midnight

Changes in the wind....

2007-10-17T09:09:03Z

Team reshuffling... end result... I might be coming back to Singapore to train people... you know what... haha. No questions for guessing what I'll be doing.

On a happier note... I'm going to get my Annual Leave so I should get together my act to book my air tickets so I can spend 2 weeks in the States (New York!! Here I come....) over the Christmas break.

Looks like I would be posted back to Singapore in the medium-long haul. Hmm. Wonder whether I'm making the wrong choice not to request for work to continue staying in Sydney. However, there are 3 huge disadvantages to staying in Sydney:

1. I miss my shopping (hahahaha)
2. I really must must must must must complete my LRSM Piano exams. So.. .back to drawing board. Retake piano lessons. Haha. If this is finalized I should call her up and have a nice chat and wiggle my way back into her schedule.
3. I should start learning driving, of which I have no hope of doing in Sydney since they penalize drivers below 25. Annoying.

Once I have accomplished 2 and 3, then maybe I can start contemplating whether I should consider more overseas postings (although people might protest...)... Maybe.. ahem.. even a change of environment?

Grampians and stuff!

2007-08-05T10:42:51Z

Today is a lazy Sunday. So I went out shopping. Oooohhh. McCain's TV dinners having 50% off!!! *Proceeded to grab 1 pack of almost every different type of TV dinner.

The result? This:

Arghh. Remind me never to over-shop again. As it is, had a difficult time dragging 8 plastic bags of food up the slight slope from the supermarket to my house, even though it just involves walking down 2-3 blocks.

In any case, this blog entry is about the trip I made to the Grampians National Park in the state of Victoria last week. Have overcome wanderlust temporarily, so I can bring myself to blog about it now.

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Day 1
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Our trip began on Wednesday night, when we (as in Trax and I) took a flight into Melbourne on Wednesday night. The journey began with a horrible start. We were booked into Mercure Grand Welcome in Melbourne for the first night, and Trax positively disliked the place, proclaiming it "YMCA All over again." The walls were a little thin so you could hear people flushing their toilet in the next room, or people walking down the hallway, so he didn't sleep too well and got pretty grouchy. As for me... well, honestly I slept like a log, thankfully.

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Day 2
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The next morning was equally bad. We had booked a train-bus-bus ride from Melbourne to Halls Gap, the town right smack in the middle of 2 mountain ranges, and the starting point for many of the bush walking trails in the Grampians National park. Our next 2 nights would be spent staying at Halls Gap. Unfortunately, the morning got off a rocky start, when we almost missed the train at the Melbourne Southern Cross station, as we had difficulty finding Platform 8S. We ended up having to run to the platform, and in the process, I spilt Coke onto the sleeve of my brand-new, white Esprit jacket. Thankfully, we made it in time... 2 minutes before the train departed.

Luckily, things improved, as did the weather, which got really nice and sunny. The train ride concluded in Bhallarat without further incident, and we changed to a bus ride from there to Stawell. One last change of bus (or more precisely, van) was needed for the leg between Stawell to Halls Gap, but we were pleased to be deposited right at the doorstep of the holiday cottage we had rented (Stanford's Getaway).

The cottage turned out to be very nice, and a luxurious change from the horrid Mercure room we had in Melbourne. We had a living room, kitchen, bedroom, and a nice big toilet complete with a spa bath. The king sized bed looked plush and inviting, but we didn't stay for long to test it out. Went out walking straightaway to the Visitor's Center, which was but a stone's throw away from our cottage, to collect some maps, and we were off on our first bushwalking trail - Boronia's Peak.

This, is Boronia's Peak.

Amidst arguments (which I won) with Trax because he wanted to climb out to the backside of the rock (and there is nothing underneath obviously), we partook in the lovely scenary, with Halls Gap at our feet. At the same time, we were able to get a nice, relatively unobstructed view of the valley on the other side of the mountain ranges. Don't know what place that is though.

Halls Gap below

The other side of the mountain range

The funny thing, though, is that we didn't know whether we had reached Boronia's Peak yet or not. There was no sign anywhere, and the walking trail appeared to continue. We suspected we had not, because it had only taken us slightly over an hour to get there, an unnaturally short period of time for scaling any peak. It didn't help, that in the near distance ahead, there was another higher peak. The only problem was, that other peak was at least one mountain range away, and to get there would require walking down and up again some distance away. We didn't have any proper hiking maps which would have documented clearly the trails, because we hadn't bought one from the Visitor's Center, so all we had was the free, complimentary copy, and the complimentary map we had showed that Boronia's Peak laid at the end of the trail, which seemed a little contradictory.

So, we walked on. And we went on and on. There didn't seem any end. The description in the complimentary map said that there was a 'scramble up the rocks' in order to reach Boronia's Peak. And we indeed came upon a mass of rocks, that was halfway between us and the peak we had seen earlier on. The only problem was, this pile of rocks didn't seem to have any trail. And it was getting darker, and we knew we had to be out of the hills before sunset. So we decided to call it a day and turned back. What a waste of leg energy. The only consolation was that we managed to see a wallaby hopping about in the wild on that long extended walk.

(PS: Eventually we found out that the first rock we reached WAS Boronia's Peak by looking at the Grampians pictorial books being sold at the local bookstore. LOL.)

Eventually we made it down back into Hall's Gap just as the sun was almost completely sad. It gets really dark once the sun sets in Halls Gap, and by 6pm, it was completely dark. We went back 'home', had a quick shower, and went to the acclaimed Kookaburra restaurant just opposite where we had dinner.

Dinner included soup of the day (Lamb Shanks), and roasted chicken for Trax and Fillet for me. I was particularly fascinated by their mash potato, which had a really nice zang to it, and was wondering what was the additional ingredient they had put in to give it that extra flavour (We decided it was garlic; I shall try putting garlic into my mashed potato next time).

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Day 3
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After a nice breakfast in bed, we started our trek late morning. Our objective today: The Pinnacles, which is a 11.5km walk round trip from Halls Gap. The weather was bad and it was raining sporadically. Surprisingly though, it wasn't very cold.

Our start of the bushwalking trail began on the way to Venus Bath, and we were lucky enough to see the kangaroos in the wild!

We would have to walk from Halls Gap to the Wonderland Carpark, which incidentally, is where most people drive to to start the trek. However, as we didn't have a car, we had no choice but to walk. The walk was largely uneventful; we were basically in the middle of 2 rock faces, with a small stream flowing in the middle. Eventually, we hit Venus Bath, which looks like this:

Nothing spectacular, IMHO.

The walk from Halls Gap to Venus Bath wasn't too interesting, as it involved mostly dirt trails. However, it was only after Venus Bath that the path started to get a lot harder. It involved more climbing vertically upwards, up till the point where we hit open-face rock - that is, a stretch of rock, with little obstruction below, which means if you fall, you are gone case. We were a little taken aback as we weren't expecting to encounter that kind of climbing at all on this stretch of the route. Furthermore, the rock face was wet from the rain this morning, and therefore it was a tad bit too slippery for our liking. What to do? Climb up slowly and carefully, all the while cursing why didn't we have a car.

The stretch of rock I'm talking about. It doesn't look too steep in the pictures, does it?

We made it over that rock face, but still, there was no sign of the Wonderland carpark. Yet, the trail was starting to go down again. Argh. It would go up and down a few more times, before we finally spied the sign that said: Wonderland Carpark - 0.7km. By then, Trax was going on and on about how we might not have the time to make it up to the Pinnacles and down again, since it was already past noon, and I felt like boxing his mouth shut, thinking that the energy could be better spent climbing.

Eventually, we were in some valley with a stream again, when we finally saw the first sign of humans - a couple, who had just come down from the other sight. Since the woman was wearing a nice trench coat and boots with heels, we concluded that we must not be too far away from the car park. So we took a deep breath and walked all the way up the stairs until we were over that rock face. And we were rewarded with a first glimpse of Wonderland carpark, which is nothing more than a small piece of flat ground with a couple of parked cars. We had made it. Hurray.

First thing we did? Trax went to ask a group of guys at the carpark how far was the drive up from Halls Gap to the Wonderland carpark. We were told it was only a 5 minutes drive and all the way downhill.

Great! We wouldn't have to go down that treacherous path where we had come up by. Instead, we would walk by the road downhill back to Halls Gap the next time. We proceeded to truly start on our climb to the Pinnacle. The signpost pointed in both directions: The Pinnacle via the Grand Canyon, and The Pinnacle. So I asked Trax, which way do you want to go? He said Grand Canyon, so we turned left.

Which turned out to be a mistake. Haha.

Apparrently, the Grand Canyon is basically a valley with rock faces on both sides, with some streams flowing down in the middle at some portions. It's 'grand', because the rock faces are pretty high and quite magnificent if you actually see them in real-life, but generally don't look as good in pictures. The climb itself basically involved going downhill into the 'valley', then uphill all the way. For the most part, it involved walking on rocks sloping upwards, and at particularly steep sections, there were metal handrailings for gripping. At other portions, there were metal stairs to climb. However, it wasn't a particularly easy climb as the climb was mostly uphill.

Which was why it was a mistake to do the Grand Canyon at the beginning, as it involves mostly uphill climbing. It would have been wiser to climb down the Grand Canyon. But we didn't know that, because we hadn't done our research.

The Grand Canyon, with rock faces on both sides.

The metal railings look like the one I'm gripping

Crawling under a big rock...

More metal staircases going uphill...

By the time we were out of the Grand Canyon, we were dead tired, so we sat down on a nearby rock, and started to eat our packed lunch - toasted bread with Nutella. The only problem is, toasted bread turns very hard after a while. So it was like chewing on a rock. Hahaha. Moral of the story? Do not bring toasted bread along if you don't intend to eat it immediately. It's more advisable to bring just bread.

The next section of the climb involved climbing over big expanses of rock. Not too difficult actually. Looks like this:

After having gotten out of the rocky stretch, we found ourselves once more walking on a dirt trail. By then, we were starting to tire, as the climb was unrelenting, and uphill all the way. Trax started to really regret climbing with 5 litres of water on his back.

