in London. Hmmm.... i'm seeing the world, i'm doing my parents proud, i'm learning more about myself as time passes. So, what's the meaning of life? i'm not suicidal ah, please. Like those drama tcs shows that show ppl committing suicide cos they can't find meaning in life. Sometimes, i wish we all never have to grow up! Bahhh

A Great New year ;)

2006-01-29T14:53:00.000-08:00

Fulfilling new year. The stomach's very contented! Yesterday night's holborn dinner was a blast! The food was great, we all ate till we exploded... our 14 course holborn dinner! of which 6 were desserts. Hmmm.. fantastic stuff and then we played asshole daidee which was so funnny! It wasn't a bad way to spend chinese new year at all!

Today, had steamboat! Dao pok, mushroom, vege, meatball, fishball, seaweed, crabstick, chicken, fishcake..And Cassandra made super nice Sushi.. ooh lah lah. Woah, not at all deprived here. AND we had Bengawan solo cookies, pineapple tarts. Erm.. bah kwa, shrimp rolls, eggy love letters. You seeeeee, woah, real Chinese New Year style man! None of the essentials missing except angpow and family.

Here are some pictures of our holborn dinner and singsoc CNY dinner at Chinatown.

Oh yeah, had HC night rehearsal today... and i saw the 2002 prom king. Okae, hope none of the HC night ppl reads this. Woah, he's good looking man and he's gonna cat walk on that day. So exciting. hahaha!!! I'm not a pervert lah okae.. a little eye candy wouldnt hurt! Argh, end of CNY weekend, was so fun eating and not doing work. Er... back to work now :(

we all think this looks like a quan jia fu. Must be the Chinewe New year mood!

Menu for the night!

Florrine's tangyuan, everyone was fighting for the peanut!

red bean soup cooked bobo hitam style with coconut milk!

Roast pork and duck... great stuff!

New invention, prawn tail pork ball

My seafood vege stirfry. I think winnie's camera made it look nicer than it actually is. Ooops!

Winnie's super fat herbal chicken! Super nice!

Chickenwings marinated in hoisin sauce

Deepfried wanton with mayo

uh huh, this was dessert after singsoc dinner at rendezvous. Damn nice lah!! And it finished all too fast.

Girlie power! We're all wearing either black or grey.. aiy... bad luck, choy!

Chinese New Year away from home...

2006-01-27T09:26:00.000-08:00

AH! Chinese New Year is coming! And... to kick off the festivities, i'll be going for a CNY dinner at Chinatown later, followed up by a hall steamboat on Saturday followed by another steamboat (thanks to Kahmei's kind invitation! Another steam boat, hurrah!) Yeah, no angpows! The closest i got to tasting Chinese New year food was just now at Andre's place where i had mini bahkwas and shrimp rolls! And Jiawei and Watson made pineapple tarts, can u believe it and it tasted great! Not bad.. FLorrine and i are going to attempt making tang yuan and almond jelly.. her idea, so ambitious! i'm not in the least bit confident, but you never know how wonderful it might turn out (DONT CHUCKLE!) Anyway, my father said he'll keep the ang-pow money for me... like anyone will give me since i didn't go to their house to bai4 nian2 right?!?! Hope the next few days of eating will be fun!

Anyway, first week into our intensive rehearsal and i'm tired man! Coming home late at night, and of course the business challenge which took up so much of our time over the past 2 weeks, The final product's pretty good, really hope we'll get into the finals! And with another essay and presentation looming, i'm gonna run out of steam! Nono... I can't! I won't! So funny... we just came up with the script for Hwachong night and it sounded really hilarious, hopefully it'll hit the right buttons. Ah.. it's chinese New year! First time i'm not spending it with family and for the next two years too.. Booo, it's okae. I remembered last year was complaining about not feeling Into the mood for chinese new year, maybe it ain't that bad missing it huh. I'm consoling myself!

Haha, oh yeah, i got this 50 pound job next week and our "client" is giving us an extra 30 pounds to buy an oriental top which we can keep afterward! So nice right, ah, so excited about getting the top. Apparently, our "client" is this big shot, so all the guests that night are like super high corporate fliers. Oh no, so stressful, so scared i'll spill the drinks or food over some lady's expensive white dress. Knowing how clumsy i am... Please, bless me with steady hands for a day.

Okae, Happy Chinese New Year everyone! Gong xi Fa cai! xue ye jing bu, wan shi ru yi, shen ti jian kang, tian tian kai xin! ENjoy the new year goodies and remember to exercise afterwards. Haha ;)

A hectic Saturday

2006-01-21T16:22:00.000-08:00

Erm.. i'm kinda amazed by my energy level these days.. little sleep but still managing to survive pretty well. I started my day at 8am.. out of the house by 11.30 for rehearsal and then the SPN mentoring thing... and i spent the next 6 hours walking around, drinking coffee, eating dinner... looking for dessert... ended up eating Local desert... like.. ICE Kachang! the most expensive ice kachang ever!! Guess how much? cost almost S$9?!?! Haha, anw i'm beginning to convert less and less which is not a bad thing i guess.

I met my mentor... she's this quite hips "bad girl" in the sense that she's discouraging me from doing internship in year 1 (Gasp!) To like enjoy life more... err.. rebellion! She was saying about how there are few job opportunities for Ibankers in Singapore etc and how she felt weird going back to Singapore because all her friends seemed to have moved on and she's enjoying herself really much in London staying with 2 other guys from America and Lebanon whom she found through the internet... er.. now u know why i label her as a "bad girl" haha. Yeah. it was quite weird cos when we had nothing much to say to each other, we both just stared into space and to break the ice... guess what i talked about... the weather! Argh, how boring but everyone talks about the weather here. How these few days have been surprisingly pleasantly warm but how next week will dip to 0 degrees again. Anw, she's earning really quitealot working as an Investment banker. Not sure the exact amount but from what i heard.. it's close to $200 000 a year. Yeah, but the taxes here are freakilyalot too. So, yeah, there's this craze ... i mean, we're at the LSE. The school that's obsessed with money making and banking that kinda stuff, so u're drawn into it. Argh, yeah, maybe we should just chill more in year one... and not fret about internships. Boo... er, not quite possible i think though it'd be nice to be a little more laid back.

Ahhh... i've got loads of work to do, rehearsals are going to be 3 times a week... hwachong night's coming up, er, volunteering starting... Need more energy... ENERGY!

HURRAH

2006-01-18T14:59:00.000-08:00