Bite Me...

Shooting for the Stars

2008-08-11T22:13:00.003+08:00

Now that's what I call an opening ceremony! I'm loving the Olympics so far. It only comes around once every four years and its great fun cheering people on.

Sadly, quite a number of the greats have retired. Popov, Nemov, Khorkina, Thorpey...all gone off to pasture. It ain't quite the same without them. Sure, you have Phelps dominating the pool now but what I would give to see him, Popov, Hoogie, Thorpe all competing in the same race again.

~~~~~~

After watching a play on Saturday, the conversation turned to the topic of being famous. Would I want or mind being famous one day?

I actually don't think I would mind it at all, but I think I would rather be famous in some sort of sports instead of the corporate world. Maybe its the guts and glory. Maybe its the adrenaline rush as you close in on victory after years of torturous training. Maybe it's cause it's being so much more alive than in a 9 to 5.

~~~~~~

It's quarterly sick time once again. I never fail to get sick every quarter and this is no exception. This time though, I've got a buffet of ailments - high blood pressure, migraine, stress, stiff neck and sleep deficit.

Figured something was wrong when my headache refused to go away after 3 days. It's not a sharp pain but a dull, throbbing one. But what is soooo annoying is that it refuses to go away and after so many days, I just want to crack my skull open and yell at the morons inside to shut the hell up.

So I finally got an MC and got sent home. Only thing is, I look and sound perfectly healthy...so my office is probably going to think I'm skiving off work to watch the Olympics -____-"

Wanderlust

2008-07-08T23:01:00.004+08:00

Choose Life. Choose a job. Choose a career. Choose a family. Choose a fucking big television, choose washing machines, cars, compact disc players and electrical tin openers. Choose good health, low cholesterol, and dental insurance. Choose fixed interest mortgage repayments. Choose a starter home. Choose your friends. Choose leisurewear and matching luggage. Choose a three-piece suite on hire purchase in a range of fucking fabrics. Choose DIY and wondering who the fuck you are on Sunday morning. Choose sitting on that couch watching mind-numbing, spirit-crushing game shows, stuffing fucking junk food into your mouth. Choose rotting away at the end of it all, pissing your last in a miserable home, nothing more than an embarrassment to the selfish, fucked up brats you spawned to replace yourselves. Choose your future. Choose life.

~ Trainspotting ~

~~~~~~~~~~~~

I love airports. There's just something about them that fascinates me to no end. Maybe it's the emotions of it all. You get to see the great big bear hugs when people reunite and then in the corner of your eye, you also spy the girl fighting back the tears as she sends a loved one off. It's so interesting just watching the people there and wondering who they are and what's their story.

Hence the reason why I briefly toyed with the idea of working in a airport/aviation industry. Maybe even as a stewardess. But I sobered up quickly enough. I have many virtues, but patience in handling idiotic passengers is NOT one of them.

So now for the next best thing: earn enough to afford to travel and jetset across the globe. Yes, that would severely deplete my reserves but I don't think I want to wake up one day and realise whilst brushing my teeth with my electric toothbrush that I forgot to live.

I would (hopefully) be able to afford the nicer things in life then but thats for that phase in life. I want to see the world now, through the fresh eyes of a young adult. I'll save the Reliance bus tours for when I'm all settled and living in a house with white picket fences, 2.5 children, a dog and a Honda.

A fork in the road

2008-06-25T23:00:00.002+08:00

It's June already so I reckon its time to take stock of things. I think I'm in a good place right now. Both mentally and professionally. Although that said, these things can only be viewed with certainty only in retrospect.

Anyways, I'm happy where I am now. I like my job. Recently its gotten incredibly hectic but I would take that ANYDAY than to be stuck in a mundane 9-5ver. A-N-Y-D-A-Y. At the very least it is fast paced and interesting and after my 23.5 years on earth, I've figured that I need to be kept on my toes or risk brain rot and demotivation.

But where do I go from here? Do I have the balls to live abroad?

Oh the Pain in my Brain

2008-06-10T23:03:00.002+08:00

If you ain't got no money, take your broke ass home.

In light of rising prices, I have adopted cost-saving measures in my everyday life. These include checking my tyre pressure ever so often. Actually, I very rarely do my own tyres. I'm all for feminism and all that jazz but ultimately when it comes to checking my engine and tyres, I'm more than happy to smile and "open eyes big big" at the stesen minyak abang to lend a helping hand.

The other measure I have/will adopt is to order wines by the bottle instead of by the glass. Hah!

~~~~~~~~

Geekfest '08

OMFG tell me that that wasn't the toughest mothereffing paper I'd ever seen in my life. Each little vignette must've been thought up by Satan himself. Everytime I faced another tough question (which was pretty bloody often), a few million of my brain cells committed suicide out of sheer misery. Yarghhhh.

Seeing as we have to register 30 minutes before the exam, there's nothing much better to do than to people watch. Here's the typical profile of your average charter candidate segmented by level.

Level 1 - Young, trendy, generally good looking yuppie executive types.
Level 2 - Young-ish, panda-eyed executive types with tortured and slightly demented looks in their eyes.
Level 3 - Old, definitely not trendy, balding, pot-bellied managerial types with no more life left in their eyes.

Is this what it takes to earn this blasted charter? My youth, the sparkle in my eyes and the hair on my head?! Of course not all charterholders are like that la but what I did see wasn't particularly encouraging.

~~~~~

Pop Quiz: Who can demonstrate the Dickey Fuller test?

Now, I'm not the most pure of mind but whaddya mean there's a statistical method called the Dickey Fuller test to test for the presence of a unit root? Can't you just use your hand?!

I kid, I kid.

Of course, given the rather unfortunate name, we cracked a good number of Dickey Fuller test related jokes, many of which just wouldn't translate into writing. But oh man, imagine the possibilities and usefulness of a two-tailed Dickey Fuller test.

Omfg, a quick google search just told me that there's an enhanced version called the Augmented Dickey Fuller test. This is just boggling me mind.

Climb Every Mountain

2008-05-31T17:15:00.002+08:00

I question my motivations behind signing up for this charter. Why do I want it? Do I even really need it? Why create additional stress in my life?

Yes, 7 days before the exam is the perfect time to lose motivation. Applaud me.

But really, I do find the material very interesting. And in that sense, that's when I knew I am in the right line of work. It's just that I subscribe to the Torture Thyself method of studying and while it has always worked like a charm in the past, I'm just losing the heart to inflict more pain on myself.

This could be temporary (in which case it probably means it's pms) or it could be a permanent structural shift and I had better damn well figure out how to nurture the dying flames back to life.

Just Breathe

2008-05-19T01:22:00.003+08:00

Mamma Mia
Asked my mom out to a movie the other night. Got told that the notice was too short and to

"Make appointment with me first next time"

Wtf?! It appears I now need to book my own mother if I want to see her. Also, a few days before that I handed her a sum of money to settle my car insurance. She called me later on to inform me that she was going to keep the change.

Dammit!

Stayin' Alive
The planets are aligning and coming together to collectively shoot me in the ass. The office is now a political game of chess. Work pipeline just got clogged with massive amounts of debris. My back just decided to sprain itself. The exam is in 20 days. And I've got the flu.

Time to crank it up a gear, dig deep and make like a kamikaze pilot. It's all or nothing, baby.

Around the World
So Rach and I plan to hit the tennis grandslams over the next two yrs. Next January we're supposed to go to Melbourne for the Aussie Open. Then its either London/Paris for Roland Garros or Wimbledon. In between all this I also plan to go to Hong Kong and Bali. Only thing outstanding is how the hell I am going to fund this short of selling my soul/body.

~~~~~~

And now randomly, here are some of the songs that form the soundtrack to my life:

1. 1979 - Smashing Pumpkins
2. Silent Sigh - Badly Drawn Boy
3. Special - Garbage
4. One Headlight - The Wallflowers
5. Don't Look Back in Anger - Oasis
6. The entire Parachute's album by Coldplay
7. Dreams - The Cranberries
8. Take a Bow - Madonna
9. Beautiful Ones - Suede
10. It Ain't Over Till its Over - Lenny Kravitz

Living like a student again

2008-05-07T23:10:00.002+08:00

The long labour day weekend was bliss. It was like uni all over again. We spontaneously decided to go for a midnight drive up genting for hot chocolate. However the night ended on a more exciting note as we went on a mad race down the hill chasing a lamborghini gallardo, the new civic R, and a brera coupe. I'd say we held our own pretty admirably ;)

Damn I want a sports car.

~~~~~~~~

Friday was boardgame mania at Mage cafe. Halli Galli and Taboo are just so goddamn fun. Watch out for the drinks though...I ordered a peach yoghurt smoothie, and got a sour cream and onion smoothie. Nice.

~~~~~~~~

How are my studies going?

That long weekend I did about 20 pages worth of studying. And the ensuing guilt factor overload has resulted in me going banzai and blitzing my textbooks. As a result...I am almost back on schedule. Go me!

Only 30 odd days to go. 30 days that will determine my passing or failing. 30 days to work my ass off so that I can claim my fees and bomb it all on some intensive HK/SG shopping.

Bring it on.

My own worst enemy

2008-04-16T21:57:00.003+08:00

I turned my office into my own personal discotheque blasting all my happiest mp3s last night when I had to stay back alone till 3am. Reason being I was hearing strange noises and the printer decided to go proactive and start up on its own accord. wtfffff.

Actually, I didn't quite make it to 3am. I left at 2.57am. Cos my stupid little pea of a brain kept having flashbacks to the movie The Exorcism of Emily Rose where all the witching and assorted devilry begins at 3am. I could see Emily in head, taunting me with contorted features as she scratches at the glass door with her dirty nails and vacant, blank stare.

I blame it on my many years of watching X-Files religiously. There's still one episode that affects me till this day. It was about this dude Eugene Tooms (yes, I still recall the name) who could stretch himself like the rubber man. He had yellow eyes and would lurk in the air-vents of a building.

TO THIS DAY, I still look at my own air-vent at home and freak myself out for no reason wondering if there are two yellow eyes looking back at me and whether he would slither down and snuff my life out with his rubbery fingers when I go to pee in the middle of the night. Not quite how I imagined I'd go, I must admit.

Songs in the Key of Tone Deaf

2008-04-06T15:26:00.003+08:00

I spent my Saturday night yodeling in Low Yat. Yes I am now the epitome of happening. Can't bloody believe we spent 6 hours and RM100 on karaoke. Surprisingly, it hasn't rained yet today. I was expecting them to shut the smart tunnel due to epic flooding after Leen and I massacred Unchained Melody =D

There are 3 Malay songs I know by heart. One is the national anthem, the other is the SMSJ song....and the third is Isabella by Search (:O).