More rocky stretches were to follow, but they weren't really nice.

By the time we made it up to Silent Street, which was the last stretch of climb just before we hit the Pinnacle, it was raining quite heavily again. Argh. And Silent Street is just like its namesake: Silent save for the sound of rain dripping on the rocks. It basically looks like a street, with rock walls on both sides, and rocks in the middle. The climb here was more challenging, as the rocks were wet from the rain, and it was sloping upwards all the way.

Trax, dead tired from scaling Silent Street.

Another shot of Silent Street, that gives a better picture of the rocky path we had to scale.

It got really bad, as the rain was making the rocks really slippery and hard to climb, plus the sky was overcast and starting to darken due to the heavy cloud cover. So it was with great relief when we finally emerged from Silent Street, and after a few more rocky stretches, were at the Pinnacle. I can't tell you how pleased we were to see this sight:

The Pinnacle! One more last stretch of rock and we would be standing there at the Pinnacle!

It was actually a relative short distance, but it took me quite a while to struggle up to the Pinnacle, reason being the wind was really strong and chilly up there! In fact, I wondered whether I would be blown off the mountain, so I had to grip the rocks carefully to hoist myself up.

This is the path to the outpost. And I was crounched down and crawling up all the way because it was so windy that I was afraid I would get blown away!

Luckily, it was all worth the trek. The view was superb - no panoramic camera can do it justice. I found myself literally standing on top of a piece of rock jutting out into from the mountain range, and Halls Gap appeared really puny in the valley below.

Steep drop below...

The only good thing about the pesky rain was that it produced a rainbow.. haha.

As it was drizzling, and there was a strong wind blowing at the top of the Pinnacle which made it really chilly, we didn't stay for long. It was now time to make our way back. While at the Pinnacle though, we met another Australian guy who had arrived slightly earlier than us. And suddenly, Trax developed a renewed interest to talk to him. Later I learnt that Trax had asked the guy, whom he discovered had driven up to the Wonderland Carpark from Halls Gap, whether we could hitch a ride down back to Halls Gap. And he agreed!

So we all proceeded to make our way downhill, except that the Aussie guy was soon way out of sight; I guess his bushwalking speed must have been 2 times faster than ours. It didn't help that Trax kept on slipping and falling on the walk down Silent Street due to the slippery rocks, and then began developed a phobia of falling. Which led, naturally, to an even slower walking pace downwards. So it was then that I discovered that apparently I can walk on wet rocks with a more stable footing than him. Muahaha.

Last Views of the Grampians on our way down

We eventually arrived at hte Wonderland carpark at around 4 plus in the afternoon, and were astonished to find the Aussie guy still waiting there for us! So we hitchhiked back to Halls Gap. And yupe, the 5 minutes' drive would have been a really long way to walk, as the road twisted and turned all the way downwards, and appeared pretty long. We arrived in Halls Gap just in time to find heavy rain starting to pour, and boy, were we glad that we weren't caught up there in the open anymore.

We retired back to our cottage, where Trax attempted to get a log fire going in the living room, while I was sitting on the sofa eating ice-cream. Unfortunately, the fire kept dying out, and I grew tired of watching him, so much so that I eventually fell asleep on the sofa. Oops.

(At the end of the day though, he gave up on starting new log fires again, because the wood wouldn't burn, but the newspaper that was used to start the fire had all burnt up.)

Dinner was spent eating at the Kookaburra Restaurant again. Soup of the day was Lamb Shanks again (I suspect that's their only soup??) but this time, we had steak for main course. Food was good, and I can recommend coming to Kookaburra for food if you're staying in Halls Gap. But a meal like ours would cost 70AUD+++.

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Day 4
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We didn't have any itinery for the day, as we were scheduled to travel back to Melbourne in the afternoon. After waking up late in the morning, and having a late check-out at 12 noon, we just sat down at the park opposite the Halls Gap Supermarket, eating ice-cream, and eventually playing with the swings at the playground.

Again, it was a Bus-bus-train journey from Halls Gap back to Melbourne. By the time we arrived in Melbourne, it was already late evening, so we checked into our hotel - Medina Grand Melbourne - straightaway. We were vastly relieved to find the place a lot better than Mercure Grand Welcome.

We had dinner at one of the riverside restaurants along the Yarra river. Unfortunately, the dinner tasted awful. Trax had a worse time than me, since he tried to be adventurous and ordered Lamb Curry. Generally, it's a bad idea to eat Asian food in Western countries, and in his case, the food didn't turn out too good.

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Day 5
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Our last day in Melbourne. Really didn't do much; just wandered around to Queen Victoria's Market, to St. Kilda, Church Street, around CBD. Spent some time taking trams. Surprisingly, I had utterly lost the urge to shop, and my shopping at the end of the trip only totaled up to 4 Abercrombie tops. Well. I guess I was in a pretty crabby mood as the trip was ending.

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In a way, I hate writing blog entries about my travels, because once I've done so, it signifies that I'm ready to move on. And I usually take some time to get over my travel high. I guess since Trax has already left for the States, I too should move on. Right now my future is uncertain, I guess, and I don't even have a concrete idea of what I want to do. Regardless. It's 8.35PM as I finish typing this entry now, and I think I really need to get down to cooking dinner.

In Limbo

2007-07-30T10:37:47Z

Back at work on a blue Monday. Yawnz.

Seriously, there isn't enough at work to keep me occupied. If this keeps up, I will quit out of sheer boredom.

The few days of holiday, that plus Trax's "bad influence", has got me thinking about what I should do with my life, or more specifically, my job. Do I want to keep on doing what I'm doing now for the next 5-10 years? Or do I want out? That plus, I'm having a 'disagreement' with my parents. The end result is that I'm probably going to lose out on that one either way. Plus Trax just went back to SG and will be flying off to the States this week. Everything is coming together to keep me in a perpetual black mood.

I realized I've been living in Australia for a year now. Seriously, I don't think Australia is that fantastic a place to live, nor did I learn a lot more working in Australia than I would have working in Singapore. However, there is just something about being out of Singapore, that makes you see a lot of things in a clearer light than I would have had I remained back home. Perhaps it's the freedom, or the liberal attitude here, where one can do anything as long as it's not explicitly forbidden, as compared to the Singaporean mentality of everything is forbidden unless it is explicitly permitted. Or perhaps it is the culture here, where the mentality is that work is important, but so is play, and life itself. Or perhaps it is just not having to work with a room full of Type-A Singaporean personalities, everyone scheming to excel, shine and get noticed for promotion. Unfortunately, with the sore exception of a selected few, I have to say that I generally prefer the Australians and any of the other nationalities to the Singaporeans. I think I just detest the Singaporean mentality, even though I'm Singaporean myself.

Anyway, the point is, that, I seriously cannot see myself working back in Singapore again after my stint in Australia ends. That plus Trax is going to be in the States for the next 5 years. That plus, for various reasons, the pull Singapore has over me is getting weaker and weaker, for other personal reasons. In short, I feel like quitting Singapore in the short-term.

I definitely need a challenge, so I've been thinking about really starting a Ebay business, as opposed to selling a few things here and there just to earn a few bucks. As again, I'm up against the same questions which I couldn't answer 1 year ago. What should I sell? Where should I import from? Presuming I'll be doing retail, should I import or should I manufacture? Is this a rational approach? Or will I just be throwing all my savings away? Maybe I should also change my job, and change my environment, perhaps even change the country of my working location.

Right now, I'm just feeling rootless. Not exactly carefree, although I more or less have all the freedom in the world. Just drifting around. And it's not a good feeling. I think I'm starting to understand the true meaning of "a-wandering". I need a challenge which can motivate me, which will allow me to focus my energies. Or maybe I should just augment my bank account first, since part of that motivation comes from an issue which requires lots of money.

In a sheer fit of madness...

2007-07-21T15:34:22Z

Someone tell me I'm mad.

Contemplating (or contemplated) going Grampians next weekend in Victoria.

Now. The Grampians is this nice, rocky national park in Victoria. Would stay at Halls Gap, which is this small town nestled in a valley surrounded by 2 mountain ranges. Due to the local topology, it is easy to see daylight hours would be short, since the town lives within the shadow of the mountains.

Plan is to go there, stay in Halls Gap, and do day treks in Grampians. The Balconies and the Pinnacle, most likely. Basically both involve hiking up the surrounding mountain ranges to some lookout point. Need to train up my stamina, I think.

The plan would have been fine if this was summer. As it is, winter is the coldest season, plus it may rain. Add to that, it may also snow.

And I only have my pair of Addidas sneakers. No Timberland boots with me in Aussie now.

Getting mum to send my Gore Tex jacket over. I can only count on my trusty Gore Tex now.

Stuck

2007-06-26T10:34:02Z

I can't help shaking off the feeling that my life is stagnant. That's pretty disturbing considering that it's been like that for the past 6 months or so.

No progress. No interesting happenings. No big incidents. No highs or lows.

Time flies so quickly that it's not funny.

I feel like I'm now stuck in a rut. Go to work -> EBPP. My day revolves largely around work. Spend weekends 'wasting' away. I'm not doing anything productive.

My first year has flown away. Will this be the same for my second, third year? *shudders*

Thing is, I'm starting to get bored. And I feel I'm not learning enough. There's only so much exposure you need to get at work to know that things largely revolve around the same thing -> Development, Defect Fixes, Managing defects. Yes, as time goes by, it's possible to take charge of bigger projects, bigger teams, more complicate development cycles, a hell lot more defects to manage... but bottomline is, the work is all the same. And the work is... boring. Which is disturbing.

Can I make a career out of managing defects/development for the next 10 years? Of course I can. Bottom line is, do I want to?

As I spend more of my life working for the drudgery of money, the more I'm realizing that maybe corporate life isn't for me. It isn't exciting. It's too dry. The challenges are much too monotonous. It's a job for the sake of earning the dough.

