Fast Car

Song of the Day: Tracy Chapman - Fast Car

My brother once told me that if you think that time is flying way too fast, it is a sign of aging. So, yeah. I guess I'm definitely aging then.

March already? Oh my good Lord!

"Time waits for no one, it goes on without you"

No truer words, I say.

So, it's back to college for me. I am getting lazier and lazier these days. The semester has already started for two whole days but I have yet to attend any classes. Yeap! I am really living up to the year of the PIG.

Oscars was two days back. I am one of those few people who is fascinated with the Academy Awards. It's no surprise since movies are my forte and passion, I guess. Of course, I was rooting for my McDreamy, Leo to win Best Actor's Award but alas, Forrest Whitaker took it instead. Kudos to Jennifer Hudson aka American-Idol-reject-turned-actress who went on to shock America (and me) by winning Best Supporting Actress in her first ever major starring role. Wow! Talk about dreams-coming-true!

Leading up to the Oscars, I had my personal devotion by having an Oscar Marathon. I watched Lost in Translation and Crash, both notable movies in past Oscars. LIT was interesting as it showcases two complete American strangers striking a comforting friendship while in Japan. I guess it goes to show that when you're in a strange land, familiarity does not breed contempt.

The other movie, Crash tells a weaving tale of several characters connected through different circumstances in Los Angeles but the main crux of the plot was the emphasis that though human beings have different races, religions and social circles, our lives are intertwined whether we liked it or not. It's a powerful yet provocative movie that speaks volume about how the world works today.

Aside from these Oscar related movies, I also watched several others: Rent, The Wedding Date, Sisterhood of the Travelling Pants and Heroes (TV Show). My favourite thus far would be Rent. It's a musical if you are not aware of it. Aside from the fact that I like musicals, Rent pulls to me as it held a very significant point that as humans, we should be allowed to live life however we choose, be it lesbians, gays or transexuals. Because of the stigma that society has imprinted on stereotypes, these fraction of society could not even walk down the street without being side-glanced. At the end of the day, they are humans just like everybody else, no?

On a lighter note, let's revert to my other passion: Football! Whoopee! MU is 9 points clear of Chelsea with 10 more games to play throughout the season. The title is nearly in our hands! I say, it's about time! [FYI: Chelsea won the last two seasons]

These next few weeks will be really hectic for me. Aside from college and classes, I am involved in two AIESEC projects that will be held in March: YV and AP Night. I hope I have time to blog still.

Gotta enjoy while it lasts. Time waits for no one. It goes on without you...............

Where'd You Go

Song of the day: Fort Minor - Where'd You Go



Red, red and red galore! Mandarin oranges galore! Cookies galore! Hong pau galore! Yeap. It's KONG-HEI-FATT-CHOY time again.


Sadly to say, this year will be my last CNY celebration in M'sia. Not exactly last last (it's not as if I won't be coming back to M'sia in the near future) but rather, my last because next year I would not be around. Sigh. I will be missing all those ang pau's and kuih-carpet and yee sang and nga-koo peng. So, to compensate for it, I will be eating lots and lots of it this year. Don't be shocked to see me gaining a few pounds. Sigh. The things I do for the sake of FOOD!


Oh, I finally finished my internship in KPMG! On my last day, I had mixed feelings. Part of me was happy and elated as I would not need to wake up at 7am in the morning anymore. Part of me was sad that it had to end. I met a couple of people whom are pretty cool and it's regretful that we could not develop a friendship beyond that of colleagues. I mean, we did promise to keep in touch and all but, seriously ...... it's hard when you hardly see other right? Anyway, it was a memorable experience. Thanks KPMG.


The next day was a Friday. My pre-plan was to go visit KDU College with Amy and Taya. But, I had to cancel at the eleventh hour. Instead, I went for a marketing simulation organized specifically for the YV marketing team. In the night, I finally met up with Amy and Taya to have dinner at Williams. After dinner, we dropped Amy home as me and Taya had a drinking party to attend at Hillpark (yeap...again.)


That Friday was Jim's 21st birthday. Of course, we had a drinking party! This time around though, I had no excuse not to drink. Unfortunately, I'm not much of a drinker as hence, was cautious with the amount of intake I took. The main appetizer that night was some cheap-ass liquer which believe me, could do you more harm the morning after that save you a couple of dollars. My advice? If you want to drink, splurge for the good ones. You'll do your stomach a huge favour.




The drunkards - except for Suek Yee and Michelle who was MIA.


That weekend was movie marathon for Mich and me. Saturday, we went to MidV to watch Babel (which was good if you like dramatic shows by the way) and on Sunday, we went to the Curve to catch The Holiday (which was also good if you dig romance/comedy shows).