Don't ask why. Ask me no questions and I tell you no lies.

I've always been rather reluctant to embrace my inner Ah Lian and Karaoke but hey! It's actually quite fun! How else can you get Rachel to rap or Zee Wan to dance to N'Sync. And surprise surprise, Uhu can sing Britney's Lucky suspiciously well.

Two posts in two days. This can only mean one thing - its CFA time again. Only when I have absolutely no time to do this shit do I go ahead and do this shit. I am either:

(a) procrastinating
(b) in denial
(c) trying to be hero
(d) all of the above

I choose D.

Speaking of D, reminds of a funny incident in Bangkok. Wacoal bra's are cheap there so I was checking some out and asked the lady about VAT in Bangkok. It went something like this:

Me: what about VAT?
Saleslady: You want D80? *skeptical look* <---wtf bitch
Me: No nooo V-A-T
Saleslady: D80?!!
Me: NOoooo. No D80! Too biggggg

Anybody who knows me, would know that D80 is wayyyyyyyyyy off the mark. But as they say, good things come in small packages so shut up y'all.

2008-04-05T15:56:00.002+08:00

April 2
It's weird when a day you used to celebrate no longer triggers the same feelings. You celebrate it because the person is around and you love the person dearly but when they are no longer in your life, the day slowly ceases to stand out on your calendar. It's not a conscious decision but one day many years down the line, you sit and reflect on the meaning the day used to hold.

The Ties that Bind
Human relationships are such complicated creatures. Each relationship with a friend is different. Some you laugh with, some you bitch with, some you gossip with, some you shop with. But the ones you can cry with, those are the gems. You can share your laughter, for that is easy. But more importantly, you must be able to share your tears. That takes trust.

Bangkok, I love you long time.

2008-03-24T23:21:00.004+08:00

Made to Measure
I love the tailors. The good ones are nice and good looking. The not so good ones also nice and good looking. I recommend tailoring your clothes at Paul's Fashion in Amari Watergate. Good quality and reasonable prices. And so value for money when you consider that Raoul charges 300+ for a shirt off the rack. And you can get all kinds of detailing done. Btw, turns out that my left arm is a good 1/2 inch shorter than my right :O Am wondering if I now qualify for handicapped parking.

The Early Bird Doesn't Necessarily Catch the Plane
First story of the trip though, is us ALMOST missing our flight. Air Asia decided to leave early. And our names were being announced via loudspeaker in the LCCT. After a mad dash to the counter, the lady was so rude to Ken. Then they macam sandiwara cerekarama acting whether to let us on board or not. Bloody hell. Leaving early is as bad as leaving late. And we weren't even late in the first place still kena attitude from them!!!

This lady was yelling on the airstrip for ken to run faster. RUN FASTER LA! LATE ALREADY STILL WANT TO MOVE SO SLOWLY. Seriously man. Drama first thing in the morning.

Pad Thai? Yes Please but Hold the Moo.
Our first meal in BKK was in the Platinum food court. 2 plates of pad thai downed. Then the next day we were supposed to visit the reclining Buddha. Somehow, we ended up whacking another two plates of Pad Thai at the nearby jetty (this was the Best. One. Ever). Never made it to see the Buddha =D. Mmmm love pad thai.

2 Tickets for the Family Show Please. Oh mai gawd.
Us: Just to make sure, what show is this yeah?
Boss: Family Show
Us: *!!!!* No ping pong?!
Boss: GOT! Got ping pong, banana, balloon, blades, darts, candle, coca cola...whatever also got.

I have to say, I found it rather boring. 10 point 10 for music selection though! They would alternate between Thai dangdut and power love ballads ala Celine Dion's My heart will go on. It's h i l a r i o u s. And Ken touched a bottle cap that came flying from............the abyss. The "menu" for the ping pong show was SO FUNNY. Pussy write letter. Pussy smoke. Danger Pussy. Omg I'm still cracking up about it. Hahaha

Foreign Relations: Stupid Farang Edition
Miscommunication with the taxi driver ended up with us on the way to some godforsaken Wat Saket (which was a dumping ground for 60k PLAGUE victims and doubles up as the city's crematorium) instead of Amari Watergate hotel. A 50 baht taxi ride turned out to be a 180 baht trip around the city. Lol.

In a separate incident, we were having supper by the roadside and Ken went to order:-

Ken: Egg? Mix mix egg? *does mixing gesture*
Thai Cook: Omelette?

Wahahahahaha stupid farang.

We'll just be having dessert today. Thank you very much.
We got all dressed up to go to Vertigo Restaurant up on Banyan Tree Hotel. At first the place was fully booked but somebody cancelled and the staff told us that today was our LUCKY DAY! So up we went and oh my god the view was amazing! We got a fantastic table as well. The wait staff handed us the menu and oh my god the PRICES were AMAZING!! Cheapest main was 1200 baht (grilled chicken).

We opted for dessert instead. Hahaha. But really, that view is to die for. And I recommend ordering the Moon Romance cocktail. That is really good and delicious.

Can't Touch This
I got felt up on Sukhumvit by a middle eastern man. @#@&#*!#&. He just brushed up against me and molested my leg. WTF. I reckon he was drunk and he actually looked like he was about to burst into tears. But Still! You no touchy touchy my legs you filthy beeetch.

~~~~~

Thai ppl are so friendly! The best part of the trip was meeting all the different kinds of ppl. Some other interesting characters we met was this Canadian Free Mason's couple at the tailors. Such nice people. Also struck up a conversation with this Argentinian film composer seated beside me on the flight back. It's these kind of random encounters that defined the trip for me. Good memories.

When you come from nothing and go back to nothing, what've you lost? NOTHING!

2008-03-10T23:23:00.004+08:00

So legend has it that the boobage will be the first to fall in the event of weight loss. Am I bothered? Not really. My title above explains it all.

~~~~~

Market Freefall

So now we're reeling from Saturday. The hangover that follows the euphoria. And I suspect this is going to be one mothereffer of a hangover. Exciting times indeed. Forget the Great Singapore Sale, this is where the bargains are going to be. Cheap cheap!

Cos you are beautiful, no matter what that weighing scale says

2008-02-19T21:35:00.002+08:00

I am on a mission, ladies and gentlemen. I will lose those damn pounds, even if I have to eat cabbage soup (yuck). The stakes are now at RM200/pound. Goddamn why am I so gullible to challenges?

In a fit of spontaneity, I had my hair purged of its curls. So now I have straight (ish) hair. According to Ken, I no longer look like my english cocker spaniel. Ken can be a bitch sometimes.

Guess what I'm listening to as I write this: ABBA megamix, baby! If you think my penchant for ABBA is weird, well this will probably flush my reputation down the drain of "shitty taste in music".

San Francisco coffee has pretty darn good caesar salad. Had to camp in the office unexpectedly one night, when I had pre-planned to go get a soothing hairwash and massage. But noooo, had results to do. So I trudged downstairs and compensated by getting a caesar salad topped with extra extra smoked salmon for good measure. All charged to the company of course.

~~~~~

Seriously, there's nothing wrong with liking ABBA right?

~~~~~

I was given a little wooden turtle as a good luck charm for my career. I named it Charlie. I had wanted to call it Richard initially, but decided not to since Richard sounds like a person who oft gets killed in battle. NOT GOOD OMEN. Much prefer Charlie, who sounds like the person who was standing next to Richard but had the good fortune of escaping unscathed.

But my turtle has a fucking pissy face. It's perpetually scowling at me from where it sits. Imma thinking of reconstructive surgery and carving a toothy grin on Charlie. Charlie's aren't supposed to have pissy faces. Maybe I should have named him Arnold?

These shoes are hurting me

2008-02-03T21:24:00.000+08:00

I wish I knew where this was coming from, then I could stop it. Or at least catch it and put it away in the corners of my mind.

So much anger, so much resentment. I don't know where to channel it and I eventually end up pushing people away. I want you to know but I want not for your sympathy.

I've walked many years in these shoes and they have given me the heart and strength to achieve all that I have. But they are beginning to hurt and the wounds are starting to show.

I am 23 and already I feel jaded and saddled with responsibilities. Something just isn't right with this picture.

As selfish and petulant as this sounds, I just want to be taken care of without need for worry, just for once.

It seems I only post fortnightly now.

2008-02-01T19:35:00.000+08:00

So I got me an Islamic ETF DJIM Titans 25 (wtf do you mean that that's already the shortened version of the name?) themed rubik's cube. I attempted to solve it during one of my "Escape from KL during rush hour" nights but I realised it was just pissing the hell out of me knowing that I could be stuck in a 2 hour jam and the most I could hope for was to get one side solved. A quick cost benefit analysis told me my brain cells were better off zoning out to some Lenny Kravitz.

Ah but what is mencibaikan is that Bing can just step into my car and solve my little Islamic cube in 45 seconds flat.

It is official. I have a savant friend. *bangga*

I'd like to believe he is savant. Cos if he is of normal IQ....it would mean I is possess IQ of amoeba.

~~~~~~~~

I have a new DVD player downstairs! And it plays .avi files which I download from the internet. All for only RM89! Go cheap Chinese electronics! But as with most things, there is a downside: the thing tasers you with electrical current when you molest its metal parts. It's scary shit but i's cheap shit and we all know, cheap shit = good shit.

~~~~~~~~

My mother is calling. She has a hp now. (Go cheap Korean electronics!)

I love you all long time! Tata!

On turning 23...

2008-01-16T22:58:00.000+08:00

Colleague: Happy Bday! How old are you?
Me: 23
Colleague: HUH!? Only 23? I thought you weere...
Me: PLEASE DON'T FINISH THAT SENTENCE

In normal mode, I would've "wtf-ed" and "you bitch!-ed" him but he is rather christian. So I cannot.

A key indicator of aging and maturity: showing self-restraint. Har har har. Rawr.

In commemoration of on-going keep fit-ism, I've entered into a contract with the Dodgy banker whereby we each will pledge to reach our target weight by 16 July 2008. Failing which I will pay him RM100 per pound over target and vice versa.

I will either be very broke or very hot come July. Or if his will-power is not up to par, very rich.

Lord knows I need it. (9.8b losses in 4Q? Are you kidding me?!)

2k++ for a gym membership. I shoulda just gone for lipo -_-

I am Traumatized

2008-01-13T02:44:00.000+08:00

Nobody friggin told me I Am Legend was a horror movie.

"Oh its a psychological movie. Hardly see zombies one"

Bloody hell. I spent half the movie closing my eyes.

Arghargahrgahragrharghargh.

Tradition dictates

2008-01-02T21:48:00.000+08:00

So we missed the fireworks. AGAIN. For the third year running, might I add. And it's not just NYE, I seem to miss it for Merdeka as well.