One of those nights when I was walking back home, I wondered for that split instance whether I should just quit. Take a break for a year. Finish up all those things that I was supposed to have. Get my LRSM performing certificate, get a driving license, learn Japanese, go travelling. Just wandering alone in foreign cultures, with a melancholic song playing on my ipod. To experience life truly, to smell the air, breathe in the excitement of being alive, to see and yet not see, being a face in the crowd. Not to rush to work, stay in office from morning till night, till there is no time left after work. Not when the only people I meet are colleagues.

I want a life that is unconventional. Not out of the box, not something that everyone else does. To believe in what I'm doing, instead of doing for the sake of being told, for the sake of meeting some deadline (which goodness knows has no significance..does it even matter if something is delayed for 1 or 2 days?). I don't feel I have a target, an aim, in work. It's just going through the motions. Writing documents. Instructing or telling others what to do. Fixing defects. Granted, the more I do, the more proficient I become, but what can I say? Does anybody care whether I can fix defects faster than another colleague? Do I even care myself?

We all work for different reasons. In my case, I want my apartment when I get married. I want to decorate that apartment. Build lots of walk-in closets. Get a plushy king sized bed with lots of cushions and pillows. Get a large bathtub for my bubble baths. All these need money. So I have to work.

Yet at the same time, I feel that my countdown is beginning. And although I may think I want a nice house, I also treasure my freedom. Right now, the prospect of getting an MBA is becoming more and more attractive. Not so much as in it will give me a higher salary when I graduate, but in terms of the additional exposure it will give me. The freedom and the luxury of just studying. Cutting classes when I feel like it. Having one short-term goal after another, in trying to ace one project to the next.

I miss the chase. I miss those days when there's always something to aim for. It frustrates the hell out of me, but I always had so many goals on hand. So many things I needed and wanted to do. Now, I don't have any of these. And frankly speaking, a life without goals is boring. Even if there's money coming in every month, it's still boring.

Shall I get some drastic change? Sometimes even I don't understand myself or what I want. I should come back to Singapore, check out the prices of grand pianos. I promised myself that I would afford one when I'm back. I miss tinkering on the piano keys, just feeling myself adrift in the waves of the crystal clear sounds.

Some day, I will be back. Perhaps with more colors in my experiences in life, I will finally be able to face the piano again. In the meanwhile, I will just continue drifting along in the ocean just for a while more. A short while more. One day, and I'm certain I will know it when it comes, when I wake up, I will decide it's time to change.

lcklmslm @ 2007-04-24T19:56:00

2007-04-24T10:03:56Z

I'm bored. Which is a dangerous thing.

Last Thursday, I was damn bored. So in view of the long weekend (Was on leave on Monday), on impulse, I booked a trip to Melbourne over the weekend. So I flew to Melbourne, went holiday on my own, stayed in hotel and went shopping. So now I'm a lot poorer :(:(:(:(

Damn.

Now. My mum's coming over to Sydney for a 3-week visit starting from tomorrow. Damn. She will nag at me why I didn't finish the vitamins I brought over to Sydney last year, why I sleep so late, why I never wash the toilet, why I never iron my clothes and left them lying all around the living room....... So to make things worse, I've to spend tonight and possibly tomorrow cleaning the house (Yupe... I haven't washed M's towels and sheets and thrown away all the rubbish she left behind ever since she left).

So back to my mum. I will obviously be obliged to bring her sightseeing (but she's not a very good sport at a lot of things). So we will obviously have to eat out sometimes (= more expenses.. which I wouldn't mind if I wasn't broke). And since she will obviously be bored, I will have to show her around Sydney.

Maybe I should 'persuade' her into going outside Sydney. That way I can get a chance to travel as well?

Work wise... entering a pretty slack period recently, since UAT still hasn't started yet. So I'm left in limbo reading code and trying to tell people what to do. Drats. And I've been told I'm too nice and I should be meaner to people.

Am I too nice? I guess that's because they haven't seen me when I want things to go my way and I want to be in control.

OK. The only good thing I can think with my mum around is that I probably won't have to cook so often. She can do the cooking. Maybe I should even get her to do my ironing. Hehehe.

Birthday Wishes..

2007-04-01T00:32:26Z

I haven't updated this blog in a long time... so here goes.

At work, I'm having a horrendously hectic time, what with all sorts of issues. SIT finally closed... now it's only a matter of when PT and UAT start. In between, have to deal with upgrade with new baseline... which our first build deployed into ST on Friday crashed.

I'm going back to SG for the Easter weekend.. .will be landing on Thursday night, and flying off at midnight on Monday. Shall do some shopping in the meanwhile.

Things that I wanna do and get:

1) Upgrade my HP. Looking at getting a Nokia phone, maybe the N73. But I don't really like the size of the phone; I prefer the N72, but I think this is out of date and people are not selling it anymore?

2) Signup for credit cards. UOB Ladies card and Citibank Visa. The former because I still think UOB has the best privileges; the latter because it's the only card that can allow me to buy on taobao.com with Visa Verification.

3) Shop for clothes! I want more jackets and maybe a trench coat or two! Winter in Sydney is coming up, and am already starting to feel the chill.

4) Get boots, hopefully the suede or leather kind. Must not be the kind that is too high else I'll look cartoon since I'm so short. Then again, this is not a high priority; maybe I should just cart the pair I have at home to Sydney.

5) Buy a bag. I've been on a bag buying spree later; first was my Coach Signature work bag;

next was the Coach Signature Ombre Tote (which I found out recently had snakeskin trimming.... Yikes... not sure I dare to use the bag now...)

then I'm still waiting for my Coach Reversible Tote in Punch to arrive from Ebay.... waited 2 weeks and still not here :(.

Latest bag I want now is a stylish tote with zip to take up the plane; I prefer not to use my Ombre nor Juicy Couture because both are not waterproof (and can become dirty if I put too many times on the floor on the seat in front of me) and because they have no zip (things very easy to spill out).

So... I was scouting for a bag.. and I've come up with 2 options:

Un-Apres-Midi de Chien, Julie (Red)

Or... Agnes B Voyage (Turqoise or Khaki?)

Both are made of nylon, so both should be waterproof, and both have a zip.... If I get the Julie... I've to buy it online and wait for the long shipping time, since I'm too stringy to pay for Fedex shipping fee. If I buy the Agnes B, I can buy it on the spot in Singapore, but I heard it's cheaper in Japan so it doesn't make sense to buy it if I go Tokyo at the end of the year...

On the other hand... re-looking at the pictures, I must say the Julie tote looks better. Haa. I shall get the Julie tote then (but I am still too stingy to pay for Fedex).

6) Eat. This time round I must get to eat my Yong Tau Foo & Chicken Rice. Muahahaha.

7) Get a Handphone keychain? Maybe an Agnes B or Dior charm? As well as a Coach keychain to hang on my coach bag?? Or maybe I should walk to DFS and look at what's in stock today...

...And this is current lemming of the moment. Termed as a lemming because I'm not going to take any action on it (nor can I afford to; one Dior bag = 2 Coach bags):

Dior Trotter Romantique Barrel Bag

..I just love the pastel shades of the bag, the way the suede lining intertwines with the metal handles, the cute Dior metal charms on the bag...This would be THE bag to carry out on a dinner or to some function... I would sell all the rest of my 'function' bags if I ever got hold of this one... hahaha.. Maybe I should get a fake one just for the hang of it...I saw the bag in real-life at the Dior store yesterday.. looks and feels really good and sturdy.. but at a whooping AUD$1500! Online.. think the cheapest price for this is USD$768... anyone in the US with access to a Dior outlet??

Here's a pretty good fake from the Dior Romantique line:

..but then it costs USD$175, so I might as well top up 3 times the price to get the actual thing. Notice the leather trimming looks pretty dull... and the shape of the bag seems wrong when compared to the actual thing.

..Maybe I should get a Dior saddle bag when I next fly as consolation? Hahaha... speaking of which I was quite shocked to realize that Singapore Changi Airport actually sells Chloe bags... I didn't even know the brand was available in Singapore, although it's quite hot here over in Australia and sold in David Jones..

Identity crisis

2007-01-17T08:53:34Z

I bidded and won this BCBG dress on Ebay this morning. But I'm not feeling particularly euphoric.

Something seems wrong with my life. Something missing.

Cash? Not really. I'm not short of it. Of course I would like more but I'm not particularly craving for it.

Family? Not really. I don't really miss my parents.

Boyfriend? We keep in pretty close contact. It would obviously be nice to see him but I won't feel particularly miserable not seeing him.

Challenges? Well I guess there are plenty of minute challenges in the course of work, but nothing really 'big' enough to fascinate me. I'm becoming immune and hardened, I think.

Time? Yes. I want more time, as in free time. To do the things that I like... but then again, if I had free time, I would need more money, cause most things that I like to do involve spending money.

I think I just don't like my lifestyle. Wake up, go to work, go home, eat dinner and sleep or work more. Next day, repeat. Repeat for 5 days in a row, sometimes even 6. Boring yawn.

In short, I don't have a L-I-F-E.

When was the last time I touched a piano key? I fear by the time I can afford a Steinway I will have forgotten how to play the piano.

When was the last time I had the time to experiment with cooking in the kitchen? Far too long, I think, till I can't even remember.

When was the last time when I had no aim, no target, no task to complete in a day? When work was completely not on my mind. Not even during my Tasmanian holiday, when I was still worrying about coding progress, even though I didn't do any work and just refused to entertain any notions of working.

I can suddenly understand how people feel when they claim they're 'burnt out'.

The crux of the problem is not working hard, or working long hours. The problem is when you lose sight of why you are working. The problem is when you work because it IS the thing that everyone else does, because it covers up your overarching failure of having any goal in life, even for life at the present. The problem is when work and life are so intricately mish-mashed together that there can be no separation of the two. The problem is the passion you have for what you are doing has dwindled into a tiny trickle, sometimes that you start to doubt why do you even bother.

Why should I care if the deadline cannot be met if the deadline is always shifting? Moving targets, anyone?

Why should I torture myself by sleeping less, or rather waking up in the middle night after having fallen asleep accidentally to continue coding?