Wednesday, 14th Feb - The Dreaded Day aka V-Day


Yeap. The day where singlehood becomes a whole new nightmare. It's bad enough that we're single but do you have to shout it out to our faces?? I mean, it's so overrated. Couples should declare their love for each other every single day, not just on V-Day! To me, it's just a marketing gimmick and we've all fallen foolishly for it. Did I say "we"? I meant, you people. Lucky couples.


Anyway, how did I spent my lonesome V-Day? Sadly to say, on the bus travelling to Penang. The night before, I decided that I will follow Mich to Penang for a few days. I mean, who want's to spend V-Day all alone in KL right? So we left Pudu at 2.30pm and only reached Penang at 8.30pm. 6 bloody hours! On V-Day! On the miserable bus! BUT .......... it was well worth it. What better way to spend V-Day but with equally single friends whose company you enjoy in Penang? Exactly! After dinner, we went to Batu Ferringhi to purchase some DVD's and later lounged out at Golden Sands' beach area listening to sappy love songs. And that was how I "endured" my V-Day.


The next day, we went to Gurney Plaza to catch Ghost Rider (which was pretty disappointing if you expected a lot but was ok if you don't put in any expectations). Then, we went out to eat authentic Penang hawker food (char koay teow and cendol) before deciding to go visit Rene and Varun's alma mater: St Xavier's Institution.






Hah. Proof that I went there. Apparently, it's the oldest La Salle in M'sia.




Later, we went to the longest mall in Penang: Queensbay Mall! I must say, it was pretty impressive. Kinda like MidV. About 10pm, we left to have our dinner at New Lane (Penang's food paradise) and finally called it a night. Actually, after watching Deuce Bigalow: European Gigolo on DVD, only then I called it a night. C'mon. It was our last night in Penang! I don't want to sleep at 12am!


Anyway, that was my second trip to Penang in 2 months. I'm beginning to like Penang more and more. It's got the charms of an old colonial town, food that is "quite" comparable to Ipoh, the lifestyle of KL and most importantly, the beautiful stretch of beaches. Hmm, how much does property cost in Penang again?


Ipoh is still my home-sweet-home of course. Nothing beats that.


[background music: "Ipoh Mari" from Point Blanc and Jaclyn Victor]








But still .....

The Next Episode

Song of the Day: Dr. Dre feat Snoop Dog - The Next Episode

It's a lazy Sunday afternoon. I just spent last night reading one of the best romance novels that I had come across in a while. It's called 'Small Town Girl' by Lavyrle Spencer. It's about this country superstar who has to return to her small-town and confront what she has left behind so long time ago. Naturally, it involves family and a spice of romance with the boy-next-door. I read it all within 24 hours. There's another similar novel which has become one of my all-time favourites, 'Night Swimming' by Laura Moore. I just love these kind of plots. Homecoming themes. Falling in love with the boy from yesteryears. Family values. Hmm. So romantic!

Maybe it's because V-Day is coming and all, these days I feel the urge to read lots and lots of romance novels. I've always loved reading them but for the past few months, I've been too busy to even pick up any book at all [Textbooks not included]. I can't wait for my holidays to start so that I can spend valuable time catching up on my favourite past time. Which also includes being a couch potato. Oh, the amount of TV I need to watch when I get back home!! I've been so unattuned to TV-Land recently and I miss my tube! No wonder my Dad resents the fact that whenever I come home, he would never be able to watch his golf tournaments because I'll be hogging the remote control all the time. Oh well. Sorry, Dad!

4 more days in KPMG to go. Hooray! Don't get me wrong. I do not despise working in KPMG in particular but more like the fact that I'm working at all. As a good friend of mine once said, "You're gonna spend the rest of your life working anyway, why not enjoy your life as a student now?"

So, after this experience, I am going to live up to it! I'm gonna cherish my year and half left of student life thoroughly. That means, lepaking, lepaking and more lepaking. Hehe.

I just heard some great news the other day. My chances of gaining a scholarship to University of Queensland is pretty high. Given my GPA of 6.75 out of a possible 7.00, I must admit the prospect looked kinda good too. [grin]. I'm seriously gonna go to Brisbane! Yay!

Funny thing was, I already assumed that I was going to be there already. In fact, I sorta made vacation plans with my buddies already and all. Haha. Gold Coast, people! Summer of 2007! Keep yourselves free!

I can just imagine the kind of fun we will have there. From our past experiences, I dare to say that we will be talking about it for the rest of our lives. Along with the many others we have had: Ipoh, Malacca, Penang etc.