So here's a top tip for you: Ask me where I am going to catch the fireworks in the future, and avoid the place like the plague and head for the opposite direction cos I guarantee you you'll miss it basking in the glory of my anti-firework presence.

I put on 5 bloody kilos since I started working. What was loose is now snug. The snug is now bursting at the seams. And was previously bursting at the seams is now being donated to charity cos my ass just don't fit there anymore.

The year that was 2007 has gone and past. Sure, there were little pockets of misery here and there but taking it all in from a macro point of view, it's been a decent year. Think big picture, think big picture.

But 2008 is gonna be the year where Alyson gets her groove back.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Clarke Quay Tunnel Rats

Happy New Year people. Make it a good one!

Tis the season to bring your brolly

2007-12-17T22:22:00.000+08:00

The rain is wrecking havoc on traffic. Leaving the office at 6pm also contributes I suppose, but really, I'd rather face a gazillion insane KL-motorists than my PC screen and Microsoft Excel.

C'mon....did you even have to ask?

~~~~~~~

Pangkor Laut Resort was very nice. Not cheap by any means but it was worth it (always easy to say when you're not the one footing the bill :D). Service was excellent and its a great place to relax and .....shag.

The night sky was ablaze with stars. I even saw a shooting star, at which I promptly wished for my poker money back. My colleague had unbelievable luck.

Christmas '07 Roast Fowl. Decoration already included.

Despite my initial hesitation, the trip turned out pretty fun. It's nice to see the human side of the office. And in a neutral zone like a beach resort, its all bets off, no one is sacred from teasing and good-natured insulting. Ah.....felt so good to just take random jibes at colleagues. Lord, its starting to sound like I work in a convent.

The quieter beach front of the Spa Village

The trip can be divided into two key segments, sorta like history. There is Pangkor Before Poker, and Pangkor After Poker. A.P was when everyone started to open up and really bond. Tis marvelous what magic illicit gambling can weave.

Stairway to heaven. No, not really. More like the long, winding pathway to one of the 9 restaurants on the resort.

The infinity pool where I napped in the water and pickled myself into a Sunsweet Prune

By that measure, Pangkor time can also be divided into Pangkor Before Batteries Death and Pangkor After Batteries Death. Which occurred right after I shot this picture.

Hence, the pictures stop here.

~~~~~~~~~~~

2 weeks till a brand new year. I wonder what the Rat has in store.

Watching the minutes go by

2007-12-12T20:03:00.000+08:00

I know I bitch about peak period workload insanity but I think its more agonising to sit and count the minutes till its time to go home. More so as meebo, gmail, gtalk and facebook are banned in the office.

Tomorrow, we'll be packing up the office to head for a beach retreat. We'll be taking a colleague's car there and when it dawned on me that I would be crammed in there with 4 other ppl who fall into the "small talk" category, I volunteered to drive. At least I won't be stuffed in the backseat and more importantly, as the driver, I get to control the music. I doubt I will arrive in good spirits if I am subjected to 3 hours of canto/mando/j-pop. I might just throw a pig fit and punch the speakers in.

It's never enough

2007-12-07T02:08:00.000+08:00

Now that I've been thrown out into the real world to fend for myself, I'm wondering how the blazes did I manage to survive on RM250 a month. That 0.25k was enough for my petrol, phone bills, food and entertainment and I could even save some cash. I was the God of Ringgit Stretching.

What the hell happened??!!

Purchasing power has corrupted me and tainted my soul with the black ooze of capitalism. I now favour wine over teh ais, Nine West over Vincci (crappy cheapass kasut buruk that breaks after one wear), Ceylon Hill Magnificent Fish & Chips over RM8 Salmon Steak Fish & Chips. It's nice to just buy and eat what you want without having to resort to roti canai for the rest of the month.

I have moved up Maslow's needs hierarchy (omfg, I'm actually applying management theories learnt in my second major to real life situations. I am so clever). I figure I may as well enjoy life now. I don't want the defining feature of my 20s to be "ah the glory years where Alyson managed to save enough for all her children's education by buying selipar Asadi and spending weekends at home watching AFC".

Sod that! My children will be intelligent little self-financing cash-generative smartasses. So no worries there. And besides, at the rate things are going, I don't think I'll be worrying about children anytime soon.

Why the hell am I talking about children?! Jeeeesus. Shut up and go to bed already.

License that Kills

2007-11-26T20:36:00.000+08:00

I have an accursed licensing exam on Wednesday. Where they apparently test you on formulae recognition ie: should it be n or n+1 or d^(n-1)? And all this in superscript to further con and muddle your brain. Why are they testing memory instead of comprehension? Why make me memorise it and then allow me to bring in my ass-kicking Texas Instrument BAII into the exam which just makes discounting CFs easier than thinking up a title for this post?

Oh wait...it's a Malaysian licensing exam. Ah, pardon my ignorance.

At least I am entitled to take study leave. Notice I use entitled and not "I am on study leave". I have yet to take time off to study and the damn paper is in less than 48 hours. November reporting season is a bitch. Only a week left till December, a month full of parties, shopping and where practically everyday is a Friday.

~~~~~

My dear mother lugged this huge tote bag home the other night. I told her it was ridiculously large for a tote bag. She retorted with:

"Ok what, you can use it for one night stand if you want" (!!!)

WTF.

I am sure she meant overnight stay but I'll be damned if that wasn't the funniest thing I've ever heard my mother spout.

To the contractor's next door

2007-11-09T12:27:00.000+08:00

I took precious leave today so that I could sleep in, you know. Thought I could snuggle into my duvet and snore myself into oblivion. But nooo.

Instead, I began my Friday by flinging my window open and screaming at you guys for power drilling our common wall at 8am in the morning. It's bad enough that you removed OUR drainage pipe and flooded our house TWICE but to take away MY PRECIOUS SLEEP INS? That's just plain cruel.

I would've gone out and marched next door to properly shake my fist and verbally skewer y'all had I been wearing a bra. Verbal tirades are difficult to win hugging a pillow across your chest. Two more Saturday mornings like this and just you wait.

I bet one of you doesn't have a permit.

The one where I used to be a chef

2007-11-04T22:37:00.000+08:00

Today I cooked dinner for the family after retiring as head chef many moons ago.

Verdict is, I have lost my touch.

My spinach was a tad overdone.

My pork was a little watery.

My eggplant was...well my eggplant was fantastic ;)

BUT STILL, 1 out of 3 is a fail in my books. Hence, I shall graciously allow my sister to officially cook ALL weekend meals. Forever and ever. It is for the greater good.

Meh. At least I can still clean like a bitch.

Into the Abyss

2007-10-27T18:24:00.000+08:00

Move aside Somalia, I have redefined pain and suffering.

Pulling 15-hour work days for the last week and a half trying to get two titanic reports out with a wise-cracking boss breathing down your neck whilst you battle atomic diarrhea, laryngitis, fever, total lack of sleep and period cramps....now that's suffering.

It fucking sucks having ovaries. In fact, I think one of the main benefits of getting pregnant is not having to deal with damn cramps for 9 months. It's probably Gods way of convincing women to go through the pain of childbirth: "If thou promise not to abort, I will grant thee a 9-month period-free pass". Deal. Shake hand. Amen.

But I digress.

I visited the doctors quite a few times this week. Each time he supersizes my antibiotics and gives me an MC and tells me to go home.

"I can't. I have work"

"........Research ah?"

Wtf.

So now I have a nice little collection of un-used MCs. January had better be fantastically good. I know la....job dedication and all that heart and soul crap but jeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeesus.

Only the Lonely

2007-10-21T03:20:00.000+08:00

Was daydreaming with Ken about how we'd both like to be CFOs one day with the letters CFA and MBA trailing my name when he quipped that it would be ok for a guy....but :

"Who on earth are you going marry?!"

Whilst he said he always imagined it'll be a pretty art curator for him...it was decided that it could not be the curator of muzium negara for me.

~~~~

Nothing wrong with having ambition but what is a bit worrying is that we, at the ripe old age of 22, have never dated anyone before, never been kissed, never had someone to hold our hands.

Jeez. I am half tempted to delete this post just because it sounds so pathetic. But I won't. Cos I got guts yo.

~~~~

It's 4 in the morning. Sunday will fly by and then its a whole new work week again. Looking at my schedule for next week and oh lord I will need a holiday after this.

Everybody wants to rule the world

2007-10-06T23:41:00.000+08:00

I signed up for my CFA level II recently. And I come home on Thursday night to find that a big lump of pain (my textbooks) has landed on my doorstep.

Bye bye April and May '08.

I found myself wondering why I signed up in the first place. Or why I gave up the easy life my previous job offered. It didn't take much wondering to realise that it was an easy life, but a life without fire or passion. There was nothing worth waking up for in the morning.

I love the challenge. I love the hunt for the kill. I love the satisfaction of a job well done. I would rather torture myself doing the 2000 piece mostly-black mona lisa jigsaw than the all-too-easy wolf jigsaw. No challenge, not worth my time.

A friend once told me that I was the weirdest and most serious 22 year old she had ever met. I'm not that weird and I'm really not that serious all the time. I think my age just doesn't match my personality yet.

~~~~

A couple of days ago I found myself speeding up on the highway just to catch a glimpse of the person driving a classic white VW Beetle with the number 53 and racing stripes emblazoned on it.

What does that say about me?

Bury the hatchet

2007-09-29T21:08:00.000+08:00

"I'll give you 1 1/2 years to change things"

13 months after that conversation, I've come a long way. I'm not completely there yet but there's still time. I grew up too early and I've missed out on a lot of things. The inside of my head is such a serious place to be that even I can't stand it at times.

But who says you can't teach an old dog new tricks? Strip away the anger and resentment. Stop dwelling in the past. Accept things that you cannot change. So simple to type but incredibly complex to execute.

It's taken me 7 long years to get to this point. To stop feeling like the burden of the world is on your shoulders.

All it took was that one night 13 months ago, one of the most important of my life. And I know you don't read this but thank you, for everything.

Get outta my way, biatch.

2007-09-22T19:15:00.000+08:00

My car's left eye has caved in. Leaving me with uneven illumination as I terrorise KL's roads in the early mornings and nights. The alignment has gone to hell as well, courtesy of one too many potholes. My car is gay. All the car ever wants to do is go serong to the left. Stupid potholes.