Do I really care what others think? What does the word 'management' mean to me? Nothing I'm afraid. They're too far removed from me to make a difference. Do I worry that I will become the scapegoat to be blamed for lack of progress? Not really, because I'm too small fry to take any proportionate amount of blame.

The disturbing answer to why I work is because it has become a habit. A nasty habit engrained into my lifestyle. That is why it is disturbing.

I can't help but wonder how much will it cost me if I don't work for a year. How much would my living expenses amount to? Suddenly I have this grand vision that when I get married, I will quit and just take a break for a year, to travel, or maybe to just do the things that I want to do, like take up a course.

Suddenly, I can't see myself as a career-woman or a high-flyer forever anymore. It all seems rather pointless to me. And that disturbs me as that was always what I had envisioned for the future. If not, what would I be???

Periodic update

2007-01-12T11:55:30Z

Haven't updated in a long while..so here I am... still alive.

Ever since coming back from Tasmania, life's been a whirlwind. Work, work, work, work, work. I'm still in office now waiting for a colleague to finish the build that we've to deliver tomorrow morning. The story revolves around a fix which was buggy and... well, the typical, boring stuff.

The team is primarily in the development phase now, but we still can't get out the R1 support stuff. Haiz. When will this ever end.

I'm looking forward to the weekend when I won't need to be on duty. But then I still need to continue coding. Luckily I'm not really in the mood to shop despite all the New Year sales still going on around here in Sydney. Still I should take the time to clean up my house, arrange some of my things (which are in a mess), sleep in, cook a bit, lift through my magazines. Free time mah, so must spend freely.

Life is now work, sleep, eat, work, sleep, eat. Quite boring actually. I wanna be back on holiday. Boohoo. It's so fun to be on holiday. Anyway I don't have my photos with me now so I guess I'll blog about my holiday another day.

Yesterday and Today...

2006-12-14T12:22:20Z

Yesterday, my team lead became my test lead, and my peer became the development lead. And somehow I'm taking over his previous role as defacto defect lead.

Which means, now my office time becomes support time for other people, and my free time becomes my actual work time.

Luckily Trax is coming over tomorrow and I'm leaving next week for holiday. I should be able to preserve my sanity.

Our team has suddenly gathered too much attention from the management; production error (Damn troublesome to fix!!!); a different management team (this one is much more aggressive and focused), a trifle more unhappiness with the vendor people... Haiz. Luckily I detest politics and I'm still trying my best to stay out of it and remain friends with everyone else.

That said, our build is seriously in trouble and falling way behind schedule. We're supposed to test next month and up till now, I can't see much code to test.

But I still think it's better working in Australia. The level of exposure is just different. Hopefully by the end of this project I would have learnt enough to become more useful.

Hmm.. I'm planning activities with Trax (Although in the project plan I'm working on the weekends... haiz...) Go out and eat everyday at the least, I guess. Xoxo? Encasa? Sakae? Oh yeah... must make him try Australia KFC... hahaha....

Seriously I've grown fat. Sigh.

Tasmania Xmas :)

2006-11-19T01:45:38Z

After weeks of haggling, calling, quarrelling, we've finally got a semblance of an itinary for my X'mas Tasmania trip almost all ironed out.

I'm going Cradle Mountain, Strahan and Freycinet primarily. Will also be throwing in a bit of time at Hobart and Launceston.

Trax is constantly getting pissed with me because I like adding things to the itinery. Anyway... my almost perfect itinary looks like this:

20 (Wed) Sydney - Hobart (Jetstar 835 - 1030am)
.:Cradle Mountain: Cradle Mountain Lodge

21 (Thu) Cradle Mountain
.:Cradle Mountain: Cradle Mountain Lodge

22 (Fri) Cradle Mountain
.:Cradle Mountain: Cradle Mountain Lodge

23 (Sat) Cradle Mtn - Launceston
.: Launceston: Cornwall Boutique Hotel / Sandor's on the Park

24 (Sun) Launceston - Coles Bay
.: Coles Bay: Edge of Bay

25 (Mon) Coles Bay
.: Coles Bay: Edge of Bay

26 (Tue) Coles Bay
.: Coles Bay: Edge of Bay

27 (Wed) Coles Bay - Launceston
.: Launceston: Cornwall Boutique Hotel / Sandor's on the Park

28 (Thu) Launceston - Queenstown
Queenstown - Strahan train (Wilderness Railway)
.: Strahan: Aloft Boutique Accomodation

29 (Fri) World Heritage Cruise
.: Strahan: Aloft Boutique Accomodation

30 (Sat) Strahan - Hobart
.: Hobart: Montgomery's Private Hotel

31 (Sun) Hobart
.: Hobart: Montgomery's Private Hotel

1 (Mon) Hobart
.: Hobart: Montgomery's Private Hotel

2 (Tue) Hobart - Sydney (7am - 850am)

Planning this was one of the worst nightmares in my life for the following reasons:

-Availability of accomodation during peak periods. Just when a route had been worked out, it turns out there is no accomodation (ie. national parks like Cradle Mountain and Freycinet have really limited and expensive accomodation. Hitting Hobart in the New Year's eve period is also a nightmare because all the hotels are fully booked for the Yacht Race and Food Festival.)

-Route Timings. Being dependent on public transport (more specifically Tassielink coaches) is a bad idea. Rail transport does not exist there. Everything works by bus. And there are like buses to places 3 times a week. Which is why it's so difficult to work out a route. Argh. I miss places with trains EVERYDAY.

-Limited time. It doesn't help when transport forces one to move slowly or to stay longer in one place over another.

As a result, because of the urgency of securing everything we needed, I ended up doing all my bookings by calling, because Tasmanian hotels have little presence on the net, meaning booking through the Internet will result in a 24-48hour response time, which would, by then, be too late. Argh. My HP bill is gonna be sky-high this month.

So what have I missed out?

-Bicheno Fairy Penguin tour. Argh. I want to do this. I want to do this. (I shall go befriend the guests at Edge of the Bay to see whether anyone else is driving down to Bicheno to do the tour; maybe I can hitchhike a ride??)

-Stanley, the Nut. OK. I dunno why. Ever since I saw the picture of the Nut in Lonely Planet, I just have this weird urge to go to this plateau. Anyway, no time to go, so too bad. :(

-Port Arthur. So near, yet so far. Going to Port Arthur by public transport from Hobart requires an overnight stay at Port Arthur, due to the bus timing, of which I simply have no time. So, the only other way is to go do a day tour from Hobart to Port Arthur. Unfortunately as almost all day tours cost > AUD$100, and we have already busted our budget for the pretty costly lodging at Cradle Mountain and Freycinet, hence, no money left for Port Arthur. Ouch. Maybe my consolation is that I will get to visit Hobart during the Food Festival; I shall eat and eat and eat to vent my frustration. Haa (Crap, but I feel I'm growing fat already in Australia...).

-Tahune Air Walk, Huon Valley. Again another miss. The only sensible way to get there is by a day tour from Hobart, which we don't have the budget for. Then again, since the Walk basically involves walking amongst 1000 year old Huon pine trees in the air, I probably am not missing much, since I'm going Strahan to walk amongst 2000 year old Huon pine trees on the ground at the Heritage landing.

-Cadbury Chocolate Factory Tour. Haiz. Missing this because they only open on weekdays. Since I'm on Hobart on a Sunday, and then on a public holiday (1st January), this place won't be open. Too bad.

Right now, I'm wondering what can I do in Hobart. Probably wonder around everywhere. Somehow, Hobart reminds me immensely of Bergen; with the wharves, colorful houses, by the sea etc.

In the meanwhile, I will have to settle the Launceston accomodation, which I haven't done so yet. It's a choice between cost and comfort. Cornwall looks really great, but costs 40AUD more a night. Sandor's looks OK. I guess I'll probably take Sandor's in the end, for cost reasons. The extra 80AUD... hmm.. maybe I can squeeze in a Port Arthur day tour somewhere?? :)

Irritation

2006-11-01T08:43:21Z

I'm highly irritated now. Exactly why, a bit complex, because it's a combination of many reasons. Each reason makes me irritated by that bit, add up everything snow ball into one thing called "I'm pissed."

What is good about my company? Well, at this point in time, I'm learning a lot on the project. So, exposure is excellent (meaning exposure to both the good and the bad things, including a lot of inefficient processes).

Well, I will stick it out for a while, even though sometimes I get a bit annoyed at the way things are done. I suddenly have a naive idea that popped out of my head in the blue. How much does it cost to buy a Steinway Baby Grand in Singapore? OK... Steinway probably too expensive to afford, what about the other European brands? Bosendorfer?

I've been thinking. If there's one luxury item that I want to buy (and no, I'm not longing for a damn car), and that I surely must be able to afford some months from now, it's a grand piano. My parents will probably freak out if I tell them that because it's a costly item plus it will take up a lot of space at home. LOL. The more I think about it, the more excited I'm getting with the idea of owning a grand piano. I want a good, rich sounding one. Probably an European brand. The dream is Steinway, but it's probably too costly to consider because of Singapore taxes. But most probably not a Yamaha one, because I somehow think they kind of suck.

Anyway, was calculating, at the rate I'm earning, how long would it take me to get a grand piano? And I can't seem to find prices on how much grand pianos in Singapore cost, beyond those for Yamaha (which are quite cheap, but then I don't want Yamaha...)

Hopefully by the time I'm back in Singapore from Sydney, I can afford the grand piano. Or at least, half a grand piano. LOL.

And life goes on...

2006-10-18T13:26:15Z

...So I'm here in Sydney and have been for here for almost 2 months.

Honestly, life is good. Haha. Working hours are... err.. OK I guess. Definitely longer than in Singapore. Usually I life office at about 8pm, get back, eat dinner at 9 to 10 plus (depending whether I cook or buy back). The only thing I hate is that every weekend, 2 people will get arrowed to do SIT support. So far, I've sacrificed 1 public holiday and 1 Sunday to do support. Argh. Hope testing finishes quickly (Fat hope lol).