Pics from our past trips:

In my humble 'kandang' in Ipoh. Best memory? Gua Tempurung!! [For those of you who has not been there especially those who has lived in Ipoh for the past 20 years, it's really worth the rm20 that you pay for the full experience! Mark my words!]

In EK's car, crunched up at the back in Malacca. We were on our way to eat ikan bakar in some kampung near town. Best memory? Dancing and drinking at Pure Bar!

Outside Gurney Plaza in Penang. Best memory? Watching fireworks to usher in the New Year of 2006 at Esplanade.

The trip that started the ball rolling: Pulau Kapas! So many memorable moments. Best memory? Our Mission-Impossible scene at Masjik Jamek LRT Station. Pure classic!

So anyone ready for Gold Coast yet??

Lonely

Song of the Day: Shannon Noll - Lonely

It's February. Already. God, time is passing by so quickly. Before you can blink, it's going to be March. Then, April. May. June. JULY!!!

July will be the month I say goodbye to Malaysia.

[sob sob]

I know. I know. I should be excited. In fact, I am! But deep down inside, there's this emotion swimming around too. It's called wariness. I'm wary about the fact that I would not be able to adapt to overseas life. I'm wary that I will not be able to click well with my peers. I'm wary that I will not be able to chill and hang out like now. I'm wary about everything.

Wariness aside, let's focus on the NOW.

Today is a god-sent holiday. Working life has definitely taken its toll on me. I am so sick of waking up at 6.45am everyday for the past 2 months. In a week's time? I will be FREE! WHooPee! Then, I will be able to truly enjoy my holidays. Be a couch potato! Read all the books I want! Sleep late!

Yesterday, I went to Reshmonu's free outdoor concert in Laundry. The artist himself was larger than life (or rather his hair was) but I must admit that I did enjoy his concert (though I missed a big part of the 1st set). C'mon. He sang two of my all-time favourites: Al Green 'Let's Stay Together' and Inner Circle 'A la la la la long'. How could I not like it? But seriously, he dedicated the latter song to his parents? Erm... have you heard the lyrics of the chorus?

"Girl, I wanna make you SWEAT

SWEAT till you can't SWEAT no more

And if you CRY out

I'm gonna PUSH it some more, more...."

Exactly! But it's a cool song. I like it!

Laundry's crowd is SOOO COOOL. Yuppies and celebs galore. An abundance of cute and hunky guys. Loud, popular tunes. My cute waiter-guy. It's definitely my favourite place to hang out, drink and chill with friends. Plus, their nachos is fantastic!

Here are some pics from yesterday:



If you look intently, you can see the word Laundry on the menu that Michelle is holding to cover her face.



The Curve decorations for CNY was so pretty. I could not resist taking a pic.

Another soon-to-be-favourite place of mine to chill on a lazy weekend would be Shook! in Star Hill Gallery. Last Saturday, after a round of shopping at KLCC and Sg. Wang while being a tour guide to 3 interns of different nationalities (Dutch, South Korean and New Zealander), we ended up at aforementioned place. Though the drinks are a bit pricey (I had sherry! Which turned out to be an old lady's drink. Damn), the ambience and music are what makes that place great. Plus, they play jazz classics that I enjoyed very much. And their bathroom was pretty much an attraction by itself.

This past week or so, I have been listening intently to my mp3s while working. Some of the lyrics that caught my ear ......

"Everytime I think bout it, I pinch myself 'cause

I don't believe it's true that someone like you loves me too"

Babyface, Everytime I Close My Eyes

"Love and marriage go together like a horse and carriage"

Frank Sinatra, Love and Marriage

"Thought I was alone with no one to hold,

but you were always right beside me"

OST High School Musical, What I've Been Looking For

"Winter, spring, summer or fall,

all you gotta do is call"

James Taylor, You've Got A Friend

"For every piece of me that wants you,

another piece backs away"

James Morrison - You Give Me Something

"Was I invading in on your secrets, was I too close for comfort,

you're pushing me out when I wanted in"

McFly, Too Close For

"Don't you know you fool, you never can win,

Use your mentality, step up to reality"

Michael Buble, I've Got You Under My Skin

"If you like Pina Colada, getting caught in the rain,

if you're not into yoga, if you have half a brain"

Ruppert Holmes, Pina Colada

"Now is not the right time to get serious,

I don't wanna seem mysterious"

Fatima Rainey, Hey

"We're just ordinary people,

we don't know which way to go,

cause we're ordinary people,

maybe we should take it slow"

John Legend, Ordinary People

Damn. I love music.