And the bumper is falling off. For this, I admit partial blame as I have hit quite a few walls and lamp-posts whilst parking because I have the lousiest depth perception. But I also contend that blame lies with the crap quality of the car. C'mon, had it been a Volvo I was driving, it would've been the wall that suffered the damage.

~~~~~~

You know what pisses me off on the road? Motorcyclists.

Especially those that refuse to use their own dedicated motorcycle lane and instead choose to sputter along at 60kph on the fast lane. It takes a Herculean effort on my part to resist tailgating them. Then again, I probably shouldn't be tailgating anything, given my lousy depth perception. Wouldn't want to end up in a balai claiming "I swear there was at least 10 feet between us!"

Another pet peeve would be people who drive so bloody slowly before suddenly making a turning when you least expect it without bloody signaling. What is so difficult about using the indicator? What if I was just about to overtake the idiot? Sure kena accident. Bitch.

I need to install one of those lorry foghorns to solve all the above annoyances. My current horn is too embarassing for words. Using it would probably make motorists stop their vehicles, get out, and proceed to point at me and laugh.

So not cool.

Do you remember the 21st night of September?

2007-09-21T23:28:00.000+08:00

There's a certain kick to be had in listening to Earth Wind Fire's "September" tonight, on the 21st of Sept ;)

I am too damned sleepy to continue this post.

kthxbye.

Familiarity breeds contempt

2007-09-15T14:09:00.000+08:00

And so the story goes, I first heard the song blasting through the mall and before I knew it, it was love at first tinkle. I downloaded the song, put it on repeat and listened to it to death. And so it was, I was totally in love with that song....until I set it as my alarm tone.

I don't know wth I was thinking, setting that as my alarm tone. This is the sound that wakes me up every bloody morning at 5.40 am. Yeah you read that right, 5.40am. Even chickens are still asleep. And its also the alarm tone that wakes me up from my lunch-hour boardroom siesta at 2pm.

Jika Sleep = good,
dan Wake up = bad.
Maka whatever wakes me up = bad.

The implication of this is that whenever I hear that song now, it triggers some sort of panic. The feeling of "OMGOMG I'm going to be late for work". And now, I no longer feel the same joy in listening to this song.

:(

Alumni, bitches!

2007-09-11T22:55:00.000+08:00

Got my scroll on saturday. Took one look at it and thought "I slogged 3 years for that??!"

Maddddd day. Early morning call, get gown, run for rehearsal, learn to dock mortarboard, get on stage, shake hands, pose, grab scroll, pose for pictures with family, camwhore with friends, crash at home, wake up 2 hours later, dress up, make up, attend cocktail party, mingleminglemingle....damn, even typing that was tiring.

Girls gone wild

A tad candid

Statues of liberty x 3

Jasmine, Junie, Aly, Rachel (do you see that bag of hers??!), Leen, Daphne, Zee, Foong.

The four of us

The five of us (yeah i know, I'm so totally creative with my captions)

This was at the cocktail party, where we got a pic with the Pro-Vice Chancellor and her husband

Me and my new bangs, Rach (and her Coach clutch *envy*), Leen, and Bee.

There are wayyy more pics but my SD card is refusing to be detected :( But no worries, Leen has them and is probably in the process of typing out a massive blogpost. Hehe. Lastly, Ken Arieff Wong, I want the pics on your camera!

That's all folks, I'm out.

Reflating the airhead

2007-09-02T19:27:00.000+08:00

I need a new white shirt for my convocation. Yes I know I already have white shirts but its not THE white shirt. Am looking for one with a really nice collar and cuffs, good material, well-cut and very very white.

I scoured around The Curve and ended up with everything else but The White Shirt. Why is this always the case?!

Must also lose weight for convo. Have consumed a ridiculous amount of fast food and nasi lemak during the havoc of reporting season. Am feeling like a hippo at the moment. I blame the moon and my ovaries. And reporting season (Corporate bastards).

Yes, but life goes on.

2007-09-02T19:00:00.000+08:00

Sometimes its really difficult to see the silver lining in the grander scheme of things. It's been the emotional equivalent of a tsunami.

Oh shut up, woman. Suck it up. Refocus your energies. Weather the storm.

It would be nice...

2007-08-28T23:02:00.000+08:00

My mom left a note on the table last Saturday. It read:

"It would be nice if Alyson would cook spaghetti on Sunday night for dinner."

That woman...you gotta give it to her lah. That kind of tactics takes considerable talent. It wasn't even addressed to me. It was a general announcement kind of note to the whole family telling them that: 1) Alyson will be cooking and, 2) The rest of you better make sure she stays home and cooks.

But nvm la. I was in a mood to cook that day. Sampai got appetizers. Very rare. And damn damn laku.

In other news, I have eczema. Saw the doctor today and asked him what was causing it to flare up. He just looked at me, shrugged, and said "Citibank mah"**

Ok Bedtime! The next couple of days are going to be brutal at work:(

**FYI, I do not sell credit cards for a living in case you're wondering.

And I don't wanna miss a thing

2007-08-12T02:56:00.000+08:00

Hmm...more than 3 weeks since my last post. Does anybody still come here?

Work has been hectic and it feels like life is just whizzing me by. There's so much fire burning in me right now but I don't want to wake up one day 10 years down the line and realise that I have forgotten to live.

10 years. A decade may sound like an eternity right now but really, it'll be over in the blink of an eye. I'm graduating on Sept 8. The fruit of 3 years of labour. Admittedly, 70% was spent sleeping and cutting class but thats besides the point here. Let's not be pedantic.

This will officially be the end of my uni days. The severing of the last thread that holds me on to a more carefree life under the safe haven of my family's umbrella. I don't miss those times yet. It is part of life to move on and to accept change.

Looking at old highschool yearbooks today however, made me realise that it's been 5 whole years since I left high school. Where did all that time go? And how is everybody doing? That was 5 years over in an instant. And the next 10 will be over just as quickly.

Before you know it, I'll be a wrinkly, saggy-boobed, cranky and probably slightly senile senior citizen. Spending the remainder of my days gambling, gossiping, pestering my descendents to give me money and sipping Caribbean Sunset's by the pool with whomever is still alive at the time.

There really isnt any point to this post. Just a random extraction from my brain.

Mid-Year Review

2007-07-24T22:41:00.000+08:00

At the start of the year, I made the following resolutions and now, almost 7 months down the road...it's time for a review:

Be more decisive - I definitely think there's been improvement. Life's a bit too short to waste time on internal debates.

Pass CFA Level I - I passed bitches!!

Lose 1.5kg - totally gagal

Love and be loved - again...pretty much gagal. Mesti giatkan usaha.

Try to be nicer - I've gone in the complete opposite direction -_-.

Become a better person - work in progress

Lose the sad, find the happy - work in progress

Improve my sense of direction - I got f*cking lost driving from hartamas to damansara. If you're from Msia, you will realise that this is an almost impossible feat. But as they say, impossible is nothing.

Grow bigger balls. No guts, no glory - Have acquired marginally bigger balls. Actually, I think the recent bout of stress has caused my boobs to shrink (Why God? WHY? Haven't I been punished enough already? Again, it appears that impossible is nothing)

Cut my 2 year MT duration to under a year - I did much much better than what I initially set out to do *BIG GRIN*

It appears that most of my shorter-term goals have been achieved. Except for the weight loss bit (the eternal battle between pork and char kuey tiao vs. achieving hot ass status) and the sense of direction. Not bad though. Afterall, I still have 5 months more to get the rest in the bag.

Am happy happy happy!

Lust for Life

2007-07-21T12:42:00.000+08:00

Time. When you have an abundance of it you take it for granted. Only when it becomes a scarce commodity do you value it for what it is worth. So many things to say, so much life to live.

The days are so long and I hardly see my family anymore. Dinners are totally irregular. Work is NEVERENDING. No matter how much you hack away at it, that damn pile still keeps building up. I should take my blood pressure to monitor my stress levels. I'm pretty sure its significantly higher than what it was 3 weeks ago.

But on the positive, depression is down, the feeling of frustration mixed with anger over what I felt was a loss of control over my life is gone. For sure, frustration still features in my everyday life but the difference is that this is the kind you don't bring home from work. I like this kind of stress. I need this stress to keep going cos this is the type of stress that leads you to the satisfaction of a job well done.

And that is why, even when the heaviness of sleep weighs my lids down and I feel completely sucked dry of energy every night, I know that it's worth it and that I've never felt this alive for a long time.

180 degree handbrake turn

2007-07-10T22:09:00.000+08:00

Over the course of 3 short weeks, I've:

attended 3 interviews,
gotten 4 offers (1 was by dodgy looking aunty outside KLCC Lrt offering me a dodgy sales job)
resigned
said my goodbyes
bombed a few regulatory bridges
started a new career (!!)

It was scary as hell, and I felt so alone at times. But everytime I stopped to think if what I was doing was right or whether it will be worth it, I only had to remember how utterly miserable I was in my old place to find that extra ounce of determination to get out.

5 months, baby! The mere mention of my name should invoke epileptic shocks and aggressive spitting actions amongst the HR dept for years to come. People have asked if I will regret my decision and if I will ever go back.

My answer is this:

I absolutely love the self-flushing and sensor activated faucets. Two thumbs up for that. But there will be no regrets for me. And there is no turning back.

Monthly madness

2007-06-28T23:29:00.000+08:00

Ok PMS just plain sucks. I can't even watch TV without getting emo. I just finished watching Racing Stripes on the telly and I was bloody getting emo over a zebra winning a race. WTF?

And don't even get me started on music. Every damn song I hear, I end up making it personal. Which is fine for the songs that are memang emo but when you start getting misty-eyed at Spice Girls songs, you know you've lost it.

This is it.

2007-06-25T22:44:00.000+08:00

Here I am, about to start afresh. Am I ready? Hell no. But when the time comes, I will be. During my days as a swimmer the nerves I felt in the run-up to a competition could almost cripple me. My heart would pound, blood rushing to the head. But the moment the gun goes off and my body enters the water, the nerves disappear and all your focus and energy is set on winning.

I'm holding the pen in my hand, my papers are on the way. Just show me the dotted line.

Blink

2007-06-16T23:44:00.000+08:00

Looking at pictures of Melbourne in winter now brings back so many memories. It's been a year since I went on my Aussie holiday. I remember my addiction to those huge-ass salmon avocado sushi rolls, those amazing pork ribs on Bondi, walking around Sydney till my knee gave out and my losing two belt notches in 10 days. That was the Sydney portion of my holiday.

Then I went to Melbourne. I went back up 2 belt notches over 48 hours, no thanks to my aunts fantastic cooking and typical asian mother habit of cooking enough for 20 when there are 8 guests. We found Bing. We went on the Great Ocean Road en route to Laver's Hill. We went to Phillip Island where my uncle attempted to kick me off the walkway and into the stinkiest penguins nest. I remember us sitting in the kitchen the night before we flew back, nursing that bottle of Bailey's and coming away from it knowing that my life was never going to be the same again.

I can't exactly say that that night in the kitchen was a life-changing experience. It was just conversation with great company. But it affected me so much and will probably continue to do so for the rest of my life in ways that I cannot possibly fathom. I didn't know it then. But what a difference a year makes.

To pee or not to pee?

2007-06-04T23:49:00.000+08:00

Eight weeks ago I started mugging for my Level I. Exactly seven weeks and 6 days ago, I wondered wtf I had gotten myself into. As a serial last-minute crammer, I'm actually amazed that I managed to summon enough discipline to sit my arse down everyday for at least an hour to teach my brain some new tricks. Admittedly, though I glued my butt to the chair, some days I was just so tired that I also glued my head to the books. They're actually pretty comfy to sleep on. I would advise against falling asleep on your calculator though. That thing leaves marks.

Mann....Paper 1 was alright. But Paper 2....Oh my god. Mid-way through Paper 2 I finally understood the true rational behind barring blades in the exam hall. I would've totally Stabbed. My. Eyes. Out.

You know your brain's had it when you completely cannot recall if Beta is systematic or unsystematic risk. Plus, I really wanted to pee dammit. To pee or not to pee? You pee, you feel better but you lose valuable time. You don't pee, you have enough time to answer the questions. But every question you answer is haunted by the need to pee. Imagine sitting in a freezer, busily pricing a bond, freshly traumatized by the fact that you couldn't remember what type of risk beta is, and really really wanting to pee.

Such is the dilemma faced by an exam candidate.

But it's ok. It's over. And life begins after June 3 ;)

November memory

2007-05-28T18:05:00.000+08:00

The hills are aliiiiveeeeeee

Just for the heck of it, I decided to post this pic up. It's so bright and cheerful and looks so friggin' fake. Taken during a glorious sunset in Cameron Highland's circa Nov 2006.

That was a mad mad holiday. Freshly released from uni exams, we went nuts with food, camwhoring, alcohol and Taboo with the holiday-defining experience of speeding downhill in a lori babi.

Sien (feat. Boredom)

2007-05-25T12:40:00.001+08:00

After working this year, I've grown so used to camping out in my little cubicle in the office that now when I'm on my 2 week study leave I feel disoriented. My weekdays seem a little off without my post-it notes surrounding me and the din of colleagues discussing childbirth, baking, and the best bargains of the Mont Kiara flea market.

Anyways, do yourselves a favour and give these songs a listen:

Silent Sigh - Badly Drawn Boy
Closer - Travis
Be Gentle With Me - The Boy Least Likely To
Flowers in the Window - Travis

And if you're feeling like reading a book instead, try this:

Good Omens (if you want to laugh)
Kitchen Confidential (if you want to laugh)
Silmarillion (if you want to use your brain)

Feel like a movie instead? Here:

Amelie
Amelie
Amelie

My mood's are a little off nowadays. But now is not the time for this. Leave the soul-searching for later.

Stage 3: Bargaining

2007-05-16T23:38:00.000+08:00

Yesterday at bunch of assorted CFA candidates sat down for lunch and bitched and whined about the pain we're going through, compared the number of annual leave we're taking, what kind of deals we had attempted to strike with God in return for a pass and how we were all going to get so piss drunk on after the paper.

I had a good time. It's comforting to note that one is not the only one without a life for the next 2 weeks. And just so you know, I'm giving up alcohol till June 3. And beef too. After which my colleague pointed out that I was seemingly trying to bribe God rather than to show my sincerity.

My moral compass is abit rosak me thinks.

May Day

2007-05-08T21:15:00.000+08:00

Ok enough drama. Perhaps I should look into the possibility of taking EPO to regulate my moods. Time to cut the crap. Exam is in 24 days. Let's not panic and look at pictures instead. Hah.