I like the people in my team (Die!! It's not good to get attached to colleagues) 'coz they're pretty nice people. Feel comfortable to pop by anyone's table and ask questions (Haha... I always got a lot of questions). Australian work culture is good, much better than Singapore. Their pantry is a lot more well-stocked than the Singtel office. Most importantly, their people are more laidback... so my team, which is made up of Australians and Americans predominantly, isn't pushed as hard as the other teams. The only bad thing is when top management starts pressing for deadlines, my team is usually pretty badly hit (coz we slack too long previously lol).

Work so far is a combination of doing support for testing and we're nearly the closing of the requirements gathering phase in the project. It's actually a pretty busy stage because we're being 'pulled' in both directions... Testing wants us to help them figure out what is wrong with our system such that the tests fail or fix bugs; while the FnD team expects us to produce all our documentation (CDs, ICs) on time, which necessitates endless meetings/emails/phone calls with business, and then doing the nasty job of chasing people to do things and give us answers. But the job scope is pretty interesting, and although I think the system I'm working with is extreme bloatware, it's pretty interesting. Of course I prefer FnD to doing support, because support usually requires me to figure out stuff, most of which I don't know. The most scary thing is L******* and T****, who're managing the release of R1 and hence doing lots of testing, like to pop by and ask me if something goes wrong with E***. Argh. I feel very stupid 'coz I can only help them out half the time (The other half I don't know how to answer... and people in my team also dunno). Must learn more about the system but that's easier said than done, since it's so complex. At this point in time, I'm not relishing the thought of having to do the DD soon since I know nuts about the details on the internal workings of the code.

Basically, I have no life on weekdays, since I go back quite late.. the only life I have after that is to cook, read online novels, and maybe watch some DVDs. Speaking of which, DVDs are the rage in Australia and I can't find VCDs for sale. The problem is that, of course, DVDs aren't cheap, and neither is rental of DVDs. In fact, the only thing which is cheap is buying pirated DVDs of Asian (Korean, Japanese, Taiwanese, HK) dramas). It's like only AUD$8/13/18 per set, depending on the no. of DVDs. So cheap!! Haha. For me that's my cheap source of entertainment, since this is about the same cost as going to the movies.

Weekends are pretty terrible since I usually spend them going shopping. Haa. Factory outlets (DFO/Birkenhead Point) wise, I love the FCUK outlets. So far I've bought like 2 skirts and 3 jackets from them, which is quite a feat, considering that each item costs at least AUD$50. But their clothes are so nice, and it's still cheaper than to buy them in Singapore. Furthermore, they have my size, which is a rarity, considering the Australian 'small' size starts from a size 8 onwards. I'm still considering whether to buy this very lovely and colorful short skirt from them, which is not on sale and will cost $70. Hmm. Let me think it over... Surprisingly, the Esprit factory outlets are quite disappointing, because their clothes, compared to FUCK, really aren't that nice. As for the rest of the Australian brands, they're too expensive to consider.

Which brings me to the point that I'm so pissed I ironed a hole in my G2000 pants a few days ago. ARGH. I have no idea what went wrong. I placed the iron on my pants for only like 5 seconds and I got a hole in it. Shit. Now I want to find a pair of pants to go with my G2000 jacket, but I doubt I'll suceed seeing that I can't fit the sizes here. I've also contemplated buying a brand new suit here, but I don't think I'll do so, since it will cost me an arm and a leg (Popped by OJAY the other day... err... one jacket costs AUD$250 on average, so can I even think about buying the whole suit???) Maybe I'll go shopping this weekend. Company just reinbursed me for my hotel expenses last month and paid up my allowance for last month, so I'm feeling richer now. Haha. Actually I was calculating that with all that money, if I just spend on food, I can literally save quite a bit of money each month. But somehow I can't imagine myself doing that coz I'm a spendthrift?? Opps.

Anyway I was thinking of claiming FTA at the end of October, and probably taking a flight back in November to Singapore. Reason being I want to stock up on all those things which I can't buy in Singapore (eg. Fancl cleansing oil, More G2000 PANT suits since it's windy here, bring over my bead-making toolbox so I can make earrings here, sanitary pads since they're bloody costly and too thin here, my backpack, etc). But then I'm too lazy to fly back since the flight is 8h and I don't feel like taking leave just to stay in Singapore for a longer period of time.

Most importantly, I'm now planning my holiday at the end of December with Trax to go gallivanting around Australia. Tasmania is currently THE destination on my mind now. Thinking of stopping by Gold Coast for a few days. Thinking also of going to Canbarra for a day. Even better. Would I have time to hop over to New Zealand? Ooooo. Argh. I can't make up my mind where to go and I'll only have 2 weeks. Better start researching and booking my tickets and accomodation soon. In the meanwhile, I hope my company can finalize arrangements for a long-term lease to some service apartment so that I can stay put and won't have to move anymore (I've moved 4 times since landing here :(). Obtaining a permanent residential address is crucial to me so that I can buy stuff online and do even more shopping. And I really want to buy a blender so that I can make fruit juices/milk shakes. It's only AUD$40 at Myer. A pretty good investment to experiment with making mixes (I just refuse to pay $6 for a shake outside coz I'm stingy).

Sydney continuation

2006-09-12T13:06:21Z

I can't remember when was the last time I posted, but it seemed a long time ago...

Anyway, time has passed really quickly here, no doubt since I get home earliest at 8 plus, which means by the time I cook and finish dinner, it's already 10pm. Add in a bath, doing some household chores, and my day ends. All that is left to look forward to is the weekend. Add to that I feel my life has just begun, in fact, right today. Because after having nothing much to do for the past 3 weeks, I suddenly have all these open-ended issues to settle. And you all know how it is with open-ended issues - you can either do a lot or very little. Regardless. I'm beginning to feel purposeful which is good. Anyway with the shifting of roles, I will be doing a lot of UI work. I can't believe it... it's almost like my prayers were heard and I'm getting one of the few tasks on my team that I think I would really enjoy doing. LOL. (Some superstitious part of me wonders if some ancestor, or my recently deceased grandma is watching over me from above or below).

Anyway let's see... I haven't done much exploring in Sydney still. Well, almost every weekend, I will crawl to Chinatown to buy cheap stuff (Actually it's not cheap, but it's the cheapest here!). Walked around Circular Quay last Saturday, so managed to get a few pictures of the area. Also took a train to Rhodes which is a suburb 1/2 hour away from city in order to go to IKEA - yes... I wanted cheap household stuff and took a train that cost me AUD$5, but yet spent only a miserly $8.75 there. :(

Since my last update, I shifted to stay in a hotel (Rydges Jamison) for a week, because there weren't any vacancies at the service apartment. The hotel was very nice, and service was excellent, but I didn't enjoy my stay there that much for one reason - there's nowhere nearby to eat dinner at night, and I can't cook. Room service for dinner would cost AUD$30, much too costly for poor me. Hence I always have to takeaway fast food either from Macdonald's or Hungry Jack's (Like Mac's too) from Wynyard station (This is the nearest train station to my office in Kent Street, as well as the hotel). And basically I'm sick of eating fast food. Thank god Lea managed to secure me a booking at the service apartment that will last till end of October, so I hope I won't have to move before that. Even better still, I got my own apartment, so no need to share with a housemate. Which means I can throw dirty clothes all around the house. Muahahaha.

Spending money here is like spending water - goes away very quickly. Or maybe I've been buying too many things. Big ticket items include my Internet modem (I'm on Unwired here, which is a wireless internet provider but you need to buy their proprietary modem in order to connect to the network... basically subscribing to the apartment's internet is far too costly and downright insane) and my new SE Z550i handphone (bought it cause I want an extra handphone for my Australian number... so I now have 2 handphones with 2 lines :|) Been spending a lot on food and groceries shopping, because I can't resist supermarkets in general. Also bought skincare from Jurlique and Dr. Lewinn's because I found the stuff I brought over works pretty poorly due to the dry weather here, so my moisturisers are all not moisturising enough for me. Oh the most 'fanciful' purchase however must have been my bath robe. I was too spoilt wearing one in the hotel hence when I moved back I decided I wanted one too since it's much easier to put on body moisturiser when wearing a bath robe than while wearing pants.

OK. Enough about shopping. I could go on forever. My rant about overly short operating hours for retail outlets here basically stands still. Actually in small areas here and there, I miss Singapore now and then. For one, the shops. I enjoyed going shopping after work, which is impossible here. However I must say the service rendered at shops here is what can at least be called 'service'. That which you get back in Singapore is an insult to our intelligence. The irritating thing though is that one can't be lazy when speaking English here... 'cause 'flat' Singaporean English is seldom understood here... so must be more 'diligent' and put in some inflexions and tones... miraculously the Australians will then be able to understand us. LOL.

Actually life here isn't that rosy, although it is exciting and different enough from Singapore to be interesting. There're just so many small things to handle here and there, everywhere. Admin issues. Household chores. Cooking, ironing, grocery shopping. Argh. Indepedent living is fun, but tiring. Would you believe I now sleep usually by 12 midnight? That would be unthinkable in Singapore, and I wake up even earlier in Singapore! Every morning it's a crazy rush (because I'm always late) to dash to office (on foot!! No train because it's only 1 stop away!)

Sometimes I wonder if this is the kind of life I want. Just last Sunday after checking out from the hotel, I was sitting in the hotel lounge downstairs at the lobby, and there was a Yamaha grand there. Some Korean kid went to play on it, and after she was done, I too went to play a bit. Haiz. I miss piano. Really. A lot. And it was at that point in time, in one of those rare moments that I really regret throwing away everything. I couldn't even remember the entire Chopin Ballade piece by heart. Nor the Mozart sonata. Nor Debussy. What is happening to me???