~~~~~~~~

I celebrated my first ever labour day as a bona fide labourer. So what did I do? I caught a play, ate too much dim sum and drank way too much alcohol. In other words, it was excellent!

Everybody say Cheers with beer and mojito @ Long Bar. Originally, we were at Relish. But ditched the place when we found out they closed at 12.15am. I'm sorry but what kind of stupid restaurant bar closes at midnight?!

Uhu looking like a pimp and Ry looking like we cut and pasted him into the pic. Kunchi beer y'all!!

Bottoms up for Ravin

Sitting on the sidewalk like beggars on Ceylon St at 2am

Posing like ducks and chickens on Ceylon St at 2.05am

~~~~~~~~~

Oh bloody hell. CFA Level I in 24 days. Why la WHY did I sign up for June instead of December. 24 days left. I can live each day out like an episode of "24" with me as Jack Bauer out to save the world with his gun and badge. Except that I'll be armed with my TI BA II plus and a stack of 2b pencils. And I don't want to save the world. I just want to pass this fucking exam and get my normal life back.

Don't. Panic.

Winds of Change

2007-05-06T03:21:00.000+08:00

Where do I begin? I normally structure my writing somewhat but this ability is eluding me tonight so I shall just type what comes to mind.

Times are changing and the pieces are in motion. The opportunities are there for me to take and day by day, I find myself wondering "When?" more than "Should I?". The question of whether I should is no longer an issue. I think that has been decided long ago and its been something I've known deep down for some time.

I know that once I start things, there will be no turning back. When I finally put plan to action, this would probably change the course of my life. Not just in terms of its direct effect but indirectly as well. If I can bring myself to get past my mental barrier, it will change the way I see things and the way I think.

All my life I've been the person who always thinks and ponders over things for ages. I know I want it but I never actually do anything about it and without fail, I end up rueing missed opportunities. Why am I restricting myself?

I don't want to blame bad luck anymore. I've always had a choice. In everything we do or whatever situation we face, there always is a choice. It's just a matter of how much you are willing to sacrifice in order to get the things you want.

I am legally an adult. I can vote, drink, smoke, gamble, get married, start a family..whatever. I should be making my own decisions now, even the tough ones. Especially the tough ones. For these are the true tests of character.

The road may be rough ahead but I must keep my eyes on the horizon and know that tomorrow will be a better day. For then there will come a time when I can look back proudly on the choices I have made and know that I kept faith in myself and had the courage to pursue my dreams.

Lvl 33, Traders Hotel

2007-04-29T23:24:00.000+08:00

La bella vista

Fishballs

2007-04-28T13:45:00.000+08:00

Dodgy Banker
You need to be a shark in CF

Z1
But I'm more of a flounder.

Aly
I think Leen can be Dory
(actually now that i think about it, Dory seems more like Ravin. Haha)

All
Just keep swimming just keep swimming

Aly
What kind of fish am I?

Ken
Angler fish

Cibai.

Manual Schmanual

2007-04-22T03:52:00.000+08:00

I think I've bitched about driving a manual many times in the past. But it's actually enjoyable if the traffic is smooth and good music is playing on the radio. It took me a while before I could shift gears smoothly and balance on a slope but I can now do it blindfolded and probably even in my sleep.

I like shifting from 3rd to 4th gear. There's just something satisfying about flooring the clutch, grabbing that stick, and just shifting it downwards (wah wah wah damn salah sounding) all in one smooth motion. Which brings me to one of my biggest fears.....

That I will one day mistake 5th gear for 3rd and end up shifting to Reverse at 100 kmph.

Street cred

2007-04-17T18:02:00.000+08:00

I must confess I used to be a fan of the Spice Girls, BSB, NSync and other assorted boy bands. For close to a decade I’ve been poohpooh-ing their brand of music but secretly, I sing along to their songs if nobody is around. I think I can safely say I know most of the lyrics and quite a bit of incredibly useless trivia about them like how Brian Litrell had a heart condition and the exact height of 911’s band members.

Oh my god you have no idea how difficult that was to admit. *burning shame*

Seeing as to how I’ve come to terms with my (now questionable) taste in music, I’ve started hunting down selected songs from Multiply so that I can reminisce and karaoke my way to and from work. That said, I still make it a point to not get caught listening to boybands when I wind down the window to pay toll. Call it my last ditch attempt to maintain whatever remaining shreds of integrity I have.

I can't believe...

2007-04-14T02:48:00.000+08:00

....that McD's took the McEgg off their menu. :(:(:(

Ladida

2007-04-08T04:15:00.000+08:00

I like your street names, Singapore.

Singapore was good.

I have never been much of a city person but this one was different. Maybe it was the particular area we stayed in. But yeah, I like the fact that it's clean and so orderly, with nice even walkways (no friggin' tree roots to trip you up). It's pretty. And omg the public toilets are clean. And they have tissue. Shocking. Hahaha.

The pretty lights of Cafe del Mar

The pretty (and slightly creepy) trees of Cafe del Mar

Singaporeans walk faster. Everything seems to move at a quicker pace there. Even the escalators. There's just this greater sense of urgency there. Like time matters more. Except for the cars. Very obedient towards the speed limit. This comes as a bit of a culture shock for a Malaysian driver, where the speed limit seems to be the maximum speed you can drive at before your car starts vibrating and your car-parts start flying off.

One thing though, why is the food so blanddddd? Does salt/kicap/MSG cost a lot more across the Causeway?

*******

CheersCheersCheers

I left my car at the Curve on Friday night because I had beer, mojito, sangria and a lot of long island flowing through my blood. I notice that when I'm tipsy I tend to either: talk a load of crap or just fall asleep. Friday night was a Talk a Load of Crap night. Found myself talking out loud even once I got home and there was nobody downstairs to talk to.

*******

WTF am I doing blogging. I should be studying. *smacks self*

Singapore

2007-04-02T23:07:00.000+08:00

Cafe del Mar

Somedays

2007-03-26T21:23:00.000+08:00

when all the traffic lights turn green just as you approach them...

and all your favourite songs start playing on the radio...

and you manage to sing along to all of them without going out of tune...

and the dude you see in your rear-view mirror in the car behind you is incredibly cute...

and the tea you make packs a better punch than it normally does....

and you get your tasks done better and faster than people expect....

you clock out...

and you're greeted by a beautiful sunset sky as you emerge from the darkness of your basement carpark...

and the traffic police waive you past the roadblock but catch the Porsche who tried to overtake you earlier....

and you go home, relax, and catch up with family and friends...

you talk and you laugh, maybe a bit of a rant and a whine...

you feel sleepy, you say your goodnights...

you lie on your bed, you close your eyes

.....then you think to yourself, all I need is one good day like this to make the crappy days worth the while.

Just a few words...

2007-03-20T23:33:00.000+08:00

On work:
I wish people would just pause, take a step back, and see the bigger picture instead of just being so caught up and defensive over their puny little kingdom. Maybe then we can really make some strides rather than the one step forward, two steps back thing we've got going on now.

On life:
I need more of it. I am 22. I should feel 22. I don't want to close my eyes everynight wondering if things aare downhill from here. I've got 3 more years till I hit the quarter life crisis. I want to feel the blood as it rushes through my veins. I want that adrenaline rush. I want to live.

On friends:
Excellent. Outstanding in every aspect. I would seriously give up my internal organs for you guys. And I am blood type O. So I can give up my blood to you all too. That's how much I love y'all.

On money:
This would depend on ~~whether~~ when I run. The sooner, the bigger the fundraising needed.

On vanity:
Despite my eternal quest to get my weighing scale needle to point at 50kg (w/o blatant manipulation), progress has been slow, to say the least. I can't help it. I love my food. And I would be absolutely miserable if I had to give it up just so I could fit into something slinkier. I'd really rather live with the jelly belly.

On love:
Error. Cannot detect network settings.

Eh?

2007-03-14T20:57:00.000+08:00

Oy, who killed my flooble chatbox?

*******

Why is everyone (I mean YOU, Leen) changing to Maxis?

I know i know...the rational person would have made the change a long time ago. Especially since all the people i actually call are on Maxis (except you, Leen). And I know DiGi's coverage isn't the best but still I stick to it.

It's like how I love my dogs. They're overweight. They don't know any commands except "Eat your food". They always run into my house and dirty my floors. They drool on my slippers. But still, I love them so much.

I also love my HP number so much. Its so cantik. Too cantik to just give up.

But it looks like it's really time to change soon. Sob.

********

Bedtime. G'night folks.

This week

2007-03-11T19:48:00.000+08:00

Oh crap. It’s Sunday already. That means Monday is tomorrow. After the scandals of last week, this week has been relatively tame. So tame that it was damn boringgggg.

What the hell did I do during the week? Work was slow. So I studied. Study topics got a bit too Pengetahuan Moral…so I fell asleep.

Oh! Here’s the highlight of my week. Watching 300 men in tight leather undies battle it out on the big screen. Jeez man….have you seen their pecs? It’s 8 pecs per man. So 300*8 = 2400 pecs on screen. Actually, come to think of it….Xerxes had pecs too. So that’s 2408 pecs.

But he’s such a tranny that it doesn’t count.

Imagine if it was on IMAX.

Mind boggling.

Visit Malaysia Year 2007

2007-03-04T21:59:00.000+08:00

Free 5-star hotel room stays are the absolute bomb. I could totally get used to it. People should so go on holiday every two months. But at the rate things are going, I think I might need a liver transplant in a few years. I had wine for breakfast today ok???? Tipsy before noon. Unprecedented.

Ok picture time!

Note: To the Singaporean's reading this, can you recognize who this is? ;P

----------------

Went to Sky Bar. Very nice view. Too much to drink. Scared to go to the ladies for fear of falling into the swimming pool.

Great weekend. Completely unproductive. Didn't have to use a single brain cell. I love it.

It's only once a year anyways

2007-02-25T23:23:00.000+08:00

Ahhhh....gambling is quite syiok. CNY 2007 has been pretty good so far. Been hanging out with friends more than anything. The few times I see my relatives, I get asked the following 3 questions w/o fail:

1. Yau pakh tor moh? (Are you seeing anyone?)
2. Hai peen tou zhou kong? (Where do you work?)
3. Wah, yau moh insider tips moh? (Wah, any inside info?)

Now one of my aunts wants to introduce me to this dude from germany who is 20++, owns restaurants, taller than me and not bad looking. Just intro and be "friends" (KONON).

-_-"

Blogging Incoherently

2007-02-24T03:44:00.000+08:00

It's been awhile hasn't it? The past 3 weeks have been such a whole new ballgame for me. The days seem to pass a whole lot faster now. Before you can blink, Friday's here (thank god!).

My main concerns have changed too. It used to be making sure my floors were spotless, trying to wake up before 2pm, trying to come back before 5am, and what to cook for dinner.

Now it's finding lunch buddies, finding good cheap places to eat, finding out who wears the real pants in the office, finding out who wears the leash in the office, finding out which lane is faster on the LDP during rush hour, finding out who I need to flirt with in order to get my book fees paid for, and last but definitely not least, berkawan with the owner of the Sexy Voice (priority :D).

Oh my god, March is almost here. That means its one month down, and only like....300 months more to go till I retire.

And March also means only 3 more months till I sit for CFA Level I. Jeng jeng jeng. It's do or die. High time to start cultivating the discipline of a nun.

Ok this is unrelated but I just thought of it. Apparently, I emanate "possible lesbian" vibes. According to experienced professionals in this field of study, it is possible to imagine me with another girl.

Ya meh????

V-Day

2007-02-10T02:42:00.000+08:00

Valentines is 4 days away...

Whatyouwaiting Whatyouwaiting Whatyouwaiting Whatyouwaiting Whatyouwaiting For?

Average, Good, Excellent.

2007-02-10T02:34:00.000+08:00

Whilst filling in some stupid forms this week:

English proficiency: Excelent.

Oh the irony. It killing me.

Random picture:-

Of all the reasons....

2007-02-08T22:56:00.000+08:00

I'm sort of losing my voice. And you'd never guess why. It's ridiculous.

I get stuck in jams for 2 hours of my life everyday. So I start singing. Loudly. With passion and religious fervour.

And so, there goes the voice.

Take the 2nd star to the right and straight on till morning

2007-02-06T23:26:00.000+08:00

Just a quick update before I crash for the night. It's been 3 days since the birth of my (hopefully) illustrious career.

I may be just a mgnt trainee now but you wait........you just wait.

Can't really form cohesive sentences now. The lack of sleep is kind of killing me. But I think I'm getting used to it.

The thought of Fridays help get me through the week.

I like driving alone. You can get a lot of thinking done. And if you dont feel like thinking at the wheel....you can get a lot of relaxing done.

Unless you're driving on a f*cking congested LDP with a manual.

Then life isn't so fun.

Which reminds me...I could really use a hands-free kit.

And a sense of direction.

Wtf is the difference between Kota Damansara, Pusat Bandar Damansara and Damansara?

My smashed nail is turning black and threatening to drop off. Actually, it's kinda cool to see ppl's disgusted reactions when they see my poor finger.

I still have no friggin clue who 90% of the people in my office are.

I'm sorry I laughed at your floor-plan idea, Datuk K. I'm implementing it tmw.

Drop me a mail at work ppl! I love you all long time.

XOXOXO

The Finger

2007-01-30T12:06:00.000+08:00

How the bloody hell I managed to slam the doors on my own finger, I really don't know. It wasn't a light bash, no no....the car door was completely closed with my finger stuck nicely between door and frame.

Me: *SLAM*
Me: ........*stares at finger*
Me: Is my finger stuck in the door???!
Leen: YES!

I am now a master of 9-finger typing.

In other news, I start work on Friday. Btw, you reckon I can apply for MC on Friday? Hahaha.

Lim - 0 , Shin - 1

2007-01-24T02:43:00.000+08:00

Genting 2007 Itinery:

-Eat
-Gamble
-GinRummy
-Drink
-Talk rubbish
-Stalk TVB stars
-Camwhore

Mabuk Collage

Sunita & Leen

Wtf is Su doing?

Swing swing

I think...it's time to diet.

Girls gone wild.

Semi-gagal group pic.

I like this picture. All the hungover ppl just stoning in front of the telly.

We found a rainbow wall...

Everyone looking in different directions.

Successful group pic.

Roulette is funnnnnnn. This was the first time I actually gambled at a table in a casino. And it was so glaringly obvious that I was a casino virgin. First I got confused over what kind of chips I wanted, and then I made the croupier laugh when I placed my first bet on Red.

Damnit. There goes my cool.

No picture-taking allowed in the casino (though Rach and Zee managed to sneak a few in the washroom -_-'). About 1 hour later and me RM90 richer, we all packed up and left the casino for Starbucks. Thank you 6 and 14. Hehehe.

This Genting trip was a good one. Won money, told some TVB stars "I LOVE YOU", had many good laughs, got pretty damn drunk and ate like a pig. Syiokkkk.

Today...

2007-01-20T11:09:00.000+08:00

I'm going to visit Uncle Lim. See ya later.

Wheeeeee.....

850115

2007-01-16T15:39:00.000+08:00

It was about 11pm when I looked out my door and saw a bunch of crazies with umbrellas, candles, and cake singing Happy Birthday in the rain.

Thanks you guys, for everything. Including my own shirt and the chocolate lan jiao. Hahaha. Leen tried to offer my sister some chocolate dick, much to my horror.

I am 22! And life is good :)

McBoob

2007-01-11T16:21:00.000+08:00

Went to watch Curse of the Golden Flower last night starring Gong Li, Gong Li's Boobs, Chow Yun Fatt, Jay Chou, and 1000 other cleavages. I'm trying to recall the story here but really, does it matter when you have that much boobage on the screen? It's just so "Fuwah".

*jeles*

Seriously, how did they do it? It's like a feat of engineering.

Boob. Boob. Boob. Boob. Boob. Boob. Boob. Boob. Boob. Boob. Boob. Boob.

Other thoughts on the movie:

Why must all Chinese epics involve incest? Is there no one non-related left to sleep with?
Have they ever heard of happy endings?
The youngest prince was creepy. Excellent potential for future watak perogol.
The crown prince is pathetic. He only has one expression in the movie, which is this --> O_O. I don't get why everyone wants to get into his pants.
Chow Yun Fatt looked like those God of War statues I see in temples.
If they come up with a sequel, I think Z1 should audition.
Best Actress goes to Gong Li's Boobs.
Best Supporting Actress goes to the Imperial Doc's Daughter's Boobs.
The Nobel Prize should go to the Costume Designer/Makeup Artist/CG people for defying gravity and making mountains out of molehills.

Beyond the Yellow Brick Road

2007-01-08T15:47:00.000+08:00

There's been so many outtings and events lately. Normally, I'd be posting about them complete with dozens of pictures and stupid captions but not this time. Maybe its me being lazy or maybe this time I just feel like keeping them a little closer to my heart.

I've been thinking about ending this blog. What with work starting soon and my recent lack of motivation to write, maybe it's my cue to stop. I first started this blog at a time in my life when I was so damned lost that I didn't even know I was lost. Writing became an outlet for me. I didn't write about the deep or the profound. Rather, I tended to blabber on about inane and frankly, quite stupid topics. Nonetheless, it helped me channel some of the 'arghhh-ness' away.

These days, I don't quite feel so lost. Odd that at a time when I'm about to make a huge transition, I somehow manage to find a bit more self-assurance. Yesterday was January 7th 2007, making it 6 years since my dad passed on. For the first time, the day passed without any incident, without any tears. It was just another ordinary day, and that is a good thing.

As to whether or not I will close this blog, writing this very post has ironically given me my answer. I still want to write. I still have things to say. It ain't over till the fat lady sings.

Till the next time.

And In With The New

2007-01-04T13:47:00.000+08:00

New calendars have been put up, fireworks have been watched, and a new year is upon us. Reminiscing about the past is oh so last year. It's time to look ahead and celebrate all the good things that 2007 can bring. So what if your path is still unsure and you're uncertain where it might lead? Go grab a pencil and some paper and draw your own damned map.

Happy New Year!

Out With The Old.

2006-12-29T03:48:00.000+08:00

Bloody hell, I started writing this post 2 days ago but I seem to have run into the Great Wall of China equivalent of writer's block. Pffft.

Only ~~four~~ ~~three~~ two more days till a brand new year. 2006's been fairly decent. Definitely memorable for many reasons (of which I ironically cannot remember any at the moment). Next year will see a lot of changes and also a lot of firsts. First job, first pay check, first satisfyingly impulsive credit card purchase, first taste of office politics, first time driving my car without that hideous P sticker, and many many more.

Work starts in February. It feels like I am sticking my arse into crocodile-infested waters. Stay tuned to find out if I end up : 1) getting my arse bitten, or 2) skinning those damn crocs and making lovely bags and shoes out of them.

I don't normally do new year resolutions but I'll make 2007 an exception. Without further ado, I hereby resolve that next year I shall:

Be more decisive.
Pass CFA Level I.
Lose 1.5kg
Love and be loved.
Try to be nicer.
Become a better person (Whoa, so deep)
Lose the sad, find the happy.
Improve my sense of direction.
Grow bigger balls. No guts, no glory.
Cut my 2 year MT duration to under a year.

There, pretty reasonable resolutions I'd say. I shall review my progress every 6 months. Alright people, I've got my beloved Sher Leen's 21st birthday party to attend tonight and a new year to celebrate tomorrow...so I'm outta here.

Have a good weekend and I'll see you next year!

With love,
Alyson

Feliz Navidad

2006-12-26T05:35:00.000+08:00

I almost ate myself to death this Christmas. The 2nd Annual Xmas Party was last Saturday and ~~we all~~ most of us bothered to stick to the retro theme. *cough*bing-ss-ry*cough*

I dressed up as some 50's/60's teen. All ladylike and demure in my flared skirt and polkadot halter.....before proceeding to eat like a bloody barbarian during dinner. Ah...'tis reminiscent of the legendary night at Noble Park, where I somehow managed to undo 10 days worth of weight loss within 24 hours.

Shit. It's 5.54am. Sleep now. Be back to continue later once I grab the pictures off Joel's camera. Tata.

Tak Payah Lah.

2006-12-22T02:30:00.000+08:00

On the phone with mum...

Aly: Ma, tomorrow is Guo Tong
Mum: Oh.....oh yeah............
Aly: Need to make Tong Yuen?
Mum: You want then you make it yourself lah
Aly: No need no need.
Mum: I am on leave tomorrow.
Aly: Then you want to make?
Mum: No need no need.
Aly: Ok la..then we just don't do anything lah.
Mum: Ok. Bye.
Aly: Bye.

Happy Winter Solstice y'all!

Christmas time is here

2006-12-19T17:40:00.000+08:00

It's that time of the year again, folks. Xmas party coming up this Saturday. Secret Santa lots have been drawn and now I need to tear my hair out figuring what to get for my victim. Help.

I also need to decide on what to cook and what desserts to inflict upon the rest. Help Help.

Lastly, the theme is retro and I don't know what to wear!! HELP. HELP. HELP.

Flynn on Friday

2006-12-18T01:12:00.000+08:00

I had a great time at Alexis on Friday. James Flynn was performing backed by the Greg Lyons Quartet which made for a fantastic listen. All the tables were reserved so we propped outselves at the bar and watched the pizza dude do his thang whilst we just chilled out in the candlelight and waited for Flynn to take the stage.

The guy is such a bloody good entertainer. Nice voice and funny to boot. I just wish I could bungkus him home. So cute.

'Cos I figure, posting 1 huge collage of many many pictures is far more efficient than posting many many pictures on cibaiassslow blogger. Just click to enlarge yo. Besame mucho.

Red pill Blue pill

2006-12-14T04:33:00.000+08:00

January 2007 marks the time that I become completely financially independent. I'll cover my own bills, insurance and meals. Save for the roof over my head and dinner a few times a week, I'll be totaly self-sustainable. It is a decision I have made out of choice, not force. Free will, baby.

It's going to be a challenge but my independence is something that I will not give up for anything. To know that you can stand on your own two feet is such a liberating sensation. Sure, there'll probably be a few stumbles along the way but I'm sure I'll get the hang of it eventually. Bear in mind that the easy things in life are just not worth fighting for. Builds character, no?

I sometimes question myself on whether I have always had this independent streak in me or is it something that developed in more recent years. Till today, I'm still not sure. Maybe its a combo - with key events triggering my taste for independence.

Relying on people is just not my thing. It feels like I have no control over the outcome, especially when I cannot trust the people I am relying on. On the other hand, people depending on me I don't mind. Is it a need to be needed? Maybe. Validates my existence.

Chee-Chuck-Man

2006-12-12T15:07:00.000+08:00

Is it just me, or does Cicakman look like the Daredevil with eczema?

Cicakman is the Devil, y'all.