Yes, maybe outsiders think it is so fun to shift to a foreign city to work, and have company pay for all the expenses. But sometimes, if I think a bit more, or am nostalgic, like in one of those weak moments, I can't help but wonder whether this was even the right choice or not. Or maybe it's my life that's moving too quickly and carrying me along with the tide, even though I haven't even put on a life jacket. What is it about me that cannot take being ordinary? What is it in me that likes dynamism and changes? Why can't I accept stagnant working life, and just be one of the 'ordinary folks' like the rest of the population? And so I get what I ask for, only to be uncertain whether it is what I really want.

I have no idea where the future heads. One of these days, I'll probably quit everything I'm doing and become a housewife. No, not so that I can do the chores, but because I want some time to myself to just do stuff that I want to do and not because I have to do it. But guess what? Knowing myself, after a couple of weeks, I'll be so bored, and I would probably take on so many new things to do that it wouldn't be long before I'm swamped with 'work' again. And that is precisely my character, that part of me that I don't understand.

I haven't thought of what to do with my piano yet. But I'm still thinking that I should do something. What a pity I can't rent a piano in my apartment since I'll probably be constantly shifting about. I feel so much more alive with music. It gives me drive, gives me emotions, gives me feelings, gives me memories. Without music, I'm just a walking zombie dashing here and there. Yet if there's one thing music can't do, it can't bring me peace and calm.

Nevertheless. Enough ranting.

This was taken in the hotel room. The room is nice and big. Generally the hotel itself is qutie nice, just that the location is sucky at night.

Market City, in Chinatown. The upper 3 storeys house factory outlet stores. Paddy's market is at the basement. Having said that, Paddy's market has nothing I'm interested in buying, but there's plenty of stuff to choose from the factory outlet stores, Supre and Esprit forthmost.

The Rocks. Weekend market that sells handicrafts. Nice to look at, but nothing to buy.

Harbour Bridge...

Sydney Opera House...

And seagalls and pigeons waiting to be fed, all around the Circular Quay area. And mind you, there are plenty of birds there.

Do you really believe what this sign says?

The Woolworth's just round the corner from my apartment. Prices suck compared to supermarket prices in suburbs, plus there isn't that great a variety of food. Still it's really near to my place.

Greetings from Sydney

2006-09-01T15:29:46Z

Greetings from Sydney!

It's almost been a week since I've landed. Life here is good. Cool weather and fresh air, long periods of solitude alone in a foreign city. Finally, I feel more productive and AM doing some work. Well, not a lot, but it's a start. Working hours last from 9am to 8pm++ for me... pretty reasonable. Just in time to walk back 'home' and start cooking dinner.

The office is... well... actually pretty dingy. But the people are nice. The working culture is much better than the Singapore culture. My team is a pretty small team, in total, less than 20 people, so we pretty much know everyone else. Office is a 15min walk away from where I stay, so it's ironically even nearer than my office in Singapore LOL.

A lot of small little things suck. Shops open after I go to work and close before I knock off, so I still haven't opened my bank account or gone to the immigration office. Things cost a hell lot more... I regret not having brought more sanitary pads, my eyebrow tweezer, hangers, washing powder, chopsticks, scotch tape... along. People here operate pretty slowly, so it usually takes pretty long for some administrative issue to get processed - well, at least if the other party does NOT work in your office. Lunch is also a pain; to do things the Australian way would be to bring a lunchbox to work, or to bring microwavable lunch boxes to work; otherwise, one could also grab a quick bite off a sandwich. In the extreme case, one can leave the office to go to one of the nearby 'food courts' to eat. However, although the stalls are many, the seats are far too few, and it's such a bother to get a seat that I can strongly empathize with the Australian's choice of eating in office.

The supermarkets are not bad - pretty much overflowing with every sort of food. Surpisingly, Sydney itself has quite a large Asian population, and everywhere, one can see Chinese, Indians, Arabians. Naturally, this also means that Asian food is sold everywhere, and in almost every food court, one can find Malaysian stalls, Japanese stalls, Turkish stalls, Korean stalls amongst others. The only problem is the question of price. Food here isn't exactly cheap, and eating out will set one back by at least AUD$5-10.

I've been sleeping early and waking up early these days. Somehow, in the cold weather, one tires easily. Anyway, gotta slow soon, because tomorrow up, due to screwed up accomodation arrangements, I'll be moving out from my apartment and into a hotel.

Till then. Entertain yourself with pictures of the apartment I'll be moving out from soon, at least before I get down to taking photos of Sydney proper.

Bedroom. Well, this is actually the guest bedroom since the master bedroom was taken up by my housemate. Actually the master bedroom is slightly bigger because it has an attached toilet.

Guest toilet. Well, I use this everyday. It's just next to my bedroom.

Kitchen. Been cooking almost every evening. The kitchen comes with a full sized fridge, microwave, oven, stove, and a full set of cutlery and utensils. The only thing it's missing are bowls and saucepans, of which I promptly purchased of my own accord. And food too. Stocked up one shelf in the cupboard. Now that means I've to move them all away :(

Living room. I spend the least time here. Australian TV simply sucks and I can't find anything I want to watch. I didn't bring any CDs along so I've nothing to play on the hifi. Ditto for the DVD player. Oh well. Perhaps next time.

人算不如天算

2006-08-12T06:42:47Z

人算不如天算.

Have been only back a week... but luckily missed the attempted UK terrorist threat by 4 days.

Come back already realized my temporary visa screwed up. So I can only go over to Sydney when my permanent visa comes - in 4 to 6 weeks.

Just when I'm starting to resettle myself back into the SG office, my grandma passed away suddenly this morning.

Haiz. I don't know what to think. Too many changes within too short a space of time.

Shocking news!!!

2006-07-27T07:37:47Z

I have been assigned to go to US for training next week.

I will thereafter be posted to ACN's Sydney office and will be working there till May next year.

*Faintz*. Can't digest the news till now. Found out only this morning.

*Edited*: Will be flying off to San Francisco on Monday afternoon, returning the following Monday. Will be flying off to Sydney after my VISA gets approved; I can only apply for that when I'm back in the US but my boss is expecting a 2-day turnover :(:(

lcklmslm @ 2006-07-17T21:18:00

2006-07-17T13:20:58Z

Hmm.... I don't know how I got tricked into doing this...

(Click here to post your own answers for this meme.)

× I miss somebody right now.	✓ I don't watch much TV these days. (Well.. TV from Youtube or TV from downloaded serials count a not???)	✓ I own lots of books. (Yeah, but hardly read them.)
✓ I wear glasses or contact lenses. (Dud.)	× I love to play video games.	× I've tried marijuana.
✓ I've watched porn movies. (Who hasn't?)	× I have been the psycho-ex in a past relationship.	✓ I believe honesty is usually the best policy. (Yeah, but honesty to the point of frank brutality???)
✓ I curse sometimes. (Sometimes? ALL the time I think.)	✓ I have changed a lot mentally over the last year. (Too long to elaborate.)	× I carry my knife/razor everywhere with me.