I can't quite see if Cicakman has a tail but I'd actually pay full fare to watch this movie if Cicakman can detach his tail on cue whenever he is under close proximity attack and use it to whack the shit out of the baddies.

Better late than never

2006-12-10T04:34:00.000+08:00

I hardly ever see the morning sun since I wake up so late.

Yeah it's bad for my health. I know I am probably sacrificing some crucial brain-cells and aggravating my eye bags (I already have small eyes. Underscoring them with an eye bag each doesn't help) with the added bonus of a shortened life-span.

That's ok. I don't really want to live to 90 with neither teeth nor control of my bowels/mental faculties. Having said that, the Law of Shit Happens will probably work to ensure that I live to a fossilised 100++ all alone in an oldfolks home just to spite me.

Eye bags and damaged IQ be damned! I'll never be 21 again and I won't be able to wake up at such heroic hours in the future so let me get it out of my system now.

What?! Only S sizes left?

2006-12-07T15:04:00.000+08:00

Random unrelated picture. Played around with Picasa last night and ended up with this. I like it!

Tomorrow I go shopping in preparation for working life. You filter through rows and rows of clothing, traipse through entire malls, and violently elbow other shoppers out of your way in your quest to find YOUR look....most times you get something but sometimes, it's just not your day.

It's been such a bloody chore looking for corporate wear. Does this skirt make my ass look big? Do I look like a bitch in this top? Should I get that hot-looking suit? If I passed you on the street wearing this, would you do a double take? What other pieces can I match this with? Do I really need a maroon-coloured skirt? Is yellow my colour? Does this need ironing? It doesn't? Cool! RM200???!! F*** you.

Damn, I ate like a pig up in Camerons and since I've been back, I still haven't lost my caveman appetite. Trying on clothes tomorrow might be depressing.

Cameron Highlands 2006

2006-12-04T19:22:00.000+08:00

Helloooooooo. I just got back from Camerons last night with the rest of the gang. We stayed at the Boh MNS chalet which is right smack in the middle of a tea plantation. I am covered with mosquitoe bites and the place was full of milipedes and the occasional centipede but hey, it's all good. Nothing that good food, great company and gorgeous photo opportunities can't cure.

Group Shots
Watak watak utama.

7 of us booked 4 double beds. Yet we all crammed ourselves onto 1. Sempit sempit.

Steamboat dinner on the balcony. Damn alot of balls wei.

Best breakfast ever. Freshly made capati and tosai with teh tarik and dhal in the mountain air.

Lunch break by the roadside en-route to the Tea House.

Posing on a rock at the Tea House looking point.

Tea Time Special.

And finally, one with our caretaker Mrs Moorthy just before we left. Notice we're all so colourful. Except you, Rach. Tsk tsk.

CH 2006 Part 2

2006-12-04T19:20:00.000+08:00

Collages
Panda superstar. So damn cuteeeeeee.

The Boh MNS chalet.

Er...semi group shots?

Gambar gambar aneh.

Pics of us hitching a ride on one of the trucks transporting tea. Definitely the highlight of the trip! It was crazy fun being transported like pigs down the hill. Awesomeness.

Taken during out so-called hiking trip in the plantation. Note the dog that keeps appearing in the pics? Thats Lambo. Fantastic guide-dog. Except he may be a tad horny.

I love this collage. Blue skies, green hills and the afro tree.

CH 2006 Part 3

2006-12-04T18:19:00.000+08:00

Random Pictures

Hey Ken, what's that you're drinking?

Mural on a tadika wall in Camerons. Does it not look like Satan is teaching Demonic Mickey mathematics?

Taboooooooo!! Finished the entire game in one night. STRAWBERRY!!!!!!!!

A chalet with a view. Gorgeous.

At first glance, it looks like some modelling ad. Then you see the panda.

Enjoy Coce yo.

What a fantastic weekend. Best way to start the week.

Random Fillers

2006-11-27T22:15:00.000+08:00

#1

I'm running out of space on my Ipod dammit. Time to uncheck the crappier songs and spring clean my playlists. Or is it time to get a higher capacity Ipod?

No. No. No. There is no money tree in the backyard. Must control.

*****

#2

I am a jigsaw puzzle fiend. I'm itching to start on my Mona Lisa 2k piece jigsaw puzzle again. But 1 bloody piece is missing and for that one reason, I refuse to work on it because I know there will be no satisfaction in the end. What's the point if there's no "final piece high"?

*****
#3

Watched Charlie and the Chocolate Factory last night and it was so freaking funny. I want me my own oompa loompa who will break into song at random moments. And Charlie Bucket is so adorable. This is probably the only kid in the world I don't feel naturally inclined to slap or glare at on sight.

Leen, can you produce an Oliver like that please? Kamsiah.

*****

#4

On Saturday night, I was 5 seconds away from beng-ifying myself by driving past Murnis with my windows down and my stereo blasting The Spice Girl's "Who do you think you are?"

*****

#5

Exam results will be out on Wednesday! Shit!!

4 chicks with one bill.

2006-11-24T01:13:00.000+08:00

Cheh wah.

Guess what? I went for mamak at Taj with Leen, Rachel and Zee Wan. Then after a while the waiter came with the receipt for our drinks and food.

Waiter: Mereka sudah bayar.
Us: WTF?!

The two guys seated at the table next to us had paid our bill. And we didn't even realise they had taken our receipt from our table cos we were too damn busy yakking. There was no message or number or anything. Betul betul no strings attached. Damn cool.

Did I mention how we were dressed?

Leen was in normal baby tee and shorts (but she has a sexy back, yo). Zee Wan was in her Get Lei'd shirt with icky hair. I was in my Monash T that was so long that I looked pantless. And Rachel was dressed like an Amah (her own words, not mine).

So why us? We have a few theories...

I looked like I wasn't wearing pants.
Zee Wan's boobs damn chun. And she was talking about wearing a bikini.
They have a thing for Rach's ama-look.
Sher Leen was bringing sexyback.
One of them lost a bet.
They recognized one of us from somewhere
They liked my intellectual look (Monash boleh!)
They found our conversation damn entertaining (Air! Air! Air! Air!).
We're just damn hot la.

After much discussion, we have come to the conclusion that Theory #9 is the most logical reason. As such, from now on, Thursday is now Taj Mamak Night. No boys allowed as we believe they hinder the getting hit on process.

Heh. The bill came up to Rm10.60. Damnit, should've ordered more.

Exhale

2006-11-21T16:27:00.000+08:00

You can tell quite a lot about a person based on their choice of music. I'm not talking about in-depth psychoanalysis but more like in a general sense? In particular I think there's some sort of correlation between mutual taste in music and how well two people can get along. Chances are that if I hate your choice of music, I won't really like you much either.

The kind of songs you like is a reflection of your personality. Over the years I've seen my playlists and favourite bands change quite drastically. I grew up to the sounds of ABBA and the golden oldies thanks to my parents' penchant for them. And to this day I still find them amazing to listen to.

But when I was 13 and at the most rebellious and angry stage of my life, I found myself obsessing with the Smashing Pumpkins and other alternative rock bands. Moody moody moody. I can still remember the first time I heard the song "1979". I don't quite know why but it made such an impression on me. Great song, but I eventually moved on.

Coldplay, Blur and Radiohead became my next Big Thing. I remember a cousin who I once subjected to my music collection. His reaction? "Your music is damn depressing". Hah. I was momentarily stunned. Was it really depressing? But then again, so was I. Rather apt then, I suppose.

These days, I seem to have reverted back to the oldies and other great classics that I can never get tired of listening to. If I could call one song my personal favourite, it would be "Silent Sigh" by Badly Drawn Boy. It's a wistful song and it's pretty melancholic but then again, I also listen to happier songs now. Songs that make me smile and put a warm, fuzzy feeling in my heart.

In fact, someone recently described my current tastes as "old and weird". Still, it's an improvement from "depressing" don't you think? If it's about balance then I guess you could say I'm getting closer to achieving it. Less anger, less sadness.

Why am I telling you all this? I'm not sure. Maybe after all this while, I am now more comfortable in my own skin and also with letting you see who I am. It's not exactly coming full-circle but at least I am going somewhere.

So what about you? What kind of music do you like?

6 month anniversary bbq.

2006-11-20T01:56:00.000+08:00

Through some witchcraft and emailing, we ended up having a bbq at Leen's on Saturday night. And because you know I can't do the whole bercerita panjang lebar thingy, I'll just post up pics.

Let's start off with a nice group picture. There's another nicer picture but it's on Leen's camera. In it, I'm holding two shandy cans over my head and grinning like an idiot. Here I'm just holding a skewered sausage.

**Edit: Here's my jolly shandy advert. I think the bubbles add to the semi-alcoholic vibe.

Just sitting around and chit chatting/gossiping/bitching. Random statistic: 50% of the people in this picture own Fossil watches.

Do you want a Fossil watch too?

Joel: Oooo cool obor! From Indonesia?
Aly & Leen: No, from Carrefour.

Toasted marshmallow-donut. The damned thing slid down the skewer, hence the gaping hole.

Cleo's Most Eligible Bachelor 2007.

See...not only do I crush balls......

Random sausage shot. Otherwise known as Ken's dinner.

BUBBLESSSSSSSSSSSSS. It's Superman and Peace versus.....

The Evil Queen Bitch of SS14 and the Cleo Bachelor.

I dunno wtf happened but I think Superman and Peace ~~lived happily ever after~~ won.

Then everyone else ate toasted marshmallows.

And then everyone's camera batteries probably died or something. Cos there aren't anymore pics after this. Soon, Alyson clicked "Publish Post" and this post lived happily ever after on the World Wide Web.

The End.

*It's 3.14am. Cut me some slack for the crappy writing.

BBQ

2006-11-19T18:41:00.000+08:00

Food food food on a Saturday night. Great company. Pics up later. Sodding Malaysian thunderstorm.

Let go

2006-11-18T03:14:00.000+08:00

I need to. Many years have passed. But how do you determine what is enough?

How can I let go of something that has been so fundamental in shaping the person I am today? It has become so personal and so influential in my life and how I choose to live it that I don't know where the lines are anymore.

Let go? The mind says it is time, but the heart is not ready to listen.

Updates?

2006-11-16T01:45:00.000+08:00

So let’s see, what’s been going on in my life the past week?

From being under pseudo house arrest for the past 2 weeks, I’ve been going out like a true rebellious daughter should. Everyday balik 3am++. I can already feel the wrath of mummy building. On the plus side, my sister is fully on my side. Feeding me fuel like “Go OUT! Don’t mind mum”

Ah yes, tis the season for household tension.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Had dinner at Planet Hollywood on Tuesday night on MUSA’s tab. Buffet style. Having paid a grand total of RM180 over the past three years at Monash and getting nothing back, we hatched a plan to eat RM180 worth of food each. Yes, we are truly Asian.

However, eating RM180 worth of potato skins and gratinated potato is pretty damn near impossible. I don’t think we could’ve achieved our goals unless we ate the restaurant’s entire supply of lamb and/or raided the bar.

38 bucks for a long island? Are you freaking kidding me?

Friday

2006-11-14T03:39:00.000+08:00

Strict Machine

2006-11-10T12:37:00.000+08:00

Waheyyyyy! So exams are over. How does it feel? No difference actually. Damn potong stim. I was expecting like...."Oh my godddd" and lots of joy and happiness.

Tarak pun.

Maybe it's cos it hasn't sunk in yet. Maybe it's cos I haven't filled up my application to graduate yet. Maybe it's cos I didn't complete the last question of my last paper (#&*#$^&*##^$).

Then again...maybe it's cos I don't really want to accept the fact that I have to start work so soon.

Yes, you cannot stop things from changing. But at the very least, I can deny that it's happening.