* * * * *

× I have broken someone's bones.	× I have a secret that I am ashamed to reveal.	× I hate the rain.
✓ I'm paranoid at times. (More like frequently.)	✓ I would get plastic surgery if it were 100% safe, free of cost, and scar-free. (Hahahahaha@!!!!!)	✓ I need/want money right now. (Ohh... I want money I love money I adore money :P)
✓ I love sushi. (Sashimi.. Yum yum!!)	✓ I talk really, really fast. (Can if I want to.)	× I have fresh breath in the morning. (Err... don't think so.)
✓ I have long hair. (So-so bah.)	× I have lost money in Las Vegas.	× I have at least one sibling.
✓ I was born in a country outside of the U.S.	✓ I have worn fake hair/fingernails/eyelashes in the past. (Yah.. I have this fake hair extension... should use it one of these days...)	✓ I couldn't survive without Caller I.D. (Absolutely!)
✓ I like the way that I look. (Or rather I too nuah to care. As long as no outbreaks ok lah.)	× I have lied to a good friend in the last 6 months.	✓ I am usually pessimistic.
✓ I have a lot of mood swings. (Dependent on my stress level.)	✓ I think prostitution should be legalized. (Yes, since it will exist whether it's legal or not.)	× I slept with a roommate.
✓ I have a hidden talent. (The idea of hidden talent is that it's hidden... so will I know about it??)	× I'm always hyper no matter how much sugar I have.	× I have a lot of friends. (I am anti-social. Enuff said.)
× I have pecked someone of the same sex.	✓ I enjoy talking on the phone. (OK I guess.)	× I practically live in sweatpants or PJ pants.
✓ I love to shop and/or window shop. (I love to shop if the stocks change more frequently :))	× I'm obsessed with my Xanga or Livejournal. (Hardly ever come on here.. haha.)	× I'm completely embarrassed to be seen with my mother.
✓ I have a mobile phone. (I don't know of someone who doesn't.)	× I have passed out drunk in the past 6 months.	× I've rejected someone before.
✓ I currently like/love someone.	× I have no idea what I want to do for the rest of my life.	✓ I want to have children in the future. (Sometime between 30-35 I guess.)
× I have changed a diaper before. (What's that?? Hahaha!!!)	× I've called the cops on a friend before.	× I'm not allergic to anything. (I'm allergic to damn benzoyl peroxide!!! ARGHHH)
✓ I have a lot to learn. (Learning is an infinite journey.)	× I am shy around the opposite sex.	✓ I'm online 24/7, even as an away message. (Half true, I guess.)
× I have at least 5 away messages saved.	✓ I have tried alcohol or drugs before. (Don't like alcohol. Refuse to try drugs.)	× I have made a move on a friend's significant other or crush in the past.
× I own the "South Park" movie.	× I have avoided assignments at work/school to be on Xanga or Livejournal.	× I enjoy some country music.
× I would die for my best friends.	✓ I'm obsessive, and often a perfectionist. (Starting to suspect I've a streak of Type A personality....)	× I have used my sexuality to advance my career.
× I think Halloween is awesome because you get free candy.	× I have dated a close friend's ex.	× I am happy at this moment.
× I'm obsessed with guys.	× Democrat.	× Republican.
× I don't even know what I am.	× I am punk rockish.	× I go for older guys/girls, not younger.
× I study for tests most of the time. (Usually, else I will fail.)	× I tie my shoelaces differently from anyone I've ever met.	× I can work on a car.
× I love my job(s). (Right now it bores me to tears actually.)	✓ I am comfortable with who I am right now. (Or rather too comfortable to change.)	× I have more than just my ears pierced.
× I walk barefoot wherever I can. (No thanks. Hurts my feet.)	× I have jumped off a bridge.	✓ I love sea turtles. (They're quite cute actually.)
✓ I spend ridiculous amounts of money on makeup. (Hehehe...)	✓ I plan on achieving a major goal/dream. (Yes. More than one, I think.)	✓ I am proficient on a musical instrument. (I think I'm proficient in one instrument.)
× I hate office jobs.	× I went to college out of state.	× I am adopted.
× I am a pyro.	× I have thrown up from crying too much.	× I have been intentionally hurt by people that I loved.
× I fall for the worst people.	× I adore bright colours.	× I usually like covers better than originals.
× I hate chain theme restaurants like Applebees and TGIFridays.	× I can pick up things with my toes.	✓ I can't whistle. (Try as I might, I can't seem to learn.)
✓ I have ridden/owned a horse. (Actually riding a horse is pretty unpleasant. Hurts my butt.)	× I still have every journal I've ever written in.	× I talk in my sleep.
× I've often thought that I was born in the wrong century.	✓ I try to forget things by drowning them out with loads of distractions. (When it comes to work, yes.)	× I wear a toe ring.
× I have a tattoo.	× I can't stand at LEAST one person that I work with.	× I am a caffeine junkie.
× I am completely tree-huggy spiritual, and I'm not ashamed at all.	× If I knew I would get away with it, I would commit at least one murder.	✓ I will collect anything, and the more nonsensical, the better. (No place to store lah.)
× I enjoy a nice glass of wine with dinner.	× I'm an artist.	× I am ambidextrous.
× I sleep with so many stuffed animals, I can hardly fit on my bed.	× If it weren't for having to see other people naked, I'd live in a nudist colony.	✓ I have terrible teeth. (Yellow, bugs bunny kind.)
× I hate my toes.	× I did this meme even though I wasn't tagged by the person who took it before me.	× I have more friends on the internet than in real life.
× I have lived in either three different states or countries.	× I am extremely flexible.	✓ I love hugs more than kisses. (Hugs make me warm and cosy. Kisses are just... wet?? Hahaha...)
✓ I want to own my own business. (A childhood ambition. Only problem is I don't know what I want to sell...)	× I smoke.	✓ I spend way too much time on the computer than on anything else. (I should be playing the piano now but what am I doing???)
✓ Nobody has ever said I'm normal. (I'm just.. weird??)	✓ Sad movies, games, and the like can cause a trickle of tears every now and then. (Quite true. Although I feel books are more effective than any other form of media.)	× I am proficient in the use of many types of firearms and combat weapons.
✓ I like the way women look in stylized men's suits. (Corporate high flyer!)	✓ I don't like it when people are unpleased or seem unpleased with me. (Who does?)	✓ I have been described as a dreamer or likely to have my head up in the clouds. (Aim for the sky!! Castle in the cloud....)
× I have played strip poker with someone else before.	× I have had emotional problems for which I have sought professional help.	✓ I believe in ghosts and the paranormal. (Absolutely. Too bad I can't see them. Don't have 3rd eye leh.)
× I can't stand being alone.	× I have at least one obsession at any given time.	✓ I weigh myself, pee/poo, and then weigh myself again. (OMG.. this is sick.)
✓ I consistently spend way too much money on obsessions-of-the-moment. (I'm lemming for another 2 makeup palettes now. How huh?)	✓ I'm a judgmental asshole. (I tend to form judgements too fast.)	× I'm a HUGE drama-queen.
✓ I have travelled on more than one continent. (Only 2 continents. Still got a lot more to go.)	✓ I sometimes wish my father would just disappear. (Yes. Especially when he hogs the TV.)	× I need people to tell me I'm good at something in order to feel that I am.
× I am a Libertarian.	✓ I can speak more than one language. (But so do most people I know.)	✓ I can fall asleep even if the whole room is as noisy as it can be. (If I'm very tired, why not?)
× I would rather read than watch TV.	× I like reading fact more than fiction.	✓ I have pulled an all-nighter on an assignment I was given a month to do. (Obviously. I procrastinate till the last-minute.)
✓ I have no piercings. (Scared of pain.. haha.)	× I have spent the night in a train station or other public place.	× I have been so upset over my physical gender that I cried.
× I once spent Christmas completely alone because there was a miscommunication on which parent was supposed to have me that night.	× There have been times when I have wondered "Why was I born?" and may/may not have cried over it.	× I like most animals better than most people. (Indeed. Man is greedy and thinks too highly of himself.)
× I own a collection of retro games consoles.	✓ The thought of physical exercise makes me shiver. (In fright. LOL.)	× I have hit someone with a dead fish.
× I am compulsively honest.	× I was born with a congenital birth defect that has never been repaired.	× I have danced topless in front of dozens of complete strangers.
× I have gone from wishing I was a girl to revelling in being a boy to feeling like a girl again in the span of five minutes, and not cared a whit for my actual sex.	× I am unashamedly bisexual, and have different motivations for my desires for different genders.	× I sometimes won't sleep a whole night or eat a whole day because I forget to.
× I find it impossible to get to sleep without some kind of music on. (The converse is true.)	× I dislike milk.	× I obsessively wash my hands.
× I always carry something significant around with me.	× Sometimes I'd rather wear a wig in day-to-day life than use my own hair.	× I've pushed myself to become more self-aware and thereby more aware of others. (I think I'm still as oblivious of my surroundings as ever.)
× Even though I live on my own I still cry sometimes because I miss my mother.	✓ I hand wrote all the HTML tags in this document. (No thank you. What is the WYSIWYG editor for?)	✓ I've liked something which a majority of people claimed was either bad or weird. (Frequently happens.)
× I have been clinically dead for a brief period of time.	✓ Instead of feeling sympathy/empathy with people and their problems, I simply become annoyed. (Depends on the kind of problem. There are genuinely very few problems I can empathise with though (since the majority are of one's doing).)	× I participate/have participated in auto drag races and won.
✓ I do not 'get' most comedy acts. (Especially western ones.)	✓ I don't think strippers are money-greedy or slutty for dancing. (LOL. It's just another profession to make money.)	✓ I don't like to chew gum. (Very sticky.)
× I am obsessed with history/historical things and can't wait for someone to build a time machine so I can be the first to use it.	× I can never remember for the life of me where I parked the car.	× I had the TEEN ANGST thing going for at least 2-3 years.
✓ I wish people would be more empathic and honest with each other. (Empathic, not necessarily needed. Honest, yes.)	× I play Dungeons and Dragons weekly.	× I love to sing.
× I want to live in my mother's basement when I grow up. (I want to buy my own condo and move out. Definitely no!!)	✓ I have a custom-built computer. (Yupe. With 1GB of RAM, the MOST useful thing I own.)	✓ I want to create a certain someone's babies, even though there's a 0% possiblity of ever achieving it. (First part true. Second part false. LOL. I'm kind of interested to how 2 different types of genes will combine to produce a freak show?? Haha....)
× I would be in a relationship with one of my pets if they were human.	× I've gone skinny-dipping.	× I've performed in three plays.
× I enjoy burritos.	× I'm Irish and loving it.	× I have a thing for redheads.
× I am a twin!	✓ Most of the times, I'd rather do something intellectual instead of doing something generically 'fun'. (Kind of true. Intellectual things are quite fun too.)	✓ Once I set out to finish something, I always stay at it until it is completed before I move on to something else. (Both a flaw and a merit I guess.)
✓ I wish there were a way to erase past mistakes. (If only....)	× I sleep more than 12 hours a day. (If I could, I won't mind. Haha.)	✓ I wish I could be prouder of what I've accomplished, but it's never enough. (Yeah. I feel like I've slacked my entire life away and never achieved anything....)
✓ I need more time to myself. (It's always nice to have more time.)	× I wish I was more open-minded.	× I hope that I go really prematurely grey. (No way!)
✓ I download songs from the internet.	× I've just reenacted chapter 58 of Death Note with my best friend.	× I say random things to freak people out.
× I'm still a little mad about the ending of Death Note.	× I love playing Truth or Dare.	✓ I love listening to slow music, but I hate singing to it. (I like slow music, true. I hate singing in general, true.)
✓ Music helps me remember that I am not alone. (In a way, yes.)	× Playing my favorite sport makes me temporarily forget my problems.	✓ I think this survey is particularly long. (YES.. Why is this sooooooooooooooo long??????)
× I prefer my LJ friends to my real-life ones.	× I can only hate someone that I love.	× I've ordered an extra two shots of espresso to an Americano at Starbucks. (One shot of espresso already too lethal for me. No thanks.)

Irate

2005-12-13T15:06:12Z

I'm posting this on Livejournal because I don't want to post this on Blogspot since Trax has the latter on RSS.

This week has been positively boring for me... not that I didn't expect it, since Trax is in camp for re-service.

It hasn't been a particularly good day for me today also because I've been suffering from cramps like the whole days. (*Think PMS*). Spent the day sleeping, feeling lethargic, eating instant noodles, watching bits of TV, and continuously pm-ing people in Flowerpod to do my HYP survey.

And I'm quite sick of HYP thank you very much. Almost EVERYONE around me is stressed up over HYP while I'm slacking like hell. In fact, the fact that everyone else is stressed is making me stressed because I'm not as stressed as them. But why? I don't understand. Right now I'm collecting my 1st batch of survey results... should be hitting my target of 300 responses soon. In fact I'm feeling positively boh liao because there doesn't seem to be much that I can do for HYP now. Plus my 3 supervisors are all on holiday. I'm just very sianz because nobody seems to want to do anything else other than HYP. I can't meet up with M to practise Rach because he's doing HYP. I can't go out with J because she's doing HYP. I can't talk to Trax without a single conversation leaning towards his lack of expected results for HYP. ARGHHHH. Right now maybe the only person I can hope to be more 'normal' is J who's coming back from Australia on the 15th... but then she's flying off to Shanghai again on the 17th.