~~~~~~~~

I got a discount at Murni's for killing a cockroach and proudly telling Jackie about it. Apparently if we whack a rat we can get a naan. Coool. It's like some Bonuslink redemption.

And oh, did you know, one of the waiters with the afro...he straightened his hair. That was on Wednesday. Leen asked him why he straightened his hair. Yesterday when we went to Murni's again, he had shaved the whole thing off. Lol.

He was probably getting shit from the other waiters but the last straw must've been when customers started commenting on it.

Ah....dinner tonight at Pier's Keller. What to wear, what to wear.

All these things that i've done

2006-11-03T15:35:00.000+08:00

What is it going to feel like to hear the dinosaur telling the candidates to stop writing for the last time? Am I going to walk out of the hall on Wednesday feeling delirious? Happy? Sad? Deliriously sad? Hopefully not, cos that would mean I had fucked up that paper. But since there's a small part of my brain that thinks it's invincible, I don't think that will be the case.

Did I just jinx myself?

I know what's going to happen immediately after my last paper. I am going to walk calmly out of the hall. I will not stop to chat (mainly cos I don't know anybody in my unit. I am not sad ok...I just cut class a lot). I will walk to my car. Plug in my Ipod. Blast "All These Things That I've Done" by The Killers. Drive to Mobil in SS14 and get my car washed. Then Wee Sher Leen is going to drive and pick me up from Mobil and we will go for breakfast.

But what next? The rest of my life is ahead of me. Your guess is as good as mine.

Book and Car

2006-11-01T00:47:00.000+08:00

Every bloody time I borrow this textbook from the library, it gets reserved by someone else (I suspect its the same person). This means I cannot renew the book and tapao it for long periods of time. Why must he/she/it challenge my kiasu-ness? See..now I have to pay a fine if i want to keep that book till I don't need it anymore. Cipet.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Drove my brother around for the first time today. He says I tend to hesitate when I drive. Me? Hesitate? Have you seen me driving to uni on regular days? I soooo do not hesitate. Being late for class on a daily basis does wonders for heroic driving manouvres.

Isetan

2006-10-27T17:53:00.000+08:00

I went shopping @ KLCC today!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

DAMN F***ING GUILTY NOW!

Bring on the exams, bitches...cos this is when the magic starts!

Yeah baby YEAH! Wooohoooo!

But first, I must take a nap.

I must be close to insane to try and tempt fate by shopping 2 days before my final FINAL exams. But it worked dammit. I can feel the exam panic already. Oh how I wondered what had happened to you. Don't you know I need you to help me study?

Studies, interrupted.

2006-10-24T14:45:00.000+08:00

In the spirit of guilt cultivation, I went for Ikea's buka puasa buffet on Sunday.

Theory: You need to create significant levels of guilt over not studying in order to motivate yourself to study.

So yeah...buffet. Food wasn't that great. But the desserts were not bad. Jellies in shot glasses - I like! We ate enough to create part of KL city's skyline with the shot glasses.

Bah, damn these exams. Screwing up my social life.

First thing I will do after my last paper is wash my car for the first time in a year. Wahaha.

November 8, 2006: Para's first bath.

I want to Aboogeet something.

2006-10-22T14:05:00.000+08:00

There's nothing like exams to bring your mood down.

The whole of Malaysia is on a long holiday.

Isetan is on sale.

My mum and brother are out with friends.

My sister is on a beach in PD with friends (and a lot of booze)

I am on a couch at home with textbooks/notes (and a lot of coffee)

My exam starts in 8 days.

And I am so not stressed out enough yet to invoke Super Memory Power.

I tried playing the piano. But its out of tune.

Kylie Minogue's "I should be so lucky" is playing now -_-"

And I am vegetarian today. Where is the justice?

Emotispam

2006-10-19T14:25:00.000+08:00

Those are praying panda's btw. Spam spam spammmm.

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I drove home from uni today (last day of classes!) to find a 6-pack carton on RC Cola by my gate. Very suspicious.

A note on it said "In Celebration of 100 years of Great Taste" or some crap like that lah. It's chilling in my fridge now. Will take a swig later. Woohoo. If I never blog again or you guys never hear from me in the future, I guess it means that I kena racun to death.

When is Heineken or Diet Coke going to "Celebrate Great Taste" by leaving a 6-pack carton on my doorstep? C'mon, I am waitingggggggggggg.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Btw, this is completely irrelevant (macamlah my other points very relevant) but I made orange milk! I think I can hear Gaik Li vomiting all the way in Canada. Wahaha.

Orange juice + milk = Orange Milk!

It tastes like Vitagen. Yay! *cheap thrill*