And I can't find it in me to start off doing something else productive.

OK. Today, I finally created my Livejournal site to sell my earrings. It's here. Quite boh liao, because it's a mirror of my site at Blogger. However I can't help but wonder if sales will increase if I start selling on LJ.

As a matter of fact, making accessories is a losing-money venture. Because I spend several hundreds buying the materials to make my stuff... half the time for myself, the other half the time to 'collect' those rare beads so that I can use them 'eventually'. I doubt I will ever re-coup or even earn a profit from selling accessories... just treat it as a hobby since I like making them. Plus I can build up my previously non-existent earrings collection... haha... now I can own earrings without having ear holes since I can customize all the ones I make for myself to be clip-ons.

Moving on to the real purpose of this post.

I'm actually quite upset.

Because Trax called me just now. He sounded positively sick on the phone, going awww every 3 seconds. Turns out his 'military activities' today resulted in him getting extreme sunburn. Plus the heat has made him get a fever and a severe headache, such that every sound he makes or hears makes his head throb, so much so that the guy stole out of camp to go home and sleep. Hope he recovers soon; I was telling him that he should get an MC tomorrow.

From the first day I knew him, he has never spoken well of the SAF. In my opinion, I think he has developed an irrational form of hatred for the SAF, much of it unwarranted. I always thought he was immature for having harbored thoughts of giving up his citizenship because of the SAF.

However, just from hearing the crap about his reservice these few days, I fear I'm starting to think of them in the same light.

From a girl's point of view: Why is the SAF justified in cutting a guy's hair when he will be in reservice for only a week, and the haircut is going to last him at least a couple of months? I feel equally sorry for those guys with dyed hair, because they actually dyed it black back for you forcibly. (And we all know how expensive it is to get hair dyed in Singapore).

It may be a very small matter to bring up, and maybe to most guys, inconsequential. However, I have very strong feelings towards such things, because I feel that whether your hair is long or short, is brown or blue, is a matter of personal right. That is why I personally strongly dislike some schools where I understand the policy is to have all female students have short hair. I refuse to accept that kind of policy, because it is a STUPID rule. It is a brainless rule because it discriminates everyone by the same policy; the objective of the rule is to ensure that students are neatly groomed - however, what is there to prevent girls from being having long hair if they take the responsibility to tie it up neatly? It's all a matter of personal responsibility, and if one is willing to take the responsibility, then one should be able to have long hair. However, these schools override all these by setting stupid rigid rules as such simply because they believe all students are inherently responsible and if allowed to have long hair, will all be untidy. Tell me, what kind of groundless assumption are they making?

I would never send my daughter to such a school. The same goes to schools which harbour other equally stupid rules such as a watch must not be branded, or even more ridiculusly, the watch face must not exceed than a certain area.

I fear, therefore, that I am developing the same antagonism towards the SAF now, because they seem to be exhibiting all signs of being an unreasonable and rigid organization, which is making and following rules for the sake of showing others they have rules.

Maybe I just like chaos, because chaos provides for variety.

Regardless. I'm annoyed. Very annoyed.

lcklmslm @ 2005-02-03T01:39:00

2005-02-02T17:43:55Z

Shifted blog to http://supra-being.blogspot.com.

lcklmslm @ 2005-01-25T18:47:00

2005-01-25T10:53:23Z

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Need a piano student to be taught by me free of charge. Between grades 1-6. Student has to provide a piano for use. Notify me if interested.

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Stupidity

2005-01-05T13:56:38Z

In a bind now, all because I had this absurd idea of conserving points during CORS bidding. As a result placed only 500 points for USE2301, thinking I should be able to get it (since the highest bid at that point in time was only 10???)

Well. Stupid. Now I've been outbidded and all vacancies have been snapped up. Which means even if I'm willing to dump everything I have now to bid I won't be able to get it this semester. Which leaves the only alternative to be Making of a Nation. Not that there aren't other modules, but they all have to clash with something else I want to do. Like Negotiating Moral Issues would be interesting, but it clashes with Management of Intellectual Property. Like if I take CS3253 (which I will) then I can't take CS1231 since the exams are back to back, with only one night's interval in between.

So WHY did I spend 3 years waiting for the Econs module if the end result is the same?? If I do Making of Nation I won't do USE2301 anymore since I only need one SS module.

I can literally watch all plans poof up in smoke.

A New Year... Yawnz

2005-01-03T07:25:55Z

I usually detest public holidays. One, because I dread going out for fear of meeting the crowds, or that all the shops are closed. Two, because there's nothing to do at home. Three, because I know I have to finish my work since it's a short break, but resent the fact that most people are taking the chance to hang out. So invariably, public holidays are spent holeing myself up in my own room sleeping, surfing the net, and generally squandering time away.

It's really bad, but over the course of the holidays, I've developed this warped sleeping pattern. Namely, sleeping at 3am, then waking up at 12-1pm the next day. And still feeling damn lethargic after so many hours of sleep. And for this period of time, it's a sleepy routine which additionally includes reading the newspapers fervently, and watching CNN. Because of the tsunami disaster. Somehow, I'm just attracted to natural disaster stories. I remember this has been a habit I started acquring dunno how many years ago. Kobe Earthquake, SQ air crash, Twin Towers collapse, Taiwan earthquake... I used to chase the news about these events a long time ago, and I'm doing the same for the latest tsunami disaster as well. I tend to consciously pick out the bits that detail how survivors, well, survived. You never know what information you can learn from these tidbits here and there, which might come in handy when travelling. Muahahaha... I'm just a travel freak... who believes that she'll meet an early demise one day while travelling...

Because this IS the first entry of the New Year, I shall NOT make any new year resolutions. No point, since I will never keep them. We'll see how this year goes. Horoscopes tell me that it's a turbulent year for the Taurus this year, with plenty of upheavals. Well, whatever. I can only say, I trust the Temple's lots much better than mass-produced horoscopes, since the former is, minimally, individually 'personalized and customized', as opposed to the latter, which is 'one size fits all'.

Been doing nothing these days other than going out shopping, smirking at the high prices, then becoming convinced that Singapore is a lousy place to live in when one goes to work since so much stuff is unaffordable. Made several 'star buys' from sales here and there, so feeling rather poor now again. (*Hint: please do not propose going to extremely high-end places for lunch/dinner/tea unless you're treating me..). Frankly speaking, there is nothing much to really wish for in the new year... all those wishes I have are merely old wishes, whose possibility for ulfillment commenced long before the start of this new year.

And... I'm really a pig lolz. The Mogu pillow, which was a Christmas present, is now beckoning me to the bed, and I'm so tempted to go sleep again. Oh no....

Updates for the past few days

2004-12-24T14:29:37Z

Haven't updated for these few days. Been much too tired. Fell asleep the minute I touched the bed for the past 2 days.

Wednesday. Went JB by bus with Trax. The original aim was to hang around City Square, catch some movie and shop at FOS. Then eat as much as possible.

Unfortunately, going there took a lot more bother than expected (including smelling bus fumes on the Causeway). We left Kranji MRT on 170 at 8:15am in the morning, and had successfully crossed the Causeway by 9:00am. Hanged around the shops beside City Square, eventually picking a particular coffeeshop to have wonton noodles for breakfast. So, by the time we tried to enter City Square, it was already 9:45am. But guess what? The entire shopping center was locked and closed. Apparrently City Square only opens at 10am. So we got a cab to Holiday Plaza instead.

Unfortunately, the same scenario greeted us at Holiday Plaza, so we had a second breakfast at Macdonald's instead (which was the only other thing open besides Guardian Farmasi). The shops slowly opened between the 10-11am period. Was trying to look for a cheap pair of ballet pumps, to no avail (I'm still very sore at having missed the Shoebox sale! Their shoes look really nice! )However, made the unexpected discovery that VOV cosmetics are like 50% cheaper in JB than than in Singapore. Didn't buy much in the end, only one box of eyeshadow, an eye pencil and a packet of biscuits. Was so tempted by all the cheap packages offered by the numerous hair salons, but resisted.

Went back to City Square pretty quickly as we were super bored. Thereby commenced another round of aimless walking around, including a trip to FOS. But bought only one top in the end, because they were either all out of size, or all faulty. And this top wasn't even an Abercrombie top!! Came back to Singapore after that (no mood to watch any movie liaoz) and proceed to FOS in Marina Square! Yeah! Bought a pretty nice, plain Abercrombie top finally! Dinner was at Fish & Co, and seriously, by the time were were done, my legs were so damn tired and my shoulders aching that I was only too happy to go home. Flopped onto the bed, and immediately started snoozing. Well, almost.

Stuff from the 'JB' trip.

Yesterday, was, unfortunately even worse. Other than going for piano lesson early in the morning, then discovered that Mrs See had made a mistake and arranged 2 students to come at the same time and thus rescheduling my lesson in the end. Went shopping with Mum at the Mango sale and squeezed through 5 outlets, and in the process made myself bankrupt. Ended the day with a trip to U2 to buy pants and got another 2 tops... on mum's account since she wanted the pants.

Spoils from the Mango sale.

And as for today, went to Kimage to dye and cut my hair.

So I'm having an extremely boring Xmas eve. And tomorrow is xmas.... but also the day results are released. Arghh!!!! Enough said.

Ironic

2004-12-15T16:51:21Z

A friend wanted a photo of me and Trax together. That prompted a search for photos of us together.

Hmm.

In the time we've known each other, the Europe trips in total, between the two of us, produced a total of 6,348 photos. And out of these photos, there something like 6 photos of us together.

That's pathetic. A rate of 0.1%.

Fast forward. Back to Singapore.

Ys's convocation, took 1 picture together. Cable car date, 3.

So now, our total number of couple portraits = 10.

Hahaha.

The irony is I have lots of pictures of him alone, and him of me alone. But we never ever take pictures together, it seems.